some observations (economy)

[d-r]

Greetings from the villas at wilderness lodge. The lodge is in its Christmas splendor as always.

I've noticed some things from the economy the last few days.

Some, from the dining plan, have been going on for a while, especially at the counter services, like prefab deserts and like chicken nuggets instead of fingers. At the studios the other day, children's meal chicken nuggets were the even cheaper "parts is parts" kind of nuggets. No corn at flametree bbq. We noticed in Oct. that figaro fries don't have tomatoes and ranch anymore. Now the children's meals don't come in little "Mickey shaped" plates anywhere.

They are trying to do all they can not to lay people off. They are extending the "buy 4 days get 3 free" dates, and are about to add more pin code emails. The only Christmas party to sell out is this Friday night, the 19th.

The crowds haven't really started yet. At epcot there was a long line for the visa card characters, but short for the character connection (both relative). The crowds will pick up a lot by this weekend.

One thing that is amazing to me. Across all property, all tshirts, caps, mugs are 40% off. I did my part and bought a lodge and a dvc tshirt (both made in the USA). All Christmas ornaments and decorations are 50% off everywhere. Before Christmas! Think about it! They are really trying to sell stuff. It shows guests haven't been buying, yes, every tshirt on property is 40% off.

they have new strollers at mk and studios, dak and epcot still have the old ones. the new ones are khaki and a little smaller.

 

[aurorafan]

When we were there last week the meals were still in mickey ear plates, at least at AKL. I'm trying to remember if we got a kids meal at any other CS places besides the hotel...

I'm so bummed that the big sale started after we left! I surely would have done my part to help their economy .

 

[alldiz]

Yes....things are bad all over...I hope they don't lose the magic
Kerri

 

[ADP]

Some of you maybe aware of the merchandise sale going on right now al through Disney property.

50% off all Christmas ornaments, tree skirts, and Christmas hats
40% off all T-Shirts, baseball hats
25% off all Crocs
In additon you still get your 10% off at Downtown Disney's World of Disney store.

People were snatching up ornaments by the truckloads when I was at DTD this past Monday night.

I've never seen such an aggressive merchandise sale by Disney. Seeing this is proof merchandise sales are down. As for crowds...They are still there. It was pretty busy last week for this time of year. In addition, getting a DVC room was nearly impossible for last week. That tells me people are still coming to the parks, but not spending as much as they used to for merchandise.

 

[tjkraz]

Thanks for the report. The little cuts are painful but I guess some are justified if they save a few jobs.

Of course, cutting out the plastic Mickey plates means jobs lost at the plastic Mickey plate factory.

The only Christmas party to sell out is this Friday night, the 19th.

I don't think that's true. WDWMagic.com listed the parties for both 12/9 and 12/16 as also being sold-out.

The crowds haven't really started yet. At epcot there was a long line for the visa card characters, but short for the character connection (both relative). The crowds will pick up a lot by this weekend.

There were a number of reports last week from people who had just returned and were shocked at the unexpectedly large size of the crowds. So I think there may be some ebb-and-flow at work. Thanksgiving thru the first full week of December seem to be pretty busy...then things slow down a bit before the holiday kicks-in.

I have heard that guest spending is down, but with trips being planned months in advance I don't think attendance is expected to take a hit until after the first of the year.

 

[keishashadow]

im sure they will tighten their belts where they can

imo, the food quality/offerings started to decline the 2nd year of the DP

think those that had Xmas planned @ the World will keep it intact (if they can @ all swing it); next year will be the true tale of how 'off' the crowds will be...i.e. even more promos

 

[smep013]

I sure hope the ornaments are on sale in January as well.
I will LOAD UP!

 

[jcf]

While I cancelled Poly Club room and shifted money to add-on at BLT. The $$ in light of my now tiny 401k plus the circus crowds the week after Christmas just scared me. Couldn't see spending 8k and then be miserable.

 

[np4gp]

It is good to see that some people understand that Disney is not recession proof. After reading several people's posts/complaints about the changes in the Merry Member Mixer (i.e. one ornament per family, one goody per person, etc), I thought people really believed that Disney didn't have to make cut backs. I avoided playing devil's advocate on that thread for fear of being flamed, but it seems like people on this thread recognize that the economy is effecting even the Mouse. I know DVC members pay a lot of money into DVC and we expect a certain level of appreciation and little extras, but not at the cost of anyone's jobs...
DH and and I enjoyed taking advantage of the sale this past week at the ESPN store in DTD. We did see Mickey Ear plates at the CS restaurant in the Poly on the 11th. I heard the father comment that they now had a whole set of Mickey kids' plates. It could just be some restaurants??
I live in Orlando so anything that takes a toll on the World takes, even if only a small one, a toll on our city...I, for one, support anything they do to keep the people coming.

 

[disneynutz]

The problem with cut backs anywhere, Disney or Walmart, is that once they cut back, they usually never restore things to the way they were.

 

[lck33]

I agree that the cutbacks are noticeable. I hope that Disney does however, know where to draw the line. A downslide of quality will ultimately effect the park attendance as well. I am not talking about perks but rather everyday normal maintanence, quality of food, and of course service. Lay off more CM's and service and morale will decline. Decrease the quality of food and more people will not eat in the parks or purchase the dining plans. Tis true that people with money will still travel and expect more for that same money during an economic recession. Struggling families will more than likely postpone all vacations in lieu of paying their mortgage. Again, I just hope Disney knows where the line is and that our homes remain our magical safe havens.

 

[Tiger926]

It's amazing to me that they would cut back on dining items such as plates, chicken, etc. when they make a lot of profit on those meals. Restaurant employees in Orlando make like $2.00/hour. Here in Ontario, our minimum wage is like $9.00/hour and we haven't started to see these types of cuts yet. I come from a restaurant family and you have to be very careful when doing this type of thing. Sure the Mickey head plates is a good cost cutting measure as there isn't much value in presentation at a counter service restaurant, plus they end up in garbage (although good point above that this means less jobs at the plastic factory who makes the plates), so less recycling to worry about as well, but messing with food that is already unedible is a dangerous move, IMHO.

Disney is not recession proof, I don't think anyone is, but they need to be very careful with how they implement changes.

Tiger

 

[snowbunny]

They are extending the "buy 4 days get 3 free" dates

Interesting, where did you hear that? WDW website still says it goes through June 27.

 

[tjkraz]

The problem with cut backs anywhere, Disney or Walmart, is that once they cut back, they usually never restore things to the way they were.

I think Disney has done a pretty good job of bringing back things in the past. We started frequenting WDW around 2002 when our kids were young. That was shortly after 9/11 and the crowds were still lacking for the first couple of years we were making frequent trips.

During that period a lot of cuts were evident--things like:

* Theme parks with phased openings (Adventureland opened later than the rest of the MK)
* No EMH
* No daily fireworks at MK
* Few public character meet-and-greets
* Entire resort hotels closed for "refurbishment"
* Attractions running at less than capacity
* Stage shows blacked out frequently or with few daily performances
* Seasonal attractions like CoP, Timekeeper

AFAIK, these cuts were all remedied once attendance reached better levels. I really don't want to see my experience impacted since I'm still paying at least as much for a park ticket as last year (and the year before, and the year before), but hopefully most of the cuts are temporary.

Dining is an entirely different situation and it's hard to even point the finger at the economy. The DDP has been causing that element to spiral downward for years now. Guess that just means more meals in our villa or off-site.

 

[DisFlan]

Dining is an entirely different situation and it's hard to even point the finger at the economy. The DDP has been causing that element to spiral downward for years now. Guess that just means more meals in our villa or off-site.

I totally agree. The diminished dining experience can't be blamed only on the economy - it was already headed downward.

And I agree that WDW bounces back well when things turn for the better. We've watched it through 30 years of ups and downs, and it comes back pretty well. Not always immediately, but it'll get there. I don't think we've seen the worst of the current problem, so I'd guess we're in for a least a couple of years of cut backs. We'll still go and make the best of it - and enjoy it as usual. WDW at its lowest point has always been better than no WDW at all.

DisFlan

 

[desmar9]

Just returned from VWL today (so sad to come back to heaps of snow). But I was also really surprised at the sales going on. We got there on 12/12, no sale - but then sales went up on 12/13. Yes, I bought tshirts and ornaments! Also noticed last night that the holiday bag that they were selling for $10.00 w/ a $40 purchase could now be purchased for $5 w/ no min. purchase. I've never been down this close to Christmas before so I didn't know if it was a sale they usually run right before Christmas, but I guess it's all new this year because of the economy.

 

[CarolA]

Is it just me?

I looked at that sale going on.... Looked at that merchandise.... bought NADA!

Sorry Disney I know you need the money, but you need cuter stuff! (And every lady buying is not 12 and wants a 'baby doll' tee! LOL!)

 

[WDWorld2003]

I agree - I never see anything I like for myself when I go to Disney. I would love to see merchandise with a more subtle Mickey or WDW on merchandise.

 

[rantnnravin]

Is it just me?
(And every lady buying is not 12 and wants a 'baby doll' tee! LOL!)

That's what those were?! and here I was wondering why they started selling bras

 

[MiaSRN62]

There were a number of reports last week from people who had just returned and were shocked at the unexpectedly large size of the crowds. So I think there may be some ebb-and-flow at work.

Two friends just returned this week and they were quite suprised at how crowded it was from past Dec's. They go this time almost every year.

tjkraz :I think Disney has done a pretty good job of bringing back things in the past. We started frequenting WDW around 2002 when our kids were young. That was shortly after 9/11 and the crowds were still lacking for the first couple of years we were making frequent trips.

As an owner at OKW, I've seen cutbacks over the years that never came back and are in a large part, some of the reasons I am choosing to not extend the OKW contract and possibly sell my contract and purchase more points at another resort. I miss the character breakfast at Olivia's.....then no more takeout at Olivia's......and less and less do I see the Turtle Shack snack stand open. Food options have declined rapidly at OKW. Goods To Go closes at 10 pm, while other resorts have food options available to them up to 11 or even midnight. When parks close late and we come back to the resort, we like to have the option to get a snack. Then does anyone remember when the Disney characters used to visit the resorts for photo ops at certain scheduled times ? Loved that. I'm pretty sure that ended around 2002 or 2003 ? I think that was a temporary fix for discontinuing E-Nights ?

tjkraz: these cuts were all remedied once attendance reached better levels. I really don't want to see my experience impacted since I'm still paying at least as much for a park ticket as last year (and the year before, and the year before), but hopefully most of the cuts are temporary.

Dining is an entirely different situation and it's hard to even point the finger at the economy. The DDP has been causing that element to spiral downward for years now.

We still miss E-Nights. EMH's are just not as good ---so much more crowded. I'd rather pay the $12 extra per person and have less people crowded into the parks. I doubt they'll ever come back. And I 100% agree, that DDP has decreased the whole dining experience in WDW.

And Carol...yes...merchandise. What bugs me is almost EVERY shop (whether in the hotels, the parks or DD, most are all just cookie-cutters of eachother. The same merchandise over and over. It would be so nice to see some unique, innovative items in some of the shops.) I guess it's just cheaper for disney to manufacture the same thing over and over and stuff the same thing in all the shops. Just adds up to boring and non-inspiring shopping experience for the guests. Especially the frequent guest, such as myself (we visit 2-3 times a year since 1995 or so).