There shouldn't be any additional charge to park hop

[flicx]

And again... what other goal does a company have but financial gain? Why does there ever have to be any other reason other than financial gain?

Financial gain is good, in of itself. Companies don't need to pretend they're about anything else (though they often do, because for some reason certain elements of our culture thinks money is icky).

So long as attendance rises and profits rise, everything's on track and the company's doing exactly what it's supposed to do.



This is a trip planning board, not a "let's vent about Disney" board. If you haven't spent a dollar on Disney in "years", and don't plan to ever give them another dime, then "Why are you here?" is actually a legitimate question.

Of course, the answer might be, "I hate Disney so much, I'm on this trip planning board hoping to convince others to cancel their upcoming trips," and that would be legitimate in it's own way. Since, as you say, people have lots of reasons for being here.

You sound like Gordon gecko" greed is good speech". Please you need to dig up the by laws of the site for me, some how I must have overlooked the rule that you can't comment on what you think Disney's motive for changing something was. By the way why did you even look on this thread anyhow? Obviously the OP was venting about the problem to begin with. Maybe you should find a planning thread some where instead of coming to a thread that isn't one! Maybe I should ask the same question that was posed to me why are you here?

 

[g3pak]

I am reminded of a friend telling me years ago "they need to lower Eisner's salary so that they can lower the price of admission to WDW." He didn't agree with me when I told him Eisner's salary had no effect on what disney charges at the gate.

Truth is they would charge $400 per day for a ticket if Disney determined if would get them the maximum profit.

 

[cigar95]

. . . . My point is they made the change for financial gain nothing else. Not this ruse that somehow they did to make it suit the customer better.

Meeting customers needs is the single best way to increase revenue. Having *more* customers typically raises revenue more than convincing the same number of customers to spend more.

 

[TDC Nala]

It's extra at Universal too. A two-park pass costs more than a one-park pass. Don't get how charging extra for admission to extra parks is a "rip off."

It's been noted that Universal is not even going to allow guests to board the "Hogwarts Express" if they do not have a two-park ticket. It's going to be one-way only, no round trips. So tickets will be checked before the guest even boards the train.

 

[cigar95]

As for the Hogswarts Express, there will be plenty of signage and again, if it drops you off in the middle of another theme park and you know that you have to pay to get into both parks, then again one would hope common sense would prevail.

And at a later date, there will be a "transit" option that will allow guests with non-hoppers to ride the train but not exit at the other park. They'll just ride back to where they started.
This is similar to boarding the monorail at the Disneyland Hotel, where for a small fee you can ride in a car whose door does not open in Tomorrowland. You then return to the hotel station.

 

[TDC Nala]

I certainly haven't seen anythign that says they are going to allow round-trip rides on the Hogwarts Express. I've seen the exact opposite. Unless that is just to deal with the crowds they are expecting in the opening months.

 

[cigar95]

I certainly haven't seen anythign that says they are going to allow round-trip rides on the Hogwarts Express. I've seen the exact opposite. Unless that is just to deal with the crowds they are expecting in the opening months.

Certainly not happening right away. But eventually - which could mean a decade, for all we know. Depends on just how popular the attraction turns out to be, and how much capacity is needed.

 

[Magpie]

You sound like Gordon gecko" greed is good speech". Please you need to dig up the by laws of the site for me, some how I must have overlooked the rule that you can't comment on what you think Disney's motive for changing something was. By the way why did you even look on this thread anyhow? Obviously the OP was venting about the problem to begin with. Maybe you should find a planning thread some where instead of coming to a thread that isn't one! Maybe I should ask the same question that was posed to me why are you here?

Why did I "look on" this thread? Because I found the title interesting, and I wondered what the OPs justification was for saying there shouldn't be any additional charge to park hop.

Why did I stay? Because the "It's all just GREED!" and "$$$$$$!" comments amuse me.

Greed isn't good. Because greed drives people away. Sound business practice, focussed on profits, actually IS good, however, because it brings more customers to your door and keeps your company growing and thriving. Disney is not "greedy".

Disney IS growing and thriving. Profits are up and the number of visitors continues to increase every year. If they can raise ticket prices without reducing the number of folks through the front gates, that's great. More profit means more money they can use to expand (including experimenting with crowd control aka FP+ and building new resorts), which will bring in more visitors.

People are happy, they give Disney their money, and Disney grows ever bigger. It's a win-win-win situation - for almost everyone.

By the way, you didn't answer the question of why you're here. I was being facetious when I suggested that one answer to that question might be a desire to convince other people to boycott Disney the way you've been doing for years. Was I correct, after all?

 

[flicx]

Why did I "look on" this thread? Because I found the title interesting, and I wondered what the OPs justification was for saying there shouldn't be any additional charge to park hop.

Why did I stay? Because the "It's all just GREED!" and "$$$$$$!" comments amuse me.

Greed isn't good. Because greed drives people away. Sound business practice, focussed on profits, actually IS good, however, because it brings more customers to your door and keeps your company growing and thriving. Disney is not "greedy".

Disney IS growing and thriving. Profits are up and the number of visitors continues to increase every year. If they can raise ticket prices without reducing the number of folks through the front gates, that's great. More profit means more money they can use to expand (including experimenting with crowd control aka FP+ and building new resorts), which will bring in more visitors.

People are happy, they give Disney their money, and Disney grows ever bigger. It's a win-win-win situation - for almost everyone.

By the way, you didn't answer the question of why you're here. I was being facetious when I suggested that one answer to that question might be a desire to convince other people to boycott Disney the way you've been doing for years. Was I correct, after all?

Ah yes but you betray yourself. You have helped no one plan a better vacation. Your business model is unsound in many people eyes. I could care less if people decide to go to Disney or not, I don't have a dog in that hunt. I am here for the same reason as many to find out what good things and bad things are going on at Disney and if a trip is gonna be worthwhile agin!

 

[HopperFan]

Thanks to everyone for the clarification about the busses. Has this always been true? I have not ridden a WDW bus other than to go to MK in about 5 years, and I swear that I was told by the folks at my resort on several trips that these busses did not exist. I was told to either come back to my resort or change busses at the TTC. Heck, I think that I remember reading the same thing on this web site a few years ago.

There has been transportation between the parks since 1982 when EPCOT opened. If you look at the backs of old tickets it was clearly offered since then. My memory seems to think for a while though, a long time ago, it was only for Disney hotel guests, I remember showing a room key to board the bus. Then it became a perk of a ticket.

Thanks - I just remember that we had 10 day tickets the year before and could hop. The next year we had 10 day tickets w/o the new "hoppers" (we couldn't afford them), and our ticket prices weren't much lower, if at all. But these memories are old and non-specific, so I could be wrong.

After MGM opened is when they began trying all different options for tickets. The 90's had tickets that hopped and did not, with lots of changes over the decade between opening of MGM and AK. Then Magic Your Way started in 2005. Looks like 10 day tickets started in 2005 with Hopper as an option with MYW. Here is an interesting resource for tickets with prices and photos of the options http://allears.net/tix/ticketdesc.htm.

 

[Magpie]

Ah yes but you betray yourself. You have helped no one plan a better vacation. Your business model is unsound in many people eyes. I could care less if people decide to go to Disney or not, I don't have a dog in that hunt. I am here for the same reason as many to find out what good things and bad things are going on at Disney and if a trip is gonna be worthwhile agin!

Thank you for answering the question!

I frequently offer touring tips and useful links in these threads, whenever I see an opportunity. Today, I actually helped inform someone about the park-to-park busses (they didn't realize there was comprehensive bus transportation to all parks), and they say they're now going to be able to save the money they normally spend on a car rental. Which is awesome!

I'm also actively planning for my next trip in April, and keeping an eye on the boards to see what's new.

When I have no trip planned, I don't come to these boards. If I hadn't just visited to Disney this past December, I wouldn't be spending as much time here, either, as I would feel that I had no relevant experience to offer people.

This is, after all, a trip planning board. If I just want fun debate, I can go to Reddit and debate on a myriad of topics (including Disney, actually).

 

[supergoofy]

By this logic the price for a ticket should be the same for any theme park but Disney charges you more for going to the MK.

And by that logic why are kids cheaper? They take up the same space on a ride as an adult?

And lastly why is the Grand Floridian so much more then All Stars? Both are hotels after all.


Like said Disney sees value in it and people are willing to pay for it.

 

[Tink-n-Belle]

Yes the tickets were called park hoppers....and there was no charge.... And the tickets never expired and there was no charge for that either.

I wish I knew that things would of changed because I would of bought tons of the old tickets. ...in fact I have some from 2005---10 day hoppers with no expiration that cost me $273 with water parks....that ticket now 9 years later is $672 apprx. I'm glad I'm a FL resident that can get a weekday pass for 228 that's good for a year except summers and Xmas and Easter. The fl res deal for a 4 day pass is $190 and has MK blocked out on specific days, which is new this year. Seems the deals are getting fewer and fewer.

Now I can see them charging for hopping but $60 even for a 2 day hopper?

It's ridiculous......since HS and Ak are 1/2 day parks. So $60 for10 days of hopping is 6 bucks a day....but 30 a day for 2 days of hopping. .?

$10 a day would be more reasonable up to $60 max. But it's probably to control the crowds at MK and Epcot at night. Where do all the Ak patrons go at night.....to MK and Epcot.

 

[captain america 2003]

fair in my humble opinion . Park hopping to me devalues my ticket . Consider this , when you park hop it will take you approximately an hour to exit one park and enter another thus wasting an hour of valuable touring time and Disney charges me extra to do this yet my car can park hop for free (LOL). And it isn't fair for UNI/IOA , DL/DCA . or any other place to do either .I don't think I should have to pay extra to spend the same money between 2 parks instead of one . They have structured their ticket prices to keep guests on property spending their money on property so whydo I have to pay extra to spread it across multiple sites on the same day ? If I want to park hop I have no problem taking a Disney bus boat or monorail to the nearest resort or park and transferring to a bus to the park I want to hop to so no need for extra buses or cast members .
I know that Disney is not going to change this (why should they its almost all profit) and if you regularly use this and you think its fair then I guess it works for you .

 

[kaytieeldr]

OP I don't like the hopper and no expiration date upcharges either. I liked the days when they came included in the ticket. Disney just saw a chance for a money grab and took it.

I don't see it that way. They took what was included in the ticket price and ala carted it out. Why? So they can make more cash!

Again strictly opinion. Disney said this is why. They never had a price structure of what a day cost with exp and park hopping till after they divided it up. They gave this as an excuse to get an upcharge on something that was always include for years. You are entitled to your opinion and I mean no insult. IMO I think its pretty clear what they were after $$$$$$$

At the end of 2004, a five day advance purchase hopper was $230. At the beginning of 2005, when Magic Your Way tickets were introduced, a five day advance purchase hopper was $217 http://allears.net/tix/tixpix00.htm. That's less. Cheaper. For the identical privileges. Fact (not opinion) the change was made to allow guests to best customize their admission media purchase. Yes, my memory is that good.

And why do people begrudge Disney and its shareholders making a profit???????

 

[Squirlz]

 

[LBIJim]

I do not remember a price drop for those not hopping. I just remember that the way that tickets were purchased changed and you had to pay extra to hop. I do not remember paying less the year after the change, and we did not hop. I could be wrong.

If you wanted a non=hopper after Magic Your Way tickets were introduced, it was indeed cheaper than the pre-MYW which included hopping. I think it took about two years of price increases before the MYW non-hopper matched the old hopper-included price.

It wasn't that long ago when the MYW tickets came out. Before that all tickets were hoppers. Once the MYW tix came out they wre a lot cheaper if you chose not to hop. And you know how now it is only a few dollars more to add to a 6 or 7 day ticket? It wasn't like that before.

This all took place around 10 years ago.

I'm wondering if anyone remembers an old multi-day ticket that WASN'T a park hopper. I believe it was 1995. A travel agent arranged our trip. She purchased 4 day tickets that included one day each at MK, EP, and DHS (no AK yet), plus the 4th day at your choice of park. Hopping wasn't permitted. We weren't pleased when we received these tickets, since it was the first trip with our girls and we wanted to spend at least part of all 4 days at MK and probably skip Epcot altogether.

We later found out that these tickets were about $25 less than the 1995 park hopper price. And I wasn't savvy enough at the time to realize we could have paid that $25 difference to upgrade.

Jim

 

[flicx]

At the end of 2004, a five day advance purchase hopper was $230. At the beginning of 2005, when Magic Your Way tickets were introduced, a five day advance purchase hopper was $217 http://allears.net/tix/tixpix00.htm. That's less. Cheaper. For the identical privileges. Fact (not opinion) the change was made to allow guests to best customize their admission media purchase. Yes, my memory is that good.

And why do people begrudge Disney and its shareholders making a profit???????

Not fact. There was never a price on the back of the ticket that said this much for park admission this much for no expiration, this much for the right to hop. They took the hopping part and the no expiration part and ala carted them to make more money. It was a number Disney made up, a value they decided. Of course they would say it is gonna be cheaper , they are in the sales business!

 

[jensen]

Why do we allow Disney to get away with this practice ? If I park my car at the MK and start my day there and then later on drive over to HS and park there and finish my day there they don't charge me again to park my car there because I've already paid to park in one of their lots for the day . The same should be true if I want to hop to 2 or more parks in one day , no additional charge should be levied because I've already paid for a days admission to their parks . Fair is fair right ? I paid for a days admission I should be allowed just like my car (lol) to hop to another park or parks if that is what I want to do . We haven't bought park hoppers in years because we feel like hopping wasted too much time but we understand why some people need or want to hop But as I stated it doesn't seem like a fair practice/charge by Disney .

Like

Interesting argument... I love hopping and pay the premium for it. But, it is pricey.

 

[maxiesmom]

Like

Interesting argument... I love hopping and pay the premium for it. But, it is pricey.

A trip to WDW is a splurge, not a right. Any business has the right to charge what they wish to charge for whatever they want to sell you. The consumer then gets to decide if those items are worth the cost or not.

When each of us owns our own business we get to decide what we should charge for and how much we should charge. But it is laughable to think that any of us have enough inside information on Disney and their financials to be able to decide what they should charge for and how much they should be charging.

Of course we all wish a trip to WDW was cheaper. But I don't expect any business to mark down what they are selling based on how much I wish to pay. Disney isn't a garage sale.