What's Your Tipping Point for Disney?

[Arielfan98]

*Please delete if not allowed/or move if in the incorrect category*

With Disney raising prices, asking guests to reserve their places for parks, Genie +/Lightening Lane, resort parking fees, more IP & less innovation, etc., what is your tipping point? Have you reached it yet? If so, when was it? I reached mine recently reflecting on a previous visit in October 2021 and looking at the astronomical prices for a future trip in June 2022.
P.S-I am not jealous of people who can afford Disney. Sure it would be nice to be rich, but that's besides the point. I am not a fan of being on my phone so frequently to navigate through the parks.

My Post Saying Goodbye

 

[Princesca]

For me it's just a simple value proposition. We have a trip planned next year and then probably won't be back for awhile, just because we have other things we want to do. Will likely come to Florida again in 2026. Whether it's Disney or we try Universal for the first time will depend on a lot of different things. Right now, Universal is looking pretty darn good.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

Not everyone who goes to WDW is rich. Not even now.

 

[AnnabelleTheTalkingTree]

My tipping point is more about the overall vibe than it is about the money. Which isn't to say it's NOT about the money at all.

But for my family, the bottom line is that Disney is a VACATION. We are not local, we fly, and we stay for a week, typically longer. That goes for anywhere we are going to fly - if we are paying for 4 of us to fly somewhere, we are going to stay long enough to warrant the cost of the flights. So in my book, the time commitment, combined with the financial commitment, mean that Disney qualifies as a vacation. Not a day trip, not a weekend getaway, but a full-out vacation - and as far as I'm concerned, it should FEEL like one. So my tipping point is when Disney STOPS FEELING LIKE A VACATION.

I'm okay with paying more under certain circumstances. I'm okay with paying more (to a certain degree) for a BETTER product. I'm even okay with paying more for the SAME product because prices go up everywhere, it's inflation, it's life. I don't expect Disney to not follow suit. What I do expect is that they continue to deliver the same, if not better, product/food/guest service they always have.

What I don't expect is to start paying MORE for LESS. And when paying more for less starts to make my vacation stressful, less fun, less relaxing.... then that is a problem. And of course that is what we're seeing with the elimination of DME and the implementation of Genie+. If Genie+ were truly a valuable service that was going to make my vacation BETTER - more relaxing, more fun - then okay. I will pay for that, to a certain point. But that's not what's happening, at least it doesn't seem that way.

I haven't experienced the "new" Disney yet, but we will be there in a few weeks. We will try it the new way and I honestly am hoping for the best. But I don't like lines on vacation with little kids. I know, I know, it's Disney - but we wouldn't have done Disney before if it weren't for Fastpass+. That was what saved Disney for us, what made it doable and fun as a family vacation. If Genie+ is a headache, if it is stressful, or doesn't work, or feels like TOO MUCH work, and our only other option is standby.... well, we won't be returning. Because vacation shouldn't be so much work.

Disney is so expensive and there are sooo many other vacations we could take with that money instead. While I love Disney and hope to return, I'm just not going to spend my money on a vacation that isn't fun.

 

[StageTek]

I've reached the tipping point.

My AP expires on Sept 20 so I have one more trip scheduled. I'm spending half of my trip at Universal (for the very first time) and the rest in The World. Even so I'm considering not going to The World at all. But after that I'm not returning. And I've been going once a year (and many years twice) from California since 2008.

I don't mind paying a premium for a premium vacation. But WDW is no longer special. It's now industry standard.

 

[Princesca]

Not everyone who goes to WDW is rich. Not even now.

Agree. I definitely don't consider us rich, at least not by American standards. We are really frugal and on a tight budget and vacation is just worth all of that to us. I'm carrying the same $15 purse I bought at Target that I've carried every day since 2018.

 

[Arielfan98]

Not everyone who goes to WDW is rich. Not even now.

Correct. To clarify my point, if I were rich or had ample amounts of $$, the decline in quality may not be as big of a deal to me.

 

[Smugpugmug]

I haven't reached my tipping point yet but after my next trip in May I don't plan on returning for a while. There's simply other places that I would like to visit that cost about the same or way less. Just looking at my past trip to Japan (including a visit to Tokyo Disneyland where a 2 day ticket costs $120 TOTAL), I paid about the same as I would going to WDW for a week and it's insane to me. Right now I'm begging for the borders to open again so I can book another visit to TDR and even Universal Studios in Osaka. These parks absolutely have their problems too, such as how you need a reservation for some gift shops and some of the food isn't great but the overall guest experience is significantly better than what WDW is currently offering.

I bet others will say it, but I really hate having to pay more for less. I especially don't like paying more for less when hotel guest perks have been more or less stripped away and certain aspects of the park are in a shabby state (Spaceship Earth and Buzz Space Ranger Spin need a refurb badly, they are showing their age and don't reflect the parks costing as much as they do).

idk if I ever do visit Florida again for a vacation, I might skip WDW and check out Epic Universe when that opens. I'll still have fun and enjoy myself in May but it's hard to ignore how the parks have gotten worse and have lost their value in a lot of aspects.

 

[xipotec]

Its about the MAGIC

The expense is definitely a problem, but not the only problem. You can goto alot of places around the world for less money and have a great time.

The MAGIC is that feeling you get walking around the park, the feeling you get during ride, the anticipation of the trip.

If all the changes diminish that feeling, then the money would not be worth it.

I have been a WDW goer for 40 years, and each year, the MAGIC remains, but it is getting harder and harder to find.

If I goto a park, and over several days find stress, standing in lines , hunting around on my phone just to have a reasonable wait time has become the norm…..well that would be the end of it.

I do not mind being tired from a WDW vacation, its exciting and exhausting sometimes because its alot
to do….thats fine..

If I get back to the hotel frustrated and tired? Then its really a no brainer.

 

[RamblingMad]

I reached it for WDW with FP+. I have zero desire to pay the prices for onsite given the accommodations and level of service. It's very low at its price point. For me FL is a Universal only location. However, I did enjoy my Disney Cruise.

I haven't been back to DL/DCA since Genie+, so I don't know yet. I can stay off site there and enjoy the parks.

But I can see why people with young kids like Disney as a vacation. However, when you're young with kids, you don't have a lot of excess cash to spend. So I struggle with the economics for Disney right now for a young family with kids.

Now, I make enough to be able to afford to VIP Disney and stay onsite. But it's not where I want to spend a lot of money.

 

[Anthony1971]

Rich or not walking away from a vacation with a smile that cost 10k is worth far more than walking away miserable from a 2k vacation. Happy is a personal decision. My opinion, the resorts are better as far as customer service. The parks and included are starting to lack making people happy. The food… there are still good places ar semi reasonable prices but that is also subjective to taste and value of entertainment if included.

 

[Brett Wyman]

I think we need to wait a few years and see how it shakes out. It could go either way at this point.

 

[MICKIMINI]

We are not rich. We do however, value our family time at WDW. It is a priority for us and we don't waste money eating out the rest of the year. Downsizing a few years ago to a smaller home with no mortgage was a great decision. Owning enough DVC has insulated us somewhat from crazy villa prices, however we do pay MF's so it isn't free. AP's are helpful as we can come and go as we want typically two weeks or so spring and fall. Treating our son and DIL is a great gift for them and us.

I get it, people don't like lots of things Disney does, me included, but if people no longer want to go to WDW that's a choice one makes and that's that. We're not in that camp.

 

[AnnabelleTheTalkingTree]

We are not rich. We do however, value our family time at WDW. It is a priority for us and we don't waste money eating out the rest of the year. Downsizing a few years ago to a smaller home with no mortgage was a great decision. Owning enough DVC has insulated us somewhat from crazy villa prices, however we do pay MF's so it isn't free. AP's are helpful as we can come and go as we want typically two weeks or so spring and fall. Treating our son and DIL is a great gift for them and us.

I get it, people don't like lots of things Disney does, me included, but if people no longer want to go to WDW that's a choice one makes and that's that. We're not in that camp.

I relate to what you’re saying, we’re much the same. Not rich, but we’ve made financial decisions elsewhere that allow us to integrate a healthy vacation budget into our lives. Just out of curiosity though, is it really that there’s no tipping point for you? Like Disney can do no wrong? Or is it more that you’re already invested in dvc so it’s what makes financial sense for you at this point?

 

[AnnabelleTheTalkingTree]

Rich or not walking away from a vacation with a smile that cost 10k is worth far more than walking away miserable from a 2k vacation.

Fair point, and I’m someone who is happy to pay for a vacation that is going to make me truly happy. But an expensive vacation doesn’t automatically mean a good vacation (especially if the person paying is stretching their finances to make it happen) nor does a cheap vacation mean a miserable one. There are merits to both and a time and a place for both.

But what about when the 10k vacation leaves you feeling stressed, exhausted, frustrated, or miserable?

 

[Chilbert]

Not everyone who goes to WDW is rich. Not even now.

Even if they're rich going to WDW, they're not going home...

 

[MICKIMINI]

I relate to what you’re saying, we’re much the same. Not rich, but we’ve made financial decisions elsewhere that allow us to integrate a healthy vacation budget into our lives. Just out of curiosity though, is it really that there’s no tipping point for you? Like Disney can do no wrong? Or is it more that you’re already invested in dvc so it’s what makes financial sense for you at this point?

It is what you make of it. For now, we're in...next year is my 50th at WDW. We still love WDW warts and all. Have a great trip!

 

[HeyIt'sMe]

I think I'm *very close* to reaching my tipping point. DH & I took our DD (going to be 25 this year) on her first trip to WDW in 2000 and we'd been back almost every year through 2018 (that trip was for DD's 21st birthday). In 2019 I went on a WDW girls' trip for my sister's 50th birthday but our family vacation was a trip to the beach instead of WDW and it was so relaxing. We weren't interested in dealing with WDW and the pandemic so we did beach vacations again in 2020 and 2021. I will say these past few years have caused "out of sight, out of mind" and not "absence makes the heart grow fonder" feelings for us in terms of WDW. Well, at least for me & DH.

I've been following the changes to WDW (and Disney in general) and I don't like what I see. I cannot believe how expensive it has gotten. We always used to stay at the Polynesian but I just can't stomach paying $750+/night to stay there. And just all the other added expenses too - parking, MB, Genie+, etc. And all the planning! When I told my DH about the required park reservations he said "I'm out".

That being said, my DD & I are planning a short trip in September. However, we are staying at Pop Century to try and keep the cost down (ha!). But, even staying there with the Disney+ discount it's almost $200/night. We are going because my DD wants to. She really misses WDW. But, I will be interested to see what she thinks after this trip. While I am covering the airfare and the resort, we are each paying our own park tickets (including any Halloween event that might happen) and our own food/alcohol/spending money. This will be the first time she'll experience those high Disney prices on her own as an adult. We'll see if it's so magical after that.

 

[k5xs]

I keep waiting for things to stabilize, and I keep being disappointed.

Someone above mentioned the "overall vibe." I think that is what most strikes me. I tend to be a positive person, but the overall Disney vibe has soured so badly lately that I do not know if I'll ever get to see it positively again.

I may be naive, but I think I'll wait to declare "tipping point" for a new CEO to see if the Magic can be rekindled with a change in leadership, but I know that's unlikely.

 

[movingthestars]

So yeah it’s more expensive for less, it’s not that I’m okay with that exactly but I understand it. I know what I’m paying for and what I’m getting. The huge issue for me is customer service. And I don’t mean at the parks, the human-to-human interaction was fine for me. I am just floored by what it took to plan my Feb trip, and before I decided to go run that race in Feb, I had a May trip planned—will be the first time ever for my husband— so I got a double dose of planning it all at the same time AND by the time I knew what I was in for in Feb, it was too late to get my money back for May (Galactic Starcruiser) so that wasn’t even an option for me.

But what I mean is trying to get help with anything pre-trip, or post-trip, has proved to be nearly impossible. I cannot even begin to tell you how many hours I spent on the phone, or how much incorrect info I was given. I’m not a complainer. I’m super patient and I recognize the person on the other end of the line is NOT out to get me nor do I blame them. But if Disney can’t staff enough people to take care of this stuff, they should stop booking so many people to go to WDW. So I do blame Disney for this in that sense.

These are just a few things….
- bought military tickets in Feb, needed to make a change. Spoke to 3 different CMs who told me 3 diff things. Spent about 4 hours on the phone for that. In this case, the last person was able to help me do what I needed to do but it was not worth the time and stress it took.
- booking my additional reservations for GS was a whole thing (I’m taking like Olga’s and Savis 60 days in advance). The phone lines for GS were down day after day, playing a pre-recorded message that they weren’t taking any phone calls. The people on the main line were like “too bad so sad, we can’t do anything about it just keep calling one day they will pick up.” The day I got through, when the phone finally connected I was on hold for 2hrs before I spoke with someone. Again, not worth the time and stress. Like at all.
- I ran the Princess half. The medal they gave me at the finish line was badly scratched/peeling (seems a common issue). This isn’t the issue, stuff happens. I emailed rundisney and they said to send my address and they are going to replace it. Well I emailed them back the same day. A week goes by… I check in. No reply. Another week… I check in. No reply. I try to call… guess what, you can’t reach rundisney. The phone lines don’t connect to that dept (seems a familiar story at this point doesn’t it??). I keep trying to call, I keep not getting a connection. Leave message with my name and number for a callback that never comes. CM on the regular phone lines are like “too bad so sad only rundisney can help you but we don’t know how you can reach them.” I email a few more times no reply… through all this please understand I’m very polite and as I said it’s 0% the fault of anyone I’ve interacted with and I get that. Finally after ONE MONTH I copied in every single direct email address I could find connected with WDW and someone from rundisney wrote me back the next day lol. But was it worth the stress and time I spent on that? For sure no.

If you never need any help or assistance with anything before or after your trip I guess you could have a better experience. But they need to match the staffing to the experience they are selling. It has really been unbelievable and while I’m going to make the best of May, I don’t know if I would have kept that trip if I knew when I booked it what I know now.