Will you pay $150 for the new "Disney After Dark" event in the MK?

[tlmadden73]

I'd consider it .. at least once.

This isn't a "bring your entire family" price .. this is a go solo or bring your spouse type of event in my mind.

Honeymoon, Anniversary trip, or just wanting a night out alone with the spouse while the grandparents watch the kids back at the hotel.

I'd do it on my "day off" (in other words I wouldn't do a theme park during the day and this party at night) or do it on arrival day (when you don't have a full day in the park anyway).

If you go RIGHT at 7:00 PM . that gives you 6-7 hours in the park .. at night .. (which is a different vibe). You still get to see the night shows and then after the park "closes" .. you have three hours to ride a ton of rides multiple times.

How much is going on these rides WITH NO WAIT worth it? To some, probably a lot. But since this is a limited ticket event and won't affect "normal" guest experience .. no big deal. This is just like a VIP tour or premium parking.

 

[hedberg1661]

I'd consider it .. at least once.

This isn't a "bring your entire family" price .. this is a go solo or bring your spouse type of event in my mind.

Honeymoon, Anniversary trip, or just wanting a night out alone with the spouse while the grandparents watch the kids back at the hotel.

I'd do it on my "day off" (in other words I wouldn't do a theme park during the day and this party at night) or do it on arrival day (when you don't have a full day in the park anyway).

If you go RIGHT at 7:00 PM . that gives you 6-7 hours in the park .. at night .. (which is a different vibe). You still get to see the night shows and then after the park "closes" .. you have three hours to ride a ton of rides multiple times.

How much is going on these rides WITH NO WAIT worth it? To some, probably a lot. But since this is a limited ticket event and won't affect "normal" guest experience .. no big deal. This is just like a VIP tour or premium parking.

I agree. And honestly as long as this doesn't mean the death of the current EMH I am alright with this. However, with all of this talk of extra charges and fees etc. this seems to fall right in line.

 

[tlmadden73]

I agree. And honestly as long as this doesn't mean the death of the current EMH I am alright with this. However, with all of this talk of extra charges and fees etc. this seems to fall right in line.

I think they will phase out EMH, especially if this is successful. I often wondered how much EMH matters when it comes to people's decision to stay on-site. Besides the veterans here, I doubt it REALLY factors into a majority of the decision for those first-time guests. (It has never factored into my decision).
It is a great perk, but when I choose to stay onsite, I am choosing it because of the transportation, service, theming, convenience, free Magic Bands, 60 Day Fast passes, 180 day ADRs .. etc. etc. EMH is just a 'bonus' that I may use once during the trip if it aligns.

So .. if they got rid of EMH, I bet a lot of people won't even care as EMH is just too early or too late for a lot of families to use (or the days just don't line up with your schedule).

There is another post (linked above) that showed some "Disney Morning Magic" experience listed under dining.
I bet they will start charging for special breakfast reservations that get you in the park early now too. It is well known that those breakfast reservations at Be Our Guest are highly sought after BECAUSE it gets you into the park before everyone else. So why not take advantage of that high demand and monetize it?

 

[ellie05]

I'd consider it .. at least once.

This isn't a "bring your entire family" price .. this is a go solo or bring your spouse type of event in my mind.

Honeymoon, Anniversary trip, or just wanting a night out alone with the spouse while the grandparents watch the kids back at the hotel.

I'd do it on my "day off" (in other words I wouldn't do a theme park during the day and this party at night) or do it on arrival day (when you don't have a full day in the park anyway).

If you go RIGHT at 7:00 PM . that gives you 6-7 hours in the park .. at night .. (which is a different vibe). You still get to see the night shows and then after the park "closes" .. you have three hours to ride a ton of rides multiple times.

How much is going on these rides WITH NO WAIT worth it? To some, probably a lot. But since this is a limited ticket event and won't affect "normal" guest experience .. no big deal. This is just like a VIP tour or premium parking.

So under post we are the perfect candidates since we have no kids and try to do at least one extra experience every vacation and we still wouldn't consider doing this.

1. We have done Late EMH at the MK and while we love the vibe and less crowded park still it is a wait for rides and we go in the slow season.

2. Why would I pay $150 for something we have already been experiencing. We rarely drink soda and $150 for an ice cream bar?

3. There are so many better experiences to choose from for $150. I would rather go to club villian, HDD, do a tour, AK trek.

If they said we are charging $150, but it will be like the conferences they do at the MK. I would be all for it. Last time I checked they didn't guarantee a no wait.

 

[mom2rtk]

I'd consider it .. at least once.

This isn't a "bring your entire family" price .. this is a go solo or bring your spouse type of event in my mind.

Honeymoon, Anniversary trip, or just wanting a night out alone with the spouse while the grandparents watch the kids back at the hotel.

I'd do it on my "day off" (in other words I wouldn't do a theme park during the day and this party at night) or do it on arrival day (when you don't have a full day in the park anyway).

If you go RIGHT at 7:00 PM . that gives you 6-7 hours in the park .. at night .. (which is a different vibe). You still get to see the night shows and then after the park "closes" .. you have three hours to ride a ton of rides multiple times.

How much is going on these rides WITH NO WAIT worth it? To some, probably a lot. But since this is a limited ticket event and won't affect "normal" guest experience .. no big deal. This is just like a VIP tour or premium parking.

Did they promise "no wait"?

People who did the DVC version of this said 7DMT had a 45 minute wait all night.

 

[mom2rtk]

I think they will phase out EMH, especially if this is successful. I often wondered how much EMH matters when it comes to people's decision to stay on-site. Besides the veterans here, I doubt it REALLY factors into a majority of the decision for those first-time guests. (It has never factored into my decision).
It is a great perk, but when I choose to stay onsite, I am choosing it because of the transportation, service, theming, convenience, free Magic Bands, 60 Day Fast passes, 180 day ADRs .. etc. etc. EMH is just a 'bonus' that I may use once during the trip if it aligns.

So .. if they got rid of EMH, I bet a lot of people won't even care as EMH is just too early or too late for a lot of families to use (or the days just don't line up with your schedule).

There is another post (linked above) that showed some "Disney Morning Magic" experience listed under dining.
I bet they will start charging for special breakfast reservations that get you in the park early now too. It is well known that those breakfast reservations at Be Our Guest are highly sought after BECAUSE it gets you into the park before everyone else. So why not take advantage of that high demand and monetize it?

I think you'd be surprised how much people care about EMH. Some people stay onsite for the magical feeling it gives them. But can they fill those rooms based solely on magic? And that's what it's ALL about. Heads in beds.

And I will be very curious to see how the morning deal shakes out. Sure people are getting in early now, but that extra time is mostly taken up with actual eating. How early would you have to get there to have time to eat AND have enough park time to justify the high price Disney seems to demand these days? The BOG folks were getting maybe 20 minutes of extra time. Can Disney monetize 20 minutes? Can you talk guests into arriving at 6 or 6:30 on vacation?

 

[cavepig]

No, I wouldn't! I did many years ago before EMH at night was free, add on the Extra Evening Hours that you did have to pay for, but I think that was only like maybe $40, Can't remember how long it was, maybe just 3 hours extra, but nothing was special at it, just the extra hours and limited crowds. It was fun, so I'm sure some people will add it on, just not for me.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

So under post we are the perfect candidates since we have no kids and try to do at least one extra experience every vacation and we still wouldn't consider doing this.

1. We have done Late EMH at the MK and while we love the vibe and less crowded park still it is a wait for rides and we go in the slow season.

2. Why would I pay $150 for something we have already been experiencing. We rarely drink soda and $150 for an ice cream bar?

3. There are so many better experiences to choose from for $150. I would rather go to club villian, HDD, do a tour, AK trek.

If they said we are charging $150, but it will be like the conferences they do at the MK. I would be all for it. Last time I checked they didn't guarantee a no wait.

You're looking at it wrong, IMO. If you are taking a short trip - 3 or 4 days - this would be great. Instead of paying $100 for your regular ticket into MK, pay $150 for one night in MK, but be able to accomplish so much more because of the very light crowds for half the time.

Where this makes less sense is for large families going on long trips to WDW. Because the price per day drops so significantly after day 4, this would really be an additional $140 expense per person (removing the $10 charged to add one day to your tickets).

 

[m3b]

I think this is the dumbest thing I have heard from Disney - ever. When I first read it I thought it was a mistake. It is so far off scale price wise as to be ludicrous.

 

[tlmadden73]

I think you'd be surprised how much people care about EMH. Some people stay onsite for the magical feeling it gives them. But can they fill those rooms based solely on magic? And that's what it's ALL about. Heads in beds.

Oh .. I am sure there are PLENTY of people that stay on-site for EMH. But I would argue, that is the minority.

I would argue that offering a 4th Fast Pass would get just as many heads in beds, if not more ... .especially to NEW or first-time guests. I mean there are people who choose to stay on-site now JUST for that extra 30 days to snag the 3 Fast Passes that are offered. (In some cases it is the only way to get Fast Passes for the "hot" attractions.

What is an easier "sell" to a new visitor? Get a 4th fast pass to skip a fourth line every day of your trip.
Or getting the option to go to a park(you maybe weren't planning on going to that day) super early or super late? A lot of families will just go "meh" .. we aren't early risers and we don't want to stay late and that' won't be a factor in their decision to stay onsite. They may use EMH, but won't be part of the reason they made that decision.

My sister-in-law and her family came to WDW last summer. I (a veteran), noticed the day we planned on going to MK was a morning EMH. I told everyone we were getting up early to make it there. (Got there (with my wife, 3-year old son and grandparents) at like 7:50 AM). We had a blast that first hour. My sister-in-laws family (two toddlers) said NO WAY .. we aren't getting up an hour early to get to the park by 8:00 . .and they rolled in at 9:30 that morning. EMH was not the reason they chose to stay on-site.

 

[thegajone]

I'll reserve judgment until more details come out, but for me it's very likely going to be something we won't be doing. I'd absolutely drop $149+tax per person if I thought it was something that was worth it, but as a group of 4 adults, I have no doubts we'll be able to do everything we want to do during normal park hours in the 1.5 days we have scheduled for MK. Also, and I'm sure I'll get a lot of disagreement on this, but the re-rideability of MK attractions in one visit is pretty low for us personally. Splash Mountain is my favorite ride anywhere at any theme park, and I've been to A LOT of theme parks, but after 3 or 4 rides on Splash in one trip, it would really start to lose the "magic". But ride it once every few years and it's still special every single time. So for us, the appeal of being in the park and riding everything over and over with short waits is pretty much non-existent. Spice it up with something extra special though and we'll reconsider.

 

[tlmadden73]

You're looking at it wrong, IMO. If you are taking a short trip - 3 or 4 days - this would be great. Instead of paying $100 for your regular ticket into MK, pay $150 for one night in MK, but be able to accomplish so much more because of the very light crowds for half the time.

Where this makes less sense is for large families going on long trips to WDW. Because the price per day drops so significantly after day 4, this would really be an additional $140 expense per person (removing the $10 charged to add one day to your tickets).

Agree! This is definitely for short trips .. or just someone who wants a special night experience for that long.

This isn't for everyone. This especially isn't for veterans who go every year and have been on every ride dozens of times in their life. This is just like VIP tours aren't for everyone .. just like Club Villain isn't for everyone . .just like Dessert Parties aren't for everyone.

But it is a pretty neat offer. It is Disney seeing a demand and filling it. (and having to charge for it because it is costly to keep the park running (with cast members) for an extra 3 hours.

 

[Slapshot1188]

But it is a pretty neat offer. It is Disney seeing a demand and filling it. (and having to charge for it because it is costly to keep the park running (with cast members) for an extra 3 hours.

So, Disney is seeing record crowds and they are so high that they need to go to surge pricing. Well, if you have these high crowds you can add capacity to handle them. One way to do that is OPEN THE PARKS LONGER. So Disney is already getting the higher revenue from these record crowds, increasing ticket prices, parking fees, etc... and now they want you to pay an extra $150 on TOP of all that to access the extra capacity that is needed to handle the large crowds.

That, quite simply... is a joke.

 

[GlennN]

We just don't have enough information yet to know whether this is even remotely reasonable or not. IF (and that is a big IF) the tickets being sold are truly limited to such an amount that one can ride the rides with little to no wait, and IF EHM are not impacted, and IF the parks are not closed early to allow this, then I would have no issue with Disney doing it (and may even consider it, though I would be far more likely to do Club Villain or AK Trek, where one gets what I perceive as more value). The problem is that the behavior I have seen lately from Disney causes me to expect the worst.

 

[Mikie]

You'll hear great things about April, because no one will be doing it with such short notice. You'll hear about riding the Mine Train 15 times in a row with no wait. Then, when you do it in July, you and 20,000 of your closest friends will be looking for those same non-existent lines the April crowd experienced and you'll be lucky to wait less than 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, Disney will be dancing all of the way to the bank.

Wish I could "like" more times. This is really what I expect.

 

[thegajone]

So, Disney is seeing record crowds and they are so high that they need to go to surge pricing. Well, if you have these high crowds you can add capacity to handle them. One way to do that is OPEN THE PARKS LONGER. So Disney is already getting the higher revenue from these record crowds, increasing ticket prices, parking fees, etc... and now they want you to pay an extra $150 on TOP of all that to access the extra capacity that is needed to handle the large crowds.

That, quite simply... is a joke.

That, quite simply... is supply and demand. They're a business.

 

[ellie05]

You're looking at it wrong, IMO. If you are taking a short trip - 3 or 4 days - this would be great. Instead of paying $100 for your regular ticket into MK, pay $150 for one night in MK, but be able to accomplish so much more because of the very light crowds for half the time.

Where this makes less sense is for large families going on long trips to WDW. Because the price per day drops so significantly after day 4, this would really be an additional $140 expense per person (removing the $10 charged to add one day to your tickets).

I am not looking at it wrong. I have been to EMH and I don't think you could accomplish as much as you can if you were to get a whole day ticket to the MK. The first 3 hours are going to be very crowded it is going to take 30 min -1 to weed out guest that are not supposed to be there and the ones that were already in line. Also not all the attractions will be open, so while there will be less people there are also going to be less places for those people to go. Unless you are getting just a one day ticket the up charge it is not worth it. Heck for the price of one admission you can add a stay at a value and just use EMH and buy your own ice cream bars. It might be a little more expensive to go that route, but if you need a place to stay it will be much cheaper.

 

[Nancyg56]

So, Disney is seeing record crowds and they are so high that they need to go to surge pricing. Well, if you have these high crowds you can add capacity to handle them. One way to do that is OPEN THE PARKS LONGER. So Disney is already getting the higher revenue from these record crowds, increasing ticket prices, parking fees, etc... and now they want you to pay an extra $150 on TOP of all that to access the extra capacity that is needed to handle the large crowds.

That, quite simply... is a joke.

I think this is meant for those people who really are in and out in a few days. Think about the people who come in for marathon weekends, they may be very tight on time, and they are not buying multi day passes. The demographic Disney us looking at is not the typical visitor, there for a week and who has time to spare. I am not the guest who is targeted here, but I bet there are enough people to make it worthwhile.

 

[tlmadden73]

So, Disney is seeing record crowds and they are so high that they need to go to surge pricing. Well, if you have these high crowds you can add capacity to handle them. One way to do that is OPEN THE PARKS LONGER. So Disney is already getting the higher revenue from these record crowds, increasing ticket prices, parking fees, etc... and now they want you to pay an extra $150 on TOP of all that to access the extra capacity that is needed to handle the large crowds.

That, quite simply... is a joke.

At some point the only way to handle more crowds is to stay open later. Which they are doing .. and just charging for it.

If the crowds become too crazy during the day, Disney WILL see a downturn in attendance. People aren't going to put up with going to MK and only able to use their 3 Fast Passes and have to wait 40+ minutes for everything else while walkign shoulder-to-shoulder down main street and waiting an hour to get food at a quick service.

 

[Thiago Acquaviva]

No! this is TOO MUCH! Specially cuz here in Brazil the dolar has a huge value (1.0 BRL = 0.25 USD)
It would cost me like 600.00 BRL do not worth the value at all! Even MK been my fav place on Earth...