The Truth About Rising Ticket Prices at Walt Disney World

[Travisma 1,317]

This to me was a very interesting and scary look at the way Disney has been pricing tickets from the first day Disneyland opened up until present time.

 

They even talk about the tiered pricing based on crowd projections survey that went out and was talked about on a thread a while back.

 

It comes from the Theme Park Tourist page.

 

http://www.themeparktourist.com/features/20150814/30480/e-ticket-ride-walt-disney-world-ticket-prices-through-years

 

It seems factual, and I'm not an economist, but the figures seemed to make sense.

 

And I think Walt must be spinning in his grave seeing how his vision of a wonderful place that families could enjoy has been turned into such a money grubbing behemoth!

[Grumpy and Grandma 739]

Even if his calculations are 100% correct it hasn't stopped the masses from spending their money since the crowds get bigger and bigger every year.

[Travisma 1,317]

Even if his calculations are 100% correct it hasn't stopped the masses from spending their money since the crowds get bigger and bigger every year.

True, but sooner or later they may run out of first time visitors that had to do Disney at least once in their life and could afford to come, and previous visitors will stop coming or reducing their visits because of the increases.

 

Of course there will always be the people that $$ is no object, so they may fill the void of the working class not coming.

 

They will stay in the $3K a night bungalow and not blink an eye at a $75 a plate dinner.

[red...Susan 37]

Almost everyone I have met lives their lives in the moment making sure every experience is over the top. Very few think of the future. The attitude appears to be all things will be provided.

[swimmarz 72]

people are making more money than they ever have, what would be interesting to see is what percentage of income was spent then vs now, id be willing to bet that didn't change much.

 

remember cars in the 60's ( 20+ years before i was born) were under $5,000 for a mustang... today your lucky to get it for $25,000 

but when you look at what people spend in relation to income, there has not been a large change

[Grumpy and Grandma 739]

people are making more money than they ever have, what would be interesting to see is what percentage of income was spent then vs now, id be willing to bet that didn't change much.

 

remember cars in the 60's ( 20+ years before i was born) were under $5,000 for a mustang... today your lucky to get it for $25,000 

but when you look at what people spend in relation to income, there has not been a large change

Yep a 68 Chev Nova was $2,100 and a 69 Camaro was only $4,000.

[keith_h 420]

people are making more money than they ever have, what would be interesting to see is what percentage of income was spent then vs now, id be willing to bet that didn't change much.

 

remember cars in the 60's ( 20+ years before i was born) were under $5,000 for a mustang... today your lucky to get it for $25,000 

but when you look at what people spend in relation to income, there has not been a large change

 

Actually some things like the housing costs have gone up as a percentage of income. What has offset that to a large degree is more two income families. I am also seeing more single folks like my daughters share a place at much older ages than was typical when I was their age.  

[Travisma 1,317]

Actually some things like the housing costs have gone up as a percentage of income. What has offset that to a large degree is more two income families. I am also seeing more single folks like my daughters share a place at much older ages than was typical when I was their age.  

What has gone crazy is the cost of daycare.

 

For full time daycare for 1 child, it's around $1100 a month.

 

If you are a single parent working a typical job at $10 an hour you would have $500 left over for all of your other bills per month before taxes.  $15 per hour, you would have a whopping $1300 per month before taxes.

 

Not a lot to spend at Disney.

 

I don't know at what point government subsidies cut in to help offset some costs, but there's not a lot of incentives to try to hold down a job (other than pride) if you can do better getting a full ride on government handouts.... welfare, WIC, housing, health, etc

 

My daughter works full time at a decent job, but she's always a little above any program for the reduced lunch programs at my granddaughters school.

 

Boy, did we get off the rails or what!

 

If she had to put my granddaughter just in after school care, it would take a sizeable chunk out of her monthly income.  Luckily my wife can watch her after school and during breaks.

[CCIntrigue...aka Gwen 547]

My grandmother grew up being excited about seeing the first "autocars" coming down the street.  The norm was horse and buggy.  I always thought hers was the generation that would see the most change in civilization -- cars, mass transit, color TV, space exploration, etc.

 

I grew up with a black and white television with an antenna on top of the house.  We had a "party" line phone shared with at least six other families who enjoyed listening in to each others' conversations.  I remember a loaf of bread being 12 cents and gas being 17 cents a gallon.

 

At my first job I made a whopping $300 a month and thought that was great.  I paid $2,700 for my first brand new car.

 

Fast forward a few years from that first job and we started visiting Disney.  We visited with my parents and shared a suite in the Contemporary that cost a whopping $145.77 a night, including tax.  Park tickets were cheap, and we only got the "A-E" tickets, but we made the best of them and had a great time.  In those days you could walk in and out of any attraction or restaurant without a wait.

 

Our three children each attended private school with day care before and after, and I think we paid around $100 a month for each one.

 

Meanwhile our incomes soared, prices soared, and we continued to visit WDW without complaining about the prices.  

 

Then 10 years ago we took early retirement from our company.  And a few years ago we started collecting Social Security and went on Medicare.  WDW prices continue to rise at a phenomenal rate.  Our income is stagnant.  Our children are struggling financially, and we have to help them.

 

We always dreamed of wintering at the Fort.  I don't think that will ever happen.  We have reservations for 4 weeks at the Fort this fall, and hopefully we'll have another 4 weeks in 2016.  After that, I'm afraid we will be outpriced.

 

And I'm now thinking my generation has seen 10 times the change in civilization that my grandmother did.  What will my grandchildren have to go through?

[Travisma 1,317]

The rift is widening rapidly between the haves and the have nots. The middle class wages have stagnated and are slipping backwards, meanwhile the upper 10% wages are growing like crazy. I fear what it's going to be like for my granddaughters when they reach adulthood.

[swimmarz 72]

Child care costs is the main reason I moved from NH to Florida.

350/kid per week, second kid was on the way when we made the move

My income went up as I don't work in Massachusetts so I get 5.25% more than I did working there, my fuel bill went from $100/week to $100/quarter, no longer commuting 35 miles 1 way to work with a 4x4. I walk 65 feet now

My house grew by 1,000 sq ft(1400 to 2400feet) and a pool yet the mortgage dropped by $1,000/month

With all that being said, Disney is a priority to me, I grew up going there, and well my kids will to!

I can always make more money, but I can't always make more memories, that's what I live by.

[Tuke 16]

Good article with some interesting information; however, I struggle to buy the "greed or inequality narrative" that is usually associated with such an article. Simply, Disney offers an experience that is second to none! Sites like this are a testimony of both the quality of products and services they offer and investments (risks) into the customer's vacation experience. Am I happy to see the costs of admission or lodging edge up each year? No! As dad of a larger family, any increase is typically felt exponentially and I wish there were more opportunities to do Disney more reasonably. Nevertheless, I will continue to pay at least the current prices because part of that price tag is an experience that provides improved access--likely the #1 factor in crowd reduction--and prohibits many unsavory characters, as heartless as that may seem. Unfortunately, those are dynamics or factors that were much less a a part of Walt's World in the 50s and even through much of the 80s.

 

Now just for the record, I'm both a huge Disney critic and fan. At one time, I was under the belief that what set Disney apart was making very few mistakes. Now I'm more along the lines that Disney just keeps failing and persistently trying until they finally get things right in a big way. Yes, my wife jokes that I'm sick because I find more interest in the their projects and conceptual developments than just enjoying the attractions and experience itself.

[GaDawgFan.....Kelly 799]

Disney is expensive, but hour for hour, I think our local fall fair is even more. And it definitely has no magic. 

[swimmarz 72]

Disney is expensive, but hour for hour, I think our local fall fair is even more. And it definitely has no magic. 

so true... growing up my parents would plan our Disney trips when the fair came to town, that way we never asked to go, and were safer in the long run

[Santa ... Shannon 160]

I'd rather pay $100 to get into a Disney park all day than pay $15 a shot to watch 7 new release movies a year. Sure, it's a helluva a price, but not out of scale with other entertainment options, IMO.

[Travisma 1,317]

Disney and other theme parks do give a good bang for your buck. If you priced out some of the rides/shows on the outside world, they would add up also.

I think the gist of the article is that the prices have risen quite a bit more than the cost of inflation, and wages haven't kept up, so it's a double hit in the gut when you purchase a ticket/pass.

The Fort is a good deal, when you,look at some of the other places and how they nickel and dime you, they can add up to cost as much or more than the Fort. But I think the Fort costs have risen quite a bit more than inflation.

[arthuruscg 34]

The last paragraph is where I see the parks heading now that the "no exp" option is gone. (recap, ticket prcing changing based on historic crowd levels)

 

But, I think the international travel and special events is reducing the need for variable pricing model.  It use to be that Sept/ Oct was dead in the park, Now with the MNSSHP, marathons, ect SEPT/OCT crowd levels have increased. International travel to the parks have increased and it targeted for when the USA famlies are back in school.

 

So, If the marketing department can do their job, the variable pricing model is not needed. But getting rid of the no exp option opens the door.

 

It will be interesting on the DCL side, if they are able to fill the boats from the EU ports will lead to a realignment of the ships permintly or additional 2 ships added to the fleet. I could see 2 more Dream/Fantasy sized ships since they can sail thru the panama canal very soon.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

I didn't respond to this post right away, because I wanted to read the article in its entirety.

 

I've tried a couple of times now, and can't get through it.  I think it's very poorly written and includes way too many meaningless figures.  And the stock photos and ads in the article are very distracting.  The best I could do is skim through it.

 

I always wonder how many people actually only purchase a one day ticket, when there are such big discounts offered on multi-day passes. 

 

I wish Disney wasn't so expensive, but, like any business, they are free to charge what the market will bear.  They keep increasing their prices, but people still flock to the place.  How can anyone suggest that they should lower their prices?  They can and will continue to raise prices until guests stop coming.  If anyone doesn't like that, Sea World is very affordable, and quite uncrowded lately.

 

TCD

[Travisma 1,317]

I didn't respond to this post right away, because I wanted to read the article in its entirety.

 

I've tried a couple of times now, and can't get through it.  I think it's very poorly written and includes way too many meaningless figures.  And the stock photos and ads in the article are very distracting.  The best I could do is skim through it.

 

I always wonder how many people actually only purchase a one day ticket, when there are such big discounts offered on multi-day passes. 

 

I wish Disney wasn't so expensive, but, like any business, they are free to charge what the market will bear.  They keep increasing their prices, but people still flock to the place.  How can anyone suggest that they should lower their prices?  They can and will continue to raise prices until guests stop coming.  If anyone doesn't like that, Sea World is very affordable, and quite uncrowded lately.

 

TCD

SeaWorld and Aquatica were pretty busy a week ago when we were there, maybe not WDW busy, but the lines were too long for my granddaughter to wait in for the rides.  We stuck to shows, and walking around at SeaWorld, and the floating rides and wave pools at Aquatica.

 

All the theme parks "normal daily" admission prices are within a few $$ of each other.

 

Where SeaWorld/Busch parks stand out is their fun passes (buy a day get a year) and their AP prices.  They also have some good monthly deals for passholders.  I think 3 times this year we get a $10 voucher to spend as we want at Busch plus other deals on food and merchandise.  SeaWorld has a Passholder appreciation lunch (you still pay for it), Aquatica has a deal on their all day dining deal in September

 

The article did jump around a little, I think if he/she had included a chart/spreadsheet showing the cost comparisons, it would have been an easier read.

 

The gist is that the cost of admission has risen more than the cost of inflation and a lot more than Walts original price structure even with adjusted prices.

[arthuruscg 34]

I wil admit, that I couldn't read the whole aricle and skimmed it too.

[Tuke 16]

Sure the cost of admission has risen more than the cost of inflation but in no fashion or form has the park(s) remained on the same level of service or entertainment as when they originally opened.  While it may be an angle worth of noting, I'd question if it's a worthy comparison.