If there’s one thing you absolutely should NOT be surprised by when it comes to the Disney parks, it’s…change.
Spaceship Earth
Price increases have hit Disney’s theme parks many times over the past several years, and Disney has typically been able to even outpace inflation when it comes to ticket prices. More recently, we’ve seen Disney’s CEO Bob Chapek comment on future price increases in the parks, and now we’ve got even more from the leader of the Disney Company on how things could change in the future.
Recently, Disney CEO Bob Chapek sat down with The Hollywood Reporter to talk about Disney+, theatrical movie releases, the Scarlett Johansson situation, and more. Some of the other BIG things discussed were the Disney parks, price increases, and Annual Passholders.
At one point, the interviewer noted that Chapek is known as the guy who “cuts costs and raises prices.” The interviewer also pointed out that Chapek has raised prices “pretty stiffly,” both in the parks and for streaming, and has gotten some heavy criticism from fans. The interviewer then asked, “How much can you keep raising prices and does ill will from them create a problem for the brand?”
Will Prices Keep Increasing?
In response, Chapek shared that Disney loves all of its fans “equally,” and that they “obviously” love the Disney superfans. BUT Chapek said that they also enjoy the fans that aren’t on the superfan level and “don’t have the same expression of their fandom.”
According to Chapek, it really comes down to a sense of balance. He noted that some superfans are Annual Passholders and use the parks “as their personal playground.” Chapek said that they “love that” and “celebrate that.” But he said that they also have to make sure that there’s “room in the park for the family from Denver that comes once every five years.”
Chapek noted that previously, Disney didn’t have a Park Pass reservation system and didn’t really “control the number of annual passes” that were distributed. Chapek said, “frankly, the annual pass as a value was so great that people were literally coming all the time and the accessibility of the park was unlimited to them and that family from Denver would get to the park and not be let in.”
Magic Kingdom Crowds
Chapek said that this didn’t really “seem like a real balanced proposition.” After the COVID-19 pandemic-related closures, the Park Pass reservation system was introduced, and with that comes a limit on just how many reservations are available to different groups of people, and a limit on just how many reservations Annual Passholders can hold at any given time. The Park Pass reservation system’s limit on Annual Passholder reservations even spurred a lawsuit as it relates to Disneyland’s Magic Key passes.
Sometimes Park Passes can sell out, restricting people (including Annual Passholders) from entering the parks entirely if they did not get a Park Pass far enough in advance. In fact, Disney executives have noted that they are sometimes seeing demand in EXCESS of the available Park Pass reservations. And demand for the parks has been resilient and long-lasting (a.k.a. demand doesn’t seem to be going down to the point where Disney feels like it needs to make adjustments to let more people in the parks).
Chapek said that the superfans may look at some of these Park Pass reservation restrictions as “disadvantaging of the way they consume the park,” but, ultimately, it seems the theme of “balance” wins in the end. Chapek said that they’ve got to “make sure that not only are we heeding the needs of our superfans, but we’re heeding the needs of everyone who travels from across the country one time every five years.”
Hollywood Studios Crowds
According to Chapek, Disney has a “real high-class problem: We have much more demand than there is supply.” And it seems like attempting to “balance things out” by using the Park Pass reservation system is a strategy that’s going to continue. Chapek said that Disney is not going to allow someone to have a “less than stellar experience in the parks because we jammed too many people in there.” Since they seem to be establishing that as a “fundamental rule,” Chapek said it will require them to “start balancing who you let in.”
According to Chapek, “Our ticket prices and constraints we put on how often people can come and when they come is a direct reflection of demand. When is it too much? Demand will tell us when it’s too much.”
Crowd Levels
There’s a LOT to unpack here and a lot that ties in directly to recent events. First, the comment on the Annual Passholders who use the parks as their playground is interesting. During a 2020 earnings call, Disney did acknowledge that Annual Passholders can provide less value, from a financial perspective, to the parks.
Specifically, during that earnings call, Chapek said that “different guests, depending on where they’re coming from, have different relative values in terms of their contribution as a guest to the park. And typically, someone who travels and stays for five to seven days is marginally more valuable to the business than someone who comes in on an annual pass and stays a day or two and consumes less, you know, merchandise and food and beverage.”
More Crowds
And in 2022, Disney reported an “unfavorable attendance mix” at Disneyland Resort which impacted their financial results for one quarter. Many took this “unfavorable attendance mix” to be a reference to more Magic Key passholders (Disneyland’s version of an Annual Pass) in the parks, though Disney did not explicitly state that this was what they were referring to.
Disney has, however, paused the sale of Annual Passes at both Disneyland and Disney World (except for 1 pass type in Disney World), and only recently made Magic Key Pass renewals available for Disneyland passholders. This could all work toward Disney’s goal to control attendance in the parks and also potentially to control the attendance of the group Disney does consider to be marginally less valuable when it comes to its finances.
Annual Passholder Magnet
When it comes to the Park Pass reservation system, this is NOT the first time a Disney executive has praised its benefits in controlling crowds. Some Disney executives have noted that the Park Pass system allows Disney to put a cap on attendance and “fully utilize assets” in the parks.
Additionally, in August of 2022, Chapek said that Disney is focused on “improving guest experience,” and “part of that has to do with limiting capacity, but also about personalizing those experiences.” Chapek noted that the Park Pass system allows Disney to change things “on the fly” when it comes to “ticket packaging.” Chapek said that if they see any spikiness with demand, they can smooth that out in a way they couldn’t before and they’re really pleased with that.
Disney’s Chief Financial Officer, Christine McCarthy, has also shared how the system lets them “balance demand and attendance throughout the year, [and] not have days when consumers in the parks aren’t enjoying the experience”…all aimed at having a “better consumer experience.”
Monorail line at the Transportation and Ticket Center
And finally, Chapek’s comments echo his earlier ones when it comes to price increases. When speaking with The Hollywood Reporter about price increases, he said that “Demand will tell us when it’s too much.”
This echoes statements he made earlier in 2022 where he said when talking about future price increases, “If demand goes up, then we have the opportunity to do that.” At that time, Chapek said that they didn’t have any plans to announce in terms of what they’re going to do, but he said that they have a lot of flexibility thanks to the reservation system and can “move on a dime” to make necessary changes.
Crowds waiting to go inside
In other words, if they increase the prices and crowds continue to flood the parks (as we’ve seen them do during certain time periods), then more price increases could be in our future. It looks like it’ll truly hinge on demand.
We’ve already seen hundreds of price increases on food items, price increases on tickets for 2022 and 2023, price increases on Magic Key passes, and price increases on Disney World Annual Passes, and it looks like that may not be the end of it if demand stays high.
Mad Tea Party
With so much demand for the parks, some might wonder why Disney doesn’t just build a 5th “gate” (a.k.a. a 5th theme park) to allow for greater capacity at the resort as a whole and spread people out across more spaces.
Thus far, Disney has NOT announced that a 5th park is in the works. Instead, we saw an expansion of an existing park — Magic Kingdom — teased at the 2022 D23 Expo.
Possible Land Expansion in Magic Kingdom
Could things change in the future? Sure, anything is possible! What’s interesting to note is that while Disney has been discussing potential expansion plans, Universal Orlando Resort is already working on a brand new theme park of its own — Epic Universe. The last time Universal Orlando started developing a new theme park, Disney fast-tracked its own plans for another theme park — and that’s how the construction of Disney-MGM Studios Theme Park (now Disney’s Hollywood Studios) was accelerated.
Epic Universe is not set to open until 2025. What could the future hold for Disney if they attempt to “beat” Universal in terms of new creations or “respond” in some way to the impending opening of Epic Universe? We will have to wait and see.
Click here to see why Disney World might not be able to just add a 5th park
With 2023 approaching, it will be interesting to see what price increases hit the parks, whether any changes are made to the Park Pass system, and whether Annual Pass sales resume at Disneyland or Disney World. Only time will tell, but as long as demand for the parks stays high, price changes and capacity management will be a part of our future.
We’ll continue to keep an eye out for more updates and let you know what we find.
Click here to see us break down the price updates on 2023 Disney World park tickets
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Would’ve loved to purchase annual passes for myself and my husband for our trip to WDW we just returned from but wasn’t being offered. Was always going to be our treat to ourselves when husband retired. We would have brought our grandkids back all year with us!! Live in Ohio and still would’ve made multiple trips!! Ugh we’ll now we will probably move on from Disney! Start selling Annual Passes again !!
My Husband has been going since the mid 70s. Then grew up. Now married with kids. We got into the Vacation club. Chapek has ruined it. He has taken away all the benefits. He has raised prices on food, park passes, souvenirs everything else. No this is not because of a family from another state that can’t get in the park because of too many people. THAT IS A LIE. I will never buy the lightning pass for the rides. It is crap. I still love the resorts but do not agree on with these changes. We use to go every yr. It has gotten too expensive. People do not go every other yr because of anything but it is too expensive. We use to do the dining plan. Taking that away has ruined our trips too. HE HAS RUINED DISNEY.
The problem is that the “family coming from Denver every 5 years” won’t be able to come because of cost. I would also speculate that even for those with enough money to come they may be reluctant as there is little value associated with the cost. I could also see that people who do travel, not staying or visiting Disney exclusively anymore as they once did. When they “adjust” they’ll have seen losses before, during and for a time after the adjustments. I guess the attitude is ‘we’ll just weather that storm”.
So in his eyes the only people who purchase annual passes are the locals. Is he really that delusional to think that families with annual passes don’t travel to Disney and stay for weeks at a time MULTIPLE times a year? Solid evidence that this moron doesn’t even know the company he’s running into the ground.
Now that the “revenge” travel urge is over, attendance will plummet. Looks like it already hit with recent photos of attendance
The price for a trip to Disney World is now in the range of a trip to Europe or Alaska. At that level people will travel less (or not at all) & stay for shorter periods. The mid price & economy hotels are overpriced Hampton Inns. (I use Hamptons a lot & at least there I get a free breakfast).
The pool of people who can afford $7,000+ for a vacation is limited. Rather than spending billions on new parks, Chapek should focus on providing an affordable trip
Everything he says is a lie because there is nothing he says or does that has anything to do with improving user experience. He doesn’t care about the annual pass holders or the family from Denver that comes once every 5 years. SMH.
I was at Disney earlier this year and have never been more disappointed in all my visits. The magic has been sucked out. Among other things (being tied to my phone), I had a “less than stellar experience in the parks because [they] we jammed too many people in there.” It’s laughable that he actually thinks or believes we think that the pass system is about user experience.
I ditto all said already here – looks to me like “demand” is calling for a replacement to Chapek!!
Chapek is too focused on immediate profit at the expense of long-term potential. The “superfans” he’s alienating with price increases, restricted access, and his overall dismissive attitude are the ones who keep the place afloat during economic downturns. Who still went to Disney in the post-9/11 lull? Who still went during the last recession? You don’t want to drive them away, and that’s exactly what he’s doing.
As an AP holder (who kept throwing those monthly payments at the company like the sucker I am even when the parks were closed due to COVID), I’m annoyed. As a stockholder, though, I’m concerned about the affect this nonsense will have on the future of the company. We keep hearing how great the parks are doing, but the stock price isn’t reflecting a whole lot of positivity right now.
And if Bob’s goal is a better guest experience with lower crowds, that’s not the reality I’ve seen over the past year. Disney used to be superb at maintaining crowd flow in the parks, but COVID derailed that and it hasn’t bounced back. The key to meeting increasing demand while prioritizing guest experience is expansion — all four parks could use additional lands and attractions. But that costs money, and we know how He Who Counts Beans feels about investing in the future of the parks instead of making a quick buck.
Chapek why don’t you just quit all the dancing around and spit it out. Disney has become a “caste” system, excluding those who cannot afford to come except for every 5 years or can’t come at all due to the price. This is how it is sliced now, rich and you can go to Disney, upper Middle Class and you MIGHT be able to go every 5 years, anything below that in income just forget it and go find another park or watch your old DVDs for what we all remember as the real Disney experience. Sickening just sickening. Walt would be so upset.
If Chapek was honest, he’d tell you that the constant price increases are to line his pockets and the pockets of the shareholders. It’s pure greed. The increases on food that isn’t getting better, the increases on merchandise that is of cheaper quality, the AP ticket increase comes with less benefits, etc…are just about lining their pockets. It has nothing to do with being “fair” to the Denver family that visits every 5 years. That imaginary family won’t even be able to afford to visit Disney, anymore, with the constant price increases.
I don’t know why he said that the family from Denver couldn’t get in before the park pass reservation system was put into place. There were NEVER days that the parks were full EXPECT Christmastime. I was an Annual Passholder, and I went to WDW 5 to 6 times a year, stayed at a WDW Resort and ate breakfast and dinner at table service restaurants. They have taken that off the table for me especially with the crowds now and the long lines. I refuse to pay extra for the right to go on one ride, and I don’t want to walk around all day with my cell phone in my face. I didn’t renew my AP this year, and I’ll find another place to vacation. I do not live in Floriday, by the way.
“frankly, the annual pass as a value was so great that people were literally coming all the time and the accessibility of the park was unlimited to them and that family from Denver would get to the park and not be let in.”
But this all Disney’s fault. They created the problem themslves by introducing the passes back inthe 80’s. Back then attendance was low (Disneyland was even closed on Mondays), so they came up with annual passes to boost attendance. Well over the decades it worked well for all. That is until Chapek took over and screwed all the loyal dedecated pass holders by discontinuingthem, the bringingthem back at a much higher price and more limits and restrictions.
Like with all thing in life, when you establish give something for people they get use to it and expect it. So whenyou take it away and/or restrict and limit it, you will anger the people. As far as out of town folks on vacation, allow them a gauranteed reservation whenthey book a trip. At the same time don’t restrict and limit the pass holders since thay rae the majority of the guest that will be there in any given day. This why Disenyland resort had over a million pass holders pre-pandemic. They would have jus as many now ith new passes if not for restrictions and limits.
But the biggest issue is the resevation system for pass holders. Pass holders cannot make reservations on non-blackout days because they are allegedly booked. But as we all know by now is that single day ticket reservations are available. This is why Disney is being sued for have a different reservation calendar for pass holders.
Sorry Bob, but your logic just dosen’t make sense to pass holders. As long as you get restricting and limiting them you will always dissatisfaction when the pass holders. But then again,you dislike the pass holders anyway, so it is not like you care.
We are DVC members and love to have annual passes but were not informed of the deadline to purchase these. It’s obvious to me that the locals are the ones who are crowding the parks and spending very little money while there and they are the only ones who have the option of having annual passes. Those of us who are out of state and would like to purchase annual passes will visit the parks 5 to 7 days at a time and spend plenty of money. In no way do I believe the research they have done on annual pass holders is accurate. I think they definitely are money ahead by offering these annual passes to everyone as they did in the past.
LOL Chapek can spin things however he wants, but the scenario he puts forth has literally never happened. What can happen, however, is that those who are still actually willing to buy annual passes will now feel compelled to show up even more often in order to get their money’s worth. I’ve been seeing the iceberg for quite some time now…one has to wonder how all these allegedly smart, educated business types can’t.
Chapel is causing Disney prices to outpace the pace of inflation. I am an annual pass holder- we drive 3+ hours to get there and try to stay on property if the price is within our budget. We also try to go at least 5 times a year with stays of 4-5 days. That may not be possible. We go in and out of the parks for meals as their costs have exceeded our budget. And now we are very picky about what souvenirs we buy.
I really hate the park pass system- totally destroyed our spontaneous visits and the genie system as a pay per day/ride is outrageous considering how much it costs just to get INTO the parks. Chapel really needs to get out and talk to average people about how their vacation is impacted. Disney sure ain’t losing money!
The family from Denver not being able to get into the park is not the problem; nor is park reservations or halting the sale of annual passes the solution. The problem is Chapek. The solution? Well, you can figure that one out on your own.
They’re adding all those rooms to the Polynesian. I wonder where they think those guests will go when park reservations are filled. Will Poly guests get first preference? Will doing that cause the family from Denver to be shut out because they can’t afford to stay deluxe?
Chapek only sees the dollar sign. And I get it, that’s his job. But there is something off putting and cruel about the way he does his job. Unless things change, I’m done with Disney.
Chapek and his CFO have no idea on how they are ruining Disney. He is not considering the DVC memberships that they sold to people they live out of state that come more than once a year and now cannot buy an annual pass. I am a DVC member from New Jersey and my husband and myself before the pandemic came down 2 times a year and my kids and their family (3 groups of 4) came down at least once a year with our DVC. We would buy annual passes and never did we or anyone else have a problem getting into the parks when we came down in August since we have teachers in the family. My husband and I are planning to come down in May 2023 but will not be visiting the parks considering the ridiculous amount of money for tickets. So Mr. Chapek you will loose money on us and I would imagine a lot of DVC members that may feel the same. You sold DVC memberships to encourage people to come more than once a year and continue to build more resorts. It’s not the Annual Passholders ruining the parks and responsible for overcrowding it’s your reservation system. We have been DVC members since 1999 and never have we seen crowds and wait times like we saw this year in mid-July. We will visit Universal on our next trip unless they decide to follow Disney in their pricing. After next year seriously considering selling my points and moving onward. You have ruined the most magical place in the world.
The comment below stood out to me the most from this article.
Chapek said, “frankly, the annual pass as a value was so great that people were literally coming all the time and the accessibility of the park was unlimited to them and that family from Denver would get to the park and not be let in.”
In all my years of going to Disney and following Disney Parks news sites and podcasts, the only times of the year that a guest could not get into the parks was New Year’s Eve and maybe one or two other days in the year. It was very rare for any park to hit capacity. Now with the reservation system, a family that may be making its first and/or only visit to the parks may not be aware of the park reservation system. It seems like it is more likely that a family can’t get into the park they want with the reservation system until later in the day, thus reducing the value of their ticket and vacation experience.
From my viewpoint, it’s more about Chapek managing costs and maximizing profits, which is what a CEO should be focused on. However, he seems less aware (or doesn’t care) of the impact that some of these decisions have on the experience or value the guests receive, which will have a long term impact. I agree with the earlier opinion that the cost has risen to where other choices for vacationing will pull folks away from attending the parks more frequently. Also, once Epic Universe opens up in a few years, Universal will likely take a bigger bite out of WDW attendance. Especially, if Universal keeps it simple with their Express Pass.
I live about as far away from Disney World as you can get on the 48. Traveling from the Olympic Peninsula to Disney World used to be a yearly weeklong vacation. IT was nice to go every December and escape the Washington State Rain and winter doldrum. After our last visit (last December) we decided never again. You could not do much without holding your cell phone in your hand all day. I go to the parks to escape all the hustle and bustle. I don’t want to carry my phone. But I could not check into my dining reservations without a phone. Once inside I had to use a phone to view the menu. Even ordering a Dole Whip had to be done on a phone and picked up at a selected time. Virtual que all on a phone. Forcing you to get the new pay to play system, If you have any chance at experiencing the new attractions on you one day at each park, you will pay, or you won’t see it. Rise, Guardians, Rat. Not only are they always breaking down but if you pay lightning lane fees and the ride is broke down and you just never can get on, you are out of that %15.00 per person, no refunds. Disney’s fault, your money. Lots of benefits for the pass holders in special pricing and special merchandise while the Families who save for that once a year, every other year or every five years pays extra not only in cost of hotels, but in dining as we are captive to the park and hotel system.
So they cancelled free bus service for that family coming in from Denver for exactly what reason?
Disney has a “real high-class problem.”
Yes, a CLASS problem that Bobby Paycheck created yhis class warfare by raising prices so high that only the VERY wealthy can even afford to go to Disney anymore.
You know what. I love disney and I renewed my pass this year although I know disney is expensive and getting more expensive, but I go because I really love the feeling of being there, like I am somewhere on vacation not just an hour away from my home and I know the value is not there anymore but I spend the money along with the three other annual passholders that attend with me through the year. I sometimes go for the day or I sometimes spend the weekend at a disney hotel and I do this several times through the year. I feel like the CEO just told me I am not the the customer he wants coming to his theme park. I do not spend enough money, to use his facilities. So I guess I really do have to find another theme park where my business is appreciated. Ill be honest, When I go to other theme parks its just not the same feeling but I feel like I just got slapped in the face for my years of loyalty to the brand.
So if we keep going to Disney World, he will keep raising prices?! That’s a real incentive to stop going. We have a DVC membership, so we can stay at the resorts (if one is available since Disney also owns DVC memberships and books rooms to sell, so it’s often difficult to find anything open) and skip the parks altogether. It’s not what we had planned, but we can still enjoy the pools and entertainment at Disney Springs.
35 years of coming at least once a year. The annual pass is the incentive to come more than once in a 12 month period. Travel from MN, still AP holders and typically stay 7–9 days. Eat only at signature restaurants and spend a bundle.
Regretfully the current management has postured AP holders as the bad guys, at least that is how it feels.
Need to sell my Disney stock and head somewhere else where we are appreciated.
The capacity argument is baseless. Before they had a way to limit capacity and the parks only reached capacity on Christmas and New Years. I’m an out of state passholder and spend as much as any other family traveling to WDW. Those every 5 year visitors will be so confused by all the reservations, etc they won’t have a good experience for their $$$. What is the point if vacation if you have to plan every minute and stay on your phone. That dinners like work not vacation.
I have annual pass and live in Colorado Springs and come down twice a year and stay at least 5 days n Disney property
Well I hope that family of 5 from Denver, that now can get in the parks, keeps Disney in money for the year when we APs say enough is enough and we’re done spending money in Disney. ( 5 spenders VS 200 spenders, that makes a lot of financial sense.)
So we Annual Passholders, who have paid $1200 each to have the ability to visit the park as much as we want (within the limitations of the pass level) are now being chided by Chapek for using the benefits we bought. This whole “equity” thing is total BS. Does ANY other venue discriminate based upon their customers’ geographical location? How many venues sell premium seating to customers, and then restrict when they can use it? The answer is NONE.
With the economy circling the drain, and the air travel sector suffering from it’s own self-inflicted wounds, the only people who will be visiting the Disney parks will be the uber wealthy. So much for “equity.”
We just renewed our annual passes–clearly–they will never go on sale again–truly a hot commodity. Chapek just lost me for good.
If it weren’t for ‘superfans’–would there be a Walt Disney World?
So what I’m hearing is… were not allowing the loyal, dedicated fan who like myself, spends 30 days a year in the parks spending money on food, drinks, merchandise over the past 25 years to not receive any consideration what so ever and to not be able to buy an annual pass because Disney can make a few more bucks off of the family from Denver!? (by the way I’m from Denver). That to me sounds like pure GREED! They throw out these statements about attendance (numbers are never revealed) and fairness to all their customers but it is a lie. They must think were totally stupid out here. Yes we have degrees in business finance as well! Amazing the announcement yesterday about all the shows coming out and expansions to the parks. Yeah their not making any money right? Lets raise prices yet again to pay for all these things were selling to the public. We can read through the BS! I’ve talked to so many people who say “Bring back the annual pass or you’re going to loose a loyal fan”! Were already planning our european vacation for next year. 3 weeks in London, France and Italy for under $6000.
Chapek in his desire to keep the investors happy and keep his bonuses rolling in has ruined it for A LOT of us!
I can’t believe they are still selling the idea that all of the price increases & cost cutting is about “improving guest experience”. Do they honestly believe this junk?! I do agree that they are trying to take advantage of the one and done Disney traveler who does not know what they’re missing. The problem is that sooner rather than later those trackers won’t be coming to the parks in droves. Then what will management do? Who’s going to those new DVC room? I’ve planned for year to get DVC but it’s no longer the value it once was
It’s cheaper to take the family in a cruise but not on a Disney cruise (too expensive). Think Chapek should take a smaller bonus. He is not worth the money they pay him. All he had caused us is nothing but grief!!
It’s cheaper to take the family on a cruise but not on a Disney cruise (too expensive). Think Chapek should take a smaller bonus. He is not worth the money they pay him. All he had caused us is nothing but grief!!
Soo, we’re not the family coming from Denver. We come from Canada. I never felt deprived or that things were “unbalanced” because we didn’t get an annual pass. In the before times we never had a problem getting into the parks. ever. Our last trip was this past March. I didn’t notice a change in the crowd levels as compared to pre-Park Pass days, in fact it felt more crowded than previous trips, and it was more difficult to get into the parks than it was previously. This is just one person’s experience, but I am willing to lay bets that we aren’t the only ones who have experienced this or felt that way.
They will charge more as long as they people pay…not because Disney is worried a family from Denver won’t get in. Does Chapek and cronies really think people are buying this line of bull? And if the company is making billions, why are Disney stocks still in the toilet? Lost my shirt there too!
Put it back the way it was pre pandemic MR. CHAPEK..maybe then many of us can afford to return and enjoy the parks again!
I am a huge Disney fan and have had a Disney annual pass consistently until the pandemic. Since then I’ve kept only my universal pass. I’m traveling to Orlando twice in the next few months and will spend one day in EPCOT and one evening at a MNSSHP. The rest of the time will be at Universal. The pesudo announcements at D23 reveal that they have no real plans for WDW. There is nothing they announced that I am half as excited for as single lands at the new epic universe (let alone the park as a whole). I have a feeling after 2025 instead of universal being the add on park to my Disney trip I will pick a day or two for Disney to add o to my Universal vacations. And while I’m excited for the new park that also saddens me some.
Everything that comes out of Chapek’s mouth is a lie. I still love the Disney that was, but that Disney no longer exists. As stated before, I’m done with the place.
The only times folks may have been turned away, before the park pass system, would be potentially on Xmas and New Year’s Eve over the years! He only wants folks in the parks that are spending the max! WE dropped our annual passed 5 years ago and will probably never come back!
I was hoping to buy annual passes for one last year. I suspect if Covid hadn’t have hit, Disney would have had a real time trying to justify prices. For two years people had time to save up. Now with inflation it’s likely that Disney will hit a wall. Those that have already purchased or set up a visit will go one last time because it’s become too expensive for the average American to afford. I have a Disney credit card that gives me cash back. I’m planning on using that and then getting rid of the card and good bye Disney. Too much aggravation making reservations, getting rides set up and prices of food and lodging going up. Give it another 3 years and then they will see they outpriced most people from a Disney vacation.
Was annual Passholder for more than 12 years. Before Covic was going 4 times a year 12 days and on holidays 4 day weekends. Stayed on property hotels and I live 2 hours away. The last 2 yrs didn’t go because of the reservation system and with price hikes didn’t like it. We will not be renewing this time. Instead might be getting Universal passes and spending our money there.
A better way to control the crowds to a degree and keep everyone happy, would be to count the AP’s as being present every day and only sell tickets for the remainder. That would also keep the crowds down, the lines shorter and then that family from Denver, might be able to go every 2-3 years, instead of 5.
We promised our granddaughter a trip to Disney World as a graduation present. Because of Chapek’s price-gouging, we decided to go an Alaska cruise instead. In understand that Disney – along with many other companies – lost a lot of money during the pandemic. But, nothing says you have to make it all up in a single year. Bob Chapek is the antiwalt!
I used to be an Annual Passholder and we live in Ohio as well. We aren’t the “local” crowd that Chapek apparently thinks is not that important. We usually come in for the RunDisney events but with all of the price hikes it’s getting hard to justify going to Disney much lately. We’ve stopped going as much as we used to.
I have a love/hate relationship with Disney of late. I still love going to the parks but they have lost their way in what they think their base customers are and their embracement model they have now is making me dislike them more and more.
Looks like Mr. Chapek is grooming himself for politics. His political speak using vague answers, misdirecting statements and avoidance will serve him well. Does anyone believe that the Disney parks are better than they were before Chapek? Do less benefits, higher costs and being just another Universal Studios park make Disney better? Dear Bobby…you can fool some of the people some of the time….never mind, you wouldn’t understand.
We are DVC and have continually used Annual Passes, what is difficult to understand is why if Chapek knows we are already coming that you will not sell DVC members annual passes. Make it a direct perk
I don’t care just make it available
I’ve got the dilemma of our passes expiring. Now
And we are not returning until February/March when we will go for 4 weeks
So now I am forced to buy my AP’s now and waste several months
We are retired and will no longer go in the summer and want them to roll in a different time of year.
He needs to understand this
I. Can afford the prices but wont pay it. Do not like the rip-off attitude and straight jacketed experience. Reserve this , reserve that. I DO NOT Know what and when i want to eat a year from now. No longer fun. Prices will stay high because they seek a global guest now. Park filled with foreigners with cash to burn. Plenty of other places in the world to take you kids. As to the 5th gate idea: I had always thought they should buy a chunk of land in North Dakota and build a great North Pole Park. Take some stress off Florida.
My wife & I live in Indiana & we’ve had season passes for years, so obviously we really like most everything about Disney. Even our Honeymoon in 1973 was at Disney! I’m retired, but although I’m financially in a good position I have noticed that the pricing on anything involved with Disney is just going out of site. I would hate to go a whole year without visiting, but Chapek says “Demand” will dictate when pricing goes up or down. That may be a realistic way for Disney to look at it but I personally just thing it’s the wrong way to look at it. The cost of season passes has dramatically increased, the food in the parks is really high, and the merchandise is high in costs. I realize when you’re at Disney you’re going to pay more for a souvenir shirt than you would for the same quality shirt at a Target. But not so sure a $20 shirt needs to be $80 in the parks, just seems unreasonable. I know this will not happen, but I would almost join a boycott for one year to stay away from Disney if it made Chapek rethink their pricing. A tremendous amount of people would have to do the same thing and unfortunately, I realize that is not going to happen. So as long as all of us Disney people just continue to go the pricing will continue to rise. I realistically see nothing to change, if they can pack the parks, they don’t care about a percentage of us that complain. Guess I’ll be there with the rest of you anyway!
So basically they will increase prices until people stop going. Which he knows wont happen
Disney is just interested in money. They don’t care about people. My family used to go 4 or 5 times a year with annual pass. We always stayed on Disney property. We spend about $5000 a trip. No more. We have a Universal trip planned for fall break and will be buying Universal annual passes.
“Strong demand for theme-park vacations — despite economists’ worries about an inflation-led downturn in consumer spending — powered Disney’s increase in profitability. Revenue totaled $21.5 billion, a 26 percent increase from a year earlier. Operating profit surged 50 percent, to $3.6 billion.” per NY Times Disney Q2 financial results.
So Chapek’s response to raising prices is we can expect to see more and more of this until the demand diminishes. What a Wall Street attitude! And it’s a lot more than raising prices. Fast pass replaced by Genie+ and Lightning Lanes pay options. Fewer promotions and the ones offered are not as generous. My last 2 visits we paid rack rates for DW hotel. We have enjoyed DW vacations for over 10 years and before the pandemic, we always were able to get a deal…discounted room, free dining plan, etc. Those days are over.