Bob Iger is back in control as The Walt Disney Company CEO, and fans have BIG expectations for his return.
©Alberto E. Rodriguez / Getty Images
We’ve been hearing from many Disney fans about all kinds of changes they hope will happen now that Iger is back, from the return of Magical Express to higher pay for Cast Members. Let’s take a look at the FIRST thing Bob Iger should do now that he’s the Disney CEO once again.
We asked DFB readers “What’s the FIRST thing you’d like to see changed at Disney now that Bob Iger is the company’s CEO?” There were several common responses, and we’ll list the most popular ones here. But first, a disclaimer.
Disclaimer
Iger hasn’t announced yet that any of these changes will be made, and it’s possible that not much will change at all in the Disney theme parks. The main reason for Chapek’s departure appears to be heavy streaming losses for Disney+, and Iger is expected to turn things around for the company in that department. So despite the fact that many fans’ chief concerns are for the parks, the main issue for investors and the Disney Board of Directors is profitability for the streaming platforms.
©Disney
In fact, Disney lately has needed revenue from the parks now more than ever as the company’s success there has been bankrolling its streaming service losses. Disney’s Parks, Experiences, and Products division now makes up 62% of the operating income for the company, which means the current system is working pretty well. Although the ideas that our readers came up with for Iger’s return may be popular among Disney fans, they aren’t necessarily guaranteed or even likely to happen.
Main Street
Still, it’s good to know what the fans are thinking right now, and Iger may have plans to make at least small changes in the theme parks. Let’s dive into the ideas!
What Fans Hope Will Change
On Facebook, DFB readers told us what they hope will change now that Bob Iger is back in charge at Disney. Here’s what you said!
Cast Member Pay Raises
Many fans said they hope the first thing that changes is that Disney World Cast Members get a pay raise. DFB reader Anna said, “Honestly, the first thing he needs to do is give all the Cast Members a raise. They have suffered the most, including when the pandemic first hit.”
Cast Members
Sarah agreed, saying, “Take care of the Cast Members! They work way too hard for all […] that they go through.”
Wonderful Cast Members
Iger previously shared that, when he left the position of Disney CEO in the first place, one of his regrets was not giving Cast Members pay raises earlier. In an interview with CNN in March 2022, Iger said he regretted not increasing the starting hourly wage from $10 to $15 early on. He said, “We were being pushed to go to 15. There was some hesitation in that regard because of the cost associated with it. We should have done that right away.”
More Perks for Disney World Hotel Guests
Several readers also asked for more perks for guests who are staying at Disney World hotels. Some of those perks — like Extra Magic Hours and Magical Express — were removed or changed in the last couple of years.
Disney’s Riviera Resort
Extra Magic Hours was replaced by Early Theme Park Entry, which allows guests at all Disney hotels to enter the parks 30 minutes early every day, and Extended Evening Hours, which allows guests at Deluxe Disney hotels to stay a couple of hours past park closing time on certain days.
Art of Animation hotel
Zac said, “Staying on property used to have so many benefits, made paying more worth it.” And Jackie agreed that perks used to be better: She requested “perks you used to get as a resort guest like FastPass and magic hour [Extra Magic Hours], not half-hour and not just for deluxe resorts, but a full hour early or late at alternating parks. And free parking for resort guests like it was.”
Port Orleans French Quarter
Pam also requested the return of full housekeeping at the Disney hotels: “Daily housekeeping. Beds made and towel animals to return to, after 15 hours in the parks.”
Return of the Disney Dining Plan
Chelsey had a straightforward ask of Bob Iger: “Bring back the meal plan already!!!! We’ve waited long enough.”
Disney Dining Plan Shirt
The Disney Dining Plan (which allows Disney World guests to purchase a package for meals and snacks along with the rest of their vacation) was paused during the COVID-19 pandemic closures, and it still hasn’t returned. However, this is one change that we think is likely to happen in the near future.
The Disney Dining Plan comes in handy!
Disney confirmed last year that it would be coming back, and since most of the restaurants in the parks are open now, it looks like that return could happen soon. The dining plan is a profitable program for Disney, so they likely would not be cutting revenue with its return.
Genie+ Changes
A LOT of fans are hoping for changes or even a full removal of Genie+. Genie+ replaced FastPass+ as the way that visitors can skip the lines at some Disney World rides, but unlike FastPass+, the new system is not free. Many have also complained that it’s too difficult to use, as you have to make reservations for Lightning Lanes throughout the day instead of making those plans ahead of time.
Disney Genie
Christine said, “Give back the fast passes! I wouldn’t mind paying for FP, but I hate the new system — confusing cost. Just make one set price.” Stacy wanted the entire system gone: “Abolish Genie Plus so I can enjoy the day with my kids without my face in the phone.”
Using Disney Genie+!
Maureen had the idea to change the system so that you could purchase Genie+ and book rides before your vacation begins. She said, “It would allow better rest, and dining wouldn’t overlap.” Zac voiced the opinions of many fans when he said, “The Genie+ system needs to be overhauled.”
Lightning Lane at Tower of Terror
Hilary noted that the real problem in her opinion was the cost: “I’m not opposed to a type of Genie+ system. But the cost should be a little lower.”
Genie+ got up to $29 per person in Disney World ©Disney
Despite the requests of many Disney fans, it seems unlikely that Genie+ will go away. For one thing, this system was likely in development during Bob Iger’s first run as CEO, so he was probably involved in creating it in the first place. And Genie+ has been hugely profitable for Disney thus far, with about half of Disney World guests purchasing it.
Spaceship Earth Lightning Lane
Christine McCarthy (Disney’s CFO) stated during the 4th quarter earnings call that “the continued popularity of premium offerings, including Genie+ and Lightning Lane” was the reason for increased per capita spending in the parks and contributed significantly to park revenue. As much as you may not want to hear it, Genie+ is likely here to stay.
Park Hopper Changes
Another change that many fans called for was the return of normal Park Hopping in Disney World. Currently, Park Hopping is only allowed after 2PM.
Entering Animal Kingdom
Christine said, “Let me park hop when I wanna!” And Kenneth requested the return of the “old park hopping system, come and go as you please.”
Return of Magical Express
Another perk that is now gone is the Magical Express shuttle between the Disney World hotels and the Orlando International Airport. This used to be a free service, but now visitors must choose between a variety of paid services to get to their Disney hotel.
Magical Express has been discontinued
In response to the question of what fans wanted Iger to change first, Jessica said, “MAGICAL EXPRESS. For the love of all things good……if nothing else!!! Please!! Yes, I’m begging.”
No More Park Pass Reservations
Another COVID-era change that has stuck around is the Park Pass Reservation system, which requires guests to make park-specific reservations before they visit a Disney World theme park. You can’t just get into Magic Kingdom with a general Disney World park ticket — you must also have a reservation for Magic Kingdom before you can go inside.
Magic Kingdom entrance
Disney fan Dulcie said, “Get rid of park reservations so we can have the freedom of waking up and choosing a park. Not everyone wants a second-by-second planned vacation.”
Many fans agreed with Dulcie, but it’s still not very likely that the park passes will go away. Although the system started as a way for Disney to control capacity after the COVID-19 closures, the company is still realizing all kinds of savings and control from requiring the reservations. Disney can gather a lot of data from the reservations and use that information to plan more accurately for adequate staffing, food, and merchandise in each park every day.
Crowds in EPCOT
Because the park passes allow the Disney parks to operate more efficiently (and profitably), it’s likely that the reservations are here to stay.
Annual Pass Sales Resume
Several fans asked for Disney World to resume Annual Pass sales. Zac said, “Bring back WDW annual passes,” and Kristen said, “Would love to see annual passes being sold again.”
Annual Passholder sign
Most of the Disney World Annual Pass sales have been on pause for over a year now, but their return could happen in the near future. Disney has recently made a few adjustments to the system (including some price increases), which seem to indicate that the passes will be back if not this year then sometime in 2023.
Bring Back the “Magic”
Finally, a common theme in the responses to our question about what Bob Iger should change first was to bring back the “Disney magic.” Many fans feel that the magic has been missing for a while now, with more focus on price increases and cost-cutting.
Partner Statue
Steven said that this might look like “an emphasis on returning to creativity and storytelling.” Some experts have said that Iger is known as the “content guy,” whereas Chapek was more the “finance guy,” so this emphasis on creativity may be a shift we’ll see soon.
Princess Tiana and Prince Naveen in the Festival of Fantasy Parade in Disney World
Again, keep in mind that many of these changes at the Disney parks are unlikely to happen, as demand for the parks is still very high and people generally seem willing to pay the higher prices, even with the unpopular elements like Genie+ and Park Pass Reservations. From a business point of view, the parks are currently very profitable and running well. But you never know what might change in the future!
If you want to learn more about Bob Iger’s return to Disney, check out these links:
- Disney Stock Values Jump Following News About Bob Iger’s Return as CEO
- Why Disney Replaced Bob Chapek with Bob Iger
- Celebrities React to Disney’s Decision to Bring Bob Iger Back as CEO
- Disney CEO Bob Iger’s Salary Revealed
- 7 Big Challenges Bob Iger Will Face as Disney’s New CEO
- Bob Iger Is Back as Disney’s CEO — What Happens Now?
Keep following DFB for more updates on all the latest Disney news!
Bob Iger Is Back at Disney. Here’s What Can Change (and What Won’t).
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What other changes are you hoping to see at Disney now that Iger is back? Let us know in the comments.
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Bring back the perks of staying at a Disney resort:
Fast passes
Magic hours for all resorts
Picking up your luggage at the airport and luggage check in at the resort for the trip back
Disney Meal Plan
How about discounts that you can use–their discounts are a little restrictive, if they have any
There is one other way Disney can bring back the Magic – We have driven down to WDW from Chicago nearly every year since our kids were little, but not always could afford park tickets, so instead we thoroughly enjoyed “resort hopping” – we could spend days driving from one resort to another just to relax, enjoy each varied theme and the Disney Magic, dine in the restaurants and shop in the shops. We didn’t spend money in the theme parks, but did spend it at the resorts. Since we now have to either stay at or pay to park at each resort, we no longer can enjoy that nice perk at WDW, so we will not be visiting there nearly as much anymore, if ever again. Now, as financially strapped retirees, Disney has priced out some long-time loyal fans by taking away that easy way for us to enjoy the Magic within our budget.
All of these are spot on!! The one comment that I think all of us can life with is the park reservations. I don’t like it but I do get it for crowd control.
I’ll never go back as long as park reservations exist. It’s a horrible system which doesn’t help with crowds but which does make the guest experience far worse.
Bring back the parking lot shuttles so people done have to walk so far. We were at Epcot in October 2022 and it was 90+ temp. My husband was not able to walk to the car. My son in law was not allowed to drive to the front of the park to pick him up. We had to walk down about 15 rows and down the row to get to the car. They should advise the cast members to be a little more understanding and bend the rules once in awhile for the handicap. Please bring back the parking lot shuttle
A plea from a U K DVc member please bring back the 3 week pass . It costs us a fortune to fly to wdw often £1000 each as we can only come in August . My family are all teachers and we would love to be able to do 3 weeks at wdw again !!! Instead of 2 weeks at wdw and a week at Universal !!! Please…….
Also the disney dining plan !!! 🤞🤞🤞🤞
I’m just happy Chapek is gone !
How about just reducing the price of tickets and resorts a bit so that the common man can afford to take the family to WDW ???
The reservation system is not for crowd control anymore. It is simply for profitability. They will still allow maximum capacity into the parks as before COVID. But now, with the reservation system, they can limit the less desirable annual pass holders or other groups they believe won’t spend enough. They can also use the reservation information to help adjust surge pricing on things like Genie+ quicker to ensure they get as much money as possible from every guest. They will not increase/decrease the number of workers based on a given day’s reservations. However, they will increase the cost of individual Lightning Lanes if there are more reservations.
Crowd control is not happening the parks are more crowded than ever, I can’t understand the need or usefulness of the reservations and it destroys your ability to simply relax and enjoy each day of your vacation as you please.
I really think that perks for those staying at ALL DISNEY resorts would go a long way. The rooms cost so much that I don’t think it’s out of line to expect a little extra.
I tend to agree with a lot of the comments mentioned above. I think if Iger wants to be bring the company back on top, this needs to be revised big time at the parks. I was talking to my Wife just yesterday about whether we would return to Disney World and she flat out said No, not with the current state of the parks. We travel from overseas with the overall costs in the 15-20k range. It’s not cheap. We want / need to feel wanted, immersed, pampered, special even as soon as we arrive at MCO airport. We pay enough to get some extra treatment. The Magical express was so important to us, and we were so disappointed when that perk was taken away. I understand it’s a business and they need to make money to pay for the upgrades,Movies, streaming etc. But come on, why are the perks we pay extra for when staying on property being reduced or taken away. It’s B.S and Iger needs to have a really hard look at the parks and the way Disney has beeb treating the guests (Disney’s cash cow). If the parks generate 62% of the income for the company, he should be throwing perks at us to make us want to come back, stay longer, spend more on merch, food, extra tickets. I wish Iger luck and I hope he can bring it back to the level it was back in 2019. Maybe then we will come back.
I think the comments here in the thread as well as the ideas other users have had all boil down to the final point- bring back that “Disney Magic”. It means that you know cast members will be happy and treat guests accordingly, the parks are clean and well-tended, crowds are managed more efficiently so you don’t spend the day riding only three attractions because every line was hours long (off-seasons don’t exist there anymore). It means you know that you and your family are going to have a special, memorable for all the RIGHT reasons kind of day. I personally wouldn’t mind the price increases if the cost meant a better experience, but the baseline experience has been the worst it’s ever been. The last time my husband and I visited the park we were shocked at how poorly managed the crowds were and how many overflowing trash cans there were- these aren’t the kinds of things you expect at a Disney park. Recapturing that Disney Magic and making improvements is going to involve a lot of change, but for once I think people are looking forward to that.
Pay all cast members a decent living wage! They work hard and deal with unkind guests many times. My family were guests last week on the Wish. We were given envelopes to encourage giving extra tip even though I paid gratuities (18% for each family member; even children) in advance for all family members. I had NO issues paying in advance but I thought it was pretty arrogant to lay envelopes in our staterooms. I also gave extra $ to the cast members (in their hands) that went above and beyond.
We just returned home from our vacation on the Wish and also spent 5 days at the parks and stayed on property. The magic is gone! Disney is ALL about money and greed.
I absolutely detested having to use my phone for navigation, show times, map of the parks, Genie plus (a total waste of $ because options were limited to us) etc. Having guests constantly relying on their phones is ridiculous. Guests would suddenly STOP causing issues with the flow of “traffic”. There is no way many elderly, disabled, or non tech savvy people (like ME) found this experience pleasant.
Mousekeeping at the parks was terrible. Not once was our room tidied up, nor the beds made. I don’t change my linens daily at home and I do not expect mousekeeping to do this either. They came in every other day to just grab the trash and give us fresh towels. If we needed fresh towels, we would have to ask.
Another issue I found is that Disney parks no longer send the items that a guest bought back to their resort room. Disney no longer offers free shipping to the guests residents. In my opinion, Disney is losing money on this aspect. No guest wants to carry extra items around with them in the parks. No guest wants to buy larger items around with them either. Disney could/would sell more if they brought back this service in my opinion. I know I didn’t buy items because I didn’t have room to carry them on the plane or pack in my suitcases.
Iger needs to fix the advance dining reservation system. To many hoarders that snatch up everything they can and hold on to them until right before a monetary penalty is put into place, usually within 24-48 hours of reservations. Disney recently changed the time frame of the canceling policy down to 2 hours without penalties. How is this going to help? IMO, require guests pay deposit on advanced dining reservations. I had to pay the total cost for my entire party of 12 for Hoopty De Doo review when reservations were made. I have no problem with this being a requirement of ALL reservations. Disney’s policy is that there is NO trading or selling reservations. All Disney has to do is search on social media and it is clearly being done. There are children in the Make A Wish program that can’t even get their wishes granted due to the hoarding situation. Sad, very sad.
I am disappointed on how many things have changed since I last took my family eight years ago.
We do not get to visit often (last time was 8 years ago) and there is no incentive to stay on property any longer. No perks to necessarily be thrilled about. Taking a family to Disney is close to being out of reach due to costs and being nickeled and dimed to death. I noticed the cast members just don’t appear happy as they portrayed to my family on our last visit.
YES, YES, AND MORE YES TO ALLLLLLLL OF THE ABOVE!!!! Good riddance Chapek, AND THANK YOU BOB FOR BRINGING BACK THE MAGIC WE ALL SO DESPERATELY NEED AND WANT!!! I’m very excited to see what changes he makes, and I’m hoping he will make these priorities!!
I did not mind the park pass requirement. We spend an entire day at the park we visit. We normally don’t park hop. Four years ago, when we visited as a family, we got the dining plan hotel and park hopper combo. We only used the park hopper one day when MK closed early for Mickeys Christmas Party, we hopped to EPCOT for dinner. So, knowing which park we are going to, we can make dinning reservations at that park. Back then, you could make reservations 180 days out, and reservations were available and plentiful. This year we went as a couple and couldn’t get reservations for several of our choices. So, if you know which park you reserved, you can know where you will eat (table service). But the park reservation is not controlling the crowds, especially after 2 PM when park hopping starts.
Please bring back dining plan. Also please stop charging to park on deluxe hotel parking lots or any of Disneys lots when your staying in one of Disney’s hotels that would be money your guest could spend on food in parks.
I agree with all of the above! My wish is to be valued as a top tier annual pass holder. Unlike what Mr. Chapek believed, we eat at upscale restaurants (yes even V&A when we can get in), we buy gifts and stay at deluxe resorts. For the stupid money I pay for the annual pass at least let me hop earlier in the day. I am at WDW from Maine twice a year and so I don’t need to be in a specific park for an entire day. Being in a scooter, MK is pretty much out for me, so I like to go in for awhile and then hop to where I can actually get on an attraction.
Mr. Iger please bring back the magic and help us to feel like more than just wallets.
Our visit in November was our 11th to WDW. I don’t expect red carpet treatment but SOMETHING as an acknowledgement of our loyalty and thousands of dollars spent to be there. Nothing. Actually, every perk has been removed. The buses are fine but any plus for staying on property has been eliminated. 30 Minutes early in the morning. Please. Also, lots of short hours due to pass-holder event crowds that overran the park in the afternoon. It’s expensive to be there and to have a park close to guests at 6:00 really limits what you can get done.
I especially don’t like having to keep our faces in our phones all day to reset ride choices. It really steals the “magic” of just enjoying the park.
Also, please bring back daily maid service. Motel 6 does better. I don’t know that we’ll ever be back as the experience has been sterilized beginning with no Magic Express service and ending with no maid service. Just greed, like everywhere else. We can go to Europe for less and that’s a shame. Disney is pricing middle America out of its parks. We have been big fans but good grief.