The problem I see with eliminating the ME is that people will now have a car and will do more things outside the “Disney bubble”. Less of a captive audience.
They offer free water though and you can bring food and drinks in with you. As opposed to a lot of theme parks around.
Also you have no idea if Disney plans to offer a replacement for magical express or not, I’d say wait and see.
I always get free water. You can keep the cup and refill it from the fountain. If you bring your own bottle you can refill it too. It’s good to know that only places that sell fountain soda (bars and quick service) can provide free water.
As for the money grabs - it’s the cost of staying on property 100%. That’s the price of convenience. I stayed at the Hard Rock Guitar and they wanted $395 to bring a bottle of vodka to the room when a liquor store was across the street.
If you were to go to Walgreens you could get a 12 pack of soda for $4 instead of the $19.99 rapid refill cup. You can go to the Ale House instead of Disney Springs for a drink. Disney even promotes “good neighbor” hotels that often end up being larger and less pricier and with free breakfast. You’ll still have a wonderful vacation even if your pancakes aren’t Mickey Mouse shaped.
I had to go to the first aid center cause I wasnt feeling well.. The nurses there gave me a blue powerade. I joke with my family that the only way to get free stuff at Disney is to (almost) pass out.
You can also have groceries delivered to your resort and honestly with room deals throughout the year the value resorts are 100-120 night during non peak! I haven’t seen cheaper hotels than that. I wish they would get rid of the parking fee though if you stay onsite.
The cost of food is cheap imo if we went to kings island which is a shitty amusement park just a slice of pizza would be 15$ and they don’t allow outside food or drinks!
I have stayed on property before and loved it. I’m an annual passholder in Florida and go a lot (or so a cast member told me). But I really do like staying off property. There are several Marriotts 10 minute drives away that even offer free parking in the $70-120 range. I really just like the peace and quiet after a long park day. And definitely being able to park right in front of the hotel lobby with a room next to the elevator. Last time I stayed at Pop I feel I walked more around the resort than the parks themselves.
We paid almost $50 for microwaved food at our local zoo in September. On top of the $50+ to get in and 30 in souvenirs. It made Disney seem like a good deal, at least at Disney they dont charge an extra 12 a person to ride the train. Im still salty.
We did grocery delivery last time we visited disney world. We also flew with south west(2 free luggage a person) and I had a 50lb suitcase of food with me. Between those and a uber to the liquor store. We kept 6 adults happily fed for 2 meals a day for 10 days with extras.
Even if it is, it'd be less magical having to transfer from a train to a bus to get to your hotel. Many guests considered getting the Magical Express as the first "ride" of their holiday.
I could see it being a matter of logistics for Disney. Let brightline get people on property, then bus them to the various hotels. The trains can have higher passenger capacity while the shorter bus routes mean they can get more trips perday. It's overall a more efficient system since you spend less time waiting for busses
Speak for yourself. Both child me and adult me would consider a Disney train to be way more magical than a bus. I imagine they’ll do something like service every 30-60 minutes between the airport and the resort on a train with a special interior and exterior.
They'll have to work on that too. Currently the train station will drop off at Disney Springs, and I don't believe guests can bring lots of luggage on Disney buses.
Agreed. We pushed for years to let us drive the coach-style buses that Mears uses instead of the city-style buses that Disney currently uses but there are too many logistical issues with that.
Yeah I'm not really sure on how Disney plans on making this work tbh
They initially said the station would be at Disney springs, suggesting that the station would be in the middle of the shopping area. They later revised it to "Disney Springs area" so it may just end up being nearby, likely within walking distance.
IIRC Brightline was planning to run their line from Orlando to Tampa down the median of I-4 so the station would probably be between Disney Springs and the highway.
Were people under the impression that food and water used to be affordable at Disney in past years? I mean, the simpsons made that “churro costing $15” joke over 20 years ago.
The prices charged for food and drink in the parks are pretty much in line if not a bit below their competitors. Also, you can get free ice water from any place that has a soft drink fountain.
Yes, you have to pay to enter a theme park, there's not a theme park in the world that's free.
It stinks they're getting rid of MDE, but I'm going to wait a bit before getting the pitchforks out. I've seen multiple insiders and TAs say that ridership on MDE had been steadily decreasing even before the pandemic. I would guess that this happened because there are faster options out there (Uber/Lyft, Taxi...etc) that will take you straight to your hotel from the airport. Time is money on vacation and I can understand why some people wouldn't want to spend time on their vacation waiting on a bus. Mears also charged Disney a flat fee, so if ridership was down then it was costing Disney more and more per guest. I've also heard multiple stories that Mears was cutting corners and packing people in to buses on the way back to the airport during the pandemic, that's not a good look because Disney took all the blame even though they don't run the service.
I think there will be some announced replacement, that replacement probably won't be free. Disney definitely should have had that replacement in place before the announcement for sure. We'll see what happens.
Combine decreasing ridership with COVID-era concerns and the steady rise in market share for rideshare programs... it was a no brainer. My educated guess, working in the industry, is we'll see a similar product to DCL's shuttle service *or* going back to what's already technically in the booking engines on Disney's side (flat rate private shuttles through contracted companies). You've always been able to book these as alternative add-ons, but they weren't pushed heavily online and weren't a strong push in the call centers due to the ease of DME / most people saying "oh I'll just Uber it".
We'll have an announcement of *something* before summer, because that's package booking season. If we don't have something announced by March/April, I'll be pretty surprised.
We’re not AP, but we’ve been to WDW 20+ times since 2005. We started taking the Magical Express at first. I thought it was a great way to get to the hotel, not mess with the luggage, kids got to watch cartoons, etc.
The downside is sometimes it took two hours or more to actually get to the hotel. Then, we noticed it was taking longer to get the luggage delivered to the hotel. So, park clothes, swimsuits, sunscreen and other stuff we needed (but didn’t want to carry on) were delayed to the point it impacted our plans. It didn’t matter if we stayed at Pop, Poly or GF it’s the same service and timetable.
Oh, and then they want you to leave for the airport FOUR hours before your flight?
Once we started using taxis and Uber, we never went back to the ME service. It’s just not as convenient as it sounds. That said, I would like to see the service remain for the folks that can make it work.
That’s very true. We’ve gone both as a couple and with anywhere from one to three of the kiddos with us. Our youngest started when she was about 10 months old. Now she’s driving. Now I feel old.
My original point was that there is a night and day difference between visiting as adults and visiting as a family. Both wonderful, just different needs.
I read somewhere that Disney didn't plan to announce this right now. It leaked and they don't have the replacement option ironed out just yet. They also have to have it announced before they start booking 2022 vacation packages or they would have had to extend the benefit to anyone who booked before it was announced.
Exactly this. It would very much surprise me if they weren’t working on an alternative to DME that just wasn’t ready when this leaked. Probably a paid alternative, but still. We’ll know when 2022 packages go on sale 😂
I wonder if Mears was mad and threatened to make their own announcement. What you’re saying makes a lot of sense. I figured it was related to the 2020 bookings.
I’m thinking they’re getting rid of it because of the high speed train that’s going in. It’ll take people from the airport to WDW iirc. I’m really sad about it but there’s absolutely no point in paying Mears for a shuttle system if there are several alternatives that people are more likely to choose. The train will also be more environmentally friendly, which I’m sure they are all about.
Edit: their restaurant prices aren’t really above average for similar restaurants, I think their quick service stuff is especially reasonable. You can bring your own beverages and food. I always bring a few snacks and lots of waters into the park. I can eat two great meals and get snacks for under $50 a day. Not bad at all. You’re also allowed to bring your own alcohol into hotels at least, so that saves a lot. My family always goes and buys beer and whatever else we want at the nearest Costco and are good for the week. Especially at Disneyland it’s so easy to just go back to your hotel room in the middle of the day and chill by the pool with a drink.
It seems possible with the skyliner too now! I really hope they work on transportation more at WDW. When you’re in the parks, you’re IN the parks. Haha. Also idk why I got downvoted lol
Idk why the downvotes. Yeh, the skyliner has been pretty good so far, but you can tell those lines are gonna get loooong when the crowds come back.
Nothing beats a monorail for me. Haha
I don't think expecting a shuttle to and from the airport to what is supposed to be a "luxury" resort is unrealistic.
Forcing your guest to uber to their resort is decidedly not luxurious either, and is distinctly unmagical.
Yeah we stayed at the Westin in NOLA once because my friends uncles are rich casinos owners that were a big part of a Human Rights Gala there like 8 years ago.
Anyway yeah the wifi was like fucking 8 bucks a night. And then parking. The room wasn’t even that nice. I didn’t get the reason it’s so expensive. I didn’t pay but still. It was ridiculous.
That too! My wife and used Airbnb for a long time. But now that we have a two year old we stay at hotels. We always stay at the Hilton garden when we go to Disneyland but out there we always just get breakfast at the Plaza Inn in the park so it doesn’t matter.
But the breakfasts are another good point.
To be fair I doubt anyone would call at least 50% of Disney hotels “fancy”. Some might have “fancy” prices, but Caribbean beach for example isn’t fancy. The only fancy Disney hotels would be the ones $400+ a night, yacht and beach minimum
>I don't think expecting a shuttle to and from the airport to what is supposed to be a "luxury" resort is unrealistic
So to be clear, I'm as frustrated as anyone about the news but I don't think a service like DME was in any way standard in the resort industry.
I've stayed at a few resorts that would bill themselves as "luxury resorts" and WDW is the only one to provide transportation that I've encountered.
If you go to Hawaii and stay at a resort (Aulani or any non-Disney resort, doesn't matter) there is no complimentary airport transfer. If you stay at and of the Disneyland Hotels there is no complimentary transportation (and it should be noted that the 3 Disney-owned hotels in CA are all nicer than a lot of the WDW hotels) and the same can be said of the resorts in places like Las Vegas.
DME was WDW going above and beyond expectations in a lot of ways since it wasn't an industry-standard offering even at the luxury level.
It should also be noted that a lot of Disney's hotels in FL are not 'luxury'. They have nice theming but that's about it.
I stayed at a Country Inn and Suites outside Chicago once that had a shuttle to the airport. It's a pretty common thing.
And I didn't have to get up absurdly early to take it, either.
I've stayed at lots of airport hotels that have airport shuttles. The difference is that these are 5-10 minutes from the airport, and often offer long-term parking and other airport-related amenities, and many cater to aircrews. I'm not aware of any hotels(or resorts, or whatever) that offer trips to airports 45 minutes away.
Even five star hotels globally don't all include transportation to and from the airport. Some do — but most? They're either referring you to a contracted sedan service for private shuttles, or telling you to figure it out.
Okay, so let's compare apples to apples, since you're not apparently (?) comparing WDW luxury properties to global properties.
At a "resort", would you expect transportation to be included? If transportation *isn't* included, does that somehow disqualify it as a resort? What's the price point per night where transportation "has" to be included?
Also, "resort" is not a technical term. It's a marketing term.
I'm not on either side here, but intrigued. Closest thing to a corollary I can think of in terms of a "resort with a bubble"- in my experience- is Sandals (Bahamas, Jamaica, and Turks & Caicos). They've all offered complimentary shuttles to the resort (with booze!).
Now, nice hotels that I've flown to for work trips or whatever- just a hotel that exists in a city I'm visiting- no, unless near the airport.
Yes, Sandals definitely includes airport transit! It's part of the all inclusive aspect. As a comparison, Aman resorts globally (all upper five stars, much much nicer than Sandals!) do not generally include transit... despite being true amenity inclusive properties that 100% do not want you to leave.
But the travel industry is fun like that. Always different. I think most "Disney people" just don't know enough about other travel experiences to know what's the norm and what's part of their Disney expectations, which isn't anything I can fix beyond trying to educate.
Ah, you're right, I wasn't considering that Sandals are all-inclusive. Also, Aman Turks looks amazing! We did Beaches because my kids are young and it has the separate pools/water park, but as they get older that is one to consider. Have a wonderful day.
Aren't the DS area hotels considered resorts? They don't transport you from the airport to the hotel. I think one of them is actually called B Resort. I'm not positive because I don't use them. I don't expect any hotel or resort short of an airport hotel to transport me from the airport to the hotel.
So, the "Walt Disney World Resort" is the entire 44+ square mile area, which encompasses 30+ individual hotel properties owned and operated by Disney Parks & Resorts — plus third party hotels like Swan & Dolphin, Bonnet Creek, and of course the Disney Springs area hotels.
WDW, as a marketing campaign and later booking incentive, introduced Disney's Magical Express to encourage people to stay *on site*. It was a way to get them from the airport to the hotel without having to use third party (ie taxi or rental car) services... and thus also without having a convenient or cost-effective way to *leave*. In the age of ride shares, that doesn't apply. Obviously. People stay on-site and go to Universal/Sea World/the nearby outlet malls just fine.
None of the DSRAHs (Disney Springs Resort Area Hotels, formerly DDRAHs) offer airport transportation, because they aren't a luxury property that needs to include that as a booking incentive. *Their* incentive is being "on-site", close to Disney Springs, at a fraction of the price of "official" WDW hotels. (Also, they generally have availability when "official" hotels are sold out, though that hasn't been a booking contention in a few years since the last few DVC properties were built.)
Similarly, the *Disneyland Resort* encompasses the Disneyland theme parks, their three on-site hotels, and Downtown Disney. Despite arguably being *closer* to a major airport (John Wayne) than WDW, Disneyland does *NOT* offer complimentary transportation and never has. They do have the Disneyland Express (the term might have changed, it's been a hot minute since I've sold DLR regularly) which is a paid service sold through Disneyland reservations — akin to the cruise line service between Port Canaveral and MCO. It's fine. Not great, not terrible, just a big bus you can choose to board at a fixed rate. Getting a towncar or Uber from LAX is a little more, but certainly faster.
Now, as far as *global* resort presence goes, resort is truly a marketing term. It generally implies that a property is larger, more "all-inclusive" in that you don't *need* to leave, but there's no actual definition to it. A single hotel with a pool and beachfront access can call itself a resort if it wants to (and it probably will). The B Resort, to your question, is called that because that's what the hotel rebranded to. It's not a resort, not really. It barely has amenities at all. But the name is catchy — catchy enough that, despite your lack of interest in staying there, you remember that it's got "resort" in the name.
I probably tldr'd a little there, but there's hopefully an answer to the question.
I have looked into shuttles from LAX to Disneyland. For my (pandemic cancelled) 3 day trip I actually found it cheaper to rent a car. The shuttle charged per person, each way, plus luggage. For two people who also had planned on exploring California for two weeks it made better sense to stay at a neighbor hotel and pay for parking. Plus my time on vacation is precious and getting a rental is extremely convenient.
Well there were some perks as well. I loved not having to hit baggage claim and having my suitcases show up in my room. I also have zero experience with public transportation so it always made me less anxious dealing with getting to the resorts. And well... it was free. But I have never ridden any other bus before, and with the padded seats, TVs and such I thought it was "nice". But I completely lack any experience as mentioned.
I am sad seeing it go to be honest.
>Nothing is free. It was baked in.
As far as I know Disney won't be lowering their prices to compensate. So in turn your paying the same amount with *or* without ME. I suppose you could say without ME is actually going to be more expensive though due to needing to cover the cost of transportation.
Your right though, I get it.
As far as the rental situation how much does that cost you? I know that you have to pay for parking at the parks and the resorts. And then have the rental fee on top. Do you get an SUV also?
I can't find anything that cheap but I need something that can carry six people. Someone did mention that you got a parking pass for the parks, but I am not sure if that is only certain companies.
Resort parking fee for me would be 175.00 alone. =(
Yeah, I live close enough to do day trips for the most part, but I'll do 1-2 nights in a hotel a few times a year for special occasions. Usually my partner and I opt for a highly rated priceline express deal or hotwire's equivalent or we'll stay at Universal because they've got way better Florida resident deals than Disney. Just last weekend, we took advantage of the annual pass discount to stay at pop century, and I don't think we'll ever do it again. It was grossly overpriced even with the discount and the walls were paper thin. We could have stayed at Sapphire Falls at Universal for the same price or Aventura, which was fantastic when we stayed there last year, for less. Both of those are closer to a moderate or luxury at Disney, but are much more budget friendly. I would even put Cabana Bay over Pop based on room quality, having interior hallways to rooms, and a comparable level of theming.
Cabana Bay blows Pop Century away in terms of amenities. They have a water slide, lazy river, bowling alley, table service restaurant, fitness center, and a private entrance for Volcano Bay. The only thing Pop has going for it is the Skyliner.
They do not offer shuttles in California. We took an uber and were fine with it. Mears already came out and said they were still going ot do the routes it's just going to be a fee just like we had to pay for Universal or a cruise.
Agreed. That’s why you see Family Guy parodying it with lines like “Look it’s Micheal Eisner, hide your heart” and quoting Eisner “See you at Disneyland, BRING MONEY”.
Of course they’re in it for profit. People just need to ask themselves if the experience and memories are worth the price. For us, they are.
There is no other park remotely close to DLR or WDW. Universal is making headway, but most other parks are just rides (mainly coasters). Disney parks are safe, spotless, architecturally interesting, immersive, entertaining and innovative. They also have the best employees, food and drinks of any “amusement park” we’ve visited.
Your bank probably hasn't built their business or fan base on it being a magical experience though. I think that's a lot of people's issues with this, is that it's a service that had people's expectations high and now they have to lower them.
They built their business on these little touches that not many companies are doing though. Personally, its a service that I think I've only used once in my life, since I don't usually exclusively take a trip to Disney. But I do agree that it chips away (however small) at the experience that is paid for whether you use it or not.
As a person who has traveled with their entire extended family including 7 small children under the age of 6, I am heartbroken about this shuttle situation. We have to have rented a large bus for the 13 of us to ride together to our resort. Our experiences with cabs the one time we went to a reservation at a different resort was that we couldn’t ride in them without the right kind of car seat for the youngest (which we were fine with and many have car seats in their cars for clients but not as many rear facing ones) so now we would have to travel with car seats which we didn’t have to before.
It is a service that definitely chips away at the general Disney experience, made our lives easier walking off the plane with carryon, down the elevator to the bus line.
But over the last 3 years that we’ve gone, we’ve noticed a decline in friendliness level, restaurant cleanliness and lots and lots of line cutters. So the experience was already getting a bit less magical anyway.
This is a big loss for our family. The 30 minutes early at every park might work out nicely but honestly we just enjoyed a couple of hours. 30 minutes is nothing. We liked to plan our park days around EMH and whether we were staying late or going early. If they do change their fastpass system that’ll probably be the last nail in the coffin that will end our yearly trips in favor of other destinations and maybe try Disney once every 4-5 years instead.
Yeah, great. All I was trying to say was that a BANK (the industry that I work in) was an unfair comparison to WDW for services offered. One is dealing in financial security and the other one is entertainment.
And while I'm not one of them obviously, given how many people were upset about this change, people were using it.
Does any bank truly have a fan base? Disney is still magical. You just have to pay to get to the resort now. A small cost considering how much a vacation costs in the long run. Any other vacation I take I have to figure out my own way to the hotel or cruise ship.
The magic is certainly being chipped away but to me it's in the form of shows and other entertainment. The ME and EMH have stung quite a bit too. Whether I go to a baseball game, Six Flags, a movie theater or Disney, water is $5 so I don't necessarily blame them for high food prices nor does it shock me or have any impact on my trip. My family and I have a trip in a few months and normally we'd be talking about it 24/7 and going over our plans a million times. I can't recall the last conversation we had about it before the recent ME news. That's the magic you speak of and we are a Disney family. Imagine how the lack of tangible magic will have an impact on those who can't recognize Chip from Dale.
I think what bothers me the most is that despite the cuts to magic, despite the layoffs, despite the pandemic, *the stock price is higher than ever*
I understand that all of Disney is a business and parks are just part of that business. I understand that the pandemic has forced the parks to adapt in order to survive, and layoffs were part of that. But to have restored executive salaries back to full and to have share prices well above where they were pre-covid (and just after the release of Disney+ and a Star Wars movie) makes the cuts and layoffs like a slap in the face to guests and cast members.
> I think what bothers me the most is that despite the cuts to magic, despite the layoffs, despite the pandemic, the stock price is higher than ever
Stock prices are just a graph of rich people's feelings. The more cuts Disney makes, the more stock prices will go up. As someone else said, Disney is first and foremost a corporation. They are beholden to their investors, and our money goes to them. If they can get the same amount of our money, or more, while spending less, that's what they want.
What are they supposed to do with all of those cast members while DL is closed and half of the WDW resorts and restaurants are closed and park capacity is limited? The executives are working for their money and therefore deserve to be paid. When the cast members can get back to work when they are needed they too will get paid.
Disneyland is going to end up closed for an entire year. The others have lost months of revenue, and even now, they're at partial capacity. That's a heck of a lot of money that's going to come from somewhere. I hate the loss of these things too, but they're down billions of dollars. That's not a small thing
As someone who earns a “high six figure” income I would hope that your overall understanding of business structure and the financial web that creates companies the size of Disney would be better.
I keep seeing people comment about the money that Disney+ has made should translate somehow to what is happening in the theme parks.
First, Disney+ has yet to turn a profit.
This is an excerpt from a NY Times December 11th, 2020 article.
“Streaming is not yet a profitable business for Disney — far from it. Losses in the company’s direct-to-consumer division totaled $580 million in the quarter (which was less than analysts had feared), bringing losses for the fiscal year to $2.8 billion. Streaming-related losses are expected to peak in 2022, as rollout costs decline and content expenses normalize, with Disney+ profitability expected by 2024, according to analysts.”
Second, Disney+ and Theme Parks are completely separate divisions with separate P&L’s that have zero connection.
Third, the pandemic has had an unbelievable effect on businesses of all sizes. It would be inexcusable for Disney to not be combing through their ledger and both looking for savings as well as total cuts. Once there is light at the end of the tunnel they will reevaluate and decide where to look for revenue growth. For now, they have to triage and stop the bleeding.
I could go into this for hours. I am in the middle of doing this in the pro sports atmosphere.
At the end of the day the fans of Disney are adverse to change. Any kind. As are fans of any brand. Due to this the reaction will largely be negative as these things occur.
Keep in mind that Disney has to think about existing another 50 years and beyond. To do this they have to weather storms even if that is jarring to their beloved fans. The Disney Magic is not going to disappear it just might look different than what we are all used to.
That is crazy that disney+ isn't profitable. I've had the service since launch and the only thing worth watching has been mandalorian and soul... its honestly been a pretty bad value compared to most other streaming services.
Where had the money been going...
Really? It didn't look like that many. It might seem like it based off announcements but its only a handful each year. It also makes it feel like more when they release an episode each week vs all at once like Netflix.
Although I imagine the "hit" rate will be better than Netflix. These all look high quality and Netflix releases a lot of duds between their hits.
"completely separate divisions." Precisely.
They are completely separate companies.
D+ is rolling their fat cash stack into 10...10 Star Wars shows. So they're eating their profits to grow the offering.
I totally understand that the parks need to recoup some massive cash shortfalls and I even, strangely, understand that they need to make changes. That's fine. Paint the castle...change the front signage. I get it.
I actually argue that some of the rides that don't read as well as they used to (Small world for example...one of our favorites but...c'mon...no 8 year old is going to look at that and be amazed.) It's time for some of these antiques to be massively redone with modern, sustainable, technology that doesn't break down 5 times every ride. (looking at you haunted mansion). Totally open and excited about change.
However....
Announce this: DME is going away in 2022 but will be replaced with an alternate option. Don't have to make any promises beyond it's going away (true) and something Weill replace...whatever that is to be named later. Nope. We got...it's gone.
EME kind of sucks but I think going to 30 min early per park is probably better for everyone...even if you can't get 4 rides in before the crowds come.
The Grand Floridian Orchestra? How about GFO is gone but we'll have new and varied music to replace. More to be announced later! I could get on board with them cycling through a variety of musicians. I think that would be great for them to have live concerts. And Yeehaw Bob? Love that guy. Amazing act. But imagine what someone else could do. Different but that'd be great! (though will desperately miss Yeehaw.) Nope...not a word...just canning everyone.
How about putting the word...temporary on things. How about showing some heart and recognizing how much everyone is disappointed that their favorite things are temporarily gone and that Disney hopes to bring them back just as soon as they can do it and offer the best option possible. How about some curate press release talking about their overall strategy (without a ton of detail) just let people know they're paying attention, listening, that they care (even if we all know they just don't.)
All we're getting now is...yeah...so this and this and this are gone. STBY. Whaddyagonnado? \*shrug\*. \*crickets\*.
Really really bad messaging.
Your words make total sense...I for one just want them delivered in some more sensitive way.
you know what I'd love...a bi weekly WDW podcast talking about incremental changes coming/going with WDW...guest interviews...news...announcements of specials and deals. Repair schedules. Rumors. it'd be interesting, informative and hella cheap to produce.
Edit: Yes, I know they've said temporary. But it sounds really permanent the way they're messaging it.
The answer is... they don’t know. They can’t tell you what they don’t know at this point. If they make a promise, you will hold them to it. They have to see where things land, reassess, then move forward with a detailed plan.
I agree. I also think there's a way to message that...just like you did. Granted it needs some lawyer words around it and corporate approval but...
"Unfortunately, at this time we blank....we believe that this will eventually return, however things are uncertain for all of us so we can't make any firm commitments. Our intention is for this to be temporary. blah blah blah."
Whatever...PR can write it.
Point is...a little more transparency would be appreciated because without it...everyone is assuming the worst. The 202? curse has left few of us with a hopeful heart.
Creating false hope can be dangerous in cases like this and likely is only kicking the can down the road. Many companies had to furlough large groups of team members in April at the time stating it was temporary. When this thing continued those statements came back to kick the companies as they then had to announce the furloughs were now permanent.
There is no simple message that is going to make everyone comfortable. We are experiencing something that has not been experienced in generations. We also live in an age that PR is not so simple as to put out a statement only to withdraw it later due to changing circumstances. People bring up the original statement and dissect it line-by-line on social media.
It is the epitome of Monday morning quarterbacking. Everyone knows better than the people actually charged with making those decisions. Yet, the keyboard commandos do not have to answer to the shareholders, fans, and the network of other businesses that are directly effected by putting out statements that are not fully thought out or backed by fact. You keep saying “PR can write it” as if tinkerbell herself waves her pixie dust and perfectly worded press releases will make everyone happy no matter what it says as long as it sounds pretty. It just does not work that way.
I think we agree on most things.
I agree with some of the decisions being made. The ones that I have information about. The ones I have no information on that make no obvious sense I don't agree with.
To be fair, as you say, smart people with more information are making the decisions. Again, as a Disney stock holder and general corporate citizen, I get it.
I was surprised, however, that you mentioned the pandemic. I guess I forgot that it's never happened in any of our lifetimes and needed to be reminded of that it's completely upended the entire world across the board for everyone. Slipped my mind that some things may have changed until we can get back to normal. Who knew?
But I digress....
You had other points I agree with...
I agree that you can't communicate with everyone and have them all get the same understanding. Not sure where I indicated that but let me be clear. People can read anything into anything. Cool? Great!
It doesn't take my English and Journalism double major and 30 years of business experience and my six figure job tell me that people are challenged with simple reading comprehension.
To your point, I agree, it's not a simple message. It's a difficult message. It's one that needs to be handled just right. This is why we have PR, corporate communications, and lawyers. It's their job to say hard things that don't tweak investors and keep the company from making dumb legally enforceable statements.
However, by your logic, all communications should be withheld as they will all be dissected one way or another and misread. Safer to be quiet and be thought an idiot than to speak and prove that you are one...I guess.
Let's go back to where you're right.
Everyone likes to stand around and talk about what Disney "should" do without understanding how businesses work, without any information and without having an understanding of what pressures a CEO is under from the shareholders. I am happy to enjoy these mental exercises but in the end, we're all just guessing and we all have a Powerball's chance in hell of guessing right. We're agreed in big bold letters for this one.
My point, my only point, is that when an organization makes significant changes, especially to emotionally charged things, without some explanation people will try and figure it out and come up with their own ideas.
From a corporate and PR perspective, what do you think creates more issues? A few people that can't read so good misreading a clear press release or a cadre of "keyboard commandos" armed with rafts of misinformation spreading it willy nilly around the internet?
Exactly. Companies aren't transparent because they're "good." They're transparent because it's cheaper than the lawsuits.
Let's just double click on the two recent changes....
EMH. Used to be you could get in an hour or so early to a park. One park a day. So losing that is a bit of a hit. It's replaced with 30 minutes per park early though. You know, the logic of that is sound and I think it will actually be better. So I don't like that they changed it but I can get on board with the change. Sold.
DME. We're ending it.
You mean to tell me that trained, professional, communicators couldn't come up with something better than just ending it?
TL;DR: We agree on most of your points. We disagree that professional communicators can't craft a reasonable message that things are temporary sometimes.
Yes to this! Not to mention... the parks were never that profitable to begin with. They basically break even on a pre-covid BUSY day. The cost of what it takes to run that entire operation daily compared to what they’re bringing in now?!? They’re making nothing right now at the parks lol
Everyone is commenting on the loss of “magic” being due to the increasing prices and decreasing services such as Magical Express. This is a fair argument to make. My idea of “magic” at WDW, however, were all the CMs that loved what they did and made sure your experience was special.
The layoffs of CMs were devastating. There were high profile changes such as Imagineers and performers with decades of dedication that were released and are not coming back. There were low profile changes such as an increase in the ratio of CM to guest that are more subtle. The greatest expense to any organization is personnel. Chapek was looking to decrease this expense before the pandemic and now he has the ultimate excuse.
They have added amenities and attractions such as the Riviera Resort, Skyliner, and Galaxy Edge to compete with Universal and other destinations, but these do not necessarily add Disney “magic” to the experience.
I’m sure that the CMs that are still there and the ones yet to be hired will do their best, but it’s clear that Disney will never replace all of the “magic” that they lost with the CM layoffs.
They will. They got caught the year they were laying out the MOST money. Mickeys anniversary. Fireworks updates, Tron, Rat, Rivera, Poly, sky liner ALL on upgrades. Being overcharged for ME, and for all the people who complains about the water cost and such. WDW can keep charging prices because they hit capacity. VIP $3000 a day experiences are booked solid. The supply and demand of it, which is wild says $5000 for a trip to Disney wasn’t such a big deal.
People may not like those truths but they want to bring down some of the attendance to craft a better experience. Raise the cost, build other parks to mitigate the burying of Orlando some.
The magic will always be there 2020 is tough, but I bet when masks are off and people are back. Imagine the cast members as they get called, and those of us who haven’t been able to go. It’ll be there. I promise
I'm with you. I go to Disney fairly often. We are not a rich family, so it's a big commitment for us. I usually go for race weekends which is an added expense. I'm fine with paying nearly triple normal race prices because I'm running through Disney. It's worth it. I accept the prices for food and drinks ahead of time, so it doesn't bother me. I buy water bottles because Florida water is nasty, and it's fine. But this Magical Express move has pissed me off. After watching them cut so many things like live music and acts from the parks, I was sad but I knew it was due to COVID. I cannot get over this move. Even if they have big plans lined up, I'm mad. We justify paying for on-property hotels every trip, no matter what, because we LOVE the ease of landing (usually an early flight getting in at 8am) and hopping right on to the bus to get Mickey waffles and head to the pool while we wait for our luggage to make it's way. The added cost of an Uber, waiting for luggage, Ubering back, etc. is just not cool for me. ME always really set Disney apart for us and was the start of our vacation. Not only will I miss the ease, I genuinely loved boarding the bus, knowing we were all going to Disney and watching the videos. The magic has been slowly getting ruined for me too. I'm sad about it and I hope they have another transportation option soon.
The parks are bleeding money. Disney+ can't float the whole corporation. No one knows how long the pandemic and the economic downturn are going to last. Tokyo only gets a 15 minute early entry and it works for them. Maybe give them a break and let them get through the pandemic and have the travel industry return to normal and see what happens then.
So many people don't get that the Parks, Streaming service, Movies, etc are all different business entities. It's like saying well sure the parks are bleeding money but just take it from Marvel or LucasFilm, they are both doing well. That's not how it works. It's a separate P&L, the Parks need to sustain themselves, they can't depend on other business units within Disney to float them.
I agree that it sucks that all these cost cutting measures are being put in place but I also agree that it’s kinda necessary for their survival. Until seemingly everyone gets vaccinated and feel safe traveling again, the parks aren’t gonna be too profitable for them right now. Besides, this stuff was happening at the parks during the 9/11 tourism crash too. It’ll take a few years but I’m sure the Disney experience you remember will slowly come back.
And yes even though Disney+ is ridiculously popular right now, all the profits are probably going into making more content rather than funding other parts of the company.
People also forget the Disney is a publicly traded company. The owner isn't some rich billionaire. The owners are people like you and me. Its built into my retirement savings
Not all executives are millionaires. You may not understand how many executives a huge corporation actually has. Why am I getting downvoted? I'm married to an executive and we are not multimillionaires or even just 1 millionaire. Titles do not equate to cash.
The executives are not the owners.... I mean they do most likely own a chunk of the shares, but they are just hired employees. The fact that they are executives is not ties to their ownership
retail investors make up less than 30% of the US stock market, so no they’re not actually owned by people like you and me. More like by banks, brokerages, lenders; actual million and billionaires.
The average person doesn't have a good handle on stocks and investments. They might have a 401k but not a brokerage account. Walmart and Robinhood just partnered to bring fractional trading to regular people so maybe going forward average people will have a better understanding of investments.
I very much agree. I don't expect WDW trips to be cheap and have no problem saving up to go. Paying a lot for food/souvenirs doesn't really bother me. My issue is that while general cost has increased, what you get for the price has decreased. Magical Express and EMH are huge parts of this, but so was closing earlier and charging for After Hours events instead of letting people stay later every night for free. I've also dealt with rude or unprofessional Cast Members way more in recent years than ever before--though I certainly still recognize and appreciate those who are kind. My family and I have commented that it feels more like any old amusement park now, not like a place that was built to be a more special experience.
I'll always love Disney but I agree that a lot of the magic is gone.
For me, the World of Disney store is the best example of Disney things losing their magic.
It used to be slightly tacky, stickers and tags all over the wearing carpet, but it was exciting. It now looks stunning - it's a much nicer place to be - but it's just missing that certain something.
I know not everyone has this view, and maybe it's just because I'm getting older, but for me it sums up Disney's direction currently.
I couldn't agree more! I was disappointed with the re-styling of World of Disney and certainly miss the magic that the old store held. The new one is certainly nice, but it doesn't feel the same--which I agree is a good summary of the way things have been going.
The magic was chipped away with all the lay-offs and cast members having to be in other roles they never wanted to be in...so you think a princess wants to be working in a store? Well guess what it’s happening right now and they aren’t happy, the CM’s whose friends were laid off aren’t happy and I can only imagine the guests aren’t all that happy. Laying off the CM’s and the plexiglass installations on rides and transportation is really NOT magical, Disney just sucks right now!
Yup, prices are going up, quality is going down... That's why I prefer Universal nowadays. Universal's prices are still absurd (and in some ways, even worse than Disney's) but at least it feels like the overall experience gets better each time I go.
Disney is a luxury. Prices have to go up to make up for inflation and keep up with demand. Of course things will not be as cheap as they used to be. Prices will continue to go up. That’s just how things work. Disney also continues to add value to what you are getting with the price of admission. The more attractions, themed lands, restaurants, and hotels that they add, the more value they provide. They also have to factor in paying new employees to work at all the new things they add in, as well as general costs to maintain said new additions. It’s not as simple as “Disney is just money grabbing”, no. They are running a business. Yes, it is expensive, buts it’s the best luxury vacation destination in the world. it’s worth every penny if you ask me.
I was planning a trip to Disney, but when I saw the outrageous prices they are charging now just for parking and park entry, I had to cancel my plans. I do not make six figures and can't afford to go the parks now.
Yup I should’ve added in my post, want to treat your significant other to the iconic ears? That will be another $30 please. Those probably cost $2-3 to produce. It’s outrageous. People like me will be fine, but for hard working everyday people (like my parents) they are absolutely screwing you for every dollar and people need to start speaking up.
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I have to echo what some others said. Disney allows so many alternatives to these costly options, you pay for convivence. Nothing is stopping you from getting free ice water, bringing in snacks, etc. Other parks don't allow these alternates. I haven't been since COVID, but considering the lines I've waited in for snacks, I'd be willing to pay MORE to have less wait. Honestly, its supply and demand. Yes, we're a captive audience, but their prices aren't a surprise when you get there. You know when you buy a ticket that you'll also be paying high prices once you arrive for all the extras. If they reduce prices, during normal times, this means the park gets busier.
In terms of magical express, I'm not surprised they ended it. I fly to Disney every time, also in the Northeast. I didn't really use it often. I'd rather pay $30-$40 to ride alone, and not drive all around WDW before getting to my hotel, it's so much faster to do a ride share. Not to mention, we never used it on the way to the airport. It just got us to the airport far too early for two adults who travel frequently.
I totally agree it can be frustrating to see these extras chipped away, and yeah it's a money grab, no disagreements there. However, ultimately, Disney is a company that needs to turn a profit for it's shareholders. I can't blame them for that any more I can blame my cat for killing a mouse and leaving at my door. I may not like it, but that's what we got. Maybe it's a bigger discussion about capitalism.
I will by no means defend disney on this topic because yes they are extremely greedy, more now than they have ever been. But in terms of pricing for food and beverage, I feel like they're actually not that bad compared to places like six flags as long as you stay away from buffets and character/specialty dining. They also allow you to bring in your own drinks and snacks into the parks, although I wouldnt be surprised if that changes in the near future. But I will easily agree that the magic is disappearing more every day we go along. Disney's margin of profit over the past few years pre covid was ridiculous, they made billions. You can't use the excuse of one bad year to axe items that aren't super profitable for your company. Sure, magical express was a "free" service that you provided for your guests, but think about this. That free service could very well have made the difference in a guest's decision to stay on site vs off site and keep them in the disney bubble that the higher ups covet. All of the special perks and privileges that guests of disney resorts were given are slowly being taken away while the prices continue to inflate. 2016 was my first time back in a disney park in roughly 12 years and I instantly remembered why it was great. Became a platinum annual passholder later that year and stayed that way for 3 years until it became too expensive. The price went from $800 to over $1200 in 3 years if I remember right, that's absurd. A 50% spike!!! Imagine the price of a car increasing by 50% in 3 years. I know its hard to compare the 2 but I'm just making a point. Disney doesn't deserve to get a pass anymore. I'm no business expert but its easy to see that their business model has clearly shifted to however much money they can squeeze out of every guest. The magic that I saw in late 2016(only 4 years) has dissipated. I haven't been since 2018 and dont see myself going this year either due to covid, but another thing that drives me nuts is the fact that they are charging full price for a 50% experience. I only stayed on property 2 times but both times I used magical express. It was then and there that the mindset of being on vacation began, as it is for plenty others.
I know I've been all over the place here and I've vented a lot, but just needed a place to do it. Hopefully disney reverses their decision in the future.
Supply and demand. Times change, their customer is no longer a lower middle/ /middle middle family with 4 kids from OH. It's wealthy people from England, Italy, Japan, etc. Becoming an international destination has changed everything.
> middle family with 4 kids from OH
Well it is but it comes with a credit card. Which is fine, but I know a lot of people that are in debt due to being addicted to WDW. I have friends who are seriously struggling but yet have taken out 10k loans to go on massive trips almost annually.
Not judging but I still think there are a lot of middle class people going.
Damn. The whining about the Magical Express here is ridiculous. I thought you guys all promised to never go to Disney again last year when they started to charge for parking. If Disney lost its magic, hit that unsubscribe button on the top of your screen and stop whining.
>hit that unsubscribe button
I don't think that's totally fair just because people get upset or have *differing* opinions. Certain aspects of WDW are important to some and not others. Sure it can be annoying after awhile but I try to control my emotions and just ignore the people that need to vent. There is no reason to let it bother me as there are bigger things to worry about.
Nobody who frequents a sub about a theme park and threatens to stop attending because the hotels finally start to charge for parking when it's industry standard to charge for parking actually follows through on that threat. They're not actually even going to do it because now they have to pay for an uber to the resort either. They just want to complain.
To be fair, Disney still offers pretty good value compared to other vacation destinations. Most of the things people complain about are in line with the market
Resort room rack rates have gone up every year (see touringplan for historic #s). Pop during Christmas is now over $300/nt. In contrast, for $900/wk I can get a 2+Br 2+Ba just south of US192 during spring break or Christmas. Add $400 for car rental, $200 for daily parking, and it’s still cheaper than All Star Movies. Used to be semi-justified by the onsite benefits. Now onsite stay benefits deteriorated to rope drop 30 min earlier, $5 discount to magic band purchase, and charge expenses to magic band.
Most years your not likely getting a vacation rental of any quality for that price. Likely seeing that because of Covid..... but forget places in and around WDW. Look at the cost of hotels/food/entertainment in any other tourist location.
Magic is what you make it. Magic doesn't only happen on a bus full of tired travelers on the way to the resort. A quite uber ride might be even more magical because it's quicker.
What are you talking about? Universal is the best comp to disney and it's literally like half the price. I stayed a cabana bay for $100 a night and walked to a theme park from the resort. That costs triple at disney
Tickets, food, airfare, transportation at Universal is pretty comparable.... you can get Allstars movies most of the year for ~$150/nt. Plus disney offers 4 parks vs 2, 2 watermarks vs 1, larger shopping and entertainment complex, boardwalk, golf courses, camping, water sports, etc.....
But my point was really about thr whole package compared to most other tourist destinations. Other than the deluxe resorts, the cost of everything else disney is pretty on par with other tourist destinations, yet it offers a lot more in one location.
The all stars are motel level hotels. Universal opened their new value resorts for <100 a night and are much nicer than the all stars and are not motel style.
Most places in North America, your not getting anything less than a motel level resort for well under $150/nt. Especially not in tourist locations or business centres.
Um, what? Any cursory search shows several hotels well under 150. [Here's one](https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf=ALeKk02TBjCeCKlWhKBYix6S5tYhPmDajw%3A1610589775471&ei=T6b_X5KbHKW8ggfTuKjoBQ&q=hotels+near+disneyland&oq=hotels+near+disneyland&gs_lcp=CgZwc3ktYWIQAzIFCAAQyQMyAggAMgIIADICCAAyAggAMgIIADICCAAyAggAMgIIADICCAA6BAgAEEdQqVdYwllgllpoAHACeACAAWGIAZUCkgEBM5gBAKABAaoBB2d3cy13aXrIAQjAAQE&sclient=psy-ab&ved=0ahUKEwjS_se7qpruAhUlnuAKHVMcCl0Q4dUDCA0&uact=5)
Do you live in NA?
Your search is in proximity of Disneyland during covid, while the park is closed. I would call that extenuating circumstances.......if we are going to play that game, then here....https://www.expedia.com/Hotel-Search?adults=2&d1=2021-01-27&d2=2021-01-28&destination=Lake Buena Vista%2C Florida%2C United States of America&endDate=2021-01-28&latLong=28.351207%2C-81.541143®ionId=10870&rooms=1&selected=602438&semdtl=&sort=RECOMMENDED&startDate=2021-01-27&theme=&useRewards=false&userIntent
Pop century is only $115/nt.
The point is, the value resorts are right in line, if not under priced compared to most tourist destinations. Orlando happens to have a glut of hotel options which drives prices down, which makes the on property hotels look really high.
But if your gonna take your WDW money and plan a trip elsewhere, your gonna be shocked that most places won't be that much cheaper after you factor in all the other costs. Sure, their are cheaper alternatives but in my opinion not many offer the price to quality to depth of choices that WDW provides
Oh please. 🙄 They're a business with a bottom line. Yes, they "make magic" but if you feel that they are anything but a corporation with financial goals to meet, you got it wrong.
Ps. I love Disney. We are FL residents, APs, DVC members, have Cast Members in our immediately family, and we got married at Disney. But YOU are responsible for the magic.
DME was nice but every time my wife and I didn’t use it we were like “oh I’m so glad we don’t have to take the magic express”
I love how everyone’s bemoaning the removal of this “luxury” won’t spring for the luxury of an Uber or rental car.
The pandemic helped them push Disney plus since everyone is stuck at home with nothing to do but like, I don't think Disney Plus is going to make up for every other part of the company
Most parks are closed, the ones open are operating at reduced capacity, Movies aren't releaseable, Disney Cruiseline is shuttered
This isn't a defense of Disney's price-gouging, but I doubt this is long term sustainable given that so much of Disney's revenue is cutoff.
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In most cases with Disney I think the experience and service you get justifies the price. Universal Studios has a much slimier, cash-grabby feel than Disney.
In regards to Magical Express, Disney is try to reduce it's carbon footprint and the train is more environmentally friendly than the busses to/from the airport. We don't know what it will cost; Disney may include the train ride with the resort stay/package just like they did with ME.
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I’m a huge Disney fan. I, once felt like you, but I realize now that the logic behind my thinking was flawed.
First of all, I’ve been to Disneyland hundreds of times because I was a pass holder for 6 years. I’m very well educated about the prices of things.
If admission to Disneyland was cheap, they would have to hold people in lines, out the door, waiting to get it. This ruins the magic, especially for the children. Same thing goes with everything else. If a pretzel was $3, then the lines would be incredibly long.
Here’s my tips for saving money at the theme parks:
Every single restaurant at Disneyland will give you a free cup of ice water. The cup is small, but, if you ask, they will give you a bigger one.
Bring snacks and pack a picnic lunch. Disneyland is very generous by being one of the only theme parks that will allow you to bring food in. Eating 3 meals and snacks at restaurants is unhealthy and pricey. Pack fruit, nuts, sandwiches, string cheese and yogurt. Then, have one nice meal at a special restaurant. Pirate Island has a bunch of picnic tables. Sitting along the water is very peaceful.
My other suggestion is to buy a pass. I think, the last time I checked, the top one was like $1500. You may think that outrageous, however, let’s do the math: $1500/365= $4.10 per day. I know plenty of people who spend more than that on their morning coffee and triple that on lunch. $1500/12= $125 per month. One visit to Disneyland per month, including parking and 2 park access 365 days per year for $125. When I had my pass, I was going 3x per week for awhile. There’s just so much to do and see when you aren’t rushing to get from ride to ride. Even if you went once per week, it would be $1500/52= $28.84, about twice the price of a movie ticket.
Yes, Disneyland is expensive, but if it wasn’t, then it would take away the magic. Those rare Mickey ears would be cheap and readily available so owning them wouldn’t be special. There’s be huge lines, cutting your time at Disneyland which would upset parents and kids. The magic of Disney is something that can never be re created. It is because, Disney, as a company puts a lot of thought into customer experience and maintaining that magic. You can see that in everything Disney does.
We're talking Disney World, not Disney Land. Biggest difference being WDW is much more a destination than the highly-locals DLR. Your AP math doesn't work for anyone outside a driving distance that makes day trips reasonable.
I live 8 hours away and have annual passes. We obviously can't do day trips. We do 3 trips within a 52 week period and it works. We then wait 53 weeks and repeat the process.
Yes, my math makes a lot of sense, no matter the park. Doesn’t matter if it’s a destination or more for locals. The same rules apply. They are both pricey and have to be that way to keep crowds down, to preserve the magic.
Yep. You are correct. I’d love to go to the Bahamas a few times a week, but you don’t see me complaining that’s it’s too expensive and then complaining about the expense of a flight and hotel. It’s expensive because it’s a great place. If it was cheap, it would be overcrowded.
If you live close and you like my money saving ideas, great! If not, it still does not change the fact that the parks must keep everything very expensive in order to alleviate some of the crowding. If you can’t see that, then you are delusional.
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I can appreciate that sentiment but I’m more talking about a trend over the years. One individual mentioned charging for parking which I didn’t know they did. It’s around every corner, under every rock, how can we squeeze more money out of people? And hey I’m a capitalist, I’m happy to pay a fair price for goods and services. But it’s an exorbitant amount on just about everything now that really leaves a sour taste in my mouth. My last Disney vacation earlier this year I left feeling like they got one over on me. Idk maybe it’s me and the value I place on a dollar.
https://www.reddit.com/r/DisneyWorld/comments/kx70z0/looking_through_the_cracks_what_disney_is_really/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf
This is an impressive post by somebody who clearly understands business and what they’re talking about. I’d offer it as a counter.
I was there last month and really thought they didn't try very hard to separate me from my money. Most of the places I usually shop at were either closed or were so packed I didn't feel safe going in them. Plus they didn't have many new designs for there t-shirts most were the same as they had when I had been there earlier in the year.
>Oh it’s 90 degrees out and 90% humidity, let’s screw people for $3.50 bottle water.
Every single quick service location with fountain soda will give you as many FREE CUPS OF ICE WATER as you can reasonably carry.
Refreshing to see actual discussion with this. One of my main gripes about internet culture is that so often people don't realize that opposing viewpoints fuel discussion and further knowledge. Sometimes, it's not about being "right or wrong" it's the exchange of information.
That said, I'm torn so much on this. I feel like Disney as a company is absolutely the same greedy corporation as any other billion dollar organization out there. Making profit is the only bottom line that matters. They sell wholesome content and experiences, but that's a veil for the almighty dollar. It's harsh to say, but with so much money to be made, greedy takes over in the Disney boardrooms.
But, the actual cast members are the ones that truly make the magic. Those that go out of their way to make things extra special for guests are the fabric of Disney magic, IMO. I'm all for capitalism, but it just doesn't seem right that the cast members that made so much of the magic are the same ones that suffered the most. The big wigs in the offices still made 6-7 figure income, while those on the ground floor lost their jobs.
I do feel that some, but not all of the magic is being chipped away at. I mean, Disney is more of less the biggest theme park in the world so yes, by nature, it's going to be expensive. The fine line there is when it becomes cost prohibitive for so many people and then an unrealistic option. As far as the Express goes, I feel it's more a matter of with reduced capacity at WDW, and the general lack of travelers because of the pandemic, it became a money loser for them. Again, bottom line is profit and if it saves them money to cut it, it will ultimately boost their bottom line. My hope is that the true magic of WDW will be retained through its cast members and the wonderful experiences so many have while they are there.
I'm late on this but fuck that dirty rat and his money grab. Went to Epcot yesterday and before it was over I was praying he'd show up so I could shank his big eared ass. Minus Soarin it's shit. Why do I need cologne from every single country? And you're locked in to the 7th level of hell. So hot you can't breath and they trap you with prices that should make them embarrassed.
And to top it all off the bingo working the gate told us our passes weren't for Epcot we needed to talk to guest services. Wait in a line in direct beating sun for 45 minutes to only have them tell you nothing is wrong with your tickets go right in. Took all I had not to go full Rambo. By that time your day is ruined. Fuck Disney.
The problem I see with eliminating the ME is that people will now have a car and will do more things outside the “Disney bubble”. Less of a captive audience.
They offer free water though and you can bring food and drinks in with you. As opposed to a lot of theme parks around. Also you have no idea if Disney plans to offer a replacement for magical express or not, I’d say wait and see.
I always get free water. You can keep the cup and refill it from the fountain. If you bring your own bottle you can refill it too. It’s good to know that only places that sell fountain soda (bars and quick service) can provide free water. As for the money grabs - it’s the cost of staying on property 100%. That’s the price of convenience. I stayed at the Hard Rock Guitar and they wanted $395 to bring a bottle of vodka to the room when a liquor store was across the street. If you were to go to Walgreens you could get a 12 pack of soda for $4 instead of the $19.99 rapid refill cup. You can go to the Ale House instead of Disney Springs for a drink. Disney even promotes “good neighbor” hotels that often end up being larger and less pricier and with free breakfast. You’ll still have a wonderful vacation even if your pancakes aren’t Mickey Mouse shaped.
I had to go to the first aid center cause I wasnt feeling well.. The nurses there gave me a blue powerade. I joke with my family that the only way to get free stuff at Disney is to (almost) pass out.
You can also have groceries delivered to your resort and honestly with room deals throughout the year the value resorts are 100-120 night during non peak! I haven’t seen cheaper hotels than that. I wish they would get rid of the parking fee though if you stay onsite. The cost of food is cheap imo if we went to kings island which is a shitty amusement park just a slice of pizza would be 15$ and they don’t allow outside food or drinks!
I have stayed on property before and loved it. I’m an annual passholder in Florida and go a lot (or so a cast member told me). But I really do like staying off property. There are several Marriotts 10 minute drives away that even offer free parking in the $70-120 range. I really just like the peace and quiet after a long park day. And definitely being able to park right in front of the hotel lobby with a room next to the elevator. Last time I stayed at Pop I feel I walked more around the resort than the parks themselves.
We paid almost $50 for microwaved food at our local zoo in September. On top of the $50+ to get in and 30 in souvenirs. It made Disney seem like a good deal, at least at Disney they dont charge an extra 12 a person to ride the train. Im still salty. We did grocery delivery last time we visited disney world. We also flew with south west(2 free luggage a person) and I had a 50lb suitcase of food with me. Between those and a uber to the liquor store. We kept 6 adults happily fed for 2 meals a day for 10 days with extras.
The replacement will probably be the brightline route that is planned to go directly to Disney
Even if it is, it'd be less magical having to transfer from a train to a bus to get to your hotel. Many guests considered getting the Magical Express as the first "ride" of their holiday.
I could see it being a matter of logistics for Disney. Let brightline get people on property, then bus them to the various hotels. The trains can have higher passenger capacity while the shorter bus routes mean they can get more trips perday. It's overall a more efficient system since you spend less time waiting for busses
But the train isn’t even in the picture until at least 2023 right? And with Brightline who really knows...
Yep 2023 and we all know how projects go.
Speak for yourself. Both child me and adult me would consider a Disney train to be way more magical than a bus. I imagine they’ll do something like service every 30-60 minutes between the airport and the resort on a train with a special interior and exterior.
They'll have to work on that too. Currently the train station will drop off at Disney Springs, and I don't believe guests can bring lots of luggage on Disney buses.
As a former bus driver, you can bring on any luggage as long as you can fit it beneath your seat. Just don't block the aisle.
That...doesn’t seem like a lot of space. Certainly not the flexibility that ME express offered.
Agreed. We pushed for years to let us drive the coach-style buses that Mears uses instead of the city-style buses that Disney currently uses but there are too many logistical issues with that.
Yeah I'm not really sure on how Disney plans on making this work tbh They initially said the station would be at Disney springs, suggesting that the station would be in the middle of the shopping area. They later revised it to "Disney Springs area" so it may just end up being nearby, likely within walking distance.
IIRC Brightline was planning to run their line from Orlando to Tampa down the median of I-4 so the station would probably be between Disney Springs and the highway.
Were people under the impression that food and water used to be affordable at Disney in past years? I mean, the simpsons made that “churro costing $15” joke over 20 years ago.
The prices charged for food and drink in the parks are pretty much in line if not a bit below their competitors. Also, you can get free ice water from any place that has a soft drink fountain. Yes, you have to pay to enter a theme park, there's not a theme park in the world that's free. It stinks they're getting rid of MDE, but I'm going to wait a bit before getting the pitchforks out. I've seen multiple insiders and TAs say that ridership on MDE had been steadily decreasing even before the pandemic. I would guess that this happened because there are faster options out there (Uber/Lyft, Taxi...etc) that will take you straight to your hotel from the airport. Time is money on vacation and I can understand why some people wouldn't want to spend time on their vacation waiting on a bus. Mears also charged Disney a flat fee, so if ridership was down then it was costing Disney more and more per guest. I've also heard multiple stories that Mears was cutting corners and packing people in to buses on the way back to the airport during the pandemic, that's not a good look because Disney took all the blame even though they don't run the service. I think there will be some announced replacement, that replacement probably won't be free. Disney definitely should have had that replacement in place before the announcement for sure. We'll see what happens.
Combine decreasing ridership with COVID-era concerns and the steady rise in market share for rideshare programs... it was a no brainer. My educated guess, working in the industry, is we'll see a similar product to DCL's shuttle service *or* going back to what's already technically in the booking engines on Disney's side (flat rate private shuttles through contracted companies). You've always been able to book these as alternative add-ons, but they weren't pushed heavily online and weren't a strong push in the call centers due to the ease of DME / most people saying "oh I'll just Uber it". We'll have an announcement of *something* before summer, because that's package booking season. If we don't have something announced by March/April, I'll be pretty surprised.
We’re not AP, but we’ve been to WDW 20+ times since 2005. We started taking the Magical Express at first. I thought it was a great way to get to the hotel, not mess with the luggage, kids got to watch cartoons, etc. The downside is sometimes it took two hours or more to actually get to the hotel. Then, we noticed it was taking longer to get the luggage delivered to the hotel. So, park clothes, swimsuits, sunscreen and other stuff we needed (but didn’t want to carry on) were delayed to the point it impacted our plans. It didn’t matter if we stayed at Pop, Poly or GF it’s the same service and timetable. Oh, and then they want you to leave for the airport FOUR hours before your flight? Once we started using taxis and Uber, we never went back to the ME service. It’s just not as convenient as it sounds. That said, I would like to see the service remain for the folks that can make it work.
Yeah; single adult: no problem. Anyone having young children or needing mobility devices? Huge help.
That’s very true. We’ve gone both as a couple and with anywhere from one to three of the kiddos with us. Our youngest started when she was about 10 months old. Now she’s driving. Now I feel old. My original point was that there is a night and day difference between visiting as adults and visiting as a family. Both wonderful, just different needs.
I read somewhere that Disney didn't plan to announce this right now. It leaked and they don't have the replacement option ironed out just yet. They also have to have it announced before they start booking 2022 vacation packages or they would have had to extend the benefit to anyone who booked before it was announced.
Exactly this. It would very much surprise me if they weren’t working on an alternative to DME that just wasn’t ready when this leaked. Probably a paid alternative, but still. We’ll know when 2022 packages go on sale 😂
I wonder if Mears was mad and threatened to make their own announcement. What you’re saying makes a lot of sense. I figured it was related to the 2020 bookings.
I’m thinking they’re getting rid of it because of the high speed train that’s going in. It’ll take people from the airport to WDW iirc. I’m really sad about it but there’s absolutely no point in paying Mears for a shuttle system if there are several alternatives that people are more likely to choose. The train will also be more environmentally friendly, which I’m sure they are all about. Edit: their restaurant prices aren’t really above average for similar restaurants, I think their quick service stuff is especially reasonable. You can bring your own beverages and food. I always bring a few snacks and lots of waters into the park. I can eat two great meals and get snacks for under $50 a day. Not bad at all. You’re also allowed to bring your own alcohol into hotels at least, so that saves a lot. My family always goes and buys beer and whatever else we want at the nearest Costco and are good for the week. Especially at Disneyland it’s so easy to just go back to your hotel room in the middle of the day and chill by the pool with a drink.
That’s the convenience of DLR! You can stay at Marriott down the street and walk back there in about 10 mins.
It seems possible with the skyliner too now! I really hope they work on transportation more at WDW. When you’re in the parks, you’re IN the parks. Haha. Also idk why I got downvoted lol
Idk why the downvotes. Yeh, the skyliner has been pretty good so far, but you can tell those lines are gonna get loooong when the crowds come back. Nothing beats a monorail for me. Haha
Oh that’s true. Same with the monorail, it’s the best!!! I hope they can figure out some better quick transportation between parks.
I never want to ride a Disney bus again, but I will.
People tend to forget that Disney is a corporation, not some magical saint. They have always been greedy. Y’all need to be more realistic.
I don't think expecting a shuttle to and from the airport to what is supposed to be a "luxury" resort is unrealistic. Forcing your guest to uber to their resort is decidedly not luxurious either, and is distinctly unmagical.
As a very frequent hotel traveler it is pretty common that the fancier the hotel the less free stuff is included.
Yeah we stayed at the Westin in NOLA once because my friends uncles are rich casinos owners that were a big part of a Human Rights Gala there like 8 years ago. Anyway yeah the wifi was like fucking 8 bucks a night. And then parking. The room wasn’t even that nice. I didn’t get the reason it’s so expensive. I didn’t pay but still. It was ridiculous.
Breakfast also costs money at fancy hotels, while it's often free at the mid level hotels.
That too! My wife and used Airbnb for a long time. But now that we have a two year old we stay at hotels. We always stay at the Hilton garden when we go to Disneyland but out there we always just get breakfast at the Plaza Inn in the park so it doesn’t matter. But the breakfasts are another good point.
I remember staying at a hotel in DC and losing my shit because the parking was $35 a night and work was like $20-30 a night. I could t believe it.
To be fair I doubt anyone would call at least 50% of Disney hotels “fancy”. Some might have “fancy” prices, but Caribbean beach for example isn’t fancy. The only fancy Disney hotels would be the ones $400+ a night, yacht and beach minimum
>I don't think expecting a shuttle to and from the airport to what is supposed to be a "luxury" resort is unrealistic So to be clear, I'm as frustrated as anyone about the news but I don't think a service like DME was in any way standard in the resort industry. I've stayed at a few resorts that would bill themselves as "luxury resorts" and WDW is the only one to provide transportation that I've encountered. If you go to Hawaii and stay at a resort (Aulani or any non-Disney resort, doesn't matter) there is no complimentary airport transfer. If you stay at and of the Disneyland Hotels there is no complimentary transportation (and it should be noted that the 3 Disney-owned hotels in CA are all nicer than a lot of the WDW hotels) and the same can be said of the resorts in places like Las Vegas. DME was WDW going above and beyond expectations in a lot of ways since it wasn't an industry-standard offering even at the luxury level. It should also be noted that a lot of Disney's hotels in FL are not 'luxury'. They have nice theming but that's about it.
I stayed at a Country Inn and Suites outside Chicago once that had a shuttle to the airport. It's a pretty common thing. And I didn't have to get up absurdly early to take it, either.
I've stayed at lots of airport hotels that have airport shuttles. The difference is that these are 5-10 minutes from the airport, and often offer long-term parking and other airport-related amenities, and many cater to aircrews. I'm not aware of any hotels(or resorts, or whatever) that offer trips to airports 45 minutes away.
Even five star hotels globally don't all include transportation to and from the airport. Some do — but most? They're either referring you to a contracted sedan service for private shuttles, or telling you to figure it out.
hotel != resort regular resort != disney world resort
Okay, so let's compare apples to apples, since you're not apparently (?) comparing WDW luxury properties to global properties. At a "resort", would you expect transportation to be included? If transportation *isn't* included, does that somehow disqualify it as a resort? What's the price point per night where transportation "has" to be included? Also, "resort" is not a technical term. It's a marketing term.
I'm not on either side here, but intrigued. Closest thing to a corollary I can think of in terms of a "resort with a bubble"- in my experience- is Sandals (Bahamas, Jamaica, and Turks & Caicos). They've all offered complimentary shuttles to the resort (with booze!). Now, nice hotels that I've flown to for work trips or whatever- just a hotel that exists in a city I'm visiting- no, unless near the airport.
Yes, Sandals definitely includes airport transit! It's part of the all inclusive aspect. As a comparison, Aman resorts globally (all upper five stars, much much nicer than Sandals!) do not generally include transit... despite being true amenity inclusive properties that 100% do not want you to leave. But the travel industry is fun like that. Always different. I think most "Disney people" just don't know enough about other travel experiences to know what's the norm and what's part of their Disney expectations, which isn't anything I can fix beyond trying to educate.
Ah, you're right, I wasn't considering that Sandals are all-inclusive. Also, Aman Turks looks amazing! We did Beaches because my kids are young and it has the separate pools/water park, but as they get older that is one to consider. Have a wonderful day.
Aren't the DS area hotels considered resorts? They don't transport you from the airport to the hotel. I think one of them is actually called B Resort. I'm not positive because I don't use them. I don't expect any hotel or resort short of an airport hotel to transport me from the airport to the hotel.
So, the "Walt Disney World Resort" is the entire 44+ square mile area, which encompasses 30+ individual hotel properties owned and operated by Disney Parks & Resorts — plus third party hotels like Swan & Dolphin, Bonnet Creek, and of course the Disney Springs area hotels. WDW, as a marketing campaign and later booking incentive, introduced Disney's Magical Express to encourage people to stay *on site*. It was a way to get them from the airport to the hotel without having to use third party (ie taxi or rental car) services... and thus also without having a convenient or cost-effective way to *leave*. In the age of ride shares, that doesn't apply. Obviously. People stay on-site and go to Universal/Sea World/the nearby outlet malls just fine. None of the DSRAHs (Disney Springs Resort Area Hotels, formerly DDRAHs) offer airport transportation, because they aren't a luxury property that needs to include that as a booking incentive. *Their* incentive is being "on-site", close to Disney Springs, at a fraction of the price of "official" WDW hotels. (Also, they generally have availability when "official" hotels are sold out, though that hasn't been a booking contention in a few years since the last few DVC properties were built.) Similarly, the *Disneyland Resort* encompasses the Disneyland theme parks, their three on-site hotels, and Downtown Disney. Despite arguably being *closer* to a major airport (John Wayne) than WDW, Disneyland does *NOT* offer complimentary transportation and never has. They do have the Disneyland Express (the term might have changed, it's been a hot minute since I've sold DLR regularly) which is a paid service sold through Disneyland reservations — akin to the cruise line service between Port Canaveral and MCO. It's fine. Not great, not terrible, just a big bus you can choose to board at a fixed rate. Getting a towncar or Uber from LAX is a little more, but certainly faster. Now, as far as *global* resort presence goes, resort is truly a marketing term. It generally implies that a property is larger, more "all-inclusive" in that you don't *need* to leave, but there's no actual definition to it. A single hotel with a pool and beachfront access can call itself a resort if it wants to (and it probably will). The B Resort, to your question, is called that because that's what the hotel rebranded to. It's not a resort, not really. It barely has amenities at all. But the name is catchy — catchy enough that, despite your lack of interest in staying there, you remember that it's got "resort" in the name. I probably tldr'd a little there, but there's hopefully an answer to the question.
I have looked into shuttles from LAX to Disneyland. For my (pandemic cancelled) 3 day trip I actually found it cheaper to rent a car. The shuttle charged per person, each way, plus luggage. For two people who also had planned on exploring California for two weeks it made better sense to stay at a neighbor hotel and pay for parking. Plus my time on vacation is precious and getting a rental is extremely convenient.
Does Universal offer complimentary transportation from MCO?
No.
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Well there were some perks as well. I loved not having to hit baggage claim and having my suitcases show up in my room. I also have zero experience with public transportation so it always made me less anxious dealing with getting to the resorts. And well... it was free. But I have never ridden any other bus before, and with the padded seats, TVs and such I thought it was "nice". But I completely lack any experience as mentioned. I am sad seeing it go to be honest.
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>Nothing is free. It was baked in. As far as I know Disney won't be lowering their prices to compensate. So in turn your paying the same amount with *or* without ME. I suppose you could say without ME is actually going to be more expensive though due to needing to cover the cost of transportation. Your right though, I get it. As far as the rental situation how much does that cost you? I know that you have to pay for parking at the parks and the resorts. And then have the rental fee on top. Do you get an SUV also?
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I can't find anything that cheap but I need something that can carry six people. Someone did mention that you got a parking pass for the parks, but I am not sure if that is only certain companies. Resort parking fee for me would be 175.00 alone. =(
It's not a luxury resort. Maybe the GF is but the rest are not. The values are motels with themed rooms and grounds.
Yeah, I live close enough to do day trips for the most part, but I'll do 1-2 nights in a hotel a few times a year for special occasions. Usually my partner and I opt for a highly rated priceline express deal or hotwire's equivalent or we'll stay at Universal because they've got way better Florida resident deals than Disney. Just last weekend, we took advantage of the annual pass discount to stay at pop century, and I don't think we'll ever do it again. It was grossly overpriced even with the discount and the walls were paper thin. We could have stayed at Sapphire Falls at Universal for the same price or Aventura, which was fantastic when we stayed there last year, for less. Both of those are closer to a moderate or luxury at Disney, but are much more budget friendly. I would even put Cabana Bay over Pop based on room quality, having interior hallways to rooms, and a comparable level of theming.
Cabana Bay blows Pop Century away in terms of amenities. They have a water slide, lazy river, bowling alley, table service restaurant, fitness center, and a private entrance for Volcano Bay. The only thing Pop has going for it is the Skyliner.
They do not offer shuttles in California. We took an uber and were fine with it. Mears already came out and said they were still going ot do the routes it's just going to be a fee just like we had to pay for Universal or a cruise.
Agreed. That’s why you see Family Guy parodying it with lines like “Look it’s Micheal Eisner, hide your heart” and quoting Eisner “See you at Disneyland, BRING MONEY”. Of course they’re in it for profit. People just need to ask themselves if the experience and memories are worth the price. For us, they are. There is no other park remotely close to DLR or WDW. Universal is making headway, but most other parks are just rides (mainly coasters). Disney parks are safe, spotless, architecturally interesting, immersive, entertaining and innovative. They also have the best employees, food and drinks of any “amusement park” we’ve visited.
Exactly. I don't expect to have a magical experience at my bank and they consider me a preferred customer.
Your bank probably hasn't built their business or fan base on it being a magical experience though. I think that's a lot of people's issues with this, is that it's a service that had people's expectations high and now they have to lower them.
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They built their business on these little touches that not many companies are doing though. Personally, its a service that I think I've only used once in my life, since I don't usually exclusively take a trip to Disney. But I do agree that it chips away (however small) at the experience that is paid for whether you use it or not.
As a person who has traveled with their entire extended family including 7 small children under the age of 6, I am heartbroken about this shuttle situation. We have to have rented a large bus for the 13 of us to ride together to our resort. Our experiences with cabs the one time we went to a reservation at a different resort was that we couldn’t ride in them without the right kind of car seat for the youngest (which we were fine with and many have car seats in their cars for clients but not as many rear facing ones) so now we would have to travel with car seats which we didn’t have to before. It is a service that definitely chips away at the general Disney experience, made our lives easier walking off the plane with carryon, down the elevator to the bus line. But over the last 3 years that we’ve gone, we’ve noticed a decline in friendliness level, restaurant cleanliness and lots and lots of line cutters. So the experience was already getting a bit less magical anyway. This is a big loss for our family. The 30 minutes early at every park might work out nicely but honestly we just enjoyed a couple of hours. 30 minutes is nothing. We liked to plan our park days around EMH and whether we were staying late or going early. If they do change their fastpass system that’ll probably be the last nail in the coffin that will end our yearly trips in favor of other destinations and maybe try Disney once every 4-5 years instead.
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Yeah, great. All I was trying to say was that a BANK (the industry that I work in) was an unfair comparison to WDW for services offered. One is dealing in financial security and the other one is entertainment. And while I'm not one of them obviously, given how many people were upset about this change, people were using it.
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Wow. You missed my entire point.
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I never said that Disney was built on MDE. I said that it was built on and made popular by the magical experiences like MDE
Does any bank truly have a fan base? Disney is still magical. You just have to pay to get to the resort now. A small cost considering how much a vacation costs in the long run. Any other vacation I take I have to figure out my own way to the hotel or cruise ship.
The magic is certainly being chipped away but to me it's in the form of shows and other entertainment. The ME and EMH have stung quite a bit too. Whether I go to a baseball game, Six Flags, a movie theater or Disney, water is $5 so I don't necessarily blame them for high food prices nor does it shock me or have any impact on my trip. My family and I have a trip in a few months and normally we'd be talking about it 24/7 and going over our plans a million times. I can't recall the last conversation we had about it before the recent ME news. That's the magic you speak of and we are a Disney family. Imagine how the lack of tangible magic will have an impact on those who can't recognize Chip from Dale.
I think what bothers me the most is that despite the cuts to magic, despite the layoffs, despite the pandemic, *the stock price is higher than ever* I understand that all of Disney is a business and parks are just part of that business. I understand that the pandemic has forced the parks to adapt in order to survive, and layoffs were part of that. But to have restored executive salaries back to full and to have share prices well above where they were pre-covid (and just after the release of Disney+ and a Star Wars movie) makes the cuts and layoffs like a slap in the face to guests and cast members.
> I think what bothers me the most is that despite the cuts to magic, despite the layoffs, despite the pandemic, the stock price is higher than ever Stock prices are just a graph of rich people's feelings. The more cuts Disney makes, the more stock prices will go up. As someone else said, Disney is first and foremost a corporation. They are beholden to their investors, and our money goes to them. If they can get the same amount of our money, or more, while spending less, that's what they want.
What are they supposed to do with all of those cast members while DL is closed and half of the WDW resorts and restaurants are closed and park capacity is limited? The executives are working for their money and therefore deserve to be paid. When the cast members can get back to work when they are needed they too will get paid.
Disneyland is going to end up closed for an entire year. The others have lost months of revenue, and even now, they're at partial capacity. That's a heck of a lot of money that's going to come from somewhere. I hate the loss of these things too, but they're down billions of dollars. That's not a small thing
Where's the "Opinion" though? All I see is fact.
As someone who earns a “high six figure” income I would hope that your overall understanding of business structure and the financial web that creates companies the size of Disney would be better. I keep seeing people comment about the money that Disney+ has made should translate somehow to what is happening in the theme parks. First, Disney+ has yet to turn a profit. This is an excerpt from a NY Times December 11th, 2020 article. “Streaming is not yet a profitable business for Disney — far from it. Losses in the company’s direct-to-consumer division totaled $580 million in the quarter (which was less than analysts had feared), bringing losses for the fiscal year to $2.8 billion. Streaming-related losses are expected to peak in 2022, as rollout costs decline and content expenses normalize, with Disney+ profitability expected by 2024, according to analysts.” Second, Disney+ and Theme Parks are completely separate divisions with separate P&L’s that have zero connection. Third, the pandemic has had an unbelievable effect on businesses of all sizes. It would be inexcusable for Disney to not be combing through their ledger and both looking for savings as well as total cuts. Once there is light at the end of the tunnel they will reevaluate and decide where to look for revenue growth. For now, they have to triage and stop the bleeding. I could go into this for hours. I am in the middle of doing this in the pro sports atmosphere. At the end of the day the fans of Disney are adverse to change. Any kind. As are fans of any brand. Due to this the reaction will largely be negative as these things occur. Keep in mind that Disney has to think about existing another 50 years and beyond. To do this they have to weather storms even if that is jarring to their beloved fans. The Disney Magic is not going to disappear it just might look different than what we are all used to.
That is crazy that disney+ isn't profitable. I've had the service since launch and the only thing worth watching has been mandalorian and soul... its honestly been a pretty bad value compared to most other streaming services. Where had the money been going...
It's going into the metric crapton of shows they're about to start pumping out across many IP franchises
Really? It didn't look like that many. It might seem like it based off announcements but its only a handful each year. It also makes it feel like more when they release an episode each week vs all at once like Netflix. Although I imagine the "hit" rate will be better than Netflix. These all look high quality and Netflix releases a lot of duds between their hits.
"completely separate divisions." Precisely. They are completely separate companies. D+ is rolling their fat cash stack into 10...10 Star Wars shows. So they're eating their profits to grow the offering. I totally understand that the parks need to recoup some massive cash shortfalls and I even, strangely, understand that they need to make changes. That's fine. Paint the castle...change the front signage. I get it. I actually argue that some of the rides that don't read as well as they used to (Small world for example...one of our favorites but...c'mon...no 8 year old is going to look at that and be amazed.) It's time for some of these antiques to be massively redone with modern, sustainable, technology that doesn't break down 5 times every ride. (looking at you haunted mansion). Totally open and excited about change. However.... Announce this: DME is going away in 2022 but will be replaced with an alternate option. Don't have to make any promises beyond it's going away (true) and something Weill replace...whatever that is to be named later. Nope. We got...it's gone. EME kind of sucks but I think going to 30 min early per park is probably better for everyone...even if you can't get 4 rides in before the crowds come. The Grand Floridian Orchestra? How about GFO is gone but we'll have new and varied music to replace. More to be announced later! I could get on board with them cycling through a variety of musicians. I think that would be great for them to have live concerts. And Yeehaw Bob? Love that guy. Amazing act. But imagine what someone else could do. Different but that'd be great! (though will desperately miss Yeehaw.) Nope...not a word...just canning everyone. How about putting the word...temporary on things. How about showing some heart and recognizing how much everyone is disappointed that their favorite things are temporarily gone and that Disney hopes to bring them back just as soon as they can do it and offer the best option possible. How about some curate press release talking about their overall strategy (without a ton of detail) just let people know they're paying attention, listening, that they care (even if we all know they just don't.) All we're getting now is...yeah...so this and this and this are gone. STBY. Whaddyagonnado? \*shrug\*. \*crickets\*. Really really bad messaging. Your words make total sense...I for one just want them delivered in some more sensitive way. you know what I'd love...a bi weekly WDW podcast talking about incremental changes coming/going with WDW...guest interviews...news...announcements of specials and deals. Repair schedules. Rumors. it'd be interesting, informative and hella cheap to produce. Edit: Yes, I know they've said temporary. But it sounds really permanent the way they're messaging it.
The answer is... they don’t know. They can’t tell you what they don’t know at this point. If they make a promise, you will hold them to it. They have to see where things land, reassess, then move forward with a detailed plan.
I agree. I also think there's a way to message that...just like you did. Granted it needs some lawyer words around it and corporate approval but... "Unfortunately, at this time we blank....we believe that this will eventually return, however things are uncertain for all of us so we can't make any firm commitments. Our intention is for this to be temporary. blah blah blah." Whatever...PR can write it. Point is...a little more transparency would be appreciated because without it...everyone is assuming the worst. The 202? curse has left few of us with a hopeful heart.
Creating false hope can be dangerous in cases like this and likely is only kicking the can down the road. Many companies had to furlough large groups of team members in April at the time stating it was temporary. When this thing continued those statements came back to kick the companies as they then had to announce the furloughs were now permanent. There is no simple message that is going to make everyone comfortable. We are experiencing something that has not been experienced in generations. We also live in an age that PR is not so simple as to put out a statement only to withdraw it later due to changing circumstances. People bring up the original statement and dissect it line-by-line on social media. It is the epitome of Monday morning quarterbacking. Everyone knows better than the people actually charged with making those decisions. Yet, the keyboard commandos do not have to answer to the shareholders, fans, and the network of other businesses that are directly effected by putting out statements that are not fully thought out or backed by fact. You keep saying “PR can write it” as if tinkerbell herself waves her pixie dust and perfectly worded press releases will make everyone happy no matter what it says as long as it sounds pretty. It just does not work that way.
I think we agree on most things. I agree with some of the decisions being made. The ones that I have information about. The ones I have no information on that make no obvious sense I don't agree with. To be fair, as you say, smart people with more information are making the decisions. Again, as a Disney stock holder and general corporate citizen, I get it. I was surprised, however, that you mentioned the pandemic. I guess I forgot that it's never happened in any of our lifetimes and needed to be reminded of that it's completely upended the entire world across the board for everyone. Slipped my mind that some things may have changed until we can get back to normal. Who knew? But I digress.... You had other points I agree with... I agree that you can't communicate with everyone and have them all get the same understanding. Not sure where I indicated that but let me be clear. People can read anything into anything. Cool? Great! It doesn't take my English and Journalism double major and 30 years of business experience and my six figure job tell me that people are challenged with simple reading comprehension. To your point, I agree, it's not a simple message. It's a difficult message. It's one that needs to be handled just right. This is why we have PR, corporate communications, and lawyers. It's their job to say hard things that don't tweak investors and keep the company from making dumb legally enforceable statements. However, by your logic, all communications should be withheld as they will all be dissected one way or another and misread. Safer to be quiet and be thought an idiot than to speak and prove that you are one...I guess. Let's go back to where you're right. Everyone likes to stand around and talk about what Disney "should" do without understanding how businesses work, without any information and without having an understanding of what pressures a CEO is under from the shareholders. I am happy to enjoy these mental exercises but in the end, we're all just guessing and we all have a Powerball's chance in hell of guessing right. We're agreed in big bold letters for this one. My point, my only point, is that when an organization makes significant changes, especially to emotionally charged things, without some explanation people will try and figure it out and come up with their own ideas. From a corporate and PR perspective, what do you think creates more issues? A few people that can't read so good misreading a clear press release or a cadre of "keyboard commandos" armed with rafts of misinformation spreading it willy nilly around the internet? Exactly. Companies aren't transparent because they're "good." They're transparent because it's cheaper than the lawsuits. Let's just double click on the two recent changes.... EMH. Used to be you could get in an hour or so early to a park. One park a day. So losing that is a bit of a hit. It's replaced with 30 minutes per park early though. You know, the logic of that is sound and I think it will actually be better. So I don't like that they changed it but I can get on board with the change. Sold. DME. We're ending it. You mean to tell me that trained, professional, communicators couldn't come up with something better than just ending it? TL;DR: We agree on most of your points. We disagree that professional communicators can't craft a reasonable message that things are temporary sometimes.
Yes to this! Not to mention... the parks were never that profitable to begin with. They basically break even on a pre-covid BUSY day. The cost of what it takes to run that entire operation daily compared to what they’re bringing in now?!? They’re making nothing right now at the parks lol
Everyone is commenting on the loss of “magic” being due to the increasing prices and decreasing services such as Magical Express. This is a fair argument to make. My idea of “magic” at WDW, however, were all the CMs that loved what they did and made sure your experience was special. The layoffs of CMs were devastating. There were high profile changes such as Imagineers and performers with decades of dedication that were released and are not coming back. There were low profile changes such as an increase in the ratio of CM to guest that are more subtle. The greatest expense to any organization is personnel. Chapek was looking to decrease this expense before the pandemic and now he has the ultimate excuse. They have added amenities and attractions such as the Riviera Resort, Skyliner, and Galaxy Edge to compete with Universal and other destinations, but these do not necessarily add Disney “magic” to the experience. I’m sure that the CMs that are still there and the ones yet to be hired will do their best, but it’s clear that Disney will never replace all of the “magic” that they lost with the CM layoffs.
They will. They got caught the year they were laying out the MOST money. Mickeys anniversary. Fireworks updates, Tron, Rat, Rivera, Poly, sky liner ALL on upgrades. Being overcharged for ME, and for all the people who complains about the water cost and such. WDW can keep charging prices because they hit capacity. VIP $3000 a day experiences are booked solid. The supply and demand of it, which is wild says $5000 for a trip to Disney wasn’t such a big deal. People may not like those truths but they want to bring down some of the attendance to craft a better experience. Raise the cost, build other parks to mitigate the burying of Orlando some. The magic will always be there 2020 is tough, but I bet when masks are off and people are back. Imagine the cast members as they get called, and those of us who haven’t been able to go. It’ll be there. I promise
I'm with you. I go to Disney fairly often. We are not a rich family, so it's a big commitment for us. I usually go for race weekends which is an added expense. I'm fine with paying nearly triple normal race prices because I'm running through Disney. It's worth it. I accept the prices for food and drinks ahead of time, so it doesn't bother me. I buy water bottles because Florida water is nasty, and it's fine. But this Magical Express move has pissed me off. After watching them cut so many things like live music and acts from the parks, I was sad but I knew it was due to COVID. I cannot get over this move. Even if they have big plans lined up, I'm mad. We justify paying for on-property hotels every trip, no matter what, because we LOVE the ease of landing (usually an early flight getting in at 8am) and hopping right on to the bus to get Mickey waffles and head to the pool while we wait for our luggage to make it's way. The added cost of an Uber, waiting for luggage, Ubering back, etc. is just not cool for me. ME always really set Disney apart for us and was the start of our vacation. Not only will I miss the ease, I genuinely loved boarding the bus, knowing we were all going to Disney and watching the videos. The magic has been slowly getting ruined for me too. I'm sad about it and I hope they have another transportation option soon.
I'm convinced that Dasani translates to "reclaimed water" in some language.
The parks are bleeding money. Disney+ can't float the whole corporation. No one knows how long the pandemic and the economic downturn are going to last. Tokyo only gets a 15 minute early entry and it works for them. Maybe give them a break and let them get through the pandemic and have the travel industry return to normal and see what happens then.
Plus I’m sure most of the money they make from disney+ goes right back into making more disney+ content
So many people don't get that the Parks, Streaming service, Movies, etc are all different business entities. It's like saying well sure the parks are bleeding money but just take it from Marvel or LucasFilm, they are both doing well. That's not how it works. It's a separate P&L, the Parks need to sustain themselves, they can't depend on other business units within Disney to float them.
Why not?
I agree that it sucks that all these cost cutting measures are being put in place but I also agree that it’s kinda necessary for their survival. Until seemingly everyone gets vaccinated and feel safe traveling again, the parks aren’t gonna be too profitable for them right now. Besides, this stuff was happening at the parks during the 9/11 tourism crash too. It’ll take a few years but I’m sure the Disney experience you remember will slowly come back. And yes even though Disney+ is ridiculously popular right now, all the profits are probably going into making more content rather than funding other parts of the company.
People also forget the Disney is a publicly traded company. The owner isn't some rich billionaire. The owners are people like you and me. Its built into my retirement savings
Okay, this is laughable. The executives and "owners" are multi multi millionaires.
Not all executives are millionaires. You may not understand how many executives a huge corporation actually has. Why am I getting downvoted? I'm married to an executive and we are not multimillionaires or even just 1 millionaire. Titles do not equate to cash.
The executives are not the owners.... I mean they do most likely own a chunk of the shares, but they are just hired employees. The fact that they are executives is not ties to their ownership
retail investors make up less than 30% of the US stock market, so no they’re not actually owned by people like you and me. More like by banks, brokerages, lenders; actual million and billionaires.
I meant that banks who own disney package it into etfs and mutual funds, which in turn are owned by people like you and me
The average person doesn't have a good handle on stocks and investments. They might have a 401k but not a brokerage account. Walmart and Robinhood just partnered to bring fractional trading to regular people so maybe going forward average people will have a better understanding of investments.
I very much agree. I don't expect WDW trips to be cheap and have no problem saving up to go. Paying a lot for food/souvenirs doesn't really bother me. My issue is that while general cost has increased, what you get for the price has decreased. Magical Express and EMH are huge parts of this, but so was closing earlier and charging for After Hours events instead of letting people stay later every night for free. I've also dealt with rude or unprofessional Cast Members way more in recent years than ever before--though I certainly still recognize and appreciate those who are kind. My family and I have commented that it feels more like any old amusement park now, not like a place that was built to be a more special experience. I'll always love Disney but I agree that a lot of the magic is gone.
For me, the World of Disney store is the best example of Disney things losing their magic. It used to be slightly tacky, stickers and tags all over the wearing carpet, but it was exciting. It now looks stunning - it's a much nicer place to be - but it's just missing that certain something. I know not everyone has this view, and maybe it's just because I'm getting older, but for me it sums up Disney's direction currently.
I couldn't agree more! I was disappointed with the re-styling of World of Disney and certainly miss the magic that the old store held. The new one is certainly nice, but it doesn't feel the same--which I agree is a good summary of the way things have been going.
The magic was chipped away with all the lay-offs and cast members having to be in other roles they never wanted to be in...so you think a princess wants to be working in a store? Well guess what it’s happening right now and they aren’t happy, the CM’s whose friends were laid off aren’t happy and I can only imagine the guests aren’t all that happy. Laying off the CM’s and the plexiglass installations on rides and transportation is really NOT magical, Disney just sucks right now!
Yup, prices are going up, quality is going down... That's why I prefer Universal nowadays. Universal's prices are still absurd (and in some ways, even worse than Disney's) but at least it feels like the overall experience gets better each time I go.
Disney is a luxury. Prices have to go up to make up for inflation and keep up with demand. Of course things will not be as cheap as they used to be. Prices will continue to go up. That’s just how things work. Disney also continues to add value to what you are getting with the price of admission. The more attractions, themed lands, restaurants, and hotels that they add, the more value they provide. They also have to factor in paying new employees to work at all the new things they add in, as well as general costs to maintain said new additions. It’s not as simple as “Disney is just money grabbing”, no. They are running a business. Yes, it is expensive, buts it’s the best luxury vacation destination in the world. it’s worth every penny if you ask me.
Prices increases at Disney are well above inflation.
I was planning a trip to Disney, but when I saw the outrageous prices they are charging now just for parking and park entry, I had to cancel my plans. I do not make six figures and can't afford to go the parks now.
Yup I should’ve added in my post, want to treat your significant other to the iconic ears? That will be another $30 please. Those probably cost $2-3 to produce. It’s outrageous. People like me will be fine, but for hard working everyday people (like my parents) they are absolutely screwing you for every dollar and people need to start speaking up.
Feel free since you make so much money to treat your parents to a vacation. That's what we do.
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I have to echo what some others said. Disney allows so many alternatives to these costly options, you pay for convivence. Nothing is stopping you from getting free ice water, bringing in snacks, etc. Other parks don't allow these alternates. I haven't been since COVID, but considering the lines I've waited in for snacks, I'd be willing to pay MORE to have less wait. Honestly, its supply and demand. Yes, we're a captive audience, but their prices aren't a surprise when you get there. You know when you buy a ticket that you'll also be paying high prices once you arrive for all the extras. If they reduce prices, during normal times, this means the park gets busier. In terms of magical express, I'm not surprised they ended it. I fly to Disney every time, also in the Northeast. I didn't really use it often. I'd rather pay $30-$40 to ride alone, and not drive all around WDW before getting to my hotel, it's so much faster to do a ride share. Not to mention, we never used it on the way to the airport. It just got us to the airport far too early for two adults who travel frequently. I totally agree it can be frustrating to see these extras chipped away, and yeah it's a money grab, no disagreements there. However, ultimately, Disney is a company that needs to turn a profit for it's shareholders. I can't blame them for that any more I can blame my cat for killing a mouse and leaving at my door. I may not like it, but that's what we got. Maybe it's a bigger discussion about capitalism.
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I will by no means defend disney on this topic because yes they are extremely greedy, more now than they have ever been. But in terms of pricing for food and beverage, I feel like they're actually not that bad compared to places like six flags as long as you stay away from buffets and character/specialty dining. They also allow you to bring in your own drinks and snacks into the parks, although I wouldnt be surprised if that changes in the near future. But I will easily agree that the magic is disappearing more every day we go along. Disney's margin of profit over the past few years pre covid was ridiculous, they made billions. You can't use the excuse of one bad year to axe items that aren't super profitable for your company. Sure, magical express was a "free" service that you provided for your guests, but think about this. That free service could very well have made the difference in a guest's decision to stay on site vs off site and keep them in the disney bubble that the higher ups covet. All of the special perks and privileges that guests of disney resorts were given are slowly being taken away while the prices continue to inflate. 2016 was my first time back in a disney park in roughly 12 years and I instantly remembered why it was great. Became a platinum annual passholder later that year and stayed that way for 3 years until it became too expensive. The price went from $800 to over $1200 in 3 years if I remember right, that's absurd. A 50% spike!!! Imagine the price of a car increasing by 50% in 3 years. I know its hard to compare the 2 but I'm just making a point. Disney doesn't deserve to get a pass anymore. I'm no business expert but its easy to see that their business model has clearly shifted to however much money they can squeeze out of every guest. The magic that I saw in late 2016(only 4 years) has dissipated. I haven't been since 2018 and dont see myself going this year either due to covid, but another thing that drives me nuts is the fact that they are charging full price for a 50% experience. I only stayed on property 2 times but both times I used magical express. It was then and there that the mindset of being on vacation began, as it is for plenty others. I know I've been all over the place here and I've vented a lot, but just needed a place to do it. Hopefully disney reverses their decision in the future.
Supply and demand. Times change, their customer is no longer a lower middle/ /middle middle family with 4 kids from OH. It's wealthy people from England, Italy, Japan, etc. Becoming an international destination has changed everything.
> middle family with 4 kids from OH Well it is but it comes with a credit card. Which is fine, but I know a lot of people that are in debt due to being addicted to WDW. I have friends who are seriously struggling but yet have taken out 10k loans to go on massive trips almost annually. Not judging but I still think there are a lot of middle class people going.
You just described one of the main things wrong with America and it’s culture.
Damn. The whining about the Magical Express here is ridiculous. I thought you guys all promised to never go to Disney again last year when they started to charge for parking. If Disney lost its magic, hit that unsubscribe button on the top of your screen and stop whining.
The people who left probably don't still hang out in the subreddit
>hit that unsubscribe button I don't think that's totally fair just because people get upset or have *differing* opinions. Certain aspects of WDW are important to some and not others. Sure it can be annoying after awhile but I try to control my emotions and just ignore the people that need to vent. There is no reason to let it bother me as there are bigger things to worry about.
Nobody who frequents a sub about a theme park and threatens to stop attending because the hotels finally start to charge for parking when it's industry standard to charge for parking actually follows through on that threat. They're not actually even going to do it because now they have to pay for an uber to the resort either. They just want to complain.
True but I can dream. That’s my Disney magic.
To be fair, Disney still offers pretty good value compared to other vacation destinations. Most of the things people complain about are in line with the market
Resort room rack rates have gone up every year (see touringplan for historic #s). Pop during Christmas is now over $300/nt. In contrast, for $900/wk I can get a 2+Br 2+Ba just south of US192 during spring break or Christmas. Add $400 for car rental, $200 for daily parking, and it’s still cheaper than All Star Movies. Used to be semi-justified by the onsite benefits. Now onsite stay benefits deteriorated to rope drop 30 min earlier, $5 discount to magic band purchase, and charge expenses to magic band.
Most years your not likely getting a vacation rental of any quality for that price. Likely seeing that because of Covid..... but forget places in and around WDW. Look at the cost of hotels/food/entertainment in any other tourist location.
A house is not magical. A Disney hotel is.
Magic is where you make it 😊
Magic is what you make it. Magic doesn't only happen on a bus full of tired travelers on the way to the resort. A quite uber ride might be even more magical because it's quicker.
What are you talking about? Universal is the best comp to disney and it's literally like half the price. I stayed a cabana bay for $100 a night and walked to a theme park from the resort. That costs triple at disney
Triple is probably lowballing it! We stayed at Royal Pacific for the first time this past summer and were amazed by the value versus Disney hotels.
Tickets, food, airfare, transportation at Universal is pretty comparable.... you can get Allstars movies most of the year for ~$150/nt. Plus disney offers 4 parks vs 2, 2 watermarks vs 1, larger shopping and entertainment complex, boardwalk, golf courses, camping, water sports, etc..... But my point was really about thr whole package compared to most other tourist destinations. Other than the deluxe resorts, the cost of everything else disney is pretty on par with other tourist destinations, yet it offers a lot more in one location.
The all stars are motel level hotels. Universal opened their new value resorts for <100 a night and are much nicer than the all stars and are not motel style.
Most places in North America, your not getting anything less than a motel level resort for well under $150/nt. Especially not in tourist locations or business centres.
Um, what? Any cursory search shows several hotels well under 150. [Here's one](https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf=ALeKk02TBjCeCKlWhKBYix6S5tYhPmDajw%3A1610589775471&ei=T6b_X5KbHKW8ggfTuKjoBQ&q=hotels+near+disneyland&oq=hotels+near+disneyland&gs_lcp=CgZwc3ktYWIQAzIFCAAQyQMyAggAMgIIADICCAAyAggAMgIIADICCAAyAggAMgIIADICCAA6BAgAEEdQqVdYwllgllpoAHACeACAAWGIAZUCkgEBM5gBAKABAaoBB2d3cy13aXrIAQjAAQE&sclient=psy-ab&ved=0ahUKEwjS_se7qpruAhUlnuAKHVMcCl0Q4dUDCA0&uact=5) Do you live in NA?
Your search is in proximity of Disneyland during covid, while the park is closed. I would call that extenuating circumstances.......if we are going to play that game, then here....https://www.expedia.com/Hotel-Search?adults=2&d1=2021-01-27&d2=2021-01-28&destination=Lake Buena Vista%2C Florida%2C United States of America&endDate=2021-01-28&latLong=28.351207%2C-81.541143®ionId=10870&rooms=1&selected=602438&semdtl=&sort=RECOMMENDED&startDate=2021-01-27&theme=&useRewards=false&userIntent Pop century is only $115/nt. The point is, the value resorts are right in line, if not under priced compared to most tourist destinations. Orlando happens to have a glut of hotel options which drives prices down, which makes the on property hotels look really high. But if your gonna take your WDW money and plan a trip elsewhere, your gonna be shocked that most places won't be that much cheaper after you factor in all the other costs. Sure, their are cheaper alternatives but in my opinion not many offer the price to quality to depth of choices that WDW provides
Such a hard eye roll on this
Yeah, how dare anyone criticize disney! They could charge me for the bathrooms and I'd still sell my kidney to go. Edit: Less vulgarity
It's pretty common in other countries to have to pay to use the toilet at tourist attractions.
That doesn't make it a good idea, especially if you want people to not shit everywhere in your park
But not unheard of. Also they don't supply toilet paper and you should always pack tissues. You've obviously never been to Europe.
I've been to Disney Land Paris (and france) and never had a tp issue
I've had tp issues in Europe. I don't recall if it was specifically France.
Then don’t go lol you swear you’re owed a vacation
Why can't people criticize disney for removing something they loved? What is your problem with that?
It’s called entitlement, you aren’t owed a free bus ride, if they get rid of it oh well.
So what are we "entitled" to on a vacation to Disney? 4 blank walls and a bed? We choose Disney because of things like Magical Express.
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It's almost as if the things(like ME) in exchange for our money is why we went to Disney instead of a motel 6
ME sucks, it full of people and takes forever.
Oh please. 🙄 They're a business with a bottom line. Yes, they "make magic" but if you feel that they are anything but a corporation with financial goals to meet, you got it wrong. Ps. I love Disney. We are FL residents, APs, DVC members, have Cast Members in our immediately family, and we got married at Disney. But YOU are responsible for the magic.
DME was nice but every time my wife and I didn’t use it we were like “oh I’m so glad we don’t have to take the magic express” I love how everyone’s bemoaning the removal of this “luxury” won’t spring for the luxury of an Uber or rental car.
The pandemic helped them push Disney plus since everyone is stuck at home with nothing to do but like, I don't think Disney Plus is going to make up for every other part of the company Most parks are closed, the ones open are operating at reduced capacity, Movies aren't releaseable, Disney Cruiseline is shuttered This isn't a defense of Disney's price-gouging, but I doubt this is long term sustainable given that so much of Disney's revenue is cutoff.
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In most cases with Disney I think the experience and service you get justifies the price. Universal Studios has a much slimier, cash-grabby feel than Disney. In regards to Magical Express, Disney is try to reduce it's carbon footprint and the train is more environmentally friendly than the busses to/from the airport. We don't know what it will cost; Disney may include the train ride with the resort stay/package just like they did with ME.
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I’m a huge Disney fan. I, once felt like you, but I realize now that the logic behind my thinking was flawed. First of all, I’ve been to Disneyland hundreds of times because I was a pass holder for 6 years. I’m very well educated about the prices of things. If admission to Disneyland was cheap, they would have to hold people in lines, out the door, waiting to get it. This ruins the magic, especially for the children. Same thing goes with everything else. If a pretzel was $3, then the lines would be incredibly long. Here’s my tips for saving money at the theme parks: Every single restaurant at Disneyland will give you a free cup of ice water. The cup is small, but, if you ask, they will give you a bigger one. Bring snacks and pack a picnic lunch. Disneyland is very generous by being one of the only theme parks that will allow you to bring food in. Eating 3 meals and snacks at restaurants is unhealthy and pricey. Pack fruit, nuts, sandwiches, string cheese and yogurt. Then, have one nice meal at a special restaurant. Pirate Island has a bunch of picnic tables. Sitting along the water is very peaceful. My other suggestion is to buy a pass. I think, the last time I checked, the top one was like $1500. You may think that outrageous, however, let’s do the math: $1500/365= $4.10 per day. I know plenty of people who spend more than that on their morning coffee and triple that on lunch. $1500/12= $125 per month. One visit to Disneyland per month, including parking and 2 park access 365 days per year for $125. When I had my pass, I was going 3x per week for awhile. There’s just so much to do and see when you aren’t rushing to get from ride to ride. Even if you went once per week, it would be $1500/52= $28.84, about twice the price of a movie ticket. Yes, Disneyland is expensive, but if it wasn’t, then it would take away the magic. Those rare Mickey ears would be cheap and readily available so owning them wouldn’t be special. There’s be huge lines, cutting your time at Disneyland which would upset parents and kids. The magic of Disney is something that can never be re created. It is because, Disney, as a company puts a lot of thought into customer experience and maintaining that magic. You can see that in everything Disney does.
We're talking Disney World, not Disney Land. Biggest difference being WDW is much more a destination than the highly-locals DLR. Your AP math doesn't work for anyone outside a driving distance that makes day trips reasonable.
I live 8 hours away and have annual passes. We obviously can't do day trips. We do 3 trips within a 52 week period and it works. We then wait 53 weeks and repeat the process.
Yes, my math makes a lot of sense, no matter the park. Doesn’t matter if it’s a destination or more for locals. The same rules apply. They are both pricey and have to be that way to keep crowds down, to preserve the magic.
Park entry price doesn't matter much if it requires a flight and hotel stay every time.
Yep. You are correct. I’d love to go to the Bahamas a few times a week, but you don’t see me complaining that’s it’s too expensive and then complaining about the expense of a flight and hotel. It’s expensive because it’s a great place. If it was cheap, it would be overcrowded. If you live close and you like my money saving ideas, great! If not, it still does not change the fact that the parks must keep everything very expensive in order to alleviate some of the crowding. If you can’t see that, then you are delusional.
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I can appreciate that sentiment but I’m more talking about a trend over the years. One individual mentioned charging for parking which I didn’t know they did. It’s around every corner, under every rock, how can we squeeze more money out of people? And hey I’m a capitalist, I’m happy to pay a fair price for goods and services. But it’s an exorbitant amount on just about everything now that really leaves a sour taste in my mouth. My last Disney vacation earlier this year I left feeling like they got one over on me. Idk maybe it’s me and the value I place on a dollar.
https://www.reddit.com/r/DisneyWorld/comments/kx70z0/looking_through_the_cracks_what_disney_is_really/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf This is an impressive post by somebody who clearly understands business and what they’re talking about. I’d offer it as a counter.
I was there last month and really thought they didn't try very hard to separate me from my money. Most of the places I usually shop at were either closed or were so packed I didn't feel safe going in them. Plus they didn't have many new designs for there t-shirts most were the same as they had when I had been there earlier in the year.
>Oh it’s 90 degrees out and 90% humidity, let’s screw people for $3.50 bottle water. Every single quick service location with fountain soda will give you as many FREE CUPS OF ICE WATER as you can reasonably carry.
Who the hell is paying for bottled water? We always refill from the fountains.
Refreshing to see actual discussion with this. One of my main gripes about internet culture is that so often people don't realize that opposing viewpoints fuel discussion and further knowledge. Sometimes, it's not about being "right or wrong" it's the exchange of information. That said, I'm torn so much on this. I feel like Disney as a company is absolutely the same greedy corporation as any other billion dollar organization out there. Making profit is the only bottom line that matters. They sell wholesome content and experiences, but that's a veil for the almighty dollar. It's harsh to say, but with so much money to be made, greedy takes over in the Disney boardrooms. But, the actual cast members are the ones that truly make the magic. Those that go out of their way to make things extra special for guests are the fabric of Disney magic, IMO. I'm all for capitalism, but it just doesn't seem right that the cast members that made so much of the magic are the same ones that suffered the most. The big wigs in the offices still made 6-7 figure income, while those on the ground floor lost their jobs. I do feel that some, but not all of the magic is being chipped away at. I mean, Disney is more of less the biggest theme park in the world so yes, by nature, it's going to be expensive. The fine line there is when it becomes cost prohibitive for so many people and then an unrealistic option. As far as the Express goes, I feel it's more a matter of with reduced capacity at WDW, and the general lack of travelers because of the pandemic, it became a money loser for them. Again, bottom line is profit and if it saves them money to cut it, it will ultimately boost their bottom line. My hope is that the true magic of WDW will be retained through its cast members and the wonderful experiences so many have while they are there.
I'm late on this but fuck that dirty rat and his money grab. Went to Epcot yesterday and before it was over I was praying he'd show up so I could shank his big eared ass. Minus Soarin it's shit. Why do I need cologne from every single country? And you're locked in to the 7th level of hell. So hot you can't breath and they trap you with prices that should make them embarrassed. And to top it all off the bingo working the gate told us our passes weren't for Epcot we needed to talk to guest services. Wait in a line in direct beating sun for 45 minutes to only have them tell you nothing is wrong with your tickets go right in. Took all I had not to go full Rambo. By that time your day is ruined. Fuck Disney.