Disney primarily for the wealthy? NYT Article

[Anonymous]

I don’t think Disney is interested in catering to lower and middle income families. Of course there are people who save, but people are definitely getting priced out. My working class cousins do cruises instead of Disney. The price is more reasonable.

[Anonymous]

I feel so bad for that family, the photos look miserable

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And for those who are going to criticize: yes, I know it's an opinion piece and not an informative article. I find its points quite salient.

There's actually a lot of great info and data points in there- it's a very good example of the bifurcation of the economy. So many people here are in that upper 10% that it feels fine to us.

"in 1992 there were 88,000 households worth $20 million or more in 2022 dollars; by 2022, there were 644,000"

"Ms. Cressel figures that her seven days in Orlando cost about $8,000 for two adults and three kids — around 15 percent of what she and her daughter earn each year after taxes"

I think the basic way it works is that for those in the upper 10%, they go every year or every other year if they are big fans. If you are a huge fan and poorer, it's a once every 5 or 7 year thing.

Ms Cressel’s hassles seemed to come mostly from her scooter. But, her visit was compared to a father and daughter who spent 4 days and about $7K (before premier pass). If the Cressel family spent fewer days and invested more in the upgrades for 4 instead of 7 days, they might have had a better time. For a time the premier pass was only for hotel guests but I think it has expanded given that the family stayed off property. Full disclosure, my family used the premier pass at our last visit and it was amazing. Hardly any waits, rode everything we wanted. But we have no desire to go multiple times a year, it was a one and done or maybe in a few years we’ll go back.

The premier pass seems like a giant waste of money - we’ve been twice and have done just fine with lightening lanes. I have no doubt it is a nice luxury but I’d rather stay extra days than that.

We’ve done it both ways. We went to WDW a few years ago with LL. And then our recent trip was with Premier Pass. We all said it was beyond worht it. Don’t need to be on your phone all day, can ride up to any ride you want and ride it, don’t need to zig zag all over the park to make your time. We casually strolled through each land, rode all the rides, and moved on to the next. One park a day was more than enough for us and then we left.

[Anonymous]

^^They could have had much more fun just going to Busch Gardens honestly.

[Anonymous]

Sorry, but I am judging anyone that visits Disney 4X a year or, God forbid, gets married there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Sorry, but I am judging anyone that visits Disney 4X a year or, God forbid, gets married there.

I’m the PP who attended a wedding there last summer. While it wouldn’t have been my choice, they had their reasons. It was a second marriage for both of them and they did it for the grandkids. My kids enjoyed it because we never would have gone otherwise.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some of the issues for Disney
-annual passes for FL residents are cheap and there are some very heavy users who live locally.
-DAS passes were using lightning lanes and it wasn't just the disabled person, it was their entire party. Obviously it wasn't every DAS person, but there were some heavy users who rode 20 rides + a day. It caused an increase in ride times for everyone.

We are pretty wealthy and would love to go multiple times a year, staying at premium resorts, but I can't convince DH to return. His #1 beef is with how crowded it is. Even though you're paying $$$, you get an insanely crowded park with obnoxious wait times. 60-90 minutes for my 3 year old to ride Ariel during the lowest month of the year, during a week day? It's so unenjoyable because of the wait times. And we also spent most of the day on our phones trying to book lightning lanes. It wasn't like this before with Fast pass.

Disabled children wanting to ride with their parents (the horror!) is not what is making lines long for you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some of the issues for Disney
-annual passes for FL residents are cheap and there are some very heavy users who live locally.
-DAS passes were using lightning lanes and it wasn't just the disabled person, it was their entire party. Obviously it wasn't every DAS person, but there were some heavy users who rode 20 rides + a day. It caused an increase in ride times for everyone.

We are pretty wealthy and would love to go multiple times a year, staying at premium resorts, but I can't convince DH to return. His #1 beef is with how crowded it is. Even though you're paying $$$, you get an insanely crowded park with obnoxious wait times. 60-90 minutes for my 3 year old to ride Ariel during the lowest month of the year, during a week day? It's so unenjoyable because of the wait times. And we also spent most of the day on our phones trying to book lightning lanes. It wasn't like this before with Fast pass.

Disabled children wanting to ride with their parents (the horror!) is not what is making lines long for you.

Oh please, it was Disney adults using their IBS to cut in front of children to ride the rides for the umpteenth time as passholders. Now at least DAS is geared towards kids who need it and not adults trying to abuse the system.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some of the issues for Disney
-annual passes for FL residents are cheap and there are some very heavy users who live locally.
-DAS passes were using lightning lanes and it wasn't just the disabled person, it was their entire party. Obviously it wasn't every DAS person, but there were some heavy users who rode 20 rides + a day. It caused an increase in ride times for everyone.

We are pretty wealthy and would love to go multiple times a year, staying at premium resorts, but I can't convince DH to return. His #1 beef is with how crowded it is. Even though you're paying $$$, you get an insanely crowded park with obnoxious wait times. 60-90 minutes for my 3 year old to ride Ariel during the lowest month of the year, during a week day? It's so unenjoyable because of the wait times. And we also spent most of the day on our phones trying to book lightning lanes. It wasn't like this before with Fast pass.

Disabled children wanting to ride with their parents (the horror!) is not what is making lines long for you.

Nope, physical disabilities didn't qualify, so most disabled kids still have to wait in line. Autism, Anxiety and ADHD do qualify.

I think it would be fair to allow DAS pass recipients to have 1 person accompany them? They get 4.

The rest of the people in line are toddlers who also can't wait and are throwing tantrums. Disney just doesn't have enough capacity for the amount of people they let in.

[Anonymous]

Well it would certainly be a much more stressful trip for us if we weren't wealthy.

We go 1-2 times a year, including the international parks. The kids like it a lot more than Musée D'Orsay or visiting another Buddhist temple. The pools are nice, SOME of the resorts are nice, and the parks are fun in moderation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some of the issues for Disney
-annual passes for FL residents are cheap and there are some very heavy users who live locally.
-DAS passes were using lightning lanes and it wasn't just the disabled person, it was their entire party. Obviously it wasn't every DAS person, but there were some heavy users who rode 20 rides + a day. It caused an increase in ride times for everyone.

We are pretty wealthy and would love to go multiple times a year, staying at premium resorts, but I can't convince DH to return. His #1 beef is with how crowded it is. Even though you're paying $$$, you get an insanely crowded park with obnoxious wait times. 60-90 minutes for my 3 year old to ride Ariel during the lowest month of the year, during a week day? It's so unenjoyable because of the wait times. And we also spent most of the day on our phones trying to book lightning lanes. It wasn't like this before with Fast pass.

Disabled children wanting to ride with their parents (the horror!) is not what is making lines long for you.

Nope, physical disabilities didn't qualify, so most disabled kids still have to wait in line. Autism, Anxiety and ADHD do qualify.

I think it would be fair to allow DAS pass recipients to have 1 person accompany them? They get 4.

The rest of the people in line are toddlers who also can't wait and are throwing tantrums. Disney just doesn't have enough capacity for the amount of people they let in.

We resolved that with a "stroller as wheelchair" tag which lets a kid sit down and have a snack or play with something without melting down.

[Anonymous]

I don't completely agree with these articles. No doubt Disney has far outpaced inflation, and the quality inside the parks has gone down. Anyone who spent time in Disney World in the 1980s and 1990s knows the place isn't nearly as special as it once was. They're dirtier and the maintenance is just a joke in comparison.

That all said, you can make Disney World relatively affordable. The only "unaffordable" part of WDW is the tickets. Nobody has to stay on property. And the flights to Orlando couldn't be cheaper. I have an annual pass this year, and I'll probably end up making five trips. I stay off property most of the time and have no problem getting hotels for under $100 a night in places like the Marriott Village.

For the snobs, I do a couple international trips a year, and several ski jaunts. But WDW is easy and always fun, so it balances out my travel very well. And with passes, the incremental cost is quite low.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some of the issues for Disney
-annual passes for FL residents are cheap and there are some very heavy users who live locally.
-DAS passes were using lightning lanes and it wasn't just the disabled person, it was their entire party. Obviously it wasn't every DAS person, but there were some heavy users who rode 20 rides + a day. It caused an increase in ride times for everyone.

We are pretty wealthy and would love to go multiple times a year, staying at premium resorts, but I can't convince DH to return. His #1 beef is with how crowded it is. Even though you're paying $$$, you get an insanely crowded park with obnoxious wait times. 60-90 minutes for my 3 year old to ride Ariel during the lowest month of the year, during a week day? It's so unenjoyable because of the wait times. And we also spent most of the day on our phones trying to book lightning lanes. It wasn't like this before with Fast pass.

Disabled children wanting to ride with their parents (the horror!) is not what is making lines long for you.

Nope, physical disabilities didn't qualify, so most disabled kids still have to wait in line. Autism, Anxiety and ADHD do qualify.

I think it would be fair to allow DAS pass recipients to have 1 person accompany them? They get 4.

The rest of the people in line are toddlers who also can't wait and are throwing tantrums. Disney just doesn't have enough capacity for the amount of people they let in.

We resolved that with a "stroller as wheelchair" tag which lets a kid sit down and have a snack or play with something without melting down.

That's genius! I've often thought if my kid could sit in a stroller in a line they'd be content. Or nap in a stroller. It's the standing for 60-90 minutes that really kills the joy.

[Anonymous]

It can’t possibly be just for the wealthy, because it’s more crowded than ever. I grew up in Florida so I went all the time in the 90s and 00s. It was not this bad. It’s hard to enjoy now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The cost is outrageous. We are in the “wealthy” tier but it’s too much for us. However, the market tells us that it is not for the wealthy. Or, not just for the wealthy. That place is busting at the seams.

We went last summer for a wedding. The bride and groom weren’t wealthy and they go every year. Same with many of the guests. As long as people are making it work and pay those insane prices, Disney will keep charging them. For us? It’s too high and we’re not going back.

Yes, we would definitely be considered wealthy and I've never been able to justify the cost. I went a few times as a kid back in the 80s, and I loved it, but when I hear about the insane crowds plus the ridiculous prices, it's just not appealing.

So prices are ridiculous, but the drinks last time, I was actually laughing a bit that Disney hasn't quite caught up to the increases at my local bars. So I'm doing all the festivals this year before they catch on.