Increase in Ticket Prices, Parking, and AP's

[VWL Mom]

What is the minimun # points one has to buy to get the DVC AP rate?

I think the smallest resale contract I've seen is 25 points. There is no minimum required, as long as you own you are entitled to purchase one.

[epceddie]

The $95 price does not include the 6.5 percent tax, which pushes the final price to $101.18. So, Disney has finally crashed the century mark.
So glad that the only time we plan on going back to the MK in the future is for MNSSHP.

[minnie04]

WELL!! I'm just glad I bought the AP for this year. Because at these prices we won’t be doing Disney much longer. I have a family of 5 and with everyone buying adult tickets that's just way to much when you factor in food, hotel, gas etc. Even if you stay on property with the little perks that offers you are still paying way too much for food for a family (breakfast, lunch & dinner) my youngest if 9 (10 in Jan) it's just not worth it anymore. I’m going to run these AP passes into the ground and get every penny out of them this year and really have to think about going in the near future. My kids are at the point where for the first time on our last trip they were getting bored (the older ones 21/17). It was so sad to hear them say they were bored with Disney. I can see it since we have been there so many times they have had enough. Nothing is new to them and exciting any more. Maybe I should have spread out our trips more when they were young. It’s funny they always ask to go, but now maybe they are tired of the same ole same ole. ANYWAY my point being I’m not going to pay $95.00 (with tax) for them to be bored.
We are weekend (3-4days) Disney vacationers, so dining plans don’t fall under what we need. We do get Florida Rates, but they are now with blackout dates, so that’s no fun
I know we will be back, but we will have to rethink the worth of the trip. I plan to do Universal passes next year so they might be a better deal for the older ones to enjoy Orlando again..

[caryrae]

What do people pay for a Disney trip these days including travel for your family? We went last year but my parents payed for the whole trip as a surprise not sure what the total was for the trip. If it wasn't for them we would not have been for a long time. Even just my wife and I it is just getting to expensive with all the exspenses, place to stay, travel, food, park tickets, etc.

[Elias1901]

Now I'm glad that I purchased our Disneyland 5-Day Park Hopper passes for our upcoming August trip early, before the increases hit. We were going to wait to purchase and print our eTickets the night before our vacation... I'm sure glad my excitement got to me and we didn't wait! This is getting insane! Premier Pass almost reaching $1,000.00? Uh, yah... I DON'T THINK SO!!

I do agree that the Anuual Passes should be increased or some how limited or something at the California property, the locals out there really flood the parks for everyone else.

[ChipNDale79]

What do people pay for a Disney trip these days including travel for your family? We went last year but my parents payed for the whole trip as a surprise not sure what the total was for the trip. If it wasn't for them we would not have been for a long time. Even just my wife and I it is just getting to expensive with all the exspenses, place to stay, travel, food, park tickets, etc.

For a family of 4, with tickets, hotel, food, and travel expenses, I doubt it can be done for under $3,000 - $3,500 for a full week anymore.


Our honeymoon in 2008 was $2,500, that same exact trip is now $3,200.

[DizneyRox]

... You have to wonder when enough is enough, at some point there is going to be a bubble that pops and Disney is going to see a downfall in attendance. But what do the current decision makers care? They don't, because by the time their bad decisions come back to hurt Disney, they will be long gone.

By most account I've heard, attendence IS down. This increase is to make up for increased costs as well as reduced attendence. Disney as a company can't have lower profits because attendence declines, so those that go end up making up the difference.

It's actually advantageous to drive down attendence; the maintenance costs go down overall (less rooms to clean, bathrooms to clean, etc).

Again, those that go end up paying more, which is probably where Disney wants to head.

... We didnt visit Disney this year........

This will be our 3rd year without our "yearly" Disney Park trip. Cruising has been a better vacation value for us, and looks like it may be for the near future at least...

[Dulcee]

For a family of 4, with tickets, hotel, food, and travel expenses, I doubt it can be done for under $3,000 - $3,500 for a full week anymore.


Our honeymoon in 2008 was $2,500, that same exact trip is now $3,200.

Our 2012 honeymoon 8 nights, 9 days moderate resort with deluxe dining came to about $5000. $3500 of that was on the package (which coincidentally was a free dining that we upgraded), the rest was flights, car rental, extra food/alcohol costs, massages and souvenirs. Without the free dining tack on another $800 or so.

[minnie04]

What do people pay for a Disney trip these days including travel for your family? We went last year but my parents payed for the whole trip as a surprise not sure what the total was for the trip. If it wasn't for them we would not have been for a long time. Even just my wife and I it is just getting to expensive with all the exspenses, place to stay, travel, food, park tickets, etc.

We pay at least $1,500 or more for a 3-4 day vacation between gas, food, hotel, and tickets. Thankfully the kids don’t really ask to buy anything at the parks. It’s all outlet shopping. That was the main reason I got the AP passes this year to at least have some cushion on the money we will spend while there. We have pretty much out grown the hotels on property (5) to many in a room. I have found great places to stay off property and with good deals on that and cooking at least one or two meals in the condo. We can really enjoy our time there. I WILL not go to Orlando with the thought of not being able to buy something or eat somewhere because of money. I budget things out leading up to the trip so we are able to do whatever everyone wants to do because the room and tickets are paid in advance. I would rather not go if I couldn’t buy a $4.00 bottle of water ...lol. I make it work, but it’s getting harder and harder every year.

We went once on a very tight budget and I couldn't deal with it. When the kids wanted something we had to make sure we were ok on money. We were a young family at the time. I know millions of people do it everytime they go, but for me I would rather stay home and wait till I have enough money to really have a blast!! and thankfully we have been able to do that ever since then. (thanks to my crazy ways of making it work & I won't max any credit cards in the process) lol.

[BhamWriter]

You have to wonder when enough is enough, at some point there is going to be a bubble that pops and Disney is going to see a downfall in attendance.

I'm there. My AP is expiring; my wife's expires soon. We won't be renewing. I've probably visited WDW 50 times, thrice since last August. My most recent trip, last month, was my least enjoyable.

Not everything at WDW is over-priced. On the low end, Earl of Sandwich comes to mind; on the high end, Victoria and Albert's is worth the price to me. But the mass in the middle, from drinks and trinkets to some signature restaurants and rooms and tickets, reduce the "value" to virtually nothing.

BTW, in one article I read on this topic, a Disney spokesman defended the "great value" of a ticket because of, in part, "the special moments guests experience with our cast." I'm curious how this spokesman quantifies these experiences. What part of the ticket price do these "special moments" represent? If I have fewer such moments than someone else, do I get a refund? Is this what Disney "magic" is reduced to?

[DNS]

My assumption would be this is done to try to deter guests from one and two day trips. Everything disney has done in the past few years has been pushing longer vacations, spent entirely on property.

Very good point!

[DizneyFreak2002]

By most account I've heard, attendence IS down. This increase is to make up for increased costs as well as reduced attendence. Disney as a company can't have lower profits because attendence declines, so those that go end up making up the difference.

It's actually advantageous to drive down attendence; the maintenance costs go down overall (less rooms to clean, bathrooms to clean, etc).

Again, those that go end up paying more, which is probably where Disney wants to head.


This will be our 3rd year without our "yearly" Disney Park trip. Cruising has been a better vacation value for us, and looks like it may be for the near future at least...

We will find out tomorrow about attendance since TEA releases their data... I honestly expect the theme park attendance to be slightly up in WDW... Hotel occupancy is what is killing them the most... They love 90% or more, and usually the hotels are at 85%... But the last two years, occupancy has been reported to be down to about 65% maybe 70% as more people flock offsite to better deals and nicer rooms...

[DizneyFreak2002]

BTW, in one article I read on this topic, a Disney spokesman defended the "great value" of a ticket because of, in part, "the special moments guests experience with our cast." I'm curious how this spokesman quantifies these experiences. What part of the ticket price do these "special moments" represent? If I have fewer such moments than someone else, do I get a refund? Is this what Disney "magic" is reduced to?

There is no Disney magic.. The only magic Disney provides anymore is, as you pass the gates, your wallet disappears into the animated rat's white gloves... Oh, and your bank account is magically drained, your credit card balance magically increases, and your children's college fund is magically depleted...

The new special moments will be created when you are given a MOUSE ARREST band that magically locks you into WDW prison, cause if you try to pass the walls, they will fry you!!!

No, MK is not worth $95 a day... No, not one WDW park is worth $90 a day...

[DisneyDawgette]

There is no Disney magic.. The only magic Disney provides anymore is, as you pass the gates, your wallet disappears into the animated rat's white gloves... Oh, and your bank account is magically drained, your credit card balance magically increases, and your children's college fund is magically depleted...

I feel like there is a huge sway based on individual perspective. We know that prices will increase around this time every year, yet we continue to complain like this is a novel incident... In addition, it's not just Disney that is increasing, but everywhere else as well. You can't blame it all on the greed of the company as there is the poor economy driving business and unfortunate financial strain on parks and guests to consider.


Yes, it's annoying to dish out that extra $35 for an AP, but unlike some, I feel like there is still Disney magic that makes it worth every cent.That "animated rat" is still responsible for creating some of the most enjoyable vacations that I've been on, and I can't see myself losing sight of that.

[Melanie]

There is no Disney magic.. The only magic Disney provides anymore is, as you pass the gates, your wallet disappears into the animated rat's white gloves... Oh, and your bank account is magically drained, your credit card balance magically increases, and your children's college fund is magically depleted...

Totally personal opinion, Freak. I've had my doubts lately, and this ticket increase is kind of disturbing, but there is plenty of true Disney magic left for me. Thankfully, I don't go to Disney for just a day and I have significant savings opportunities for tickets.

These new increases and changes are more reason for my hubby telling his 'Mickey Mouse white glove' funny. You know, why does Mickey wear white gloves? So he doesn't leave fingerprints on your wallet. But we still love it!

[Tekneek]

BTW, in one article I read on this topic, a Disney spokesman defended the "great value" of a ticket because of, in part, "the special moments guests experience with our cast." I'm curious how this spokesman quantifies these experiences. What part of the ticket price do these "special moments" represent? If I have fewer such moments than someone else, do I get a refund? Is this what Disney "magic" is reduced to?

It's all marketing. "Special moments" and "Disney magic" are things that once were real, and now becoming legend. That they still do things better than others has more to do with how bad the other operations are than how good Disney is. I truly believe they've stopped trying to set lofty standards and have settled for trying to stay just above the rest of the pack. They're vulnerable to a competitor suddenly upping their game, like Universal has.

We're only doing this trip because we promised it to one of our daughters nearly 3 years ago. It has virtually nothing to do with anything Disney has done. Without that promise, I don't know when/if we would ever be going back. We've talked much more about going down and visiting other things in central Florida, and future trips in later years may not involve ever entering a Disney park.

[VWL Mom]

You know, why does Mickey wear white gloves? So he doesn't leave fingerprints on your wallet. But we still love it!

I have to remember that one!

[minnie04]

I truly believe they've stopped trying to set lofty standards and have settled for trying to stay just above the rest of the pack. They're vulnerable to a competitor suddenly upping their game, like Universal has.

I think this has to do with people trying to beat the Disney System" Disney has always been a place where if something goes wrong they fix it right away. Examples: you don't like the room they gave you, complain and they will change it no questions asked. You don't like the food; they take it off the bill. You have to return something you bought AND used for the day and returned it by the end of your day in the parks. They return it no questions asked (have seen this happen) you say you need the GAC when your really don't and they give it to you again no questions asked. This last one is the one that bothers me more than the GAC one. When a ride has a problem and you sit for more than FIVE minutes and go and DEMAND they give you a free ticket for another day I have seen people do this as well. All this being said. I think is the reason things have changed in the way they do business. cast members, guest relations etc. are probably so tired of "GUEST" trying to BEAT the system..YES we pay a lot of money to be there and we will keep doing it WHY because we love the feeling you get when you pass the gates. The memories out way all the complaining and craziness that goes into a vacation at Disney. I don’t really understand why people feel so entitled when they are there.

SO is the Magic lost? I think it depends on who you ask. If your one of those people that think everything should be given to you just because you pay a higher ticket price. Then maybe you’re the one that has lost the Magic and become one of those who DEMANDS everything at the slightest problem or the people who pay the ticket price and go with no cares and no worries just to enjoy their vacation If a problem arrives they know it will be taken care of and you just move on…

[Tekneek]

I hope the rant wasn't directed at me. If it was, you are very much mistaken by lumping me in with this group you don't like.

Great customer service means never having to ask for any consideration when things are going awry.

We've not seen much sign of that in a while, and seen CMs putting on bad show quite a lot more.

[Aurora]

Disney isn't targeting everyone for price increases. They are increasing prices mainly for:

-- One-day guests to the Magic Kingdom. (A $1 one-day increase to the other parks is negligible if you're already OK with buying a one-day ticket.)

-- Annual pass holders.

So, they're mostly targeting locals, DVC owners and other regular visitors. It's obvious they're trying to price some people out of annual passes -- these are the tickets that are seeing the biggest increases. (Regular AP has gone up $90 over the past two years!)

For everyone else, you're looking at almost no increase. A 5-day adult park hopper increased by $4. That's right. Less than $1 per day. And a family of five buying one-day tickets can go to Epcot, DHS or AK for the day for $5 more than last year.

The only people who are really taking a hit on this are AP holders.