Travel Tuesday: Disney World raises ticket prices, but will visitors stay away?
Disney World might be the most magical place on Earth, but ticket prices just went up. Will visitors postpone a visit till next year?
When the calendar turns to February, Disney fans brace themselves for the annual Disney World ticket prices announcement. This year was no different. Recently, Disney World announced that ticket prices across the board would be going up. While the increase varies depending on the ticket, will visitors postpone a visit due to the additional cost?
For many people, a trip to Disney is a huge event, with an even larger expense. From ticket prices to lodging to all the magical goodies, families can easily spend thousands of dollars in less than a week. Sure, the memories last a lifetime, but those memories carry a huge price tag.
While the recent price increase isn’t huge (the exact amount varies depending on the ticket), that increase seemed strange given the current status of Disney World. Anyone who has driven around or through the Disney area in Orlando can see that it is filled with construction. From the new gondolas to general road construction, the area can be difficult to navigate.
More importantly, many of the Orlando Disney Parks are going through major renovations. Disney Hollywood Studios is the biggest example. Toy Story Land is opening later this year, so the park itself is a huge mess of construction. The parking lot is difficult to navigate. In a month, the Buzz Lightyear ride won’t accept Fast Passes to accommodate the final stages of construction. The centerpiece of the park, where the Great Movie Ride sat, is empty.
While this park draws Star Wars fans to its Jedi Training, Star Tours and character interactions, this park isn’t a whole day adventure. When a family pays over $100 a ticket for a park, they want to get their money’s worth.
Of course, once Disney Hollywood Studios completes Star Wars Land, this park will see a huge bump in crowds. How the smaller park will handle all that traffic remains to be seen. Also, who wants to venture a guess how much ticket prices will soar with the addition of the Star Wars Land?
Disney Hollywood Studios isn’t the only Disney park with construction and changes. Epcot closed Universe of Energy to revamp that area into the Guardians of the Galaxy ride. Announced at D23 Expo in Japan, that ride is set to be a huge indoor roller coaster. Right now, that area is a big, walled off area. Even with Guardians meet and greets beginning this summer, that addition doesn’t seem to justify a cost hike.
The only park that isn’t under construction is Animal Kingdom. After last year’s huge Pandora expansion, the park has experienced bigger crowds. While Fast Passes for the Avatar rides are still scarce, the lines are starting to become more manageable. Sure, the average wait for Flight of Passage is around 150 minutes, but that wait is much better than the three-hour wait a year ago.
This spring marks Animal Kingdom’s 20th anniversary. That celebration should bring in more guests as well. What was previously thought of as a half-day park or the animal park has transformed itself. Of all the Disney World parks, this one is currently worthy of the additional ticket prices.
While Disney seems to do this annual price increase anyway, fans could be concerned about the 2019 price increase. Many people are planning their visits to the new Star Wars Land. This huge expansion could come with a huge price increase. If prices increased this year with just a few new additions, could next year see a $20-25 per ticket increase?
Overall, the Disney World ticket price increase doesn’t seem to deter fans from visiting. The down-season didn’t seem to have less crowds. Lines were still long, crowds seemed to be milling around, and guests were spending money. Given those scenarios, it will be interesting to see how crowded spring break and summer vacation will be at the parks.
Next: Disney Springs: A Disney theme park without an admission fee
Will fans postpone a trip due to Disney World price increases? The answer is probably not. Fans of the Mouse and his Disney family are willing to spend the money no matter the cost.