Since the end of its pandemic closure, Walt Disney's (DIS) Disney World has found ways to make more money on fewer customers.
That has been important as the company has dealt with pandemic-related capacity issues. At first, crowds were limited by a need for social distancing, and now full capacity has not quite returned because of staffing issues as well as some high capacity shows that have not yet returned to operations.
Despite serving fewer guests, Disney World has managed to make more money per guest. This has come through a number of price increases that have not involved raising the price of individual or multi-day tickets (annual pass prices did increase).
CEO Bob Chapek celebrated some of those price increases during the company's first-quarter earnings call.
"In the quarter, more than a third of domestic park guests purchased either Genie+, Lightning Lane, or both," he said. "That number rose to more than 50% during the holiday period. While demand was strong throughout the quarter at both domestic sites, our reservation system enabled us to strategically manage attendance. In fact, their stellar performance was achieved at lower attendance levels than 2019."
In addition to its paid FastPass+ replacements, Disney also used a mix of smaller portion sizes and higher prices to increase its food revenue. Now, however, in addition to these sort of backdoor prices increases, the company has done something more direct.
Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
Some Disney World Tickets Now Cost More
Disney World has not raised prices on multi-day tickets in any meaningful way since early 2019 -- before the pandemic. That has now changed, according to a new report from Walt Disney World News Today. Prices have not changed for people buying tickets for 1-3 days (the most expensive way to visit the parks. They have, however, gone up for longer visits and some park-hopper tickets, which allow you to visit multiple parks in one day.
Base Tickets:
4 days were $434.83 — $596.74, now $447.70 — $596.74
5 days were $463.56 — $630.85, now $484.52 — $646.87
6 days were $477.79 — $645.91, now $496.43 — $672.25
7 days were $492.06 — $661.56, now $511.10 — $694.96
8 days were $518.17 — $678.83, now $545.19 — $716.20
9 days were $536.00 — $691.93, now $563.46 — $738.66
10 days were $553.69 — $703.65, now $582.09 — $752.40
The price for Park Hopper tickets has gone up once you buy for more than two days.
Park Hopper:
3 days were $415.77 — $555.88, now $416.37 — $555.88
4 days were $525.35 — $687.27, now $540.89 — $687.27
5 days were $554.09 — $721.38, now $572.47 — $739.92
6 days were $568.32 — $736.44, now $586.96 — $762.77
7 days were $582.59 — $752.08, now $601.63 — $785.48
8 days were $608.69 — $769.36, now $628.04 — $810.55
9 days were $626.53 — $782.46, now $649.96 — $827.00
10 days were $644.22 — $794.17, now $671.55 — $841.86
Disney Gives More for Your Dollar
While Disney World has been raising prices, Chapek would argue that it has also been heavily investing in its parks.
"Over the last several years, we've transformed the guest experience by investing in new storytelling and groundbreaking technology, and the records at our domestic parks are the direct result of this investment," he said.
Basically, the company can charge more because Disney has given consumers more for their dollar.
"From new franchise-based lands and attractions to craveable food and beverage offerings to must-have character merchandise, there is more great Disney storytelling infused into every aspect of a visit to our parks than ever before," he said. "At the same time, we're giving guests new tools to personalize their visits and spend less time in line and more time having fun."
Those tools, of course, are the Lightning Lane and Genie+, mentioned above -- added fee products that replaced the once-free FastPass+. Chapek does, however, promise to keep putting money into the parks, something the company largely did not do as heavily in the 1980s and 1990s.
"As we return to a more normalized environment, we look forward to more fully capitalizing on the extraordinary demand for our parks, along with the already realized yield benefits that took shape this quarter. And we, of course, will continue to invest in the guest experience," he said.
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