Unscheduled ride stops have soared at Disneyland and Walt Disney World – as ticket prices are expected to rise at almost all Disney theme parks, according to recently released figures.
On Tuesday, the company announced there would be a 12% increase on tickets to Disney’s flagship Orlando park, the Magic Kingdom.
Prices will drop from $166 to $189 for the most expensive peak-hour tickets starting Dec. 8.
Customers will have to pay more as new figures show unscheduled stops at attractions increased 59% between 2018 and 2022 at Disneyland in California and 42% at Walt Disney World in Orlando.
The popular ride, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, has dropped an average of nearly two hours each day in 2022, according to the Wall Street Journal which analyzed data from WDWstats.com, a website that monitors park prices. , wait hours and trip statuses.
In addition, the waiting time for the trip fell from 61 minutes to 71 minutes during this period.
The journey takes about 20 minutes and presents complex displays and scenarios. It cost Disney nearly $1 billion to build both versions of the ride in California and Florida.
Over the past five years, day ticket prices have increased by 44%
Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, a Disney spokesperson denied, without providing data, that there had been an increase in wait times
In 2022, the Indiana Jones-themed attraction was Disney’s California park’s most disrupted ride, while in Florida that honor went to the Prince Charming Regal Carousel.
The graph showing the number of trip stops per year
In addition to stops and price increases, waiting times are also increasing at parks
The entertainment giant said that over the past 10 years it has invested $31 billion in its parks.
Park-wide, average wait times have fallen from 39 minutes to 49 minutes in 2022.
Two other popular attractions, Web Slingers: A Spiderman Adventure and Indiana Jones ride, also experienced above-average unscheduled shutdowns.
The most common reasons for shutdowns are maintenance, health issues involving visitors, and weather conditions.
The new ticket prices mean a family of four would spend more than $750 on tickets, up from $665, not including meals, hotels, travel or souvenirs.
On Tuesday, the company announced the new increase in its Orlando parks. In October, Disney revealed similar price increases at its California parks.
Disney introduced a new “Tier 0” ticket, valid during the park’s least-visited days, in October at the company’s California parks
Walt Disney World’s Star Wars attraction is closed an average of two hours a day due to various issues
In a statement, the company said, “Magic Kingdom Park will be priced at or above our other theme parks due to incredible demand as it remains the most visited theme park in the world.”
Fares are unchanged at Animal Kingdom, but will increase at Magic Kingdom, as well as Hollywood Studios where prices will range from $109 to $159, and Epcot, where tickets will cost between $124 and $179. The increase only affects Disney parks in Florida.
The cheapest one-day options, which include all-day tickets, only one meal and drink, and the cheapest parking availability, are ranked: 1. Six Flags, $103.98; 2. Disney World, $148; 3. SeaWorld, $174.98 and; 4. Universal Studios, $208.99
A former Disney theme park designer, Jim Shull, told the Journal that “a hundred things” could go wrong in the Star Wars ride. He said: ‘Is it a power shortage? A software update? They didn’t put enough lubricant on the actuator? Some problems are easy, you flip a switch and it’s solved, but others are major fixes.
Across town, Disney’s main competitor Universal Studios also experienced above-average downtime on one of its most popular attractions, Jurassic World VelociCoaster. This ride is also down for almost two hours a day.
Speaking to the Wall Street Journal, a Disney spokesperson denied, without providing data, that there had been an increase in wait times.
The spokesperson said, “Our source data shows Disney’s reliability of driving remains strong and consistent with previous years.”
Founder of consulting firm International Theme Park Services, Dennis Speigel, told the Journal that most visitors want to experience 1.5 attractions per hour, which is difficult if people have to stay in line for more than an hour. .
Three of Florida’s four Disney parks will raise ticket prices starting Dec. 8 for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic.
A company spokesperson told CNN: “We continue to be focused on giving guests the best and most memorable Disney experience, and we do that by expanding our theme parks with new attractions. and amazing offers.”
“We are also making planning easier with new one-day tickets that automatically include a guest’s theme park reservation and continue to offer a wide range of options to visit throughout the year, including our cheapest ticket $109, which hasn’t changed in over four years.
A company spokesperson told CNN of the increase: “We continue to be focused on giving guests the best and most memorable Disney experience, and we do that by growing our parks. themed with new attractions and amazing offers”.
Disney’s $15-a-day Genie+ app has been credited with helping boost profits. This helps customers avoid queues
In 2017, when the park’s “Tier 5” ticket was priced at $124, the most expensive one-day ticket – representing a new “Tier 6” – has since risen 44% to $179.
Despite the price hike, a new “Tier 0” ticket was introduced at $104, valid during the park’s less busy days of the year.
“Disneyland Resort is always planning the next new idea, attraction and story,” a Disneyland official said in a statement.
“Our tiered ticketing structure gives customers different options to experience this magic throughout the year, including our lowest price – which hasn’t changed since 2019.”
Since reopening in April last year, Disney has made a host of changes to its preeminent parks, scrapping free perks and raising prices, driving up the cost of a visit to a Disney resort dramatically.
Park visitor numbers fell 17%, but the profit Disney makes on each guest rose 17% year-on-year, boosting the company’s bottom line.
The company’s stock price has fallen by more than a third in the past 12 months, largely due to controversies over Disney opposing Florida’s so-called Don’t Say Gay Bill , and reawakened films such as Lightyear that put off viewers.
But revenues from its theme parks – traditionally the most profitable part of Disney’s business – remain in dire straits.
Disney earned $7.4 billion from its parks in the last quarter of fiscal 2022
Disney made a whopping $7.4 billion from its parks for the final quarter of fiscal 2022 — up 70% from a year earlier as it recovered from COVID shutdowns.
Profits also soared to an impressive $2.2 billion for this quarter – a huge jump from the $356 million recorded for the same quarter 12 months prior.
One of the most cost-effective changes is the introduction of a Genie+ pass at $15 per day, which was previously free. It serves as an app on customers’ phones and allows them to skip certain lines on rides.
Genie+ also flags merchandise promotions, helping to move expensive souvenirs from the parks. It’s used by half of all customers – with 70% who downloaded it saying they would do the same on a future visit.
But the Genie+ pass doesn’t meet every customer’s wishes, with visitors having to shell out an extra $10 to $17 to access some of the parks’ most popular attractions, despite having already paid around $100 per ticket. ‘hall.
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