Posted on 07/11/2023 11:41:32 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Visitors to Disney theme parks this summer are encountering something they haven’t seen in a while: elbow room. Travel analysts and advisers say traffic to Disney’s U.S. parks, and some rival parks, has slowed this summer.
Data from a travel company that tracks line-waiting time at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla., shows that the Independence Day weekend was one of the slowest in nearly a decade.
Disney executives have said they have expected weaker earnings from their U.S. parks this year. The Orlando-area resort is even offering hotel discounts around Christmas, typically a peak period.
Travel advisers and industry analysts say the slowdown is the latest sign that Disney’s recent price hikes and changes to park operations have soured some families on visiting the Most Magical Place on Earth.
Disney faces a unique set of challenges right now, from streaming losses to executive succession to a political and legal fight with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Revenue from its parks division has long been a bright spot for the company, buoying overall earnings. Disney declined to comment on recent attendance.
Park visitors in recent weeks have had significantly lower wait times to get on rides, according to data from Touring Plans, a company that tracks wait times at major amusement parks, including Disney World and Disneyland in California. Industry analysts say shorter wait times generally correlate with smaller crowds.
At Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park in Central Florida, home to the blockbuster Star Wars attractions, July 4 was the third-slowest day in the past year, according to Touring Plans, which analyzed the wait times that Disney parks post on their mobile apps.
(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...
Disney's market capitalization has been halved since peaking at $335 billion in March 2021.
To stoke demand, WSJ noted, "The Orlando-area resort is even offering hotel discounts around Christmas, typically a peak period."
The drastic slowdown in visitors at its US parks comes as the company hiked prices and eliminated complimentary amenities.
Maybe it’s not gay enough.
Glad I went there in 1989; would never go back now.
Disney’s magic was tied to the lovable and iconic characters Disney created. Now? They have re-imagined many of those characters and certainly haven’t created any new ones if worth. Instead, they have become consumed with broadcasting THE MESSAGE.
Nobody wants to be flooded with THE MESSAGE in the movie theaters, they certainly don’t want it from an overpriced trip to the parks.
Well, you know, thats because they are a bunch of pedophiles.
All you say is true, but anyone who wants to visit Orlando in July is a masochist anyway.
give dylan a pair of ears and put him out front
they will flock to see him
I live 2 hours north and wouldn’t go if it was all expense paid with round trip limo service.
I’d rather hang out on a southwest Florida beach for a few days and read a good book.
These woke companies need a hard lesson, and if it means them shutting down like bed, bath and be gone, then so be it.
Universal Studios is gaining popularity with the kids.
Employees can learn to code. See....problem solved.
I think theme parks and even amusement parks are over. They’ve been destroyed not only by wokeness, but by crime and violence among the attendees. Plus, there are better options elsewhere, and they’re old technology.
People liked the collective experience, but once it gets so ideological, not to mention so expensive, they’ll find their experiences elsewhere.
I live in Florida and people here get reduced price annual passes and go several times during the year. But one person I know...a hair stylist who used to go with her entire family...said it’s just not worth it anymore. It’s not fun.
Politics makes everything not fun and drives people apart, but Disney chose to go that route.
“anyone who wants to visit Orlando in July is a masochist anyway”
Heard that....not to mention the dreaded highway of the damned I-4 corridor....I’d rather have my gums scraped than drive that pizza chit.
Well when it costs a family of four hundreds of dollars a day and with this economy who can blame the low attendance; I’m including the Dizzyland hotel in that figure.
Wow, I learn something new every day.
They don’t know what their product or market is anymore.
Woke and the rotten Biden economy. The graph shows the plunge started when creepy Joe got in and when they went all woke
Geee.....I wonder what the problem could be.....
Even with NO wait, I STILL wouldn’t set foot on any Disney property.
These commies have managed to ruin a once decent brand name.
Disney = Pedopushers
Better rides, easy to use system to skip lines, and several good kosher food locations makes Universal the choice for us.
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