By: Serach Nissim
Following post-pandemic price hikes, Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park in Anaheim, California are becoming less affordable for low and middle-income families.
As reported by the NY Post, a single day at the theme parks could cost a family of four as much as $1,100 during the upcoming holiday season—not including any beverages,food or souvenirs. A new report shows that a group of two adults and two children between the ages of 3 and 9 would pay $1,086 per day in order to park a car at Disneyland Resort, get the “Genie+” skip-the-line pass, and obtain a “park-hopping” ticket which allows them to move freely between Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park. One such pass for anyone above the age of 10 could cost up to $269 and $259 for younger kids, depending on the day – with prices elevated on days with high-demand such as weekends and holidays. The same family of four could have gotten the same package for $988 before the price hikes. Buying any food items or souvenirs could set a family back significantly, potentially bringing the total up to $1500 for the day.
“The happiest place on earth,” which was first opened in 1955, had its prices jump even higher than inflation this year. Disney CEO Bob Chapek is being criticized by fans for the price hikes, which have been calculated to be up to 10 percent, beating the 8.2 percent increase reported by the US government’s Consumer Price Index last month. In late 2021, Disney announced it would raise ticket prices at the California theme parks this year, to offset pandemic losses. The price for the popular single-day ticket price jumped 6.5% to $164 for admission to one park, while a two-day park hopper pass would cost $319, up almost 9 percent. In August, Disney announced that it generated $7.4 billion in revenue — which is 72 percent higher compared to third quarter of 2021.
“The bottom line is ‘make more money with fewer people. And we don’t care who we price out to do it’,” Pete Werner, the CEO of Disney fan site wdwinfo.com, griped to CNN. “And I’m going to tell you that the quality of the product is less, in my opinion, is less now than it was prior to the pandemic, yet the price has gone up considerably.”
A Disney official replied to the criticism, telling CNN that the theme parks wanted to highlight “the positive outcome of a strategy that prioritizes the guest experience.” Adding, “When we focus on delivering a world-class experience, we know our guests will spend more time with us immersed in our stories.” The company says its theme parks offer affordable options, including offering a tiered ticket structure, or ticket and hotel bundles. Also, Disney did not raise the admission price for its Florida-based theme parks, including Disney World and Epcot Center. A single-day pass in the Florida parks cost $109 while a park-hopperoption boosts it to $169 for entry after 2 p.m.
