With rising theme park ticket prices, increasingly expensive nightly hotel rates, plus the addition of pricey add-ons like Genie+, Disney Parks have been criticized by many as becoming too expensive for the average consumer.
CEO Bob Iger recently addressed these concerns head-on, confirming what Disney fans have been saying for years: that Disney has been too aggressive with pricing, and could risk alienating many of its die-hard fans if it continues to make the cost of a Disney Parks vacation more expensive.
Is a Disney Parks vacation unaffordable now for a family of four?
According to Ziggy Knows Disney, the average Walt Disney World vacation in 2023 costs $5,369.88 for a family of four, who are staying on property at a value resort. And if that same family wants to stay at a deluxe resort, the cost of the vacation shoots up to $8,471.88. These eye-watering amounts may come as a surprise to those who haven’t been to a Disney park in a while, but with prices up on all parts of a Disney vacation, from theme park tickets and hotels to souvenirs and food, these price points are unfortunately common.
And while there has been significant backlash about the growing cost of a Disney Parks vacation, CEO Bob Iger is attempting to stem some of the negative press the brand has been receiving as of late with some new comments regarding the overall affordability of a Disney Parks vacation. While speaking at a Morgan Stanley media conference on March 9, per Deadline, Iger said, “I think that in our zeal to grow profits, we may have been a little bit too aggressive about some of our pricing.” He later added, “I think there is a way to continue to grow our business but be smarter about how we price so that we maintain that brand value of accessibility.”
Do higher prices really mean lower crowds? Not really
One of the biggest justifications of the rising cost of a Disney vacation in the past has been that higher prices will control crowds. However, Iger noted that while previous price hikes may have had the aim of managing post-pandemic demand, these measures didn’t really work as intended and hurt the brand as they are “are viewed by consumers as being a little too aggressive.” So while Disney may deploy other crowd-controlling measures in the future if demand continues to be high, it looks like, at least for now, the idea that some Disney Parks fans should simply be priced out of a Disney Parks vacation to make room for wealthier park-goers has largely been abandoned.
This is not the first time Bob Iger has spoken out on pricing, and probably won’t be the last either
Iger’s recent comments are not the first time he has spoken out about Disney’s pricing strategy. In the past, he has expressed concern over price increases at Disney theme parks that former CEO Bob Chapek believed would increase revenue and limit overcrowding. In the last earnings call in February, as reported by WDWMagic, the CEO said that raising prices was not a smart move for Disney. “It is clear that some of our pricing initiatives were alienated to consumers,” Iger said. “I have always believed that accessibility is a core value of the Disney brand. We were not perceived to be as accessible or as affordable to many segments, as we probably should have been.”
While we don’t know when Iger will address this issue in the future, his comments certainly make it seem like it is an important one for him to tackle during his two years back as Disney’s CEO, and we expect to hear more from him about this in the future as he continues to cement both his and the Walt Disney Company’s legacy for decades to come.
Disney has already made small improvements to pricing and value at both Disneyland and Walt Disney World, with more to come
Many are taking Iger’s comments as a positive sign for those who have found it difficult to visit the parks due to high prices. And though no specific steps to increase accessibility were shared during the event earlier this month, Iger did mention some positive steps that have been taken on pricing in recent months, which have included lower-priced tickets at Disneyland and the elimination of parking fees at Walt Disney World resort hotels.
Additionally, Iger mentioned that the parks are improving accessibility for all guests by removing Park Pass requirements for annual passholders after 2 pm, and have added new Genie+ features, including complimentary downloads of PhotoPass on-ride pictures. These changes aim to improve value, regardless of guest’s budget, but Iger did acknowledge that more needs to be done to retain Disney’s reputation as an inclusive, family-friendly brand that is accessible to a wide variety of consumers.
Will Disney Parks eventually drop theme park ticket prices?
Iger’s comments may offer a glimpse into the future of Disney’s pricing strategy, but don’t expect ticket prices to drop dramatically any time soon. Though the company appears to be committed to making the parks more accessible to a broader audience while retaining its brand value, balancing revenue and accessibility will be tricky, especially with uncertain economic times ahead.
Still, even if prices don’t go back down to what they were even just five years ago, Iger’s comments seem to indicate that at least they’ve stopped their recent upward climb, which does sound like good news, and perhaps Walt Disney World will see more value ticket days in the future, mirroring the price changes that happened recently at Disneyland.
Though Disney Parks remain among the most expensive in the world, it seems like Bob Iger is taking fans’ concerns about the parks’ accessibility to everyday families to heart. Hopefully, as Disney continues to adapt to changing economic conditions and guest demand, we will see more positive developments in the near future when it comes to the price of a Disney vacation and the value guests receive.
