With all of the ways that Disney parks are trying to make more money these days (charging for early entrance and preferred fireworks viewing spots, just to name a couple), it might seem logical to think that another complimentary perk might be on the chopping block soon too. But here’s why Walt Disney World guests don’t have to worry about free FastPass+ going away:
1. Just because Universal does it, doesn’t mean Disney does it
Image: Universal
No one wants to spend their entire day at an amusement park waiting in lines, and some parks have found that people are willing to pay a lot in order to skip them. A Universal Express Pass for both Universal Studios Florida and Universal’s Islands of Adventure costs at least $64.99 (based on dates), and that’s on top of the parks’ separate admission fees. (The passes are offered for free to guests who pay to stay at Universal’s deluxe hotels.) At Six Flags parks, there’s a tiered system of FLASH Passes based on how long a guest wants to spend in line (if a visitor wants to get on a ride up to 50 percent faster than the current wait time, he’ll pay $95; if he’s really short on time, he can get on a ride 90 percent faster than the current wait for a staggering $150). And even SeaWorld Orlando, which has only a handful of rides, has a Quick Queue Unlimited Option for $19 on top of the cost of a park admission ticket.
However, Disney’s attendance figures are much higher than those at these other parks. In 2015, 137 million people visited Disney parks worldwide, according to figures from the TEA/AECOM Global Attractions Attendance Report, while only 44 million visited Universal Parks and Resorts, 28 million hit Six Flags parks and 22 million visited SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment. The attendance numbers show that Disney doesn’t need to follow other parks’ leads in order to get people streaming in.
2. Charging for FastPass+ would be a public relations nightmare
Image: DisneyDisney park guests aren’t used to paying for FastPasses, and the idea of that would probably not go over too well. Even if Disney did decide to follow Universal’s lead and offered the perk to people who stayed at their deluxe hotels, many people might find that to be the last straw. After all, no one is forcing guests to attend paid Extra Magic Hours, and they can still see fireworks at no extra charge from a variety of locations, but if the main attraction at Disney parks are the attractions themselves and guests had to pay a premium to get on them, there would likely be some backlash. Many people already have to save up for their Disney park trips, and this would be an added expense that they never had to budget for before.
Another issue is that most Disney parks don’t have many rides that demand FastPass+, so there aren’t enough FastPass+ slots to sell. And if people paid for FastPass+ but there weren’t enough slots, there would be a lot of very unhappy guests who might rethink their vacation plans in the future.
3. Disney would rather raise park ticket prices
Image: Disney
A rise in ticket prices at the parks is inevitable year after year, and guests have paid those increasing prices while getting free FastPass+. And FastPass+ and MyMagic+ brings in revenue opportunities that Disney would rather have instead of just charging for the system itself. Because FastPass+ is free, more guests will use it. And by not waiting in line, park guests have more time to spend shopping for souvenirs and dining at Disney restaurants — which was the point of implementing FastPasses in the first place.
This strategy has paid off, especially recently. In February 2016, the Walt Disney Company reported record quarterly earnings in the first quarter of the year, and that was made possible by higher average ticket prices; more spending on food, beverages and merchandise; and higher average rates for hotel rooms. The company justified the price increases by blaming factors such as labor and other cost inflation, new offerings for guests and higher depreciation with new Walt Disney World attractions.
Out of the entire company’s $52.46 billion in revenue in 2015, the majority ($23.26 billion) came from its media networks, but its theme parks and resorts accounted for its second-largest source of revenue, at $16.16 billion.
Image: Disney
Since Disney pumped $1 billion into the development of MyMagic+, some guests have wondered if the company will want to charge guests for its use in order to recoup some of that investment. But as the financial reports have shown, the program that has given guests MagicBands and all sorts of personalized experiences (with more to come in the future) has led the Disney company to become more profitable even without charging guests for it. And the fact that Disney has poured all of this money into the system means that they don’t want to limit its chances for success by making guests pay a fee for it. It would be a very expensive system to abandon.
4. Disney would have already monetized the system if they wanted to
Image: Disney
Sometime in the 17 years that FastPasses have been in existence, Disney could have found a way to charge for the perk already. Some guests have thought that since Disney eliminated the paper ticket dispensers that let anyone insert their park ticket for a FastPass and went to the computer-based non-ticketed system, it would be easier to institute a charge, but that still hasn’t happened.
The bottom line is that FastPass+ helps Disney’s bottom line. The service makes guests want to stay on Disney property and entices them to spend money at restaurants and shops since they’re spending less time in lines for attractions. Would some guests pay for FastPass+? Sure, but most guests wouldn’t, so while Disney might make some money from charging fees, the company would lose out on the many revenue opportunities that FastPass+ creates. And as financial statements from the past three years have shown, Disney guests aren’t opposed to spending more on park tickets, food and merchandise. The prices for those items have steadily increased, and guests’ spending has increased as well.
There continue to be rumors about charges, but Disney is much more likely to stay with their current system of free FastPass+. Guests feel like they’re getting a better value than at other parks and Disney still reaps the revenue benefits.
Would you pay for FastPass+? Do you still think a charge for the service is a possibility in the future? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
