On Thursday, August 5th, Disney raised ticket prices to both Disneyland and Disney World theme parks. Depending on length, adult base tickets went up by $3 to $22. Children’s tickets- that is, anyone aged 9 or under- went up by $5 to $31.The Park Hopper option went up $2 to $54 (plus tax), same with the Water Park Fun & More ticket option (also $2, now $54). Depending on the ticket, the No Expiration option also jumped up quite a bit. It costs an extra $15.98 on a 4 day ticket; $23.43 on a 5 day or 6 day ticket; $31.95 on 8 day and 9 day tickets. Now, however, adding the No Expiration option to a 10 day ticket now costs a whopping $226.85! Disney’s annual passes went up as well.
Why Disney continues to raise its prices is uncertain. It wasn’t very long ago that they raised the prices to last week’s amounts, and it doesn’t seem likely that they will ever go down.
However, Tony Wible, a business analyst, claims that the price hike is a GOOD sign. This means that the park is still generating good revenue, and indeed that it will only continue to rise. Wible forecasts stronger than expected earnings for Tuesday.
What will it mean for Disney World enthusiasts everywhere? Tighter budgeting, perhaps, but other than that, families everywhere claim they will still go to Disney World as often as before. In fact, it barely phases many people, who are seeing the end of the recession coming as soon as the next few months. Peak tourist months are lasting longer than before, meaning Disney World’s ticket prices are having little to no negative effect whatsoever.