Disney considers reducing portion sizes to cut costs.

[dizneedoll]

For a company that loves to virtue signal how tolerant and inclusive they are, the waistline comment shows just what hypocrites they actually are.

 

[ScottOKW2K]

I'm not surprised. We've all noticed prices increasing in our local grocery stores so I can imagine that the supply costs have increased for Disney and other venues. We just don't talk about the other places here because this area is Disney specific. Think about it - in the current environment where labor and supply costs are known to be rising and the park capacity is reduced from historical levels Disney and other companies have to do what they can to remain profitable. Everything costs more and you are selling to fewer customers - wouldn't you be concerned to what choices you have to make to continue your business? Especially once that is considered a luxury and not a necessity?

I'm not saying I agree with all the the company is doing. But I do find that we are critical about what has not opened / returned but seem to quickly dismiss what has reopened / been added / is being refurbished. I believe they are trying to make the best decisions they can given the circumstances they are experiencing. Some decisions will work and some will fail.

 

[TwoMisfits]

It's just more of Disney's motto the last few years - Pay more for less...this time, they just said the quiet part out loud, and told us what they really think of their customers...

 

[Airb330]

Her comment that reducing portions being good for some people's waistlines was an unnecessary dig though.

Yeah, someone in Disney PR is having a bad day due to her flippant comment for sure.

 

[MJ6987]

Fantastic that Disney is so considerate to their guests' health - many companies wouldn’t even consider that

 

[TikiRob]

I don't agree with how they are messaging it, but I'm fine with the change. You see people all over ordering from the kids menus because of the crazy portion sizes. Cuts have to come from somewhere and this one makes sense.

 

[MrWonderful]

Welcome to "Shrinkflation"

 

[NoTime42]

Such a dumb thing to tie costs to health. Ultimately the cheapest foods are the unhealthy, processed ones (ie 10 lbs of processed chicken nuggets is usually a lot cheaper than 10lbs of whole chicken.)

 

[disneyseniors]

Given a choice between reduced portion sizes and increasing prices, I'll take the reduced portions as I think Disney's are (for the most part) huge. There are often lots of things we want to try in the parks, but simply can't because we are already full. However, the comment about reducing waistlines was completely uncalled for, and just shows how tone deaf this management team actually is.

The comment that bothered me the most was the one about substituting ingredients or changing vendors. This worries me, as it will probably affect the quality of the food. And that's disappointing.

I didn't hear the one about substituting ingredients or changing vendors! WOW! Their food is already pretty generic. I thought they had already done this! I can't believe it could get any lower quality at some places. When the dining plan started, their quality of food decreased to generic food to save money. I don't know how they can decrease the quality more? I bet the executive lounges used by the CEO's has high quality, non cut, foods.

This does surprise me, when I thought I couldn't be surprised anymore by their cutting tactics.

We are voting with our wallets, and have made the choice to not go back to disney until (or if ever) things change to a more guest oriented policy. We might go to DL as we have never been, but if we do, I won't spend any money on Genie or extras. I hope DL keeps some of the "old"ways and gives the guests some quality experiences. But WDW, no more for us. We found that we love Universal and that is where we will go from now on. Not sad to leave the way disney parks are being run now.

 

[Ear Scouts]

So we'll be getting ONE Adventureland spring roll for $10 now? While there are many places where the portions are large, it is not the case everywhere – especially at quick service locations. It's hard to justify the exorbitant cost of a lot of the meal options if you're still hungry after you finish eating.

 

[wdw71]

All I can say is that if I have to buy more mediocre food at over inflated prices just to be satisfied at a meal it makes staying and eating big meals offsite even more appealing than it was already becoming. I can snack a few times and survive all day after a big breakfast elsewhere.

 

[wdw71]

I didn't hear the one about substituting ingredients or changing vendors! WOW! Their food is already pretty generic. I thought they had already done this! I can't believe it could get any lower quality at some places. When the dining plan started, their quality of food decreased to generic food to save money. I don't know how they can decrease the quality more? I bet the executive lounges used by the CEO's has high quality, non cut, foods.

This does surprise me, when I thought I couldn't be surprised anymore by their cutting tactics.

We are voting with our wallets, and have made the choice to not go back to disney until (or if ever) things change to a more guest oriented policy. We might go to DL as we have never been, but if we do, I won't spend any money on Genie or extras. I hope DL keeps some of the "old"ways and gives the guests some quality experiences. But WDW, no more for us. We found that we love Universal and that is where we will go from now on. Not sad to leave the way disney parks are being run now.

We arrive in WDW next Thursday and have decided already that it will be our last trip for a loooong time if not forever. We are going to spend a few days in Orlando summer 2022 but will bypass Disney this time and see what Universal has to offer. Really looking forward to it since we have never been.

 

[disneyseniors]

We arrive in WDW next Thursday and have decided already that it will be our last trip for a loooong time if not forever. We are going to spend a few days in Orlando summer 2022 but will bypass Disney this time and see what Universal has to offer. Really looking forward to it since we have never been.

We have been yearly WDW visitors, and with family it hit 15 or so visiting total.
We decided to go to Universal for one day one time. We hadn't been for years and didn't know what to expect. We found that one day was not enough.
So we have been going for 2 days for the past few years. Now we will go exclusively to Universal, and other destinations.
The reason we liked Universal?
It was stress-free (which is what most people want on vacation. We could just go to an attraction and ride (no scheduling and looking at a phone). We even rode our favorite rides back to back (we had express pass while staying at RPR). We ate when we wanted to. It was a wake up call for us to realize we could actually do what we wanted, when we wanted, without planning like we were going to invade Grenada, LOL. It was great, and IMO, the way a vacation should be. I hope you have a great time. Take the time to look at everything and explore a little. There's so much to see and do. Dont miss The Horror Makeup Show. It's alot of fun. Check out the Universal site on here too.

 

[Bethislucy]

We arrive in WDW next Thursday and have decided already that it will be our last trip for a loooong time if not forever. We are going to spend a few days in Orlando summer 2022 but will bypass Disney this time and see what Universal has to offer. Really looking forward to it since we have never been.

We went to universal for the first time this spring and had a blast. I honestly thought it wouldn't have as much fun as I do at Disney but it was so stress free. We went not knowing it was spring break for the area down there and it was busy but manageable we didn't pay for the express pass or anything and we accomplished everything we wanted multiple times. I honestly can't wait to go back.

 

[persnickity]

I think what really irks me is that they are the ones that offered overly generous portions to start with, likely to make it seem like you were getting your money's worth when paying their insane prices. Then they turn around and spin it like we're gluttons that need to be reigned in.

Overall, many of the comments made in these meetings just make me feel sick to my stomach. To hear what they really think of their customers so explicitly is a real turn-off. We hadn't been back in years and I was initially so excited about our trip that I was imagining going again in future years, maybe without the kids, whee! But, after the rollercoaster of planning a Disney trip over the course of a tumultuous 18 months+, I'm starting to look forward to being out of the Disney Bubble.

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

Eh, Disney food portions (at least counter service) are massive and we often end up throwing stuff away. I've seen multiple comments on here over the years where people note they share meals because there's so much food. So this proposed change wouldn't impact our travel plans.

 

[meremac]

I don't care if they reduce portion sizes. I rarely finish my meals at Disney. I don't think that part of the announcement is what is upsetting people. Honestly, if the announcement had just ended there, it would have been NBD for most people. It's the careless and tactless comment by a CFO about about the waistlines of much of Disney's clientele that's problematic. It's outrageous and it was so unnecessary.

 

[ScarletFire]

On the plus side with reduced park hours it's a lot easier to go off property to eat now .

We use to stay in the bubble but not anymore. Orlando has good tacos, seafood, and more. Given the early hours the parks close, we venture outside WDW for food.

 

[2vets]

I don't care if they reduce portion sizes. I rarely finish my meals at Disney. I don't think that part of the announcement is what is upsetting people. Honestly, if the announcement had just ended there, it would have been NBD for most people. It's the careless and tactless comment by a CFO about about the waistlines of much of Disney's clientele that's problematic. It's outrageous and it was so unnecessary.

This. This exactly.

 

[mlayton14]

Disney has repeatedly stated their need to reduce crowds at their parks - is this is their way to do this - have the CFO call your customer base a bunch of fat slobs ?