NY Times Today: Is a Disney Theme Park Vacation Still Worth the Price?

[Minnie1222]

Precisely. There are standards. It's not about what YOU consider luxury.

There is no Disney-owned luxury hotel (no matter what they charge and people are willing to pay) as long as the towels in the bathrooms all come from a "laundry center." It's all standardized there. You're paying for whimsical wallpaper and space.

But Disney is NOT charging luxury prices. I had already given an example on post #96.

 

[Aluminum Falcon]

A cynic might suggest that might be the reason there seems to be no motivation to rectify downtime issues. Attractions are shut down by cutting maintenance manpower/parts budgets. Presto, Genie prices increase. Money is made on both ends.

I would never suggest DIS management would deliberately do such a thing.

As long as you're willing to use this statement as a blanket for the entire theme/amusement park industry i find that acceptable. To just lambaste Disney for following industry standards is a tad unfair IMO

 

[New Mouse]

The Disney hotels can't even be considered deluxe anymore. They have drastically cut back on amenities, services and quality compared to years past.

About the only thing luxury in Disney at the moment is Victoria and Albert's and maybe the wedding chapel?

 

[New Mouse]

As long as you're willing to use this statement as a blanket for the entire theme/amusement park industry i find that acceptable. To just lambaste Disney for following industry standards is a tad unfair IMO

What used to set Disney apart was that they aimed to exceed industry standards.

 

[wabbott]

As long as you're willing to use this statement as a blanket for the entire theme/amusement park industry i find that acceptable. To just lambaste Disney for following industry standards is a tad unfair IMO

Perhaps. But, once upon a time, Disney was several notches above the rest of the industry. It was one the primary motivators for Walt to build Disneyland in the first place.

So no, I'm not ready to concede that we should try to be no better than all the rest.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

In reality, Disney SET the standard. They created this market. And they were without doubt the leader for decades. Others have used their model and have caught up and perhaps even surpassed Disney at times. But as for the OPs question - Disney is absolutely still a magical value for us, and that's all the input we need. We all spend our finite money and our finite time doing what makes us happy. Disney makes us happy. Are the accommodations 5-star? Nope. But most are deluxe. But it's still our favorite place to go and spend our money and time...... Not the only place we go, but definitely our favorite. Others will make their own choices.

 

[Aluminum Falcon]

What used to set Disney apart was that they aimed to exceed industry standards.

They still do, (innovating/ pushing the limits on rides/ attractions, restaurants, theming out new lands with new IP, even galactic star cruiser was pushing limits) the problem is that people just poopoo them for innovating, i'm sure i'll be getting retorts to this post, at this point it's par for the course

 

[Aluminum Falcon]

Perhaps. But, once upon a time, Disney was several notches above the rest of the industry. It was one the primary motivators for Walt to build Disneyland in the first place.

So no, I'm not ready to concede that we should try to be no better than all the rest.

well based on how Disney performs compared to their peers they are still firmly above the rest of the industry. You personally not believing so does not make it the reality. Numbers do not lie

 

[New Mouse]

They still do, (innovating/ pushing the limits on rides/ attractions, restaurants, theming out new lands with new IP, even galactic star cruiser was pushing limits) the problem is that people just poopoo them for innovating, i'm sure i'll be getting retorts to this post, at this point it's par for the course

Cutting food quality, cutting housekeeping, cutting resort activities.... that's not exactly leading the way, deluxe or luxury.

 

[Aluminum Falcon]

Cutting food quality, cutting housekeeping, cutting resort activities.... that's not exactly leading the way, deluxe or luxury.

like i said not surprising. not sure why anyone who garnishes that much distain for a company would venture onto a fan site for them, just to trash them to people who are fans

 

[BrianL]

Cutting food quality, cutting housekeeping, cutting resort activities.... that's not exactly leading the way, deluxe or luxury.

I mean, yeah, there have been some food quality issues, but their closest competitor in the space is Universal, and have you tried the food there?! Disney may have let the gap close a little...a little, but are still in fact ahead of the competition. That said, I am sad to see it, because possibly one day they won't be - but they're not there yet, not by a long shot!

 

[EasinEpcot]

Your response goes back to my question from earlier. Why are comparing a European trip with a Disney trip?

To me a better comparison is a trip to Pigeon Forge and Dollywood. I realize many are looking at cost but IMO a European vacation is not anywhere the same as a Disney vacation.

We were in Pigeon Forge and went to Dollywood in April. We paid $300 per night for a 3 bedroom cabin in the Smokey Mountains that was a 25 minute drive from the park. Parking was plentiful and only cost $25, there was a free shuttle to the main entrance that took less than 5 minutes. Park tickets were $89 per person. No need for fast passes, none of the lines was longer than 30 minutes. It's about as big as Magic Kingdom. The ambience at Dollywood is lovely, you enter to serene music like when you enter Epcot in the mornings. The staff are amazing, reminds me of WDW cast prior to 2020. Rides were fun, themed areas were engaging, shows were really good and fun. Felt like it had been designed by Imagineers, honestly, very similar vibe. We loved it. And while Pigeon Forge is a tourist trap, you are within driving distance of gorgeous countryside. And the Great Smokey Mountains National Park is free, so you can see that too. We drove to Asheville, NC for a few nights. One of the best vacations we've had, and Dollywood was definitely worth a return visit. My kids wanted to go back but we didn't have time in our schedule. Food was good, and they had GF options which was great.

 

[Minnie1222]

Cutting food quality, cutting housekeeping, cutting resort activities.... that's not exactly leading the way, deluxe or luxury.

Food
Disney has hundreds of food venues with new ones popping up all the time. In order to make a blanket statement about quality, a person would have to repeatedly try multiple dishes at multiple eateries at all times. A decrease in quality of some dish during a few visits doesn't mean a decline of the entire food industry.

Housekeeping
We had daily room cleaning pre-Covid and we have daily room cleaning now. Nothing has changed.

Resort Activities
No comments here since I still haven't participated in any activities since the day the Contemporary was the only resort standing.

 

[drenalin'junkie]

Yeah, I can stay at the Ritz Carlton in Orlando for less than GF, Poly, Contemporary, AKL and close the moderates. So no, the hotels aren't close to being value.
We've stayed in most of the Disney resorts over the years and probably more than 2 years cumulative days in the parks.
We have a realistic expectation to be perked for spending more and having APs. When Disney started dropping benefits while raising prices, we felt betrayed after 20+ years of regular attendance.

 

[Minnie1222]

Statistically speaking you are in the minority. I’m not gonna get into a pull yourself up by your bootstraps debate with you, nor am I defending reckless spending, but hopefully you count your blessings along with your bullion every night before you go to sleep. “I have never in my entire life incurred a credit card debt” means you are a very, very fortunate individual, not something to be proudly lauded over the lower castes.

It was never my intention to put myself in a higher "caste". You were talking about people incurring skyrocketing debt from things like Disney trips. I simply wanted to contradict you by using myself as an example of someone who doesn't have any debt, despite having many trips to Disney.

 

[Cfabar1]

Disney has the data to determine what the price points are that work for them. They seem to be discounting off of rack rate a little bit more this year. Who knows whether that trend will accelerate or continue.

The Deluxe prices are obscene, no question...

Disney has become extremely expensive...

But, as long as people keep paying, it has not gotten too expensive.

 

[gmi3804]

Food
Disney has hundreds of food venues with new ones popping up all the time. In order to make a blanket statement about quality, a person would have to repeatedly try multiple dishes at multiple eateries at all times. A decrease in quality of some dish during a few visits doesn't mean a decline of the entire food industry.

But this is exactly what Michelin does in the US when their half dozen raters who cover an entire country assigning stars to places they’ve visited only once or twice.

I don’t need to sample pizza or French fries (or even cuts of beef or salad mixes) from every WDW venue to recognize that they’re all from the same foodservice truck and distribution center. Everything is standardized. If grouper is the catch at Jiko it’s going to be the catch at Olivia’s. Even the wines are the same all over. And the quality of all of it is down.

 

[Minnie1222]

But this is exactly what Michelin does in the US when their half dozen raters who cover an entire country assigning stars to places they’ve visited only once or twice.

I don’t need to sample pizza or French fries (or even cuts of beef or salad mixes) from every WDW venue to recognize that they’re all from the same foodservice truck and distribution center. Everything is standardized. If grouper is the catch at Jiko it’s going to be the catch at Olivia’s. Even the wines are the same all over. And the quality of all of it is down.

There are hundreds of eateries to choose from at Disney. If one is unable to find a suitable dish, that is on them and their discernable palate. Disney is not a culinary center. It's a theme park that provides higher-than-standard theme park food.

 

[gmi3804]

There are hundreds of eateries to choose from at Disney. If one is unable to find a suitable dish, that is on them and their discernable palate. Disney is not a culinary center. It's a theme park that provides higher-than-standard theme park food.

I hope that wasn't directed at me, because I never said none of the dishes was suitable. But I also don't believe that higher-than-standard is what they advertise OR deliver.

 

[Minnie1222]

Back to the subject of hotels, I just returned from a trip to England and I am going to double down on how INCREDIBLY cheap the Grand Floridian is when compared to a five star London hotel. So again, Disney is NOT charging a "luxury" price for their hotels.

Off topic! No trip to England is complete without an in-depth visit to the Oxford Street Disney store.