Facing growing customer dissatisfaction and declining park attendance, Walt Disney World has quietly lowered the cost of admission and hotel stays in recent months.
In May, Disney introduced discounted three-day ticket packages, offering visits to Hollywood Studios, EPCOT, and Animal Kingdom for $89 per day. However, tickets to Magic Kingdom remain sold separately.
The reduced ticket prices, available through September 24, mark a significant decrease from the peak $254 daily price of a Park Hopper pass.
Additionally, Disney is aiming to make trips to its Florida resort more affordable by discounting its budget hotel rooms. A night at Disney’s All-Star Movies, Music, and Sports Resort can now cost as little as $100, depending on booking dates, representing up to a 27% discount from standard rates, according to a Bloomberg analysis.
The parks have also launched new dining packages this summer, cutting meal costs by 20% to 30%. The dining plan offers all-day meal passes for $30 per child and $95 per adult, redeemable for various meals and snacks. Disney World is also providing more quick meal options, cheaper food for kids, and flexible restaurant policies.
Experts point to the increased cost of park dining as a contributing factor to declining customer satisfaction. Len Testa, president of TouringPlans.com, which surveys thousands of Disney customers annually, told Bloomberg that satisfaction ratings dropped from 90% to 60% as Disney shifted from a la carte dining to fixed-price meals at popular restaurants.
Testa acknowledged Disney’s cost-cutting measures but warned that this may not indicate a genuine commitment to affordability or guest satisfaction.
“Disney has long been willing to sacrifice a certain number of positive ratings for a certain amount of revenue,” he told Bloomberg.