Walt Disney World is responding to rising customer dissatisfaction and a decline in park attendance by quietly reducing the prices of admission and hotel stays over the past few months.
In May, Disney started offering discounted three-day ticket packages allowing visitors access to Hollywood Studios, EPCOT, and Animal Kingdom at a rate of $89 per day. However, tickets for Magic Kingdom must still be purchased separately.
These reduced ticket prices, available until September 24, show a significant reduction from the previous high of $254 for a daily Park Hopper pass.
Additionally, Disney is working to lower the overall expenses for families planning a trip to the resort. The cheapest hotel accommodations at Disney’s All-Star Movies, Music, and Sports Resort can now be found for as low as $100 per night, depending on the booking date. These price adjustments can lead to discounts of up to 27% compared to standard rates, as reported by Bloomberg.
This summer, the parks have also introduced new dining packages that decrease the cost of meals by 20% to 30%. The dining plan enables families to buy all-day meal passes priced at $30 for children and $95 for adults, redeemable for various meals and snacks throughout the parks. Disney is also reportedly adding more quick-service meal options, offering lower-priced food for kids, and implementing more flexible dining policies.
According to experts, the growing expense of dining within the parks has been a contributing factor to declining customer satisfaction. Len Testa, president of TouringPlans.com, highlighted that customer satisfaction ratings dropped from 90% to 60% as Disney transitioned from à la carte dining to fixed price meals in many popular restaurants.
While Testa acknowledges the positive impact of Disney’s cost-cutting measures, he warns that this approach may not indicate a genuine dedication to affordability or enhancing guest satisfaction, stating that Disney has historically been willing to trade off a certain level of positive ratings for increased revenue.