There are plenty of reasons why Disneyland hiked ticket prices this week while Disney World held the line, but none of them are going to make visitors to the Happiest Place on Earth very happy.
Disneyland raised admission prices by as much as 25% on Wednesday, Oct. 11 with the most expensive one-day, one-park ticket now $194.
Walt Disney World did not hike daily ticket prices this week — but Disney’s four Florida parks did raise prices on annual passes and parking.
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Why didn’t Disney World raise ticket prices at the same time as Disneyland?
There are four key reasons.
1) Disney World raised ticket prices twice in 2022. The last time Disneyland raised ticket prices was in October 2022 — exactly a year ago.
2) Disney uses ticket pricing to manage demand — charging less on slow days and more on busy days in hopes of better balancing attendance.
3) Disney plans to double its investment in theme parks to $60 billion over the next decade — and those costs ultimately need to be passed along to visitors.
4) Florida is having a tougher tourism year than California, according to Theme Park Insider.
“In Florida, Disney is looking to boost its attendance numbers and drive more spending,” according to Theme Park Insider.
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Disneyland and Disney World have always operated independently despite their shared DNA.
“Disney’s choice to get aggressive on pricing in California while holding the line on prices (for the most part) and loosening restrictions in Florida suggests that Disney is seeing much stronger demand for its theme parks in California than in Florida at the moment,” according to Theme Park Insider.
In addition to Disneyland’s daily ticket price hike, multi-day tickets rose by as much as 15.7% and parkhopper passes climbed by as much as 25%. Parking and Genie+ line-cutting passes also went up at Disneyland.
The lowest-priced $104 one-day, one-park ticket for Disneyland or Disney California Adventure remained the same — unchanged since 2019.
Disney World visitors didn’t see a price hike this time around after facing a double-whammy last year.
Disney World increased prices for multi-day tickets in February and December 2022, according to WDW News Today.
Also in December 2022, Disney World introduced park-specific pricing for one-day, one-park admissions with tickets topping out at $159 for Disney’s Animal Kingdom, the least expensive of Disney’s four Florida parks, and $189 for the Magic Kingdom, the most expensive.
Disney World officials said at the time the price increases were due to strong demand and continued theme park investments.
Disneyland can always course correct if the latest ticket price increases prove too aggressive, according to Theme Park Insider.
“If Disney overshot the market in California, expect to see more aggressive locals-focused ticket discounts in the spring and summer, which are slower months for the parks here than the busy Halloween and holiday seasons,” according to Theme Park Insider.
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