The “Happiest Place on Earth” is now making your wallets a little less happy. Disney has raised its prices across the board for all of its U.S. theme parks by at least $3.
For many families, the news of an increase may be a smack in the face because they have to consider the cost of taking not just one, but two or more people to Disneyland or another one of the theme parks. Prior to Sunday, Feb. 22, a one-day ticket for a person age 10 or up was $96. After Sunday, it became $99, with premium annual passes jumping to $779 from $699.
For most people, $99 is not chump change, especially since this doesn’t even take taxes into account. The new prices could be considered absurd; a trip to Disneyland would definitely be out of my normal budget. Many argue that there aren’t that many new rides, and as soon as you get into the park you can expect overpriced funnel cake, cotton candy and the works, but there is the fact that while this is expensive, Americans are supposedly doing a lot better financially.
The median household income in America has increased steadily in the past few years to $53,891, which is 3.8 percent above the median household income of 2011. Take into account inflation rates and new technological costs, and the $3 increase doesn’t sound too bad. I mean, it’s less than the caramel macchiato you had this morning.
Compared to other theme parks, Disney's high prices are technically on par with their demand. It can charge that much money because people are still choosing to pay to visit. In fact, “Walt Disney Co. reported that domestic park attendance rose 7 percent in the three months that ended Dec. 27, a record,” Hugo Martin reported for the LA Times. So while we want to complain about the prices of the Walt Disney theme parks, we still find a way to make it to Sleeping Beauty’s Castle.
Additionally, Disney hasn’t been the only one to increase its admission prices; other theme parks are raising their prices as well. Although significantly cheaper, even Six Flags has raised their admission prices this year. Still, The Walt Disney Company seems to be able to pull in way more visitors than any other theme park, taking six out of 10 spots on the Top 20 Most-Visited Theme Parks in North America in 2012 (i.e. Magic Kingdom, Disneyland, Epcot, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, Disney’s Hollywood Studios and Disney’s California Adventure).
Trips to Disneyland or Disney World aren’t a normal basis sort of thing and while yes, there are some people who are Annual Pass holders, most of those are just the people who live close to one of the parks. The majority of visitors are usually first-timers or visitors who don’t go more than once or twice a year.
Therefore, while yes we want to scream and protest about spending $100 on park tickets for a one-day affair, even I would be willing to give up a month’s worth of Starbucks or about two days’ pay to spend a day with Mickey and friends. Plus, at this point, it becomes “the Happiest Place on Earth” because any negative feelings will be amplified by the new dent in your wallet.
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Editor’s note: The opinions presented in this column are the author’s and do not imply any endorsement from The State Press or its editors.
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