Thursday, May 29, 2014

Disney Controls Crowds with Price Increase



There has been recent speculation that Disneyland’s recent price increase to $96 has less to do with inflation of prices, and more to do with crowd control.

The Disney parks are certainly not lacking in demand. Every year the parks get a great amount of visitors. So many that there are already people who choose other parks over them to try and escape the crowds. The increase in the daily price plus the elimination of several seasonal pass options has people asking if Disney is trying to reduce traffic to their parks.

This is particularly true of local residents, who are more likely to visit the parks multiple times a year. Eliminating the SoCal Pass will require residents to pay much more for a Premium Pass, or drop down to a cheaper pass that gives them less access.

It may not be an orthodox type of crowd control, but a company such as Disney can afford to do it. If attendance at the parks were to drop too much, prices could be adjusted. However, it seems unlikely that attendance would drop enough for that to happen. Instead it could be that Disney simply wants less crowding, and the price hike and elimination of a popular seasonal pass could be a way to get that.

Only time will tell if this method was effective. Regardless of the price hike though, crowds are sure to still be strong at all Disney parks this summer. It’s unlikely that a price increase would put a stop to that.

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