Disneyland keeps raising prices, but it’s not all bad

Of course, there is also Genie+.

About a year ago, Disneyland rolled out a paid system to replace the previously free Fastpass. Guests can reserve access to Priority ‘Lightning Lane’ with a different ride every 2 hours. Then, for $20 per person, you’ll get access to an additional “Separate Lightning Lane” to our most popular rides (Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, Radiator Springs Racers, Web Slingers: Spider-Man Adventures). Yes, and they cost up to $20 each. get on.

It was complicated and expensive, but people were still using it.According to then-CEO Bob Chapek, half of the park’s guests bought a Genie+ last holiday season.

“I said last quarter that we had high hopes for it, but remember that we far exceeded expectations,” he said. “Well, I’m happy to say that in Q2…we’re lapping those numbers even higher again.”

Since then, Genie+ prices have skyrocketed. In October, Disneyland increased the cost of Genie+ and the most expensive individual Lightning lanes to $25. (In the same announcement, ticket prices went up to $179 for his busiest day.)

However, $25 for Genie+ wasn’t the upper limit. In the fine print, Genie+ costs $25 when purchased in advance, and is determined by dynamic pricing for in-park purchases.

That means higher prices on busy days, up to $30 per person per day. According to the Orange County Register, there could be more. “Disneyland has quietly increased the price of its Genie+ frontline service by 50% since October, with the potential for further increases during the busy Christmas season, which traditionally attracts large crowds and long waits for rides. ,” writes Park reporter Brady MacDonald. .

However, in this particular example, a higher cost may actually result in a better guest experience. His 13 days in the past few months, when Disney has increased the price to his $30, have been the busiest. These occurred during fall weekends, traditionally the times of greatest demand, and the week of Thanksgiving.

“According to Thrill Data, average wait times across Disneyland Resort were 33 minutes or more on 12 of the 13 days when Genie+ prices increased to $30,” McDonald wrote. “Average wait time for a $30 Genie+ day: 38 minutes, which is 27% higher than Thrill Data’s estimate of his average wait time of 30 minutes at the Disneyland Resort in the second half of 2022.”

The days when Genie+ was the most expensive were the days when the lines were the longest and people who purchased the service were most likely to wait in the unusually long Lightning Lane line. It’s a recipe for dissatisfied guests who don’t feel they’re getting the best value for their extra money, and they’ll take complaints to Disneyland City Hall and social media.

Guests can check ride wait times in the Disneyland app, but these are standard queues only. Whether the wait for Lightning Lane is 10 or 40 minutes is only a rough guess based on typical wait times throughout the park. It’s easy to get caught in a line that doesn’t seem like much time, but actually spends his hour of his day at the park. Raising costs inevitably means fewer people will buy the service, and those willing to shell out the extra cash will have a better experience.

Of course, motivation isn’t everything in the guest experience. In a year in which Disney lost cash on its streaming service, the Parks division is reporting record profits. announced an increase from $5.5 billion in the same period last year.

Some people feel the experience has lost much of its magic due to how expensive Disneyland is compared to a visit just a few years ago. Bob Iger’s reinstatement indicates that the Walt Disney Company also felt things were going in the wrong direction.

Since Iger’s return, the perk has already had one change in how Genie+ works. You can now modify existing Lightning Lane reservations without canceling them. It’s a small step, but many Disneyland fans see it as a step in the right direction.