Category — w. Most Recent Stuff

Disney World raised its ticket prices on March 12 for the rest of 2019. There’s been much silliness written since about the level of the increase by folks not so good at math, ranging from “prices increased 15%-30%” to “prices increased about 5%.” (For how Disney’s new-in-October-2018 date-based ticketing concept works, see this.)

In fact, the average price increase across the ten ticket day options for adult single park per day tickets for the period April 1, 2019 through December 31, 2019 was 7.9%. But of course no one buys an average ticket, and actual price increases vary quite a bit over the course of the 9 months remaining in 2019.

The following table shows by ticket length the average increase, minimum increase, and maximum increase for the period April 1 through December 31, 2019, compared to the prices that had already been in place for 2019.

A couple of things are worth noting. First, all lengths beyond one day had an average price increase higher than the average increase in one day tickets. This mathematically means that the discount for longer tickets, on average, is not quite so high as it had been before.

The second point worth noting is how high the maximum price increases are, ranging from 20% to 30%. A major piece of this is a big increase in the price of later December tickets, which you can see from this table, which shows maximum increases from 4/1 through 12/31 and then 4/1 through 11/30:

How prices were generally changed over the dates of the year begins to be clear in the next chart, which shows the percentage increase for every ticket length plotted against the first eligible day for that ticket.

There’s ten colored lines (one for each length), which makes it initially messy, but the lines aren’t random—you can see the patterning within them.

Here’s the same data on increases, but for just two ticket lengths whose use periods average out weekend effects, for more clarity.

Ticket prices are up most sharply in many of the popular break and holiday periods. This general pattern does not surprise me, as the initially-released range of high to low prices for the date-based ticket pricing model was, at about an 18% spread between the least and most expensive tickets, too narrow to actually much incent changes in people’s behavior and drive them to lower-priced dates.

Here’s the increase in one day tickets. These are important not because people buy them (hardly anyone does) but rather because the longer tickets are assembled as discounts off the sum of the one day tickets that their eligible use dates encompass.

Because of differential increases over weekends—which is why the last chart saw so many saw-toothed shapes—it’s a little easier to see what’s happening in one day tickets if you use a seven day moving average (a forward moving average in this case):

I’ve marked in this various holidays, and you can see that most—but not all—major price increases are related to holidays, beginning with Easter and spring break. There’s a couple of exceptions, at the beginning of October (but not Columbus Day week) and beginning of November—perhaps for Jersey Week??

Moving on to ticket lengths that are actually relevant to many people, here’s the new spread of prices over the period April 1 through December 31 for four of the ticket lengths, comparing prices to the lowest price in the same period.

You’ll see that the most expensive tickets in the depicted lengths are now 40% higher than the lowest prices of the year. In (unshown) shorter tickets, it is 45%. At this spread, ticket prices may actually start to shift people away from higher-priced periods and into less-expensive ones.

Also worth noting is that is that you see next to no increases in the period immediately after the new Star Wars land opens. For opening day (August 29—see this) and the 30 days following, price increases average about 2%–pretty much the lowest level of price increases across the year.

Simpler minds will conclude that this is because Disney intends to offer extra cost access options these dates, or that it expects low demand. People who actually get Disney’s new date-based pricing model will understand that Disney is trying through these lower prices to incent visits to an unfinished park during an unpopular time of the year to go.

The next major event on the ticket pricing front will likely be the release of 2020 ticket prices. There’s no precedent for knowing when this will happen. I’d guess at the latest it will be early summer, but it may be earlier, and frankly no one on the outside knows.

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Welcome back to Fridays with Jim Korkis! Jim, the dean of Disney historians, writes about Walt Disney World history every Friday on yourfirstvisit.net.

BE OUR GUEST IN FANTASYLAND

By Jim Korkis

The Be Our Guest Restaurant at the Magic Kingdom that opened in December 2012 was part of the larger New Fantasyland expansion and renovation of that area of the park.

When it opened, it was the only publicly accessible Magic Kingdom venue to serve wine and beer–until December 23, 2016, when other Magic Kingdom restaurants started offering the same options.

The goal in Be Our Guest was to capture the elegance and fairytale charm of Disney’s popular 1991 animated feature film Beauty and the Beast. The entrance with its cold hard stone, metal, and desaturated tones of crumbling architecture juxtaposed against beautiful landscaping, hints that this might be a time before the curse was broken as guests walk through the gates and across a stone bridge.

The lion-like figures flanking the entrance door were referred to by the Imagineer designers as “golions” referencing that they were a combination of goat and lion. The figures above the entrance door that resemble eagles with snake tails were called “sneagles”. The six stone gargoyle figures on the bridge leading to the castle were simply all given the name “Frank” in order to better identify them.

“This is a whole new level of theming for a Disney restaurant,” said Maribeth Bisienere, vice president of Food & Beverage and Merchandise for The Walt Disney Company. “More than ever, we’re using storytelling and creativity. From the moment they cross the bridge into the castle, it’s all about immersing our guests in the dining experience. Every detail is part of the story.”

Three distinctive dining areas are located within the castle: an elegant ballroom setting, the mysterious West Wing of the Beast’s castle with the enchanted rose under a glass bell jar using the Pepper’s Ghost illusion for its falling petals, and the stunning Rose Gallery with a seven foot tall wooden music box with a depiction of Belle and Beast dancing on top of it, while overhead is a dome that is an exact replica from the chapel de Saint Chapelle, the cathedral next to Notre Dame in Paris.

The centerpiece golden chandelier in the ballroom measures more than 12 feet tall and 11 feet wide. It boasts more than 84 candles and more than 100 jewels that hang down to give it added shine. The area is defined by a 20-foot high coffered ceiling painted with clouds and cherubs depicting the faces some of the Imagineers who worked on the project and a terrazzo floor. Beyond 18-foot-tall windows is the French countryside where snow falls gently against a starry night sky.

The Rose Gallery is adorned with paintings that celebrate the characters from the film, and with four tapestries inspired by background art from the film. Carved roses are featured throughout the room, along with other rose accents including the intricate tile mosaics on the floor.

The West Wing includes, over the fireplace, a portrait of the young prince in human form that has been slashed by the beast’s claws. With periodic flashes of lightning, the image in the portrait transforms from prince to Beast.

Music was integral to adding to the overall ambience. For the Ballroom, a 50-piece orchestra recorded the music from the film. In the adjacent Rose Gallery, special music box arrangements were recorded of the same pieces heard in the Ballroom, in perfect synchrony, so that guests moving from room to room hear the same tune transformed from one style to another. In the West Wing, a somber, melancholy arrangement creates a forbidding mood.

For four years, the Disney Food & Beverage team worked at creating a menu to match the environment. A team of Disney chefs, including longtime Disney Chef Roland Muller, a native of Alsace, France, developed the French-inspired dishes, creating both a quick-service menu for lunch and more elegant table-service menu for dinner.

“Our role was to finish the story,” said Walt Disney World Executive Chef Lenny DeGeorge.

*  *  *  *  *

Thanks, Jim! And come back next Friday for more from Jim Korkis!

In the meantime, check out his books, including his latest,  The Vault of Walt Volume 7: Christmas Edition, and his Secret Stories of Walt Disney World: Things You Never You Never Knew, which reprints much material first written for this site, all published by Theme Park Press.

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DISNEY WORLD NEXT WEEK: MARCH 16 TO MARCH 24, 2019

The material below details next week’s Disney World operating hours, Extra Magic Hours, parades, and fireworks.

For more on March 2019 at Disney World, see this.

OPERATING HOURS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 3/16-3/24/19

The Magic Kingdom will be open from 9a-11p 3/16, 9a-10p 3/17 through 3/21, 8a-11p 3/22 and 3/23. and 9a-10p 3/24

Epcot will be open from 9a-9p every day

Disney’s Hollywood Studios will be open from 9a-8.30p every day

Disney’s Animal Kingdom will be open from 9a-9p 3/16, 8a-9p 3/17, 9a-9p 3/18 and 3/19, 9a-8p 3/20 through 3/22, 8a-9p 3/23, and 8a-9p 3/24

EXTRA MAGIC HOURS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 3/16-3/24/19

Saturday 3/16 Morning: Animal Kingdom Evening: none

Sunday 3/17  Morning:  Hollywood Studios Evening: none

Monday 3/18  Morning: Animal Kingdom Evening: none

Tuesday 3/19 Morning: none Evening: Epcot

Wednesday 3/20 Morning:  none Evening: Magic Kingdom

Thursday 3/21 Morning: Epcot Evening: none

Friday 3/22 Morning:  Magic Kingdom Evening: none

Saturday 3/23 Morning: Animal Kingdom  Evening: none

Sunday 3/24 Morning:  Hollywood Studios  Evening: none

PARADES AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 3/16-3/24/19

The Magic Kingdom: Afternoon parade: 3p every day

FIREWORKS AND EVENING SHOWS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD 3/16-3/24/19

Happily Ever After at Magic Kingdom 9.15p every night

IllumiNations at Epcot: 9p every night

Fantasmic at Disney’s Hollywood Studios: 8.30p every night

Star Wars Show and Fireworks at Disney’s Hollywood Studios: 9p every night

Rivers of Light at Disney’s Animal Kingdom:  8.15 and 9.30p 3/16 through 3/18; 8.15p 3/19 through 3/22; 8.15 and 9.30p 3/23, and 8.30p and 9.30p 3/24

SHOW SCHEDULES FOR WALT DISNEY WORLD 3/16/-3/24/19

See Steve Soares’ site here. Click the park names at its top for show schedules.

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On March 13, 2019 Disney World raised ticket prices for the rest of 2019. On average, prices for longer tickets went up about 7.5%, but the average masks much different changes some times of the year–for example, after Christmas.

I’ll start digging into the numbers shortly, but my partner Official Ticket Center will offer old-priced tickets through March 24th.

I’ll take me a bit to do the math–I have to enter more than 2,500 prices, after all–but Touringplans.com has a general post on the increase here, and more math here.

The math is overly averaged, so what happens your dates if you have not yet bought tickets and don’t use the Official Ticket Center while it is still offering the old prices will be obscure until I can do the real math, but is a helpful start.

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On March 13, 2019 Disney World raised ticket prices for the rest of 2019. On average, prices for longer tickets went up about 5%, but the average masks much different changes some times of the year–for example, after Christmas.

I’ll start digging into the numbers shortly, but my partner Official Ticket Center will offer old-priced tickets through March 24th.

I’ll take me a bit to do the math–I have to enter more than 2,500 prices, after all–but Touringplans.com has a general post on the increase here, and more math here. The math is overly averaged, so what happens your dates if you have not yet bought tickets and don’t use the Official Ticket Center while it is still offering the old prices will be obscure until I can do the real math, but is a helpful start.

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“Capacity for the parks, Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge and its experiences is limited. Access to the park, land and experiences may be restricted or unavailable depending on guest demand and other factors.” —The Disney Parks Blog 

STAR WARS: GALAXY’S EDGE TO OPEN AUGUST 29TH

On March 7, 2019 Disney announced that the new Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge land would partially open at Disney’s Hollywood Studios on August 29th. Both the August date and the partial opening were shockers.

The “partial” opening means that on that date, only one of the two rides being built here—Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run—will be available. The second ride, Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, will open “later this year.” FastPass+ will be not “initially” be available for the ride, and the land will be open “during normal park operating hours…[and] will be available during Extra Magic Hours at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.”

The Disneyland version of Galaxy’s Edge will also open earlier than projected, also will have a partial opening with just Smuggler’s Run, and has different, more stringent operating and access restrictions than Disney World’s version has.

This post is about the implications of this early and partial open for guests before the land is fully open.

Here’s some of what I said nine months ago  about the full opening of Galaxy’s Edge:

Now we need to be clear here—no one actually knows what will happen, not even Disney. Part of the value of the partial opening is to create more information about what will happen during a “lower attractiveness” phase, when most of the infrastructure (like all the new roadways, the new bus stop, and the Disney Skyliner) and alternatives (like Slinky Dog Dash and Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway) are in place, but the partial nature of the opening creates a Galaxy’s Edge that is less compelling to visit (at least for some.)

CROWDS WILL BE BAD—BUT NOT MAYBE AS BAD AS YOU THINK

The late August opening, the partial opening, and the earlier partial open at Disneyland will all play a part in moderating crowds to levels below what some might fear—especially after Labor Day and before October 6.

THE LATE AUGUST OPENING WILL LIMIT FAMILY VISITS FRAMED AROUND STAR WARS

I am still working on 2019 back to school dates, but my material so far—covering 11.3 million kids in about 200 school districts, with another 4 million kids yet to have their calendars announced–suggests that in the summer of 2019, as usual about 70% of US schoolkids will be already in school by the late August time the land opens—and 100% of kids will be back in school by the end of its first full week.

Disney World is loaded with non-family visitors, especially during the Food & Wine season—which I expect to kick off on August 30—but it is still predominantly a family destination. Kids in many jurisdictions can be pulled out of school, but this is hardest early in the semester.

As a result, while the Labor Day weekend will likely be the busiest such in Disney World history, I don’t foresee a lot of families to be adding trips in later September specifically to experience Star Wars, and I expect many who already booked September with the express hope of avoiding the opening to cancel. Galaxy’s Edge itself will be a hot mess, but the rest of the Studios and Disney World should be OK.

Things will change beginning around October 6, which is when the “fall break” season begins and many kids start getting school breaks ranging from three days around Columbus Day to two full weeks. Unless the second ride is open by then, things will settle out from this by later October.

THE PARTIAL OPENING WILL DISSUADE SOME FROM BOOKING UNTIL THE FULL LAND OPENS

Only one of the two rides will be operating at opening day. Much—perhaps all except its table service venue—of the rest of the land’s offerings will be open then too. So, depending on how much you value “the rest of the land,” something between 50% and 80% of the quality of the experience will be available to those whose visits come before the opening of the second ride.

So those whose money or time budgets allow only one visit in the near term to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge will defer their vacations until they can experience both rides. Thus, while Galaxy’s Edge will be a mess, it will not be as much of a mess as it would have been had the land entirely opened on 8/29.

THE EARLIER DISNEYLAND OPENING WILL DRAW OFF SOME HARD CORE FANS

Disneyland will be opening its version early as well, at the end of May, and although this is not confirmed, I also expect that its full offering (that is, including the second ride) will be open much earlier than the second ride is open at Disney’s Hollywood Studios–and likely even before August 29.

What this means is that until both versions are fully operational, all the incentives are for the hard-core Star Wars fan to go to California.

Now don’t get me wrong here—all of the basement bedrooms in Orlando will be empty starting August 29th. But the Disney World Star Wars fan boy crowd will not be as heavy after Labor Day as you might think.

CALIFORNIA MESSES, AND THE ABSENCE OF FASTPASS+, WILL PUT OFF MANY VISITORS, BUT EMH WILL HELP

The Disneyland version will open on May 31, and despite all the additional restrictions on access there, I expect that many visitors will not get the message, and that we will immediately hear many horror stories—traffic jams, full parking garages, park closures and extremely long waits. This will come largely from it being open first, and secondarily from the already high attendance and less forgiving infrastructure at Disneyland.

These stories will cause some to cancel their Disney World vacations, and dissuade others from spending much time at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

Veteran Disney World visitors may also be put off by the absence of FastPass+ access to Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run. Access to the land and to the ride(s) here will be rationed–at least initially–the old fashioned way, by willingness to wait. FastPass+ will come to these rides someday, and at least some will delay their visit until that happens.

I do expect substantial Extra Magic Hour offerings, something like what we saw at Pandora–a couple of hours every morning and evening before and after something like either a 9a to 9p or 8a to 10p regular operating day (the shorter “regular” day provides more practical EMH opportunities).

Over time, many of the daily EMH time slots will be converted into extra-cost times to visit (“Early Morning Magic” and “Disney After Hours”), but I think that will happen after things have settled down a bit, possibly not even until 2020.

Daily morning EMH, if it happens, will keep those staying in settings not eligible for EMH from successfully employing the classic “rope drop” strategies—as the land will already be full when they are let in. So even without FastPass+ at 60 days, those staying on site, who can do EMH, will have an advantage at Galaxy’s Edge.

By the way, Galaxy’s Edge and Hollywood Studios will be particularly crammed on days Magic Kingdom closes early for parties. See this for the party schedule through October.

Also by the way, the best hotels to stay in for those who want to see Galaxy’s Edge are those that let you get to Disney’s Hollywood Studios without going on the roads—the Epcot resorts, from which you can take a boat or walk, and the Disney Skyliner Resorts (Caribbean Beach, Pop Century, Art of Animation, and, after it opens, Disney’s Riviera Resort) from which you can take a gondola to the park.

Kelly, the long-time travel agent partner of this site, can help you book your Disney World vacation–whether to avoid or participate in the opening of Galaxy’s Edge! Contact her using the form below:

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