Disneyland and Walt Disney World are almost back to normal, with nearly everything in place. The parks were not opened.During the pandemic, hAving been returned in some form or another. One thing that actually hasn’t returned to pre-pandemic status, however, are the crowds. Disney CFO Christine McCarthy recently confirmed that crowds are still being limited, and it sounds like that’s going to be the case for the foreseeable future, because Disney wants it that way.
It is not surprising that Disney would count down the days to fullness, since more tickets mean more revenue. It’s why tickets Price increases will continueYear after year. Speaking during the recent Morgan Stanley Technology, Media and Telecom ConferenceChristine McCarthy stated that Disney plans to continue managing attendance Use the reservation systemIt is possible that they may not go back to pre-pandemic levels. Because there’s another way for the parks to make more money, have happy guests. McCarthy explains…
We’re managing the business differently. We’re looking at yield but we also want to, the consumer experience when you’re a guest in a park and you can’t do things, everything is too crowded, your guest experience is going to go down. Your intention to return will drop. The word of mouth is not as strong. We don’t want to have the parks bursting at the seams. They should be great experiences. And when you’re there, if you’re having a good time, you’re probably inclined to spend more money, and that has been the results that we’ve had to date since we reopened.
Selling lots of theme park tickets is, of course, an important way that Disney Parks make money, but it’s not the only way, and while being able to crowd the parks with bodies means short term financial gain, Disney also understands there’s a long term game being played here as well, and that long game is potentially harmed by overcrowding the park.
Disney knows that if the parks are too crowded people won’t enjoy themselves, and if that happens, it hurts future earnings. People won’t return, they’ll tell their friends not to go. On the flip side, if you have a good time, you’re likely to be a little freer with your money. This is called “per capita spending,” the amount of money each guest spends while they’re in the parks, and when that goes up, it can more than make up for revenue lost on tickets that were not sold.
This isn’t to say that Disney Parks will never feel crowded again. They do already. Lines can still get quite long, but maybe, in the end, we’ll see fewer days like that overall now that Disney is taking a more active approach to managing capacity, and that’s not a bad thing. The reservation system in place certainly isn’t perfect, and there are some reasons it doesn’t make sense at allHowever, in this specific instance, it may have some value.