Excellent analysis and breakdown! This is exactly my content niche and I’m very happy to have found your channel today.

Former corporate here…photopass makes way more than ticketing can even dream of 😏

In 2025 they already know they need to drop their prices or sweeten the deal with both epic universe opening and so many of their big rides closed for maintenance or reskins. Disney may be getting close to the bubble bursting or at least taking a hit

If you’re so critical of this theme park, then come up with a whole bunch of ideas that are original and put them together and put them as your ideas. I’d love to hear them.

With respect, while you gave a great overview of how it is SUPPOSED to work and how it HAS worked in the past, you left out the modern-day sting in the tale: ALL of this depends on the experiences being GOOD. With terrible maintenance failures, weak new attraction offerings, and a general degradation of the experience of going to the parks, the entire house-of-cards of demand breaks down. And your summation of huge demand is already outdated. Demand is going DOWN, both because the actual experiences are less and fewer (closed attractions, broken ones, etc. etc.) AND because of competition offering better experiences at better value. Disney even economized themselves OUT of a KEY factor of the "keep 'em on property" aspect when they shut down the "Magical Express" bus to/from for hotel guests, thus encouraging people to indeed rent cars and thus be free to say "Hey, let's try Universal today" etc. etc. Guest DISSATISFACTION is on the rise, guest REBELLION at prices for add-ons and enhancements is happening for real, and of course the entire Disney "brand" has been tainted and made untenable for many due to the company's political and social activities that make many feel it is anti-family--and family was their market since day one. In an inflationary economy like the current one, when it is more likely that wealthier grandparents are going to buy the trip, their rejection of Disney's change in values is also setting up buyer resistance. And all of this WITHOUT the advent of Epic Universe soon to come. You did a great job of explaining how things USED to be, guys, but now? Not so much at all.

the only true way to hack disney world value is to move nearby and get an annual pass. I paid about 450 for the year. I go 3-5 times a week, and never buy merch. I'm their worst nightmare lol

This is a great review, I am in early planning stages for July 2025 and this was the best i have seen of Universal as I was having severe FOMO

I like the Tiki Room...just sayin'.

2:34 Does that ferry boat look like it's taking on water?

Raycon or whatever it's called is trash. stick to Audio Technica and Soundpeats

Laziest topic in the theme park sphere. All of Disney’s prices are right in front of you. You can go or you can not go. Why aren’t we making videos about how high end resorts are “draining money” when their prices are way higher than Disney

My hack is that I live in a two bedroom apartment in Celebration and have an annual pass. Properly pwned. 😉

Well-presented, intelligent and informative. Thanks! :)

WAY I AM MALAYSIAN THIS IS BULL SHIT OK THIS IS A GOOD THEME PARK

Honestly the way Disney's going about getting money nowadays just reeks more of greed and desperation that comes at the cost of the people who aren't able to afford the expensive perks the Disney parks have (At least in the USA.) Theme parks are expensive enough as it is especially in the current economic situation we're in now but Disney doesn't seem to get the memo that eventually it's current tactics along with decisons that are questionable at best and damaging at worst will come back to bite them in the nastiest way possible if it doesn't course correct. Especially with how other parks like Universal are going about it in a more sensible way.

Was the lack of backing music in this video slightly odd to anyone else? I feel certain that they typically use music under their vocals, but maybe I'm wrong....? Great video regardless!

As bad the economic circumstances are here in the US, I did not realize how much worse the problems are elsewhere given how much stronger the USD has become compared to other world currencies.

Stayed at the Grand Floridian in Sep 1996 during my 13th birthday for absolutely free. My mom was Target's grand prize winner during their holidays 1995 pulltab style giveaway. We stayed there several nights, went to any parks, ate at nice restaurants, and flew, all for free.

Disney has lost its way. They are greedy and push the agenda. I love Disney but have probably gone there for the last time. Universal Florida is my new park!!

You can't get a burger and fries for under $15 these days. Not at McDonald's or a local burger joint. I live in the south. That $15 is no longer "expensive".

I love the Enchanted Tiki Room . . .

I'm very happy with the amount of HKDL footage there is in this video, and surprised you've lived in HK for a while too! I was very sad when FastPass got discontinued after the pandemic closures, because I sometimes collect them rather than use them but in the case of Hong Kong the early magic hour (sold at HK$199) was deemed very popular, especially when World of Frozen just opened I'm not a fan of the individual LL system (being sold at around HK$129 per person per attraction) to this point I'd rather try the lottery system that once existed at Tokyo (although it did also have its issues) I've been an annual pass/ Magic Access holder for almost 10 years now, although I've always gone for the lowest tier I think it suits my preferences, and extra ticketed events are always themed to pass member nights, an opportunity where only pass members get to enjoy the park after hours but please, bring back a proper parade Hong Kong!! (and by proper I mean Paint the Night)

They drain your wallet by spending millions on productions that underperform and the fans never wanted, then they make up the cost by raising prices and cutting staffing/maintenance. The joke's on Disney. I don't patronize them anymore so my wallet has been looking great.

The main takeaway for me from this brilliant & well-discussed 30min video: THANK YOU DOM. SOMEBODY FINALLY CALLED OUT THOSE HIDEOUS DRIPPING WHITE EARS 😭😭😭

good premise, but lots of mistake. You should have spoken to an economist: 1) Disney doesnt loose on ticket price. demande is high enought they use price to reduce demand not increase it. That way they also ensure getting people to spend more are its their " only time" going. Park demand is higher than capacity which id why price keep increasing to reduce and filter demand. 2) premium economy is by far the bulk of airline revenue. Not business and first class.

Well you can blame the Disney Superfans for it. These fans are willing to spend much more than your average guests. For Disney it is more profitable to cater to these fans, then to make a good experience to everyone. You could compare Disney to a pay to win game. These games are designed to make as much money as possible from whales, a term for these high spending players. While the rest of the playerbase get a much worse experience. For Disney these superfans are a goldmine. You have a target demographic that spends a lot of money, buys overpriced merchandize and is totally loyal to the brand.

They let rich families cut in front of poor families. Walt would never have approved of that. 😢😢😢 #disneyisevil

Disney's entrance fee is a long long way from being a loss-leader. What is a standard day ticket in the US? $160 plus tax! And you may still need to pay a lightning lane pass to get on some rides.

Something interesting is that when Disneyland opened Walt Disney actually privately owned some of the rides, the trains and other attractions as the years passed. Hence the individual purchased tickets for rides. It made for very easy accounting on how much Walt would be paid. By the 1980’s the Disney company purchased the rides from the Disney estate. And so ended the need for individual ride tickets.

It was never this bad under Michael Eisner's administration back in 2000 on average a single day ticket at Disneyland for an adult was $43 ($78.78 today) *_UNDER $80_* *_who would not wanna pay under $100 to go to a theme park especially any of the Disney parks?_* Tokyo Disney is more reasonable with their ticket prices than the American parks *(but that might change with reports of raising tourist taxes for international guests and tourism in Japan in general)*

It sure costs a lot of money to run a theme park, but somehow Disney-level parks in Europe like Europapark (70 USD per adult) or Efteling (55 USD per adult), and even Disneyland Paris itself (85 USD per adult), have ticket and hotel prices at a fraction of the cost of the US Disney Parks and still make a profit. And in addition to the cheaper tickets, they don't have any purchaseable addons like the almost required line skipping in US parks - virtual waiting lines are mostly free in European parks and direct line skipping just isn't a thing. Merch is also much cheaper and less relevant. So the ticket price plus a little food money really is all the parks get and that is still enough to cover their full operation - and the companies behind the parks still seem to make good money. Something doesn't add up here, I disagree with the statement in the video that ticket prices alone can't run a park - my guess is that Disney is just greedy to an extreme and charges whatever they can get away with, regardless of the actual underlying cost of running the parks or hotels. And people in Europe are not willing to spend car money on a theme park visit, so Disney (and others) are just not able to raise their prices in Europe sky high if they want to retain their customer base. You won't find many people in Europe willing to go into debt for a theme park, while in the US that seems to be the norm unfortunately. In the end, the consumers decide what can be charged.

When the tactics become so obvious to park guests it’s not a tactic anymore

I think most people will still go to Disney until their favorite ride/the ride that keeps them coming back or justify the price gets removed

Is it a fast ride?

Disney has been around long before many Disney haters were born and it will more than likely be around long after the current generation of Disney haters are gone.

What do you think of Disney's sneaky money making tactics? Also be sure to head to buyraycon.com/reviewtyme to get 15% off sitewide!

We had one in Indianapolis. Wayyyyyy before dave and busters

Disney is a horrible theme park. It’s just a shopping mall with lame small and outdated rides. Boring boring boring.

I was on this ride 2 nights ago. I wasn't expecting anything. I couldn't understand why there was an hour or longer wait all day. We used a fast pass or something like that. My family speaks japanese but I don't. While not the most exciting ride I have every been on. It was amazing. Different but similar to Star Tours is amazing. The ride is one thing, and the tech adds to the ride. They did an amazing job of taking what is really a character for toddlers and making a fun ride for all ages.

No one went to Anaheim for Anaheim. The stature of the city had nothing to do with the great success of the Park.

How could Disney go so wrong? They used to create great things. This is just a McMansion hotel. It is actually ugly, not even a fantasy of luxury or class.

Would never stay there again. Truly a disappointing experience

Stayed at the Disneyland Hotel for a special occasion in April of last year….I don’t know how else to say it other than it felt like we were staying at a Motel 6.

14:05 as long as they keep the Walt Disney animatronic authentic and he constantly smoking cigarettes and is unabashedly antisemitic lol

Wow those prices are a real difference....I wouldn't be surprised if you can book a flight and hotel and it would wind up cheaper then if you were to do the same to Florida (bonus points for not having to go to Florida lol)

Walt Disney WORLD. Stop saying land, that’s in California. 🤡

I think sunway lagoon coppied that from Singapore

dyum you this is bad, my guy you havent visited the singaporean Sentosa's Wings of Time, you watch a movie and you also get sprayed by water in the middle of it

waite what all the hate abt, we are going there this sunday, so is there some thing we need to know??!?!??!

8:01 😂😂💯