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The Happiest Place on Earth might also be the most expensive.
A data-tracking company found that the price of admission tickets to Disney World and Disneyland has gone up by more than 3,871% in the past 50 years. This is much more than the increase in visitors' wages, rent, and gas prices.
During the worst of the pandemic, Disney closed its parks. When they reopened, they raised prices to try to make up for some of the money they lost. A UK-based consulting firm made an animated chart that shows how the price of tickets to the theme park has steadily gone up since 1971. The prices kept going up through the 1973 oil crisis, the 2008 financial crisis, and the pandemic.
During the same time period, wages, rent, and gas prices have all gone up by a lot less than 1,000%, according to Pie Chart Pirate, which is an account run by SJ Data Visualizations. They posted the data in a video that has since gone viral on TikTok.
Disney fans commented on the video, with one adding: “Isn’t late stage capitalism magical.” Another wrote: “I remember going to Disney for spring break in 1989. My FL resident ticket was $19.”
While many complained about how unfair the price hikes have been, some users also noted that the TikTok chart didn’t appear to adjust for inflation.
Disney fans have seen prices go up a lot recently. In October, Disney said that prices for tickets to Disneyland and Disney California Adventure in Anaheim, California, would go up this year. It said that a popular single-day ticket to one park would go up by 6.5 percent to $164, and a two-day park hopper pass would cost $319, which is almost 9 percent more than last year.
The Disney blog Walt Disney World News Today said that the prices of several items at the Florida park are going up by $5 to $15. When it came out a year ago, a Miss Piggy backpack cost $80. Now, it costs a whopping $95. The price of Mickey ear headbands went up by $10 to $39.99, and a Monsters Inc. water bottle went up by $5 to $29.99.
Even ice cream prices have gone up, a fan blog called Inside the Magic says. The price of a Mickey's premium ice cream sandwich and a premium bar covered in chocolate went up from $5.69 to $5.99.
At the Ale & Compass restaurant at Disney World, the price of the New England Seafood Pot Pie went up $3 to $28, and the price of Brick's Lemon-Herb Half Chicken went up $2 to $24.
Customers have complained that the food hasn't gotten better even though it costs more.
Customers at Disneyland and Disney World have criticized the small, overpriced food portions on Reddit and other sites. Some have even called the meals "disgusting slop" and "prison food."
Disney's finances have gotten better because prices have gone up and more people want to go to the parks. In May, the Mouse House said that its second-quarter income grew by 50% to $3.7 billion, or $1.08 per share, and that its revenue grew by 23% to $19.2 billion.
Even though customers complain a lot about price hikes, theme park experts think the trend will keep going.
Dennis Speigel, who runs International Theme Park Services in Cincinnati, told the Tampa Bay Times, "Get used to it." "Our business is moving toward charging more. It's being done by Magic Mountain. It is being tried out at Six Flags in California and other places. In three or four years, every park will have an extra fee to get to the front of the line.
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