In Case You Think The WDW Slump Isn't Real

[Purseval]

A few people have commented that they don't think WDW will be hurt much, mostly because they look at the parks today, see crowds and think things are fine. Well it isn't just the Disney Corporation that is affected:

Caribbean hotel bookings plunge as economy sags

SAN JUAN, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Hotel bookings in the Caribbean are plunging as financial turbulence dashes vacation plans, and hoteliers and governments are trying to ward off a deep slump by ramping up marketing efforts and slashing prices.

The big cruise operators, whose ships ply the warm, azure waters of the Caribbean and upon which many islands depend, have also warned of a slowdown in bookings worldwide.

The economic downturn following the global credit crunch -- and once-surging oil prices that increased air fares and prompted airlines to cut flights -- are already having an effect, with Caribbean hoteliers reporting drops of 30 percent to 50 percent in bookings.

But the real pain will be felt during the winter high season, from Dec. 15 through April 15, when many vacationers flee the cold north for the Caribbean's sun-drenched beaches.

"The forecast is for a bad winter," said Clarisa Jimenez, president of the Puerto Rico Hotel and Tourism Association.

This is an excerpt, read the rest of the story here:


http://in.reuters.com/article/governmentFilingsNews/idINN0740948120081107

What WDW is doing with this 4/3 deal is just reading the writing on the wall. Odds are this won't be the last big promotion, patient consumers should see even more bargains in the months to come.

 

[rosiejo]

With fuel prices up and the credit crunch affecting us all I think lots of people will be saving instead of taking expensive vacations. I am just glad that we have DVC and already saved enough for our flights and our annual dues. We'll be heading out to the World December 09 come what may!

 

[Ms_Butterfly]

Yeah, I just saw an ad on Yahoo! for Atlantis (Paradise Island, Bahamas) - $299/night PLUS 2 free dolphin experiences.

And I heard elsewhere of somebody getting a balcony cruise stateroom (not Disney line, but I forget which one) for $300-something per person.

For my Jan. vacation (timeshare), JetBlue changed one of my flights from morning to evening a couple weeks back, too.

 

[Ryan08242]

Gas here is $1.85

 

[disneyin2008]

With fuel prices up and the credit crunch affecting us all I think lots of people will be saving instead of taking expensive vacations. I am just glad that we have DVC and already saved enough for our flights and our annual dues. We'll be heading out to the World December 09 come what may!

Wow...fuel prices are way DOWN here in Arizona....I filled my tank yesterday at $2.39 a gallon. Yeah, that's still more expensive than I'd like but at least it's not $4+ anymore!!

But...I do agree that many of us are probably looking at the news and worrying that while we may feel semi-unaffected now, how long before it hits us too? We're still going on our WDW trip (8 days!!!) because I can't imagine cancelling (the depression in this house would be thick, lol)....and because financially we're not yet in turmoil.....our income is steady and fairly secure....but I have noticed that while shopping I'm thinking longer about a purchase, thinking "later" more, and definitely less impulse shopping. We've always been pretty frugal in the grocery area, which seems to be where most people budget with more stictness when hard times hit....we seldom eat out as the kids and I love to cook, so that saves us a ton over what friends spend.

But one thing I am noticing is that stores, restaurants, and service providers are definitely worried about getting my dollar instead of their competition......the grocery stores are running some unheard of sales right now (I just bought London Broil for $1.66 a pound this week, normally it's in the $3 range.....and I bought 6 meals worth, lol). McDonalds is heavily advertising their Big Mac at $1.50 on their signs, and I'm pretty sure it was over $2 last time we ate there. The oil change advertisements are under $15 now, where they were mid-20's just a few months ago (I'm not sure when these went down, I was due for a change and started looking, lol). And Walmart keeps emailing me all their great specials, none of which appeal to me, but it appears that they are starting their Christmas advertising NOW instead of Black Friday. And many other stores are doing that also. Makes me wonder how spectactular Black Friday will be like, but we'll be in Florida, so no shopping for me! Either they're going to have to top their current sales
or maybe the BF sales will just be repeats of what they're doing now?

Disney may not be looking like they're in a slump right now because of the crowds, but I really wonder how many people would cancel a long planned vacation if they still have the money available. Different story if you were one of the unlucky ones that have already been laid off but if your job is secure for now, I'll guess most will still go. But Disney is definitely not looking at NOW....they look at the future and it sure sounds like bookings are down for the first half of 2009.....so the marketing folks are in high gear. What would be interesting is whether the summer deals come out....typically summer deals are few and far between because of the normal crowds.....but next summer may be the year to get a deal if you're so inclined. Short of free resort and free dining combined, I would never even consider summer, lol. But, I'm thrilled if the November free dining that I'm getting is because of Disney's worries!

Some of us are old enough to remember other hard times that this country went through......and I'm not sure if I'm just older and since I now have kids I'm more aware....but this time around the doomsayers seem to be louder. And I'd like them to shut up.

 

[Desnik]

Gas here is $1.85

Wow that's cheap! Gas is not that price where I live.
I just have to add that Cape May is our 2nd favorite place to visit!!(of course WDW is the first!)

 

[Ryan08242]

Wow that's cheap! Gas is not that price where I live.
I just have to add that Cape May is our 2nd favorite place to visit!!(of course WDW is the first!)

Alot of people like my area I'm not sure why, I guess I'm just used to it. I guess its cool only living 2 blocks from the beach

 

[BeckWhy]

Gas here is $1.85

I always thought NJ had some of the cheapest gas... It's always been cheaper than at the Reservations here.

For us... gas dropped $1.25 in the past couple of weeks...

 

[jobie61]

Gas here is $1.85

I'm just up route 47 a ways, Gas is $ 2.05.

Jersey has the best Gas prices in the country.... Ya gotta love it.

 

[jarrdisney]

I'm getting married at the BWI on 12/14 and was told 12/11 was completely sold out for my fiance and I. I questioned a couple people in the company on this and they all had the same thing to say. "There's not a room to be had at the BWI." I realize it's the holiday season, and the BWI has a great location to the festivities, but early/mid Dec is usually pretty slow. Maybe it's just the Epcot resorts, but I don't think WDW can be hurting that much, at least that time of year.

 

[Ryan08242]

I'm just up route 47 a ways, Gas is $ 2.05.

Jersey has the best Gas prices in the country.... Ya gotta love it.

And the best part is you don't have to pump it yourself

 

[WUVmyDISNEY]

well, $1.96.9 lol Deep down, it feels so wrong to be excited about paying $2.00 for a gallon of gas! I wonder ( but highly doubt) if the airlines will lift some of the fees that were put in place due to the high price of gas. I would rather they have raised the airfare in general and then be able to lower them based on fuel prices. I think now that the fees are in place, they are here to stay. Who knows when the gas is going to rise back up dramatically again and then start the cycle of extra fees all over again ( if they were lifted now). Not sure I explained that well so I hope you guys understand what I meant! lol

 

[fall08CP]

I'm getting married at the BWI on 12/14 and was told 12/11 was completely sold out for my fiance and I. I questioned a couple people in the company on this and they all had the same thing to say. "There's not a room to be had at the BWI." I realize it's the holiday season, and the BWI has a great location to the festivities, but early/mid Dec is usually pretty slow. Maybe it's just the Epcot resorts, but I don't think WDW can be hurting that much, at least that time of year.

This is true. The BW had no room for walk-ins as of last night. The Epcot resorts (if not all) are having no problem filling rooms.

 

[Yen Sid]

Gas here is officially the highest in the continental United States, Western NY.

 

[mistydoodles]

Gas here is $1.85

I want to move to NJ. Ours is still close to $3.00 which is better than it was but I would love for it to be under $2.00

 

[bytheblood]

I do not think the fuel drop is permanant. Once Osama takes office, I can see that going back up to the $4 it was before.

As for travel, it is certainly down and all companies are feeling the pain....I expect to see more deals coming from Disney.

 

[danny1649]

Will do whatever they feel they need to do to hold market share and that will be good for us Disney nuts and allow us to keep going to WDW during these hard times. Danny

 

[v_gan]

What WDW is doing with this 4/3 deal is just reading the writing on the wall. Odds are this won't be the last big promotion, patient consumers should see even more bargains in the months to come.

For those of you that track this kind of thing.. How much of a chance do you think there will be for a big promotion for December 2009? I could save a good bit of money if I decided to stick with my original plan to go in May 2009, but I would much rather go the second week in December if there was going to be a good deal.

 

[Purseval]

Maybe it's just the Epcot resorts, but I don't think WDW can be hurting that much, at least that time of year.

Maybe you're having trouble visualizing how companies run but if we compare it to your own life perhaps you can get a better grasp of the problem.

Let's say somebody gives you $10,000 and you put the entire amount into a WDW vacation with the works: tickets, room, dining plan, everything paid for, and the vacation is in December. This is WDW today.

Now it's December, you're living it up having the time of your life. All the best meals, beautiful views, a wonderful park experience. You can't wait to do it again. But there's a problem. Even though you are living the high life today, the reality is you have no more money! The $10,000 you budgeted for the trip is spent, the only way you can repeat the experience is by coming up with another $10,000 and right now you have no idea if you can accomplish that goal. This is WDW in December, also. The people you see packing the resorts have already been budgeted into their spending plans, now they have to look to the future. Right now the future looks bleak, no matter what you are seeing in the parks today. The 4/3 promotion is trying to address that problem and we won't know if the strategy works until they have to show the next quarterly results.

 

[kadesha]

I do not think the fuel drop is permanant. Once Osama takes office, I can see that going back up to the $4 it was before.

As for travel, it is certainly down and all companies are feeling the pain....I expect to see more deals coming from Disney.

I really hope you meant Obama!