So Mickeys Halloween Party is now starting even earlier in August this year

[mshanson3121]

So if you owned stock in Disney, you would be fine with it being worth less, so long as there weren’t Halloween parties in August? It’s not greed, it’s business. Disney is accountable to its shareholders to make sure they are maximizing profits. There’s not one person sitting back and saying “I want to be a trillionaire instead of a billionaire.” That would be greed. But Disney is a part of most index fund portfolios which means that millions of people benefit when Disney turns a profit. Those people do not care about Halloween parties in August if the bottom line is more money for the masses.

When Disneyland started, Walt and Roy were the main shareholders. Walt had the luxury of choosing when to value guest experience over more dollars in his own pocket. But Disney’s millions of stockholders might be depending on profits to retire, send their kids to college, or to pay off their mortgage. Who are you to call them greedy?

The majority of shareholders own very small amounts of shares. Nothing Disney does is making or breaking their portfolio. The ones who have enough money to spend on the amount of Disney stock necessary that those scenarios you gave would actually be true, already have enough money to cover those things .

Further, you're over simplifying - it's not the extra few parties in August that has people upset, it's the direction the company is going as a whole. The parties are just another example of that.

 

[Grumpy by Birth]

I don't have an issue with Disney making money. If the demand is there, they could make EVERY evening of the year a separate hard-ticket party (I know, don't give them any ideas, right?). I'm certainly not advocating this because I wouldn't be happy to have shorter hours without paying extra, but I would accept it.

However, IF they had a party every night, I would hope they would come up with seasonally appropriate parties rather than just extending Halloween or other holidays into times of year when those holidays don't occur.

If they want to hold parties in August, more power to 'em... but why Halloween parties when Halloween isn't for two months? How about a party theme that makes more sense in August?

 

[mshanson3121]

I don't have an issue with Disney making money. If the demand is there, they could make EVERY evening of the year a separate hard-ticket party (I know, don't give them any ideas, right?). I'm certainly not advocating this because I wouldn't be happy to have shorter hours without paying extra, but I would accept it.

However, IF they had a party every night, I would hope they would come up with seasonally appropriate parties rather than just extending Halloween or other holidays into times of year when those holidays don't occur.

If they want to hold parties in August, more power to 'em... but why Halloween parties when Halloween isn't for two months? How about a party theme that makes more sense in August?

This is what I don't understand! There are many ways they could do a summer themed party. And honestly, while many will strike me down for saying it, the Easter party idea someone had isn't a bad idea either.

But I also agree with others - it would be nice to see them spread them out over the parks, so it doesn't interfere with MK so much. I don't think I'm alone in thinking people would be interested in a Christmas party at HS for example. Or a party at AK etc... while yes, MK has the most attractions, the other parks all have big ticket rides that are still really big draws, and they (especially AK and EP) have really neat atmospheres that people love to enjoy at night - and I'm sure would gladly pay for.

 

[kymom99]

This is what I don't understand! There are many ways they could do a summer themed party. And honestly, while many will strike me down for saying it, the Easter party idea someone had isn't a bad idea either.

But I also agree with others - it would be nice to see them spread them out over the parks, so it doesn't interfere with MK so much. I don't think I'm alone in thinking people would be interested in a Christmas party at HS for example. Or a party at AK etc... while yes, MK has the most attractions, the other parks all have big ticket rides that are still really big draws, and they (especially AK and EP) have really neat atmospheres that people love to enjoy at night - and I'm sure would gladly pay for.

Not to mention more space in general

 

[kylenne]

we're aware how much cheaper it is, some of us came to disney as young adults before we had kids, which i have zero problem with. It's when disney starts flooding the market with all these extra events and people flock to them, that it starts to make it unbearable for those that do have more than 2 in our family.

At the end of the day, everyone pays more for less time in the parks. It's incredibly frustrating.

And before you say "you dont have to come", we aren't, Disney finally priced us out this year. We're taking a cruise and trying different things this year.

The corporate greed spewing from Disney stinks like a rotten egg.

You really don’t though lol like...at the end of the day, Disney is a corporation concerned primarily with profit. Y’all can bemoan that, and it’s awful in a lot of ways, but that’s just reality. And the only thing that will stop it is another recession. They really have no incentive to do so otherwise because the same folks complaining online still go year after year for the most part, the demand is still there. When people stop having disposable income for Halloween parties in August and After Hours and dessert parties then you’ll see them stop.

 

[Fido Chuckwagon]

So, a few facts: we live in a capitalist society which means companies are owned privately and run for profit. NOT collectivism where the needs of the group are prioritized over the individual. Disney’s main purpose is to generate profit for shareholders. Walt Disney’s vision is the product now, not the purpose.

The parties are a great example of supply and demand. The first parties (the “best value” parties) capped attendance at smaller crowds, cost less, and were offered on fewer nights. The demand was high, therefore, Disney was able to charge more without losing its customer base. To create more supply, Disney offered the parties on more nights and allowed higher attendance. Call it greed if you want, but this is a basic law of economics and the reality of the society we live in.

Now for the scary part: big data and machine learning. Disney is tracking absolutely everything and AI is learning and predicting at an unprecedented rate. They are now more accurate than ever before at determining what can be upsold and for how much before demand tapers. Disney has models with all kinds of crazy calculations and variables to determine if X factors occur, and the price is Y amount, there will be approximately Z attendance. So for the August parties, they are predicting based on historical data* that there will be demand for them.

*I think a lack of historical data is why they got the crowd predictions for Star Wars so wrong. The more data they gather the more accurate they will be at predicting for the future.

While this is certainly true, large multi-national corporations often have a problem with acting rationally, and frequently incorrectly maximimize short-term profits over long-term gains. This is why so many large corporations have failed over the years. Just because a sweet spot exists between guest satisfaction and maximizing short-term profit doesn’t mean that Disney is hitting it.

 

[Fido Chuckwagon]

So if you owned stock in Disney, you would be fine with it being worth less, so long as there weren’t Halloween parties in August? It’s not greed, it’s business. Disney is accountable to its shareholders to make sure they are maximizing profits. There’s not one person sitting back and saying “I want to be a trillionaire instead of a billionaire.” That would be greed. But Disney is a part of most index fund portfolios which means that millions of people benefit when Disney turns a profit. Those people do not care about Halloween parties in August if the bottom line is more money for the masses.

When Disneyland started, Walt and Roy were the main shareholders. Walt had the luxury of choosing when to value guest experience over more dollars in his own pocket. But Disney’s millions of stockholders might be depending on profits to retire, send their kids to college, or to pay off their mortgage. Who are you to call them greedy?

I do own stock in Disney. While I am actually upthread being ok with increased parties, I also recognize, as a stockholder, that if Disney damages it’s long-term “brand” at the expense of increased profits in the short term, that is not a good long-term decision for me as a stockholder.

 

[lorenae]

One reason I dislike going in November and December is because of the short park days, partly because the hours are lessened but also because of the parties. The first week of December this year, there was ONE non-party day when I was there, and it was mobbed.
I hated the Halloween party even being in early September, as it’s still a long way away from Halloween, but to start it 11 weeks before Halloween is really astounding to me!

 

[DGsAtBLT]

One reason I dislike going in November and December is because of the short park days, partly because the hours are lessened but also because of the parties. The first week of December this year, there was ONE non-party day when I was there, and it was mobbed.
I hated the Halloween party even being in early September, as it’s still a long way away from Halloween, but to start it 11 weeks before Halloween is really astounding to me!

We went Oct 20-26 and also had one night where MK was open past 6, and it was nuts. We staked out our HEA spot more than 2 hours before showtime. I actually think by sitting in our spot for that long, we were protected from how crowded the park truly was lol. Disney decided to allow a private party to close down MK one of the nights of our week in addition to the parties.

 

[Alicefan]

Very true.

It's the consumers' fault on this one.

Yep and as long as we're still stupid, they'll keep adding and adding. Based on the political climate, we're showing no signs of intelligence so we might as well suck it up and get second jobs to afford what Disney has to offer.

 

[Alicefan]

Maybe Disney can just have year round separate ticket partys. Can have Xmas party from Early November through mid January. Then Valentines party Through feburary. Then the Easter party from March through April. Have an Independece party from May till August (maybe bring Electric parade back for that as the finale is salute to America) and then Have the Hallowen party from August till Nov 1. Maybe that would satisify their greed and keep costs level. (id say still but the price always goes up regardless)

Maybe the 5th gate should be "Celebration Kingdom" and dedicate it to nothing but parties and festivals and cut them from all of the other parks? I'd be down for this! Tie it in with "Resurrection Kingdom" with all of our favorite defunct rides and you solve the "but that caters to a niche group of people" problem and guarantees that park would stay at capacity year round. I could see bashes for Easter, Valentines, 4th of July, Rosh Hashana lol..... Dang, they need me on the board of directors.

 

[DisLiss]

I feel like every year I see articles about how Halloween is doing nothing but rising in popularity in the US, and more importantly--to businesses, anyway---that Halloween spending continues to increase as well. And I'm sure that's one reason why Disney would rather just add a week or two more to Halloween than to have a Summer party of some sort. Add to the fact that everything is already ready for Halloween Parties--all the work is done. So basically they could go through all of the time, effort, and expense to invent a new party, which might not turn out to be that popular or just extend the party they already know is very popular. I'm not surprised by their choice, even if Halloween in August feels odd to me.

I will say, though, having lived my entire life in a climate where you don't know until 2 days ahead of time whether you're going to be sweating like mad all night (Of course, the year it was 70 something and my kid was in a fur lined werewolf costume.) or if there will be a blizzard and your costume is going to need to fit over snowpants, a jacket, boots, and 3 layers of extra clothing (The year your kids wants to be Tinkerbell, of course!); knowing ahead of time that it will just be stinking hot and to plan accordingly is kind of a relief.

 

[Alicefan]

I remember when these parties were truly a special ticket event, uncrowded, and a great time. The last time we went was 2017 and the crowds were horrible with wait times for everything. Last year someone posted a picture of the gift card that Disney was selling at Publix for entry into one Christmas party of choice. It's now sell as many tickets as you can in as many places as you can. No limit.

Yep and now they're just another thing that falls into the category of "Things that used to be good".

 

[Alicefan]

You really don’t though lol like...at the end of the day, Disney is a corporation concerned primarily with profit. Y’all can bemoan that, and it’s awful in a lot of ways, but that’s just reality. And the only thing that will stop it is another recession. They really have no incentive to do so otherwise because the same folks complaining online still go year after year for the most part, the demand is still there. When people stop having disposable income for Halloween parties in August and After Hours and dessert parties then you’ll see them stop.

I have become one of those people and this year for the first time in 30 years of 2 to 3 Disney trips a year, I found myself skipping the Christmas party while I was in Orlando and tried out SeaWorld. In fact, I went to Universal and no Disney park at all this trip, and I've never in my life been able to go down there and NOT do Disney! It seemed sacrilegious to me to be that close and not do at least ONE day at Disney. I doubt I'm the only one that's THAT disillusioned with WDW. I wasn't expecting much, but I sure enjoyed SeaWorld at Christmastime! It was a lovely park and everything was a walk on. So nice to find a park with "off season" crowds like we used to have in early December at WDW. I can't wait to go back! Viva la Shamu!!

 

[kymom99]

I feel like every year I see articles about how Halloween is doing nothing but rising in popularity in the US, and more importantly--to businesses, anyway---that Halloween spending continues to increase as well. And I'm sure that's one reason why Disney would rather just add a week or two more to Halloween than to have a Summer party of some sort. Add to the fact that everything is already ready for Halloween Parties--all the work is done. So basically they could go through all of the time, effort, and expense to invent a new party, which might not turn out to be that popular or just extend the party they already know is very popular. I'm not surprised by their choice, even if Halloween in August feels odd to me.

I will say, though, having lived my entire life in a climate where you don't know until 2 days ahead of time whether you're going to be sweating like mad all night (Of course, the year it was 70 something and my kid was in a fur lined werewolf costume.) or if there will be a blizzard and your costume is going to need to fit over snowpants, a jacket, boots, and 3 layers of extra clothing (The year your kids wants to be Tinkerbell, of course!); knowing ahead of time that it will just be stinking hot and to plan accordingly is kind of a relief.

It’s a good point. A new party means new decorations and manpower to switch it all out. I’ve never been to a party and always took trips in summer. But in October we were at the beach and my son and I took one day to go to MK. The decor I saw looked the same as the pictures I saw online over all the years I have been following Disney. The Mickey jack o lanterns and some fall leaves as garland. Probably looks very different at night but I was not impressed by the decor. He t doesn’t look like they have invested in new stuff recently.

And yes, Halloween has turned into a huge cash cow. I personally decorate very little but it’s crazy the amount people spend on decor and costumes. We talk all the time about that one store bought costume we had as kids. It was a princess. That plastic mask that you couldn’t breathe through and a plastic smock type thing that went over your clothes. lol!

 

[TDSAXX]

So, a few facts: we live in a capitalist society which means companies are owned privately and run for profit. NOT collectivism where the needs of the group are prioritized over the individual. Disney’s main purpose is to generate profit for shareholders. Walt Disney’s vision is the product now, not the purpose.

The parties are a great example of supply and demand. The first parties (the “best value” parties) capped attendance at smaller crowds, cost less, and were offered on fewer nights. The demand was high, therefore, Disney was able to charge more without losing its customer base. To create more supply, Disney offered the parties on more nights and allowed higher attendance. Call it greed if you want, but this is a basic law of economics and the reality of the society we live in.

Now for the scary part: big data and machine learning. Disney is tracking absolutely everything and AI is learning and predicting at an unprecedented rate. They are now more accurate than ever before at determining what can be upsold and for how much before demand tapers. Disney has models with all kinds of crazy calculations and variables to determine if X factors occur, and the price is Y amount, there will be approximately Z attendance. So for the August parties, they are predicting based on historical data* that there will be demand for them.

*I think a lack of historical data is why they got the crowd predictions for Star Wars so wrong. The more data they gather the more accurate they will be at predicting for the future.

Thanks for the explanation Captain Obvious.

 

[Ladyandthepuppies]

Thanks for the explanation Captain Obvious.

I’m here for you like that

 

[ChipnDale79]

You really don’t though lol like...at the end of the day, Disney is a corporation concerned primarily with profit. Y’all can bemoan that, and it’s awful in a lot of ways, but that’s just reality. And the only thing that will stop it is another recession. They really have no incentive to do so otherwise because the same folks complaining online still go year after year for the most part, the demand is still there. When people stop having disposable income for Halloween parties in August and After Hours and dessert parties then you’ll see them stop.

the next recession is going to hit disney very hard, part of that is because people just toss money at disney like its candy.

For the record, we went 5 times last year, and almost every year since 2008, we took 2011 and 12 off because they were the years our boys were born.

We arent' going back in 2020.

 

[ChipnDale79]

I have become one of those people and this year for the first time in 30 years of 2 to 3 Disney trips a year, I found myself skipping the Christmas party while I was in Orlando and tried out SeaWorld. In fact, I went to Universal and no Disney park at all this trip, and I've never in my life been able to go down there and NOT do Disney! It seemed sacrilegious to me to be that close and not do at least ONE day at Disney. I doubt I'm the only one that's THAT disillusioned with WDW. I wasn't expecting much, but I sure enjoyed SeaWorld at Christmastime! It was a lovely park and everything was a walk on. So nice to find a park with "off season" crowds like we used to have in early December at WDW. I can't wait to go back! Viva la Shamu!!

We're doing a cruise through Royal out of Orlando, we leave on a Monday and we're driving down on a Saturday, so that gave us a day in Orlando to do what we wanted.

We got a deal through SeaWorld for a family of 4 that included 2 nights at the doubletree and length of stay tickets to SeaWorld for about $450. I can't even get into a gate at Disney for that price for all 4 of us, let alone hotel rooms.

 

[jkh36619]

If you have an AP or PH, Magic Kingdom is a nice place to be on a party day. Were out early and head to another park that evening. That has been my experience anyway. We plan our days as such.