The happiest place in the world also becomes the most priceless; A Disney fan says it's cheaper to travel abroad with the family than to visit the famous theme parks.
Longtime Disney fan Jake Williams criticized the park as “anti-consumer” and pointed out that eliminating some of their free services added hundreds of dollars to family day at the park.
Jake visited Disney's Magic Kingdom Park in Orlando, Florida and documented how much it costs for two people to visit the park – and found that prices have increased a whopping 44 percent since 2017.
When Jake visited the park with his partner Emmi, he stayed at Disney's Port Orleans resort and decided to take a day trip to Magic Kingdom Park.
Disney fanatic Jake Williams (pictured) criticized the park as “anti-consumer” and pointed out that the removal of some free services added hundreds of dollars to family day at the park
Jake criticized the park as “anti-consumer” and pointed out that the elimination of some free services took hundreds of dollars away from family day at the park
“I got a discounted rate of $249 a night, but it was actually $280 a night including taxes,” he said of their room. which he described as “pretty nice” and in a good location.
The couple began their Disney day in the resort's dining room.
“We both got the bounty record, which was pretty good,” he shared. “The platter is $22.79 per person, and with tax it came to $27.24.”
From there, they were able to use Disney's free bus transportation from the resorts – although the park had reformatted the pricing tier of its annual pass system since Jake's last visit.
'[They] “We have increased the prices for both the passes and the regular day tickets,” he explained. “We chose the classic Magic Kingdom park, which is also the most expensive park, unlike the Disney days of the past. Now there are variable prices for each park depending on when you go.”
Magic Kingdom cost $154 per person, so $328 for him and his girlfriend Emmi.
“As expensive as that may sound, at least not on a more expensive day like late November, when day tickets can cost up to $184 per person,” he stressed.
When we arrived at the park, Jake reported that the lines were “insane” and the lines for some attractions and rides were over 90 minutes long.
Magic Kingdom cost $154 per person, so $328 for him and his girlfriend Emmi. Wait, Jake says the crowd is “crazy.”
He paid a discounted rate of $249 per night for the room at Disney's Port Orleans Resort, which ended up being $280 per night plus taxes
Jake found that the difference between 2024 and 2017 prices was about $320 – or a huge 44 percent
The changes to the park's annual pass system have been reformatted since Jake's last visit and are far more expensive. Jake also noticed long wait times for all rides and attractions
However, while park visitors in the past could have used a FastPass to skip the line, Disney reformatted its queuing system in 2021 and renamed it LightingLane.
The exact same trip in 2017 would have cost a total of $567 – that's a difference of almost $320 between two trips, a 44% increase in just seven years and well above inflation, which is around 24 percent is
Jake said the main reason for the price increase was Disney's decision to charge for the resort bus and fast passes.
“During our trip we paid $23 per person, so $46 for the two of us,” he reported. “After purchasing privileges to something we used to get for free, we booked a few attractions for later in the day, like Pirates and Haunted Mansion – but wait times were consistently long throughout the afternoon.”
Jake and his partner Emmi visited the park and spent a total of $886 for a day at the Magic Kingdom
“Now in this version they charge you money for it,” he said angrily, adding that the system means you have to buy another app called Genie+ to download that app – and that you have to pay extra for some rides to stand in the queue.
“I don't like crowds at all, I don't like standing for long periods of time – it's all very uncomfortable for me, so we really haven't done much,” Jake admitted.
The couple stopped for lunch at the Park Columbia Harbor House and paid a combined $31.70. After strolling around for a few more hours, they were treated to a snack of coffee and popcorn, which totaled $12.70.
The only ride Jake wanted to try was the Tron Lightcycle Power Run – which opened in Spring 2023. Unlike normal rides, it has two entrances for “digital” queues – which is what they missed.
Because of this, they had to purchase the single Lightinglane – the remodeled new Fast Pass – which cost them $20 each.
“$42 for a 60-second attraction, that’s a hard pill to swallow,” he admitted.
Jake and Emmi ate at Skipper Canteen, which cost $83.75, which Disney fans said was “overpriced.”
In total, the Disney day trip cost $886.34 for two adults — more than a $320 difference from 2017 prices.
magical kingdom
For two people:
Bus to resort: $33.60
Hotel: $280.81 per night
Breakfast: $27.24
Magic Kingdom ticket: $328.02
Genie+: $46
Lighting Track: $42.60
Lunch: $31.70
Snacks (coffee and popcorn): $7.20 and $5.50
Dinner: $83.75
TOTAL: $886.34
“A trip to Disney World just got a lot more expensive,” Jake mused.
“And remember, this is without purchasing any additional merchandise or other snacks or even magic bands that used to be free but now cost about $35.”
Despite being a Disney fan, he admitted it was “difficult” to justify the price.
“It's frustrating to see Disney making something that used to be free, making tens of millions and providing no value to the parks,” he said
He said a hypothetical trip for a family of three – two adults and a child – spending six days at a resort and four days in the parks – along with food and drinks and the additional cost of passenger queues – would be around 4,000 U.S. dollar.
“I can't help but feel that no one seems to care if Disney just gets staggeringly more expensive than it used to be, all while eliminating perks that used to be free,” he noted.
“At this point there is basically no argument for Genie Plus and eliminating Fastpass, it is simply anti-consumer, as are these steep price increases,” he continued. “But people just eat the cost.”
In comparison, Jake said he budgeted a trip to France's Rivera for $3,462 and a luxury trip to Bali for around $4,600.
“I really love the Disney parks, but I'm not willing to put up with the huge price increases and this complicated system where I know there are better places to spend my money,” Jake explained.