Disney Park's attendance fell - This is why, said the CEO
CEO Bob Iger says you have to look more than shorter waiting times.
Whether you are a Disney annual passes or have a trip at the top of Your bucket list , it is undeniable that these parks offer something special. People travel from all over the world to live a little of this Disney magic - putting their favorite characters, eating theme food and enjoying a few rides. But participation in Disney Parks took a nose of this this summer - at a time when these destinations are normally packed in the branchies. Read the rest to know why Disney CEO Bob iger said it seems that fewer people are flocking to the parks.
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Visitors have noticed smaller crowds.
During the typically very busy vacation on July 4, visitors said Disney World in Orlando, Florida, was unusually empty. On Reddit, a Disney lover published a Graphic of sensation data , which showed that waiting times in the Magic Kingdom Park were down 30% compared to 2022 and 2019.
"Normally, we avoid the weekend of July 4 like the plague, so I was surprised to see how low waiting time to [Maging Kingdom] today," wrote the Redder. "Especially if we consider that it is historically one of the busiest periods of the year at [Walt Disney World]."
On Twitter, a visitor wrote that they went to the four Disney parks during the holiday weekend and "Hollywood Studios was a dead city , "While" Epcot was very empty. ""
Redditors offered different explanations for shorter lines and fewer crowds, including the unprecedented heat of Florida, the expensive plane ticket and tighter budgets in the middle of inflation. But now the Disney CEO offers its own reasons.
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Iger attributed the slowdown to a more important problem in Florida.
During Appearance of July 13 On CNBC Squawk box, Iger spoke with David Faber About Disney parks, arguing that the fall in attendance on July 4 probably had something to do with heat and humidity. But on a larger scale, he said that so-called drops come from the comparison of this year's figures to those where Disney had less competition.
"Florida opened early during Cavid and created a huge request, and had no competition because there were a number of other places, states, which were not yet opened," said Iger. "If you look at the figures in Florida in 2023 ... against 2022, where not as much opening and Florida was the only match in town, there is much more competition today."
Iger also said that in some Florida counties, tax revenue from the hotel industry had been down between 6 and 7%, which again indicates that the drop in tourism has no impact on Disney.
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He is not concerned about long -term parks.
Iger also refuted the allegations according to which the quarrel between the governor of Florida Ron Desantis And Disney contributes to the drop in visitors - and also said that problems are not related to prices. Iger said that the company examined if its pricing reflected value, and Disney World "is the place where the Disney brand lives in its most sublime form" and "it is very successful," said Iger.
The CEO added that Disney did not "torlate our hands" on "short -term problems in Florida". In response to Faber's assertion that Iger is not concerned about a significant drop over time ", the CEO has again reiterated that it is not.
"You are looking at a comparison with last year, and it's very, very different," he said. "We have no long -term concerns about this company."
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Waiting times have been shorter for months, but the summer crisis is surprising.
While Iger points are held on heat and recent decrease in hotel occupation tax collections in Florida, CNN again points to meat data shorter waiting than medium dating from February. (For universal, a similar trend has been in place since March). As CNN notes, longer waiting times generally indicate more people in the parks. AE0FCC31AE342FD3A1346EBB1F342FCB
Don Munsil , the president of the Disney and Universal Guide MousseSaSes website, told the point of sale that the slowdown earlier this month was "remarkable", stressing that a weekend of vacation in summer is a really surprising moment for crowds.
Content creator on the theme of Disney and travel agent Kayla Pareti Also according to the slowdown this summer is unprecedented. "For a year and a half after Cavid, each time was a busy period," she told CNN. "Don't get me wrong, people are still coming, but it's not about where he was."
Until now in July, the average waiting time in Disney World is 33 minutes - the shortest wait since January 2022, CNN reported, citing sensations data. According to data provided by CNBC, the average waiting time at Magic Kingdom was 47 minutes on July 4, 2019; 31 minutes on July 4, 2022; And 27 minutes on July 4 of this year.
