When EJ Dickson went to Disney for the first time, she realized it was the only place she and her sister didn’t fight. “We’ve been chasing that high ever since,” the New Yorker writer says. She’s been there dozens of times since then, including with her own “huge Disney fan” kids. Now, though, it feels like there’s “no acknowledgement or recognition” of her brand loyalty.
Dickson isn’t alone. Facebook groups and Reddit forums are rife with people complaining about rising ticket prices, a lack of new attractions and complicated pass systems. As the company grapples with internal management issues and post-COVID difficulties, some Disney superfans feel like their loyalty is being taken for granted.
A key element of this, for those who visit the parks regularly, is the ability to skip the lines at popular attractions. From 1999, visitors to the Disney parks have been able to take advantage of FastPasses: free tickets, issued from machines at attractions, that allow them to return later and use a faster queue. It was a popular scheme, not least because it was included in the price of admission. In 2021, this was replaced by “Genie Plus”, a paid scheme that allowed visitors to book their favourite attractions on the morning of their departure. This in turn was replaced by a two-tier “Lightning Lane” scheme, costing up to $35 (or £28) per day. It allows organised visitors to book a selection of attractions up to a few days in advance, depending on where visitors are coming from.
“I know that as an annual passholder and a local, I’m not going to buy into this system because I don’t see any benefit to strategically planning where you’re going and when,” said Kirk LaVecchia, owner of the Walrus Carp clothing company. “I’m part of the group that’s frustrated by it.” The changes seem to frustrate regulars the most; first-time Disney visitors, who haven’t experienced the previous versions, may be less concerned.
Still, it contributes to the rising cost of visiting for everyone. Len Testa, president of logistics company Touring Plans, shared data with The Telegraph who estimates that 70 percent of the increased costs since 2019 come from items that were previously free.
“A family of four using the paid ride-hailing system can now pay up to $140 (£110) a day,” he says. Testa also points to the demise of the Magical Express, which provided free transportation between Orlando International Airport and the Disney resort, as a similar cutback. “Now it’s about $150 (£117) extra for Uber, or you have to rent a car.” This is in addition to admission fees. UK holidaymakers are often in the know for deals that aren’t available to US visitors, but prices remain high. Disney currently offers a seven-day ticket to its Florida parks from £495 per person. Accommodation, flights, transport, meals and activities are all extra.
These changes have apparently shocked regulars. But Testa is clear that he doesn’t think anything will change. “Wall Street would kill Disney if they cut prices again,” he says.
The discontent isn’t just about prices. The new queuing system has led to a controversial new version of the parks’ Disability Access Scheme (DAS). The previous version was intended to provide an alternative option for people who have difficulty waiting in a conventional queue. Now, only guests with a developmental disability, such as autism, can use the scheme. Travellers like Charisma Mangahas, who has the neurodevelopmental condition Guillain-Barré syndrome, say this is unfair. She posted a message on TikTok after she was denied disabled access to Disney California Adventure park, saying: “For those of you in the same situation as me, I am so sorry.”
Cases like Mangahas’ represent the more serious side of the queue-jumping confusion. But fans are also angry about the lack of new attractions. “The number one way to get people into the theme park industry every year is to build new attractions,” says Testa. British equivalents have seen a number of new openings in recent years, such as Hyperia at Thorpe Park and Gold Rush at Drayton Manor. While other American parks have had similar reasons for thrill-seekers to come, Disney parks have few changes planned for the foreseeable future.
The exception, of sorts, is Magic Kingdom, whose Splash Mountain attraction – first installed in Florida in 1989 – was updated last year. The original design was based on the now-outdated Song of the South film; the innovation is inspired by the 2009 film The Princess and the Frog. The change—long-awaited and relatively minor in terms of the ride’s mechanics—was seen as polarizing by a group of traditional Disney fans. And for many, it’s not enough. “There’s nothing in the pipeline right now,” Testa says. “The earliest they could open a new attraction, given their current capabilities, is probably 2027 or 2028.”
Superfans point to Covid as a turning point. Disney laid off some 28,000 park employees during the pandemic, calling the move “heartbreaking.” For some, it has made visiting the parks a more difficult experience. Online, guests complain about rude “cast members” — Disney park employees — while others point to a lingering sense that areas are less clean and the environment less pristine.
Dickson points to this staging as a primary reason to visit the parks. “When we first went, my parents were really impressed by the level of care and attention to detail: how meticulously everything is planned, from the landscaping to the sound design.”
“It’s not like that anymore, but back then it felt like they had everything planned for you,” she says. It’s a sentiment many fans echo, somewhat wistfully, though most are keen to point out that the “magic” is still there. LaVecchia points to social media, rather than major changes, as the reason for the dissatisfaction. “Guests see things happening on social media in the parks and expect it to happen to them, but those magical moments were always rare. It warps people’s expectations.”
Testa has similar sentiments: “When you pay top dollar, you expect top-notch service. And sometimes that falls short, because 50 million people [Walt Disney World] “Every year,” he says. “Then there are complaints, and then social media amplifies those complaints. People start noticing things, right? It’s a snowball effect.”
But if the magic remains, it will also have an impact on the wallet. “It seems like Disney has gotten a lot greedier over the last 10 years or so,” Dickson says. “They clearly don’t care as much about their loyal fans, because they’re still going to have a lot of families who have enough disposable income to go.”
Testa agrees. “If you look at Disney’s strategy for attracting visitors over the last decade, it’s gone from implicitly targeting the top 20 percent of households based on income to explicitly saying this is for wealthy people,” he says.
For the superfans, it may not be enough to deter them from coming, but it’s certainly enough to get them thinking.
“I’ve been priced out,” Dickson says, “but I’m still trying to scrape together enough money for little trips and saving money where I can. I love it.”
Disney has been contacted for comment.