Disney Parks Add Hundreds of Dollars Worth of Paywalls While Mourning “Lower Income” Guests

in Disney Parks

A family of four looks at their phone while visiting Magic Kingdom Park at Walt Disney World.

Credit: Disney

In case you missed it, Disney has a theory as to why revenue is down at its theme parks this quarter: lower-income consumers are feeling stressed.

At least, that’s what Senior Executive Vice President and CFO Hugh Johnston claimed during the company’s earnings call earlier this month. “The lower income consumer is feeling a little bit of stress. The high-income consumer is traveling internationally,” Johnston said.

A woman and a young girl, both smiling, stand in front of a castle with towers. The girl is holding a pink balloon. The woman has long brown hair and wears a denim jacket, while the girl has blonde hair and is wearing pink mouse ears. A street lamp is in the background.
Credit: Disney

Cold though this observation may be, it aligns with a LendingTree survey released earlier this year that found 24% of all Disney guests go into debt for their vacation. This number soars to 45% of parents with children younger than 18 who take on an average of $1,983 in debt.

The truth is that visiting Disney is more expensive than ever. Since COVID-19 shuttered Disney’s theme parks worldwide—from Anaheim to Tokyo—tickets, food, merchandise, parking, and more have all soared in price.

A young girl wearing Mickey Mouse ears and holding a plush toy is being held by an adult. Both are smiling. The adult has shoulder-length hair and a jacket that reads "IT'S A JOYFUL CELEBRATION." They are standing on a wooden bridge with greenery in the background.
Credit: Disney

What’s more, several new upcharges have been added to the parks. That means the best of the magic is essentially now behind a paywall. While the stresses of these upcharges are easily ignored by frequent guests, those on their “once in a lifetime” trip can easily feel pressured into paying whatever they need to pay to ensure they do Disney “properly.”

Some of these upcharges are harder to swallow than others. However, these five Disney park paywalls are among the most frustrating.

Premium Show Viewing

If you want a premium viewpoint of the parade or fireworks, Disney has the perfect spot for you – if you’re willing to pay the price, of course. This feature isn’t in place at every Disney park, but at Disneyland Paris, for example, the optimum view of Disney Illuminations or Disney Stars on Parade from the Reserved Viewing Area will cost you €19 per guest, per show ($20.85 USD).

Fireworks explode and fan out above Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland Paris
Credit: Disney

Tokyo Disney Resort has also implemented a paywall to reserve the best view for both Disney Harmony in Color and Toyko Disneyland Electrical Parade, the daily daytime and nighttime parades at Tokyo Disneyland, and the park’s upcoming nighttime spectacular, Reach for the Stars. These cost 2,500 yen ($16.75 USD) per person.

Of course, you can still get a decent viewpoint for the fireworks or parade without spending a penny. However, introducing limited areas for shows that are free to all guests is one of the recent Disney changes we’re not so enthusiastic about.

Merchandise Delivery

Earlier this year, Disneyland Paris sparked backlash after a guest discovered a newly introduced fee for having your merchandise delivered from your hotel gift shop to your hotel room.

A young girl stands on a white wooden balcony, smiling as she looks to the side. She has braided hair and wears a blue shirt with gold accents. She holds a doll dressed in yellow and brown. Sunlight and greenery are visible in the background.
Credit: Disney

Reddit user nsfwtttt detailed their experience trying to purchase merchandise from their Disneyland Paris hotel gift shop and have it delivered to their room. While you’d think that would fall under your typical concierge service (especially seeing as how you’re already shelling out for the merchandise itself), it turns out that the resort now charges a €45 ($48 USD) fee to make this happen. Yikes.

Lightning Lane Multi Pass

We’re shocked it took us this long to start talking about FastPass’s demise because trust us when we say it’s never far from the front of our minds. As Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resort reopened after COVID-19, FastPass was officially declared missing in action. Disney later confirmed that it was gone for good and a new paid service would take its place.

Crowds on Main Street U.S.A. at Disney World with Cinderella Castle in the background
Credit: Forsaken Fotos, Flickr

Of course, this was Genie+, a system that arguably ravaged Disney’s wait times more so than any other decision made by the powers that be in decades. The unpopular system—which could cost as much as $35 per guest, per day, after Disney introduced variable pricing in October 2022—battled through three years of unpopularity until Disney introduced another system, Lightning Lane Multi Pass, in July 2024.

Like Genie+, the prices for this system – which allows you to pre-book Lightning Lanes to theoretically “skip the line” of your favorite attractions – are variable and can rapidly add up for large families taking longer vacations. What’s most disappointing is the fact that there’s any pricetag at all. Long live the days of free paper FastPasses.

Meeting Certain Characters

Don’t get us wrong: you can still meet your fair share of exciting characters at Disney’s theme parks, free with the cost of admission. We’ll never complain about being able to hug Chewbacca, chat with Disney Princesses, or take a picture with the main man (rodent?) himself, Mickey Mouse.

Mickey Mouse dressed in a colorful magician's costume, featuring a purple top hat and a green and pink suit, stands in front of a brightly lit castle.
Credit: Disney

However, it does feel like a lot of the rare characters we used to love spotting throughout the parks unannounced are long gone.

Instead, the most exciting character meet and greets are behind the paywall of Disney’s ticketed events, such as Oogie Boogie Bash, Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, and Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. We dare you to spot the likes of Lotso, the Seven Dwarfs, and Doctor Facilier on an average day at Disneyland.

It’s not quite as easy as buying a ticket to meet these characters for yourself. Disney’s ticketed events sell out fast. The entirety of this year’s Oogie Boogie Bash, for example, sold out in just 11 days (and 2023 sold out even faster).

A character dressed as Minnie Mouse wears a vibrant purple and green witch costume, standing in front of the brightly lit entrance to a circus-themed area at a theme park. Illuminated signs and festive decorations are visible in the background.
Credit: Disney

They also boast hefty pricetags, sometimes as much as $189 per person. That’s an eye-watering amount of money to spend hours waiting in line for a character just because you know the chances of them appearing in the Disney parks during the daytime are next to zero.

Disney After Hours

Speaking of ticketed events, Disney After Hours is a real mindbender for us. It was wildly unpopular when it first launched but seems to have caught on in the years since. Essentially, it’s the same as any other ticketed event that takes place after park close.

A couple stands on a building terrace at night, watching fireworks explode brightly above Magic Kingdom.
Credit: Disney

The big difference is that you don’t get any of the cool stuff, decor, or limited edition merch. Instead, you just get a slightly emptier theme park (and, admittedly, free ice cream, popcorn, and other select snacks), which means bonus time for your favorite attractions.

But once upon a time, enjoying these perks used to be much easier (and cheaper). Extra Magic Hours gave all Walt Disney World Resort hotel guests the chance to explore the parks before and after their official opening hours.

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train at Magic Kingdom.
Credit: Disney

Nowadays, all guests – whether they’re staying at a Value or a Deluxe Resort – can enjoy Early Theme Park Entry. Extended Evening Hours, however, are reserved for Disney’s highest-paying guests, AKA those staying at a Deluxe Resort such as Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge, Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa, or Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort.

They’re also only offered on very, very select dates, at select parks at a time. While Extra Magic Hours used to be offered at every Disney World theme park except Animal Kingdom, Extended Evening Hours currently only cover two: Magic Kingdom Park and EPCOT.

In other words, if you want to experience Disney World theme parks late at night, you’d better be prepared to pay Deluxe prices – or cough up for a Disney After Hours ticket.

Which Disney Parks paywall do you find most frustrating?

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