Credit: DisneyIt’s only October, but The Walt Disney Company is officially in fiscal 2026, which may spell bad news for parkgoers.
Disney has already set the stage for a busy year ahead, with billions of dollars earmarked for its Disney Experiences division. At Walt Disney World, work continues on Piston Peak National Park, the Cars-inspired expansion replacing Rivers of America at Magic Kingdom. Across the country, Disneyland is pressing forward with Stark Flight Lab, a Marvel-themed simulator in Avengers Campus that will feature Robert Downey Jr. back in the role of Tony Stark, alongside the ambitious Avengers Infinity Defense dark ride.
International parks are also evolving. Disneyland Paris recently debuted its new entrance area, World Premiere, as part of its sweeping rebrand to Disney Adventure World, which will include the addition of World of Frozen next spring. Meanwhile, resort hotels across the globe are undergoing significant refurbishments, and new entertainment offerings — including a recently teased show at Disneyland — are already in development. For guests, that means visible transformation across parks worldwide — but it also signals something else.
History of Disney Price Hikes
Capital spending will move forward regardless of the fiscal calendar, yet Disney’s financial year has often been a catalyst for price adjustments.
Historically, the company has used the turnover as an opportunity to quietly roll out increases across dining, hotels, and even ticketing. Guests visiting in the coming weeks may once again find themselves paying more for the very same vacation staples they enjoyed just months earlier.
In fact, the pattern was already made clear last fall. On October 23, 2024, Walt Disney World Resort pushed through sweeping overnight price hikes. Popular quick-service favorites jumped by a quarter here and fifty cents there, but the scale was staggering when applied resort-wide. A soft drink, bottled water, or even a churro suddenly cost more across Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Disney Springs, both water parks, and resort hotels also absorbed the changes.
Table service dining saw some of the most eye-catching adjustments. At Magic Kingdom’s Cinderella’s Royal Table (which has long been slammed for its high prices), a breakfast that had been $69 rose to $74 in a single day. Character dining venues like Chef Mickey’s and ‘Ohana also saw increases, with breakfast and dinner menus ticking up by several dollars per person. EPCOT’s Akershus and Biergarten, Disney’s Animal Kingdom’s Tusker House, and Disney’s Riviera Resort’s Topolino’s Terrace all followed suit. For families of four, that translated into double-digit jumps on a single meal.
While those adjustments already reshaped budgets in 2024, the arrival of fiscal 2026 means guests should brace for the next wave. Disney has not yet confirmed the extent of new increases, but the company’s track record makes the prospect difficult to ignore. Thousands of menu items across parks, resorts, and dining outlets are vulnerable to adjustment.
The impact stretches beyond snacks and sit-downs. Disney historically pairs food and beverage hikes with broader cost escalations, from annual passes and hotel valet fees to single-day ticket prices.
We’ve already seen some price increases in recent weeks. Effective October 1, Disney increased the price of the Walt Disney World Travel Protection Plan. In mid-September, Disney set the Lightning Lane Premier Pass to its highest price since the Fourth of July weekend.
How do you feel about potential price increases at Disney?