According to a report, this summer at the Walt Disney World Resort, attendance is much lower than it has been in recent years. Experts believe families have stayed away from theme parks due to record heat, higher costs, and the fact that they prefer to attend at less busy times.
Touring Plans data shows that Disney’s summer numbers are declining after two years of great post-pandemic figures. The numbers include one of the smallest Fourth of July crowds ever recorded at a park.
Touring Plans keeps tabs on the visitor levels to EPCOT, Magic Kingdom Park, Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios every day using a scale from 1 to 10. The levels are based on the daily averages of the wait times for the most popular attractions at each park.
In June of 2023, visitors to all four amusement parks spent an average of 5.56 per day. This figure averaged out at 6.46 in June of 2022. On average, there were 4.54 people in attendance during the beginning 11 days of July ’23. The average daily attendance up to July 11, ’22, was 6.36.
Writer and yearly pass holder for DisneyDining.com, Michael Arnold has seen much fewer crowds and shorter lines on his recent trips. Time spent in line for Disney’s Animal Kingdom’s Avatar: Flight of Passage. Every day, it seemed, there was a line around the block to go on the 4-D simulator ride. It has been discovered that there is a 55-minute wait time in the afternoon.
The Walt Disney Company still has a rough road ahead in 2023.
Reports show executives at Disney have said that they anticipate lower profits at its U.S. parks this year. The Orlando resort is giving steep discounts on hotel rooms over the holiday season.
According to travel agents and experts, the decline is more evidence that Disney’s recent price rises and alterations to park activities have put off some families.
Disney has also intentionally and systematically reduced park attendance in an effort to maximize the quality of the guest experience and hence increase revenue from the remaining guests.
