Focusing on Locals

[Mr Wiggins]

I agree with pretty much everything you said. However, there is a nasty side to that coin. Because Disney can rely on APs, they are taken advantage of. APs are looked at as Disney's slush fund. Disney does not have to work as hard to get and keep customers. Hence, you get deferred maintenance, reduction in services, and ever increasing prices.

Exactly. As long as Disney has millions of customers locked into a "use-it-or-lose-it" contract that guarantees a ginormous cash flow, they can cut staffing and services to the bone.

[stovk]

Right now, APs might be the only thing saving Disneyland from a shutdown. For all the naysaying about APs, when the rubber meets the road, this is why APs matter and why EVERY theme park has an AP program. Economic trends, disasters, etc and wipe out demand OVERNIGHT, as has happened with the coronavirus. However, your stable of APs can get you through the hard times when all else fails.

Disney knows this and is why they will never eviscerate the AP program, and now, it is probably even more strengthened in their mind. People talk about how APs "get in cheap" but this is a fallacy, they don't get in cheap at all. Most APs have committed more money upfront to Disney than most run of the mill tourists with no guarantee that they'll get value for their investment. When you pledge a bunch of money up front to a business, you are taking on risk, on the premise that you'll use it, but no one knows the future. Few would have anticipated this situation on Jan 1 2020, and yet, millions of APs have already signed up and committed. That matters, it is important for a business.

Disney gets a strong stream of revenue in order to keep the lights on at the park. Without the AP program, Disneyland would be in far worse shape.

I agree with pretty much everything you said. However, there is a nasty side to that coin. Because Disney can rely on APs, they are taken advantage of. APs are looked at as Disney's slush fund. Disney does not have to work as hard to get and keep customers. Hence, you get deferred maintenance, reduction in services, and ever increasing prices.

[Golden Zephyr]

Right now, APs might be the only thing saving Disneyland from a shutdown. For all the naysaying about APs, when the rubber meets the road, this is why APs matter and why EVERY theme park has an AP program. Economic trends, disasters, etc and wipe out demand OVERNIGHT, as has happened with the coronavirus. However, your stable of APs can get you through the hard times when all else fails.

Disney knows this and is why they will never eviscerate the AP program, and now, it is probably even more strengthened in their mind. People talk about how APs "get in cheap" but this is a fallacy, they don't get in cheap at all. Most APs have committed more money upfront to Disney than most run of the mill tourists with no guarantee that they'll get value for their investment. When you pledge a bunch of money up front to a business, you are taking on risk, on the premise that you'll use it, but no one knows the future. Few would have anticipated this situation on Jan 1 2020, and yet, millions of APs have already signed up and committed. That matters, it is important for a business.

Disney gets a strong stream of revenue in order to keep the lights on at the park. Without the AP program, Disneyland would be in far worse shape.

[SkunkID]

Honestly, I just kind of wish they'd bring back some of the more "passive" stuff, like all the AP area stuff back when MSEP came back in 2017. Or the summer viewings of Disneyland and world of color in GMWML. Stuff where it's unique experiences seem to go farther with me than just buttons and magnets

[Starcade]

I just wish they would bring back the exclusive AP renewal events where the park was a ghost town and you walk down an empty Main Street USA on a weeknight and walked on to all the e-tickets etc. even though it was only for like 4 hours it is the AP perk that my wife and I miss the most.

[tarheelalum]

I think Disney is wise to take this approach from a financial perspective. With the virus dominating the news a lot of people are not willing to drop thousands of dollars on a trip to Disneyland right now and potentially expose themselves or their family to illness. But locals are just right down the freeway so they do not have to make a major investment to go to Disneyland. In fact most passholders probably feel they are losing money if they do not attend. Not too mention many of them are young and young people in general tend to think of themselves as invincible and do not worry about getting sick. So Disneyland is doing the best thing in this situation to maximize profits.

[Sun Bonnet]

I totally agree that these offerings are standard and just being repackaged and are not enticing at all. I also really agree with hbdad that all businesses do this type of marketing to their loyal customers. Why do people expect Disney to act any differently? And if we're comparing Disney to tourist locales, go anywhere in the world, locals are going to pay less or visit local tourist attractions for free, as they should.

Also, if Disney were really focusing on locals, they wouldn't be building a DVC tower. DVC members are the real Disney elites, not AP holders.

[Jesser-pie]

As a local AP, I find none of the special offerings enticing. I don’t feel catered to. I feel pandered to and there is the the distinction.

[WaltDisney'sAlec]

Anyone who has been an AP in the last ten years knows that many of these "features" have been standard. It looks like now they've just grouped them all into a single branding campaign called AP Magic.

Some of these are newer than others, but it's still what I think should be the bare minimum offered to APs.

[hbdad]

Imagine how a tourist who saved up all year for a dream Disneyland vacation must feel when he learns that more than half the other people in a horribly flooded park paid WAY less to get in and that he is excluded from all sorts of nice stuff that the APs are somehow entitled to..........

That's not just Disney, but everywhere. You fail to articulate why that's so bad anyways. Whether it's Disney or American Express with early access to concert tickets for AMEX holders, or a bank that offers lower mortgage rates to its customers, insurance companies that offer loyalty discounts, cable companies that give deals only to new customers (and not existing ones), hotels that offer discounts to AAA members, etc. Do I really need to go on? That's the way the business world is run. No tourist will find it shocking that certain groups of people get benefits while others don't. How about the locals surprise when they hear how much lower the cost of living is where the tourist lives or how the tourist pays less taxes, how the tourist has special access to or discounted access to things where he is from while the local here does not. A few years ago Disney did something like this with AP days (or some title like that). You know what special things I got? A picture with King Louie and a button. Big whoop. You make it seem like these "benefits" are meaningful. Isn't Cheapek running the place now?

[Captain Andy]

https://www.ocregister.com/2020/03/0...=fb-ocregister

Honestly, it's a smart decision. They need as many guests coming to the park that they can right now. And as I've said many times more entertainment earlier in the summer this year will also bring guests, both local and international in. If bringing msep back for two months brought people, imagine what bringing back Paint The Night all summer could do

I really like this! Regarding the tourist argument, I always think it’s wise that depending on the type of vacation, it would be good to upgrade to an AP status to save some money and help yourself to the perks and benefits. After all, a one-day ticket practically covers the down-payment of a Flex pass.

[Golden Zephyr]

https://www.ocregister.com/2020/03/0...=fb-ocregister

Honestly, it's a smart decision. They need as many guests coming to the park that they can right now. And as I've said many times more entertainment earlier in the summer this year will also bring guests, both local and international in. If bringing msep back for two months brought people, imagine what bringing back Paint The Night all summer could do

It would be amazing. I agree, the long term fallout from this most recent crisis might be a resurgence of staycation type demand like in the early 2000s. If so, it makes more sense than ever to focus on APs which form a stable and predictable revenue source. I think that Disneyland really values their annual passholders.

[micromind]

Imagine how a tourist who saved up all year for a dream Disneyland vacation must feel when he learns that more than half the other people in a horribly flooded park paid WAY less to get in and that he is excluded from all sorts of nice stuff that the APs are somehow entitled to..........

[nickdean707]

https://www.ocregister.com/2020/03/0...=fb-ocregister

Honestly, it's a smart decision. They need as many guests coming to the park that they can right now. And as I've said many times more entertainment earlier in the summer this year will also bring guests, both local and international in. If bringing msep back for two months brought people, imagine what bringing back Paint The Night all summer could do