The happiest place on earth just got a little bit more expensive, and right before the season peak.
The Walt Disney Co. raised prices of a single-day ticket to its California Adventure and Disneyland theme parks from $92 to $96 for visitors 10 years and older and from $90 to $94 for children. Park hopper passes also increased by $13, and annual passes exceeded $500.
This increase in price occurred quietly overnight this past weekend on the Disneyland website, and the prices went into effect Saturday night at midnight.
“This increase in prices is kind of a big deal for my family because we are avid Disneyland goers,” said Quinn Alkonis, from Claremont, California. “Sometimes we buy season passes, and sometimes we just get single-day tickets, but it seems like prices are always raising every year. We’re starting to go less and less because of how expensive it is.”
Prices for the park have usually increased around 4 percent every year, with increases in August 2010, June 2011, May 2012 and June 2013. If prices continue to increase at this rate, next year the tickets will exceed $100 for one-day admission.
“Like any business, we periodically evaluate our pricing and make adjustments based on a variety of factors,” the park said in a statement in the LA Times. “A ticket to our theme parks represents a great value, particularly when you look at the breadth and quality of attractions and entertainment we offer and the special moments guests experience with our cast.”
Even with the park raising its prices, the value and quality of the attractions and entertainment are still a driving force that causes visitors to keep coming back.
“The increase in prices doesn’t really affect my decision to go to the park; it mostly just affects when I would go and how I would plan or budget to save to go,” said Kenzi Booth, from Ogden. “I’ve gone at least 20 times in my life, and when I have kids in the future, I want them to have the same experiences that I had because I loved it so much. To me, I feel like the reward outshines the cost.”
The Disneyland price increase was announced one week before the three-day Memorial Day weekend holiday, and just five days before its “Rock Your Disney Side” event on Friday, in which the park will be open for 24 consecutive hours starting at 6 a.m.
