Fall is a time of anticipation for me at the Disneyland Resort: I look forward to Halloween decorations going up, the temperature going down, and unfortunately, the yearly announcement that Magic Key prices are increasing.
Being a Disneyland subscriber looks a LOT different than it used to, especially pre-Covid, and I’m seeing more and more people letting their Key expire due any number of reasons: increased parking and food costs, continued reservation system, overcrowding. However, I have long ago accepted that I will probably continue to pay any amount to keep my Magic Key, despite these frustrations.
I will admit that up until this point, my only big complaint had been blockout dates during the two weeks of the holiday season. It is a little depressing seeing no availability for two weeks, especially being on Winter break from teaching.
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I’m quickly brought back to reality upon seeing the sheer chaos that is the holiday season at the parks. The reason I don’t really mind the continued use of the reservation system is not having to wait in a crazy line to enter the parking structure- something common on any given weekend night or holiday.
Let’s just admire this relic from the past – pricing for Annual Passes, 2010. For $36, and a little more for parking, per month you could go every single day. Which was great – but when thousands of others could do the same, it was getting more ridiculously crowded every year.
Which is why, despite losing about $3 billion in operational income during Covid, the extended resort lockdown was probably exactly what Disney needed to solve its Annual Pass problem. It’s estimated that Disneyland had about 1 million Annual Passholders, and they accounted for upwards of 50% of visitors during any given day.
If you remember, Disneyland execs even called Annual Passholders “unfavorable” in terms of their ratio to single-day visitors. So, it’s no surprise that when Annual Passes were “sunsetted” during quarantine, it was all but certain no blockout days would be a thing of the past.