but, be assured, it has NOTHING to do with woke politics, alphabet policies, or things like that. Just the economy in Florida, you know. Stuff.
https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/13/business/disney-world-universal-orlando-attendance-down/index.html05:16
Los Angeles CNN —
Long lines and jam-packed crowds tend to go hand in hand at Central Florida’s world-famous theme parks during the summer months, but Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando parkgoers may be in for a reprieve this season.
Wait times for rides and attractions at both resorts have shortened, according to analysts who track theme park attendance. Videos on social media also show park attendees remarking on thinner crowds.
The reasons behind the slowdown are hard to pin down, but travel experts point to extreme weather and heat in Florida, a waning post-pandemic travel boom and a tense political climate in Florida that has prompted travel warnings from some groups.
Disney CEO Bob Iger attributed Disney World’s recent decline in wait times to an overall slump in Central Florida tourism.
“Florida opened up early during Covid and created huge demand, and didn’t have competition because there were a number of other places, states, that were not open yet,” he said Thursday in an interview with CNBC.
“If you look at the numbers in Florida in 2023 … versus 2022, where not as much was open and Florida was the only game in town, there is a lot more competition today,” he added.
Iger told CNBC he did not have “long-term concerns” about Disney’s theme parks. Disney declined to comment to CNN about park attendance.
Shorter waits for rides and attractions
While there’s some debate over the causes, the results are more open reservations for park entry, steeper discounts and faster lines for visitors compared to last year.
Since February, Disney’s Florida parks have experienced shorter average wait times for rides and attractions compared to last year, according to Thrill Data, a site that tracks theme park wait information. For Universal’s Florida parks, every month since March has seen lower average wait times, according to the site. Experts say longer wait times are generally associated with larger crowds at theme parks.
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So far this month, Thrill Data has reported that the average wait time at Disney World is 33 minutes — one of the shortest of any month since January 2022, and during what is typically high season for the parks. Last year, July’s wait time for Disney’s Florida parks averaged 41 minutes.
Don Munsil, president of MouseSavers, a guide to discounts and deals at Disney and Universal parks, said that while he’s noticed a slowdown at the parks, the drop-off beginning in July was “remarkable.”
Data from Touring Plans, a company that helps plan trips to Disney and Universal parks, supports Munsil’s observation. It found that wait times for rides were shorter on July Fourth at all of Disney’s Florida parks compared to 2022 and 2019. For example, the average wait time for Disney’s Animal Kingdom was 37 minutes in 2019 and 34 minutes in 2022. This year, the average dropped to 25 minutes, Touring Plans said.
Universal’s two parks, Universal Studios Florida and Island of Adventure, saw wait times dip from last year, as well, according to Touring Plans. Wait times at Island of Adventure dipped to 25 minutes this July Fourth, compared to 30 minutes last year and 28 minutes in 2019.