The Happiest Place on Earth is becoming a lot less crowded.
Caught in the middle of Florida Gov. Ron DeSanstis’ war on woke, Disney theme parks are experiencing the quietest summer they’ve had for years, though experts suggest the DeSantis battle is just one factor – and not a major one.
“It’s something that nobody would have predicted — just unfathomable,” says Len Testa who runs Touring Plans, a company that track wait times at major theme parks, the Wall Street Journal reported.
He said July 4th was the third slowest day of the year at Disney’s Hollywood Studios theme park in Florida.
At the Magic Kingdom on July 4 – typically one of the busiest days of the year with a major fireworks display – wait times averaged 27 minutes, down from 31 the year before and 47 in 2019.
The slowdown is being credited to many things, including the bitter legal fight with DeSantis. The governor's feud, now being fought in the courts, is considered by many to be retaliation after Disney criticized a Florida law that bars classroom discussions of sexual orientation and gender identity.
But in June, that battle was said to be having little effect on the park's business, when it was more prominently in the headlines.
The downturn really hit when the summer season started, the Journal said.
“I couldn’t believe how light the crowds were,” Jaime Brown, an annual pass holder at Disney, told the Journal.
Another factor could be that visitors are holding off for a third theme park that’s expected to open in 2025 at Universal Orlando Resort, the Journal said.
But the biggest reason appears to be cost.
“People might be a little bit fatigued with price increases based on the economy at the moment,” travel agent Stephanie Oprea told the Journal.
Disney prices, including multiday ticket prices, increased by at least 9% in October. And the effort to counteract that suggests the crowds won’t be returning this year.
The recent flood of promotions suggests that greater savings could be on the horizon for next year. “If I were going to Disney World, I would probably hold off until 2024,” said A.J. Wolfe, who runs a Disney food blog.
