Josh D’Amaro, who took over as Disney CEO on Wednesday, addressed the hot topic of theme park pricing at the company’s annual shareholder meeting.
When an unnamed shareholder asked how Disney’s Experiences division, which D’Amaro ran before his promotion, balances revenue growth with “maintaining positive customer satisfaction,” he offered a rather lengthy perspective.
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“This is an important issue,” he said. “I guess the first thing I think about is the fact that I know that visiting Disneyland is a meaningful investment for families who visit us, and our goal is to make every guest feel like their experience is worth it. Basically, we want the experience to be the best day of a guest’s life. We’re always measuring our success here. So, for example, we look at things like guest experience ratings and whether guests are willing to come back after visiting us. Those metrics are very high across all of our parks.”
Disney has been criticized for raising prices at its parks, especially in recent years when consumers have been hit by soaring prices for groceries, gas and many other necessities. Annual increases phased in last fall were more modest than in previous years, but many ticket increases still exceeded the rate of inflation.
D’Amaro said the company’s pricing philosophy focuses on “providing a wide range of options and different price points so that families can visit in a way that works for them.” He noted that this year Disneyland will offer a discounted child pass, allowing anyone between the ages of 3 and 9 to enter the park for $50. D’Amaro said the promotion was “pretty good.” “We also offer a Kids Eat Free promotion, which includes some packages at Walt Disney World.”
Despite a number of potential reasons, including a curb on international travel due to President Donald Trump’s tariffs, Disney said U.S. park attendance fell 1% in the fiscal fourth quarter from a year earlier. However, revenue increased 6%.
Park unit fees are also increasing. The company said it would double spending on its parks, resorts and cruise operations by 2023, committing $60 billion over 10 years. At the shareholders’ meeting, D’Amaro mentioned the new park project in Abu Dhabi that was announced last year.