5/8: Baby You Won't Drive My Car

[Al Lutz]

Magically killing off the competition. Discuss it here!

DIRECT ARTICLE LINK: http://miceage.micechat.com/kevinyee/ky050808a.htm

[ralfrick]

We may often disagree, Kevin, but I'm totally with you on this one. It was pretty clear from the start that Disney wasn't starting this shuttle to help the guest any more than a casino gives out free alcohol because they're concerned about your thirst. As you surely know, since DL was built in southern California, which was already a travel destination (not necessarily in Anaheim yet of course), it is marketed quite differently than WDW, which created central Florida as a destination. Visitors to WDW exclusively would probably be surprised, perhaps even shocked, to learn that you can buy a single ticket that includes DL, Sea World, SD Zoo AND Universal in SoCal. This may be an area to consider for future columns.

A bientot.

[GrumpyFan]

Interesting, if not gloomy article(s). Not that I don't agree, but it just makes me want to hold on to my wallet real tight the next time I go to WDW. Sadly though, I think you're right on in your assessment, and I don't see that it's going to change anytime soon.

Unfortunately, we live in a very bottom-line driven (microwave) time where businesses and their investors are only interested in seeing a rise in profit not just every year, but seemingly almost every quarter. Sadly, as you pointed out, this mentality has negative side-effects, some that are seen right away, others take a while before their impact is felt.

Take for example, the current economy and the high oil prices we're seeing. I'm not a marketing or economics major, but I have to wonder, how much we've contributed to the current problem. Look at how many businesses in the last decade have closed domestic manufacturing facilities and moved them to China and India. Now that China and India are heavily industrialized, they are becoming big consumers of oil, which drives up demand. For Opec, higher demand means higher prices. So, we have a ripple effect. Cheap labor, and manufacturing, but increased price on the movement of the goods produced. It reminds me of a cartoon where there's a guy trying to force something into a small space, he pushes down one side, only to have the other side pop up, only in this case, I think the problem is worse, because what's popping up on the other side is actually bigger.

[BC_DisneyGeek]

My personal experience when I spent two weeks in WDW:

I saw Magic Express as a highly convenient perk. I still rented a car (on WDW property) for 5 days or so in order to hit NASA, Universal, and Gator World. I still left property to go to Sea World, taking transit from the Transportation & Ticket Center (and I got there via WDW bus & monorail).

Since I had the free dining plan (another way Disney manages to keep guests captive, whether the plan is free or paid for) I didn't feel the need for a car to go get cheap meals or groceries.

I didn't mind Disney transportation for the most part either (I made sure to utilize the rental car to get to Typhoon Lagoon, with its mediocre bus service).

So...I don't think it's a bad thing. Yes, Disney has selfish motives behind Magical Express, but it's still a free service guests want and need. It doesn't actually trap anyone on property who didn't want to be trapped anyway. Kevin makes it sound almost nefarious, but to me, it's just good business.

[ralfrick]

Once I bought a pair of speakers. The salesman told me a free [sic] receiver was included. I told him I just got an amp and tuner, so I didn't need the free [sic] receiver. The price for the speakers then dropped $100.

There is no such thing as free!

A bientot.

[Kyle B.]

This is completely ridiculous!! WHEN WILL KEVIN YEE WRITE A COLUMN THAT DOESN'T DIG DOWN AND SLAP THE COMPANY IN THE FACE?!

Let me explain something that I have been fuming about in the last couple of weeks reading Kevin's columns. Simply enough, DISNEY IS A BUSINESS!!! His columns all have an underlying theme that Disney does not care about the guest experience and that they only are interested in the profit that they make from these guests. Well, the bottom line is that for Disney to provide a show experience that tops all of the competition, they must have the resources and dollars to do that. The only way to stay on top of the competition and allow guests to have a "magical" experience at their parks is to find a "happy-medium" between money mongrel and magic maker.

Let me also remind you that Disney World is considered a RESORT!! It was built on the idea that you would not ever have to leave this resort and go back to the 'real' world. If Disney wants to make its resort a "one-stop shop" then there's no problem with FREE transportation to its parks.

Remember, if Disney is not profitable or does not have money to keep the standards up, there will be NO Disney. So the next time that anyone rants about stroller rentals, the resort 'perks', or the one dollar (ONE DOLLAR!!) increase to park at Disneyland, remember, Disney is a company that needs profit, investors, and resources to stay in business.

[aquata]

Disney only manipulates guests like this because they can. I'm not saying that the bus should be boycotted by the likes of the "nerd emporium", but that the everyday guest simply doesn't look into better options. Those that have the money to spend will spend it and not look to closely into their options, such as just purchasing a stroller outright.
As the economy starts to effect more of us, more customers will start to look closely into exactly what they are spending. To me it is only a matter of time until the average guest wises up, esp. with something as simple as a passing comment from another guest. I don't fault Disney at all for trying to make money, they are a company and will get away with such practices for as long as it works for them.

[KevinYee]

It's all a question of balance, Kyle. No one is saying Disney should ignore economics and ignore money. That would be unbalanced. But it's also unbalanced if Disney is focused so much on money making that it forget to entertain first and foremost.

$31/day for a stroller rental (the double-wide) is, in my opinion, out of balance.

Disney can rationalize charging that much because, guess what, the guests are stuck on property. Due in part to the DME.

[ralfrick]

While your points are accurate, Kyle, there is a flaw in this business method. By keeping guests away from the competition by these means, they will be dis-inclined to compete on the basis of quality. For example, 25 years ago Kodak film was stagnating, then along came Fuji with a product that many professionals saw as superior. This spurred Kodak to start making improvements in a hurry. If Disney competes on the basis of quality, and not just because they have the means to make it inconvenient or undesirable to go elsewhere, then we, the theme park lovers, will benefit because there will be more incentive for the various properties to top each other with better attractions as opposed to who has the sneakier business tactics.

A bientot.

[SciFi96]

Kevin, you are right on when it comes to Magical Express. Not sure about rental cars as we always paid for Mears before ME, but I hate that you have to go to 3 or 4 different hotels when you arrive WDW before being dropped off (lesson learned: don't use ME if you stay at ASM), and the fact that you have to be out in front of your hotel a good 4 hours before your plane departs.

I think the subject of a future article should be Fastpass' effect on the large crowds at the Magic Kingdom. With so many getting a fastpass there are less people actually in line; making the park seem more crowded than it actually is.

[MousDad]

Another interesting article.

I'm intrigued by the high rental car rates at MCO. I did notice when I booked my upcoming trip that the rates seemed on the high side, especially for weekly rentals.

Do you think this could be because the rental car companies now feel that they have the non-WDW-resort crowd trapped? If it's a lost cause trying to compete for Disney Resort guests, than they probably feel they can get away with charging higher rates to those who really need the service.

[KevinYee]

Originally Posted by SciFi96

I think the subject of a future article should be Fastpass' effect on the large crowds at the Magic Kingdom. With so many getting a fastpass there are less people actually in line; making the park seem more crowded than it actually is.

The magic of the Internet lets me accommodate your request, eight years ago!

[GrumpyFan]

Originally Posted by ralfrick

There is no such thing as free!

Very true, but from a marketing stand-point, if you can convince (deceive) the masses into thinking it's free, then you've done your job. Take for example, buy one get one free promotions (bogo). If a food vendor has a "bogo" deal going, chances are they're selling something that has a high mark-up anyway, so to give one a way won't usually mean a loss to the vendor, just a mere reduction in profit. However, the end result was to get more customers in the door, which usually equates to more money spent.

[Valorus]

You can't have it both ways. You can't complain that each division must be making money as the root of all evil, and then use a example of a "free" perk. Obviously Disney's Magical Express as it on unit is a loss leader.

Additionally, the rental car figures are not only highly misleading, but wrong. I checked myself and the rental for one week with all fees included (used tomorrow as arrival date) is for compact/full size

at Orlando Dollar 118/153, Hertz 215/243
at Honolulu Dollar 130/144, Hertz 171/194

which is not as big a spread at you sighted and is rather in line and Dollar is even cheaper at Orlando for a compact. I wonder if you chose Honolulu solely as a place cheaper than most, as a quick sampling of major destinations (Chicago, Dallas, Atlanta) all reveal much high prices than Orlando.

However to eliminate regional differences what you should be comparing the rates to is the rates other local airports. Using that we see

at Tampa Dollar 142/162, Hertz 207/243
at Miami Dollar 175/202, Hertz 202/208
at Daytona Dollar 194/211, Hertz 216/223

So the rental rate at MCO at not really out of line, much less caused by Disney's Magical Express.

[Werner Weiss]

Originally Posted by SciFi96

Kevin, you are right on when it comes to Magical Express. Not sure about rental cars as we always paid for Mears before ME, but I hate that you have to go to 3 or 4 different hotels when you arrive WDW before being dropped off (lesson learned: don't use ME if you stay at ASM), and the fact that you have to be out in front of your hotel a good 4 hours before your plane departs.

The Magical Express service is not just a simple rebranding of the old Mears service. Although Mears licenses, maintains, and drives the Magical Express buses, Disney completely redesigned how the buses are scheduled and dispatched. And because so many people use Magical Express, service is frequent and reliable.

With the old Mears shuttle service, there was no telling how many stops you would make before reaching your resort, and the stops could even be at off-site hotels. Mears typically waited for buses to fill up before being leaving the airport. And Mears would often make a stop on the other side of Orlando International before starting the trip to WDW.

I wouldn't say that "you have to go to 3 or 4 different hotels when you arrive WDW before being dropped off."

With Magical Express, each bus usually holds guests headed to 3 resorts (or sometimes 4 resorts) that are near each other. Magical Express does not wait for buses to fill up before departing. Most Magical Express guests stop at 0, 1, or 2 other resorts before reaching their resort; some stop at 3 resorts. I'm sure there must have been a few guests over the past 3 years who stopped at 4 resorts under unusual circumstances, but that's not how Magical Express works. The stops are quick because most guests use the free Magical Express luggage transfers, so their bags aren't on the bus, and the bus driver doesn't have to deal with many bags at each stop.

Disney wants to get guests to their resorts quickly so that those guests can start to spend money quickly.

I wouldn't say, "you have to be out in front of your hotel a good 4 hours before your plane departs."

On check-out day, Disney schedules Magical Express pickups for 3 hours (give or take 15 minutes) before domestic flight departure times, and guests should be at the pickup location at their resort 15 minutes (or so) early. That's reasonable. The bus could stop at 1 or 2 other WDW resorts; the ride to the airport is about a half hour; MCO is a big airport; airline counters can have long lines; TSA security at MCO can take up to a half hour; flights usually board a half hour before departure time; and it's good to have a little cushion for unexpected delays anywhere along the way. The consequences of arriving at the gate too late (even if the plane has not yet left) can be severe.

Using a taxi or towncar service could mean leaving WDW 30 minutes later. If using a rental car, I'd leave WDW about the same time as the Magical Express pickup to allow time to buy gas and return the car.

Yes, I'm a fan of Magical Express. I think it's well-designed and well-executed.

I realize that Magical Express is designed to maximize how much guests spend at WDW, but it's optional. Guests can still use a rental car, private car, taxi, or chauffeured car service to WDW if they prefer. And guests can still rent a car for a few days if they wish, either at the WDW Swan or through on-site and off-site rental car companies that offer shuttle service to WDW resorts. Disney is betting that most guests won't bother to rent a car if they use Magical Express, and I imagine they're right.

Originally Posted by SciFi96

I think the subject of a future article should be Fastpass' effect on the large crowds at the Magic Kingdom. With so many getting a fastpass there are less people actually in line; making the park seem more crowded than it actually is.

Kevin has written many articles about the downside of Fast Passes.

What Kevin might want to consider for a future article is how WDW's "Magic Your Way" theme park pricing is another factor in encouraging guests never to leave WDW property. When the difference between a 6-day ticket and a 7-day ticket is just $2, and when that ticket will no longer be valid on a future vacation (unless the expensive "never expire" option is purchased) it's hard for a guest to justify going to Sea World or Universal for a day.