Skift Take
Theme parks need customers to be thrilled, not just satisfied — so it's no surprise they've been careful about changing a pricing system that has been in place for ages.
What's the best way to put a price on a day of theme park fun? Very thoughtfully, and preferably using data, algorithms, and flexibility, experts say.
After decades of setting one admission price and sticking with it year-round, the world's largest theme park operators are starting to inch closer to the models used by the bulk of the travel industry.
"For as long as I can remember, theme parks have always been a place where they would paint the price of a ticket on a piece of wood and nail to to a post at the front of the park," said Martin Lewison, an assistant professor of business management at Farmingdale State College who studies theme parks. "Once a year or so they would raise the price. They would then discount off that price."
Although observers and media have questioned for several years whether park operators would adopt demand-based pricing strategies similar to those used by airlines or hotels, only in recent months have the biggest players made moves in that direction.
"Nobody wants to be the first one to jump off the cliff," said Dennis Speigel, president of consulting firm International Theme Park Services. "Once they see somebody adopt, then they become adopters. Our industry as a whole, we’re slow adopters. We have been for decades and decades."
Earlier this year, Disney changed the way it prices one-day tickets domestically, introducing a three-tiered system that charges different amounts for entry according to the date when people plan to visit. At peak season, the Magic Kingdom costs $124 a day for adults, while other Orlando parks cost $114; in California, admission at peak times is $119. Multi-day tickets are sold as usual and not tied to a specific time of year.
Around the same time, Universal Studios Hollywood announced it would charge less for admission to those who bought tickets online for slower days. The "anytime admission" ticket without a specific date costs $115.
"Universal Orlando is still a little bit of a holdout," said Robert Niles, founder and editor of Theme Park Insider. "Everybody is expecting them to move
