Private Cabanas at Magic Kingdom: Last Day to Rent One - February 17, 2017

[mom2rtk]

Hear you. but who's to say these highly profitable offerings aren't the cash flow that might bring back some of the things missing in Guest experience.

Say eventually:
6 cabanas
4 parks
$650 each
$150 daily costs
$500 profit
365 days a year

$4.4 million profit annually

Ticket sales alone aren't enough to maintain, let alone expand, the money made from extras is vital.

I don't think they will have trouble selling these out during peak weeks. But I think it's a stretch to assume they will sell out every other day of the year.

 

[HopperFan]

I don't think they will have trouble selling these out during peak weeks. But I think it's a stretch to assume they will sell out every other day of the year.

Agree, only showing potential if there are just 24 families each day wanting them.

With limited supply and a variety of demographics that would be interested, it's possible for high usage.

 

[hiroMYhero]

The Orlando Sentinel ran an article on the cabanas:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/trav...-magic-kingdom-cabana-700-20161123-story.html

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Agree, but one thing we all have to remember is that the Disney College Program is a HUGE number of the front line CMs that we are asking questions of. Most these students are at Disney 5 months total, with a week of training. Many had never been to Disney before. They likely can only do so much within even their own area let alone know anything about other areas. DD did the program for a year after going her whole life, and told us many come with no personal info about Disney and since they are only there a short time, don't make a huge effort to learn more. It's a great program for Disney and the students, but I think sometimes the Guests miss out on info they need because the situation does not give you access to seasoned CMs.

Yes, absolutely. I have met many CM's, particularly in parks and resort gift shops, who are on the college program and had either never been to a park other than the one they were working in or had never been to any parks at all (a CM in the BC gift shop). Yes, it's a good and bad thing. Great for the students to get some work experience, great for Disney's bottom line, but not great for the guests. I've been in a few situations where I have helped guests find their way around the parks and resorts because the CM's they asked didn't have an answer for them. This can make for some bad customer experiences.

 

[Purplestorm]

For some people it is and for some it isn't. The point of the matter is, why do people come on these boards and try to decide what others should and should not spend their vacation money on? If it's not worth it to you, don't book it. Yes, if we were going again over Christmas week (on days where phased closures were possible) and we were traveling with extended, multi-generational family members, this cabana would be worth it to us. Not only for a place to sit and eat popcorn (that isn't a fake rock), but for the reserved parade and fireworks viewing and the ability to have CM's get lunch for us (the QS lines during Christmas week are astronomically long).

Last year, over Christmas week, we spent almost the same amount of money for THREE people to do Wild Africa Trek. No one seems up in arms when people "plus" their trips with other extras like tours, hard-ticket parties, etc. I don't see the difference. There are many things Disney offers that aren't "worth it" to us (dessert parties, EMM, etc.), but I certainly wouldn't flame others who feel they are worth it for their families and choose to spend money on them.

This is a great perspective! I thought it was ridiculous until I read this... Still part of me would find it difficult to pay for this instead of an added experience but I guess doing it for the benefit of others over a very busy time would make it better. (not that I have the cash for ANY extras, so my opinion is all theoretical ) On a side note, if I did do an extra, the Africa Trek would be top spot!

 

[Wish Upon A Starbucks]

We were in MK Tuesday and I didn't even notice the tents. It was pretty crowded though so maybe that is why!

 

[miamimi]

I will bet there is a large number of guests going to WDW in the top 5% who wouldn't even blink at this cost when you compare it to other costs at Disney. That is not much more than a large family's cost at a nice Disney restaurant for one meal, not much more than Dessert Party for 8 ... Many families stay value or offsite, eat breakfast in the room, don't buy snacks, eat QS ... just so they can spend money on special treats like this. All Disney needs is a couple dozen per day that are willing.

I find it hard to believe truly wealthy family would spend money on these tents. I think a really wealthy family would be spending their vacation time on a private island, or in a really deluxe resort (not Disney). I can't imagine them seeing anything appealing about sitting in a tent in the middle of a crowded amusement park. If a really wealthy family was visiting the parks, they'd pay for a VIP tour and FOL access.

I don't think Disney is marketing to the really rich with these tents.

 

[HopperFan]

I find it hard to believe truly wealthy family would spend money on these tents. I think a really wealthy family would be spending their vacation time on a private island, or in a really deluxe resort (not Disney). I can't imagine them seeing anything appealing about sitting in a tent in the middle of a crowded amusement park. If a really wealthy family was visiting the parks, they'd pay for a VIP tour and FOL access.

I don't think Disney is marketing to the really rich with these tents.

I think my response was more to address the person who was saying "...We are fairly well off. We are probably in the top 10%. I still don't feel that we could ever afford this with the amount we already spend on a vacation. I still find it crazy that there are people that make that much more than us who can." It came off that they felt they were the most wealthy at Disney and they still were not able to afford. Now what also could be read in to it was 'the amount we already spend' and if that is a deluxe hotel like Grand Floridian or Contemporary .... what about folks with their same income who choose to stay at the moderates or off-property in a market priced deluxe? adding the tent would still not come up to what they are spending on the GF or CR.

I believe there are plenty of people at Disney in the top percentages. I agree with you that those at the very top of the 1% are not at Disney in large numbers but the bottom income in the top 1% is certainly believable as a Disney guest and not believable as an island renter. While there is a range of predictors the average Top 10% seems to be $133,000 annually. I guarantee there are many folks there earning that. When we jump to the 5% level the average seems to be around $159,000, again I believe there are plenty of those folks there. Even the top 1% includes salaries at the bottom range of $400,000. I think when we hear those % numbers the assumption is that it's a much larger income than that.

I never said they are marketing to the "rich" who sit on private islands. But when looking at percentages scale, as the person I quoted did, the "rich" include all kinds of incomes - and those folks go to Disney and would book the tents along with other upsells. And honestly, those tents are in many folks budgets depending on how they planned their trips. Folks of like incomes can plan their trips different in terms of hotels and dining, and be able to add these extras with no crunch.

 

[disneynutz]

Several years ago we decided to go disneynutz. We stopped all vacations for a few years and stopped eating out. The money we saved we put towards buying DVC and around 10 years worth of APs and non-expiring 10 day tickets. At one point we were going to WDW 3 times per year for a total of 28 nights. Now we have cut back a bit to 1 or 2 times per year. We have Disney all over the house and have cut back on buying so much Disney stuff. We enjoy the tours and will be trying the cabana next month, is it a tad expensive, sure, but we save money by eating in our DVC unit with a full kitchen.

Bill

 

[KCValerie1]

I spoke to one of the cabana attendants yesterday and they have been in test until now. She indicated that they are going to try them for the next 90 days and see how it goes. I looked around and asked about climate control and she indicated they will have Dyson heating and cooling [

 

[OB1]

I work in a business that services very high end clients. I have mentioned this to some of them, and they thought it was a great idea. Of course, these are the people that have the funds for something like this, and don't have to make a decision whether to do a cabana or eat for the week. They really liked the idea of being at Disney during a fairly busy time, and having a spot to just chill for a while. Interesting how the other sides thinks.

 

[disneynutz]

Since the reserved seating for the parades and fireworks is the big draw for us getting the cabana, does anyone know for sure which events actually have cabana reserved seating?

Bill

 

[jade1]

I think my response was more to address the person who was saying "...We are fairly well off. We are probably in the top 10%. I still don't feel that we could ever afford this with the amount we already spend on a vacation. I still find it crazy that there are people that make that much more than us who can." It came off that they felt they were the most wealthy at Disney and they still were not able to afford. Now what also could be read in to it was 'the amount we already spend' and if that is a deluxe hotel like Grand Floridian or Contemporary .... what about folks with their same income who choose to stay at the moderates or off-property in a market priced deluxe? adding the tent would still not come up to what they are spending on the GF or CR.

I believe there are plenty of people at Disney in the top percentages. I agree with you that those at the very top of the 1% are not at Disney in large numbers but the bottom income in the top 1% is certainly believable as a Disney guest and not believable as an island renter. While there is a range of predictors the average Top 10% seems to be $133,000 annually. I guarantee there are many folks there earning that. When we jump to the 5% level the average seems to be around $159,000, again I believe there are plenty of those folks there. Even the top 1% includes salaries at the bottom range of $400,000. I think when we hear those % numbers the assumption is that it's a much larger income than that.

I never said they are marketing to the "rich" who sit on private islands. But when looking at percentages scale, as the person I quoted did, the "rich" include all kinds of incomes - and those folks go to Disney and would book the tents along with other upsells. And honestly, those tents are in many folks budgets depending on how they planned their trips. Folks of like incomes can plan their trips different in terms of hotels and dining, and be able to add these extras with no crunch.

Exactly.

Staying a week at Value over Moderate will cover it.

I don't think you need to be "Wealthy" to stay at a Moderate.

Therefore you don't need to be "Wealthy" to do a Value and a cabana.

Not to even mention the app $2,000 you would save over a Deluxe.

And certainly not to mention spending habits back home in the real world-car choices, housing choices, eating habits, entertainment etc.

Heck 4 movie tickets can be $50 (no snacks or drinks), once a month would cover it.

 

[grimley1968]

To each his or her own, but if I'm in a "sacrificing things I don't need to save money for things I need" frame of mind, the very first thing I would sacrifice is the notion of paying $650 for one day's use of one of these cheesy, theme-invasive nap tents.

 

[SaintsManiac]

To each his or her own, but if I'm in a "sacrificing things I don't need to save money for things I need" frame of mind, the very first thing I would sacrifice is the notion of paying $650 for one day's use of one of these cheesy, theme-invasive nap tents.

This.

We will have saved money for 2 years to stay at the Contemporary next year. I would never sacrifice staying there for a few hours in a tragic looking tent.

 

[Boski]

Hear you. but who's to say these highly profitable offerings aren't the cash flow that might bring back some of the things missing in Guest experience.

Say eventually:
6 cabanas
4 parks
$650 each
$150 daily costs
$500 profit
365 days a year

$4.4 million profit annually

Ticket sales alone aren't enough to maintain, let alone expand, the money made from extras is vital.

I like the positive thinking but sadly I don't think that money will be reinvested into the park. Also not sure on your last point because I don't think extras make or break the parks in regards to their operating costs. If that is the case then Disney is in a world of hurt.

 

[jade1]

To each his or her own, but if I'm in a "sacrificing things I don't need to save money for things I need" frame of mind, the very first thing I would sacrifice is the notion of paying $650 for one day's use of one of these cheesy, theme-invasive nap tents.

Oh absolutely, ours was more for a special needs situation. This will vastly improve MK day.

But mostly showing you do not need to be wealthy.

I'm sure many would say for $650 we can upgrade from a Value to a Moderate. Again-that additional $650 in that case doesn't make somebody "wealthy" either.

 

[HopperFan]

I like the positive thinking but sadly I don't think that money will be reinvested into the park. Also not sure on your last point because I don't think extras make or break the parks in regards to their operating costs. If that is the case then Disney is in a world of hurt.

Extras above the cost of tickets. That is the shops, restaurants, kiosks, etc. not just upsells.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Since the reserved seating for the parades and fireworks is the big draw for us getting the cabana, does anyone know for sure which events actually have cabana reserved seating?

Bill

Hi Bill. We rented one this past Sunday (and really enjoyed it by the way). Below was our experience with the reserved viewing areas for various events. I will caveat this by noting that you can tell Disney is "trying out" this cabana thing and could likely tinker with the "extras" such as reserved viewing areas as they go along. At first when they called me pre-arrival they were not going to have a reserved area for the holiday parade, but they called me again the day before to let me know they had in fact "secured" a reserved spot for the holiday parade (which I thought was very proactive, I did not ask for it, I only inquired if it was offered).

So... your mileage may vary! Note these reserved areas aren't 100% dedicated to cabana guests, they are shared with other groups that have reserved access for various reasons.

• The reserved area for the FOF parade was in the middle of Town Square by the flagpole area.

• We were there on a Christmas Party night so there was a nighttime holiday parade. The reserved area was a small roped off section near the Liberty Square bridge, just to the left of the bridge before you cross into Liberty Square. It had three rows of benches. This was for the first parade, I didn't inquire if it was available for the second.

• We were told the reserved fireworks viewing area was on the east side of the hub in that area in front of The Plaza restaurant with the fake grass - the old FP+ reserved fireworks area. Either Disney gave me bad info or I misunderstood the exact location because that area was not reserved for the fireworks. We arrived with only a few minutes to spare and didn't have time to go searching around to find if it was in fact another area. I'll note again, this could have been user error on my part for sure. It ended up being a non-issue because we found a great spot in that fake grass area anyway, so didn't bother me one bit. If reserved fireworks viewing is important to you, make sure to push Disney on the exact location. If this had been a regular Wishes (not a party fireworks show) I would have been more concerned about the reserved area, personally.

I'm in the middle of writing up a summary of my experience and hope to post soon.

 

[disneynutz]

To each his or her own, but if I'm in a "sacrificing things I don't need to save money for things I need" frame of mind, the very first thing I would sacrifice is the notion of paying $650 for one day's use of one of these cheesy, theme-invasive nap tents.

But that's the point, what's important to you may not be important to others. In reality people who aren't in love with Disney will never understand how people can spend the money that they do to "go on some rides", as my brother-in-law would say.

Bill