The Effects of annual pass holders on the Disneyland Resort infrastructure

摘要

Since the inception of Disneyland, the growing number of loyal guests, expansion of the theme parks and new entertainment elements has drawn and increased park attendance. With that being said, expansions are continuously taking place and thus the price per ticket increases. As the ticket prices continue to increase, numerous amount of guests look at other options such as annual passes as a means of getting the most for their money. As funds for families become more of a concern, the need for local supplemental activities is a key driver. The ever expanding base of Annual Passholders (AP), who is now at the 850,000 mark and still growing, have intensified logistical distress into the resort infrastructure that was designed and built 10 years ago for a different visitor demographic. During the period of 1998-2000, Disney expanded their parking and intra-property transportation based on mid 1990’s research when APs numbered fewer than 100,000 and there were no plans to grow that population much beyond that (Lutz, 2009). The question following from the AP attendance concern is how to determine when they will attend the park, thus their visitation patterns. The annual passholders’ has affected the Disneyland Resort (Disney) in Anaheim in both positive and negative outcomes. These APs have shifted Disney to use well thought out precedents and new outcomes which might be a source of identifying trends for attendance issues. The outcomes give insight to Disney for use as possible solutions in forecasting more accurately for attendance and infrastructure issues. Through research of available literature with regards to this paper’s topic, the reader will determine the answers to the above listed question. Furthermore, the paper will, also, shed some light into recommendations for annual pass criteria as well as get a more thorough look at the structuring of APs rates and pricing tiers.