How Disney's Hotels Fake Luxury at Insane Prices

I. Remember a Reedit feed about “rich folks” comparing how Disney luxury resorts are anything but lol

I hate to be the guy that Brings Universal into the conversation and makes it another "Disney vs Universal" thing. But I just couldnt help but notice how much better and cheaper the Universal hotels were compared to Disney during my last visit. Like Cabana Bay had a WAY better Mid-Century Modern look than the Contemporary Refurbishment. And it cost one fifth the price, was cleaner, and had better service.

Not to mention the hypocrisy of the value resorts and how they are pretty much the cost of what moderates used to be for a lot less options

I think we're already hitting that "house of cards" point at WDW. Attendance in July (I've been in the parks as a local all summer, not basing it off the flavor of the month of a blog or vlog) has been noticeably lower than in the past decade or so. The price for a vacation at WDW has been rising significantly while projects have been cut drastically both before and after COVID. We can try to keep blaming the COVID years for all the problems currently facing the parks, but post-COVID park attendance came back very strong. Unfortunately, not all the entertainment and offerings previously available came back with the crowds. Just my opinion.

$800 to sleep, shower, and sh-- shave, no thank you. 😅

There's a difference between exclusivity and luxury. I reject Disney's contemporary strategy of exclusivity. But before the late 90s, Disney offered somewhat broadly accessible luxury, quality, and top of the industry service.

A photograph of Sean Connery signed by Roger Moore is more valuable than a simple Sean Connery autograph. For those that want to experience "traditional" luxury while vacationing at Walt Disney World, there's always The Four Seasons at Golden Oak or the Waldorf Astoria at Bonnet Creek.

Jenny Nicholson makes a similar point to this in her Star Wars hotel video and I think you're both onto how nefarious this is.

Fake luxury is a redundancy. People paying to be on the monorail is really not that much different than paying for an extra room or a TV that pops out of the bedframe or whatever. Anything beyond the cost of getting a bed in the right town is discretionary. I spent a lot of time researching watches and every one over $100 has some story behind it or was in some movie or something, and none of them are more accurate than your basic Casio.

I was DVC member 2012-18. I miss coming home to Old Key West Resort every summer when my children were at ideal Disney age. Back then Disney gave us Magic Bands with a custom box with each of our names on the slot in the box and band. Magic hours midnight till 2 or 3 am. Free parking. Little did I know that was the last of Disney Magic. Now my children prefers Universal Studios and Dollywood. They don’t even like any of the new Star Wars movies or series. It’s sad but Disney is not the same anymore.

everyone I know who have been to the Disney resort in Hawaii have said it has gone downhill fast. 2k a night only to not have a seat at the pool.

I've always said Disney's issues are a matter of cold hard cash and not any kind of moral issue. It's never been about the content as much as it is about the outfall of many, intertwining financial choices. But political rage is easy and large scale economics is hard, so guess what everyone yells about... Anyway, thanks for articulating these ideas clearly.

I wish I could go back to 1980s Polynesian resort, that place was beautiful. And super affordable, it's crazy to think that my lower middle class family of 4 could stay there for a week (we did have to drive from Maine to Florida, but that I blame my dad for watching National Lampoon's Vacation too many times.)

I had a 4-night stay at the Grand Floridian when I last visited Disney World in 1989 and, although it wasn't exactly inexpensive even then, it was still affordable and you got some great perks as an on-site guest. Now, with the prices through the roof and most of the perks that went with staying there taken away, I can't imagine ever being able to stay there again. I can hardly imagine being able to visit the resort again at all!

This is my first @reviewtyme video since subscribing. When the notification came in, I was like 'please let it be good'. And it was great! For all the effort, you guys have remarkably low number of subscribers. BTW, thanks for all the catalog of videos that I have been binge watching since I have discovered you!

Epic Universe is going to hurt WDW's bottom line more than Bob Iger and company think it will 😉

Never understood those Luxury hotels at all. They are nice most the time, but you don't exactly have the time to enjoy them do you? I mean the point of going to Disney World or what ever is to go to the park... not spend time in the Hotel pools or what ever activities they have.

It's ironic that the original hotel in San Diego the Grand Floridian was based off of that houses even royalty from time to time is cheaper to go to compared to the resorts Disneyworld has in Orlando. Mostly because you'd think it'd be the other way around.

Can you do a video on Disney's watering down on its rides, attractions and shows ( Theme Park Shows).

Incredibly impressive balance of factual information with humor, opinion with fact, the pros from Disney's perspective & the cons. Just brilliant stuff all around Dom & Luke. As a DVC member & hotel superfan, I really have no notes. While Hotel Del in San Diego is truly a bucket list resort for hotel fans, it just doesn't have the benefits of a Disney Deluxe Resort, even with how many have been stripped by Diz the past 4 years. Hopefully, Diz will soon hit a reality check & the prices will drop some, but given supply & demand & your explanation on the full-circle DVC stuff, that seems...unlikely.