Though Disney may not have drawn the worst straw when it comes to the conditions under which they will reopen their theme parks worldwide, things are not looking great right now. A recent report indicated that the company is hemorrhaging a ghastly 30 million dollars a day (not just inside theme parks, but for the company at large) and is seeking $6 Billion in debt relief due to the effects of COVID-19 on their business.
Of course, these losses are completely unsustainable, and while these publicly-released figures are bad, Disney's internal figures are undoubtedly worse, as Disney has made the unprecedented move of declining to release its quarterly earnings reports to stockholders...a sign that things are indeed heading in a grim direction at Disney Parks.
And now with Bob Iger back in charge of the company for a little while, it looks like a plan is coming together for Disney parks to reopen across the world. But not as you might remember them...
Fewer Cast Members to be working as budgets are slashed
Though budget cuts are nothing new at Disney Parks, one big part of Disney's post-pandemic future will be decreased Cast Member presence in the parks. And while some might see this as a temporary measure to help keep the park gates open while the company financially recovers, the New York Times says that Iger is expecting the changes implemented now to be more or less permanent as Disney attempts to fundamentally change how it operates now and in the future.
Prices are going to go up
When the world was plunged into a global recession in 2008, one of the big ways Disney was able to lure guests into returning to the resort was by offering heavy discounts and free ticket deals. However, it looks like with the US economy teetering on the edge of yet another recession (and reportedly 1 in 10 Americans now unemployed) Disney will be going the other way when they reopen, and will be raising prices. The cost of food has already gone up in several locations (which you can read about here) and we'd expect that as we move closer to a potential summer reopening, we will hear more about increased prices at the resort.
Comments
I hope they do not allow security to check one bag at bag check, then with the same unclean hands, touch the items in the persons bag who is next in line. They need a no touch method of checking the bags.