The admission fee for Tokyo Disney Resort (Disney) was 7,400 yen (adult) in the fiscal year ending March 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic. Starting in March 2021, Disney has changed the admission fee to a fee system in which the price varies depending on the season. The current admission fee will rise to 7,900 to 10,900 yen (adult) in the fiscal year ending March 2025. It was good for the company to secure profits by raising the admission fee. However, Disney’s customer satisfaction index was 79.6, down 3.1 points from fiscal 2014. If the added value does not increase as the price is raised, visitor satisfaction will decrease. If satisfaction decreases, it may lead to core fans such as repeat customers leaving. It seems that Oriental Land, which operates Disney, is caught in a dilemma of balancing price increases and satisfaction.
There is another concern. There is an analysis comparing the visitor ratio by age group at Tokyo Disney in the fiscal year ending March 2015 and the fiscal year ending March 2025. In terms of visitor ratio by age group, the proportion of people 40 years old and over has increased by 13.5 points, accounting for one-third of the total. Meanwhile, the proportion of people under 18 years old has fallen by 5.2 points to 24.9%. The number of promising repeat visitors is decreasing. This phenomenon seems to be related to income between generations. The rate of increase in Tokyo Disney’s per capita sales since the COVID-19 pandemic has exceeded the national salary. In general, the greater the economic burden on visitors, the higher their expectations of Disney. When these expectations also increase, it becomes difficult to feel satisfied with the same level of “fun” as before. Visitors want satisfaction that is commensurate with the price increase. Young people are spending the maximum amount of money even with their small income. The younger they are, the more they want satisfaction that is commensurate with their maximum spending.
The new president of Disney said, “We are not considering a simple price increase,” suggesting a price review. Labor-saving is a major theme in labor-intensive businesses. Disney’s next move seems to be the use of robots. Using robots in shows and food preparation can reduce labor costs. In 2023, subsidiary Oriental Land Innovations invested in a cooking robot company. In April 2025, a bipedal Star Wars robot will be unveiled, tottering around the park. The Star Wars bipedal robot “BDX Droid” is tottering around the park. If this robot becomes widespread, it will open up new possibilities for entertaining visitors without the need for human labor.
