An Alarming New Travel Trend Is Becoming a Problem at Disney World

When you write about vacations for a living, you hear a lot of travel buzzwords. Remember the “revenge travel” era after the pandemic? Well, these days, the hot new topic seems to be “excessive tourism.” Are things getting out of hand?

Fantasyland crowds in Magic Kingdom

It’s certainly not a crime to enjoy a little vacation. And let’s be honest, the concept of “summer vacation” is not new. People have been taking trips to the beach, or Disney World, or even Europe for DECADES. So what exactly is “excessive tourism,” and is it happening in Disney World?

People often say that “there’s no such thing as an ‘off-season’ anymore in Disney World.” And yes, even if you visit Magic Kingdom during a “slow” month, you can still wait 60+ minutes in line for a popular attraction. But we’re not here to say that Disney World is at peak capacity 365 days a year. It’s not. There are plenty of times throughout the year when the wait times are relatively low, and the crowds are sparse. You just have to know when to go!

Now, going back to the idea of “excess tourism,” we need to point out a few things. Sure, in some parts of the world, there simply is not enough space for too many travelers. But Disney World has a big footprint — and room to grow! Before we address the big question, we need to explain the root of the issue.

EPCOT

“Excessive tourism” is basically what it sounds like. Even entire CITIES have a maximum capacity — there are only so many hotels, restaurants, taxis, and flights available each day! In fact, according to The New York Times, Amsterdam is actively trying to cut BACK on the number of tourists in the city. A hotel BAN was put in place to curb any new construction, and Amsterdam even banned new tourist shops. The City Council stated, “Amsterdam is saying ‘no’ to new hotels,” adding, “We want to make and keep the city livable for residents and visitors,” per The New York Times.

©The New York Times/Getty Images

ABC News also reported that many European countries are implementing fees for foreign visitors. These taxes and fees were created “to help support local costs of doing business, especially during the busy summer months,” per ABC. Tourist taxes are starting to pop in in places like Spain, Greece, and Germany, though one travel expert told ABC, “Tourist taxes are a rapidly growing trend.” These taxes may also combat over-tourism.

Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure

That said, Disney World is a little different from the rest of the world. Sure, we’ve seen some BIG crowds in the parks and resorts lately, but is that a bad thing for Disney?

Walt Disney World

Our experience in the parks has taught us that school breaks and holiday seasons make Disney World especially crowded. When families are off for a holiday or summer vacation, they often take that big trip to Disney World. While Disney doesn’t share exactly how many people visit its parks each day, we can look at things like the cost of Genie+ (Disney’s paid skip-the-line service) to estimate the number of visitors.

Crowds

Genie+’s surge pricing model caused the price to rise to $39 during peak season — a clear indication that demand rises with the crowd level. And while Genie+ is a little harder to use when the parks are more crowded, Disney has made no obvious efforts to cut back on park capacity.

I Paid $17 to Ride Guardians of the Galaxy in EPCOT, and I STILL Waited in Line for an Hour.

Summer 2024 isn’t here quite yet, but many Disney fans are predicting the parks will be especially crowded. After Disney announced the dates for the Food and Wine Festival, it became clear that there will NOT be an EPCOT festival in June, July, and most of August. Could this indicate that Disney is expecting large crowds this summer? Maybe Disney doesn’t NEED an EPCOT festival to attract fans to the parks this year.

EPCOT

Clearly, Disney World deals with a lot of crowds each year. But new hotels are still being built, and Disney announced plans to EXPAND parts of the resort. Magic Kingdom may eventually house an entirely new land, and CEO Bob Iger committed to “turbo-charge” the Parks division. Unlike Amsterdam, Disney is not shying away from more visitors. It’s embracing them.

Cinderella Castle

At the end of the day, it seems like Disney isn’t afraid of more visitors. Sure, it can feel a little congested in the parks — especially around the holidays and the middle of summer — but ultimately, we have yet to see any changes on Disney’s part to combat the crowds. Maybe “excessive tourism” is just another travel trend that will come and go in a few years. In the meantime, we’re always on the lookout for the latest Disney news, so stay tuned for more.

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