Running the most visited theme park in the world isn’t all mouse ears and fairy dust – it requires some strategic decision-making, occasionally, some tough calls. At the heart of it, all is a delicate dance between maximizing revenue and ensuring visitors enjoy an unforgettable, queue-free day. A balance that Walt Disney Co. executives are all too familiar with.
While Disney does manage crowds by using demand-based pricing, the fact remains that demand for Walt Disney’s theme parks, particularly Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, often busts capacity limits. So, what’s a global entertainment giant to do?
Raising prices on peak days is one solution, but not an ideal one. Disney World’s magic already stretches many family budgets, and higher prices could add a bitter aftertaste to the sweetest of fairytales.
Disney Parks Chairman Josh D’Amaro hinted at another alternative during the recent D23 Expo – adding new attractions to increase capacity at Disney World. While this may seem straightforward, it’s not as simple as waving a magic wand. Available land for logical expansion adjacent to the existing park is limited.
One approach is to replace less popular, low-capacity rides with new, high-capacity attractions. But according to respected theme park analyst Robert Niles, an even more radical option is on the table.
Niles states that Disney might be contemplating something unimaginable – filling in the Rivers of America, an iconic park fixture. This drastic measure would mean saying goodbye to Liberty Square Riverboat and Tom Sawyer Island, attractions that hark back to Walt Disney’s original vision for the park.
Despite being one of the few remaining links to Walt Disney’s dream, Tom Sawyer Island is underused and doesn’t possess Disney-owned intellectual property rights (the original Mark Twain books are public domain).
Turning Rivers of America into usable land could provide Disney with vast new space for attractions, increasing the park’s capacity significantly. Currently, the only way to access Tom Sawyer Island is via raft, which rules out retheming the island or adding a modern ride without major changes.
According to Niles, this move might be the only viable choice left for Disney’s Imagineers as they strategize ways to expand their crown jewel, Magic Kingdom. “This is the nuclear option for Magic Kingdom development – one that would require the reimagining of nearly half of the world’s most popular theme park,” he writes.
Such a decision poses a challenge: Will the potential for new, exciting attractions outweigh the loss of a classic feature deeply rooted in Disney’s history? It’s a question only time – and the mouse – can answer.