Is Disneyland losing its magic?

When I was a kid, going to Disneyland was a truly special experience. Of course, in the early 90s the average adult ticket for the day was 35 dollars. It was also only one park then but compared to today’s 194 on peak days. Of course, the peak season keeps gradually increasing meaning more days for nearly 200$. The value days price at around 104 which still is three times the price for a single park trip thirty years ago. Now I know about inflation, you don’t have to remind me. However Disney is a multibillion dollar company that charges this much money yet still can’t properly pay their employees to live in a high cost area like Southern California. Disney charges an arm and a leg for admission because they know someone will pay it, pricing out many lower income and even middle class families today.

For disabled visitors, accessibility can become a nightmare. Ramps and accessible ride vehicles are one thing, but navigating through massive crowds can be frustrating and difficult. During parades, there are narrow pathways to navigate mainstreet and able bodied folks often walk around, in front of and into wheelchairs, scooters and walkers and mke it hard to move at all. Despite most of the rides claiming to be accessible, they mean only accessible for guests who can transfer from their mobility aide into the ride. If a guest needs to remain in their chair, there's not as many experiences ride wise they can enjoy. When new rides open, it's diffcult to get into them, as people who purchase genie plus passes have become a priority. The worst part is, some of these people are so entitled because they bought they way ahead, that they yell and cause a hissy fit when a disabled person may need a little longer time to get onto the attraction. I've witnessed it time and time again, where they groan and exclaim they thought they were in the fast pass lines and would board immediately, ignoring the fact that other people also paid for the same service. Disabled people also use the fast pass entrance on most attractions if they are using the Disablity Access Pass. There's also not designated wheelchair areas for guests to watch the fireworks, as the company claims they are viewable from the entire park. However, there are projections, lights, and even characters who fly above the castle that can only be seen from certain points, but there's not an assigned space for disabled folks, but you can sure bet there's a spot for people willing to pay some extra money for dining experience. The best experiences at the parks are now saved for those who will shill out the most money and it's certainly not fair to the average Disneyland fan, and certainly not fair to disabled attendees.

Disney also has a serious problem with pretending to be there for it's LGBTQ fans, aka pinkwashing. They will sell rainbow merch and pride themed food items, and even have a pride night, but still struggle to put representation in their media, minus some background characters here and there. If it can make them money, the representation is there. Pride night sells out, and people praised them for even having it but it was only after the unofficial Gay Days proved to be incredibly popular that they even attempted to do something official. Even characters of color see limited love when it comes to merchandising, unless the movie makes some sort of box office record. Only in the last few years have we seen an abundance of brown characters from Disney, from Moana to Encanto, and again, only because the properties made them a large amount of money. It's as if they wish to ignore that the demand and need for these characters has always been there, not just when they can slap the faces on 50 different pieces of plastic and sell it.

Even something as simple as parking seems excessive, as Disney owns the property and even Downtown Disney is primarily driven by their own stores and Disney themed exclusives otherwise. Yet they continue to charge outrageous prices even just for a quick trip to Downtown Disney, and offsite parking isn't exactly accessible or affordable either. Even the McDonalds across the street from the entrance has higher prices than the average McDonalds because they know people will pay that extra dollar or two for convienience and nostalgia.

Disneyland isn't that magical little place where dreams come true for everyone. Maybe it never really was. Regardless, I don't think this is what Walt Disney imagined for his amusement parks. I cannot speak on other parks, as my experiences for Disney parks is primarily with Disneyland in Anaheim California. However, I wouldn't be surprised if it's the same elsewhere. For me, the magic is gone, and so I have since hung up my Mickey ears and invested my time and money into other amusement parks that still feel enjoyable, and not just a chore.