Is Disney-Hollywood Studios worth $79 entry? (Orlando: for sale, hotel, to buy)

[oneLondoner]

I was just curious if I was the only one who thought that Disney-Hollywood Studios is the biggest rip-off in Florida. My wife, 9-year-old son and I visited there on Feb. 21, and we went through the entire place in under 3 hours. Many of the attractions were closed and those that were open seemed to have no substance save for their adjacent merchandising pavillions where Disney's traditional cartoon characters were for sale wearing attire from recent movies(hucksterism, in short). To be truthfull, I thought it was inferior to Downtown Disney, which is free. I love Florida, and especially the Orlando area, but I can't recommend the Studios to anyone.

[Infinite loop]

Frankly, none of them are worth $79. But the annual pass for FL residents is a good deal.

I still call it MGM.

• The lights show at Xmas is pretty cool.
• The new Star Wars ride will be out in 2011. Still a good ride.
• The American Idol stage is really cool, but I'd watch the show once - not an AI fan.
• Indiana Jones!
• Beauty and the Beast!
• The Little Mermaid!
• Toy Story ride is cool.
• Muppets 3-D. It's okay.
• Aerosmith is cool.
• Tower of Terror is okay.
• Fantasmic is an AWESOME show, but the wait is LONG and not on every night.
• The Great Movie ride. Love this one.
• Backlot tour is cool.
• Car stunt show is cool.

A lot of live shows so it's hard to try see everything. MGM is pretty tough for newbies. I keep telling newbies to try Epcot first, MUCH easier to walk around and see more in one day.

[Pete C]

Getting single-day tickets for Disney is never the way to go. Always get at least a 3-day pass with never expire option. You will save a boat load of money. Single-day tickets are a complete rip-off.

[oneLondoner]

Thanks for the advice regarding the passes. I was actually told about them before we visited, but I thought I knew everything, so I lose! We'll be back to ORL in July, and I'll be dropping my wife and son off at Universal(the one near downtown ORL) while I hang around Old Towne(I'm 55 and I still love it). Is Universal a good one-day deal?

[beach.guy]

Universal would be a good deal because before July the Harry Potter thing will be open.

[doom1001]

I've had seasonal passes to Disney (not the full AP) and annuals to both Universal parks as well as to all the Busch Gardens and Sea World parks.I think what they charge for 1 day is getting to the point of ridiculous.Unless you go frequently like I do,it seems the way to do Disney is to stay for 7-10 days since a 1 day ticket is $84 and 7-10 days are $250-$260.Universal also has had deals like a 7 day ticket for $85.I pay for my seasonal Disney pass $230 but last year and this year it'll only be $150 with the birthday and volunteer promotions,for all the Busch and Sea World parks I pay $12 monthly and the Universal AP I have been paying $110 for the year but I hear they're jacking it up to $150 since they're opening Potter.

[DavieJ89]

Originally Posted by oneLondoner

I was just curious if I was the only one who thought that Disney-Hollywood Studios is the biggest rip-off in Florida. My wife, 9-year-old son and I visited there on Feb. 21, and we went through the entire place in under 3 hours. Many of the attractions were closed and those that were open seemed to have no substance save for their adjacent merchandising pavillions where Disney's traditional cartoon characters were for sale wearing attire from recent movies(hucksterism, in short). To be truthfull, I thought it was inferior to Downtown Disney, which is free. I love Florida, and especially the Orlando area, but I can't recommend the Studios to anyone.

I worked at Hollywood Studios from September 2006-August 2007. I will always call it MGM.

A one day pass is a rip off, mutli-day passes are much better, the more days you buy, the cheaper it will be, also get the park hopper option so you dont have to buy seperate tickets

There is the Rock n Roller Coaster, the Hollywood Tower of Terror, there is also the car stunt show (cant remember what it is called) They also have the American Idol attractions, as well as the Toy Story and the Muppets attractions as well

The Indiana Jones Show is also very entertaining and I enjoy it every time I see it, I also recommend the Backlot Express restaurant as well as Pizza Planet

I think you will enjoy yourselves there, hope this helped!

I love the Animation Academy. : )

[blueoktober]

I suppose if you take the $79 and divide it by how many attractions/ rides you participate in you can decide if it is a rip-off or not.

A typical "Fair" ride at a county fair these days cost between $5-$7 (a 2 minute Fair ride). So..

Let's say I went to DHS and did the following:

Tower of Terror
Rock N Roller Coaster
Little Mermaid
Great Movie Ride
Star Tours
Indiana Jones
Car Stunt Show
Muppet 3D
The Backlot Tour
Toy Story
Beauty and the Beast show
Fantasmic at the end of the day
Walked through the Walt Disney exhibit

too tired for American Idol so forget that.

So I did 13 Major Rides and Exhibits that cannot be seen or done anywhere else.

$79 divided by 13 = $6 per attraction.

I don't know about you, but Disney is world class. You went into a fantasy world, were entertained by top notch rides and shows and they all come out to be about $6 per event? When it would cost you that much at a crappy county fair?


Seems very reasonable to me. (Considering they also come to pick you up and take you back to your car or hotel).

Taken into context, none of the Disney parks are a bad investment. Like others have said, do mult-day passes and you make out like a bandit.


Or you can just go ride some rides at Fun Spot. Your choice.

[oneLondoner]

I don't know what Fun Spot is, but as I said before, this summer I will just be the driver for my family(wherever they choose to go). I wish I could go on rides, but being in my mid-50s they give me dizzy spells. However, the math you used to make your point did make sense. Thanks.