Disney World No Longer Golden Apple: Disney’s $60 Billion Park Investment Signals Shift Away From Florida Resort

Walt Disney World in Florida has been the company’s shining gem offering for decades. Whenever anyone says they are taking a vacation to Disney, it is almost always assumed that they mean the Central Florida theme park. Disney has invested a ton of money into the destination over the years. However, recent projects have shifted more towards the global and domestic parks as a whole, and hints in the company’s $60 billion investment announcement could mean it will continue to broaden its financial commitments.

Disney Investment in Parks

The Walt Disney Company told investors this week that the company will prioritize a large portion of funding for its theme parks and cruise line. Specifically, CEO Bob Iger and Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney Parks, experiences, and products, said the company will invest $60 billion into its park business over the next decade. This is almost double the funds put into the division in recent years.

This is a notable change of pace likely brought on by Disney’s faltering streaming goals. The company heavily invested in its Disney+ and Hulu platforms but has failed to grow a profit in the saturated market. While it hopes to turn this around by next year, it is now obvious that Disney is stepping back and committing to what has been successful in the past.

Walt Disney World Left Wanting

With such a high amount of funds being directed towards Disney’s park business, it would seem the company would have a lot coming for Walt Disney World specifically. However, no spectacle has been launched for the Florida park in the past year. Furthermore, most of its bigger announcements are still at the “what if we did this” stage with no official commitments or construction dates.

EPCOT is set to open its Journey of Water attraction soon. However, this offering has done little to entice visitors as it is simply an interactive walkthrough experience. Reports have indicated that the Tron Lightcycle Run roller coaster at Magic Kingdom has also seen fewer crowds lately. Disney World’s last major expansion happened with Galaxy’s Edge at Hollywood Studios in 2019. Furthermore, several announced projects have been quietly scrapped or delayed indefinitely.

Global Disney Parks Get Exciting Additions

Earlier this year, Iger mentioned putting $17 billion into Walt Disney World over the next decade in Florida. This is about 28% of the investment announcement. If this number remains, the other 72% will be utilized between Disneyland Resort in California, Shanghai Disney, Disneyland Paris, Hong Kong Disneyland, and Disney Cruise Line. Tokyo Disneyland is owned and operated by Oriental Land Company, meaning Disney is not directly responsible for funding projects at the location.

Currently, each of these locations has something extremely exciting going on. Disneyland Resort in California just opened its San Fransokyo Square location. The park also just launched its new Tiana’s Palace restaurant. Meanwhile, Hong Kong Disneyland is set to open its World of Frozen land expansion at the end of the year, and Shangai Disney is currently constructing a Zootopia land.

Disney Cruise Line Expands Its Fleet

Disney Cruise Line is also experiencing large projects at the moment. The company launched the Disney Wish ship last year. Furthermore, it will launch two more Wish-class ships, the Disney Treasure and an unnamed third vessel, in the near future. The company also purchased a partially completed ship, renamed it the Disney Adventure, and will launch it in 2025. On top of all this, Disney Cruise Line is putting the finishing touches on its new Lighthouse Point island coming next year.

Is Disney World Neglected?

In Florida, Disney seems to have taken a step back recently. The company pulled out of its $1 billion investment to bring its operations to the state. This is likely largely due to Disney’s ongoing feud with Governor Ron DeSantis. The governor has been in a heated legal dispute with Disney, accusing it of grooming children and destroying the municipality privileges it has enjoyed in Florida since opening.

Disney recently announced a South American section to replace DinoLand U.S.A. at Animal Kingdom. It also hinted at a major expansion for Magic Kingdom. However, no other information of importance came with these plans. Fans have criticized the company for making too many “what if” announcements, where it doesn’t officially commit to what it is presenting and ignores it later. With no construction or opening dates, some don’t believe Disney until it actually starts a project.

Related: Should Bob Iger Forget About Disney World?

As it stands now, Walt Disney World has not seemingly been the golden apple the company has always treated it as in the past. Disneyland Resort in California has drastically outshined it with fresh, exciting, and unique entertainment offerings. Furthermore, the global parks have been hard at work constructing new lands. The Florida park has instead offered limited new experiences since Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind and nothing of relevance is in its immediate future.

It will be interesting to see what Disney does with this $60 billion investment in the next ten years. Hopefully, it will spice up its Florida location in a way to breathe some fresh life into it. Otherwise, the global parks may just start to outclass the most famous vacation destination.