
As the economic climate continues to shift, Disney fans are noticing changes at the parks, with many pointing to crowd levels at Walt Disney World Resort as a potential “recession indicator.” While opinions differ on whether the parks are more or less crowded than usual, there is a general consensus among fans that these changing crowd levels may hint at a larger economic trend.
Earlier this year, J.P. Morgan raised concerns about a possible recession by the end of 2025, citing tariffs and economic policies enacted under the Trump administration. Although negotiations have reduced the likelihood of a recession to 40%, concerns over price hikes and taxes have caused many Americans to worry about their financial future, including how it will impact discretionary vacation spending.
Is Disney World Really Empty?
Some locals argue that even though the Central Florida Disney parks still experience crowds, they’re not as packed as during peak times in previous years. In a recent Reddit discussion, u/goldtank123 asked other Disney fans whether the current crowd levels at Walt Disney World Resort resemble the dip in attendance seen during the 2008 economic recession.
“Last week, including Memorial Day weekend, I waited 60 minutes for Tron and GotG but like 10-30 minutes for everything else,” u/FavoredKaveman wrote. “I never needed to use mobile ordering. I got a decent spot for MK fireworks without camping out an hour early.”
“I’m here right now and it’s the slowest I have ever seen it,” u/gurman169 agreed.
While many Disney Parks fans feel the crowds aren’t quite as sparse as during the 2008-2010 recession, they agree that Disney has been offering several types of discounts, which some interpret as a response to lower attendance.
“The crowds have been very low this year,” said u/Kenway. “Probably still up compared to 2008…but not recovered to 2019 levels…Disney has offered like 7 or 8 different types of discounts for this summer/fall. It’s clear crowds are down.”
“It has become increasingly ‘cheaper/easier’ to go to the parks,” u/Sebapond replied. “As one example there is a 3 day 3 ticket for 260usd (excluding MK) running until September. Before that I wouldn’t have considered going to but now i feel it ‘cheap.’
More People Visiting Despite Possible Recession?
On the other hand, some guests believe Walt Disney World Resort is still as crowded as ever, yet they agree that it indicates an impending recession. Some Disney Parks fans suggested that families have prioritized vacations above financial concerns, spending on vacations to create memories, even if it means putting themselves into debt or sacrificing long-term savings.
“So many families charge the entire trip on credit and choose to worry about it later,” u/HolyHendrix commented. “I believe there’s a bleak resignation that has set in with Americans that will actually lead to increased consumer discretionary spending.”
“Disney offers 0% financing,” u/NotABurner316 added.
Some Disney Parks fans even shared personal experiences about spending money on vacations instead of saving.
“Median house price in my town is $650k. MEDIAN,” u/HarryHatesSalmon wrote. “I’ll never be able to retire, or buy a house for myself and my son. I think a lot of us just figure F it at this point, we may as well enjoy life now because there’s no point in saving $10k in the bank when you need a million to get anything done. So we go to the parks to forget about it for a bit.”
“We bought our house small deliberately, so that we could spend our money on travel,” u/SuzRunsDisney said. “All of our friends bought too big and have condos now and do not travel as much as we do. Enjoy life, don’t kill yourself trying to have more than the Jones’ next door.”
Some believe the crowds are the result of trips planned before the economy began to decline.
“The economy is still in its decline,” u/Mychael612 argued. “And for at least Disney World, most of those people had their trips planned before the economy started going down. Give it until this time next year and you may start seeing attendance drops.”
“Disney isn’t a spur of the moment weekend trip for most people,” u/whitingvo agreed. “If there’s a downturn in attendance, they’ll be a delay in it showing up.”
Whether crowd trends at Walt Disney World Resort are tied to a looming recession or simply a part of ongoing shifts in consumer behavior remains to be seen.
Do crowd levels at Walt Disney World Resort signal a shifting economy? Share your thoughts with Disney Fanatic in the comments!