Before the days of all-in-one tickets to all aspects of the Magic Kingdom and other Disney parks, there was a different system in place. Rather than just walking up to an attraction and jumping on, you’d have to hand over a ticket, like at a carnival.
The Orlando Sentinel took a look at how not only the prices have changed, but how those entering the park went about gaining access to individual attractions.
Prices for these tickets would range from 10 cents to 90 cents. This was on top of your admission to the park which was $3.50 for the adults. Luckily, kids got in for just one dollar. It cost almost $300 to take my daughter to the park early last year. You can see just how much things have changed over the past five decades.
5 tiers based on the type of ride was how the ticket system was broken up. Want to get on the ‘Prince Charming Regal Carrousel’? That would be an ‘A’ ticket. The ‘Swiss Family Treehouse’ would cost a parkgoer a ‘B’ ticket. The ‘C’ tier ticket would up the ante with ‘Dumbo the Flying Elephant’ and ‘Peter Pan’s Flight’. If you wanted to sit through ‘Country Bear Jamboree’ or ride on the train, that would be via a ‘D’ ticket.
Lastly, the ‘E’ ticket was reserved for the grandest attractions Walt Disney World had to offer in those early years. The likes of ‘The Haunted Mansion’ and the ‘Jungle Cruise’ would be the most costly. Adjusting for inflation, the $0.90 ‘E’ ticket would cost $5.84 today. As a huge fan of 999 Happy Haunts, that price point is fine with me.
If we keep looking at inflation, a single adult entry into the park would run $22.73 today. If you partook in two rides from each tier that would add up to about $32 in adjusted dollars. The total adds up close to what a Magic Kingdom ticket costs in the early 2000s at $50 per adult.
The price comparisons don’t stop at the park’s classic attractions. The Orlando Sentinel also takes a look at food, hotels, and miscellaneous reactional activities on Disney property. Check it out here.
Would you like to see the return of a pay-per-ride system put into place if it helped reduce the price of admission to the parks? How much would you be willing to pay to ride your favorite Disney attraction? Let us know in the comments.
[Source: Orlando Sentinel]
Pirates & Princesses (TM) (Stylized as PNP) is an independent, opinionated News and Information site focused on Travel, Entertainment, Fashion, the “Geek Girl” Lifestyle, and more. We focus heavily on Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Universal Orlando Resort, and other themed entertainment and travel destinations. Our news staff includes former theme park and entertainment industry employees, journalists and dedicated pop culture and theme park enthusiasts. Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of this site, our affiliates or our sponsors.