Disney World Isn't Dying
A Wall Street Journal piece took Walt Disney's (NYSE: DIS) theme parks in Central Florida to task earlier this week. The headline of Jacob Passy's column claimed that "Disney World Hasn't Felt This Empty in Years," arguing that shorter wait times and aggressive discounting are signs that crowds are thinning for the country's leading theme parks during the typically potent summer season.
He's not wrong. I visit theme parks probably a lot more than other financial journos covering the industry. I've made roughly two dozen visits to Disney World over the last three months. I was even there last night. I've also made several visits to rival Central Florida gated attractions operated by Universal Orlando parent Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA) and SeaWorld Entertainment (NYSE: SEAS) in that time. I'm a kid at heart, one who doesn't mind paying up for annual passes for all of the major attractions.
Crowds have definitely been light these days. I've seen it with my own two eyes as I walked through the area's leading tourist haunts.
Source Fool.com
