Disney Soars Despite Ticket Prices

Despite higher ticket prices, Tokyo Disneyland and its sister theme parks in Japan reported a net profit of 16.2 billion yen ($255 million) for the April-June quarter, which represents a 5 percent increase over the same period in 2015.

Oriental Land, which manages Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo Disney Sea, increased prices in April for the third year in a row – 500 yen for adult tickets, which now cost 7,400 yen, 20 percent more than three years ago. Nevertheless, attendance held steady.

According to the Nippon Keizai Shimbun financial newspaper, Oriental maintained interest by ramping up the number of special events, which regular visitors felt they couldn’t afford to miss, including a special program to celebrate Tokyo Disney Sea’s 15th anniversary.

These events boosted ticket sales by 4 percent and merchandise sales by 6 percent. The company is projecting sales of 479.9 billion yen for fiscal 2016 – 3 percent higher than last year.

That works out to a net profit of 76.8 billion yen, or 4 percent more than last year. It would be the biggest yearly profit the company has reported. Another reason for the big increase, however, was last summer’s bad weather, which contributed to a slight slump in attendance. Consequently, August will be a crucial month, since it is traditionally the park’s busiest.