Disney CFO Hugh Johnston recently held an interesting discussion at the MoffettNathanson Media, Internet & Communications Conference. Johnston touched on a variety of topics, but there’s one comment that stood out to us. He mentioned that Walt Disney World doesn’t have the ability to grow attendance because it’s already full.
Below is Johnston’s quote on capacity:
Without expansion, we don’t necessarily have the ability to grow attendance massively because it’s already filled up. Now we could jam more people into the park, but then the guest experience declines, and that’s actually bad for the brand. So you don’t want us to do that, and we don’t think it’s a good idea either.
Disney CFO Hugh Johnston
He added that new capacity – meaning new attractions and lands – allow Disney to grow its attendance figures without needing to offer discounts. Johnston was previewing what he envisions in the next several years at Walt Disney World as new rides and lands (Tropical Americas, Piston Peak, Monstropolis, Villains Land) open.
Johnston’s comments caught our eye for one key reason – Walt Disney World is not full. In fact, it’s well below its historical highs and its relying on significant discounts to maintain its current levels. Johnston even spoke about Disney’s reduced crowd levels in a Q&A in 2024.
Walt Disney World’s attendance is still well below its peak seen in 2019. For example, Magic Kingdom had a reported 20.9 million guests in 2019. In 2024, the Magic Kingdom had a reported 17.8 million. Animal Kingdom is even worse with a reported 13.8 million in 2019 versus 8.8 million in 2024. That’s millions of guests fewer than the pre-COVID crowds.
To Johnston’s credit, Disney has previously said that those 2019 crowds were too much. Disney leadership has said the guest experience suffered when the parks were that full, and they haven’t wanted to repeat those mistakes. Instead, Disney has pivoted to a strategy involving making more money per guest rather than making more through the volume of guests.
Even with that attendance strategy in mind, Disney still isn’t full. Far from it. Check out the steep discounts they’re offering this summer and into early fall. The long list includes:
- Free Dining Plans for Kids
- 30% Room Discount
- After 2pm Summer Ticket Discount
- 4-Day, 4-Park Ticket Package
- 40% Annual Passholder Room Discount
- Additional Florida resident discounts
That’s not even counting the other packages and discounts Disney ran earlier this year for Summer 2026. Summarized, Disney is doing a lot to try and keep the parks busy this summer. This time of year used to be packed, but we’ve seen crowds shift to the cooler months over the past several years.
Need more proof besides all the discounts? Check out Walt Disney World’s table service restaurants. Even the popular choices that used to be full even at the 60-day mark have availability. Cinderella’s Royal Table has had next-day availability and has numerous openings during the week of Memorial Day. Space 220, one of EPCOT’s toughest reservations to grab, has openings every day in June as of the date of this article. Crazy.
The story is similar at Disney’s resorts. While availability may look limited under some of the discount packages, just about every resort has plenty of accommodations under the rack rate. That really doesn’t line up with the “it’s already filled up” statement.
Before we wrap this up, let’s briefly talk about capacity.
Disney has rolled out new rides and lands over the last several years. But, despite those additions, there have been relatively few true additions to capacity. Many of Disney’s “additions” have actually been replacements. And, many of those replacements have lower capacity compared to the attractions they replaced.
Thankfully, Disney has started to realize they can’t just keep replacing existing rides and expecting to grow revenue by increasing guest spending. Expecting current levels of guests to just pay more and more isn’t sustainable. Disney needs more guests and they need big additions to attract them. Tropical Americas could be considered another replacement (though the Encanto ride will do more lifting than Primeval Whirl), but the Door Coaster in Monstropolis and the upcoming Villains Land represent genuine additions.
Simply, Walt Disney World is in no way totally full. At least, it’s not compared to historical figures. And, the attendance we are seeing right now is being propped up by significant discounts. Disney has had to pull a lot of levers to keep guests coming. Of course, no one expects Johnston to make public comments about Disney hurting to attract guests.
Guests visiting now shouldn’t expect to see the types of crowds that are common during the truly busy times of the year such as New Year’s. And there’s a lot of great deals to be found right now. We recommend making the most of it because big deals might be harder to find when Disney opens some of its genuine additions.
