Darkbeer
08-07-2003, 09:17 PM
Disney's Hunt for a Happy Ending (http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/aug2003/nf2003088_7484_db014.htm) - Business Week, 8/8/03
QuikQuote: Analysts would like to see the return of free-spending international travelers to Walt Disney World in Orlando, which gets nearly one-third of its visitors from overseas, or to the trio of Disneyland Resort hotels in Anaheim, Calif. Instead, attendance at Disney World this summer has been off by 8%. And while Disneyland -- which relies less heavily on foreign tourists -- saw attendance rise by 7%, many of those visitors hailed from close by. Such patrons tend to spend less on food and lengthy hotel stays, further cutting into the parks' operating earnings.
When will they come back? Disney executives don't sound terribly optimistic. "A dramatic uptick in visitation is unlikely in the near term," admits President Robert Iger. Indeed, SG Cowen analyst Lowell Singer figures it may take until mid-2004 before European travelers return to the U.S. in sufficient numbers to help Disney.
QuikQuote: Analysts would like to see the return of free-spending international travelers to Walt Disney World in Orlando, which gets nearly one-third of its visitors from overseas, or to the trio of Disneyland Resort hotels in Anaheim, Calif. Instead, attendance at Disney World this summer has been off by 8%. And while Disneyland -- which relies less heavily on foreign tourists -- saw attendance rise by 7%, many of those visitors hailed from close by. Such patrons tend to spend less on food and lengthy hotel stays, further cutting into the parks' operating earnings.
When will they come back? Disney executives don't sound terribly optimistic. "A dramatic uptick in visitation is unlikely in the near term," admits President Robert Iger. Indeed, SG Cowen analyst Lowell Singer figures it may take until mid-2004 before European travelers return to the U.S. in sufficient numbers to help Disney.