A devoted Canadian father of two boys wanted to take his family to Disneyland. What was meant to be the trip of a lifetime ended with fury when they realized how much money it would cost them to be there. He took to social media to spread awareness of his outrage.
Disneyland’s Allure
Disneyland is an unequivocal global destination cherished by people from all corners of the world. However, a common and enduring challenge of Disneyland visits is the monumental wait times. Thrill-seekers often queue for hours to experience a fleeting five-minute rush on their favorite rides. This is a testament to the magnetic appeal of Disney’s enchantment. Mario Zelaya, a Canadian husband and father of two boys, was captured by the allure of Disneyland and planned a trip with his family.
While the magic of Disneyland remains unparalleled, it comes at a substantial cost that can quickly pile up. The price of admission has risen to astronomical heights in recent years, causing widespread outrage among potential visitors, including Mario. He took to social media to share his budgeting experience of Disneyland. The trip was meant to be an exciting experience for his family of four, but it ended in horror when he took a look at the bill at the end of the day. In a video he posted on social media that has now garnered over 240,000 views, he said: “I made a huge mistake, I went to Disneyland in Paris. I’m almost embarrassed at how much money I spent.”
Expensive Tickets
Mario was outraged when he saw that Americans would have to pay $1,100, but for Canadians, it was $1,600. This was just for their flights to get to Paris. Already Mario was expressing deep concern. “Just the tickets alone, that’s $1,200. Why the hell would I do that?” he said.
One thing he was very adamant about was the upgraded passes he purchased for his family. Somehow, he just knew the queues were going to be extraordinarily long, so the extra cost seemed worth it. But this still didn’t stop him from berating Disney for it. He showed videos he took of the queues with his face green-screened into it. “It’s crazy how overflowing Disney is,” he said in the clip. “It doesn’t matter if it’s in Paris, Orlando, or California, it’s like this all the time,” he said as he showed a video of a long line for a “crappy ride” with a wait time of an hour and 15 minutes without the premier pass.“
According to Mario, this is what you can expect at Disneyland: “Here are the Disney rules: Expect crazy long wait times. If you don’t want to wait in line, expect a huge bill to upgrade to a Premier Pass. If you decide to wait in line instead because the Premier pass doesn’t cover all the rides, expect a huge bill regardless.”
Avoid Disneyland, Says Father of Two
The upgraded passes he bought enabled him and his family to stand in the faster queues. Without them, they would have had to wait up to two hours for one average ride. “Now, if you total up all the rides that we did when we did all of the rides, we would have been waiting for over 25 hours,” he said. “You’re better off buying the Disney access pass to bypass the line than you are buying a three-day parks day.” He added, “My advice: don’t go to Disney.”
Then, we get to the comments section, and it seems that many of the viewers agreed with his opinion of Disneyland. One person wrote: “So true, waiting an entire two hours for a lame five-minute ride.” Then, another said, “My family went once and that was enough for us….it cost us about 5000 for a family of 5 & it wasn’t worth it.“
However, one person said they wait till everyone leaves. Why? Well, they say the rides are shorter. They wrote, “I go so much to Disneyland Paris and I never bought the Disney Premier Access, you can do so much rides after 7pm already a lot guests leave the parks.”
Keep Reading: Woman Asks if She was Wrong to Walk Out On Vacation After Husband Secretly Booked MIL to Come Along
Sources
- “Angry dad slams ‘money-grabbing’ Disneyland after spending $1,200 on tickets.” NY Post. Alexandra Steigrad. September 1, 2023.
- “Horrified dad reveals EYE-WATERING amount he spent on family trip to Disneyland Paris – as he slams the theme parks for sky-high prices and hidden costs.” DailyMail. Kelsi Karruli. September 1, 2023.