Open Them Wallets

[hobie16]

Data suggest the super-rich are opening wallets wider at theme parks

The economy could be teetering on the edge of a double-dip recession, and theme parks are still tossing discounts at reluctant travelers. But there are encouraging signs from at least one small segment of consumers: the super-rich.

New data compiled by American Express Business Insights, a unit of credit card giant American Express Co., suggests that what the company calls "ultra-affluent" consumers are beginning to open their wallets wider when inside theme parks — much more so than everyone else.

Perhaps sensing a similar shift, the parks themselves are moving ahead with new offerings aimed at the upper crust. After several years of planning and site preparation, last month Walt Disney World Resort began presales of homes inside its exclusive Golden Oak residential development, where multistory mansions will be priced as high as $8 million each. SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, meanwhile, is expanding Discovery Cove, its limited-admission boutique park where swim-with-dolphin packages start at $199 a person.

Abe Pizam, dean of the University of Central Florida's Rosen College of Hospitality Management, said one explanation could be that rich travelers are beginning to feel more comfortable displaying their wealth now that the worst has passed of a brutal global recession in which extravagant spending would have been considered shameful.

"I think these people didn't spend a lot before not because they couldn't afford to, but because it was not socially acceptable," Pizam said. "Now it is not so shameful as it was."

According to American Express, spending at theme parks by ultra-affluent cardholders jumped 32% during the first quarter of the year compared with a year earlier. Spending at theme parks by the remainder of the company's cardholders was up just 1%.

The data was culled from the spending records of American Express cardholders. The company classifies ultra-affluent consumers as those who charge at least $7,000 a month on their cards, or a minimum of $84,000 in credit-card charges each year.

"You want to take advantage of this niche market if you can," Pizam said. "But they're not going to make up for the losses of the hundreds of thousands of others who still can't afford it. Let's be honest, the parks are not built for the ultra-rich. They are built for the masses."

Still, any positive trends are welcome after two years of grim economic news. And the parks are positioning themselves to capitalize on a rich-traveler rebound.

SeaWorld, for instance, is moving forward with plans to expand its 10-year-old Discovery Cove. Built around intimate experiences such as swimming with dolphins and hand-feeding parrots, Discovery Cove features limited admission — capped at 1,050 guests a day — and average ticket prices that are nearly three times as expensive as those of typical theme parks.

Company executives revealed plans for the expansion earlier this year while helping host an annual trade show for travel agents and other travel professionals. They said the additions would include a new tropical reef for swimming with sea life such as lionfish and sharks, and an island nature trail. But they have declined to provide further details since then; a more formal announcement is expected this fall.

Although SeaWorld does not track guests' income levels, a spokesman said the park is also seeing strong demand for high-end experiences such as shark encounters and beluga-whale interactions at SeaWorld and its "trainer for a day" program at Discovery Cove, which can cost more than $500 a person. more...

[darph nader]

I did. A weeks worth of lint fell out.

[Main Streeter]

I did. A weeks worth of lint fell out.

Wasn't this an old Jack Benny joke?

[darph nader]

Wasn't this an old Jack Benny joke?

Could be.