Disney parks profits hit records — even before big expansions

All is well in the Magic Kingdom.

Disney’s theme park division posted record revenue and profit for fiscal 2024, with revenue rising 5% for the full year to $34.15 billion and operating income up 4% to $9.27 billion.

Experiences, which includes parks, resorts, cruises and consumer products, was the second-highest revenue driver behind Disney’s entertainment division, which tallied $41.18 billion in fiscal 2024. However, the entertainment segment’s operating profits were smaller, collecting just $3.92 billion.

Revenue growth in experiences was the strongest of any Disney division, and company executives expect the good times to continue.

Disney expects to see 6% to 8% profit growth for experiences in fiscal 2025 — and that’s before it breaks ground on a slew of planned land expansions, new rides and rethemed attractions.

As part of Disney’s 10-year, $60 billion investment in the segment guests will finally get to see what lies beyond Big Thunder Mountain at the Magic Kingdom, visit the Land of the Dead with the cast of “Coco” at Disneyland and battle King Thanos within the Avengers Campus at California Adventure.

Many of those plans were revealed during the company’s D23 Expo back in August, however, it’ll be a few years before Disney’s park guests will have the opportunity to explore the new additions.

In the meantime, the company is driving revenue with higher ticket prices as well as in-park entertainment and limited-time offerings to keep guests coming back.

Disney has a wide variety of park guests, ranging from locals who visit often throughout the year to the once-in-a-lifetime visitors who may be traveling from afar.

“You have these different buckets of guests, all of whom are interested in having a great day at the Disney parks, but are motivated by different elements or different factors,” said Gavin Doyle, founder of MickeyVisit.com.

For those who venture to the parks less frequently, new marquee attractions and lands can serve as motivation to book tickets and hotel stays.

In the last five years, Disney has added two Star Wars-themed lands and a Marvel land as well as opened new rides like Cosmic Rewind at Epcot, which features characters from “Guardians of the Galaxy,” and a “Tron” roller coaster at Magic Kingdom. Disney also recently rethemed the iconic Splash Mountain attraction with characters from “The Princess and the Frog.”

On the other end of the spectrum, those who visit annually or several times during the year, only need “the smallest nudge,” Doyle said. And that can come in the form of new live shows, character meet-and-greets, holiday food specials, seasonal festivals as well as parades and nighttime spectaculars.

“There’s stuff that happens all throughout the…