Half of Walt Disney World Visitors Now Enter Wearing MyMagic+ Wristbands

The Walt Disney Co. is pleased that half of its Walt Disney World visitors enter with MyMagic+ wristbands, even as the company hesitates to say how much MyMagic+ factors into its fiscal second quarter domestic growth announced this week.

As Disney told investors about MyMagic+’s 50% adoption rate during its earnings call Tuesday for its second quarter ending March 28, the wristbands are only online in Orlando but will roll out at other Disney parks in the coming years.

Considering they let visitors swiftly enter the park, get FastPass access to attractions, make purchases, and open their hotel room door there’s no doubt the wristbands played a heavy role in the positive quarterly results. It’s nailing down the exact dollar amount that’s tricky, the company said.

“..It’s difficult to say just how much [MyMagic+ contributed to second quarter revenue] because it’s so [integrated into the guest experience], but it clearly was a contributor to results,” said Tom Staggs, Disney’s COO. “MyMagic+ will still be a [factor going forward], but perhaps not with this great an impact as we’ve seen just in this quarter.”

Given domestic growth versus international carried the company’s results that leaves a large clue about MyMagic+’s influence since it’s not yet available overseas.

Here’s a snapshot of how MyMagic+ probably helped: Disney’s parks and resorts revenue grew 6% and reached $3.7 billion year-over-year for its second quarter ending March 28.

Parks and resorts operating income was $566 million for the quarter, a 24% increase year-over-year resulting from higher average ticket prices at its domestic theme parks and cruises.

Domestic increases in food, beverage and merchandise spending and higher average hotel room rates also helped bump up the quarter’s operating income. This helped offset the decrease in Disney’s international operating income primarily due to lower attendance at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, higher operating costs at Disneyland Paris and Hong Kong Disneyland Resort and higher pre-opening expenses at Shanghai Disney Resort that’s set to open next year.

Hotel occupancy at Disney’s U.S. properties grew 2.5 percentage points to 89 percent during the quarter and per-room spending rose 6 percent. Attendance was also up 2% at its domestic parks for the quarter and Staggs said international attendance at domestic parks was “strong this year.”

Disney’s CFO Jay Rasulo added so far for its third quarter domestic resort reservations are up 7% year-over-year.