Tickets for Disneyland and Walt Disney World will now cost 20% more during holidays and some weekends. Are families being taken for a ride?

Name: Disney.

Age: Ageless.

Appearance: Ubiquitous.

Just tell me nothing horrible has occurred to or with Walt’s frozen corpse? Or been carried out by its reanimated incarnation? That’s an urban legend. Nothing cryogenic ever happened to him, nor were the results ever secretly interred under the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland.

So, what’s happening then? The Walt Disney Company are introducing a peak-pricing structure at Disneyland in California and the four parks that comprise Walt Disney World in Florida.

What does that mean? Tickets for the most popular visiting times (most of December, spring break and several weeks of summer) will cost up to 20% more than other times.

Greedy gougers! Unspeakable meanies! Clearly, they have let Jiminy Cricket’s exhortation “Always let conscience be your guide!” fall by the wayside, with these prices to infinity and beyond! Hakuna matata, my arse – how are families supposed to keep coming to these things? Actually, analysts say that although Disney’s annual price rises always cause some outrage, they are pretty reasonable in market context.

Are any of these analysts trying to shepherd three kids and two adults through the Magic Kingdom on a hot July weekend? Probably not, no.

Then they should keep quiet, shouldn’t they? Perhaps, yes.

I shall take my business elsewhere. Maybe to Universal Studios – have a go on all their new Harry Potter stuff! Universal Studios already operates a demand-pricing system. Like most of the accommodation and airline companies you’ll use to get and stay there, or anywhere else.

Is there anywhere, anything or anyone in the world that is not wholly and completely dedicated to extracting as much money from me as ruthlessly as possible? Welcome to late western capitalism, my friend.

I feel like I’m getting taken for a ride while being taken for a ride. Can’t prices be frozen? Let it go.

Do say: “The flower that blooms in adversity is the most beautiful of all.”

Don’t say: “I don’t think stumping up for a $124 peak-day ticket is the kind of adversity the emperor had in mind.”