To say that many people flock to Disneyland and Walt Disney World does not do the mass migration justice. Every year, tens of millions of people flock to the parks, and many of them don't finance the increasingly expensive experience using nothing but their savings. Maddy Thompson of Phoenix, a Disney die-hard, says her husband once got a second job to pay for his self-proclaimed “Disney addiction.”
“Another time we postponed our son's dental work so we could pay for our annual trip to Disneyland,” she says.
She is far from alone. An analysis showed that 18% of Disney park visitors go into debt to pay for their Disney vacation. For fans like Jeff Reitz of Huntington Beach, who visited Disneyland 2,995 days in a row, those habits can become an obsession.
And while other theme park destinations may claim to have their own loyal following, none of them can deny Disney's appeal to the masses. Disney's six U.S. theme parks are visited more annually than the next 13 most popular U.S. theme parks. set.
Why are people so drawn to the happiest place on Earth? The answer may have to do with how our brains are wired. While many factors undoubtedly contribute to Disney's enduring popularity, some scientists believe that Disney-related vacations lead to more compulsive travel behavior than others, due to the powerful strategies the company employs. The next time you feel a strange longing to inhale the dank, musty air of Pirates of the Caribbean or walk down charming Main Street USA, consider these possible reasons.
The desire to travel is real
Although research on “wandering” is new and relatively scarce, behavioral psychologists and cognitive scientists believe that wanderlust may fit into the clinical understanding of desire as “a strong desire to modify ongoing cognitive experiences.” in ways that are not only related to addictions.
Neuropsychologist Paul Nussbaum, an associate professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, explains that these cravings may be especially focused on obtaining specific results from the holidays. “Our brain circuits are wired both to want things and for our desires to be temporarily resolved by action,” he says. In other words, for people who describe their love of Disney trips this way, longing for a trip to Disneyland may not just be a wish, but a longing that continues to grow until it is satisfied.
(Patrick Hruby/Los Angeles Times)
something smells strange
These cravings are fueled by a number of factors, of course, but smells are high on the list because of the way they trigger positive memories and emotions. “The brain region critical for smell is located near the hippocampus, which is an important brain structure that helps us remember,” Nussbaum explains. “That's why the sensation of smell can trigger memories.” Indeed, multiple studies show how the sense of smell has a stronger link to memory and emotion than any of the other senses.
Disney seems to understand this by filling its parks with machines called Smellitzers: carefully disguised or hidden gadgets in attractions, stores and hallways, each emitting calming, familiar scents to passersby. in 2017 interview, a 30-year veteran of Disney parks, said these machines release these familiar scents “on purpose” because the company is aware that guests “are using all their senses” when they are there. But beyond simply releasing odors, Disney also uses carefully timed systems and fans to ensure those aromas reach guests' nostrils. one disney attraction patent notes that the attraction's “Smellitzers nozzles” “may be provided to direct aromatic materials into the vicinity of the fans, so that appropriate aromas can be directed to the passenger.”
While many park visitors love the distribution of those smells on attractions and while shopping, one fan went viral on TikTok for saying that Disney's use of Smellitzers “brainwashes” people who attend the parks into making purchases they otherwise would not make.
Brainwashed or not, the effect “is ingenious,” says Melanie English, a licensed clinical psychologist in Seattle. She explains that these smells not only release happy hormones in visitors, but breathing them can reduce stress. By breathing slowly and deeply necessary to inhale each aroma, she explains, park-goers “complete an involuntary meditation, which slows their heart rate and reduces their cortisone levels.”
Not only do Disney Smellitzers enhance guests' experience, but because odors are strongly linked to memory, the scents can draw guests back to the parks whenever they smell similar scents that remind them of pine trees. wooded areas around Grizzly Peak at Disney. California Adventure Park or the fresh baked goods along Disney's Main Street USA A scented candle company understands how powerful these smells can be and sells candles that capture the “humid ocean air“Associated with the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction, the”ethereal aroma“from riding Haunted Mansion or the”earthy” from Flying Around the World.
“Smell is a chemically and evolutionarily ancient sense, so it connects more directly to the emotional parts of the brain than the other senses,” explains David Ludden, a professor of psychology at Georgia Gwinnett College in Lawrenceville, Georgia. “While some smells rise to the level of consciousness, many smells influence our behavior at an unconscious level,” he says, adding that Disneyland's ability to evoke such unconscious emotions and connect so deeply with guests is “a great part of Disney's success.”
(Patrick Hruby / Los Angeles)
Nurture peer influence
Beyond its unique methods of distributing scents, Disney also benefits from and contributes to established social behaviors regarding peer influence. Although people often take and share photos of many types of trips, few vacations seem as obligatory to document as a trip to Disneyland. Andrew Selepak, a professor of social media at the University of Florida, says people are greatly influenced by the images their friends and family share on social media. “Family vacations at Disney aren't just pictures of the family wearing mouse ears or after a fun ride, but of the entire park,” he says. “We take photos of our food, the things we buy, the lines we wait in, and even the smallest moments to post and share on social media.” Ludden echoes that because of the frequency with which people chronicle their Disney vacations, those following them from home are especially motivated to experience and share the same vacation in order to “belong to the elite group of those who 'have been there, done that.'”
Selepak believes Disney recognizes its influence and highlights the effort it puts into hosting meet-and-greets with beloved characters, creating eye-catching backdrops and decorations, and creating photo-worthy gifts and souvenirs. This year, Disneyland also made Disney PhotoPass digital attraction photos free for ticketed guests, encouraging more people to share images with their friends and followers.
And while lines at theme parks aren't unique to Disneyland, experts say Disney's efforts to attract social media sharing pay off in ways that efforts at other destinations simply don't. “How many other theme parks have you been to where the line to take a photo with a character dressed up like Mickey Mouse is as long as some of the attractions there?” Selepak asks.
(Patrick Hruby / Los Angeles)
Nostalgia that we are programmed to crave
Perhaps Disney's most powerful strategy is how it triggers feelings of nostalgia through its many throwback details: vintage attraction signs at park entrances, the train whistle blowing from a steam locomotive as it rolls through the park, characters of classic movies mixing with real life. life with guests, a horse-drawn tram that transports guests along Disneyland's most visible walkway, and the architecture of Main Street USA built to resemble Walt Disney's idyllic early 20th century hometown. Even newer attractions take visitors back to the classics; For example, Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway is designed to transport passengers to old-style Mickey Mouse cartoons.
“Visiting Disney parks allows people to satisfy their nostalgia by immersing themselves in this reliable world full of familiar colors, characters, smells and music,” says Erica Hepper, professor of psychology at the University of Surrey in England and author of Multiple Nostalgia. – related studies.
The rewards associated with those melancholic memories or feelings of nostalgia are many and include improved mood, feelings of optimism, stronger social ties and reduced anxiety. Hepper says experiencing nostalgia this way not only rewards park guests while they're in the park, but also motivates them to want to return when they watch nostalgia-inducing Disney movies at home or encounter Disney-themed merchandise and advertisements. , which are everywhere.
What's more, because Disneyland opened nearly 70 years ago, many adults today have some of their best childhood memories rooted in a visit there. “Childhood is a time of security, innocence, fantasy, and carefree, exuberant joy,” says Krystine Batcho, a psychology professor at Le Moyne College in Syracuse, New York. Because of this, she says Disneyland “strongly evokes nostalgia” and makes people naturally long to re-experience the cherished emotions of their childhood.
Ludden agrees, saying Disney theme parks provide a “nostalgic haven” for adults looking to escape their stressful lives.
In fact, it's this use of nostalgia marketing combined with these other subtle strategies that experts say contributes to the overall experience and makes guests of all ages want to return to the Happiest Place on Earth again and again. “Disney is absolutely special at creating smells, foods, experiences and products that go together so well,” says English. “Collectively, this brings people back to their parks, and with joy.”
