Who goes to Universal Studios anymore?

"It feels like I haven't seen so many people in three years." On the morning of July 1, Chen Ping and his three friends came to Universal Studios and encountered a huge crowd.

On July 2, the traditional summer peak season began. Universal Studios reopened for a week, and the ticket price increased from 538 yuan to 638 yuan. It is precisely because of this that on July 1st, Universal Studios ushered in the peak of crowds. According to statistics from the Xiaohongshu account @Magic Platform, the number of people entering the park that day was approximately 15,000.

Ran Finance learned that on June 25, Beijing Universal Studios, which had been "sealed" for 55 days, resumed operations and initially opened for limited time. All tourists entering the resort must present a valid negative nucleic acid test certificate within 48 hours, verify the Beijing Health Card and valid ID, and have their body temperature checked.

Chen Ping took the subway for an hour and a half and arrived at Universal Studios at nearly 11 o'clock in the morning. "There are too many people, especially for 'Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey'. We have to queue for more than 40 minutes for each event. It's so tiring." Hurry up and hurry up before the park closes at 7 p.m. They finally reviewed all the items.

Although darkness falls later in the summer, Universal Studios has not changed its business hours from 10:00 to 19:00, so the popular Harry Potter light show has also been suspended. In this regard, Chen Equality is something many tourists regret.

Chen Ping told Rancaijing that she did not buy tickets on the official website of Universal Studios, but through a ticketing channel. The "group purchase price" is 388 yuan, which is 140 yuan cheaper than the official website. Buying tickets for three people saves money. The price is 420 yuan. Its channel dealer said that starting from July 2, the "group purchase price" will be 488 yuan, with daily limited sales.

In fact, Universal Studios has reopened, and the surrounding series industries have also become active again. Ticket sales are one of the business lines, and many channel operators are active on major social media. In addition, there are people operating Harry Potter magic robe rental, peripheral product purchasing, hotel booking and other businesses.

However, half of 2022 has passed, and epidemic prevention policies in various places have not been relaxed yet. When Universal Studios opens this time, most of the tourists it receives are still local residents of Beijing. Tourists from all over the country have not yet been able to "check in" in Beijing. At the same time, in order to comply with Beijing's epidemic prevention regulations, Universal Studios will still operate with limited capacity for a period of time.

"Since October 22 last year, due to the recurrence of the epidemic, the Winter Olympics and other factors, the control of entering Beijing has become stricter. Since the beginning of this year, due to the epidemic across the country, inter-provincial tourism has almost come to a standstill, which has had a negative impact on Universal Studios It has a big impact." Travel blogger Songhe told Rancaijing that compared with last year's National Day, Universal Studios' traffic has not recovered.

Songhe pointed out that basically most Beijing tourists have been to Universal Studios at least once. Unless they are annual card users, ordinary people will not repeat the 638 yuan ticket price.

Xiaobai runs multiple Universal Studios-related accounts on Xiaohongshu. He told Rancaijing that many fans said that the ticket price of 638 yuan is too expensive, “so many tourists come to us. Buying tickets through channels will give you more or less discounts. ”

Based on this, Songhe believes that Universal Studios must leverage the national passenger flow, and it is impossible to achieve good profits by relying on the existing tourists in Beijing.

Beijing tourists are tired of it

On June 30, Xiao He began to update pictures, texts and videos on Xiaohongshu, all of which she took at Universal Studios Movie character IP. This is Prince Charming, played by American Caleb Edwards, a villain from the movie "Shrek."

"It's not because of the movie IP, I just like the actor Edwards. We call him the most handsome actor in Beijing Universal Studios," she said.

"I have been to Universal Studios more than a dozen times. I still go there rarely. Some WeChat group friends have gone there twenty or thirty times and spend every day there." Xiao He told Rancaijing , the first ten times she went to Universal Studios, she was as serious about the attractions as an ordinary tourist. Later, playing in the attractions lost its novelty, and she preferred more relaxed activities such as watching performances and interacting with actors.

Edwards is the reason why she goes to Universal Studios now. "I sent Edwards a private message on Xiaohongshu and asked about his performance time. The reason why I went on June 30 was because it was his turn to perform this role that day." According to her, Prince Charming is a unique IP of Universal Studios Beijing. It is performed by three actors, Edwards being one of them.

The reason why I was able to go to Universal Studios dozens of times is because Xiao He and a group of tourists purchased winter and spring roaming cards during last year’s “Double 11”, which were available for 1,288 yuan and 1,588 yuan respectively. level. Xiao He purchased a half-year card worth 1,288 yuan, which stipulates that it cannot be used on Fridays, Saturdays and some holidays.

It is reported that since Universal Studios has been closed for nearly two months since the May Day holiday, this restart will also extend the validity period of these winter and spring roaming cards to August 15, 2022.

Before the epidemic, Xiao He had been to Universal Studios in the United States, Japan and Singapore. She had been to Singapore five or six times in particular.

She commented that the project positioning of Universal Studios Beijing is more aimed at younger groups, and in terms of project stimulation, it is also relatively conservative. "If I go now, it's mainly to see Edwards."

Yiyi, who lives in Mentougou, Beijing, also holds a winter and spring roaming card. On June 28, she drove to Universal Studios with her husband. "I went 8 times in one day. We used to have a one-way trip of two hours, which was quite troublesome." She told Rancaijing that she also has a related WeChat group, in which group friends who live nearby often go there to play.

Yiyi didn’t feel very good about this playing experience. June 28 is the fourth day of the reopening of Universal Studios, and it is also a working day. The flow of people is not large, but due to epidemic prevention regulations, the project has also implemented flow restrictions. Only people traveling with you can sit in the same row of seats, resulting in some empty seats and extended queue times.

"I observed it for two days before coming here and saw that the queue time was only about 10 minutes, so I rushed here happily. I didn't expect that the queue time was 30-60 minutes, just like the situation of 10,000 people." Yiyi said , since it was already noon when we arrived at Universal Studios, and the park closed at 7 p.m., we were in a hurry to play the activities. In addition, many restaurants in the park closed before 7 o'clock, and they were unable to have dinner after finishing the project.

In Yiyi’s opinion, Universal Studios is quite fun, but the project format is relatively simple, basically 5D experiences, and the number of projects is relatively small. "The film IPs that were photographed were also relatively short-lived and scattered. I often see Minions and Woodpeckers (Woody and Winnie), but the characters of "Kung Fu Panda" are rarely encountered."

Yiyi said that although the half-year card has been extended for two months, she may only go there once or twice during the summer vacation. "I went with my sister during the winter vacation last year. I might have to queue for two hours for a project, which was so tiring. Plus it's hot during the summer vacation, so I won't go so often again."

She said, if I am stuck for half a year After the expiration, she will go again in the future, but she may hesitate because of the ticket price. “After all, I have played those projects many times.

Surrounding “rich” industries

Beijing Universal Studios has reopened, and nearby business people have become active. Taobao merchant Xiaobai is one of them.

When Universal Studios opened in September last year, Xiaobai and a friend got early admission. Experience tickets. After playing there, Xiaobai immediately discovered the business opportunity, “The things inside are quite expensive. We like Harry Potter’s magic robes and bought two sets, each costing more than 1,800 yuan. We thought that we could start a rental business of magic robes, staffs and other peripheral items. ”

So, he rented a storefront next to Universal Studios as a magic robe rental studio, opened two magic robe rental Taobao stores, and began to operate a number of Xiaohongshu accounts to attract

Although there are only two people working together, they insist on updating the Little Red Book every day, which mainly includes the estimated number of visitors to Universal Studios every day, as well as some travel guides. Ran Finance learned that one of their operations. Among the batch of accounts, @ Universal Studios Small Speaker already has 23,000 fans, and @ Universal Studios Data Station has 13,000 fans.

Xiaobai told Rancaijing that consumers who come to the studio to rent magic robes. , half from Taobao stores, and half from Xiaohongshu. During the National Day last year, when there was a lot of traffic at Universal Studios, they could rent out more than 200 sets of magic robes every day. But now the business is not satisfactory.

“Business is okay in winter. There will always be epidemics in the future, and people cannot flow. Summer is also a problem now, because it is too hot, and people are not willing to rent magic robes. In winter, it is actually better for everyone to wear them outside down jackets. "Xiaobai said that there are very few foreign tourists this year, "because we have a hotel delivery service, but this year they all come to pick up the goods on the same day, and they are basically local in Beijing. "

Xiaobai analyzed that the demand for magic robes is actually not large. Only 1% of people may rent them. For example, if Universal Studios has 10,000 passengers, only 100-200 people may rent magic robes. He revealed that after the restart, there were more orders on June 30, with more than 50 orders. “My traffic is relatively large, and many of my colleagues may only have a few orders a day. ”

Ari is also working on Universal Studios’ magic robe studio, and at the same time does Universal Studios’ peripheral purchasing, ticket sales, hotel reservations, etc. Compared to Xiaobai, he only has the mentality of doing a side job , and there are no channels to attract traffic. “Last year when it was good, 10 units could be rented out a week. This year, it’s pretty good to rent two or three apartments a week, but I often can’t rent out one apartment a day. ”

The profit margin of the magic robe rental business is not large. Since the price of a genuine magic robe is 1,800 yuan, and offline rental stores also require rent. Xiaobai revealed that the rent of his studio exceeds 1,800 yuan per month. Ten thousand yuan.

Ari’s main job is as a baker. Last year, he also worked in the dessert shop of Universal Studios. He said that he now has some internal channels. Among so many peripheral businesses, ticket sales are the most profitable. “Recently, I make sixty or seventy yuan a day, which is better than nothing.

”

Ran Finance learned that there are currently many Universal Studios ticket distributors, and there are many discount tickets such as “group purchase tickets” and “special price tickets”, which are generally 20-10% off the official ticket price. , some "special tickets" can even be discounted by 50%. Ran Finance found in multiple WeChat groups that there were many tourists buying such tickets.

On July 2, Ari also followed a fruit seller. I went to Universal Studios to sell peaches with my friends. “It’s not very profitable to do it blindly. ” He told Rancaijing.

B&Bs are struggling to survive

On June 22, Universal Studios announced that it was about to resume operations. On the Qunar platform, searches for Beijing Universal Resort were instantly popular. Increased 6 times, ranking first among scenic spots in the country; search popularity for hotels around Beijing Universal Resort has also surged, with a month-on-month increase of nearly 40%

On the Tujia platform, on June 22. The number of bookings for B&Bs around Universal Studios increased nearly 1.5 times compared with the previous day (June 21), and the search popularity of the "Universal Studios" keyword increased by 20% month-on-month.

However, in the past half year, the number of hotel bookings increased by nearly 1.5 times. The epidemic situation has made it difficult for B&Bs around Universal Studios to survive.

Afu is one of the first B&B hosts around Universal Studios. She has rented nearly 20 houses in the surrounding communities and is still nearby. When renting a villa in Royal New Village, they signed a 3-5 year lease with the landlord and invested hundreds of thousands of yuan in renovation in the early stage.

However, before the opening of Universal Studios in September last year. One week ago, Beijing implemented a new policy on short-term rental housing (i.e., the "Notice on Standardizing the Management of Short-term Rental Housing"). Urban B&B products were basically banned, and B&B hosts in cities around Universal Studios had no choice but to withdraw.

Afu told Ran. Finance: Due to the large initial investment and serious resale losses, she chose to rent out all the houses in the community on a long-term basis. “The difference in long-term rental prices is not enough to cover the decoration costs, but if you directly default on the contract and check out, the loss will be even greater. "

Rural B&Bs are encouraged by policies. However, Afu's B&B in Royal New Village has not been able to operate, and it is now rented out on a long-term basis.

Afu explained, "The epidemic It has always had an impact. From the end of last year to now, the order volume has been unable to increase. Country B&Bs are also villas, and the investment is huge. The monthly bill can only cover the rent cost, so you might as well rent them out for a long time. "Even when the market was good last year, the order volume could only cover rent and labor costs. "There is not much hope." "

Not only Afu, Chen Hongyu, the person in charge of Hongyu Art.house in Royal New Village, told Rancaijing that she is also renting out the B&B for a long time.

Rancaijing learned that the distance There are many B&Bs in Royal New Village, about 5 kilometers away from Universal Studios. Since they are all independent villas, the accommodation prices range from 1,000 to 5,000 yuan per night.

Provided by Tujia platform Xiangran Finance. Data shows that since 2019, the Royal New Village territorial government has organized and formed the Huangmuchang B&B Alliance, which currently includes B&B brands such as An Old Friend, Royal Lotus Garden, KUSAMA Bird House, and Sleep Research Institute Asleep.

On Xiaohongshu, Rancaijing saw that KUSAMA Bird House and Sleep Research Institute Asleep have posted many "Internet celebrities trying to sleep" posts.

Afu pointed out that despite entering the peak summer season, the flow of people has increased. There will be an increase, but they are all from Beijing and there are no requirements for accommodation. “Without foreign tourists, the accommodation business cannot be done. ”

Waiting for tourists from all over the country

On June 30, Shanghai Disneyland also resumed operations. “Female star” Lina Belle was on the Weibo hot search list that day, attracting the attention of the entire Internet. . In contrast, the reopening of Universal Studios has not caused much splash.

Almost a year after its opening, Universal Studios’ operating data was slightly bleak.

February 8. Guo Wenjie, deputy director of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Commerce, revealed at the Beijing International Consumer Center City Construction Press Conference that since the opening of the first phase of the Universal Theme Park in September 2021, it has achieved operating income of 1.645 billion yuan that year and received a total of 2.1 million tourists. < /p>

In addition, data disclosed by the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism shows that during the Qingming Festival from April 3 to 5, Beijing Universal Resort received 30,500 tourists, which means it received an average of about 10,200 tourists per day.

But before the park opened, Song Yu, chairman of Capital Tourism Group, said that "Beijing Universal Resort is expected to receive 10-12 million tourists every year." From this, it can be estimated that the average daily number of visitors to the park should be 27,400 There is a big gap between the above and the above-mentioned actual data.

Unlike Beijing Universal Studios, Shanghai Disney opened in 2016, and the number of visitors exceeded 11 million in the first year, surpassing Tokyo Disney and becoming the first in the world. The theme park that receives the most tourists in a year. At the 2021 press conference for the fifth anniversary of the opening of Shanghai International Tourism Resort, the operator of Shanghai Disneyland stated that the park has received more than 83 million tourists in five years and achieved revenue of more than 40 billion yuan.

Songhe pointed out that in October last year, the flow of people at Universal Studios was still quite large, but starting from November last year, the overall flow of people began to decrease.

"In April, I experienced this deeply. Originally, the half-year card stipulated that I could not go on weekends, but in April I went several times on Sundays. Because the official website will be adjusted according to passenger flow, there are few tourists. When the time comes, it will also be open to annual pass users.” Songhe estimates that the current passenger flow of Universal Studios may only be 20-25% of last year.

Songhe said that judging from the passenger flow situation, the operating situation of Beijing Universal Studios is not optimistic. "If the epidemic can get better, the policies for entering and exiting Beijing can be loosened, and cross-provincial tourists can enter the park, then things will get better." He said frankly that for local audiences in Beijing, a ticket of 500 to 600 yuan, relying on Beijing tourists to repeat Playing can't drive a lot of traffic.

Ari, who worked at Universal Studios last year, also has some experience of its current situation. He told Rancaijing, "Many restaurants in Universal Studios are still closed now. Some businesses are not doing well and may no longer be open." He also found that in just six months, the employees of Universal Studios have undergone a major change. Most of the people have resigned.

In addition to the objective factors of the epidemic, Beijing Universal Studios itself also has shortcomings. Songhe said that the projects of Universal Studios Beijing are all old IPs, most of which are more than 20 years old this year, and young people are relatively unfamiliar with them. "But this cannot be changed. Even if roller coasters are added, the effect will be limited."

In early April, Universal Studios cooperated with Tencent Games to launch the "Honor of Kings" float, with a three-month cooperation period. The epidemic broke out in Beijing in May and Universal Studios closed for two months. When it reopened, the "Honor of Kings" float had been cancelled.

"The "Honor of Kings" float is quite good. There are plots and performances during the parade, which is much better than everyone expected. It has only been launched for a month, which is a pity." Songhe told Ran Finance .

Xiao He also likes the "Honor of Kings" float. She thinks the design is beautiful and delicate, and the peripheral products are also quite cheap, such as a 30 yuan refrigerator magnet.

But compared to Shanghai Disney, Yiyi feels that the surrounding areas of Universal Studios are not good-looking and expensive. Since she had previously interned at Shanghai Disneyland, she had access to relevant information. "When I wanted to buy souvenirs, I found that they were not very good-looking, and the prices were generally higher. For example, the price of water cups at Disney this year was 80-100 yuan, while those at Universal Studios were around 150 yuan, and even 179 yuan."

Of course, Songhe believes that the evolution that Disney has accumulated over the five years of operation has entered a cycle of conscience. Universal Studios has only been in operation for a year, and the timing is not right yet, so it is inevitable that it will enter a nauseating cycle. "If you want to make a profit, you still have to look at the passenger flow. When the flow of tourists from other places increases, the operating situation of Universal Studios will improve.

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This article originates from Ran Diyuan