Walt Disney World Admission Tickets/Passes

Walt Disney World Ticket Buying Guidelines

Almost everything you need to know about Walt Disney World admission tickets (passes).

Last ticket prices shown are as of August 2009. Prices are already published in many locations including Disney's ticket booths, the Disney Information Station (www.wdwinfo.com). Mouse Savers (mousesavers.com) and others.

Regular admission prices, click here.
Quick tips, factoids, FAQ's, click here.
Terminology (glossary), click here.
Ticket discussions in detail, click here.
Our unofficial Walt Disney World page

More travel tips
Go to articles on completely different subjects.

All prices shown here include tax and are rounded to the nearest dollar.

Thanks to "Cheshire Figment" on the forums of the Disney Information Station.

Discussion Topics

(Here, "Ticket" and "Pass "mean the same thing.)

Annual Passes   (Two trips and twelve Disney days and it is worthwhile)
Regular Admission   (It's called Magic Your Way)
Convention and Promotional Passes (They do expire)
Roadside Stands, eBay (Don't buy, passes may not be valid)
Resort Packages (You must buy passes but may save them for later)
Time Share Gift Passes (Not recommended for longer vacations)
Hopper Plus Passes (discontinued but always usable as-is)
Unlimited Magic (not offered but new packages are available)
Child Passes   (Can do even exchange at no cost for adult pass)
Old Passes   (Use as-is but not in same vacation as new pass)
Upgrading Passes (You can add days, hopping, etc. as needed)
Trading Up Passes (Lots of room for misunderstandings, mistakes)
"Free Dining" Package   (May beat the annual pass, cost wise)
Safeguard Your Pass/Ticket   (Copy down all the numbers and codes)
Premium (Don't confuse annual and package and MYW)
Unanswered Questions (Yes we still have a few.)

Quick Tips, Factoids, Frequently Asked Questions.

You may not use two park days off of one non-hopping ticket card to visit two theme parks on the same day. Click here for more information.

Entering a water park does not consume a theme park day. More.

Unused regular tickets, even without non-expiration, do not expire.

Park visits need not be on consecutive days. Click here for more.

All guests 10 years in age or older must use the turnstile finger scanner for all tickets, old and new. Click here for more.

You don't need your regular ticket to attend a party after 4 PM. More.

We usually don't recommend free admission on your birthday. More.

Usage life of Magic Your Way tickets without non-expiration begins with first usage and lasts for 13 more days. More.

To save time, decide on your schedule before choosing your tickets. More.

Do not buy tickets from private parties such as on eBay, or from roadside ticket stands. More.

Price of non-expiration depends on number of days originally on the ticket, not the days remaining. More.

Non-expiration is usually worth it only if the ticket completely covers a second vacation. More.

One Water Park Fun visit is equal to a one day admission ticket to that minor park. More.

With Water Park Fun you can visit the same minor park multiple times, or different minor parks in any combination. More.

Two or more visits to the minor parks other than Wide World of Sports, and the Water Park Fun option is better than separate admissions. More.

Visiting water parks does not require purchasing the hopping option. More.

The break even for an annual pass is about thirteen theme park days with hopping. More.

Annual pass discount renewal begins when the previous pass expired. More.

Annual pass room discounts are not available on some resort packages. More.

Your grown child may exchange his partly used child ticket for an adult ticket at no cost. More.

Old tickets remain valid for what they were valid for when printed. Also, old theme park tickets are valid for admission to theme parks that opened later. More.

Old tickets that don't fit in the turnstiles may be exchanged at no cost for new magnetic stripe tickets with the same remaining admissions. More.

Very old passes generally may not be kept as souvenirs and also used for admission. More.

Upgrading: Features such as non-expiration, and more days up to ten including the days already used, may be added to Magic Your Way tickets within 14 days of first usage. More.

Unused standard pre-2005 passes are valued at wholesale price, not gate price, for trade up purposes. More.

Used Magic Your Way passes are valued at current gate price for trade up purposes. More.

Used pre-2005 passes and MYW passes used more than 13 days ago may not be traded in (but may still be used as-is). More.

Leftover tickets are best used as-is and for short vacations or when you have enough leftovers so as not to need a new ticket. More.

For trade ins, only one old ticket may be used in trade towards each new ticket. More.

For Disney resort packages the same kind of ticket must be ordered for each room occupant but tickets may be upgraded individually after check in. More.

Rainchecks, timeshare tickets, and other short tickets are not suited for medium or long vacations. More.

School groups (soccer, cheerleading, band, etc.) may have to buy additional tickets to extend a vacation. More.

Long vacations are better done with expiring tickets. More.

Copy down the letters and codes on the back of the ticket before use and save that information. More.

Ask for the dollar value of an old pass before discussing trading up or adding on. If something does not seem right, go to a different ticket booth to get a second opinion. More.

Related Terms:

AP -- Annual pass.
Base Ticket -- Has theme park admission, no optional features such as hopping.
Bridging -- Part of the process whereby you pay the difference in gate prices when you upgrade a discounted ticket.
Crossover -- Park hopping.
DVC -- Disney Vacation Club (similar to a time sharing condo.)
Entitlement -- Any one of the admissions, either theme park or water park fun, on a ticket.
Expires (date) -- Becomes unusable when the last park has closed for that day of business.
Fast Pass (tm) -- Coupon allowing expedited ride or show entry, is not valid for park admission.
Flex -- (flexible feature) Package option allowing one of multiple choices such as tee shirts or photographs.
Gate Price -- Price of the ticket as purchased that day at the park entrance.
Hard Ticket Event -- Hours in a park for which a special ticket for that date is required.
Infant -- Person under 3 years of age (who is admitted free).
Junior -- Person 10-17 years of age (who must use "adult" priced tickets).
KTTK or KTTW -- Resort room key card (key to the kingdom/world).
LOS -- Length of stay (discontinued ticket offering for resort vacation packages)
Minor Park -- Water park, Disney Quest, Wide World of Sports, etc.
MYW -- Magic Your Way, the current admission ticket system.
Package -- Room reservation with extra features such as meals or tickets or golf.
PAP -- Premium annual pass (with water park fun)
Park hopper (lowercase h) -- Nowadays refers to any ticket that allows park hopping.
Party -- (1) Hard ticket event. (2) Any group of people traveling or rooming together.
PHP -- Park Hopper Plus (tm) pass (discontinued ticket offering with water park fun)
Plus -- A minor park (water park fun) admission on a theme park ticket.
Promotional -- Refers to pass such as a rain check or time share gift, not sold at park ticket booths.
TIW -- Tables in Wonderland, formerly DDE, restaurant discount membership available to annual pass holder and family.
Touch of Magic -- Two day promotional ticket with one water park fun visit.
UPH; UMP -- Ultimate park hopper; Unlimited magic pass (discontinued ticket offerings)
Wish -- Flex; flexible feature, see above.
Wishes -- Fireworks display at Magic Kingdom
WPM; WPF, WPFM -- Plus feature; water park fun & more.
WPMA -- As used here, one visit's worth of water park fun & more.)
YES -- (Youth Education Series) Collection of programs including classes, resort stays, sporting events, and promotional tickets.

Try not to carry around more than one pass (per person for your family). It is very easy to use the wrong pass in a turnstile, consuming perhaps two days' worth of admission on one day.

Hold your finger still in the biometric reader at the turnstile. It takes at least a few seconds to register.

Save Time, Plan Your Schedule First

We will confess up front: It is absolutely positively impossible to choose the best bargain for tickets until after you have finalized your schedule of what park you will be in and when. If you try to keep tweaking both your schedule and your ticket choice, you will spend endless hours asking yourself, "what if this?" and "what if that?".

A very slight change in your schedule may result in a somewhat different ticket's being the lowest priced for your vacation.

For non-expiring tickets you need to plan two vacations in advance.

Regular Admission

"Magic Your Way".refers to the current ticketing system and ticket offerings, which began in January 2005.

You can buy multi-day tickets for up to ten days, and single day tickets. (Not all non-Disney ticket agencies have all denominations.). The basic pass (base ticket) has a 14 consecutive day lifetime upon first usage and admits you to one theme park for each "day" on the pass. Park visits need not be on consecutive days. Six days cost USD $246. (tax included in all of these prices shown), ten days cost $259. which seems like a bargain except that all days must be chosen from a 14 day time span. You may leave the park, and return to the same park later in the day subject to crowds.

For an additional $55. per ticket card you add the park hopping privilege (visit more than one theme park on a given day) which can also be applied to the one day pass whose base price is $84.

Note: Without the hopping privilege you cannot visit a different theme park on the same day using the same ticket card expecting to consume or "forfeit" or "burn" an additional day off of the ticket, perhaps a day that you might otherwise lose to expiration. The park turnstiles and computer systems specifically disallow this. You could use a different ticket card although this is not cost effective except when the ticket is specifically for the Halloween party or other special event.

Late 2009 Base Ticket Gate Prices (one theme park of your choice per day)
Days 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Ages 10+ $84 166 233 240 243 246 249 252 256 259
Ages 3-9 $72 142 199 204 208 211 214 217 220 224
Non-expir. $101* 19 26 55 78 89 122 162 190 223 add-on

Prices shown are effective August 2009, include the tax, currently 6.5%, and are rounded to the nearest dollar. Because the passes are to be used in Florida, Florida sales or use tax is included in or added to the price regardless of where you buy the passes. Some travel agent discounts are available for regular admission but not for annual passes.

We have not reproduced the entire menu of prices and choices here, you can go to www.mousesavers.com (look for ticket information) to view that. As always, prices are subject to change.

* Includes required purchase of a second day's admission, total cost is $89. for ages 3-9.

Using Plus Options; Visits

The Water Parks Fun and More option costs $55. per ticket card. You can choose from the five venues (Blizzard Beach, Disney Quest, Typhoon Lagoon, Wide World of Sports,.Oak Trail golf course) in any combination, repetition, or order up to the number of WPM admissions (visits) on your pass. The more days on the pass, the more WPMA's (minimum of two) you get for the same $55. price, but all of the admissions must be used within the pass' 14 day lifespan if you do not purchase non-expiration.

Days 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
WPMA's 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Although $55. seems like a lot to pay to add Water Parks and More to a one day pass, remember that the WPM admissions can be used on different days if you wish.

Using a WPM admission (or using a Plus option on a Hopper Plus pass) is equivalent to purchasing a single day ticket at the entrance.

You may visit two or more Plus venues on one day (consuming two or more Plusses or WPM admissions) and you may hop between Plus venues during that day even if your pass does not have the Hopping Option.

Plusses or WPM admissions may be used on the same or different days as theme park admissions both with Magic Your Way passes and the older Hopper Plus passes.

Blizzard Beach in the morning, Typhoon Lagoon in the afternoon, no other parks visited -- Uses zero days and two plusses/WPMA's with or without hopping on your ticket.
Blizzard Beach in the morning, Epcot in the afternoon, no other parks visited -- Uses one day and one plus/WPMA with or without hopping on your ticket.
Blizzard Beach in the morning, leave for lunch, return in the afternoon -- Uses one plus /WPMA.
Blizzard Beach in the afternoon, come back the next day -- Uses two plusses/WPMA's.
Future hypothetical example only: Blizzard Beach (1 visit), Disney Quest (1 visit), Horseback Riding (2 visits) -- selecting Horseback Riding once consumes two WPMA's while visiting Blizzard Beach once consumes one WPMA.
At Oak Trail, one WPMA visit gives you one round of golf. You must make a reservation for the tee time and can use the ticket card no more than once per calendar day.

Plusses on (pre-2005) Hopper Plus passes are not good for admission to Disney Quest but if the ticket agent is in a good mood, he or she may surprise you with a free exchange to an equivalent Magic Your Way pass good at Disney Quest.

Non-expiration preserves unused WPMA's also, even if the park days are all used up.

Currently there is no way to preserve unused WPMA's, or even the theme park day if not used first, on a used one day pass beyond 14 days without purchasing as second day to go with non-expiration.

Roughly speaking, Water Park Fun and More is worthwhile only if you use it at least twice not counting at the Wide World of Sports.

Don't forget, tickets are not transferable. You may not add water park fun to one ticket and admit the entire family to the water park using that ticket card.

If you bought a single day ticket to a water park, you can use it towards the price of Water Park Fun added to your regular Magic Your Way ticket. This is the only instance where two ticket cards can be combined. Tickets (either kind) used more than 13 days ago are not eligible.

Annual Passes

Not counting special promotions, having the Annual Pass is almost always more cost effective than buying regular admission tickets if you take three or more trips to Walt Disney World within a year and often best if you take two trips. This is before any other benefits such as complimentary parking or gift shop or resort discounts are figured in. Two trips totalling 13 Disney days in a year is the rough break-even but you still need to work the numbers. There are some situations where regular passes will cost less for as many as 20 days, although with reduced flexibility such as no park hopping.

To decide whether to get a premium versus regular Annual Pass, also consider how much you will use the water parks, or Disney Quest. Four visits to these and the premium Annual Pass is better.

It is not unusual for general public discounts for limited booking times or limited stay times to come within $10. of the annual pass rate for value resorts and within $20. of the annual pass rate for moderate resorts.

Annual passes are convenient for multiple short visits to water parks on different days, which will exhaust the Water Park Fun visits on Magic Your Way passes more quickly..

The best way to get annual passes is directly at one of the four major theme parks, or at the Marketplace (east) section of Downtown Disney, go to the guest services window. Some folks have purchased annual passes at resorts but this is subject to change.

Annual pass prices in U.S. dollars @ August 2008 including tax:

Regular Premium
Ages 10+ $510 659 (new)
$478 606 (renewal)
Ages 3-9 $460 581 (new)
$423 535 (renewal)

New as of August 2009, may be for a limited time period: Annual passes are renewed for 15 month periods. Renewal must be done within 30 days (before or after) the expiration date.

Renewal discount is about eight percent. Currently no other discounts are offered on annual passes except they are priced about $100. less (as a different kind of ticket with the same features) to members of the Disney Vacation Club.

Advance Purchase, Vouchers

Purchasing an annual pass in advance is for convenience only; there is no discount. You will receive a voucher or card that must be presented at a Guest Relations booth at a theme park, water park, or Downtown Disney (not at a resort). Effective August 5, 2007, vouchers must be redeemed within the time period marked on them, approximately a year from purchase. Otherwise Disney reserves the right to collect a surcharge reflecting any increase in the price of that annual pass. The voucher is not refundable.

Membership is Continuous

Disney's rule fits the definition of "renew" in that a "renewal" annual pass activates the day after the previous one expires regardless of when you perform the renewal (some deadlines and time windows still apply). Depending on when and how often you visit, you usually save money by letting the annual pass expire and buying another one (without the renewal discount) on your next visit.

If your annual pass expires in the middle of your vacation, this usually tilts a close decision in the direction of "renew".

Check your annual pass as soon as you get it, to be sure the expiration date is a year from that moment*. Not from the date you paid for it or the date on a voucher. Once in a while a mistake is made and you should hand it back and have a new pass made before you walk away. (* For discount renewals, the correct expiration date is a year after your previous pass expired.)

You cannot truthfully say you have been a Passholder since such and such a year if, during that time span, you have let an annual pass expire and it was weeks or months later before you purchased another.

Trivia: When does your first annual pass expire?

Answer: At the close of business on the same month and day (anniversary date) a year from when you received it. This gives the annual pass a lifetime of 366 days (367 days if February 29'th is spanned). A "renewal "pass starts the next day. New annual passes purchased on Feb. 29 expire on Feb. 28.

Ticket Tag(TM); Finger Scanners; Biometric Readers

All guests of age 10 and older must put their fingers in the biometric readers (finger scanners) at the turnstiles to establish ownership of a pass and prevent sharing the pass with someone else.

All "adult" passes, including older Park Hopper Plus passes and the magnetic stripe tickets you exchanged your still-older cardboard passes for, require use of the biometric readers and the usage procedure is the same.

We suggest that you write the name of the person who will be using the pass on a blank area on the back. Also it is easy to hand out to family members headed in different directions, unidentified passes with the wrong number of ticket options (water park fun, etc.) or package options (flexes; wishes) remaining.

Simply insert one finger into the biometric reader (most turnstiles) and wait for the green light to appear. All you have to remember is to use the same finger each time. (The turnstile attendant will make special arrangements, usually using photo ID's, for guests unable or unwilling to do this.)

No special action is needed to use a ticket for the first time. Simply insert the ticket in the turnstile and use the finger scanner normally.

Except on rare occasions if the finger scanner system is malfunctioning, hand stamps are no longer used or needed to re-enter a park Signs will be re-posted at the park exit if needed.

Note: Sharing a pass with someone else was never permitted even when visiting on different days.

For those concerned about cleanliness, please be aware that railings, banisters, door handles and knobs, and ride seat belts and bars and laser guns are not cleaner than the interiors of the turnstile finger scanners.

Although some fingerprint detail is recorded, the data is digested (the technical term is "hashed") in a manner that your fingerprint cannot be redrawn.

"Premium" Can Be Confusing

The Premium annual pass includes admission to water parks, Disney Quest, etc.

The Premium MAGIC YOUR WAY pass is simply one that includes the hopping option and the Water Parks Fun & More option. The same extra charge schedule applies for non-expiration. Disney no longer uses the word "Premium" for this pass.

Premium packages include more extras such as meals and can be booked at any Disney resort. Packages are pre-priced. We are not sure if you can downgrade the premium tickets that come with a premium package to regular tickets; ask, but be prepared to add something else so the total price is the same or higher.

Convention, Hurricane, and Promotional Passes

Different kinds of park admission passes not available to the general public are still offered from time to time to convention groups, by travel agents, stores, and service providers such as car rental agencies, by time share salesmen, or for limited time periods as promotions. Also commonly offered to convention groups are passes good for the afternoon and/or evening only. In most cases promotional and convention group passes have absolute expiration dates even if the pass is never used. Almost all promotional passes may not be traded up towards new or different passes.

Ultimate Passes

There are a few passes offering unlimited use of theme parks, water parks, etc. for a fixed number of days offered by some travel agencies, or given out by Disney as rainchecks. Recently, 7, 14, and 21 day "ultiimate" passes for Walt Disney World has been sold in Europe. Unlike for Florida resident passes, proof of (non)residence is not required for possessing or using this 14 day pass.

Time Share Gift Passes

Generally we do not recommend getting these one or two day Disney passes. The ones for Universal Studios and other locations are worthwhile.

The good news is that you do get a gift of one or two Disney theme park daily admissions, whatever they advertise, when you attend the presentation. You do not have to buy anything.

The bad news is that, depending on the length of your vacation, the dollars you save may be very small. Some of these gift passes expire after perhaps a year even if they are not used. Most cannot be traded up towards longer passes.

Let's say you receive two single day passes. If your vacation was for six days and you now buy a four day pass and also use the gift passes, you save just seven dollars.

But if your vacation is for just two or three days at Walt Disney World (and perhaps days spent elsewhere), the pair of gift passes are together worth about $160.

Passes for Children (Ages 3-9)

Persons of ages 10 and up when they arrive for their Disney vacation buy and use "adult" passes. Persons 2 and under when they begin their Disney vacation do not need any pass during that vacation and do not need a Fast Pass to accompany other family members using Fast Passes on rides. We recommend that parents bring copies of birth certificates for children.

For convenience we and also a few Disney cast members suggest that your child over ten years of age use up his leftover pass as-is unless he is really tall or unless a Disney cast member rejects the pass at the turnstile.

Disney's current rule is that a partly used pass for ages 3-9 of any vintage will be converted to an adult pass (for ages 10+) with the same number of days and plusses (water park, etc. admissions) at no charge, on its owner's (your child's) next visit. (He can do it himself if he knows not to pay any more money.) Go to Guest Relations (just outside or inside any park entrance) and ask for an exchange, not an upgrade. If you are told you must pay a fee, don't do it but instead take back the pass immediately and ask for a manager (or try a different Guest Relations office).

You do not have to begin using the pass immediately or enter a park or consume a day off of the pass when performing the exchange.

Unused child passes may not be exchanged for equivalent adult passes at no cost but may be given to another child or traded up towards other passes.

If one person owns several child passes from years past, only one pass should be exchanged on any given day. Disney may disallow free exchange if they get the impression you or your children "stocked up" on child passes, using just a few days on each.

Generally a converted child pass should be saved for use during a vacation when only it and perhaps other leftover passes are used.

We are told that Universal Studios, Sea World, and Busch Gardens do not (or did not) offer a free exchange of child tickets to adult tickets. First have the original user quietly try to use his ticket as-is, being the first family member to enter. If this fails, go to Guest Relations and attempt to get the ticket upgraded to adult but do not proceed if there is a fee. In the event a free upgrade fails, give the ticket to a younger child when returning to the turnstiles. As a last resort, save the ticket and give the ticket to a younger nephew or niece for future use.

Old Passes

Old passes that have not expired, whether or not partially used, may be used as-is on any future date for the admission privileges they had at the time of purchase. All standard Disney passes sold before Jan. 1, 2005 do not expire. Some convention and promotional (such as time share prize) passes do expire even if never used.

Very old passes that don't fit in the turnstiles may be exchanged at no cost for modern passes with the same number of days remaining. You do not have to enter a park or start using that pass that day to perform the exchange, which is done at at Guest Relations just inside or just outside the park.

Currently (2005) old theme park passes are honored at all theme parks (including parks that were not built and open when the passes were first purchased). This added unadvertised benefit was offered to simplify the record keeping system and reduce the number of different kinds of passes to keep track of. However Disney Quest has not (yet) been added to the privileges of Hopper Plus passes.

Pre-1982 "passes" were ticket books with individual ride coupons. Complete books are exchangeable for equivalent (1, 2, or 3 day) modern tickets. If parts including transportation tickets are missing, there are cash values ranging from about 20 cents to a dollar for each remaining coupon that may be applied towards the purchase of a new ticket.

Quick example: You have a three day cardboard pass good at Magic Kingdom and Epcot, purchased some time ago for $60.00, and with two days remaining. Doing an even exchange at no cost, you (should) receive a modern magnetic stripe non-expiring pass with two days' admission value and hopping.

It is Disney's policy not to return an old pass to you after exchange, but it does not hurt to ask. If you want to keep an old pass for a scrapbook souvenir you may have to forego using it for admission.

Passes used more than 13 days ago, and any used pre-2005 passes, may no longer be traded in towards purchase of new or different passes.

Idiosyncrasies With Leftover Passes

Now that you have exchanged that child pass for an equivalent adult pass, or exchanged that cardboard World Passport or Super Duper Pass for an equivalent magnetic stripe ticket, deciding when to use it is tricky.

Bad Times To Use Up Leftover Days

* It is usually a bad idea to use up your old pass as-is during a vacation of five to ten theme park days when you also need to buy and use a new pass.

* It is usually a bad idea to use up old passes and buy an annual pass less than a year later.

Finding out when it is undesirable to use up an old pass is not hard. You simply figure out your admission pass budget twice -- with, and without, the use of the old passes -- and compare the difference.

Good Times To Use Up Leftover Days

* When your visit is for one, two, three, eleven, or twelve days in the theme parks.

* When you have pre-2005 passes and enough of them that you do not need to buy new ones.

* On a vacation of any length when you need to hop between theme parks for exactly one day (using an old hopper pass) and buy a new non-hopping pass covering all of the other days.

There is really nothing unusual about the old pass, It is the fact that the fifth through tenth days of non-nonexpiring Magic Your Way passes are so inexpensive that makes your decision making difficult.

Some math for those interested

Simple example. Let's say you are visiting for six days, and you have an old pass with three days remaining. If you buy a new six day expiring pass, that costs $246. If instead you bought a new three day pass expecting to use up the three leftover days as well, you will spend $233. immediately. So you consume the old pass to save just $13.

Whereas if you saved the old pass for yet another, future, three day visit, you will avoid spending $233. for a new pass at that time.

For fourteen or more days with park hopping, an annual pass is the better choice.

Another way of figuring out your best strategy is to consider alternatives including trading up, and for each alternative answer four questions:

1. What kind of pass are you planning to buy or trade up to?

2. Without the old pass in your possession, what kind of pass would you buy instead?

3. What is the price difference, if the above two answers are different?

4. What will be left over at the end of your vacation?

One source (we forget who) suggests not buying five and fewer day passes with non-expiration. Chances are, you will need more days on your next trip, making the longer passes more desirable. The exception is, if your vacation is suddenly cut short, you may want to add non-expiration and/or more days to a shorter pass before returning home.

Changing Your Mind; Upgrading (Expanding) a Pass

This applies to Magic Your Way passes (post-2004 standard passes) only.

The upgrade process as seen by the guest applies to tickets that have been used but have not been used more than 13 days ago.

Passes that have been used more than 13 days ago may not be modified.

Currently (2008 and ongoing into April 2009) the cost of the adding days and features to a used pass can be computed from the prices posted at the ticket booths. It's the difference between the gate price of a ticket that had all of the days and features desired and the gate price of the ticket as it was originally bought. This is regardless of when or where the ticket was bought or how much was paid.

A ticket may be upgraded more than once.

You may upgrade to an annual pass, too. The starting date of the annual pass is the date of first usage of the surrendered pass, or is the expiration date of your previous annual pass if you are doing an AP renewal within the allowable time window. If the surrendered ticket had Water Park Fun and you used one or more of those admission, your AP upgrade must be to a Premium AP.

Normally, upgrades may be performed only at Walt Disney World. In rare instances, guests who forgot to upgrade or add non-expiration to their tickets have been allowed to do that over the phone using a credit card.

For now we suggest that if you think you will want non-expiration or otherwise wish to upgrade, that you not wait until the day you return home. You don't want to run into hassles and delays close to your bus or plane departure time.

Dining Plan Problems

Sometimes when a ticket on a room key is upgraded to an annual pass, that card cannot be used with a dining plan.

Option 1. Have the admission transferred to a separate card at the resort before leaving for the parks. This might take awhile if the concierge is busy.

Option 2. For families, upgrade only some of the tickets to annual passes so at least one card is available for use at the restaurants. (Try using upgraded ticket cards at the restaurants first and make a note of any that don't work.) The tickets can be straightened out back at the resort that evening. Next day, upgrade the rest of your tickets and again have any that don't work at the restaurants fixed back at your resort.

Note that upgrade to annual pass cannot be performed at a resort.

Trading Up Passes

Unused passes of any vintage may be traded in towards current pass offerings of any kind. Only one pass may be traded in towards the purchase of each new pass.

The trade in value is a somewhat secret value based on what Disney received from the ticket agency that sold you the pass and/or what Disney charged at the time a pass was purchased directly from them. Promotional, complimentary, hurricane, and most time share gift, passes have zero dollars of trade in value. Any pass is considered promotional or complimentary if it is stamped with "COMP" or with similar wording.

Refer to the section on Upgrades, above, for making changes to partially used passes. Passes of vintage prior to 2005, and Magic Your Way passes used more than 13 days ago, may not be upgraded.although (of course) those that don't expire are still good for the admission value they had when purchased. Super Duper Passes and other passes that don't fit in the turnstile are still exchanged free of charge for magnetic stripe passes of at least equal value with respect to every attribute.

For Magic Your Way passes, if you are quoted an unexpectedly lower trade value or an unexpectedly high additional required payment, stop and use the pass first (for example enter the park you are at) and then do an upgrade.

Worn or demagnetized passes are reprinted free of charge provided that either the printed information or (for physical damage) the magnetic stripe is still readable.

Exchanging Passes

The following exchanges are always permitted (provided the pass has not expired):

1. Exchanging what remains of a used child (ages 3-9) pass for equivalent adult (ages 10+) admission.

2. Exchanging a new or used pass that does not fit in the turnstiles for equivalent admission on a pass that does fit.

3, Exchanging a worn out or damaged pass for equivalent remaining admission, provided that either the printed codes or the magnetic stripe if any is still readable.

In all cases, the original user of a used pass must perform the exchange although a parent can assist a child.

Currently admission to all four theme parks is granted even when the old pass was purchased before one or more of these parks opened, but Disney Quest is not granted when a Hopper Plus pass is exchanged.

It has been said (Paul Harvey radio news feature) that half of all gift certificates, electronic gift cards, and airline vouchers issued or sold by stores are never redeemed. We can estimate that there are a lot of partially used hopper passes sitting in people's dresser drawers and elsewhere that have long been forgotten and Disney has profited handsomely by selling these passes with no expiration date.

Some of the hopper and single day passes given as gifts by time share condominium operators and convention committees/operators do expire, usually after a year.

Magic Kingdom Party Tickets; Extra Magic Hours

Separate tickets are purchased for Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party and other special evening events. When you enter the park after about 4 PM you use only the party ticket and you do not need to show a regular park ticket. If you went to a different park earlier in the day, then you would not need hopping on your regular ticket to use your party ticket.

If you wished to enter the park where the party is to be held but before 4 PM, you would need another ticket card and all of the rules including hopping rules pertaining to that ticket apply.

Party tickets are valid only on the date specified, unless special arrangements were made for adverse weather or other unusual situations.

For attending Extra Magic Yours, no special ticket is needed. All rules including hopping rules pertaining to the ticket you use to enter the park do apply. (Also, each member of your party needs to have a room key.)

Magic Your Way Packages, Dining Packages

When you book a Disney resort room package you must order a Magic Your Way admission pass of some kind and it must be the same kind for each occupant of a room. If you already have passes you intend to use or have an annual pass, you may want to book one day passes for everyone to go with your package. Some packages require passes of a certain minimum length. After you check in and receive your passes, each member of your party may add features and more days to his pass independently.

Most packages are not discounted if you have an annual pass or are a member of AARP or AAA, etc.

Package passes are usually encoded on the same card as resort room keys.

Personalized package passes may be used only by the person named although this may be circumvented if the admissions are transferred to a different card and the CM doing the transfer does not catch it.

If you have an annual pass or wish to take advantage of other room discounts, you may get a meals discount card (called DDE) for about $50. that covers your entire family, and book just the resort room separately (not as a package).

If you planned on using older passes or different passes and you booked a dining plan or other package, you must be careful not to insert the latest room keys into the park turnstiles. Otherwise you will waste the park admission encoded on the room key. At least one room key needs to be brought with you and and swiped at the restaurants if you are on a dining plan.

Heads up! If you don't use your package pass because you used a different pass, you should have the pass re-verified before checking out, preferably at least a day in advance. There have been reported cases where the park admission was not properly printed or encoded, even though the card still opens the room door or may have been used to "charge" purchases. If you don't use your package pass you would never catch this error.

If you don't use your package pass at all for park admission (including water parks), then you do not have to purchase non-expiration before returning home.

It is usually possible to have the admissions or remaining admissions transferred from another pass to a room key but not while there is unused admission already encoded on that room key. It is not desirable to use up the admissions on a room key for the purpose of transferring the admissions on a different card onto that key.

Receiving Package Tickets Early

If you arrive a few days early and want to visit the parks, you can get the package tickets early although the process is cumbersome and can be time consuming.

1. Choose what park you want to go to.

2. Go to your resort with your confirmations and other papers.

3. Have the manager look up your reservation and then contact Guest Relations at that for the purpose of getting your tickets issued early.

4. Go to that park and have a Guest Relations manager there print the tickets for you.

Note: There may be long waits in line to see the appropriate managers.

Shortcut: If you are staying at the same resort, for example on a separate room only reservation, the Guest Services manager at the resort can have your tickets printed right away.

Buy Four Get Three Free; Free Dining

In 2009, Walt Disney World has run a promotional package offering seven days and seven nights of resort stay and park admission for the price of four days and four nights. Also in 2009 packages with "free" meals but undiscounted room rates may be offered. Availability is limited as are most promotions, with only a few reservations taken at each resort during peak periods. Similar promotions may be offered at random dates in the future. If they suit your schedule these promotions, including those with free dining, may be superior to using annual passes.

You order tickets for the total number of days you want including days you get free. For example, to buy four and get all "three days of tickets free" you order seven day tickets. But your "ticket days" do not have to match your room nights. If you order one day tickets, you can still get up to three resort nights free under the promotion but since you did not buy 4 days of admission, you get no free days of admission. If you order ten day tickets you pay the price of seven day tickets. If you order 7 day non-expiring tickets, you pay the price of 4 day non-expiring tickets, etc. This can result in substantial savings over adding non-expiration after you get there. In the case of the 10 day non-expiring ticket you are paying the price of a 7 day ticket and realizing a savings of about $110.

Idiosyncrasies:

It appears as if the "life" of the ticket from "conception" through :"embryonic" through "birth" to "death" has as many as five stages.

A -- The ordering stage. If you change your mind before you finish paying for your package, the ticket is repriced as if you ordered it that way, and the buy 4 get 3 free benefits are refigured.

B -- The add-on stage. After you finish paying for your package, any changes to your tickets are priced for what you want to add. Notably, non-expiration is priced for the days on the ticket (e.g. $213. for a 10 day ticket) and no additional buy 4 get 3 free benefits are figured in. If you delete features, your ticket is repriced using gate prices and depending on what you paid, no change is returned.

C -- After you check in but before you use the tickets. It is undesirable to make any changes at this time. You would be trading the ticket in at a value roughly equal to what you actually paid for it. No further buy 4 get 3 free benefits apply. More.

D -- After you start using the pass, it is valued at gate price should you wish to upgrade it. No further buy 4 get 3 free benefits apply, notably you pay the full $117. cost of non-expiration if you finally received a 7 day base ticket. More.

E -- If more than two weeks have passed since you first used the tickets, no further changes can be made to them.

Be careful about ordering the tickets with non-expiration. You will probably have no more than two days left over, perhaps four if you ordered 10 day tickets. Should the remains of the ticket be insufficient for another vacation, any savings you realized may well be wiped out by the cost of additional tickets.

Tickets after slight usage are generally valued at gate price for upgrade purposes. But if the ticket you want (such as an annual pass discounted for a Disney Vacation club member) costs less than the value of the ticket you have, generally no change is returned. More:

If your package has dining, have the tickets transferred off of your room keys onto separate cards before upgrading to annual passes. More.

Special notice: Pricing of options or upgrades to 4/3 package tickets is subject to change either at the time of ordering or at the time of upgrade however Disney's policy was restated in early April 2009 so as to value slightly used passes at gate price for the purpose of upgrading.

Buy Four Get Three Free, Outside Ticket Sellers

From time to time other ticket agencies offer deals such as this for tickets only. The tickets are of unknown nature. If they are standard Magic Your Way tickets then you may upgrade them. If they are promotional tickets, then you may not upgrade them.

Free Admission On Your Birthday

In 2009, guests can receive free admission on their birthdays or a one day ticket as a birthday present good on one of the next 364 days. If your Disney trip is for more than three days and your birthday is not the first day, then we suggest you choose one of the other birthday presents (such as a gift card*) instead. You must show proof of birthday in the form of a government issued ID such as a drivers license. Birth certificates must be certified, for example with an official embossed or multicolored or holographic seal. Non-U.S. residents must show passports. You must have a multi-day ticket in hand prior to requesting a gift other than the birthday admission. (If you also possess a one day ticket on a room key, that does not matter.)

The birthday ticket for immediate use may be upgraded by your paying the price difference over and above a one day ticket but only after entering a park and before the day is over. The ticket for use later, during the upcoming year, may not be upgraded. It does not make economic sense to buy a separate ticket with fewer days for the rest of your vacation while you use your birthday ticket when you might save as little as three dollars.

Children celebrating their 10'th or subsequent birthday and who have a partially used child ticket should exchange their ticket for an adult ticket (no charge) prior to choosing their birthday gift.

* Note: The gift card is good only in Disney owned and operated gift shops. Almost all food items are excluded.

* Note: If you don't have proof of birthday, the only gift you can choose is the delayed admission one day ticket and you must use it within 90 days instead of 364, bringing proof you fetched it on your birthday (birth certificate, etc.).

* Note: If you are a Florida resident and you wish to upgrade to a seasonal pass and your birthday is a blocked out (blackout) day, inquire at Guest Relations first. You should be given a special procedure to follow. At this time we are unsure of whether you must use or must not use the birthday ticket on your birthday. If you are not permitted to use the ticket then you would need to use or obtain some other ticket to enter the park that day.

Is Non-Expiration Worth It?

Generally, non-expiration is not worthwhile unless::

* An emergency forces you to cut your vacation short and you used fewer than four theme park days off of the pass, or,

* The remains of that pass will fully cover some future vacation (not necessarily your next), or,

* You purchased water park fun and several of those admissions are unused.

* You received a discount on the non-expiration component of the ticket because you ordered non-expiring tickets under the Buy 4 Get 3 Free plan.

Every person's situation is different. There is no way to tell for sure without advance planning of the eventual usage of the ticket all the way to the end of the vacation during which the ticket is exhausted.

We recommend that shorter passes be expanded to at least six days (including the days used). Because processing errors occasionally occur, particularly with passes purchased from discount brokers, get the quoted price broken down by ticket if some of the tickets are child tickets, then step out of line and think about it before going ahead.

It is a good idea to keep track of what parks you visited on what days. Note that a day you spend only in the water parks or Disney Quest does not count as a "day" off of your pass.

The following prices apply to upgrading Magic Your Way passes purchased at the gate in late 2007.

Days originally 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Non-expir. $101* 19 26 55 78 89 122 162 190 223

If your non-expiring pass or one day pass was not used more than 13 days ago, additional park days (counting days consumed) including non-expiration would cost:
each Non-Exp. Day 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th
Ages 10+ $101 74 36 26 14 35 43 32 36
Ages 3-9 $89 64 34 27 14 35 43 31 36

* Includes required purchase of second day, total cost is $89. instead for ages 3-9.

More math for those interested:

Non-expiration is generally worthwhile if what is left over is enough to completely cover some future vacation, not necessarily your next. Otherwise it is tricky. Here is a good formula to use. It is just my opinion but here goes.

Each remaining theme park day needs two points of non-expiration. Each unused Water Parks Fun and More (WPM) admission needs one point. Meanwhile the purchase price for non-expiration depends on the number of days originally on the pass, not on how many points you need.

So let's consider a 6 day pass for which there is one unused day and two unused WPM admissions. You need four points of non-expiration. The purchase price of non-expiration for a 6 day pass is $89. or each point would cost 1/4 of that or $22.

The two points needed to preserve the remaining park day cost $44. Meanwhile the cost of the day itself was three dollars since a 6 day pass costs just $3. more than a (5 day) pass that exactly covered your vacation. You will now have invested $47. in that last park day. Because the price of separate admissions to the water parks you already visited would have cost you more than the Water Parks Fun and More you bought, we consider the cost of WPM absorbed by the WPMA's already used. The investment to preserve the remaining two WPMA's is just the cost of the points, or $22. each.

Private Sellers, eBay, Roadside Stands

You should not purchase tickets from sources other than Disney itself and well known authorized dealers. It is impossible to know whether a ticket is valid or has the number of days advertised until after you get to Walt Disney World. Remember, partially used tickets are not transferable.

What counts is whether the seller and the payment handler (credit card, etc.) will back you up if you have a problem with the tickets. PayPal and eBay do not.

There is nothing wrong with accepting tickets on a "gift and tip" basis as opposed to a paid sale. This works well with tickets from relatives or friends. While this is technically possible for any transaction including using eBay, hardly any seller will do a transaction this way unless he is desperate to liquidate the tickets.

School Field Trips

Many youth groups come to Walt Disney World for sports playoffs such as Little League, cheerleading, performing in a parade, etc. Usually each participant must purchase a ticket such as a Youth Education Series ticket that must be used on the trip and that is not upgradable. It may not practical to order one that is different from those of the rest of the group because normally the chaperone will collect all of the tickets and hand them out randomly to the group members as needed. Because of the latter, use of the finger scanners are usually not required at the turnstiles.

Families planning extra days may well have to buy additional tickets without the benefit of multi day pricing. We encourage discussing the situation with the trip coordinators and chaperones to look into special treatment such as not buying the YES tickets. Other alternatives include having the participating child share a room with another participant with the parents booking their room separately, outside the ticket purchase requirements. In a few cases, the overall cost of tickets may make the cost of the entire trip prohibitive.

Other alternatives also include visiting different venues such as Sea World and Universal Studios.

Military Salute Tickets

Currently (2009) Disney offers five day tickets to servicemen and servicewomen. The one in the service receives one with hopping and water park fun (5 visits) free. S/he can buy for family members up to five more for $99. each without hopping or water park fun. Hopping costs $25. per ticket card. Water park fun costs $25. per ticket card. These tickets may not have more days added but may be upgraded to annual passes using a value equal to the price paid ($0. or $99. or $124. or $149.). These tickets expire on December 23, 2009 regardless of amount of usage.

Safeguard Your Admission Ticket/Pass

If your child is not old enough to go off on his own, he is not old enough to hold his own ticket or ID card. You should collect all of the tickets, etc. just after everyone passes through the turnstiles at the park entrance.

Tickets should be kept in a pocket that can be zippered or buttoned shut. An alternative is a tight fitting sleeve such as the Water Wallet (TM) that is safety pinned inside a pocket and that covers the card completely. Replace the ticket in the sleeve as soon as you are done using it. Tickets and dollar bills should not be loose in a pocket, when you pull something else out of the pocket the ticket may fall out.

You may poke a hole in a ticket (not through the magnetic stripe or printed information) and safety pin the ticket to the inside of a pocket.

Disney tickets must be guarded as carefully as airplane tickets or cash. If one is lost it should be reported because the electronic systems have a chance to capture the card. There is still no guarantee it will be found.

Hint from a Disney Information Station (wdwinfo.com) forum contributor: Photocopy twice all airplane tickets, park tickets, passes, vouchers, reservation confirmations, both sides. Leave one copy at home, bring the other copy with you but keep it safe (in a room safe if possible). This will help if the tickets themselves get lost. Writing down the numbers and codes on the back using pencil and paper is OK also.\

Do not post pictures of your tickets with the code numbers on the internet or anywhere else.

Park Hopper Plus Passes -- Discontinued

Park Hopper (tm, capital H) and Park Hopper Plus (tm) passes were discontinued as of 2005. Those you already own or bought can still be used as-is and they do not expire (except for passes that already had expiration dates). Because the first three days on Magic Your Way cost more than $60. apiece and the fifth through tenth days passes are so inexpensive, using older passes may not be the best strategy if you need more days. Individual admissions to water parks, etc. are still available. Effective June 2005, guests age 10 and older using older passes must also use the biometric readers (finger scanners) at the turnstiles. Park Hopper Plus passes are currently not honored at Disney Quest.

Unlimited Magic Pass -- No longer offered with packages

Also called UMP, Ultimate Park Hopper (UPH), Length of Stay Pass (LOS).

Packages with these were discontinued in 2005. You could say that the new Magic Your Way passes are similar except the number of visits to water parks is limited, also the expiration is 13 days after day of first usage as opposed to park closing on the day of check out.

New resort package plans are available. Most require that each person in your party order admission passes with the same number of days and the same attributes, although not necessarily matching the length of your stay. Very few if any plans have discounts on all three: room, dining, and admission passes. Click here for more on packages.

A few Unlimited Magic passes, some for just one day, have been given out as rainchecks.

Unanswered Questions

So far we have been unable to get definite answers to a few questions.

* I wish to upgrade my Magic Your Way ticket to a (Florida resident) seasonal pass today. But I used it yesterday which was a blackout (blocked out) day for seasonal passes.

We believe that the answer is "yes" (regardless of usage history) provided that either:

a. "Today" is not a blackout day, or,

b. You have not used the ticket "today".

In other words, if "today" is a blackout day, upgrading to seasonal pass should black you out instantly, but we think the system is not sophisticated enough to force you into a higher priced product such as regular annual pass because prior usage was on blackout days.

* I have a 10 day non-expiring pass with hopping valued at $537. I wish to upgrade to an annual pass, which costs $510.

We're quite sure that you can do this but you do not get the $27. change back. Some guests have reported getting the change back when they did the upgrade at a Guest Relations booth while others have reported not getting change back when they did the upgrade at a ticket booth.

* A family member already had a ticket to use and his resort package ticket remained unused. I want to use that ticket on a future vacation but it is on a room key with his name on it.

Two conflicting policies exist. (1) Unused tickets are transferable, and (2) Tickets can only be used by the person whose name is on it. The best way around this is to have the ticket admissions separated from the room key and put on a different card. We have yet to hear about the results of someone putting his own signature on the room key with fully unused admission and another family member's name.

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