Adding to The Never-ending Annual Pass Debate

Author’s Note: This Substack was written prior to Walt Disney World retracting the latest policy regarding Magic Kingdom Admission for Annual Passholders.

It seems that occasionally, the debate of whether an Annual Pass for either Disneyland or Walt Disney World is worth it. There are pros and cons to each side and it’s important to look at each side to determine if it is right for you and your family.

What brought up this thought?

Well recently Walt Disney World announced that following the official debut of Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away on July 20, a “temporary” policy change will be in effect for Walt Disney World Annual Passholders.

This policy took effect starting on July 21^st and it is as follows:

• Passholders wishing to visit Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom will now be required to hold a park reservation for that park REGARDLESS of entry time, including after 2:00 PM.

Current policy still in effect includes:

• Passholders wishing to visit EPCOT, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom will continue to not need a reservation for entry AFTER 2:00 PM for those parks.

• Passholders are banned from entering The Magic Kingdom after 2:00 PM on Saturdays and Sundays.

LATE BREAKING NEWS: (Edit made on July 29th at 3:44 PM) Beginning July 28th, the park pass reservation rules will return to normal for Annual Passholders.

This means you can enter Magic Kingdom without a park reservation after 2 PM! Annual Passholders will still need park reservations on Saturdays and Sundays, no matter the time of the day.

It’s that new “temporary” policy that hits home and sort of adds to the thought that the term “Annual Pass” is a misnomer.

The reason for this temporary policy is the new nighttime parade in The Magic Kingdom. After a ten-year absence a nighttime parade has finally returned to this crown jewel of a theme park and has piqued so much interest that WDW has decided to limit the number of guests for the park until further notice.

If you look at it from a guest’s viewpoint you can go either way with this. On one hand you have to think that this is in place so that if you do have a reservation and plan to see the parade then you won't have to fight as many others to get your spot…on the other hand it puts a wrench in your vacation flexibility because you are now looking at for one or several days to spend the whole day in one park, that being The Magic Kingdom, instead of breaking the day down into two parks.

Already Annual Passholders are banned from entering The Magic Kingdom after 2:00 PM on Saturdays and Sundays and now this?

Let’s take a step back and review the different Annual Pass tiers:

• The Incredi-pass costs $1549 plus tax and has no block out dates and can have up to five reservations held at a time, on a rolling basis

• The Sorcerer Pass costs $1079 plus tax and has 16 block out dates and can have up to five reservations held at a time, on a rolling basis

• The Pirate Pass (Florida residents only) cost $829 plus tax and has 62 block out dates and can have up to four reservations held at a time, on a rolling basis

• The Pixie dust Pass (Florida residents only) costs $469 plus tax and has 146 block out dates and have up to three reservations held at a time, on a rolling basis

Of course, there are those “Good-to-Go Days” at Walt Disney World. "Good-to-Go Days" for Annual Passholders mean passholders can visit the theme parks without needing a park reservation, if their pass type isn't blocked out for that day. These days are added periodically and are visible on the Theme Park Reservation calendar, the Annual Passholder admissions calendar, and the My Disney Experience app.

Again, this temporary policy regarding The Magic Kingdom Park reservations needed for all day is temporary but then again doesn’t make you think twice about the term “Annual Passholder” when considering purchasing an Annual Pass for you and your family?

Food for thought.

See you next time.