There are loads of different Walt Disney World tickets and passes, and it can be very confusing to figure out which ones to buy and how to get the best discounts and deals on them. This page can help.

In addition to discounts, there are lots of ways to maximize the use of your Disney ticket. You can get a lot of extra value out of it if you know what you're doing! Read the sections below to get specific tips for each of the major tickets and passes sold by Disney in advance, at the gate and at the Disney resort hotels.

5 seconds and a free photocopy saved us $200.00! There is one bit of info on your site that is absolutely imperative that EVERY Disney World visitor MUST follow. Take 5 seconds and make a PHOTOCOPY of your tickets. We purchased three - 4 day park hopper passes... I had the tickets photocopied. On the 2nd day we discovered we had lost one of our tickets. We did panic for a few minutes, until we remembered I photocopied the tickets.... When we got to the Magic Kingdom we handed them the photocopy of our tickets. The guest relations person ... said had we not done this there would've been nothing they could've done for us other than sell us a new 4 day park hopper ticket. Instead, they reissued the ticket. Rick J from Colorado Springs

Very Important Tip!

The first thing you should do when you buy Walt Disney World tickets is make a photocopy of the reverse side (the side with the magnetic stripe). If you lose your ticket, your only hope of getting it replaced is to have the coded information on the back. The seemingly random numbers, letters and dates you'll see in a couple of locations on the backs of your tickets will help Disney replace the tickets if you lose them. Disney will usually reissue a pass if you can provide that information, though it is not obligated to do so: the tickets state that "Disney is not responsible for misplaced, lost or stolen tickets."

If you buy your tickets at the gate, save the receipt, since that can also be used to look up lost tickets. A receipt from a non-Disney source, such as AAA or a ticket broker, won't have any information that helps with replacing tickets, so it is especially important to make a photocopy if you get your tickets that way.

Even a regular receipt from the Disney Store won't have your ticket numbers on it, though reader Kathy R reports that her local Disney Store gave her a separate receipt with the pass numbers on it. I don't know if all Disney Stores do this. If you don't see a serial number on your receipt that matches the info on the back of your tickets, be sure to make a photocopy.

MouseSavers.com reader Francis T has this alternate suggestion for how to save the information on the back of your tickets in case you lose or misplace them. "...take a photo of them! This can be done immediately after you purchase them -- even at the gate. Use your cellphone camera [or] digital camera... you'll have the information right at your fingertips."

MouseSavers.com reader Fran B has a more high-tech solution: if you purchased your tickets from Disney.com and printed them out at home, simply save the electronic file onto a thumb drive (aka flash drive, pen drive, keychain drive, jump drive or memory stick). You can carry it with you, and if the tickets get lost, you can duplicate them from the file.

This will also work for physical tickets -- just scan the backs instead of photocopying them, then save the file onto your thumb drive. If you don't want to carry a thumb drive around, you could also e-mail the file to yourself and if necessary retrieve it later, as long as you have a web-based e-mail account.

Where NOT to Buy Disney World Passes

There are lots of legitimate ways to get discounted Walt Disney World passes. Unfortunately, there are also many ways to get ripped off. 

You should never buy partially used passes. For instance, perhaps someone bought a 7-day ticket and ended up using only 5 days of it, so he or she is reselling the remaining 2 days. (Unused days on the old Hopper tickets sold before January 2, 2005, and on Magic Your Way tickets with the No Expiration Option sold on or after January 2, 2005 will never expire.) Sounds good, right? The trouble is, there is absolutely no way to tell whether the pass does, in fact, have the number of days remaining that the seller claims, until you get to the gate and see if it works.

Disney tickets are nontransferable. That means they can be used only by the original purchaser. Disney uses a biometric finger scan system (which takes a partial fingerprint) that prevents you from selling or sharing a ticket. Only one person can use each ticket. While the old Hopper tickets did not use the finger scans originally, as of June 20, 2005 Disney is requiring the scans with ALL tickets. So if someone has used that old Hopper ticket recently, that person's scan is now recorded on the magnetic strip on the ticket.

Last but certainly not least, in Florida it is illegal to resell partly-used multi-day admission tickets: click here to read about the arrest of some people who were doing just that.

Used ticket brokers are everywhere in the Orlando/Kissimmee area. They are generally fly-by-night operators with small storefronts or a desk in another business, such as a motel or restaurant. They mostly sell partially used passes. It's likely that you'll get to the gate and find out the passes are no good. Needless to say, Disney is not going to help you with this. It is a great way to ruin a holiday. Here's a link to a news story that describes one ticket fraud ring.

There are now many web sites out there that seem to be offering super low prices on Disney tickets. Many are total scams. Since at least late 2005 there have been con artists and fraudsters (mostly operating from Romania) running web sites and eBay auctions that offer ridiculously low prices on Disney tickets. There is no way they can offer tickets at such low prices without losing money. Most require you to pay by Western Union or other cash-equivalent services, which means you'll never be able to get the money back. ALWAYS pay by credit card (not debit card) when making purchases on the Internet! This is your best protection.

Disney does not allow its authorized ticket dealers to use the word Disney in their URLs (domain names or web site addresses). Also watch for URLs ending with .ro (the designator for Romania). Many of the shady sites offer tickets that are no longer sold by Disney (i.e. Park Hopper PLUS, which hasn't been sold since 1/2/05) and/or offer items like "free meal vouchers" with your purchase (meal vouchers were phased out in 2005).

It is a very bad idea to buy Disney passes on eBay or Craigslist. Unfortunately both of these online resources are extremely popular with con artists. The passes being sold are often partially or completely used up (if they even bother to send you anything at all). There is no way to find out if the tickets are any good in advance of your trip. You are very likely to arrive at the gate and find out you have invalid passes.

Web sites that offer exceptionally low prices for Disney tickets may be promoting timeshares. Look at the very bottom of the site -- it probably says something like "This advertising material is being used for the purpose of soliciting sales of vacation ownership interests." That means you would have to attend a timeshare presentation in order to get tickets at the advertised price.

Yes, many timeshare resorts will give you some sort of discount on Disney World passes -- or maybe even a couple of free one-day passes -- if you will sit through a hard-sell "90-minute presentation" (which usually takes 2 hours or more). Some people don't mind spending part of their vacation doing this, but to me this is not worthwhile. I do not list any ticket discounts that involve timeshares.

		However, there are legitimate, authorized ticket brokers that have contracts with Disney and sell NEW, UNUSED Disney passes at a discount.

Thank you to Ron L for suggesting this topic.

Deciding Which Tickets to Buy

I wish I could give you a quick and easy way to decide, but picking which tickets to purchase is complicated because every vacation is different.

It's always wise to spend some time developing an itinerary BEFORE you buy your passes, because the right passes for you really depend on how you plan to spend your days. Some (actually, most) people will spend each day in only one theme park. Others like to "hop" between parks and water parks in one day. Some families with teenagers find themselves going to DisneyQuest a lot, and only certain passes include that option. And so on...

It's important to get out your calculator, take a look at the prices and figure out which tickets make sense for your situation.

A couple of hints:

• For stays of 11 days or more, or if you plan to return to Walt Disney World within a year, be sure to consider an Annual Pass.

• If you will be spending a lot of time at the water parks, Disney Quest or Pleasure Island, consider buying a specialized annual pass for that one option (i.e. Water Park Annual Pass) -- it may be cheaper than individual admissions, the Water Park Fun & More option or a Premium Annual Pass.

Where to Get the Lowest Prices - In a Nutshell

The chart below lists the best place to buy the most popular tickets sold to the general public.

However, be sure to check all your options. You may be overlooking a special deal for which you qualify, such as Florida resident, military/civil service, Disney Vacation Club and corporate discounts, which are not included in this chart. There are also some special tickets for International visitors that I don't list in this chart.

1-, 2- and 3-Day Magic Your Way Tickets - Tips and Tricks

If you're not already familiar with Magic Your Way Tickets, click here to learn the basics.

The good news with Magic Your Way Tickets is that if you want to "hop" between parks on the same day, you can add the Park Hopper option to ANY LENGTH ticket. That's right, if you want to buy a 1-Day ticket and visit 2 or more parks that day, you can do that!

It is true that at a flat rate of $45 ($47.93 with tax), the Park Hopper option adds quite a bit to the cost of a 1-Day or 2-Day Base Ticket. But if you use it for admission to two or more parks, it can be a decent value.

Ideally you'll be adding the Park Hopper option to your ticket on a day when one of the parks you want to visit stays open late -- that way you get more hours to use the full value of the ticket. Depending on the season, you may be able to enter one theme park as early as 8:00 am and stay until the closing of a different park as late as midnight.

It is possible to "hit the highlights" of all four parks in two days if you travel during a time when the parks are open extended hours, and if you have a ton of energy. Some people will manage to hit all 4 parks -- though only a few attractions at each -- in one day!

You can also add the Water Park Fun & More option to any ticket. The cost is a flat rate of $50 ($53.25 with tax). For a 2-Day Base Ticket, that adds 2 admissions to water parks, DisneyQuest or Pleasure Island. (Two adult water park or DisneyQuest admissions purchased separately would normally cost $76.68 with tax.)

Here's the best part: the Water Park Fun & More admissions DO NOT have to be used on the same day as your main theme park admission! They are good for 14 days from the first use of your ticket. (However, it is possible to use up all of your admissions on the same day if you want.)

In other words, you could buy a 2-Day Base Ticket, add the Water Park Fun & More, and use that ticket on up to four different days! For example, you could:

• Spend first day in a major theme park, second day at a water park, third day at DisneyQuest, fourth day at a major theme park.

• Spend first day in a major theme park, second day in a major theme park, third day at a water park, fourth day at a water park.

• Spend first day at DisneyQuest, second day in a major theme park, third day at a major theme park, third evening at DisneyQuest.

Many other combinations are possible, but you get the general idea. Quite a deal for $201.29 total with tax.

Maximizing the Value of Magic Your Way Tickets

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Best Deal for Repeat Visitors

Two things to consider if you visit Walt Disney World regularly:

1. The per-admission cost is much lower on the longer Magic Your Way tickets; in other words, the more days you buy, the less you pay per admission.

2. Ticket prices have typically increased annually, at a rate higher than the rate of inflation.

So if you know you'll be visiting Walt Disney World again, you can save money by purchasing extra days at the lower price point and adding the No Expiration Option within 13 days of first using your tickets. Use some days now and some on a future trip, and benefit from the discounted per-admission cost and the locked-in price.

The 10-day Magic Your Way tickets are definitely the best deal for those who "buy and hold" tickets as described above. A 10-day Magic Your Way ticket with Park Hopper Option and No Expiration Option (purchased in advance) costs $457.96 including tax, which works out to admission costing $45.80 per theme park day.

For those who like to visit the water parks and/or DisneyQuest, a 10-day Magic Your Way ticket with Park Hopper and Water Parks & More plus No Expiration option (purchased in advance) costs $511.21 including tax, which works out to $25.56 per admission (10 theme park admissions + 10 water park or DisneyQuest admissions).

Bear in mind that you may be able to get a 10-day ticket even cheaper through a ticket broker.

Important note: there is no way to find out how many theme park days and water park admissions remain on a ticket until you arrive at Walt Disney World and check with Guest Services, so it's important to keep track of this information if you are going to use the tickets during multiple trips. I put a sticky note on each ticket and write down how many theme park days and water park admissions remain.

Water Park Fun & More Hints

The Water Park Fun & More option, which gives you a certain number of admissions to the water parks, DisneyQuest and/or Pleasure Island, can be added to any Magic Your Way ticket.

Water Park Fun & More admissions DO NOT have to be used on the same day as your main theme park admissions! They are good for 14 days from the first use of your ticket (or forever, if you purchase the No Expiration option).

For example, you could buy a 7-Day Base Ticket, add the Water Park Fun & More (which gives you 7 water park or DisneyQuest admissions), and use that ticket on up to 14 different days!

Little-Known Tip for Childrens' Tickets

A neat thing about leftover days on a child's "no expiration" ticket: if the child turned 10 since you bought the ticket, he or she will need an "adult" ticket to enter the theme parks. In these circumstances, the child's ticket may be presented at any Guest Services location, in person only, to have it exchanged for the required "adult" ticket -- at no additional charge! This only applies to partially used tickets that have not expired. Thanks to Lois H for the info.

Upgrading Tickets

You can apply the value of an unused ticket, or even a partially-used one with days left on it, toward the purchase of a higher-priced ticket. I strongly recommend doing this at a theme park Guest Services window, NOT at the Downtown Disney Guest Services office, which seems to have issues with doing upgrades properly!

• If you haven't used the ticket at all, they'll apply the price printed on the ticket to any higher-priced ticket.

• If you have used one or more days of the ticket, they'll apply the current gate price (which may be more than you paid) to any higher-priced ticket. For this reason, if you've purchased a discounted ticket it is best to use at least one day of your ticket before upgrading!

• You must upgrade partially used tickets within 14 days of first use, even if you have the No Expiration option.

• Tickets cannot be upgraded beyond 10 days total (i.e. if you purchase a 7-day ticket and want to add 3 days, that's fine, but you can't add 4 days). Once a ticket has been maxed out at 10 days of admission, the only upgrade possible is to an Annual Pass.

• If upgrading partially used tickets with the Water Park Fun & More feature to an Annual Pass, you must purchase a Premium Annual Pass (which includes the water parks).

Old tickets purchased prior to 1/2/05 ("Park Hoppers") can no longer be upgraded, or converted to Magic Your Way tickets. All you can do is use up the remaining days on them.

Important note: there is no way to find out how many theme park days and water park admissions remain on a ticket until you arrive at Walt Disney World and check with Guest Services, so it's important to keep track of this information. I put a sticky note on each ticket and write down how many theme park days and water park admissions remain.

You can also upgrade Magic Your Way tickets by adding additional options within 13 days after you first use them. For instance:

• You buy a Magic Your Way 7-Day ticket without any added options. On the second day of your vacation, you realize you would prefer to be able to "hop" between parks on the same day. You can add the Park Hopper option for $47.93 and "hop" for the rest of your vacation.

• You are in Orlando for a two week vacation. You buy a Magic Your Way 5-Day ticket without any added options. You visit the Disney theme parks on the first 4 days of your trip, go to Universal and SeaWorld for a few days, and on the seventh day of your trip, with only one day remaining on your Magic Your Way ticket, it suddenly gets very hot outside, so you want to spend a few days at the water parks. You can add the Water Park Fun & More option for $53.25 and get 5 water park admissions to use during your vacation.

• You buy a Magic Your Way 10-Day ticket and due to a family emergency you have to go home just five days into your vacation. You can add the No Expiration option to your ticket for $170.40. (Upgrade cost is based on the total number of days you originally purchased, not on the number of days remaining.)

To upgrade a pass, go to any Guest Services window.

Using Old Park Hopper Passes

The old Park Hopper and Park Hopper PLUS tickets were no longer sold after January 1, 2005. However, Park Hopper and Park Hopper PLUS tickets that have already been purchased will be honored.

Many people aren't aware of two important facts about the regular Walt Disney World Park Hopper and Park Hopper PLUS passes that were sold through January 1, 2005:

1. Unused days and "plus" options never expire. Old Park Hopper and Park Hopper PLUS passes don't expire (except for a few very rare types, which will have an expiration date printed on them), so don't waste them! Even though you may have paid much less per day for your admission, Disney will honor the remaining days without any upcharge. Really old passes may have to be traded for new ones with a magnetic stripe, but they'll give you the same number of days that remained on the old pass.

2. The "plus" options on a Park Hopper PLUS pass do not have to be used on days when you go to the theme parks. That means you can use a 5-Day Park Hopper PLUS (which gives you five days of theme park admission and two "plus" options good at the water parks or Pleasure Island) on a total of 7 days, if you wish! The days don't have to be consecutive, either. For instance, you could spend 5 days in the theme parks, take two days off, and visit the water parks on 2 other days.

Old Park Hopper tickets purchased prior to 1/2/05 can no longer be upgraded, or converted to Magic Your Way tickets. All you can do is use up the remaining days on them.

Are Annual Passes For You?

For some people an Annual Pass is the most economical choice. Generally speaking, if you will be going into the Walt Disney World theme parks for more than 11 days in a year, an Annual Pass is well worth considering.

An Annual Pass is good for 366 days. If you buy one on April 8, 2006, it will be valid through April 8, 2007! (Yes, you get an extra day, except in Leap Years.) So if you take an annual vacation to Walt Disney World, just make it a little earlier the second year, and you can use the previous year's pass. For instance, if you bought and activated your pass on April 8 and vacationed April 8-14 this year, come back next year from April 2-8 and your passes will still be valid. Bingo - "free" admission on your second vacation!

Even for somewhat shorter stays, when you consider the substantial (up to 40% off) hotel discounts and discounts on entertainment that are often available to Annual Passholders, you may find it's worthwhile to purchase at least one Annual Pass for at least one person in your party. To see a cost comparison chart that shows how a family on a 7-night vacation might save by purchasing one Annual Pass and buying the components of their vacation separately, click here. To learn more about Disney World Annual Passes, click here.

If you are a Florida resident or have Military ID, there are annual pass discounts for you -- see the appropriate section.

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