Disney prices just went up again. Here’s how to get a discount

By Natasha Chen, CNN

(CNN) — Disneyland fans woke up Wednesday morning to find about a 6% price increase on most park tickets and a price increase between 6% to 20% on annual passes, known as Magic Keys, for Disney’s original resort in California.

Peak season, single-day tickets for Disneyland – during the late December holidays, for example – increased from $194 to $206. The ability to hop between the parks on the same day would cost another $65, which has not changed.

The “Imagine” Magic Key pass increased $100 from $499 to $599. Other Magic Key passes increased by either $100 or $125, depending on the type of pass. These passes are currently not on sale but will be made available again before the end of 2024.

A paid, skip-the-line service called “Lightning Lane Multi Pass,” increased more than 6% per person, per day in California for people buying it in advance. That’s up from $30 to $32. People buying it the day of their visit could see higher prices based on demand.

At Disneyland Resort, Magic Key holders can regularly save 20% on multipasses, but for the first time, they will be able to save 50% off the day-of price during most of January.

No announcement was made for parking rate changes on either coast.

These announcements come after a quarterly earnings call when Disney acknowledged that profit fell somewhat in their typically lucrative parks division, underperforming expectations during spring 2024.

In recent years, the media conglomerate has become a symbol of US inflation, with critics complaining that a vacation to Disney parks is out of reach for most family budgets. Disney has said it seeks to provide multiple price points for people on all kinds of budgets.

“There is nothing like a visit to Disneyland Resort,” said Jessica Good, a Disneyland Resort spokesperson. “We always provide a wide variety of ticket, dining and hotel options, and promotional offers throughout the year, to welcome as many families as possible.”

Walt Disney World price increases for 2025 tickets were already announced in February and are reflected in next year’s calendar on the resort’s website. Price increases for annual passes for the Florida resort have not been announced.

Death, taxes and theme park price hikes

Disney and other theme park operators have raised prices almost every year since their openings.

Jeffrey Talajic, who runs MagicTripTools.com, analyzed Florida park prices at Walt Disney World and Universal Resort Orlando going back to 1990, using data from the Orlando Sentinel newspaper.

Talajic found that Disney World raised prices 22 out of the past 35 years, and Universal raised theirs 23 times. In many of those years, Universal raised prices a few days after Disney did.

Mindy Marzec, who runs the travel website thisfairytalelife.com, said she always jokes that three things in life are certain: death, taxes and Disney parks raising ticket prices.

With this year’s increases, Marzec said the price hikes are higher than standard inflation (currently at about 2.5%), but she said most entertainment options are priced similarly.

“Take a concert for example: It’s not unusual to pay around $200 for a concert ticket, which is two to three hours of entertainment,” Marzec said. “With a Disneyland ticket you’re paying around $200 for a full day of entertainment. Everyone can choose to spend their money how they want. For example, my husband wouldn’t think twice about dropping $200 on a concert ticket for a band he really likes. But he’s not a Disney guy, so he wouldn’t want to spend that amount on a one-day ticket to Disneyland.”

Gavin Doyle – founder of MickeyVisit.com another site dedicated to Disney travel – said, “I have heard from readers that in some cases they have chosen to go less in order to splurge on all of the extras from Disney, but they are still going.”

Doyle said those who follow Disney closely are not likely to be deterred by price increases. However, he said the perception of price increases “discourages casual or first-time guests. That’s why it’s so important for those planning a vacation to understand that there are discounts available.”

The cheapest time to go

If you’re cringing at how expensive a Disney park ticket is, the company would point out that the base price of a single park, one-day ticket during “slow” seasons has remained relatively stable for the past several years.

That ticket costs $104 for Disneyland in California – and has remained the same for about six years (there’s no tax on theme park tickets in California). For Disney World in Florida, it was $116.09 (including tax) for the past few years. But it will jump to $126.74 (including tax) in 2025, reflecting the price increases announced in February.

That lowest price in Florida is for Animal Kingdom park. Tickets for the other parks on Disney World property are more expensive.

“Just like Costco has kept its $1.50 hot dog price as a fan favorite, Disney has held onto its Tier 0 pricing for years,” Talajic said, referring to how the discount retail giant’s food court hot dog has remained the same price for decades. “But with 2025’s price increase, it’s like Costco finally raising the price on their famous hot dog – a small change that signals a big shift at Disney World.”

The number of days of the year when you can find these lower-priced tickets, however, is limited.

At Disneyland, for example, that $104 ticket is only available during 10 weekdays in January, and fives weekdays in February. Prices for all of 2025 have not been released yet, so it’s possible – but not likely – to find more dates at that base price later next year.

At Disney World, these lowest priced tickets are typically available in August and September. In 2025, there are eight weekdays in August and 13 weekdays in September at $126.74.

Savings strategies for a Disney visit

On both coasts, a multiday ticket ends up costing less per day than a one-day ticket. The cost of adding the ability to hop between parks, known as a “park hopper,” also becomes cheaper per day for multiday tickets.

There are occasional deals and discounts, such as the newly offered kids’ ticket for Disneyland in early 2025, available for purchase beginning October 22. Children ages 3 to 9 can go to the Anaheim parks for as little as $50 per day.

So if a family of four went to a single park – either Disneyland or Disney California Adventure – on a weekday in January, for example, they could get two adults and two children into the park for a total of $308.

Disneyland has also frequently offered adult ticket discounts for Southern California residents during slower seasons. In 2024, that discount meant paying $225 for a three-day, one-park per day ticket on Mondays through Thursdays, or $50 more for access on weekends. Similar offers have not yet been announced for 2025.

Disneyland hotels are offering between 10% and 25% off starting January 7 through late March, bookable starting October 22. And more than 50 other Disney-approved, third-party hotels around the resort often offer more affordable rates.

In Florida, guests can save between $60 and $200 per night on Disney World ticket and hotel packages for much of the first half of 2025. Another deal on the Disney World website offers hotel discounts between 10% and 25% on many dates from January through April. Annual passholders can save even more – up to 35%.

The cost of saving time

Buying a ticket to enter the park is just the beginning of the cost of a Disney trip.

Consider parking rates, food costs and the paid, skip-the-line service, which was renamed “Lightning Lane Multi Pass” and “Lightning Lane Single Pass” earlier this year.

The multipass gets guests into faster “lightning” lanes for many rides, while – as the name suggests – the single pass is for entry into one specific ride’s lightning lane, typically for the most popular attractions. These are sold per person, per day, with prices fluctuating depending on how crowded the parks are.

At Disney World, the multipass is sold by park and varies by price depending on which park you’re visiting.

Disney Food Blog noted an increase in the Florida multipass and single pass prices starting in October, with the highest multipass price hitting $32 for one person’s multipass in Magic Kingdom on October 18. The same service at other parks on property, such as Animal Kingdom, is cheaper.

These prices generally increase as crowds get bigger, peaking around Thanksgiving and Christmas.

For a family of four that already has park tickets to Disney parks on either coast, buying lightning lanes for everyone to save time in line could easily cost more than $100 per day, depending on the season.

The only scenario in which guests can save money on lightning lanes is at Disneyland Resort in California, where adding a multipass to one’s ticket ahead of time is a flat $32. This could be a savings during busier seasons when the daily fluctuating price could be higher than $32. A single pass can  be purchased only after entering one of the parks there.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.