What Would it Take to Get Rid of Park Passes in Disney World

Disney World has made some pretty controversial changes since the theme parks reopened in July 2020.

EPCOT

We’ve seen a variety of health and safety measures, but also price increases, the introduction of Genie+, and a bunch of other modifications to the way that the parks run. One of the most talked-about changes is the introduction of the Disney Park Pass system and the requirement for guests to reserve their visits to Disney World in advance. But now that this system is here, will it ever go away?

What is the Disney Park Pass System?

Haven’t been to Disney World in a minute? Don’t worry, we’ll break it down for you. Since the parks reopened after the COVID-19 closure in summer 2020, all guests have been required to make reservations in advance to visit the Disney World parks. 

Magic Kingdom

Every guest with a ticket must reserve the park they want to visit first that day. If you plan on Park Hopping, you only need to make a reservation for your first park of the day. Without a reservation, you won’t be allowed to enter the theme park, so double-check and make sure your reservations are made before you leave for your trip! You can make them through your My Disney Experience account in the Disney World app or on the website.

Old park pass reservation signage in Disney World.

If no reservations are available for the park you want to visit, you’ll have to pick a different park or keep checking back to see if the availability changes. If you have a Park Hopper ticket, the best strategy may be to start the day at whichever park is available, then just hop to the “full” park in the afternoon. If the park is at capacity, there’s a chance you could be turned away, but this has only happened once in the history of the Disney Park Pass system.

The only time the crowds ever got that bad was on October 1st.

Why Does Disney World Have the Park Pass System?

So why does Disney World operate with this system? Well, it was originally put in place to control capacity. When the theme parks reopened, they were required to cut attendance significantly, and having guests reserve their visits in advance was the best way for Disney to control that without having long lines of people waiting outside the park entrances.

You don’t want to get barred from entering the park!

When the parks first reopened, they were operating at a very low capacity, so it was incredibly challenging to get reservations at times. Since then, capacity has slowly increased and it’s not as difficult…unless you’re visiting during a busy week or a holiday season. (Although we still recommend booking your park passes as early as possible!)

Crowds at Galaxy’s Edge in July 2020

With the reservation system, Disney is able to know exactly how many guests are planning on coming to the parks that day. They don’t share those numbers publicly, so our only indicator of a busy park is if that particular location is completely booked up for the day. There are still days when the reservations fill up, so using the park passes allows Disney to control the number of guests without having to turn people away at the gate. (Universal Orlando didn’t use a park pass system, and in the early reopening days, there were often long lines of people outside the park waiting to get inside.)

©Disney

What Would it Take to Get Rid of the Disney Park Pass System?

Will the system ever go away? Well, the parks operated pretty successfully without it pre-COVID, but that doesn’t guarantee that Disney will ever get rid of it entirely. Currently, guests can view availability and make Disney Park Pass reservations all the way into 2024.

© Disney

Disney has also stated in the past that the park pass system will likely stick around for a while. It offers them a lot of knowledge and control when it comes to the flow of guests in the parks, so it’s beneficial to the company. They’re now able to predict attendance much more accurately, allowing them to shift operations, schedules, and offerings as need be.

Animal Kingdom

As a guest, the main “pro” of the system is that it keeps you from going to a park that is “full” for the day. But on the “con” side of things, it makes planning a bit more complicated, adding in an extra step and taking away some spontaneity. For people like annual passholders, it can make last-minute park trips difficult. Because of this, some guests aren’t too fond of the system.

It can make last-minute trips difficult.

What would it take to get rid of the Disney Park Pass system? Well, the parks would likely need to go back to full capacity (or at least close to it) again first. There would need to be enough availability that turning guests away at the gate would no longer be a problem. And back before capacity was limited, it wasn’t really an issue – the parks really only got full on days like Christmas and New Year’s Eve. 

Disney World would need to go back to full capacity.

Health and safety measures continue to change as COVID case numbers go down, so it’s possible we could see an increase in theme park capacity on the horizon. But just because that happens, it doesn’t mean that Disney will get rid of the park passes. Either way, we’ll have to wait and see what is decided as things slowly return to normal in Disney World.

Things are constantly changing.

We’ll make sure to keep you updated if Disney World makes any changes to the park pass system in the future, so stay tuned to AllEars. We’ve got you covered with the latest news!

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4 Replies to “What Would it Take to Get Rid of Park Passes in Disney World”

  1. I have one more trip planned on my annual pass. After that I will be using my DVC for resort vacations and visit other attractions in Florida. The parks no longer hold any interest as it is so much work to plan. Not my idea of vacation.

  2. I don’t think, in any way, Disney is limiting park capacity with park reservations. They are allowing the parks to be very crowded, so much so, that it is reducing the experience for all but the most determined guests. These guests will pay extra for Genie Plus, Individual Lightning Lanes, etc. to have the same experience they enjoyed four years ago for MUCH less.
    And James is 100% correct in that you cannot choose a different park during your stay if desired. I detest the park reservation system more than Genie Plus!

  3. The park pass system takes something else away from guests. The ability to change your plans. If you have a 7 day pass, for example, you do the four parks, but can only do 3/4 a second time. So you have to guess months in advance what parks you will visit the second time. If you have rides in one park on your first visit that you didn’t get to and the family is clamoring to go back, but you didn’t choose that park, you may be completely out of luck. Or if you would rather do a particular park due to the weather, changing at the last minute is pretty hard. So it does take a lot of flexibility out of your plans. And if it wasn’t a really big deal (wait times seem to be as long for the rides) before Covid, why not give SOMETHING, ANYTHING, back to the guests.

    1. I don’t see Disney giving the customer’s back anything for quite a while. The parks have been unusually crowded for pretty much all of 2022 so far, at a time that was historically some of the slowest times. Apparently the desire to get out and go post Covid added to the 50th celebration has changed the definition of normal crowd levels. I’m hoping people get their itch to travel scratched soon and we see park attendance get back closer to normal expectations. That said, there is apparently a new crop of Disney fans willing to pay any amount for the opportunity to visit right now who are making it impossible to predict what the future holds as far as crowd levels and policy changes. Disney is the new Cabbage Patch doll, everybody thinks they have to have one. I predict that with time, and without change from their current course, Disney may well become what Cabbage Patch dolls have become, forgotten and disposable. Disney has certainly chosen to turn their backs on the “steady” income stream of return customers in trade for the FOMO customer’s of today.