A Major Disney Hotel Perk Has Changed — But It Could Be a GOOD Thing

Disneyland is changing a major hotel perk.

For guests of Disneyland Resort hotels, entering the theme parks up to 30 minutes before the rest of the visitors can mean early access to rides, shopping, and even dining. Now that Disneyland early entry is changing, it has folks divided — but here’s why it could actually be a good thing.

Right now, Disneyland Resort hotel guests can enter either theme park 30 minutes early, regardless of the day. But, Disneyland has announced that beginning on January 20th, 2024, only one park will have Early Entry each day.

Disney shared in an update, “Starting January 20, 2024, the early entry benefit will be updated, and Guests with valid park admission and reservations who are checked in and staying at one of the Disneyland Resort hotels may take advantage of this 30-minute early entry into a designated theme park for every day of their hotel stay. Each day, either Disneyland Park or Disney California Adventure Park will be open early. Please check the theme park calendar for the schedule.”

Guests who usually stay in Disneyland Resort hotels may find this news disappointing, as now instead of having a choice of theme park to enter early, there will only be one park designated per day. So, you’ll still get to enter a park early, you just won’t get to choose which one.

There is a silver lining, though — since there are only three Disneyland Resort hotels (the Disneyland Hotel, Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel, and Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa) many people stay in one of the several hotels surrounding Disneyland instead. With the current Early Entry rules, these hotel guests are at a disadvantage by being 30 minutes behind all the people who got to enter early — in both parks.

Under the new rules, non-Disneyland Resort hotel guests will only have to deal with being behind in one park on any given day — so for people who don’t usually stay on property, this change may actually be a good thing.

Not only that, but this update also means that Disneyland locals will have the same advantage as those staying in hotels near the parks.

So, if you’re planning a 2024 Disneyland trip and want to stay at one of the hotels on property, keep this new rule in mind and pay attention to which park has Early Entry on which day. There are still plenty of reasons to stay on property, and you can read more about that here.

We’ll be keeping an eye out for more updates on this change and more news from Disneyland, so stay tuned to AllEars for more.