Attention Disney World Annual Passholders! If you are counting down the days until you can see the debut of the Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away parade, then you need to know about this NEW Annual Passholder rule!
The brand-new Disney Starlight parade is making its official debut on July 20th, 2025, and we can’t wait! However, Disney just announced a new rule for Annual Passholders that you need to know.
Beginning July 20th, Annual Passholders visiting Magic Kingdom at any time of the day (including after 2 PM) MUST have a theme park reservation. This is due to the expected high demand for the opening of the Disney Starlight parade. This rule change only impacts Magic Kingdom, and you can still enter Disney’s Animal Kingdom, EPCOT, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios after 2 PM without a theme park reservation. This also does not affect park hopping, so you can still hop to Magic Kingdom in the afternoon if you had a park reservation at a different park. Park hopping is still subject to availability though.
So, if you are hoping to catch the opening night of Disney Starlight or another night close to opening, make sure you make your theme park reservation as soon as possible! We don’t want you to miss out on the new parade. We don’t know yet how long this new rule will remain in place, but we will be sure to keep you updated if it changes.
If you are heading to the theme parks before July 20th, you will still follow the current rules for theme park reservations. You can visit the theme parks without a reservation on good-to-go days or after 2 PM. The only exception to the after 2 PM rule is Magic Kingdom on Saturdays and Sundays, when you will still need a theme park reservation.
Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away debuts on July 20th, and of course, we will be bringing you along to experience this new parade. The parade will utilize the latest technology to bring the stores and characters you love to life. It is all happening at night, so expect lots of dazzling lights! There will be floats themed to films such as Encanto, Frozen, Wish, Moana, Peter Pan, and more. There will also be a new custom music track to accompany the floats and parade performers.
Stay tuned to AllEars for all your Disney World news!
Take a look at some of the floats coming to the Disney Starlight parade!
Are you planning on being there on the opening night of Disney Starlight? Let us know in the comments!
Just confirmed with Disney you can have a park reservation to any of the parks for that day. The only way to guarantee getting into MK is with a reservation. But if you have a reservation at the other parks, you can still park hop to MK, as long as they have capacity.