Walt Disney World Annual Passes Return With A Whole New Program

It’s the day that so many of us have been (anxiously and somewhat impatiently) waiting for. Walt Disney World has finally announced details about their revamped Annual Passholder program!  Walt Disney World Annual Passholders will go on sale once again beginning on September 8, 2021!

With this news, like I mentioned, the program itself has been revamped. There are four new Annual Passes that will be available that will offer flexibility and will work to meet Guests’ needs. They are the Disney Pixie Dust Pass, the Disney Pirate Pass, the Disney Sorcerer Pass, and the Disney Incredi-Pass.

Overall, there are a number of things that are new with these new pass options, as well. They include the ability to hold up to five Disney Park Pass Reservations at a time, depending on which pass type you purchase. In addition, there will be “bonus reservations” added to the calendar from time to time, so Passholders can make an additional park reservation without it counting against their reservation hold limit.

For those Passholders staying at a Disney Resort hotels or other select hotels, they will still be able to make theme park reservations for each day of their stay, in addition to the reservations that can be held based on your pass type.

Guests will also be able to customize their pass with different add-ons, like the Water Park and Sports option or Disney PhotoPass downloads. These add-on options will be available for purchase with any of the four pass types.

There will be availability for Passholders to quickly see blockout dates for each pass type, view available days and make, modify or cancel a reservation all in one place.

In addition, Passes will continue to offer things like Park Hopping, standard theme park parking and discounts on merchandise and dining.

Let’s break down each pass:

 

Disney Pixie Dust Pass

This is a Florida resident Pass
$339 plus tax—or $19 per month with 12 monthly payments after $205 down payment

Pass Highlights:

• Visit one or more Walt Disney World theme parks on the same day with an advance park reservation
• Pass is valid for use most weekdays, subject to blockout dates including peak and holiday periods. Blockout dates can be viewed here.
• Make and hold up to 3 park reservations at a time on a rolling basis. (Reservations are limited and are subject to availability and applicable pass blockout dates)
• Passholders staying at select Disney Resort or other select hotels are eligible to make park reservations for each day of their Resort stay(s), in addition to holding 3 park reservations at a time
• Bonus reservations will be added to the calendar from time to time, allowing you to make extra reservations on select days at select theme parks. Bonus reservations do not count as a reservation hold
• Can add-on Disney PhotoPass downloads and the Water Park and Sports option
• Standard theme park parking
• Discounts on dining, merchandise and more

 

Disney Pirate Pass

For Florida Residents
$699 plus tax—or $45 per month with 12 monthly payments after $205 down payment

Highlights of This Pass:

• Visit one or more Walt Disney World theme parks on the same day with an advance park reservation
• Pass is valid for use most days, subject to blockout dates including peak and holiday periods. Blackout dates can be viewed here.
• Make and hold up to 4 park reservations at a time on a rolling basis. (Reservations are limited and are subject to availability and applicable pass blockout dates)
• Passholders staying at select Disney Resort or other select hotels are eligible to make park reservations for each day of their Resort stay(s), in addition to holding 4 park reservations at a time
• Bonus reservations will be added to the calendar from time to time, allowing you to make extra reservations on select days at select theme parks. Bonus reservations do not count as a reservation hold
• Can add-on Disney PhotoPass downloads and the Water Park and Sports option
• Standard theme park parking
• Discounts on dining, merchandise and more

 

Disney Sorcerer Pass

For Florida residents or Disney Vacation Club Members
$899 plus tax—or $63 per month with 12 monthly payments after $205 down payment

Highlights of This Pass:

• Visit one or more Walt Disney World theme parks on the same day with an advance park reservation
• Pass is valid for use most days, subject to blockout dates on select days during select holiday periods. Blackout dates can be viewed here.
• Make and hold up to 5 park reservations at a time on a rolling basis. (Reservations are limited and are subject to availability and applicable pass blockout dates)
• Passholders staying at select Disney Resort or other select hotels are eligible to make park reservations for each day of their Resort stay(s), in addition to holding 5 park reservations at a time
• Bonus reservations will be added to the calendar from time to time, allowing you to make extra reservations on select days at select theme parks. Bonus reservations do not count as a reservation hold
• Can add-on Disney PhotoPass downloads and the Water Park and Sports option
• Standard theme park parking
• Discounts on dining, merchandise and more

 

Disney Incredi-Pass

Available for all Guests
$1299 plus tax—or $99 per month with 12 monthly payments after $205 down payment

Highlights of This Pass:

• Visit one or more Walt Disney World theme parks on the same day with an advance park reservation
• No blockout dates
• Make and hold up to 5 park reservations at a time on a rolling basis. (Reservations are limited and are subject to availability and applicable pass blockout dates)
• Passholders staying at select Disney Resort or other select hotels are eligible to make park reservations for each day of their Resort stay(s), in addition to holding 5 park reservations at a time
• Bonus reservations will be added to the calendar from time to time, allowing you to make extra reservations on select days at select theme parks. Bonus reservations do not count as a reservation hold
• Can add-on Disney PhotoPass downloads and the Water Park and Sports option
• Standard theme park parking
• Discounts on dining, merchandise and more

 

Add Ons

Things like Disney PhotoPass and the Water Park and more options are going to come with an additional cost for the year now.

Water Park and Sports Option: Participate in experiences beyond the theme parks for just $99 plus tax for the year.

Disney PhotoPass Downloads: Get unlimited Disney PhotoPass downloads for just $99 plus tax for the year.

 

What about Current Passholders?

They may continue to use their current Annual Pass as they do now. When it is time for you to renew, they will be able to renew into one of our new passes (at a special renewal price). Plus, beginning Sept. 8, 2021, Silver, Gold, Platinum and Platinum Plus Annual Passholders will also be able to hold more reservations at a time! Platinum Plus, Platinum and Gold Annual Passes will be able to hold up to 5 reservations at a time and Silver will be able to hold up to 4 reservations at a time. For Passholders who are currently within their renewal window, they may choose to renew into one of the current Annual Pass options through September 7, 2021. On September 8, 2021, if they are within their renewal window, they will be able to select from the new passes when renewing.

 

A Comparison

The last Walt Disney World Annual Pass price increase was back in February 2020, right before the pandemic. While it’s now not even, we can make a few comparisons.

So, in 2020, the prices for Annual Passes were as follows:

• Disney Platinum Plus Pass (includes 4-Park Hopping, water parks, and more, with no blackout dates): $1,295
• Disney Platinum Pass (includes 4-Park Hopping, with no blackout dates): $1,195
• Gold Annual Pass (for DVC members and FL residents only): $719
• Silver Annual Pass (FL residents only): $539

The Platinum Pass Plus is now basically the Incredi-Pass with the add on of the Water Park and Sports, PLUS we do have to add on the Disney PhotoPass option because that was included prior. So, for the equivalent pass now, it would cost $1493. That’s essentially an increase of $198.

For the Platinum Pass, it would be the Incredi-Pass, plus the Disney PhotoPass option. That pass is now basically $1398 or a difference of $203.

The Gold Pass, it would basically be the Disney Sorcerer Pass, which is basically now the Sorcerer Pass, plus PhotoPass. That pass is now essentially $998, which is a difference of $279.

Finally, the Silver Pass doesn’t really have a great equal option. It’s kind of between both the Pirate and the Pixie Dust Pass. I would say it’s probably closer to the Pirate Pass though. So, let’s compare it to that one. The Pirate Pass is $699, so that is a difference of $160.

 

I am sure we’ll have lots more statistical analysis from the guys and gals here who are way smarter than I am about this stuff in the coming days, so stay tuned to the blog for more details.