Do not go to Disneyland or Disney World without doing this one thing

Eve Chen, USA TODAY
·3 min read
23

Going to Walt Disney World in Florida or Disneyland in California without a park reservation sets the stage for disappointment. That's because neither park tickets nor annual passes alone will get guests inside. Both resorts began requiring park reservations during the pandemic.

Sure, it's potentially possible to arrive at the gate and make reservations on the spot, but it's like showing up at a busy hotel without checking availability and hoping there's a free room.

The most popular parks like Magic Kingdom book up in advance, so reserving early not only ensures access, it also avoids lost time and extra spending. Here's everything to know about Disney theme park reservations and what to do when there's no availability.

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"World of Color" returned to Disney California Adventure Park on April 22, 2022.
"World of Color" returned to Disney California Adventure Park on April 22, 2022.

How do I get reservations at Disney parks?

Step one is checking theme park availability, before even purchasing tickets.

Once Disney World guests purchase their tickets, they should immediately make a free park reservation and ensure that everyone in their travel party has reservations as well. These are separate steps for Disney World.

Disneyland guests can make park reservations when purchasing park tickets, in the same transaction. They can also add on Genie+ when purchasing tickets, unlike at Disney World where Genie+ must be purchased separately on the days of park visits.

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Can you make Disneyland, Disney World reservations before buying tickets?

No. Guests can buy tickets without making park reservations, but not the other way around.

How far in advance do you have to reserve a Disney park?

The sooner park reservations are made, the better.

Disney World already allows them to be made into early 2024.

Disneyland reservations can be made 120 days or more in advance.

Can you change park reservations?

Yes. Guests simply have to cancel their existing reservations, then book new ones.

It's important to confirm availability before making any changes to avoid the odd chance of ending up with no reservations at all if discarded reservations get scooped up by others.

The 145-foot Tree of Life towers over Walt Disney World's Animal Kingdom and is a symbol of the park.
The 145-foot Tree of Life towers over Walt Disney World's Animal Kingdom and is a symbol of the park.

What happens if the park you want to visit is not available?

There are several options, which all involve some sacrifice.

  • Guests can pick another park to go to that day.

  • Guests can keep checking back to see if anyone cancels and availability opens up.

  • Guests can pay to add the Park Hopper Option to their tickets, allowing them to change parks at 2 p.m. at Disney World or 1 p.m. at Disneyland.

  • Guests can move their vacation to dates when there is park availability.

Will Disney World or Disneyland give refunds if park reservations aren't available?

Tickets are nonrefundable at both resorts. However, guests may change the starting dates for unused and unexpired tickets, pending park availability. Because prices vary by date, guests must pay the difference if prices for the new dates are higher.

While neither resorts' tickets are transferable after partial use, Disney World allows guests to reassign unused and unexpired tickets to someone else on their Friends & Family List in their planning portal, My Disney Experience.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Disney World, Disneyland require reservations, but what if you forget?