Disney World Stops Most New AP Sales
Walt Disney World has stopped selling most Annual Passes to its theme parks, which are no longer available for new purchases as of November 22, 2021. This post details the temporary change, what’s impacted, when sales will likely resume, the cause, and more.
Sales of Walt Disney World’s three most expensive Annual Passes are all currently paused. Meaning that the Disney Pirate Pass, Sorcerer Pass, and Incredi-Pass are all unavailable for purchase right now. Only the lowest-level Disney Pixie Dust Pass, which is available exclusively to Florida residents and valid only on weekdays, remains available for new sales at this time.
Per Walt Disney World’s Know Before You Go page: “We are pausing new sales of select Annual Passes. All current Passholders can renew into any of our four pass types – at their renewal rate – and continue to visit using their pass. We will continue to evaluate the return of new sales for these passes. Please check back for the latest updates.”
A Walt Disney World spokesperson told the Orlando Sentinel that the change was made while the company monitors attendance at the theme parks, and is expected to be lifted “sometime in 2022.”
As you likely recall, Walt Disney World suspended sales of all Annual Passes during its closure last year. However, the Annual Pass program at Walt Disney World did not end when the parks reopened nor were outstanding APs terminated. Many APs proactively cancelled their passes and requested refunds. That happened after significant backlash from APs over Walt Disney World continuing to charge Passholders monthly payments despite the parks being closed.
Upon reopening, sales of new Annual Passes were “paused” while renewals were allowed. (Basically, the same thing that’s happening here.) New purchases for ex-Annual Passholders who cancelled during the closure and children who “aged into” Annual Passes were also allowed. Much of this was done on a case-by-case basis, with the Guest Services ‘Welcome Center’ in Disney Springs having a ton of discretion over sales. Expect some or most of that to once again be relevant here for the next couple months.
Walt Disney World resumed Annual sales in September 2021 with new names, higher prices, restrictions, and other details. In so doing, the company dropped the straightforward precious-metal tier names in favor of a nonsensical hierarchy of fictional characters and concepts. Unfortunately, we should not expect the new names to be “undone” when APs return.
Back when the new Annual Passes were announced, Walt Disney World stated: “Please note as we continue to manage attendance to provide a great experience for everyone, at any time, Annual Passes may be unavailable for purchase.”
Walt Disney World also stated, “An Annual Pass isn’t just a way for you to get into the magic, it’s the key to getting the magic into you. So you can say… ‘That’s my magic.’” This quote isn’t really relevant to today’s news, it’s just weird and feels like it’s written by a bot. (Someone is really fond of the “that’s my magic” line, as it’s also on mailers and other stuff.)
In terms of commentary and analysis, not a ton is necessary here. This is very obviously occurring due to anticipated crowds at Walt Disney World around Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s Eve, and the Walt Disney World Marathon.
As we covered last week, Walt Disney World Warned of High Holiday Crowds due to limited Park Pass availability. That has only worsened since we reported on it–there’s now zero Disney Park Pass availability for this entire week.
However, there is still some availability for Annual Passes. Our guess is that will quickly disappear and be reallocated towards the on-site resort guest and theme park ticket holder buckets. If you’re an existing Annual Passholder planning on visiting in the next couple months, we’d thus strongly recommend booking Park Pass reservations ASAP.
We were in Walt Disney World this weekend, and it’s abundantly clear that attendance is high right now.
Entirely anecdotal, but I haven’t seen crowds this heavy since early last year. Disney’s Hollywood Studios, in particular, felt like one of the days shortly after the opening of Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, with overflow queues everywhere and triple digit waits for many rides.
The difference now is that Walt Disney World still isn’t operating at 100%. As you’re also undoubtedly aware, a number of stage shows are still dark, atmospheric entertainment still isn’t back, and not every venue in the park (dining, in particular) is fully efficient due to staffing shortages.
On the recent earnings call, the company acknowledged that the parks are still operating with (undisclosed) capacity caps in place. It’s hard to say what those would be, as the operational inefficiencies skew perceptions of crowds. Plus, it probably differs among the parks–a lot more is missing from DHS than Magic Kingdom. In any case, the “feels like” crowds and congestion at Disney’s Hollywood Studios are 10/10 right now.
Some Walt Disney World fans will undoubtedly be upset about the company pausing Annual Pass sales, which is totally understandable, especially if you were about to make a purchase as gifts this holiday season.
On that note, we’d point to Disneyland, which suspended sales of its highest tier Annual Pass only after reservations into early 2022 became nearly impossible to obtain. That led to irate fans and Magic Keyholders (what the AP is called there, because there’s a new rule that the names be counterintuitive, apparently) who said the pause should’ve occurred earlier.
The outrage in Florida is not going to be among those who already have bought their Annual Passes, but only because the company learned their lesson from California and isn’t letting the situation devolve to that point. Judging by how park reservations have been filling up, Walt Disney World wasn’t too far from a similar situation.
We’d expect Annual Pass sales to resume at some point in Winter 2022 once the holiday crowds subside, and also after the Walt Disney World Marathon, Osceola and Orange County schools go back into session, and snowbirds start arriving in Florida.
We hesitate to offer any predictions beyond that, as our recent track record with forecasting when things will return has erred on the side of being overly optimistic. In this case, we’re expecting surprisingly high crowds in January and February 2022, so the return may not happen immediately after the holidays. Hopefully we’re wrong, and APs are back by mid-January 2022.
One thing that is worth noting is that Walt Disney World and Disneyland have often increased Annual Pass prices in February.
Given how well passes have sold on both coasts, it wouldn’t be surprising for APs return to Walt Disney World just in time for that in February 2022, with higher price points. (Interestingly, the page with AP options still lists prices for the temporarily unavailable ones–if those prices mysteriously disappear, it’s probably because they’re going to be quietly adjusted upwards.)
One unfortunate reality reinforced by this is that demand for Walt Disney World is fairly insatiable right now. Attendance, hotel occupancy, and guest spending have not been impeded in the slightest by the range of unpopular decisions, cutbacks, or price increases.
Many fans–us included–keep waiting for some of Disney’s decisions to come around and “bite them” with consumers. At least in the short term, there are absolutely no signs of that happening. Long term is a potentially different story, but with all of this success and strong sales in spite of everything, we may be waiting a while.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think of Walt Disney World’s pausing new Annual Passes? Disappointed by the news, or at least somewhat relieved this happened before it became impossible to make reservations? Predictions on when AP sales willr resume? Agree or disagree with our assessments? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
DO NOT TO TO DISNEY SPRINGS GUEST RELATIONS TRYING TO BUY AN ANNUAL PASS! You will be waiting 2+ hours just to be told no!
Geez,… I signed up and paid for the full marathon in January but just didn’t get my new pass yet. I am having trouble imagining doing the marathon without walking around Epcot the whole day afterward like I always do. That’s really the funnest part for me. My AP expired in September so I’m assuming mine would count as a new one. Very sad news
Another Covid conscious young family that is planning a short February trip, I am hoping we will all be fully vaccinated by then.
I wanted to visit HS on a Monday but reconsidering that after reading this post! My youngest has never been to Disney & loves Toy Story and Star Wars but the crowds might not be worth it! Also wondering when fantasmic will return & how that would impact evening wait times at HS.
I just (11/12/21) purchased tickets with a gift cards . For my transaction, the website would only allow me to enter ONE gift card; and ONE credit card to cover the balance of the transaction. I found this out by first making a small purchase; with a low balance gift card. I tried to then enter another gift card and for this transaction was not able to make the ticket purchase. People need to be sure they have ONE high balance gift card, and NOT several lesser balance gift cards if their only option is ONE large purchase (ie.muti-day tickets, AP) . (In my case, I purchased several one day tickets for family members, via individual transactions in order to use up the lower balance gift cards ($100.00) I had. I hope this is clear and helps.
So lucky I got to upgrade my ticket last Wednesday to an AP based on recommendations here.Barely missed the first day due to being so busy. Appreciate all the advice!
Lauren,
What I can tell you is from my own experience as a New Yorker renewing a Platinum plus which no longer existed. At that time AP’s were NOT available except to people renewing. I could have paid using ONE gc plus my credit cards. In my case I used one credit card (Disney Visa giving me double points). If things are still the same then you CAN”T use multiple gc’s.
When I renewed i called, put the phone on speaker and listened to the one Disney CD that they play. I must have waited 3 1/2 hours before they came on but meantime I got my work done and was happy to renew.
I hope this helps.
Hmm is it coincidence that this announcement was made AFTER D23?
The email they sent this morning regarding this update was so cold, and didn’t provide any information except a link for you to read more.
This is not the way to communicate such sad news. The magic continues to fade away. Just when you think things can’t get worse, they do.
Here again people are mad that other people want to go to Disney at the same time that they want to go to Disney. How dare you like the same things that I like?
I admit I’m part of the problem. We are Gold/Silver passholders and we fully intended to use our last Thanksgiving before we have to renew to a pass with it blocked out. Oh and then we planned a last minute trip in December for no good reason. We never go to Disney so much.
We are going to see family both times but still. We have friends who are impacted by this. I told one family to upgrade to passes after they told me their plans and ironically I told them to upgrade LAST NIGHT. Ooops.
I totally understand why this is happening. I am absolutely part of the problem. It’s definitely pent up demand and wanting to “go big” for the holidays after two crappy years.
I am heart broken. The AP were in my cart last night, and I got interrupted only to find out they were paused this morning. Disappointed is an understatement of the year! We had a Florida tripped planned for early December, and we are there again for the whole month of February. I am KICKING myself that I didn’t check out last night.
Tom I think you misunderstood my point. All passes have availability dates. If there is no availability on a date your pass is good then essentially you are blocked out. With the park pass system your AP is limited to use but you’re paying for it. As for controlling attendance I don’t think they are. I was at Disney in July and every ride had over 60 min wait. If they cared about guest experience they wouldn’t pack the parks. Right now DW is not a fun/great experience.
I purchased AP (with my DVC membership) last month but will not be activating until we arrive in January. Do you think that will be an issue?
I wouldn’t be surprised if high demand continues well after the holidays. We have two little kids that won’t be eligible for vaccines until 2022, and we’ve held off traveling until that time. While we’re usually a once/year Disney family, we’re planning on going at least twice in 2022 since we haven’t been in 2 years. While we might be in the minority with how cautious we’ve been, I know we’re not the only ones. Thanks as usual for all of the tips – I can’t wait to finally be back and put them to use!
People like you will absolutely have an impact. Even if you’re in the minority, you’re in a decently-sized minority–and enough to move the needle on crowds.
Same goes for all of the pent-up international demand, conventions slowly returning, and youth sporting events at ESPN Wide World of Sports. I think January and February 2022 are going to catch people by surprise. Even a really bad holiday surge in cases probably won’t have the same impact in reducing crowds that it did this year–many more people are “over” it now.
At least the trams are back right!!!!!!
#sarcasm
We didn’t go to Magic Kingdom over the weekend, but I can only imagine how bad that walk at the TTC is going to be this week. Ouch.
I’ve been trying for a week to renew my AP, needing to upgrade to ‘Incredipass’ this year due to an extended family Christmas vacay.
I’ve had some trouble due to a number of logistical hiccups I won’t bore you with, but in part, waiting for our gift cards to come through that we’re using to fund the purchase. As the announcement came in last night, my heart sank as I knew this was going to be a major cluster to navigate around today.
Curious if you (or anyone) happens to know (as this could get me off this hour long hold), can a split payment be made on the site for renewal (split between GC and debit/credit)? And if so, do the GCs need to be combined first so they are a single entry? There doesn’t seem to be a way to specify which amount would be debit/credit, so I assume it defaults to whatever remains.
I’d love to get this done online, but I’m so afraid of additional hiccups that need more tinkering and phone calls.
Sorry for the lame question on this topic, but a convoluted process is now compounded by the panic of last night’s announcement. I agree with other posters, this makes me feel sick. So much planning goes in, and we’re pretty ‘advanced’ parkgoers, but the constant shifts with little or no notice, really cause a lot of stress.
Sorry–I don’t have the answer to your question, but I hope someone else does.
Depending upon the timing of your trip and renewal, it might be easier to do this upon arrival. Totally understand wanting to get it done before then, though. Best of luck!
We have three of those clocks in our home and after a long struggle we have them set for 6 am . Of course they do not recognize daylight savings time and it takes a few days to reset them when we fall back
As to today’s opening blog (which will undoubtedly be followed by four more before cat clock diner time which is 3 pm ET {eating time}) although it’s about a very disappointing announcement regarding AP’s the most interesting section is the last two paragraphs.
Up till now I’ve been flummoxed (and that’s a word no ones used since the opening of WDW) by the crowds at Disney, the resorts sold out into March, the difficulty in obtaining ADR’s, the insatiable demand despite cut backs, unfriendly consumer moves and higher prices that should give pause to any reasonably sane person. Today for the first time I think it makes sense. People unconsciously know we are heading off a cliff while the clouds of war are forming. As a result people want something that makes them feel normal. We all want to escape to where everything is ok (small caps not large or it would mean Oklahoma). We want to return to our happy place and relive happier days. For many of us that’s Disney, west or east coast.
Always a day late and a dollar short. Almost bought a season pass for the first time as we are visiting twice next year, but I didn’t since I wasn’t sure if I could get the AP hotel discount in January. Sigh… Tom, do you think end of January is going to be crazy busy as well? Doubt there will be any other room deals for non-AP holders if so.
I’m breathing a sigh of relief here because the anniversary made us get our Incredi-passes back in September. In a normal year we probably wouldn’t be back on Disney property until Christmas, so we would have missed out. I feel horrible for the people who planned to upgrade on their upcoming holiday trips, though. Most locals probably got their passes already, so it’s more likely those who still need to purchase take fewer trips a year and wouldn’t have returned in the immediate future outside of the holiday trips they already have reservations for. So I’m not sure if this will really be that effective at managing the crowds the next few months. After seeing the drama unfold at Disneyland, though, it’s understandable why WDW decided to get out in front of this.
I feel sick hearing this. We have 5 trips planned next year starting in January and I was going to buy passes after thanksgiving as Christmas gift for our family. I am so heart broken over this.
Stopping the sales of AP is simply because they advertise no black out dates yet some dates in December are not available, It’s a big lie to say “no black out dates”. If you cannot get a park reservation you are lying Disney. Just do away with the park reservation system. They are not controlling attendance. (just look at the parks on holidays) It is another lie. Simply stop entry to a park when it is full like before. This park reservation system is a joke and unfair to people paying for an AP with no black out dates. Very disappointing for people going to the parks last minute and cannot get a reservation.
Only 1 of the 3 paused APs has no blockout dates. The rest are blocked for significant chunks of the upcoming holiday season.
I’m not a fan of park reservations, but Disney is absolutely still controlling attendance–that’s why so many dates are unavailable right now that wouldn’t hit a capacity closure during a normal year. Being denied entry is disappointing whether it happens in advance due to no reservations being available, or upon arrival because the parks hit a capacity closure.
My God another blog and by 8 am. I think I read 50 yesterday didn’t I? When do you sleep? Please take a brake I have things I need to get done.
My “cat alarm clock” wakes me up daily by 5:30 am, regardless of when I went to bed, because that’s when he wants to be fed.