Magic Key Pass “Ticket Bridging” Trick

If you want to save money on a Disneyland Magic Key Annual Pass and start visiting the parks now, a hack called “ticket bridging” will offer both. This post will explain how and why to take advantage of this trick, and what you need to know before California’s AP program resumes on August 25.

In case you missed it, that’s the date Disneyland’s new “Magic Key” Pass Program launches, replacing Annual Passes (but really is a new AP system, just with a different name). There is a ton to know about Magic Key, most of which is beyond the scope of this post. However, one thing that is worth covering here is a huge hidden hack to use before buying Magic Key.

The details of this are actually explained in the official Magic Key terms & conditions, so perhaps huge “not-so-hidden” hack is more apt. (But how many of you really read through the fine print?!) The following two paragraphs contain Disneyland’s official policy on upgrading from single and multi-day tickets to Magic Keys.

UPGRADES: A Guest wishing to upgrade to a Pass from another form of eligible Disneyland Resort theme park admission media must upgrade on the same day in which the original form of theme park admission media is valid, and must choose a Pass of equal or greater value than the retail price of the original theme park admission media when it was purchased. The difference in prices must be paid in full at the time of the upgrade.

If an upgrade to a Pass is made from a multi-day ticket, the Pass will be backdated to begin on the first day that such ticket was used; if an upgrade to a Pass is made from a lower level Pass, the new Pass will have the same expiration date as the original Pass. Each guest wishing to upgrade their theme park admission media to a Pass must be present at the time of the upgrade transaction. Fully used, or partially used and expired, theme park admission media, complimentary ticket media, special event ticket media and ticket media stating its ineligibility for an upgrade may not be upgraded to a Pass. Upgrades are subject to Pass availability. Downgrades are not allowed.

However, there’s more to it than that–and ways this official policy can be leveraged to immediate benefit and avoiding headaches. According to our friends at Get Away Today, all tickets purchased through them (except the current California Resident Ticket–do not buy those!) can be upgraded to any of the Magic Key Passes for added advantage.

There are several significant upsides to doing this. (Note that we previously touched upon these in our Money-Saving Tips for Buying Disneyland Tickets, but figured we’d expand upon them here.)

First, you can start visiting Disneyland immediately, rather than waiting until August 25 to visit. This is referenced in the explicit terms and conditions of the Magic Key program, but we’ll clarify a little to explain how it works in practice.

You can use a regular multi-day ticket as normal while visiting Disneyland and DCA, and then upgrade at a ticket booth outside the parks or via the app (it’ll almost certainly be easier in-person) on the last day of your visit, so long as that’s on or after August 25, 2021. Since Disneyland tickets are valid for 14 days after first use–and August 25 is less than 14 days from today–this should be easy to accomplish. You could buy a 4-day ticket, use 3 days this week, and then upgrade on August 25. You just need to upgrade before fully using your ticket.

The obvious upside to this is visiting now rather than waiting until late August when the deluge of Disneylanders will purchase their Magic Key passes. As someone who has been watching social media and stalking wait times in the Disneyland app (as one does), I am very envious of anyone who is able to do this and visit the parks this week or early next.

Judging by wait times from the last week, it’s very clear that many Californians are simply waiting until August 25 before visiting Disneyland.

That plus summer tourist season coming to an end plus Los Angeles and Orange County schools going back into session plus renewed travel trepidations means the next couple of weeks will see low attendance. In fact, the next ~10 days could be the lightest crowds at Disneyland since the opening summer of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge. Maybe even lower. (And that was the best we had seen Disneyland in at least 5 years!)

Suffice to say, we’re very envious of anyone who can visit in the next 10 days, and are hopeful that a slow scale-up in the Magic Key program results in the beginning of Halloween Time likewise being relatively slow. Doubtful it’ll be this good, though!

Second, you won’t be subject to Magic Key blockout dates while using your multi-day tickets.

This means that you could purchase regular multi-day tickets and use them on weekends–which would otherwise be blocked out–before upgrading to the Imagine Magic Key pass, for example. This is a strategic advantage you could use for the start of Halloween or Christmas seasons if you wanted to wait a bit before buying into the Magic Key program.

Third, you can purchase regular tickets, make theme park reservations immediately, and will be able to do so up to 120 days in advance (that’s an extra 30 days over a Magic Key).

Personally, I don’t think Magic Key reservations are going to be difficult right away or for the off-season–it’s going to take some time before adoption of the Magic Key is high–but who knows. There might be a lot of pent-up demand among locals who have been waiting to visit Disneyland until the AP program relaunched. This will give you a headstart on making those reservations and peace of mind.

Finally, you’ll save money. Per Get Away Today, you will be able to apply the full ticket value of discounted tickets towards any Magic Key Pass.

Here’s a quick illustration of the savings and process. Let’s say I buy a 5-day Park Hopper for $391. When upgrading to a Magic Key, this ticket is credited its full gate price, which is $415. I want to purchase the Enchant Magic Key Pass, which is $649. Out of pocket, I will pay approximately $234 to price bridge the difference. (Obviously, these numbers will differ based upon what you purchase–and if any price increases occur between the time this is published and whenever you’re reading it.)

“Price bridging” has been a known hack for years when it comes to upgrading to Annual Passes at Walt Disney World. In fact, we’ve had a Ticket Bridging for Walt Disney World Annual Passes article for years.

Historically, the process in Florida has worked–but not always easily. Some Cast Members have been unfamiliar with price bridging since it’s seldom used, so it occasionally took some effort. Previously, we never had success being credited full value when ticket bridging at Disneyland, but had heard from some readers who were successful.

Our assumption is that it will now work similarly to how it’s always worked at Walt Disney World, meaning discount Disneyland tickets purchased from any authorized ticket seller (which means it would also work for tickets purchased from Undercover Tourist) will receive full ticket value.

As for tickets purchased from AAA, Safeway, Sam’s Club, Costco, or other Southern California grocery stores…we really have no clue whatsoever. The whole “price bridging” component of ticket upgrades is very much unofficial, subject to change, and your mileage may vary. In our view, this is the least compelling reason to ticket bridge–for now. Once August 25 rolls around and we can confirm its success rate, we’ll update accordingly.

Literally any one of these benefits would be reason enough to buy multi-day tickets now and “bridge” to a Magic Key in-person while visiting Disneyland at a later date. The totality of these upsides is huge–as is not dealing with Disneyland’s online system, which will undoubtedly be chaotic when the Magic Key program first launches.

Actually, perhaps that last point is the biggest advantage of all. Let’s say you want to begin using your Magic Key for the start of Halloween Time and are concerned about reservation availability, so you plan on buying a Magic Key first thing on August 25. Knowing what we know about Disney IT and recent Disneyland virtual queues, “first thing” could actually be after midnight on August 26. Buying regular tickets and making your theme park reservations–then upgrading to a Magic Key at a Disneyland ticket booth in September–will save you considerable time, headaches, and (maybe?) money. It’s a no-brainer.

Planning a Southern California vacation? For park admission deals, read Tips for Saving Money on Disneyland Tickets. Learn about on-site and off-site hotels in our Anaheim Hotel Reviews & Rankings. For where to eat, check out our Disneyland Restaurant Reviews. For unique ideas of things that’ll improve your trip, check out What to Pack for Disney. For comprehensive advice, consult our Disneyland Vacation Planning Guide. Finally, for guides beyond Disney, check out our Southern California Itineraries for day trips to Los Angeles, Laguna Beach, and tons of other places!

Your Thoughts

Will you be purchasing regular tickets and upgrading them to the Magic Key passes? Looking forward to taking advantage of the low crowds at Disneyland up until then? Thoughts on the advantages of using ticket bridging rather than buying a new AP outright? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? Any questions? 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!

14 Responses to “Magic Key Pass “Ticket Bridging” Trick”
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