Paid Premier Access Fully Replacing Free FastPass Successor at Tokyo Disneyland & DisneySea

Priority Pass, the spiritual successor to FastPass, will soon end at Tokyo Disney Resort. This is the only free line-skipping that’s still available at any of the parks, and we now know that it’ll be replaced by expanded Premier Access, which is TDR’s version of Lightning Lane Single Pass. Here’s the latest, including the new TDL and TDS attractions that’ll add paid FastPass, per-ride prices, plus our commentary.

As basic background, Oriental Land Company (OLC), the owner and operator of Tokyo Disney Resort, debuted the free Priority Pass line-skipping service in commemoration of Tokyo Disneyland’s 40th Anniversary back in July 2023. Although the event has since ended, the free Priority Pass has lived on.

That is, until earlier this summer when OLC announced that the Tokyo Disney Resort 40th Anniversary Priority Pass “will no longer be available” after August 31, 2026. At that time, it was unclear what would happen starting September 1, 2026. We speculated as to the possible changes, and as it turns out, some of those predictions were correct.

On July 30, 2026, OLC released its Results for the First Quarter of the Fiscal Year Ending March 2027. The big takeaway from that is right at the top: “Due to the strong performance of the Tokyo DisneySea 25th Anniversary events and other factors, consolidated operating cash flow, net sales, and operating profit all reached record highs.”

The words “record high” appear 5 additional times in the report, with “increase” logging a whopping 39 entries. That says pretty much everything that needs to be said about the current trajectory of monetization efforts at Tokyo Disney Resort.

Buried towards the end is a section on how OLC will “implement various initiatives to contribute to our financial performance.” This includes the addition of new attractions to Premier Access starting September 1, 2026, along with “bonus” price increases for entertainment effective September 16, 2026.

Here are slides from the appendix illustrating the announcement:

None of this is even remotely surprising to us. As recently covered in Why Now Is a Golden Window to Visit Tokyo Disney for Lower Crowds & Prices, one of the reasons to go ASAP is because these low prices are only going to increase. In that, we discussed the lower prices for 1-day park tickets. At the time, they cost 7,900 yen to 11,900 yen for adults, which is approximately $48 to $73.

That was actually the first day with a new high price, up from the prior all-time peak season high of 10,900 yen. One day later, TDR tickets hit another new all-time high: 12,400 yen ($76) on October 11, 2026. All subsequent Saturdays in October are also priced at 12,400 yen. Meanwhile, the lowest priced tickets during the Halloween season are 9,900 yen.

Additionally, the Disney Premier Access reserved seating price for “The Villains’ Halloween ‘Into the Frenzy'” parade is 3,500 yen ($21.50), which is another all-time high. For reference, other parades and entertainment are 2,500 yen (~$15). Headliner attractions are 1,500 to 2,000 yen (~$9 to $12).

As I’ve stated elsewhere, my potentially unpopular and selfish opinion is that I’m fine with the price increases, if there’s a corresponding reduction in crowds. We’ve already visited on some dates when lower pricing clearly induced heavier crowds, and higher prices discouraged them.

This is the same dynamic that plays out at Disneyland with some $104 dates versus peak season prices, but without the added wrinkle of Annual Pass blockouts and reservations. We’ll be watching these more expensive dates closely to see if crowds are actually lower on them as a result of prohibitive pricing.

Regardless, the crowd situation at Tokyo Disney Resort is untenable and something needs to be done. I am confident that guest satisfaction is not what it once was, and it is beyond time for OLC to address the problems. With that said, there are plenty of levers OLC could pull besides raising prices, from restoring park hours to expanding entertainment and so much more. This is far from the only solution; it’s just the simplest one.

The real answer is returning to 2019 normal, when the parks had far better carrying capacity and higher attendance. Like the US parks, both Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea are still ~2 million guests below their annual peaks pre-COVID. And that’s despite adding new rides in both parks, including Fantasy Springs at Tokyo DisneySea.

Instead comes this, which adds the following attractions to Disney Premier Access:

• Raging Spirits – 1,500 yen
• Indiana Jones Adventure – 1,500 yen
• Big Thunder Mountain Railroad – 1,500 yen
• Pooh’s Hunny Hunt – 1,500 yen
• Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek – 1,000 yen ($6.15)
• Haunted Mansion Holiday Nightmare – 1,000 yen

Finally, there’s the D-Groovationz4 Live: Happy! Funky! Groovy! Tour stage show that will debut in Tomorrowland in the Showbase theater on September 30, 2026. That will offer Premier Access for 2,500 yen.

Below are the eligible attractions for (free) Priority Pass in each park for now through August 31, 2026:

Tokyo Disneyland

• Star Tours: The Adventures Continue
• Big Thunder Mountain
• Pooh’s Hunny Hunt
• Haunted Mansion
• Haunted Mansion Holiday Nightmare (seasonal)
• Monsters, Inc. Ride & Go Seek!

Tokyo DisneySea

• Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull
• 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
• Turtle Talk
• Nemo & Friends SeaRider
• The Magic Lamp Theater
• Raging Spirits

The discrepancies between the lists mean the following attractions will revert to standby-only, as (quite frankly) they should, effective September 1, 2026:

• 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
• Turtle Talk
• Nemo & Friends SeaRider
• The Magic Lamp Theater
• Star Tours: The Adventures Continue
• Haunted Mansion (non-Holiday Nightmare)

Here are the paid Premier Access attractions in each park, along with their per-ride costs as of right now:

Rides at Tokyo Disneyland

• Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast – 2,000 yen per access
• The Happy Ride with Baymax – 1,500 yen per access
• Splash Mountain – 1,500 yen per access

Entertainment at Tokyo Disneyland

• Disney Harmony in Color Parade – 2,500 yen per access
• Tokyo Disneyland Electrical Parade Dreamlights – 2,500 yen per access
• Reach for the Stars – 2,500 yen per access
• Seasonal Parades – 2,500 yen per access
• Mickey’s Magical Music World – 2,500 yen per access

None of these appear to be increasing with the upcoming changes. And if they were going to, that would be the type of thing OLC would tout in an earnings report to shareholders.

Rides at Tokyo DisneySea

• Soaring: Fantastic Flight – 2,000 yen per access
• Toy Story Mania! – 2,000 yen per access
• Tower of Terror – 1,500 yen per access
• Journey to the Center of the Earth – 1,500 yen per access

Fantasy Springs at Tokyo DisneySea

• Anna & Elsa’s Frozen Journey – 2,000 yen per access
• Peter Pan’s Never Land Adventure – 2,000 yen per access
• Rapunzel’s Lantern Festival – 2,000 yen per access

Entertainment at Tokyo DisneySea

• Dance the Globe – 2,500 yen per access
• Believe! Sea of Dreams Nighttime Spectacular – 2,500 yen per access
• Dreams Take Flight – 2,500 yen per access

Fantasy Springs is listed separately to emphasize this newer land and its popularity.

We’ve bought Premier Pass a few times for Fantasy Springs attractions, as well as Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast. Generally speaking, these are our top picks for buying; first-timers and infrequent visitors with limited time at Tokyo Disney Resort should buy Premier Access to the greatest extent possible, especially with the favorable exchange rate.

The only time we’ve purchased Premier Access for entertainment is for opening night of Believe! Sea of Dreams. I wouldn’t buy it again for shows or parades, but also would not discourage international visitors with limited time from purchasing Premier Access–even for entertainment.

We usually do at least 4 days at Tokyo Disney Resort, arriving early and staying late, and managing to knock out the headliners then. (If you’re looking for strategy, consult our 1-Day Tokyo Disneyland Itinerary and our 1-Day Tokyo DisneySea Itinerary.) If there’s something we miss, oh well. We’ll be back again.

For those considering it, Enchanted Tale of Beauty and the Beast (#1) and Splash Mountain (#2) are the best buys at Tokyo Disneyland. Pooh’s Hunny Hunt will be another good pick, starting in September. Once Space Mountain: Earthrise opens in Spring 2027, it’ll instantly rocket to the top of that list. Ditto the Wreck-It Ralph ride. (No updates on opening dates for either in this earnings report, for what it’s worth.)

At Tokyo DisneySea, we actively recommend purchasing Premier Access for two Fantasy Springs attractions, plus Soaring Fantastic Flight (it’s decently different from the domestic parks). Anna & Elsa’s Frozen Journey is easily the #1 pick at TDS, followed by Rapunzel’s Lantern Festival at #2.

As for other selections (to the extent possible), we’d prioritize purchasing Journey to the Center of the Earth or Tower of Terror over Peter Pan’s Never Land Adventure. As of 2026, it often has a short line at the end of the night–much less so than JttCoE or ToT. You can also skip Soaring completely if time is limited; I wouldn’t do it at all if I only had a single day at TDS.

Another thing to note if you don’t mind splitting up is that Tokyo Disney Resort has added Single Rider Lines to Beauty & Beast and Fantasy Springs E-Ticket Rides! This is a game-changer, and if you don’t mind using these lines, you should allocate your Premier Access budget to attractions that do not offer Single Rider.

Our Commentary

Monetizing line-skipping to an even greater degree makes more sense, especially as Premier Access has become more and more popular. OLC’s stock has struggled and the business needs to find ways to achieve growth, beyond the coming cruise ships.

One such way has been targeting higher spending guests via vacation packages and other upcharges, as well as international visitors. This is something we covered at length in our recent “Golden Window” post, so no sense in belaboring the point here.

Suffice to say, TDR realizes they have an audience of ‘whales’ who are not paying for their visits in yen, and they’ll begin repricing accordingly. There are also plenty of loyal locals who might grumble at prices, but nevertheless spend a lot of their disposable income at the parks.

But much like what Walt Disney World and Disneyland are doing, this is a dangerous game to play as it makes the parks less affordable for young families, and Japan already has huge demographics issues with its aging population.

Personally, I do not think this outcome is necessarily bad. On busier days, it’s already the case that later-arriving guests cannot score a single worthwhile Priority Pass since the options are so limited.

The obvious downside is getting rid of the free option, but just like FastPass before, it’s being disproportionately leveraged by a handful of power users and on-site guests. Taking that into account, this will be a net positive, on balance, from our perspective.

This will make standby move faster on attractions where Priority Pass is eliminated, and help a tad with capacity as guests will actually be in line as opposed to a form of virtual queue. It gives guests willing to pay more another line-skipping option that’s actually valuable and keeps OLC investors happy, too.

Another potential upside here is making it just a little less imperative to stay on-site or show up at the crack of dawn. All of these are positives from our (again) selfish perspective.

The bottom line is that OLC will continue to charge for line-skipping at these attractions so long as guests continue to purchase. Based on the latest earnings report, sales are strong, so expanding Premier Access makes sense from a business perspective. Whether it’s good for you personally, or for the health of the guest experience as a whole, those are two totally different questions.

It’s also no surprise. OLC has been attempting an increasing number of upcharges, enhancements, priority seating, and package offerings. The logical conclusion would thus be to expect more of this going forward, especially with Fantasy Springs as a blockbuster addition with tremendous global drawing power. We’ve seen this with the rise of Vacation Packages that include unlimited line-skipping (and we’re guilty of supporting this–we bought one for Fantasy Springs!)

How well that works long-term and if there are any unintended consequences remains an open question. The Japanese are famously frugal and not free spenders like their western counterparts, which is why inflation has not been nearly as pronounced in Japan as other countries coming out of the pandemic…or even for the last two decades. OLC has several business practices that strike us as shortsighted, but that’s another topic for another post.

Planning a trip to Tokyo Disney Resort? For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Tokyo Disneyland & DisneySea Trip Planning Guide! For more specifics, our TDR Hotel Rankings & Reviews page covers accommodations. Our Restaurant Reviews detail where to dine & snack. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money post. Our What to Pack for Disney post takes a unique look at clever items to take. Venturing elsewhere in Japan? Consult our Ultimate Guide to Kyoto, Japan and City Guide to Tokyo, Japan.

YOUR THOUGHTS

What do you think of Priority Pass no longer being available after August 31, and OLC introducing several new Premier Access attractions at Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea? Are you disappointed or pleased by more paid line-skipping? Think that OLC will continue targeting higher and freer spending guests? 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!