Price Increases Likely Coming Soon at Disney World & Disneyland for 2024-2025
Walt Disney World and Disneyland typically raise prices annually. Increases on park tickets, food, parking, Annual Passes, upcharges and more all occur around the same time at the start of the fiscal year. This post offers offers dates of past price increases and when we’re expecting this to happen in Fall 2024. Plus commentary about how to prepare for (and protect yourself from) the increases, why they may not happen for once, and more.
For starters, we should emphasize the “typically” in the above paragraph, as prices increases are not a sure thing at Walt Disney World or Disneyland. There are good examples of this in the pent-up demand era, such as when Walt Disney World raised ticket prices in mid-February 2022 and again on December 8 of that year.
This isn’t entirely unprecedented, as Walt Disney World and Disneyland have raised prices twice annually on a few occasions in the last decade. That’s why we’ve been advising readers to purchase tickets in advance to lock-in current prices in our 2024 Discount Walt Disney World Ticket Buying Guide and our 2024 Discount Disneyland Ticket Tips guides.
The interesting wrinkle there is that’s actually (still!) the last time prices increased for current admission at Walt Disney World. You read that correctly: the base prices of 2024 Walt Disney World tickets are the same as they were as of December 8, 2022. That doesn’t mean specific dates or the distribution of prices haven’t changed (read: shifted upwards), but that is the last time ticket prices went up across the board.
With that said, the annual release of vacation packages earlier this year did bring with it 2025 Ticket Price Increases at Walt Disney World. This is also an interesting quirk, as there was no increase for 2024. Normally, a price increase takes effect immediately, impacting all future dates–not just the annual product release for the following year.
This isn’t to say Walt Disney World hasn’t increased any prices in the last nearly 2 years. Anyone who visits regularly knows that’s patently false–an utterly asinine notion. Walt Disney World last raised rates across-the-board on Annual Passes, parking, water parks, Memory Maker, and a number of restaurants at the start of the last fiscal year, on or around October 11, 2023.
Walt Disney World also introduced date-based prices for fireworks dessert parties and tours, effectively increasing prices for those most dates, too. We’ve also seen localized increases at random dates for various menus and other things. It’s not as if Walt Disney World simply sat on its hands for the last couple of years. A lot of prices have gone up during that time-frame.
One of the most notable ones is Lightning Lane pricing. I’m not going to rehash this whole saga, but suffice to say, you’re paying a lot more (on average) for Lightning Lane Multi-Pass today than you would’ve back in late 2022. Although separate from admission and (arguably) optional, paid FastPass is purchased by a high percentage of guests and thus acts as a de facto increase to admission prices for a large subset of guests.
It’s also fair to point out, however, that Walt Disney World has ramped up discounts significantly since last raising ticket prices in December 2022. That was still during the period of pent-up demand, and deals were fairly scarce except for Annual Passholders and Florida residents. Even then, there were some dates when resorts were full price, with zero special offers.
Walt Disney World has brought back the 2019 deal playbook, offering discounts on par or better than that year after slim pickins’ between 2021 and early 2023. There are already a ton of discounts available for now through Christmas 2024–or even the entirety of 2025 if you book a bounceback. (See All Current Walt Disney World Discounts for 2024.)
As someone who books a lot of Walt Disney World hotel stays, I’m paying less for that component of travel now than I did in 2022. Small victory, I guess. (We’re still spending about the same amount as we did in 2022 and much, much more than we did in 2019–it’s all of the other stuff that’s making a difference, with Lightning Lanes being the biggest thing.)
Speaking of which, perks have been cut as compared to 2019. Free FastPass became paid Lightning Lanes, Disney’s Magical Express ended, etc–the nickel and diming has definitely increased. Resort rack rates have also gone up even as discounts have returned. As we like to point out, Walt Disney World long ago adopted the “Kohl’s Model” to pricing, where the sticker prices are almost meaningless due to discounts. As Kohl’s learned ages ago, if the base price is higher, it makes the discounted rate look like even more of a bargain!
Walt Disney World leadership studied at the Kohl’s School of Business, and learned that lesson during the Great Recession. Since then, we’ve seen prices keep going up, even as discounts get better. That’s more or less what we’re seeing now, with the end result being a value proposition that’s worse than 2019, but better than 2022, all things considered.
Regardless, the bottom line is that we can expect Walt Disney World to increase prices around the start of the new fiscal year, which is October 1, 2024. The title says “likely” but that’s only because this isn’t an official announcement or a credible rumor. Nevertheless, it’s something that happens year in and year out around the start of Disney’s new fiscal year.
It’s not a matter of “if” but “when” and, equally as important, “on what.” Prices will go up, but what the increases will encompass is the mystery. My guess is that there will not be an increase on park tickets for the remainder of this year or 2025. After all, if Disney wanted to do that, why not just rip the bandaid off all at once and increase 2024 prices when 2025 tickets were released at higher price points? That’s just a guess though, and perhaps a foolishly optimistic one–I certainly wouldn’t bet against it.
Turning to California–which is also instructive for Florida–Disneyland last raised its prices on October 11, 2023. Before that, Disneyland increased prices on October 11, 2022. (As you can see above, that same date is when Walt Disney World raised prices last year on vacation components other than tickets.)
In all likelihood, both Walt Disney World and Disneyland will raise rates on the same date. We’re not saying the next price increase is going to occur on October 11, 2024. To the contrary, I’d expect more of a day-of-week cadence than calendar date–meaning the increase happening on October 8 or 9, 2024 is more likely than October 11.
Last year’s increase was a typical one at Disneyland, with prices going up on preferred parking at the theme parks, valet parking at the hotels, Magic Keys (this happens even when they aren’t being actively sold), and the Lightning Lanes service. Naturally, admission was the big thing that went up, with percentage increases that were fairly hefty.
As an “offset” to the negative news, it’s also possible that Disney will make other ancillary changes in the name of guest satisfaction or substantive offerings to take the “sting” out of the price increases. Possibilities for Walt Disney World could include Seven Dwarfs Mine Train joining Lightning Lane Multi Pass (doubtful), news about returning entertainment, or the dropping of the virtual queue for Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind. Disneyland could reveal more details about the 70th, return of Paint the Night in 2025, etc.
The good news is that you can protect against the likely increases. If you’re a prospective Annual Passholder, you can purchase a voucher or certificate to secure current pricing. If you have a Walt Disney World trip planned between now and December 2025, you can buy tickets now to lock-in current costs and guard against future increases.
Again, see our 2024 Discount Walt Disney World Ticket Buying Guide and our 2024 Discount Disneyland Ticket Tips posts for recommendations on where to buy to save the most money. That also covers topics like whether to purchase Park Hoppers, AP breakeven point, and more.
With that said, if you’re on the fence but planning on buying via an authorized third party ticket seller, you are probably fine to wait until after the price increase is announced/occurs. For the past decade-plus, authorized sellers have maintained inventory of the existing tickets at the “old” prices, usually for a couple of weeks after the price increase. I can’t remember the last time that was not the case, so it’s safe to say it’ll likely happen again with the October 2024 price increases.
However, if you’re booking a Walt Disney World vacation package that includes tickets, do not wait. Lock-in something ASAP. Once those prices go up, there’s no workaround for getting the old prices. Your only alternative would be a room-only rate, and buying tickets separately via the aforementioned authorized discount sellers.
This is especially true for those of you traveling between now and Spring Break 2025. Although discounts for January through late March 2025 have not yet been released, there’s a high probability that they will within the next two weeks. I’d put the chances around 95% that these discounts will be available before the price increase.
Vacation packages, including discounted ones, reflect the price of tickets when originally booked. This means if general public discounts are released on September 24 and ticket prices were to go up on October 8, you’d pay more if you booked that deal on or after October 8. Accordingly, we’d highly recommend booking or reaching out to a travel agent right now. As in, before the next wave of discounts is released.
As always, we recommend requesting a quote from Be Our Guest Vacations, a no-fee Authorized Disney Vacation Planner (they’re paid by Walt Disney World–so free to you!). Travel agents will do the math for you, booking your vacation with the best-available special offer, and monitoring your package for future discounts that can be applied retroactively. Beyond that, they help take the stress out of planning and will assist with itineraries, dining reservations, and much more.
That “apply retroactively” line is the important part–meaning they can book today and modify on the morning deals are released to apply the discount. If you do this, we’d also recommend offering them flexibility in your preferred resort/room–not all hotels are included in promos or have availability as part of the deal. Lots of exclusions, both what’s listed and what isn’t.
It’s also important that the modification to apply the discount is made before prices increase. Finalize your plans sooner rather than later, as modifications after October 8 (or whatever day prices go up) will result in paying the new rate.
Trust us–this is important. Over the years, we’ve heard from readers who have been surprised that their price is higher with a discount than without. This is usually why–base prices increased between the time they made the reservation and the time they applied the discount. That’s why it’s best to both lock-in rates and apply discounts ASAP, whenever possible.
If you’re traveling later in 2025, you’re not going to have this option since discounts for those dates probably won’t be released this month.But it is possible to at least book the undiscounted package now. After these potential price increases, it’s possible that’ll end up being better than future promotions. (We highly doubt it given how aggressive discounting has gotten, but we’d still recommend hedging!)
There’s also no real way to guard against price increases on the “little things” like parking, upcharges, food, and so forth. Air quotes around little things because these are actually the ‘budget-busters’ that catch planners by surprise, and result in trips costing much more than originally expected.
As we’ve previously discussed, there were other compelling “arguments” against price increases. The first is that, upon returning, Bob Iger indicated that he was “alarmed” by previous Walt Disney World price increases and layoff plans in leaks to media.
Given that Iger was largely brought it to stem the bleeding from streaming and improve Disney’s financials, I had a difficult time believing that he is going to take the immediate hit on theme park prices in order to improve goodwill among Walt Disney World fans. It was difficult to envision Iger reversing course at that time given that streaming has hemorrhaging over a billion dollars per quarter.
The circumstances are very different now. Streaming is finally, barely profitable. And it’s the parks that are starting to struggle, with pent-up demand finally and fully in the rearview mirror. While Iger and D’Amaro have made changes to improve the value proposition and improve guest satisfaction since the start of 2023, it might finally be time to address pricing.
It will be a very bold move to increase prices for 2025 despite no major attractions opening next year on either coast. That’s not even the biggest issue, as Universal’s Epic Universe will open sometime in 2025 and is the elephant in the room. Raising prices in the face of increased competition, declining demand, and almost no new marketing draws (save for Disney Starlight Parade) is a really bold move. Nevertheless, I would not bet against it. Never underestimate Disney’s desire for more revenue at any (long-term) cost. Plan and prepare accordingly.
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
Thoughts on the potential price increases? Think Walt Disney World and Disneyland will raise rates across the board in October 2024, or will they hit pause in light of the economy? Do you think Disney is going too far with increases in a way that’ll leave lasting reputational damage, or will the company be able to quickly pivot along with economic circumstances? Agree or disagree with our assessment? Any other considerations we failed to take into account or details we missed? 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!
Tom:
Now that Disneyland has increased their ticket prices, what are you expecting for WDW tickets? We are going in Feburary, and we’re trying to guess if we should buy tickets now to lock in the price or wait longer to see if there are any discounts offered. Also, once we buy we cannot cancel. What do you think is coming, and how soon?
My expectation is that Walt Disney World will release late 2025 tickets with higher prices, but won’t increase prices on ones that are already available. They passed on that opportunity when releasing 2025 tickets to begin with, so I expect more of the same.
With that said, anything could happen–don’t take my word as the gospel. You do usually have a week or so to buy from authorized third parties *after* price increases, so you could always wait and see.
My family is visiting Disney World the last week of January (1/25 – 1/31). Any insight to when discounts may become available? Our trip is booked, but I’m hoping a room or dining discount will come out for our dates
We need either a hefty AP discount on moderate/deluxe resorts (enough to justify buying the AP versus regular tickets) or a free dining deal for next year or it’s back to Europe or another nice cruise for vacation. Just can’t justify paying more for a place we’ve already been to several times versus the new experiences that are available for a lesser price. The problem also lies in that discounts from WDW are not oftentimes released before plans for other types of vacations must be made to ensure best price and availability.
The sun also rises
Lol
Got a stay booked at the Contemporary for Spring Break in mid April. Trying to see what if any deal will come for that, and when. If anyone can help with they’re experience, please share.
Disney priced us out with the last price increase on the annual pass to $1450. Combined with continuing to require park reservations, still no Tables in Wonderland, resort discounts are minimal, increased prices on food and merchandise with quality tanking to barely adequate, we are done with Disney. And they do not care, they will always have that mythical family from Denver that comes once every five years that’s a more desirable guest that can take our place.
Hi Tom, I’m heading back to Disney World the first week of December. Do you think there is any chance of a ticket deal for that frame?
thank you
Angia
You mentioned that if you are a prospective AP purchaser that you can get a voucher for current pricing. How do you do that – call and ask?
When you say “bold” I’m reading foolhardy,
heartless
unfeeling
uncaring
cold
cold-hearted
hard-hearted
with a heart of stone.
Any news about when reservations will open for November 2025? I’ve been wanting to lock something in for next year. What are the chances of free dining for that time next year? How long would I have to wait to know for sure?
I also am waiting to lock in dates for Dec 2025. I don’t think we have ever waited this long into the year to book.
Do you anticipate the Disney Dining Plan pricing to increase? If so, would that be a way for us fall visitors to lock in pricing for food? I know it’s difficult to save money normally with DDP but if Disney raises food prices soon, maybe pre-purchasing the DDP would help.
No, I do not. With the annual product launch, DDP prices already increased for 2025. See: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/disney-dining-plan-costs-info-tips/
It would be very unprecedented for an increase to the DDP at the start of the new fiscal year. Usually, it’s menu prices that go up to make the DDP look like a better value by comparison. (Well, that’s not the only reason for raising food prices–but it’s one of them.)
all the more reason not to go. They lowered prices because attendance was down. do they think raising prices will bring people back?
increases. Disney makes happens all the time taking perks away, specially from DVC members eventually, they’re going to price themselves right out of business down the road as universal is going to be one step ahead of them if not already.
Although this post doesn’t discuss Universal, there’s every reason to believe that Universal will also increase prices in the near-future. Usually, when one raises rates, so does the other around the same time.
Universal wants to be viewed as an equal to Disney, and that includes pricing. They’re not spending billions of dollars building a state-of-the-art theme park to be the “budget” option.
I’m not sure Universal will be viewed as the “budget” option because they are less expensive. Perhaps people might see them as the “better” option.
Disney would be very foolish to raise prices while delivering nothing as Universal EPIC opens.
A smarter idea would be to offer 4 Parks for the price of 3.
Take that Universal!
You’re welcome Disney.
“A smarter idea would be to offer 4 Parks for the price of 3.”
This is a brilliant idea, and I actually wouldn’t be surprised if Walt Disney World did this.
Animal Kingdom is going to get hit hard by Epic Universe because it’s the park guests will most likely cut in order to visit Universal. Offering 4 for 3 would lock people into 4 days of WDW, without openly admitting that Animal Kingdom is in trouble. It’s saves face and is just flat-out good marketing!
In truth, they crossed the line. This is not fair. This is illegal. Above all else, this should be taken to Congress. Believe That!!!!!
Universal has already started raising 2025 rack rates/undiscounted prices for hotel rooms and packages next year. Wall Street won’t let Comcast manage their debt load without raising base line ticket prices as well; Universal will continue to add discounts to get guests, as both they and Disney do now. While I think there will still be a price differential between Universal’s and Disney’s undiscounted (not to mention discounted!) hotel prices, I suspect undiscounted ticket prices will get closer and closer together as multiple day Universal tickets become more desirable.
Actually calling it “4 Parks for the price of 3” might not happen, but near the end of the “3-Day 3-Park Ticket” availability it looks to be about 25% off regular prices already. Since the “4-Day 4-Park Ticket” is only about 20% off regular prices, making it 25% off seems like a reasonable next step.
I have a conference at Disneyland in February 2025 and they recently released the discount ticket page for conference attendees. It’s not saving much only $7 off the single day tickets, but still cheaper than other third party sites. Do you think those might increase and I should make my plans now? This is through Disney directly.
None of the third party sites have discounts on single-day admission, so that’s probably the best you’re going to do if you only want one day.
Would you consider doing more than one day? If so, it’s possible the annual winter ticket deal will be available to the general public (the summer one was). No guarantees on that, though.
“conference … discount ticket page for conference attendees”. Erin, I have a similar conference coming up in Jan 2025. While WDW park ticket pricing is a bit better than the public rates, you should read the fine print of whatever price quotes you are seeing. It very likely includes the words “Prices subject to change without notice” somewhere. If you can clearly decide on what park tickets you want now, I recommend booking now. If you have reasons that you’d rather defer your decision, then I recommend deferring. Whatever price increases might happen are likely to be incremental, as Tom mentions. I especially recommend the “After 1PM Park Ticket” and the “Twilight Park Ticket” options which are likely available to you, but not to the general public. Since you’ll be busy with the conference some of the time, those partial-day tickets give you the option to split your attention between the parks and time with your fellow conference attendees.
Thanks Tom! My husband will likely be going two days. I have an event in Disneyland one evening and then will just buy a 1 day ticket for the next day. However, it’s cheaper for him to buy two single day tickets than a 2 day package since it’s the middle of the week in February. I haven’t heard about the winter discount so I will look in to that.
Scott I was hoping for some sort of half day tickets, but the site doesn’t mention any. 🙁 I have heard about those for Disney World, but on the conference website (through disney) it’s only offering full day tickets.
There’s nothing to look into yet for the winter ticket deal–it hasn’t been released yet and probably won’t until sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Here’s this year’s, for reference: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/2024-southern-california-resident-disneyland-ticket-deal/
You’ll note that’s only for SoCal residents, which might be the case again in 2025. However, the summer/fall ticket deal was expanded from residents to the general public. In other words, it’s a gamble.