When Will Disney World Resume Annual Pass Sales?
“When will Walt Disney World Annual Pass sales resume?” is a common reader question. Many WDW fans are itching to purchase passes, especially new Floridians or those who planned on waiting to buy. We’ll share the company’s official position and speculate as to when APs might return. (Updated April 2, 2023.)
As a quick recap, Walt Disney World suspended sales of all Annual Passes during its closure. 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. Upon reopening, sales of new Annual Passes were “paused” while renewals were allowed.
Walt Disney World then resumed Annual Pass 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. APs were available for about 3 months before sales started being suspended in late November 2021.
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.” It’s now been almost 18 months, and APs are still “temporarily unavailable,” at least for the most part.
Sales of Walt Disney World’s three most expensive Annual Passes are all currently paused. This means that the Disney Pirate Pass, Sorcerer Pass, and Incredi-Pass are all unavailable for purchase and have been for well over a year. 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 as of right now.
Per Walt Disney World: “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.”
By Disney’s own admission, the decision to suspend new AP sales occurred due to anticipated crowds at Walt Disney World during busier times of the year. For its part, Walt Disney World was correct in projecting heavy crowds and suspending AP sales to avoid running out of reservations on more dates. If organic demand were allowed to play out, attendance would’ve been even higher.
Crowds were incredibly heavy during the heart of last year’s holiday season, but have been more mixed since. The first three months of 2023 had highs and lows, with Spring Break arriving in full force a few weeks ago. To that point, the peak dates of Spring Break 2023 Crowds at Walt Disney World are right around the corner this month.
With that in mind, most dates have been green thus far in 2023 on the Disney Park Pass calendar as of right now. The only dates that are partially booked are the weeks bookending Easter. The only other two times that has happened this year were during Presidents’ Day/Mardi Gras week and Orange County’s Spring Break. Most dates are not booking up, which is significant.
As we’ve noted before, Annual Passholders are advantageous to Walt Disney World, but not in a constrained capacity environment at the expense of tourists. Statistically speaking, per visit spending is significantly higher among resort guests and day ticket holders than APs. It thus makes sense that Walt Disney World would want to prioritize those demographics and not fill the parks with Annual Passholders at the expense of more lucrative vacationers during busier seasons.
For Walt Disney World, the downside of delaying the resumption of Annual Pass sales would be reduced revenue if or when the parks have surplus capacity. The potential upside would be not having to suspend regular ticket sales again when travel heats up again. With per visit spending being significantly higher among tourists, there’s a tremendous opportunity cost in allocating reservations to APs in a fully booked environment.
However, Walt Disney World continues to restore capacity by bringing back entertainment, dining options, and also filling positions in the parks that were previously short-staffed. All of this helps increase park capacity, which puts less stress on the reservation system by increasing the supply of Disney Park Passes. All of this plus normalizing demand and less ‘revenge travel’ means there is less of an opportunity cost in Annual Passholders taking up space in the parks.
Allocating capacity and balancing tourists versus locals or frequent visitors is really the whole ballgame. It’s not about lawsuits over the reservations system (Disneyland has resumed AP sales despite that and Walt Disney World still has one Annual Pass available) and it’s not about the perception of scarcity or artificial demand.
On a tangentially related note, the resumption of Magic Key Annual Pass sales at Disneyland could be a potential sneak peek of what Walt Disney World fans will have to endure when AP sales for the Florida parks resume. Back in November when Magic Keys were briefly sold, virtual queue wait times were 10-12 hours.
This January, wait times were shorter–but still measured in the hours on the first day they resumed. Within about a week, some tiers of Magic Keys had already sold out again. The resumption of APs at Disneyland occurred right on the timeline that we previously expected both coasts to resume Annual Pass sales. Frankly, we’re a bit surprised that Walt Disney World didn’t follow suit–but that suggests AP sales aren’t too far away for Walt Disney World.
As intimated above, the straightforward explanation remains that AP sales are suspended due to internal concerns about Disney’s ability to meet demand for regular tickets once Annual Passes are available again. As long as the parks aren’t operating at full capacity and there’s the potential for unsatisfied demand among higher-spending tourists, this is the simplest and clearest explanation for the lack of Annual Passes.
With all of that said, we think there are two possible timeframes for the return of Annual Passes at Walt Disney World. The first is that Annual Pass sales resume on or after April 17, 2023. This is not necessarily the precise date that APs will return to Walt Disney World, it’s simply the earliest date we expect them at this point.
Previously, Walt Disney World resumed AP sales during the off-season, which gave the company a window to test and adjust the program and reservation availability during a window when crowds were low. When AP sales resume again in 2023, it will almost certainly occur during another such off-season window.
As for the significance of April 17, that’s after the height of spring break season and Easter 2023. And…just in time for Tax Day!
This is the next window of lower crowds, which will last following the conclusion of spring break until the start of summer season in mid-June 2023. Not every day or week within that timeframe will be slow–it’s more like ‘shoulder’ season–but it won’t be as bad as Presidents’ Day/Mardi Gras, Easter, Summer, etc.
This is also after the opening of TRON Lightcycle Run and start of EPCOT’s Flower & Garden Festival. In short, the end of April or beginning of May 2023 is the perfect window of opportunity for Walt Disney World to resume AP sales.
Additionally, Walt Disney World has discounted Florida resident tickets that are currently on sale, and are valid through April 27, 2023. This is a pretty common special offer that’s typically available right around this time of year.
Walt Disney World crowds do not increase after April 27. To the contrary, the entire month of May 2023 will be shoulder season; it’s a slower time between the peaks of spring break and summer at Walt Disney World. Selling Annual Passes at the tail end of this discounted ticket deal, or shortly after it concludes would be a smart move–and a way to spike demand during what would otherwise be a relatively laid back month in the parks.
With that said, there are so many other variables at play that could cause Walt Disney World to continue waiting to bring back Annual Passes. Ongoing attendance, guest spending, forward-looking projections, and even the Florida Resident tickets selling well could impact the return date of APs.
If business continues booming even without Annual Passes, the company may decide that it’s advantageous to continue waiting to resume sales. In such a scenario, we view it as unlikely that APs would return in June or July 2023. Instead, Walt Disney World is more likely to wait for the busy summer tourist season to end, restarting sales in mid-August or September 2023. This is simply to say that anyone anxiously awaiting the return of Annual Passes might want to temper their expectations.
One unfortunate reality reinforced in the last 2 years 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 Walt Disney World’s decisions to come around and “bite them” with consumers. At least in the short term, there are 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. Then again, things can change in a hurry, and last year was a time of unprecedented consumer spending across the board that seems unsustainable.
In any case, it’s safe to say that Annual Passes will return at some point, and will not be retired entirely. Walt Disney World APs have never presented the same issues as at Disneyland, for relatively straightforward reasons. Beyond double the parks, there are significantly fewer Annual Passholders at Walt Disney World.
And many of them aren’t local, anyway. Disney Vacation Club members and New Yorkers who come down three times per year and book hotels every time are much more valuable to the company than Disneyland locals who drop-in for a few hours and don’t even eat dinner in the park.
With that said, I’d stop short of saying that Walt Disney World “needs” Annual Passholders. They’re an asset at times, helpful in guaranteeing attendance (and revenue) during slow stretches. However, that’s not always the case.
There are times when Annual Passholders can compound tourist-driven crowd problems, like during the popular Christmas season. In the past several years, we’ve seen Walt Disney World introduce more blockouts and raise prices on most Annual Passes–sometimes by hundreds of dollars at a time. There’s a reason for that.
There have been a lot of headlines recently about homebuyers “fleeing to Florida,” but this phenomenon is nothing new. Back when Annual Pass prices increased two years ago in February and the June before that, we mentioned the ongoing population explosion in Central Florida. Even then, several cities in the Orlando metro area were among the fastest growing in the United States. Many of these new Florida residents are (and were) people leaving the Northeast and Midwest.
Our commentary at the time was this: “If new home prices and construction around Walt Disney World are any indication, these transplants are also on the more affluent end of the spectrum. (Behind Magic Kingdom, there’s been a proliferation of subdivisions with no end in sight—most of these have homes starting at over $300,000 and ranging up to $800,000.)”
Those price points now seem quaint (add another couple hundred thousand dollars on), but the sentiment still rings true. And this was long before “Zoom Towns” had entered our collective vernacular. If you’ve seen any of those ‘fleeing to Florida’ stories in the news, you’re undoubtedly aware that this trend has only accelerated in the last two years. In fact, many of you who have been asking when Walt Disney World will resume AP sales are fresh transplants from the Midwest or Northeast.
Ultimately, our prediction is that Walt Disney World resumes Annual Pass sales at higher price points around late April or early May 2023. Failing that, the next most logical time for resuming AP sales is not until mid-August 2023, but we do not think Walt Disney World will wait that long. These are two prime windows of opportunity in the off-season that are the most likely, as it’s improbable that Walt Disney World will begin Annual Pass sales right before any prime tourist season.
At some point, things will normalize. Staffing shortages will be fully resolved, pent-up demand will fizzle out, and consumer spending will fall back to normal levels. All of that could happen abruptly in the coming months or it could last until mid-2023. For the better part of a year, we’ve been wondering when demand would slow…and it’s only grown stronger during that time.
Of course, that’s just our guess from the outside looking in. I never would have predicted this happening back when Annual Pass sales resumed, as it seemed the worst of the reservation availability problems were already in the rearview mirror at that point. Then again, it would seem that Walt Disney World also did not predict those problems, as if they did, they wouldn’t have resumed AP sales in the first place!
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YOUR THOUGHTS
When do you expect Walt Disney World to resume new Annual Pass sales? Think sometime in late April or early May 2023 is a safe bet, or will Walt Disney World be more cautious this time, waiting all the way until Fall 2023 to ensure there’s ample capacity for more lucrative tourists? Would you purchase a Walt Disney World AP right now? 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!
I just checked the prices are gone from the site now…as you suspected it looks like price increases are coming.
The annual pass page now no longer lists prices…could that mean they might be announced soon? I know that Tom said that it will likely mean price increases but wondering if this is a ray of hope for passes to be sold again soon. DVC member here with at least 2 trips planned, the first one being early August so really hoping they come back by then!
If you compare the various passes, the prices are still listed on the comparison page.
We have noticed as out of staters that it is a lot easier to book stays for this summer into the fall than this time last year. We had a lot of trouble finding things early last May for November and this year so much is available. Also, a quick glance at almost any week in the summer (including holiday weekends) and every value resort is available even with discounts. To me, this is hopeful that demand is slowing down and maybe APs will come back this summer. We would be purchasing APs and would come down more as resort guests if they existed but not if we had to buy tickets each time. So they would be getting more money out of us. We are hopeful they come back before our trip in July that we just booked yesterday (again everything is available!).
Thanks for the article. It is the most comprehensive and well thought out article I have read regarding annual passes.
Okay I kind of like the cap on APs. We’ve had no problem getting park reservations and we made it to 2x as many passholder previews than before (by which I mean both). However I would like Disney to be more transparent about when passes will be available/unavailable. Even if they said “passes are on sale from x date to x date” that would at least let people plan for the year.
Oh but the fact DVC can’t buy passes is stupid. They should always be able to buy passes since they own. I mean whoever came up with shutting out DVC needs to be fired.
i am surprised at inability of DVC folk to take a stand about annual passes. I am not an owner but I always figured belonging to this group meant you somehow mattered and were part of the club and at the very least were able to contact someone to complain to,.. i feel disappointed (yet again disney) that you all are being treated this way,.. if someone was temped to buy into the program, would this not be a serious disincentive/omen?
“if someone was temped to buy into the program, would this not be a serious disincentive/omen?”
Most prospective buyers probably don’t even know this is an issue. Nor do they realize that it’s incredibly difficult to get through to DVC right now.
I’m a dvc member and they treat us like we’re beneath day pass holders and one-time resort guests. We have a dvc member line but it’s typically a 1.5 – 2 hour hold to only be told they can’t help, to call disney instead and hold for another hour on the phone and still get no resolution or vist Disney Springs member center in person. I paid $30k for my dvc and over $1k a year in taxes and maintenance but apparently that makes me a mooch in their minds.
But call the Disney Vacation Planner line to book a full rate package and there’s no wait.
Well said they should fire from the ceo on down Walt is probably rolling over in his grave
Walt would probably fire the whole bunch of them
I agree, DVC should always be able to buy annual passes! This is a good selling point!
We’re seriously hurt by the continued stop of AP Sales. We locked in rented DVC points (most of them credits from the COVID closures, but one big out of pocket for Christmas) for trips in July, Oct and Dec. I’ve been assuming (hah) that AP sales would have come back. So now we’re looking at having to get tickets instead.
We were also going to go several times in 2023 – Feb, April and June (using the AP), but now we’re not doing any of those trips. Glad I didn’t reserve DVC rentals as soon as that window opened!
We have some room reservations on one side of the DVC reservations or another that we’ll be canceling instead of buying more tickets. So, Disney definitely won’t get as much money out of us – I’m sure someone else will make it up for them.
Thoughts on Disney waiting to see how demand for MNSSHP is playing out and then rolling out APs if it needs a bump?
My bet is they’re holding off until January 2023. The whiplash between guests demanding APs (preferably at pre-2019 prices) and complaints about crowd levels is painful.
Greedy Chapek and Igor won’t be selling APs this year cause it’s the 50th Anniversary, so don’t hold your breath cause they plan to milk every ounce of revenue out of the 50th Anniversary so their $120 million annual compensation package to themselves can be doubled.
Hint: they stopped selling APs at the start of the 50th Anniversary. At first people put it down to them not wanting to sell new APs during their full Christmas festivities which they brought back in full 2021. But now that they’re still not selling APs, it’s more likely for the greed to milk the 50th Anniversary.
You’re a DVC member wanting to use points? Well, I guess they’d rather you lose your points or rent them out to those who have APs. I’m a DVC member too, but only could get a new Pixie pass (Florida resident,) which is useless really. Or, stay at a DVC resort and go to Universal Studios and Seaworld for half the price and better rides with shorter lines
Disney World has really lost it’s magic anyway, Igor and Chapek sucked up all the magic and put it towards their compensation packages.
Probably true, but Chapek better do something soon. Wall Street is noticing that his stock is down 33%. Not a good look for his tenure.
It’s about the “right guest mix”. That was the term used by Chapek. Which means there are ideal ratios of AP’s to ‘regular’ ticket guests that their analytics teams have shown provide the best revenue. I’m sure there are more buckets then just those two but that’s the goal… get the right mix. Couple this with the park pass reservation systems that do the same thing… geared towards getting that right guest mix. (It’s not just about overall capacity but also mix). And you have the ability to have the right revenue flow coupled with predictable operational costs (like labor, food, etc) and you’ve got great bottom line impact. Done and done. So it isn’t going anywhere because it’s working well (for shareholders that is).
To my knowledge, Chapek has used the term “more favorable guest mix” to explain the 40% increase in per guest spending. (See: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/spending-up-40-genie-going-strong-no-end-in-sight-to-disney-worlds-high-demand/)
Right now, this is entirely about overall capacity and Disney’s inability to staff at levels to reach it. The company isn’t deliberately capping attendance to optimize for profitability or operational costs–they’re doing it out of necessity because they can’t hire enough people for many positions.
Do you think that AP sales would possibly restart earlier for DVC members? They are an affinity group, most of whom are traveling from out of state, and so they do the same kind of spending other tourists do. The past couple years have been frustrating for DVC members. Restoring the ability to purchase APs would go a long way to rebuilding goodwill among members. And it would also provide an incentive for direct sales.
I think Disney should do that, and honestly cannot believe DVC members can’t purchase APs.
Given that it’s gone this long and DVC members still can’t buy Annual Passes, my guess is the only thing that changes that is if Disney notices an appreciable uptick in resales (I’ve heard rumblings that this is already happening) or direct sales slowdown.
Not allowing DVC members to buy APs is an absolutely boneheaded and shortsighted move.
Limiting Annual Passes may be the dumbest way possible to *deal* with the DVC point pool problem. I don’t think I considered intentionally frustrating owners until they eat the extra 10 months or so worth of points as a solution, but to be fair, it’s not really working yet.
Well, I had tickets that I intended to upgrade to APs but couldn’t last December. As an out of state guest, it’s more feasible for me to but 10 day tickets and upgrade them. I have been 3 times so far this year. On my last trip, I purchased Universal APs. My next trip is scheduled for September. Hopefully I will be able to get the Disney APs this time.
Would you mind explaining the advantage of this to me? I’m out of state too and just wondering if I could be doing something better re: AP’s. (Assuming they come back.) Thanks so much.
Do you think the hot water Disney now finds themselves in will affect when AP sales resume?
After loosing 22million last week I don’t think so they need every penny they can get
We’ve been APs for about 20 years and resident APs for 17 of those years. I’ve never questioned the investment because we enjoyed the experience so much, my triplets learned to walk in the parks, but we’ve noticed the ever-eroding guest experience over the years and am thinking we’re coming to the end of the “ride”. I doubt Disney will shed any tears over the loss of loyal guests.
I know that they wouldn’t open it in the Summer, but what do you think is the probability chance that they open before August 7th, 2022? The date it says in the article.
We are very interested in purchasing AP for our family for the first time. How can we know when they open up for purchase?
Keep checking the Disney website. But like the article said, I think they will come back in August. That’s when I purchased mine for the very first time last year.
Get on Tom’s DisneyTouristBlog mailing list. You’ll know a minute before Chapek does.
Time to let the mouse go. we have supported him for many years and he has turned on is. Put some cheese in the trap and let him have it.
Disneys ceo is destroying what used to be the happiest place on earth
I have been a DVC member for decades and am so very disappointed about not being able to purchase an annual pass. When we bought into DVC it was with the expectation that we would be able to visit the parks often. That investment seems wasted now.
Been a member for 18years bus is. Terminated from airport no season passes what’s next walk to the parks it’s all about the magical dollar disney doesn’t care We pay dues that keep going up since I first bought into Disney we pay Florida tax’s does that make us part time Florida resident’s if I knew then what I know now I would of kept on walking it’s like one big ponzie scheam they take our money and promised the the magic or Disney magic is gone and so is our money
We are DVC members and disappointed with the many changes. It would be nice to go back to the 120 day to book dinning and 90 days for fast passes. Disney should really think about the PEOPLE and give us a break, bring back FREE fast passes. It does not cost Disney any money to let the people book those passes.
We have to pay for attractions $10-15 per ride to skip the super long lines. I do agree, since we pay taxes, we should be able to buy our annual passes. We are hoping to get passes before our trip in September. Soon, it will be that only the rich that will be able to afford a trip to Disney. You already have the Galactic Star Cruiser hotel, which is super expensive. We did also lose points because we cancelled our plans last year due to the Delta Variant. It would have been nice for Disney to extend those points for our trip this year. No luck. All those Executives lost out on new cars, vacation trips, etc when the pandemic hit. They of course have to make up for that loss. Walt Disney would be ashamed at what they have done. It is all about the money! I still love Disney but we are thinking about selling our shares too! So disappointing.
The annual pass availability calendar is separate from the one you posted above. It’s still fully wide open for all of March.
The regular ticket reservation calendar is more relevant because capacity that isn’t utilized by Annual Passholders can be reallocated to day guests, which is what Disney wants because the latter spends more money.
As a DVC member who lives in PA. I am more than angry with Disney. We pay annual dues maintenance fees in the thousands. We can not buy Florida passes even though we pay Florida Real estate taxes as part of the maintenance fee. We did not go the last 2 years due to disabled adults in family. We finally got all three vaccines and the dr even gave us full dose for the third. It’s not fair to DVC members. I sold 370 points and retained AK , but if the do not open AP soon . I am cancelling and selling the balance and kissing Disney good bye. We even purchased a motorhome, so there are lots of other places willing to earn our money. We have been members since 05. And I personally have gone to Disney since 1972 but magic is disappearing