Which Disney Ticket Should You Buy?

Taking a vacation to Disney World demands one decision after another- what time of year should I visit? In which resort should we stay? Where do we want to eat? What is our itinerary? The list can seem a bit overwhelming for any first-time visitors, and to add to the mix, Disney has a ticket system called "Magic Your Way," in which all of the park tickets are priced in tiers according to add-on options that are offered. It can be a bit confusing, but it is a great system if you know how to use it; Disney offers each guest the control to design their own specific magical visit. As a former Disney castmember, I have sold many tickets to guests, so let's take some time to break down the elements of Magic Your Way.

The most basic component of the Magic Your Way Ticket System is the base ticket. Think of your base ticket as your basic building block to which you can add extra options. When you choose a base ticket, you are essentially choosing how many days you are going to be visiting the four main Disney World parks- this includes Animal Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios and Magic Kingdom. Base tickets do NOT include admission into the water parks, Pleasure Island, Wide World of Sports or DisneyQuest. Base tickets can be purchased from 1-10 days in length; a base ticket will allow you entrance to ONE park per day, and they will expire 14 days from the day of the first use. Again, you are only allowed to visit one park per day, but you may leave and re-enter the same park on that same day. Tickets are divided and priced accordingly into adult tickets (age 10 and up), and child tickets (age 3 to 9); children under 3 are free.

Once you decide which base ticket you would like, you are then ready to add options. The first one to look at is the Parkhopper Option- this allows you to visit any combination of the four main Disney World parks each day. For example, you can have breakfast in Magic Kingdom, then see the fireworks in Epcot that evening. You can leave and re-enter any park on that day. Adding the Park Hopper generally costs about $ 45.00 for the length of stay, regardless of how many days you have. In my opinion, it is a wonderful option to have; it gives you much more flexibility in your vacation. When we have gone to Disney World with my son, we often visit one park in the morning, leave after lunch to swim or nap at our resort, then visit a different park in the evening. It makes choosing dining reservations much easier if you have the option to move from park to park, and if one park seems overcrowded the day you visit, you can easily leave and go to one that is more manageable.

Another option that is available to guests is the no-expiration option. This basically means that any unused days on your tickets at the end of your trip will never expire. Sometimes guests will purchase tickets with more days than they will need, especially if they know ticket prices will soon be increasing, and they will be taking more than one trip to Disney World. In this case, the no-expiration option is convenient, because they can finish using the tickets on subsequent trips. I should note that the no-expiration option can be added at any Disney World park, even at the end of your trip, but it must be within 14 days from the first day used. If you choose to add this option before you leave, you will be charged for the number of days originally on the ticket. For example, if you have a 10 day ticket but only use 4 days, you can add the no-expiration to be able to use the remaining 6 days on a future trip, but you will pay the no-expiration price for a 10 day ticket.

The last option available in the Magic Your Way tickets is the "Water Park Fun and More" option. This option allows access to the two Disney World water parks (Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach), Pleasure Island, DisneyQuest, and Wide World of Sports. The number of entries is equal to the number of days on your base ticket. If you aren't sure whether you would visit one of these options every day of your trip, you do have the option to purchase a one day ticket for any of these venues separate from your Magic Your Way tickets.

So, now that the options are laid out for you, the tough part is deciding which combination of options to choose. For example, you can get a 6 day no-expiration ticket that allows you to visit 1 park per day, a 3 day base ticket that expires but has the Parkhopper option, or a 10 day no-expiration Parkhopper ticket with Water Parks and More! For the most up-to-date prices on any of the Magic Your Way tickets, you can use the official Walt Disney World website here. The combinations are limited only to your imagination...well, and maybe in part to your wallet. Whatever choice you make, you can guarantee you will want to return someday to the "Happiest Place on Earth!"