A day at Disneyland can be full of magical surprises (a chance meeting with Mickey, experiencing the joy of a Dole Whip, no lines at Space Mountain!) but the beloved theme park's annual pass holders were hit with a few shocking surprises on Sunday.
For starters, Disneyland has discontinued the Premium annual pass, which used to be the top-level pass you could buy. It gave you access to both Disneyland and California Adventure on almost every day of the year as well as better discounts on dining and retail. But no more.
Now Disneyland is offering two top-tier passports instead, and they cost way more moolah.
The Disneyland Signature Plus Passport costs $1,049 for people ages 3 and up. It includes entry to the parks every day of the year, including Thanksgiving and Christmas, along with Disney Photo Pass downloads, 15 percent off select dining, 20 percent off retail merchandise and theme park parking.
The Disneyland Signature Passport costs $849 for people ages 3 and up. It includes entry to the parks most days of the year, along with Disney Photo Pass downloads, 15 percent off select dining, 20 percent off retail merchandise and theme park parking.
Meanwhile, the Disney Deluxe Passport, which hasn't changed its benefits, has risen to $599 for people ages 3 and up. The Disney Southern California Select Passport, which also hasn't changed its benefits, and can be incredibly stingy with the blockout dates, is now $329. A one-day ticket to Disneyland or California Adventure is $99 while a Park Hopper is just $40 more.
Current Premium passholders can use their pass until it expires, but once that does, they will have to choose a new passport.
All passports can be paid for in monthly installments, after a $99 down payment, which lessens the sticker shock a bit but not that much. Walt Disney World in Orlando also hiked up prices for their passpors but the most expensive one is “only” $829.
Disney claims the price hikes were necessary in order to accommodate demand throughout the year, which is just corporate gibberish for “We're building Star Wars Land and we'd like some extra cash while we're building it.” And on that note, several rides at Disneyland will close to make way for this new theme park addition.
The Fantasmic! show, Mark Twain Riverboat, Sailing Ship Columbia, Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes, Pirate’s Lair on Tom Sawyer Island and the Disneyland Railroad will temporarily close in January for about a year. Big Thunder Ranch, where the barbecue, petting zoo and Jamboree stage are located, will close permanently.
Naturally, Disneyland pass holders are pissed, especially the current Premium pass holders. However I suspect, true Disney freaks fans will cough up the money. And Disney knows that. Let's hope they give the Signature Plus passport holders a special or better designed card than the rest.
(True story: I splurged for a Disney Deluxe Passport for my daughter on Thursday. I was going to wait until January when my pass was up but decided just to get hers over with. I saved $50 doing that. One of the few times paying up front has worked out for me!)
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