Disneyland Annual Passholder Program Ending
Today Disneyland Announced that they are sun setting the current Annual Passholder program. All passes that had not expired as of March 14, 2020 when Disneyland closed will be refunded a pro-rated basis. The announcement goes on to say a new program will be announced in the future. Here is the tweet:
— Disney Parks News (@DisneyParksNews) January 14, 2021
Emails were also sent to annual passholders and the Official Disneyland Website was updated with information for each pass type and how refunds will be calculated. Here is the official Disneyland Passholder Refund Information Page with the letter as well as refund plans.
My thoughts:
I have had an active Disneyland Annual Pass since 1995. Over the years I have seen the program morph, adapt, and grow. Some of the changes were positive some not so positive. Some benefited me and the way I visit the parks, others were a hindrance or extra expense. I am disappointed to see a system I knew and was used to go away but without knowing what is next it is hard to say if this will be a net positive or negative.
In recent years the success/growth of the program in general had created quite a few problems for guests trying to visit Disneyland. It had become very common to see the parking lots and parks at capacity or a crowd level that makes enjoying the park often. This gives Disney an opportunity to start from a clean slate and design a new program.
I look forward to seeing what comes next… I only hope that it does not make visiting the parks prohibitively more expensive or more troublesome.
The announcement and page on the official refund information page go into depth about each pass type and how refunds will be calculated. They also try to anticipate questions about discounts, Premier Passes and more. So you can work your way through the page and see how it impacts your case.
If you are curious to see some Disneyland Annual Pass designs from over the years here is a post I did several years ago looking at my passes.
