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Disneyland is bringing back a special ticket pricing tier for Southern California residents to lure in locals, even as the park deals with criticism over its large crowds and long wait times.
The lower pricing tier βΒ available for people who live in select zip codes in California βΒ offers a 3-day, 1 park-per-day ticket for $199 or Park Hopper passes starting at $289. That's compared to 1-day, 1-park tickets, which start at $104 for non-peak dates and can reach over $200 for peak dates like the week of Christmas.
The tickets at the lower pricing tier are now available for reservations from January through March. It is unclear whether the promotion will continue beyond March, but it has been discontinued and reinstated several times since the park stopped offering a lower-price annual pass for Southern California residents.
The promotional rate comes as the Anaheim theme park faces criticism over its large crowds and long wait times. In August, the Disney fan publication Inside The Magic reported wait times at the Princess Pavilion in Fantasyland, where guests can greet actors dressed as their favorite characters, skyrocketed to 300 minutes and that the sheer volume of guests at the park was "beyond manageability."
The company said its California-based theme parks saw increased guest spending and attendance growth at the beginning of 2024 but had less favorable results in the second quarter. By the third quarter, operating income at Disney's domestic parks and experiences was down.
Hugh Johnston, the company's chief financial officer, said Disney's Experiences sector β which includes its theme parks and cruise ships β had a "slight moderation in demand" during the company's third-quarter earnings report. The report said the Experiences sector's operating income decreased 3% to $2.2 billion.
"But overall, I would just call this as a bit of a slowdown that's being more than offset by the Entertainment business," he said.
CEO Bob Iger said the company's Experiences sector rebounded during its latest earnings call in November.
"In domestic, we certainly feel like the consumer is strengthening," Iger said. "As I mentioned earlier, we obviously saw growth in domestic parks and certainly feel very positively about that. And that's our expectation going forward, is a gradual strengthening in the consumer."
Disney recently unveiled a series of new rides for Disneyland. During the D23 event in August, Disney said it is adding new attractions based on Marvel and that the Avengers Campus would be expanding. Disneyland will also build new attractions based on James Cameron's Avatar franchise.
Trisha Daab
I've taken 20 trips to the Disney theme parks, including visiting Disneyland for the first time in 2023. A year later, I took my first Disney cruise.
This gave me a great chance to compare the two vacations based on price, activities, food, and overall experience.
Here's how they stacked up.
Trisha Daab
I paid about $4,000 for a Disneyland vacation in 2023. It was a solo trip with four nights at the Disneyland Hotel and four park days.
Though that cost didn't include my airfare, it included all my meals and ticket upgrades.
While at the parks, I attended the Oogie Boogie Bash Halloween after-hours event, which cost about $150. I also took the Disney100, $110, and Walt's Main Street Story, $160, tours.
Trisha Daab
My seven-day Disney Wonder cruise cost $5,800 for two adults in a veranda stateroom. Like many cruises, this included most of my meals and entertainment options.
Our room was about $1,100 cheaper than a typical veranda stateroom because it had obstructed views. But it was perfect for the cold, windy Alaska weather.
One major hidden cost was the port excursions β we spent about $2,000 for four excursions. We also paid extra for some specialty beverages and a brunch at Palo.
Not including airfare, the total came to about $8,800, or $4,400 a person.
Trisha Daab
Other than the specialty brunch, all my meals on the cruise ship were included in my up-front cost. Each day, I got breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks, and we also had access to 24-hour room service.
My favorite cruise treat was the soft serve.
I'm used to paying theme-park prices for meals on a Disney vacation, which can cost $60 a day. Eating as much as I wanted, whenever I wanted, was a luxury.
Unlike some companies, Disney doesn't offer unlimited drink packages on its cruises. Fountain drinks, coffee, tea, and sparkling water were included, but wine, beer, cocktails, and specialty coffees weren't.
The cocktails were generally cheaper on the cruise. An old-fashioned at Park Wine Country Trattoria in Disneyland cost me $18.50, but an old New Orleans fashion cocktail at French Quarter Lounge on the cruise was $14.50.
Trisha Daab
I often travel to Disney theme parks solo, so a PhotoPass Package is a must if I don't want a camera roll of only selfies.
At Disneyland, I can download photos individually for about $15. If I get a line-expediting lightning-lane multipass, usually about $32 a day, I can get unlimited downloads.
For longer trips, the PhotoPass+ One Week pass costs $78 for unlimited downloads.
On my Disney cruise, the photo package was more straightforward because there was only one option. But it was expensive β $296 for the seven-day trip, over $200 more than the same package at the parks.
Trisha Daab
My Disneyland trip was packed with Disney history and unique experiences.
I loved seeing the castle decorated for the 100th anniversary and meeting characters in their Halloween costumes.
Paying extra for the tours and party was worth it. During Walt's Main Street Story Tour, we visited Walt's old apartment on Main Street, USA. I even stood on the same patio Walt did while watching guests enter the park almost 70 years earlier.
At Oogie Boogie Bash, I met characters who rarely do meet and greets in the parks, including Bruno from "Encanto," Lots-o-Huggin' Bear from "Toy Story 3," and Judge Doom from "Who Framed Roger Rabbit."
Trisha Daab
The Alaskan cruise was also packed with unique experiences.
Disney cruises offer activities from morning until midnight. We watched a "Frozen" stage show, met Alaska-exclusive characters like Lumberjack Goofy, and saw amazing scenery from the deck.
Every evening, we returned to our room to find our towels folded to look like different animals, and on the last day, we even learned how to do it ourselves.
One of the most magical experiences was sipping on drinks made with glacier ice while we were within a quarter mile of Dawes Glacier.
The magic continued in the Alaska ports. We saw humpback whales and sea otters at Icy Strait Point, watched a bear wander down Creek Street in Ketchikan, and held four-week-old sled-dog puppies in Juneau.
Trisha Daab
Every Disney vacation is magical in its own way.
There are plenty of experiences from both these trips that I don't think I'll ever forget β from exploring Walt's Disneyland apartment to meeting Alaska Fisherman Mickey.
But when it comes to breaking down the value of each trip, I got more out of the Alaskan Disney cruise.
It was a bit more expensive, but my cruise was filled with once-in-a-lifetime experiences, unlimited food, and unique Disney activities.
