Everything About WDW Tickets

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This thread is intended to discuss most aspects of Walt Disney World (WDW) ticketing. It will only deal with ticketing policies and procedures at WDW, and with connections to the Automated Ticketing System (ATS). This entire thread is read-only and can be edited or changed only by the original poster or one of the TPA&S moderators. If you feel that a part is not clear, put your question in a new thread where it will be answered; if necessary this thread will be edited to clarify the situation.

Please note that this information is public information which has been taken, and possibly paraphrased, from WDW web sites and from official training of WDW Cast Members who work with ATS.

Post and Contents
1. This Table of Contents
2. Magic Your Way (MYW) Ticket Basics Including Definitions
3. Annual Passes and Water Park Tickets
4. Tickets Available Only to Florida Residents
5. Tickets Not Available to the General Public
6. Upgrading MYW Tickets (Not to Annual Passes)
7. Upgrading Tickets to Annual Passes
8. Dealing With Tickets Issued Prior to 1 January 2005 (Pre-MYW)
9. Children and Adults
10. Special Events
11. Comprehensive MYW Ticket Example
12. Hotel Card (Key To The World (KTTW))
13. Lost Tickets
14. Finger Scans
15. Frequently Asked Ticket Questions.
15A. Hopping Rules
15B. WPF&M With No Expire
15C. No Expire Upgrades
15D. Upgrading an Unused Ticket
15E. Upgrading Special Tickets
15F. Checking on Old Tickets
15G. Renewing Annual Passes
15H. Upgrading a Completely Used Ticket
16. 2010 Give A Day, Get A Day Promotion
17. Information on Disney's Armed Forces Salute 2010
18. Prices Effective August 2, 2009
19. Special Promotions and "Free" Tickets
19A. AP 15 Months for Price of 12 Renewal
19B. Florida Resident Four Day Dream Ticket

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Almost all tickets issued for admission to the WDW parks since January 2, 2005, are "Magic Your Way" (MYW) Tickets which allow the purchaser to select features for their tickets. The main concept behind MYW is the more that you purchase the lower your per-unit cost tends to be.

It is important to realize that WDW has nine different venues which require admission, and that these fall into two major categories.

The first is the four "major" theme parks: Animal Kingdom, Epcot, Disney's Hollywood Studio, and Magic Kingdom. Other is the "minor" parks, which consist of the Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon Water Parks, the Disney Quest Indoor Theme Park, Oak Trail Golf Course, and the Wide World of Sports.

Any ticket, once used, cannot be transferred to another person. This is enforced by use of a biometric finger scan. See Post #14 for more detail. There are a few exceptions to this rule, discussed on Pages 5 and 9. All tickets purchased, regardless of location purchased, unless specifically discussed on Page 5, are subject to the Florida combined sales tax rate of 6.5%.

An entitlement is a technical term for what a particular ticket will allow the bearer to do.

A Base Ticket is one that will allow a particular guest access to one major theme park per day up to the maximum number of entitlements per ticket. A base ticket may have anywhere from one to ten days of admission. There are three options which may be purchased with a base ticket; each bear a relationship to the base ticket. Note that Base Ticket days cannot be used as entries to any of the minor parks.

No MYW ticket may have more than ten major park days of entitlements, unused or used, on it.

You are allowed to re-enter the same park if you leave it on one day, but it can only be used at the one park.

If you put the ticket in the turnstile of another park the display on the Guest side of the turnstile will be "ACCESS DENIED". The top line of the display on the Greeter side will give information about the ticket, and the second line of the display will say "CROSSOVER NOT PERMITTED". The turnstile will not unlock.

Park Hopping is a $52.00 option which can be added to any base ticket, whether adult or child, whether one day or ten days.

The PH option allows you to go to two, three, or even all four of the major parks per day. Just as a base ticket allows entry to one major park per day, as well as unlimited exits and re-entries to the same park without extra charge, there is no charge to your entitlements when you enter or reenter the second or subsequent major theme park on the same day.

It is important to remember that park hopping only involves the four major theme parks. Having a Park Hopping Ticket does not allow access to any of the minor parks.

Water Park Fun & More (WPF&M) is a $52.00 option which can be added to any base ticket, whether adult or child, whether one day or ten days. Purchase of this option will add entitlements to the base ticket which are entries (or same day reentries) to the minor parks.

Oak Trail Golf Course is a nine hole walking "executive" course. Tee time reservations are required. Call 407-WDW-GOLF for reservations and more information. Each person who does not have their own set of clubs may rent a set, currently $15.00 per person per round.

If the base ticket is 1 or 2 days you receive two entries. If the base ticket is more than two days you will get a number of entries equal to the number of days of the ticket.

Each initial entry into a minor park on one day uses an entry. This is true even if you have the "hopper" option, since that option only applies to the major parks. If you attend a water park in the morning, go to Oak Trail Golf in the afternoon, and Disney Quest at night of the same day you will have used three of your WPF&M entries.

Any day in which you go only to one (or more) minor parks and do not go to any of the major theme parks will only count as entries against the WPF&M option and will not use up a day of major park visits.

Note that a base ticket can exist by itself, with the Park Hopping option only, with the WPF&M option only or with both of these options.

Expiration of Tickets

All ticket entitlements, including Park Hopper and WPF&M options, will expire 14 days after first use of any part of the ticket. It does not matter if first use is a major theme park, or, if you have the WPF&M option, first use is one of the minor parks. Note this is based on the first time the ticket is used.

As long as the ticket has not been run through any turnstile it is considered unused and is valid forever.

If your first use, for example, is a Sunday, all entitlements will expire at midnight of the second Saturday following.However, Disney does allow the purchase of a No Expire option which may be added to any base ticket. The price of this option currently varies between $18.00 for a two day ticket and $209.00 for a ten day ticket. Purchase of this option affects all entitlements, including other options. Unused entitlements will never expire.

Note that the price is based on the maximum entitlements, both used and unused, on a ticket. For example, if you had a nine day ticket and used three, with six days still available, if you then purchased the No Expire option you would pay the fee based on nine days.

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There are basically five types of Annual Passes (AP) available to anybody. In addition, there are certain Annual Passes available only to Florida Residents, which will be discussed on Post #4.

Note that the Disney Resort Front Desks and Concierges cannot process any transactions related to any AP.

An AP is valid for one person and it is good for one year from date of activation. All passes purchased at any park ticket window or Guest Relations Office are active immediately. If you purchase or activate your pass, for example, on July 1 The last day of use is July 1 of the next year.

A regular Annual Pass is valid for unlimited entries during regular park hours for the four major theme parks. There are no block-out dates. This is a Park Hopper pass. If you are not staying at a Disney Resort it includes free parking at the four major theme parks. Possession of an AP makes you eligible to purchase the Disney Tables in Wonderland Dining Discount Card and to get various other discounts on food, merchandise, lodging, and certain additional ticket purchases.

The Premium Annual Pass (PAP) is similar to the regular AP. The difference is where the regular AP is a Park Hopper for the four major theme parks only, the PAP is a Park Hopper which includes not only the four major theme parks, but also includes the minor parks.

AP (and PAP) vouchers may be purchased from Disney online, from Disney by telephone, from the Disney Store, and from some AAA Offices. Once purchased these vouchers do not expire. These vouchers must be exchanged for actual passes; this can be done at any ticket booth or Guest Relations Office.

Each person 18 or over must present a photo ID when purchasing any type of AP, or converting a voucher to an actual pass.

Discount pricing on APs is available only at some AAA Offices. DVC Members and Florida Residents have special rate tables (See Post #18). If the pass is renewed (including upgrades or downgrades) within 30 days on either side of expiration there is a renewal discount and the Anniversary date will not change.

As a general rule tickets for the minor parks tend to be one day, single entry, tickets. They are valid for reentry to the same park only on the same day and do not allow park hopping. Discounts are available for people who have APs or are DVC members.

At Blizzard Beach there is a special one day ticket which includes entry to BB and a round of miniature golf at WinterSummerLand.

If a person is planning to have more than one visit to minor parks it tends to make economic sense to add WPF&M option to a base ticket rather than purchasing two tickets.

The other APs are the Water Park Hopper, the Disney Quest Annual Pass, and the Water Park Hopper Plus Disney Quest Combined Annual Pass. These do not provide the benefits such as discounts and are very limited. The only discount for the Water Park Annual Pass is renewal rates.

A Water Park and the DQ APs costs less than three days of entries to the water parks or DQ.

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Almost all MYW tickets are discounted for Florida Residents. Proof of residency is required when purchasing tickets, and upon first use. This includes the showing of a government-issued photo ID such as a Driver's License or state-issued ID card.

The cost for a one-day base ticket is not discounted at the gate. There is a small discount for online purchases in advance. However, the rates for the Hopper and WPF&M options are set at 50% of the non-Florida prices.

There is no two-day ticket available. However, the three day "Play Three" costs less than a two-day base MYW and the four day "Play Four costs significantly less than a three-day base. The Play Three and Play Four tickets are valid for six months from date of first use. The Play Three and Play Four tickets may be upgraded to additional days, but the additional days will expire 14 days from first use unless the No Expire Option has been purchased.

There are four special types of Annual Passes for Florida Residents.

The "Seasonal Pass". This is a park hopper which is valid about 260 days of the year. The block out dates tend to be a week on either side of Easter, a week on either side of Christmas, and most of the summer. This pass does not include free parking at the major parks.

The "Weekday Select Pass". This is a park hopper which is valid about 200 days of the year. It is valid Mondays through Fridays only. The block out dates are the same as for the Seasonal Pass. This pass does not include free parking at the major parks.

The "Epcot After 4:00 Pass" does include free parking. It is primarily intended for local residents who would like to dine at some of the Epcot restaurants.

The "Water Park After 2:00 Hopper", since the water parks do tend to empty out starting in mid-afternoon, this is primarily intended for after school use.

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These are tickets which generally are not sold at WDW itself, or require prior purchase.

14 or 21 Day Ultimate Park Hopper. These are valid for unlimited entry for one person to all the parks, both major and minor, for either 14 or 21 days from first use. They are sold by Disney in the United Kingdom and Ireland. They can be ordered through www.disney.co.uk but will not be shipped to the United States or Canada. People have been known to contact friends, relations or travel agents who can purchase these tickets and then have them shipped to them in the US.

5 or 7 Day Premium. These are available from the UK web site. Basically they are the same as the 5 and 7 day MYW tickets with both hopping and WPF&M. They are five or seven day hoppers; unlike the Ultimate which allow unlimited minor park entries, these will allow only five or seven minor park entries during their 14 day validity period.

There are "Touch of Magic" tickets which are available through some time share promoters in the Orlando area. These are either one-day or two-day one park per day plus one entry to a water park, Disney Quest or the Oak Trail Golf Course. Normally the time share promoter will issue a voucher for these tickets which can be redeemed at any park (including water parks or TTC) ticket booth. These tickets may not be upgraded.

There are three types of Convention tickets. These are only available to people who are attending conventions held on WDW. Normally purchase is via a web link provided by Disney through the convention's web site for pre-purchase, or sometimes at the convention itself. Verification of Convention attendance is required.

"After 2:00" allows admission to one park per day after 2:00pm. These tickets may not be upgraded.

"After 4:00" allows admission to one park per day after 4:00pm. These tickets may not be upgraded.

"Multi-day MYW Convention Base Ticket" is about a 10% savings from the regular MYW prices and includes one WPF&M visit.

There are special reduced price tickets called "YES", which stands for Youth Educational Series. These are available for preformed groups, usually either school groups or teams participating in events at Disney's Wide World of Sports. These may be base, hopper and/or WPF&M but not No Expire. They are valid only for specific dates. They may be used both by chaperones as well as students/team members. Very often for control purposes the chaperones will hold on to the tickets to effectively prevent the students from leaving the park after entry, so these tickets do not require finger scans.

There are tickets similar to MYW tickets sold at various military bases and at Shades of Green. These not only are discounted, but Florida Sales Tax is not charged. Because of their special tax-exempt status they cannot be upgraded or modified in any way at ticket booths or Guest Relations Offices. However, they can be modified or upgraded at Shades of Green. If one of these tickets has become demagnetized they can be reissued at any WDW location.

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An upgrade is adding one or more days to any base ticket, and/or adding one or more of the three options (Hopper, WPF&M or NE) to a ticket.

Note that any upgrade requires a cash (or cash equivalent) payment and can only be done on a one to one basis. You cannot combine the value of more than one ticket. In other words, if you had a six day base ticket and a one day base, you could not add the value of both to end up with one ticket of six or more days with one or more of the options. If, however, you have three tickets and are paying to upgrade each of them, this can be done on one transaction. (See the special note below about water parks.)

Any upgrade must be done at WDW at a location with access to the Automated Ticketing System (ATS). Basically this is any park (including water park) ticket window or Guest Services location, or one of the Downtown Disney Guest Services locations. The Lobby Concierge staff at the Resorts do not have all the accesses we have at the Parks. It cannot be done at a Disney Store.

Any MYW ticket (other than Florida Resident Play Three or Play Four or any type of Annual Pass, discussed later) can be upgraded within 14 days of first use. There are no exceptions. This applies even if the ticket has the No Expire Option.

Note that you can add days or WPF&M to any ticket that has all the major theme park days used, provided it is still within 14 days of first use. However, you can not exceed ten days of total major park entitlements.

A Florida Resident Play Three or Play Four ticket, which has a six month validity, may be upgraded within six months of first use. However, if it is upgraded by adding days (not to Seasonal or Annual Pass) and it is more than 14 days after first use, the No Expire Option must be purchased.

If you purchased your MYW ticket at a price less than the current gate selling price for that ticket (such as from a discounter/broker or Advance Purchase) and you wish to do any upgrade, Disney will not penalize you for the discount provided the ticket has been used. We will make an "intermediate" ticket at the current gate price, charging the difference between your old ticket and the intermediate one to an internal voucher account. Then we will take the intermediate ticket, which is at the current gate price, and upgrade it with the additional days and/or options you want, and you will only be charged for the differences in the current gate price plus tax. Note if you had paid full current gate price for your old ticket the intermediate step is not done.

If you purchased your ticket at less than the current gate price, and your ticket has not been used, you will have to pay the difference between what Disney actually sold the ticket for and the current gate price of the ticket you are upgrading to. It is always best to use one day from the old pass prior to taking it for an upgrade; you will then have locked in the current gate price as the value of the old pass.

The No Expire option is price is based on the total number of entitlements the ticket has had. If you had an original three day ticket, added five days and then used four days you will have four days of use remaining. If you upgrade to NE you will pay the rate for eight days.

Similarly, if you had a three day NE ticket and upgraded it to five days, you would pay not only the fee for the extra two days entries but the difference between the three-day and five-day NE option.

At the water parks only, if you have a one day water park ticket that is unused or has been used within the last 14 days you can combine that ticket with a MYW ticket to add the WPF&M option to the MYW ticket, only paying the difference between what was paid for the water park ticket and the current price of the MYW option (plus tax).

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An upgrade to an Annual Pass or Premium Annual Pass follows basically the same rules as any other upgrade of MYW tickets.

Note that any upgrade requires a cash (or cash equivalent) payment and can only be done on a one to one basis. You cannot combine the value of more than one ticket. In other words, if you had a six day base ticket and a one day base, you could not add the value of both to end up with an AP, even with additional payment. If, however, you have three tickets and are paying to upgrade each of them, this can be done on one transaction.

Any upgrade must be done at WDW at a location with access to the Automated Ticketing System (ATS). Basically this is any park (including water park) ticket window or Guest Services location, or one of the Downtown Disney Guest Services locations. The Lobby Concierge staff at the Resorts are not able to handle any AP transactions.

Guests are able to upgrade or modify their MYW tickets any time within 14 days of first use, regardless of whether the No Expiration Option is purchased. After 14 days no ticket modifications or upgrades may take place.

If you purchased your MYW ticket at a price less than the current gate selling price for that ticket (such as from a discounter/broker or Advance Purchase) and you wish to do any upgrade, Disney will not penalize you for the discount provided the ticket has been used. We will make an "intermediate" ticket at the current gate price, charging the difference between your old ticket and the intermediate one to an internal voucher account. Then we will take the intermediate ticket, which is at the current gate price, and upgrade it with the additional days and/or options you want, and you will only be charged for the differences in the current gate price plus tax. Note if you had paid full current gate price for your old ticket the intermediate step is not done.

If you purchased your ticket at less than the current gate price, and your ticket has not been used, you will have to pay the difference between what Disney actually sold the ticket for and the current gate price of the ticket you are upgrading to. It is always best to use one day from the old pass prior to taking it for an upgrade; you will then have locked in the current gate price as the value of the old pass.

If you have been a Passholder (SP, AP or PAP) and you are renewing your Pass within the renewal window you may upgrade a MYW ticket to the Pass using the renewal rate. All other upgrade rules apply, except the expiration date will be one year from the expiration date of the old pass.

If the MYW ticket has been used, the expiration date of the AP will be set to one year from the date of first use of the ticket being upgraded. If the ticket has not been used, the expiration date will be one year from the date of the upgrade.

When upgrading to Annual Pass, if the Guest's original ticket included Water Park Fun & More Option, and any part of that option was used, then the Guest may only upgrade to the Premium Annual Pass. If none of the WPF&M options were used then upgrading may be done to a regular AP.

A Florida Resident who is upgrading a "Play Three" or "Play Four" ticket may do the upgrade any time within six months of the date of first use. The Florida Resident will also have the option of a Weekday Select Pass or Seasonal Pass, as well as an AP or PAP.

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Almost all tickets issued prior to 2005 (other than Length of Stay, Bounce Back, or Annual Passes) had no expiration. This includes both the major park entries and the minor park plus options. One exception is the World Hopper; for this ticket all WPF&M entries expire seven days from first use, although the major park entries remained valid.

At the current time any prior passes are valid at all four of the major parks, even if one or more of the parks did not exist when the ticket was issued.

If a prior ticket, unused or partially used, was not on stock with a magnetic stripe, or the magnetic stripe was demagnetized, you can get the tickets replaced at no charge at any park (including water parks or TTC) ticket booth or Guest Relations Office. Note that this cannot be done at Resort Lobby Concierge locations as they do not have full access to the ticketing computer.

No pre-MYW ticket can be modified or upgraded in any manner.

If you have unused pre-MYW tickets you can use the original Disney selling price of one ticket as a credit to the purchase price of any current ticket with a selling price equal to or higher than the value of the old ticket. However, it probably will make more economic sense to use the ticket for entries. This will depend a lot on what the determined dollar value is.

Note that if the ticket was purchased from a discounter/broker the value given is what Disney sold the ticket for to the discounter/broker and not what you paid for it.

If you have a partially used pre-MYW ticket it cannot be upgraded, but the remaining entitlements can be used. If the ticket has become demagnetized, as long as the serial number string is readable a replacement ticket, with the same remaining entitlements, can be issued.

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Disney has four age categories which are used for Resorts but three categories for park entry.

Infant is any person less than three years old.

Child is any person at least three years old but not more than nine years old.

Junior is a person at least ten years old but not more than 17. For ticketing and meal purposes a junior is considered an adult, but for Resort rooms a junior is considered a child. (Note that there is a fee at the Disney Resorts for more than two people age 18 or older in a room.)

Adult is anyone 18 years old or older.

An Infant is allowed entry into any of the parks without a ticket. In restaurants that are buffet or all you can eat (AYCE) an infant can have their own plate and beverage at no charge. In menu service restaurants, as well as counter service, if items are ordered specifically for the infant they must be paid for; if eating from parent's plate there is no charge.

A child must have a ticket for park entry. Normally a child's ticket will either state "child" or "Age 3 - 9" on it. Children's tickets do not require finger scans. In restaurants a child will pay a reduced price at buffet or AYCE, and generally will order from a special menu at menu service restaurants.

Juniors and Adults must have an adult ticket for park entry. Normally these tickets will say either "Adult" or "Age 10+" on them. Finger scans are required for all adult tickets.

Disney does not penalize children for growing older. If you have a partially used child's ticket, and the child is now 10 or older, you may exchange the child's ticket for an adult ticket with the same remaining entitlements and no charge.

The child for which this is being done must be present at the ticket window when this is being done. The age difference must be reasonable! For example, if the child appears to still be a pre-teen, and the ticket is two or more years old they should be no problem. However, if the child appears to be 16 and the ticket is only a year old this will not be done.

This applies whether the ticket is MYW or pre-MYW.

However, if the ticket has never been used, the ticket may only be upgraded to a ticket with at least the same entitlements and the guest must pay the difference.

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There are currently five different special events at the parks, all of which require special tickets. These fall into three categories. These are referred to as "hard ticket events" and regular MYW tickets up to and including Premium Annual Passes are not valid for these events. All of these tickets are date specific, and can only be used on the specified date.

The first category is Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party (MNSSHP) and Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party (MVMCP). These generally run from 7:00pm until Midnight on selected nights in one of the Parks. Tickets become available several months in advance.

Tickets may be purchased at any location on WDW that sells tickets or via on-line, mail or telephone.

For most included nights there are two tiers of pricing, one is for tickets purchased the day of the event and the other is for discounted tickets available for most days. When advance sale tickets are offered, they must be purchased no later than Midnight of the day prior to the event. For some of the dates there are special deeper discounts available to people who are AP holders or DVC Members. The AP or DVC Membership Card must be shown both when the tickets are purchased and when entering the park.

The tickets for this category will allow Guests into the Park as early as 4:00pm on the day of the event. Special wristbands will be attached to each person to allow them to remain in the park. There may be locations within the Park set up with ticket scanners to read and record any tickets so people who had entered the park earlier with a regular ticket may receive a wristband to allow them to remain in the park.

Once 7:00 comes all people without wristbands will be asked to leave. There will be CMs at the entrance to each store, eatery and attraction to prevent anyone without a wristband from entering. There will also be checkpoints at various locations, asking people to leave the park and not allowing them further progress.

The second category is Night of Joy (NoJ), which is normally two nights in early September, and Grad Night (GN), which is several nights in May and June. The Grad Nights tickets cannot be purchased on property, but are handled through schools.

Unlike MNSSHP and MVMCP, for these two events the park is actually cleared of all Guests prior to allowing in the NoJ or GN participants.

The third category is when a park (and it can be any one, not just MK) is sold for the evening/night to an outside group or promoter. In these situations WDW will provide staffing in the park so attractions can operate and retail and food outlets are open, but the promoter will handle all ticket sales and be responsible for controlling access. Again, all Guests will be cleared from the park prior to opening the gates for the special event.

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This post includes the assumption you have a ten day MYW ticket with both the Park Hopper and Water Park Fun and More (WPF&M) options.

Hopefully this will make it a little clearer. In effect you have two tickets with different priveleges on one card. Everything expires 14 days after first use unless you have the no-expire (NE) option. If you have the NE option all the entitlements are good until they are used up. Even if you use up all your major park days, the WPF&M entries remain valid until used. (Note you do not have to use the days consecutively.)

You have ten days of access to the four major parks (AK, DHS, EC, MK), and may visit more than one major park on a single day without any extra charges. Without the Park Hopper option you can only go to one major park per day.

You have ten entries to the minor parks (BB, DQ, OT, TL, WWS). These may or may not be used on the same days as you go to the major parks. However, if you went to TL in the morning, Oak Trail in the afternoon, and Disney Quest in the evening of one day you would have used three of the ten entries. (Note that leaving and returning to the same minor park on the same day does not use an extra entry.)

If you go to minor parks only on one day and do not go to a major park you do not use up one of your major park days.

If you were to go to a Water Park in the morning and then one of the major parks for the remainder of the day you would have used one minor park entry and one day of major park entry.

Note that with the MYW ticket unless you have the hopper option you can only go to one major park per day. Unless you have the WPF&M option you cannot go to a minor park without upgrading or purchasing a separate ticket.

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Every person staying at a Disney owned and operated resort on WDW, age 3 or older, is given a Key To The World (KTTW). It is a card about the size of a credit card with the person’s name and dates of stay printed on the card.

To start off with, it is the Room Key. It is also sometimes referred to as the Guest ID and must be presented for access to Extra Magic Hours.

Generally it will have two numeric strings on it. One always starting with “079" which will have ticket information in that string and the other starting with “99" which ties in to your reservation.

If you purchased any sort of room package, with room and tickets, it will have your ticket serial number encoded on the card and it will work as your ticket. If you did not purchase a package, and reserved “room only”, you can have your tickets (as long as they are not Annual Passes) added onto your room key. This way you do not have to carry two items, and your name is on them.

If your package includes the Disney Dining Plan it will state that on the card, and indicate how many adults and how many children are registered for the dining plan.

If you upgrade your pass you will see no physical change to the card. Adding extra days, hopping, WPF&M, or No Expire, or any combination will be changed in the ticketing system only and you will keep the same card.

If you attempt to upgrade a KTTW to any sort of Annual Pass it may mess up your reservation and dining plan, if any. If you are planning to upgrade to an AP you have two choices. One is to wait until your last day and you have checked out of the Resort and used all your Dining Credits. The other is to have someone at either the Resort Front Desk or the Lobby Concierge remove your tickets from the KTTW and put them on separate cards; you can then have these separate cards upgraded with no problem.

If you should lose a KTTW contact your Resort Front Desk as soon as possible to protect against unauthorized charges. They will issue you a new card with different numbers upon showing proper identification. If the card should become demagnetized someone at Guest Relations can allow you into a park after verifying with your Resort that it is a proper ticket but it should be replaced a soon as possible, as while it is demagnetized you cannot use it for FastPasses, Dining or Charging or getting into your room.

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There are several different methods of recovering from lost tickets. Some are fairly simple and others are complicated; all are time-consuming. In all of these methods if the original lost ticket is ever found it cannot be used, as it is voided by a replacement being issued.

Very easy is Florida Residents and Annual Passholders. For this you can go to any park ticket booth or Guest Relations Office (GRO) with proper identification. The tickets are registered by name, address and birth date. It is very simple to reissue the lost ticket this way.

Also easy is a lost Key To The World on a currently active reservation. For this you would have to go to your Resort Front Desk and by showing proper identification they can reissue the KTTW with a new number. If, however, your KTTW has No Expire tickets and your reservation ended it has to be handled at GRO.

For safety always record the ticket serial numbers and keep these numbers separate from the tickets. These can be a photocopy of the ticket, a receipt which shows the serial numbers, or just a sheet of paper where the serial numbers are written.

Generally there are three types of tickets. The ones issued at WDW and the Orlando Area discount vendors, the ones from The Disney Store or by mail order (these are on heavy plastic stock) and the third are the KTTW, which are the room keys issued at the Disney Resorts. On a KTTW the ticket number is about a 17 digit long number always starting with “079".

The other two will have an alphanumeric string similar to the following: WXX:999 MM/DD/YY 99999. The first letter will always be a “W”, the next two can be any of several combinations. The numbers after the colon may be anything from 001 up to 999; on some tickets it may say CAS:999. This indicates what terminal at the location issued the ticket. The MM/DD/YY is the numeric month, date, and year when the particular ticket was printed. The last set of numbers, 99999 may be any number from one to five digits, and it identifies the sequential number of the ticket printed on that date from that particular terminal at the specified location. Some tickets may also have a field TR:9999 which works to identify the transaction but is not needed.

If you have the ticket serial number your ticket can be replaced at any park ticket office or GRO. If you purchased your tickets from a discounter, especially by mail order, they may be able to provide you with the serial numbers of the tickets.

Now the fun starts. This is where you do not have the serial number of the ticket. For the following you need to be at a Park or DTD GRO for assistance. If you did not buy them directly from WDW and you do not have the serial numbers we may not be able to assist you. (Note that buying at WDW does include tickets issued from will-call or by use of an exchange certificate or voucher.)

If you have a group of tickets that were all purchased as part of the same or consecutive transactions and you are missing one or more tickets, and you still have one or more tickets from this group available, we can research the tickets and can usually determine the missing tickets.

If your ticket was on a KTTW we can contact your Resort Front Desk and determine the ticket number. If the ticket is valid for that park we can give you a one day ticket to allow access to the park and FastPass machines. We will make en entry in the system to show your ticket as being used. You will have the option of canceling that KTTW and getting it replaced at the Front Desk (if you are sure it is lost) or leaving it active if you think it was only left in your room.

If it was not on a KTTW and we can determine the ticket, we will cancel the old ticket and issue a “continuation” ticket with a different number but the same entitlements, use history, and finger-scan tie in. If the old ticket is found it will be invalid.

If you have the receipt or transaction number we can research the transaction and replace the missing tickets, with the same effects as stated in the previous paragraph.,

If you have the Credit Card which was used for the purchase we can scan the card and it will pull up all ticket transactions which used that card. Once we have the transaction we can examine the tickets and reissue them as necessary.

If you received the tickets from The Disney Store, a discounter, or a Military Recreation Office (other than at Shades of Green); in other words anywhere off the Walt Disney World Resort Property, and you do not have something which gives the ticket numbers we probably will not be able to assist you.

[Cheshire Figment]

The finger scans are used to tie a person to a particular ticket. This will work to prevent people switching or selling tickets. It also eliminates the need for hand stamps for reentry to a park or hopping between parks.

First of all, Child (Age 3-9) and certain other tickets, such as the YES Program, do not take scans and will unlock the turnstile if they are valid for the park.

The first time a ticket is used it will read the fingerprint and select an area about 1/4 inch by 1/8 inch and analyze that area.

It will then apply a mathematical algorithm to that reading, convert it to a numeric string, and store that string of numbers tied to the serial number of the ticket in the Automated Ticketing System (ATS) computer.

On subsequent entries ATS will look for that particular string on the ticket. If it finds it, the turnstile will unlock and a green light will come on.

If ATS cannot find that string, a message will show up of "identification fails". At that point the greeter will have several options; one of these is to tell ATS to replace the numeric string tied to the ticket with a new once based on the most recent scan.

If MYW tickets were purchased at WDW directly from ATS in one transaction they may be linked together, in which case the people can switch the tickets, but don’t count on this working.

And there are times when the lines are very long and management may decide to turn off the scanners for a while, in which case as long as the ticket is valid for that park it will be accepted without a scan.

If a person does not want to have their finger scanned, as an alternative they may present a photo ID where the name matches the name printed on the ticket. If it is a Florida Resident Ticket or an Annual Pass the name will automatically be printed on the ticket. If the name is not preprinted on the ticket, the ticket owner should print their name (in ink) legibly in the space provided on the ticket.

Note that this is not a full fingerprint record, and the partial print still has about a one in a thousand chance of being duplicated.

[Cheshire Figment]

Here are a few of the most commonly asked questions about tickets and expanded answers for them.

A. I have a base ticket for eight days, although I will only be spending six days in the Parks. The day I have for Animal Kingdom I also have a dinner reservation at Epcot. May I use one of my “extra” days for evening admission to Epcot?

A base ticket is one major (theme) park per day. You are allowed to re-enter the same park if you leave it on one day, but it can only be used at the one park.

Note that the ticket will state on it either "Not Valid For Park Hopping" or "One Theme Park Per Day". That should be a hint.

If you put the ticket in the turnstile of another park the display on the Guest side of the turnstile will be "ACCESS DENIED". The top line of the display on the Greeter side will give information about the ticket, and the second line of the display will say "CROSSOVER NOT PERMITTED". The turnstile will not unlock.

This is because Disney charges $3.00 per day over four days on an adult ticket, but charges $52 to allow hopping. It does not make economic sense for Disney to allow this.

If you actually have multiple tickets (more than one physical ticket per person) as opposed to multiple day tickets, you can use these tickets for multiple entries. But it makes absolutely no economic sense as a separate ticket costs a lot more than adding hopping to a ticket.

B. I am buying a ten day hopper with WPF&M and No Expire. What happens to the WPF&M entries when I use up all my major (theme) park days?

In effect you have two tickets with different privleges on one card. Since you have the NE option all the entitlements are good until they are used up. Even if you use up all your major park days, the WPF&M enries remain valid until used. (Note you do not have to use the days consecutively.)

You have ten days of access to the four major parks (AK, DHS, EC, MK), and may visit more than one major park on a single day without any extra charges. Without the Park Hopper option you can only go to one major park per day.

You have ten entries to the minor parks (BB, DQ, OT, TL, WWS). These may or may not be used on the same days as you go to the major parks. However, if you went to TL in the morning, Oak Trail Golf in the afternoon, and Disney Quest in the evening of one day you would have used three of the ten entries. (Note that leaving and returning to the same minor park on the same day does not use an extra entry.)

If you go to minor parks only on one day and do not go to a major park you do not use up one of your major park days.

If you were to go to a Water Park in the morning and then one of the major parks for the remainder of the day you would have used one minor park entry and one day of major park entry.

C. I have a No Expire ticket I originally used for my last trip, but it is not a park hopper. Since I have a few days left on it, can I add the Park Hopper option this trip.

No, you cannot. No MYW ticket may be modified or upgraded in any way more then 14 days after first use. This means no adding of days, hopper option, WPF&M option or upgrade to Annual Pass.

If ticket was issued before January 2, 2005 (Pre-Magic Your Way) and any entries have been used it cannot be upgraded. This applies even if the first use of the ticket has been on the current trip.

The only exception to this rule is the Florida Resident Play-3 and Play-4 tickets. These may be upgraded within six months of the date of first use.

D. I have a completely unused ticket that I want to upgrade. Is there anything special I should know.

There are three possible answers to this question.

If this is a ticket for which you have paid the full Current Gate Price (CGP) there is no problem. You may upgrade it either before it has been used or after first use. If after date of first use it must be no later than 14 days from first use, even if you have the No Expire option. If it was sold as part of a package and is on your current trip KTTW it is considered to have been sold at the CGP.

If this is a ticket which was sold by Disney for less than the CGP you need to use the ticket before upgrading it. If you try to upgrade the ticket before using it, Disney will only allow you credit for the amount they sold the ticket for. If it was bought directly from WDW before a price increase it is only worth what you paid for it. If it was bought from outside of WDW, such as a discounter, AAA, a travel agent, or even The Disney Store the amount credited will be what the seller paid WDW for it, not the amount you were charged.

However, if the ticket was used at least once, then the CGP is locked into the ticket as its value. The ticket seller (in a booth or GRO) will first issue an “intermediate” ticket at the current gate price and charge the difference between the initial selling price and the CGP to an internal account. These intermediate tickets will then be upgraded to add days and/or options to your target, and you will only be charged the difference between the CGP of the intermediate ticket and he new ticket.

If your unused ticket was pre-MYW your best bet is to just use the ticket. You will not get any high value for it when unused and once it is used it cannot be upgraded.

E. I have a special ticket I would like to upgrade. Can this be done?

The only upgrades that can be done are to regular or Florida Resident MYW tickets, or Annual Passes to a higher level of Annual Pass.

Special Tickets include Touch of Magic, YES (Youth Educational Series) Program, used or unused Special Event Tickets (MNNSHP, MVMCP, NoJ) after the date of the event, any ticket that includes the word “comp” or “complimentary” on it, and any tickets that are not sold at the Park Gates cannot be upgraded or modified in any way. The last group also includes convention tickets and the Ultimate Park Hopper tickets not sold in the US or Canada.

F. How can I Check on What Remains on Old Tickets?

Any Ticket Window or Guest Services Location can read your old tickets and tell what the remaining entitlements are. Also, if the ticket has become demagnetized they can issue replacements. The Resort Lobby Concierges may not be able to read all tickets.

See Post #13 in this thread for how to determine the serial number of the ticket(s)

There used to be a special phone number which you could all. It appears to be no longer available.

G. What are the rules for Renewal Annual Passes (and what About Renewal Vouchers)?

To renew any sort of Annual Pass it must be done within 30 days of either side of the expiration date. Note that upgrading or downgrading of any annual product may be done at the special renewal rate.

Normally this is done at any park (including water park or TTC) ticket booth or any Guest Relations Office (including DTD). It cannot be done at a Resort.

If you renew prior to the expiration date, the new pass will not be valid until the expiration date of the old pass. If you renew after the expiration date the effective date will bve backdated. In any event, using the renewal rate will have the new pass expire on the same date the next year. (See Post #19A for current special 15 month promotion.)

If you have a MYW ticket you may upgrade that ticket to a WSP, SP, AP or PAP at the renewal rate just as any other upgrade as long as you are within the renewal window. The rules for expiration date stay the same as any other renewal.

If you are not at WDW you can get a voucher at the renewal rate sent to you. However, this can be a multi-edged sword.

If you renew within one year after the expiration date of your current pass it will be just the same as if you renewed at WDW with the expiration date one year from the date of the old pass. If you will be activating the voucher more than a month or two away you might find that it would have been better to pay the full price and have the anniversary date changed.

While a voucher for purchase of an AP is valid forever and may be exchanged without penalty after several years the rules for a renewal are different.

As stated above, with a renewal voucher used within a year from expiration it will not change the expiration date. However, if it is used more than a year from the expiration date the value will only be what you paid for the voucher toward the current gate price of a new AP. so you will have to pay more on redemption.

H. Upgrading a Completely Used Ticket

In some circumstances you may want to upgrade a completely used ticket. Normally this will have to be done when you have used all your major park entries and suddenly decide that you need more days, such as your home airport is closed for a blizzard or you still want to use more than one WPF&M entry.

Take your ticket to any ticket location as long as it is within 14 days of first use, and the total number of days on the ticket is less than ten. They will follow the same procedures to add extra days and/or WPF&M, add extra days and also the NE options, or upgrade to an Annual Pass. The same rules apply as for any other upgrade (as shown in Posts #6 and #7).

Note that a fully used Florida Resident Play-3 or Play-4 may be upgraded at any time within six months of first use. If adding days beyond four, and it is more than 14 days from date of first use, then the NE option must also be added. Note that Florida Resident tickets are limited to seven days, not ten.