Disneyland Eliminates Early Entry for Resort Hotel Guests Beginning January 5, 2026

[gottalovepluto]

At least the closing of the PP entrance is for the Coco ride…

If that was the reason it was idiotic to update the entry gates when they did.

 

[DisneyAndreaM]

Spot on!

Me!

Going next month and staying at Disneyland hotel even though the Westin is half the price

 

[o&smom]

My husband started traveling some for work a few years ago and staying at Hilton properties. Our last few visits to DL we have stayed at the Hilton down the street for free. I missed some of the perks of the park hotels, but...free. Now, I won’t even have any thoughts of things we are missing.

 

[gottalovepluto]

This statement doesn't make sense to me. The PP entrance is adjacent to Seaside Souvenirs and across from the Golden Zephyr. My understanding is the Coco attraction is supposed to be situated behind the TSM attraction where some buildings exist that are used for parades or storage (?) and that the entrance to the Coco attraction would adjacent to Boardwalk Pizza.

If they are removing the PP entrance for the Coco attraction then TWDC would need to be removing some combination of Corn Dog Castle, Grand Californian Resort, Goofy Sky School and/or Paradise Gardens because those are the adjacent areas to the PP entrance. I have not heard that TWDC is tearing out any of those attractions, restaurants, or hotels for the new Coco attraction.

I am quite confident that the closing of the PP entrance is not for the Coco attraction but to cut costs. I suspect that DLR is now at a point that the best options for cutting costs is to eliminate on-site resort guest benefits. Increase prices and decrease costs.

Although this is speculation on my part, I am assuming that DLR will start booking 2026 vacations soon and there will be a price increase for all on-site hotels.

I recall reading that LA has passed a new ordinance to annually increase minimum wage for hotel staff to $30 / hour over the next few years (ending in 2028 for the Olympics?). Perhaps DLR (although not in LA) needs to increase hotel staff wages to make sure that they continue to staff their hotels? That's why TWDC would justify eliminating "extras" for onsite resort guests and thereby eliminating the CMs needed to staff the EE resort guests. After all, it isn't just parks that need to staff EE resort guests. The hotels need to staff security, front desk, concierge, food/beverage, maintenance, etc. for the EE guests too.

This is a lot more money being saved than enough for hotel staff raises to be competitive with LA.

The conspiracy theorist in me wonders if Disney has received tariff updated quotes for their expansions and they were woefully unprepared for their new reality. Maybe they shouldn’t have waited so long to kick their grandiose ideas into gear…

 

[ComeToSocialize]

Clearly a cost cutting measure. While a good number of guests use EE, they must have calc'd that it was a small enough fraction of the total on-site guests where they could cut it. I view this as very short-sighted by DL management.

One of the points of EE was that it is a perk you CANNOT get without staying on-site. You can't buy it separately (other than that period pre-covid where 3 days tix included a day of EE). I can buy lightning lanes, and while I can't buy a anytime LL, we all know how to get what we want with LL. That's basically a non-perk. I'd rather them just lower the price by $10/night (Also once per stay is a joke. It should be 2 LLs per person per day).

Similarly, the exclusive entrances should be just that, exclusive. But most of the time anyone can use them and they understaff the GCH entrance. So that's also a non-perk.

As is, I can't see a reason to stay at the DLH or PPH at all, and GCH would only be because its close. But we'll be really looking at the JW next time we consider a hotel stay.

If they don't want to spend money, here are things that would actually be nice perks for on-site guests

• Advance access or preferred access to ADRs
• Reserved spot for parades / WOC / fireworks
• If they don't want to do EE, but let on-site guests bypass the rope drop and go directly into the queue before 8am for rides - the rope drop people could just check room keys, no cost needed
• Exclusive character meetings in the lobby (I guess this would cost some $$)
• 60 min vs 120 min LLMP cooldown period

 

[Lumpy1106]

I especially hate that this adds even more people to the lightning lanes. We just returned from WDW - RD with E.5 every day, took advantage of the 2 EMH days (EPCOT one day, MK one day), took a break every PM when it got unbearably hot, then stayed as late as we wanted when the heat and the crowds ebbed. We DID NOT need LL at all. I hope they don't make this change at WDW because that would eliminate the very perks we enjoy staying on property gets you...and we'd probably need LLMP. Hate that.

 

[hardcorestitch]

https://disneyland.disney.go.com/guest-services/early-admission-options/

Early Entry at the Disneyland Resort​

LocatedinDisneyland Resort
Prior to January 5, 2026: Guests who are checked in and staying at one of the Disneyland Resort hotels can take advantage of 30-minute early entry to a designated theme park every day of their hotel stay to enjoy select attractions, dining and shopping locations.

Each day, either Disneyland Park or Disney California Adventure Park will open early:

• Disneyland Park: Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday
• Disney California Adventure Park: Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday

Please check the theme park calendar for park opening times.

Starting January 5, 2026: Guests who are checked in and staying at one of the Disneyland Resort hotels can instead take advantage of one Lightning Lane entry to a Lightning Lane Multi Pass attraction during their Resort stay.

Valid theme park admission and a park reservation for the same park on the same date are also required for Guests (ages 3+). Park reservations are limited, subject to availability and not guaranteed. Lightning Lane Multi Pass entry benefit for hotel guests is subject to attraction availability and restrictions, including the Lightning Lane Multi Pass terms and conditions.

Available During Early Entry – Through January 4, 2026​

During early entry admission, Guests may enjoy the following offerings.

Disneyland Park Attractions

• Alice in Wonderland
• Astro Orbitor
• Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
• Disneyland Monorail
• Dumbo the Flying Elephant
• King Arthur Carrousel
• Mad Tea Party
• Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride
• Peter Pan's Flight
• Pinocchio’s Daring Journey
• Snow White’s Enchanted Wish
• Space Mountain
• Star Tours – The Adventures Continue

Disneyland Park Dining and Shopping

• Esplanade Stroller Shop
• Little Green Men Store Command
• Little Red Wagon
• Main Street Fruit Cart
• Market House
• The Star Trader

Disney California Adventure Park Attractions

• Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: BREAKOUT!
• Incredicoaster
• The Little Mermaid – Ariel’s Undersea Adventure
• Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree
• Monsters Inc. Mike & Sulley to the Rescue!
• Soarin' Around the World
• WEB SLINGERS: A Spider-Man Adventure

Disney California Adventure Park Dining and Shopping

• Cappuccino Cart
• The Collector’s Warehouse
• Esplanade Stroller Shop
• Fiddler, Fifer & Practical Cafe
• Fillmore’s Taste-In

All offerings may vary and are subject to restrictions, change or cancellation without notice, and not guaranteed. To learn about any closures or long-term refurbishments, please check for the latest details about attractions, dining and shopping online or via the Disneyland app.

Know Before You Go​

• The early entry benefit is only for Guests who are checked in and currently staying at one of the Disneyland Resort hotels at the time of their early entry admission to a theme park, prior to January 5, 2026.
• The Lightning Lane entry benefit is available to Guests who are checked in and staying at one of the Disneyland Resort hotels on or after January 5, 2026.
• To enjoy early entry admission or the Lightning Lane entry benefit, as applicable, a Guest (age 3+) must be checked in and staying at one of the Disneyland Resort hotels and have valid theme park admission and a park reservation for the same park on the same date.
• Link theme park tickets or passes, theme park reservations and hotel reservations to the Disneyland app to show verification of these requirements. To view Tickets and Passes in the app, select “My Tickets & Passes” in the menu (≡). To view hotel dates of stay, select “Hotel Reservations”.
• Guests with one-park-per-day tickets must spend the day at the same park where they are enjoying the early entry period.
• Guests with a Park Hopper ticket can enjoy early entry in that day’s designated theme park and may cross over and switch between parks on the same day beginning at 11:00 AM, subject to park capacity.
• Applicable theme parks, days and times of operation, attractions, services and offerings for the early entry benefit may vary and are subject to change, availability, capacity and cancellation without notice, and not guaranteed.
• Lightning Lane Multi Pass entry benefit for hotel guests is subject to attraction availability and restrictions, including the Lightning Lane Multi Pass terms and conditions.

Shame on Disneyland. Shame on Disneyland. Now I have one less reason to stay at a Disney hotel down there.

 

[hsmamainva]

OMG...THIS IS HORRIBLE! What incentive would you possibly have to pay those ridiculous prices??????

Look out...that means Harbor hotels will be flooded....good thing I have all my CCI rezzies for next year already made!

I agree! We booked today at the Courtyard Theme Park Entrance & saved $2,000 over the same package at Pixar Place! That’s insane!

 

[irlandaise]

We used EE to get on RSR and was planning on it again for our Feb. visit.

You mean you used the Early Entry time to get to the head of the line for RSR when the park officially opened, right? Because RSR itself is not an EE ride, correct?

 

[Tinkaboo]

Man, this thread is on fire...5 pages in 3 hours! People are irate...and rightly so...IMHO I would see no reason to drop those kind of dollars for NOTHING!
It really isn't a "bubble"...if I want that, I'll gladly go to WDW where I am truly in "the bubble", utilizing THEIR transportation, higher end amenities,

 

[TheZachShow]

Disney is going to find the straw that breaks the camel's back eventually at this rate. They've burned through a ton of goodwill in their base in the past few years. I've been a lifelong Disney fan and I'm probably not going to be going to Disney as much going forward.

 

[mdmost]

I'm a little shocked by this move. Not too shocked given current Disney cost cutting. As someone who only can make the trip every few years and has stayed onsite in Orlando, I just never see the benefit to staying at a Disney owned hotel for Disneyland trips. I get wanting to stay in the bubble and maybe I'm just leery about how far my money needs to go but I just can't ever make it make sense to stay onsite. This move just further solidifies that there's no true benefit to staying there versus staying at the Courtyard Theme Park hotel like we've done the past 3 times. The walk is comparable, the rooms are larger, we get 2 showers, we get 3 beds. There is some theming in the room. I guess if money were no object, the onsite hotels would make sense to me. It isn't so it just doesn't make it worthwhile. Not for almost 2 to 3 thousand more per trip.

What I can't understand is how Disney thinks this won't have a big impact on their sales? Your lone, true benefit left is the Disney bubble. Is that enough now?

 

[Tinkaboo]

Scott Gustin is reporting the benefit “was not widely used” and that DVC will not get the single free LL.

Hotel guests should at a minimum get 1 LL per day. Per stay is cheap as all get out.

And Scott Gustin is just a DL PR flack...reporting the company line.

 

[hardcorestitch]

Man, this thread is on fire...5 pages in 3 hours! People are irate...and rightly so...IMHO I would see no reason to drop those kind of dollars for NOTHING!
It really isn't a "bubble"...if I want that, I'll gladly go to WDW where I am truly in "the bubble", utilizing THEIR transportation, higher end amenities,

…and they have lots of restaurant choices too. It’s like the Disney Experiences CEO must have consulted with the Evil Queen in this decision.

 

[Disneyland1084]

One good thing about this is you know all the managers and owners of the Good Neighbor hotels and businesses are thrilled about this.

 

[Tinkaboo]

They will. Trust me. Disneyland is going to lose $$$ from their hotels. I always stay onsite and early entry was a perk I used. But why not look at the higher-end offsite hotels now if it is a great deal. The market always dictates.

Yes, in recalling your great trip reports, I thought you always stayed onsite...what will you do now?

 

[irlandaise]

Like everyone else here, I understand that this change must be to save Disney money on staffing costs. But I'm having trouble figuring out how.

Say, for example, that a bunch of CMs have to show up at 5:30 a.m. in order to open certain rides at 7:30. If they have eight-hour shifts with one-hour lunch breaks (I may be optimistic about that, but that shouldn't affect my question), they'll be off work for the day at 2:30 p.m.

When EE goes away, they can come in at 6:00 and leave at 3:00. So DL/DCA may have more people than they need from 2:30 to 3:00, but the company can't say, "Go home at 2:30 and we'll only pay you for 7.5 hours," can they?

Even if the EE people are all part-timers, isn't there a minimum workday of four hours or something like that, so won't they still work the same number of hours, just shifted by 1/2 hour?

I've been self-employed nearly my whole life, so if I'm way off base on how assigned shifts work, please excuse me! But how exactly does Disney save money from cutting out that extra half hour?

 

[irlandaise]

Disney is going to find the straw that breaks the camel's back eventually at this rate. They've burned through a ton of goodwill in their base in the past few years. I've been a lifelong Disney fan and I'm probably not going to be going to Disney as much going forward.

I would be very interested in seeing how they costed out this move. What revenue changes they expect at each of the three hotels, and whether, as you say, they considered that some people might no longer come to DLR at all (or at least at a reduced frequency), even with an outside hotel.

 

[BrianL]

This statement doesn't make sense to me. The PP entrance is adjacent to Seaside Souvenirs and across from the Golden Zephyr. My understanding is the Coco attraction is supposed to be situated behind the TSM attraction where some buildings exist that are used for parades or storage (?) and that the entrance to the Coco attraction would adjacent to Boardwalk Pizza.

If they are removing the PP entrance for the Coco attraction then TWDC would need to be removing some combination of Corn Dog Castle, Grand Californian Resort, Goofy Sky School and/or Paradise Gardens because those are the adjacent areas to the PP entrance. I have not heard that TWDC is tearing out any of those attractions, restaurants, or hotels for the new Coco attraction.

I am quite confident that the closing of the PP entrance is not for the Coco attraction but to cut costs. I suspect that DLR is now at a point that the best options for cutting costs is to eliminate on-site resort guest benefits. Increase prices and decrease costs.

Oh, maybe I have my geography off. I just know that the Coco ride is going on that side of the park and the PPH is on that side of the park, so I figured that was why. Maybe staging/construction is going ot need some of that space? If they just clsoed it to close it, then that is indeed lame.

 

[juxtapose]

Not me assuming that sad single LL would be for every day you had a ticket while staying on site. One per person for a whole trip is a joke.