Lifetime Pass (from the 70's)

[Bearvet]

DFIL recently had friends stay with him at his timeshare in Orlando. He said the friends had lifetime passes to WDW that they bought in the 1970s. They can go to any park and also park hop (They did all 4 parks in 1 day just to do it!)! Do you know any of the history behind these passes? I only wish my family had bought them too!

 

[IndyClown]

LOL....that's great! Probably only cost about $100 too.

 

[jenseib]

That would be so cool.
heck they were probably 50 back then!

 

[seashoreCM]

I'm told that those passes costed about $1000. each. A one day ticket cost about $7. and had something like ten coupons each good for one of a small group of rides (groups labeled A through E with E being the most spectacular). A few rides did not need coupons. It was common for one to buy additional ride coupons thus the typical daily ticket budget would have been around ten dollars. So it would take 100 days of regular tickets to break even with the lifetime pass not counting inflation.

Normally tickets are not honored at parks that didn't exist when the ticket was printed so theoretically the lifetime pass was only good at Magic Kingdom. Currently the policy has been to extend validity of old tickets to all 4 theme parks.

I suspect that one of the reasons for offering lifetime passes was to get upfront cash to pay off the bonds used to finance building the park.

OT: I'm told that the Swan and Dolphin hotel owners at that time were given a long term lease for those hotel locations to raise capital to finance Epcot.

Disney hints: http://www.cockam.com/dispass.htm

 

[selina4disney]

I'm told that those passes cost about $1000. each. A one day ticket cost about $7. and had something like ten coupons each good for one of a small group of rides (groups labeled A through E with E being the most spectacular). A few rides did not need coupons. It was common for one to buy additional ride coupons thus the typical daily ticket budget would have been around ten dollars. So it would take 100 days of regular tickets to break even with the lifetime pass not counting inflation.

Normally tickets are not honored at parks that didn't exist when the ticket was printed so theoretically the lifetime pass was only good at Magic Kingdom. Currently the policy has been to extend validity of old tickets to all 4 theme parks.

Disney hints: http://www.cockam.com/dispass.htm

That is very interesting...nice little tidbit....never knew they were only good at MK. Not that I have one anyway, but I wish I did!

 

[thesupersmartguy]

http://allears.net/aa/aa030606.htm

Last question.

 

[thesupersmartguy]

Or this, I found it on another site.

News Release from the AFP wire:

(AFP) -- Anaheim, California -- The Walt Disney Company is expected to unveil a new marketing campaign this spring that will feature a limited time offer of a lifetime pass good at all Disney-branded amusement parks worldwide. The campaign is part of Disney's "Year of One Million Dreams" promotion. Only one thousand of the passes will be available. Propective purchasers must submit an application and may request from one to four passes, which will be priced at $5000 each. The passes will be valid for admission to any amusement park operated by Disney or under a license from Disney anywhere in the world.

"We've offered annual passes to our California and Florida parks for many years," noted Disney spokesperson Aprile Sciocco, "but the concept of a lifetime pass goes back even further." Sciocco noted that the first to guests to the Disneyland themepark in Anahiem, Kristine Vess and her cousin Michael Schwartner, ages 5 and 7, received lifetime passes to that park. Similar promotion passes have been given out at Disneyland's sister park California Adventure, and that the Walt Diseny World Resort themeparks when they opened. "Economically, it wouldn't be feasible to offer the life time passes to the public, at least not at this price," Sciocco added.

With themeparks on both coasts and in France, Japan, and Hong Kong, a passholder would log a lot of miles visiting all the parks at which the pass will be valid. According to Sciocco, lifetime passholders will be entitled to special discounts at Disney resorts and inside the parks as well, just as annual pass holders are now. There will be no blackout dates for the lifetime passes, as there are for some annual passes, but passholders will be required to purchase separate admissions for certain "hard ticket" events such as special events at Halloween and Christmas.


Disney estimates that demand for the passes will be very low. It's not the price that will keep demand low, but the fact that this press release comes from the April Fool's Press. Aprile Sciocco, by the way, is Italian (sort of) for APRIL FOOLS!!!!!

 

[Buzz Litebeer]

DFIL recently had friends stay with him at his timeshare in Orlando. He said the friends had lifetime passes to WDW that they bought in the 1970s. They can go to any park and also park hop (They did all 4 parks in 1 day just to do it!)! Do you know any of the history behind these passes? I only wish my family had bought them too!

My DW worked the front turnstiles at the MK for over 10 years and tells me that she never heard of such a thing (on one memorable occasion she saw a Gold Maingate Pass -- but that was only once).

 

[hmkenn0]

This is a Disney myth. There is no such thing as a lifetime annual pass. However, there is such a thing as a charter annual pass, which is the cheapest annual renewal available (~$250 vs nearly $500). These were sold to the guests that bought an annual pass the first year that EPCOT opened (1981) and renewed their passes within the renewal window (30 days before expiration or 30 days after) every single year, the discount was also obviously non-transferrable. In 5 years in guest relations I saw 2 of these and there are rumored to be less than 200 charter annual passholders left. Can you imagine buying an annual pass every year for 27 years, so if these people had those than that would be almost as cool as a lifetime annual pass. However the timing would be wrong on this story as it was back in the age of A-E tickets (I saw more of these things than I care to remember, especially when guests would bring bags of them and want credit for them- by the way A= $0.10, B=$0.20, C=$0.30, D=$0.40, and E=$0.50, but if you have the full book with the Gold key (entrance) and the transportation ticket (for monorail or ferry boat) then it is worth a one day one park ticket- moral of this story- if you have them, sell them on Ebay, they're worth more there) when you bought the individual tickets at the rides (70s). The first regular one day one park ticket was also introduced at the time of opening EPCOT (actually slightly before).

 

[Andromeda9mm]

For the 50th anniversary of Disneyland in 2005, a piece was aired on the news about a Utah man (I live in Utah) being the first paying guest to Disneyland. Here's an article:

http://www.disneymike.com/blog/archives/2005/05/first_disneylan.html

He has a lifetime pass, but he didn't buy it.

Meredith in Utah

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Disney has granted lifetime poasses to people who were the first to enter a new park (including immediate familt). There has never been sale of lifetime passes.

However, at WDW there is a special "Charter" Annual Pass (or PAP). These are available only to people who purchased APs when they were first available and have renewed them every year since. The only time a new charter may be issued is if a charter member marries, and then can purchase a charter pass for the spouse (marriage certificate required) within one year of the date of marriage, or if a charter poassholder has a child, a charter pass can be issued to the child within one year of the child turing three.

 

[tkitty]

For the 50th anniversary of Disneyland in 2005, a piece was aired on the news about a Utah man (I live in Utah) being the first paying guest to Disneyland. Here's an article:

http://www.disneymike.com/blog/archives/2005/05/first_disneylan.html

He has a lifetime pass, but he didn't buy it.

Meredith in Utah

Very cool!

 

[jenseib]

It's very interesting to see how many different replies have been said. I want to beleive all, as they all seem possible.
Where is everyone getting your info at?

 

[RachaelA]

great info! thanks!

 

[Ella's Mom]

I had forgotten about those A to E tickets. I remember using those when I was a little girl. We never had the right letter ticket left. Dad was always buying more.

 

[Shir Kahn]

That's a great story about Dave MacPherson, thanks for the link!

 

[MomofCKJ]

My Mom still has some of the old A-E tickets from trips we took in 1971 and 1973. Would they apply them towards anything if you brought them in now? Towards the cost of a current ticket?

Allyson

 

[jenseib]

My Mom still has some of the old A-E tickets from trips we took in 1971 and 1973. Would they apply them towards anything if you brought them in now? Towards the cost of a current ticket?

Allyson

They are pretty worthless if it is an partially used book. A= $0.10, B=$0.20, C=$0.30, D=$0.40, and E=$0.50. But you try selling them on ebay and might get a pretty penny there.

 

[aristocats_lover]

When we were on the KTTK tour our guide brought up Lifetime Passes and one of the members of our group said his parents owned them (he was a middle aged gentleman). I don't know if they are technically those "charter" passes but he said lifetime passes.

 

[thewright6]

I was talking to someone last week that said they had a lifetime pass. I was curious what they were and now I'm even more curious how she got them. I'll be seeing her this week so I'm sure it will come up in conversation. Very Interesting...