What is the main gate pass? we have a family member who is a cast member at Disney World. He said he use use his main gate pass to get us in. Does this mean he needs to swipe us in and stay at every park every day with us?
Thanks
I am not an expert but my brother is a CM and we have visited all the parks using his "gate pass". Others with more experience will correct me if I am wrong.
My brother is allowed to bring three guest each day with his pass. He has always swiped his ID to get us into the park. He is allowed to use it a certain number of times a year. I think it is a significant number of times which is very generous and I believe the number is different depending on your position.
He has always stayed with us, but I do not see how it could be a requirement that he stay with us. It certainly would be difficult to tell as once we are in the park there is no connected between our pass and his.
If there can really be any negatives to a free admission to a Disney park there are two minor issues. Depending on an anticipated crowd level at a certain park Disney might institute black-out dates for the main gate passes. This summer MK was on the black out list for a significant number of days. This varies a lot from year to year, but is really only an issue at very busy times.
Also you can not use the Fast Pass+ system until after you enter the park.
CMs also get a limited number of park passes that they can give to anyone that do not have those limitations. I am sure the number of those passes are significantly limited and vary by positions and other factors.
Your CM will be familiar with these processes.
Enjoy your time at the parks. Just in case you did not know your family CM can get you get discounts on Disney resorts.
The CM family and friend benefits are significant. My brother tells me that there are CMs who work for Disney mostly for the benefits. One that even flys in to work part time just to keep the benefits.