Turning 21 at Disney? Questions about carding?

[JessicaKnits]

While it has been a few years for me, I was at WDW when I had a vertical license (from Wisconsin) and no one had any issues with it at all. In fact, the only places I was carded were usually at hotel restaurants, and not in the parks . I was really disappointed in this as I was really looking forward to showing off my "grown up" license!

Interestingly enough, Wisconsin has since switched their IDs and they aren't even thick plastic like a credit card, they are more like a library card now! They seriously look like something you would give a small child if they wanted a "play" license, but apparently have many additional security features.

Anyways, I had more issues with my "play" license in WDW than I did with my vertical license, so I don't think you will have any problems.

 

[Disney38Girl]

Hey guys! I've been planning my Disney World birthday trip for almost a year and a half now and I had some questions about what you adults have experienced with getting carded or seeing your kids getting carded at Disney World. It might be a little early for me to be wondering these things, but I just spent the past weekend in Vegas which is one of the most frustrating places to be when you're so close to turning 21!

Will they serve me alcohol on my actual 21st birthday, or will they pull the "you have to wait a day/we don't know what time you were born" thing I hear sometimes happens to my friends when they try to purchase alcohol on their birthday? I'm trying to plan it out so my first drink with a nice dinner will be at BOG on my 21st and I'd hate to wake up at 6 am and stress about getting a ressie 180+10 and not be able to have a celebratory glass of wine!

Secondly, do they care whether your ID is vertical, or says "not 21 until..." It will be a valid license but we're flying in the day before my birthday so I have the full day in the park, so I obviously won't be able to get it changed at the DMV before the trip. I know clubs and restaurants in Chicago care about that kind of thing, how about Disney?

I know I might have better luck calling Disney with these questions, but I feel like it'd be weird to ask them about drinking at the Happiest Place on Earth, and I'd have no idea who to call!

Also, feel free to add on any drink recommendations. I'm definitely gonna try the Lapu Lapu at the Poly, and my two friends and I are going to drink around the world at Epcot the day after my birthday! (We'll be splitting 1 drink per country between each of us, for financial and sanity related reasons).

Turning 21 at Disney was pretty awesome! (My birthday was this past August) I had to get my license renewed before I turned 21 at home because it would have expired while I was on vacation. So now I'm stuck with the vertical license until 2017. It was never an issue. My first drink was a Mowie Wowie at the Tune-In Lounge at Hollywood Studios. The bartender had the whole bar sing happy birthday to me when she realized it really was my 1st legal drink! Highly Recommended: Grand Marnier Slushy in France, Green Tea Sake Cocktail in Japan. Also spend some time at the bar in the UK. You're gonna have a great time! Enjoy it!

 

[MooskaMinnie]

They'll accept the vertical license. I had my vertical one for about a year after my 21st birthday because I renewed about 2 weeks before my 21st birthday and they sent me a vertical one (I was getting married and didn't want to pay to have my license changed 2x). I never had problems anywhere but would preface being ID'd with a "my license isn't the right direction but I am 21+!"

 

[D&R love Disney]

I accept the vertical license. We actually have a book of all the state licenses and passports so if we are questioning it we can look it up.

 

[princess_momma]

I was just at Disney at the end of October and I didn't get carded in Disney AT ALL. Not for lapu lapu's, not for 2 pitchers of sangria, not for buying 3 bottles of wine at once. I'm 23 (I don't really know how old I look. I have pictures in my tr link if you want to compare.) I don't know if it was because I have a 5 year old son and if I was under 21, I'd be 15 when I had him? But that's still possible so I don't think that would've been a good reason.

I did go 2 years ago, shortly after I turned 21 and don't remember the specifics then. I was just SHOCKED that I didn't get carded at all this past trip. Do I really look that old?!

Side note: I don't know if you are traveling off property at all...but SeaWorld did card me EVERYWHERE and they were shocked Disney didn't. I also went to Margaritaville at Universal's Citywalk and they didn't card me or my DH, but DID card our friend who was with us who was older than both of us. It was nuts.

 

[nanienamou]

this id thing is getting really old for me. I'm 32, have more white hair than somebody in his forties, but I get carded everywhere in Disney. the cms even apologise when they see that I'm in my thirties.

Now, they started asking for passports too, because I live in Quebec, Canada, and it seems that my driver's licence is not good enough. It's almost insulting, especially since I've not been carded in Quebec for a while - our legal age is 18.