Updating a partially used park hopper from child to adult??

[IowaGirl]

My daughter was 9 when we went in 2002, but now she's not...
I think I have read here before how to update her ticket from a child to adult, but please explain it to me again.
Could I do this before I leave for WDW at the Disney Store? I imagine not.
If I need to do it at the parks, approximately how long will it take to get it done? My kids will be waiting at the gate when the park opens you know, and won't want any huge delays. If I am staying at a Disney resort, can I do this when I check in at the resort, like the day before we go to the parks?
Thanks!

 

[NCRedding]

you can not update at the Disney Store, or at the desk of the resorts. I was told that I could only update our DD's pass at guest services at the parks. We were staying at BCV, went over to Epcot, to their guest services, and it took less than 5 minutes to update, very easy!!

 

[tjmw2727]

I was with a friend when she upgraded her son's child pass to an adult pass in August of 03. This was her experience:

She was not able to do it at home or at the resort, we stayed at Beach Club. She was told it can be done only at the major parks guest services. My friend and I were going to epcot the first day while her son and dh went for a 9 hole golf round. We tried to upgrade it then to save time for the next day but they woul not do it without the "aged" child present.

She was able to exchange it the next morning at Epcot - International Gateway entrance guest relations with her son. It took about 10 mintues, they checked the dates and the age of her son to make sure the dates "made sense" with the prior uses and her sons current age. Then they issued him an adult pass with the same number of remaining days and plus options as his child pass had.

Just visit guest relations at the park you attend the first day and upgrade the pass, allow extra time before park opening and everyone will be all set. If you are not visiting a park on arrival day you could take a monorail ride, visit a resort restaurant and upgrade the pass at MK or Epcot without entering a park.

TJ

 

[timkin]

How does the price work? Do you pay the difference for the new adult ticket? Or do you just swap the ticket for a new adult one? Not sure how this works...can anyone help?

 

[kbkids]

Actually, from what I've heard, there's no price difference. They just simply upgrade to an adult ticket, no charge involved.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Are you sure there's even any "updating" required? If so, there'd better not be any charge now, I hope. When we went in May, our now 20 and 23 yo DS's used old (late 80s) passes with one day left. The passes even used the hand-stamp so you could see how many days were left! And back then our sons were so young, they didn't even sign them-they couldn't write very well. At both Epcot and MGM, they went right in without question. I did think it was a little odd when a 6'2" 23 yo comes to WDW with an unsigned child's pass from 1989, no one questions it. MK did say he'd have to go to guest relations for something, but instead he just switched to the new pass he'd just bought and went in at another turnstile.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by timkin
How does the price work? Do you pay the difference for the new adult ticket? Or do you just swap the ticket for a new adult one? Not sure how this works...can anyone help?

No difference in price, Disney does not charge for the child getting older.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by Simba's Mom
Are you sure there's even any "updating" required? If so, there'd better not be any charge now, I hope. When we went in May, our now 20 and 23 yo DS's used old (late 80s) passes with one day left. The passes even used the hand-stamp so you could see how many days were left! And back then our sons were so young, they didn't even sign them-they couldn't write very well. At both Epcot and MGM, they went right in without question. I did think it was a little odd when a 6'2" 23 yo comes to WDW with an unsigned child's pass from 1989, no one questions it. MK did say he'd have to go to guest relations for something, but instead he just switched to the new pass he'd just bought and went in at another turnstile.

I would do it to be on the safe side, you might run across a CM that is paying attention.

From Deb's site.

I bought a child's ticket for my son/daughter last time I was at Walt Disney World. There are still unused park admissions on that child's ticket but my child is now well past the 10 year old adult ticket level. Can I do anything about these days?

Disney does not penalize children for growing up. You can take your leftover child's pass along with your now too old child (the child must be present to do this) to any Guest Relations window or major park ticket booth. They will update that child's pass to an adult one with exactly the same leftover admissions. There is no charge for this.

Note that if the child's pass has not been used yet, you cannot have it converted to an adult pass at no charge. You will be charged the price difference between what you paid for the child's pass and what the current adult price is now to convert it.

http://allearsnet.com/pl/ticket.htm#8

 

[AKASnowWhite]

I find this whole thing very interesting....

When my oldest DS was 9, we purchased him a PAP. When he turned 10, we were told (by SEVERAL Disney employees!) that there was no need to "up-grade" his ticket to an adult ticket - that the age he was when it was purchased was the appropriate ticket for him to have for the duration of the tickets "eligibility"......so I guess I'm wondering why a 10 or 11 year-old would be required to change their unused hopper days to an adult ticket in the first place?!!?

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by AKASnowWhite
I find this whole thing very interesting....

When my oldest DS was 9, we purchased him a PAP. When he turned 10, we were told (by SEVERAL Disney employees!) that there was no need to "up-grade" his ticket to an adult ticket - that the age he was when it was purchased was the appropriate ticket for him to have for the duration of the tickets "eligibility"......so I guess I'm wondering why a 10 or 11 year-old would be required to change their unused hopper days to an adult ticket in the first place?!!?

Possibly because AP and PAP's are only good for one year.
Hoppers never expire. I don't understand what the issue is, you go to Guest Services, they change it to an adult ticket (which they should be using if they are 10 and older) at no charge, you don't pay and everyone has a Disney Day.

 

[GoldenOldie]

Originally posted by AKASnowWhite
so I guess I'm wondering why a 10 or 11 year-old would be required to change their unused hopper days to an adult ticket in the first place?!!?...

They aren't. They can continue to use them as a child's ticket at that age and no one will question them. Where it becomes important is when the child has turned 17, 18, 19 etc. and tries to use the child's ticket.

Remember too that there are a lot of children who know that they've crossed that magic line of 10 years old and who now want a ticket of their own that says they're 10+ instead of the one that says they are under 10.

 

[mojo-jojo]

Well to tell you the truth i really dont think it matters. They dont check the ticket to see if you are an adult or child.

My whole family bought a 5 day hopper a couple of years ago. Two of those hoppers were children. Now during this trip, my brother and sister were persistent in having the character they wanted as there ticket which left the 3 adults with 2 children and an adult pass. So basically me and my mom used the childrens pass and was not questioned or anything.

 

[eeyore0062]

Guest Relations at any of the 4 major parks can do this. There is no cost to upgrade from a childs pass to an adult pass for the child in question. Just be sure that the child for which you are upgrading is with you when you make the change.

Hope this helps!

 

[tjmw2727]

I don't know why someone wouldn't take 5 mintues at guest relations before entering the park and upgrade the pass. Why risk a chance, embarrassment or possibly having to go back and exchange the pass at some point.

Disney considers anyone 10 or older to be an adult and requires adult admission media. They also don't penalize children for growing up and will accept an AP, SP, PAP for the year or upgrade it for no additional charge. Same thing with PH or PHP they don't charge extra but why not simply change the pass to an over 10 pass.

I have been with another family when the mom and 6yo dd mixed up passes and entered through different turnstyles. The CM at the mom's turnstyle evidently didn't notice but the CM at the turnstyle where our friends 6yo used the adult pass did. The dad realized what happenend and called the mom over who was already in the park. Obviously the problem was cleared up and I imagine this happens alot but why take the chance. If they noticed a kid using an adult pass I imagine they will, at some point, notice an "adult" using a kids pass.

TJ

 

[DisneyFanatik]

There is a guest relations located Dowtown Disney. At least there was in 2001 for our last trip. DS had an old style ticket that had no magnetic stripe on it. They changed the ticket -no problem.