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Is it mandatory to make a reservation at Disneyland?

To enter a park, both a theme park reservation and valid park admission, for the same park on the same date, are required for Guests ages 3 and up. If you have a multi-day ticket or Magic Key pass, you must make a park reservation for each date of your visit.



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While buying in person is possible, I highly recommend that you purchase your tickets ahead of time to avoid the worry of being able to get same-day reservations. In order to enter the parks, you need both a ticket and a theme park ticket reservation.

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In addition to purchasing Theme Park Tickets, Theme Park Reservations are required to enter Disneyland Park and Disney California Adventure Park. Because reservations are required, if reservations are not available for a specific date you will not be able to purchase Theme Park Tickets for that date.

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Unfortunately, Tracey, if theme park reservations are fully booked for a particular day, you will not be able to access additional tickets or enter the parks. The Theme Park Reservation Availability Calendar reflects real-time availability for park reservations.

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No-Show Fees As noted earlier, Disney charges a per-person penalty if you fail to show up for a reservation the day of the meal. A $10 no-show fee is enforced at all Disney sit-down restaurants.

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Guests with 1-5 day tickets can make reservations 120 days in advance of their visit and guests with Disneyland Magic Key Annual Passes can make park reservations 90 days before the day they hope to visit. Disneyland opens up reservation blocks throughout the time leading up to the actual park day.

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Before we get to advance reservations, I want to quickly cover an option you'll want to keep in mind during your trip—walk up lists. Like basically all restaurants in the world, you can always walk up to a Disney restaurant and see if they're taking walk ups and what a wait might look like.

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In 2021, when the parks reopened after being shut down due to the pandemic, the Register reported that the monthly average attraction wait times was 21 minutes. In 2022, the average wait time was consistently above the 25-minute mark.

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If you aren't able to find a reservation, theme park tickets are unfortunately non-refundable. However, there is some flexibility that comes with your theme park ticket and you can find another date to visit the theme parks and use your ticket in the future.

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You can purchase tickets at the Main Entrance Ticket Booth located in the Esplanade between the two park entrances. While buying in person is possible, I highly recommend that you purchase your tickets ahead of time to avoid the worry of being able to get same-day reservations.

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So, needless to say, because of Disney's attention to detail and mission to maintain a clean and safe park experience, maintaining their parks and property is an expensive endeavor. And that cost is passed on to you.

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You can't do everything at Disneyland in a single day, and you shouldn't feel pressure to. You can ride all the rides without much difficulty many days, but you'll miss out on some other attractions, entertainment, and characters. You'll want to know what your priorities are before you get to the park.

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Theme Park Reservations are required for every day you wish to visit the Parks- except for the two Water Parks. You will have to visit your My Disney Experience account and pick the Parks you wish to visit and on which day. Don't delay as the Park reservations can fill up!

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If a Magic Key holder has a reservation and does not show up for that reservation date, you do get a strike. According to the Magic Key Terms and Conditions, if you are a no-show for three reservations in any 90-day period, you will not be able to make any new reservations for 30 days.

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In short: Yes! A “Disney park pass” and a “park reservation” are the same thing! There's a super handy Availability Calendar so you can monitor the availability of the theme parks you'd like to visit on your next adventure!

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