Since the writing of this article, Disney has revamped the Magic Key program with new benefits, higher prices and more. Check out our article below for all the new information.

“New Magic Keys: Increased Price, New Benefits, Name Change, and More”

For years, Disneyland’s most die-hard fans proudly wore their status as an Annual Pass (AP) holder like a badge of honor. Depending on which tier they were in, their pass gave them near unlimited access to the parks for a full year.

In March 2020, right as Covid began to spread rapidly throughout the United States, Disney announced the closure of both domestic parks for an initial period of two weeks.

Disneyland Magic Key: 7 Things You Need To Know Before Buying

That two weeks would eventually turn into the longest closure in company history; a whopping 13 months. Before re-opening, Disney would drop a bombshell on their fans by announcing the cancellation of the AP program as of January, 2021.

To some, this was an unexpected surprise. Many others (like us) saw this coming. Disney was having a rough time convincing the California Governor to allow them to re-open Disneyland (Disney World, by this point, had been open for months).

This was seemingly done as a way to control the huge influx of crowds that would undoubtedly turn up on opening day and beyond. Disney would offer former AP holders food and merchandise discounts courtesy of the, “Legacy”, program.

This program would serve merely as a placeholder until a more permanent solution could be offered. That permanent solution wouldn’t take long to come as a new AP called, “Magic Key”, was announced.

Magic Keys are virtually the same thing as their predecessor. There’s multiple tiers and depending on which one your purchase you’ll be offered access to the parks, a variety of discounts, free parking, etc.

If you’re already a key holder, this article isn’t for you (feel free to keep reading, though). However, if you’re thinking of getting one and have never held an AP before, read on and discover the seven things about the Magic Key program you need to know before buying.

1) Reservations Are Still Required

One Park Visit

One of the ways Disney is controlling crowds is by making reservations a requirement before entering the parks. This rule doesn’t just apply to vacationers, though. It also applies to Keyholders.

While this isn’t confirmed by Disney, there’s been multiple reports of two separate blocks of reservations. One for day guests and another for Keyholders. This helps level the playing field a bit.

Essentially, if one or both parks are out of available reservations for the day you want to go, you won’t be going. No matter which tier key you hold. For some, this is a deal breaker. So it’s good to know before buying.

Park Hopping

Park hopping is possible with your Magic Key without an additional cost. You can do this by making a park hopper reservation for the day you want to go and you’re set.

Something to note - you will NOT use up two of your allotments (more of those later) to make this type of reservation. You will only use one. Simply begin the day at the first park and hop over to the other after 1:00pm.

There is one major perk to know about, though. Let’s say you’ve made a park hopping reservation and you choose Disneyland as the starting park. If you arrive after 1:00pm, you do not need to start there. You can head straight for DCA!

Regular park ticket holders don’t have that luxury. They must begin their day at their selected park before hopping over. So if you’ve arrived a bit late and want to go to the second park - go for it!

2) You Cannot Buy A Magic Key At The Ticket Booths

We’re both convinced that the days of showing up to the park and buying a ticket at one of the booths are numbered. We firmly believe that all ticket sales will eventually be done digitally.

At this time (and probably for good) you can only purchase a Magic Key on the website or through the Disneyland app. If you want to upgrade your park ticket to a Magic Key, this, too, must be done digitally.

The rules for upgrading depends on which type of ticket you hold:

If you have a single day ticket, you have until midnight on the day you visited to upgrade.
If you have a multi-day ticket, you have until midnight on the final day (so if you have a three-day ticket, you have until midnight on the third day).

You can do this by opening the app, going to the, “Tickets and Passes”, section, and following the steps. If you haven’t done so already, be sure to link your tickets to your account before trying this.

3) You Get Discounts

With your Magic Key, you get a certain amount of discounts and freebies, depending on the type of key you purchased. Some of these include free & discounted parking, dining, merchandise, and more!

Below, we’ll list each Magic Key pass and their accompanying discounts:

Imagine Magic Key (Available only to Southern California residents) - $399

10% off select dining & merchandise
No parking included
2 reservation holds at a time

Enchant Magic Key - $649

10% off select dining & merchandise
No parking included
4 reservation holds at a time

Believe Magic Key - $949

10% off select dining & merchandise
50% standard theme park parking
6 reservation holds at a time

Dream Magic Key - $1399

20% off select merchandise
15% off select dining
Free standard theme park parking
6 reservation holds at a time

*Note: As of November 2021, both the “Dream” and “Believe” Keys are sold out and no longer available for purchase (for now).

Below is a graphic of the four Magic Key tiers and what their discounts are, if it helps more.

As you can see, Disney has definitely pulled back on the discounts. The prior AP program had different percentages for each tier. Now, the only way to get anything higher than 10% is by springing for the most expensive option.

Nearly every shop and restaurant in Disneyland Park, California Adventure, and Disney Hotels offer keyholders these discounts. You can find the complete list here.

Downtown Disney

Unlike the parks, not every location in Downtown Disney offers a discount to Keyholders. The following is a list of every DTD restaurant and shop offering a Magic Key discount:

Restaurants

Ballast Point Brewing Co - 10% (excludes alcohol)
Black Tap Craft Burgers & Shakes - 10%
Blue Ribbon Corn Dogs - 10%
California Churros - 10%
Catal Restaurant - 10% (excludes alcohol)
Earl of Sandwich - 10%
Jamba - 10%
Kayla’s Cake - 10%
La Brea Bakery & Express - 10%
Naples Ristorante e Bar - 10%
Napolini Pizzeria - 10%
Splitsville Luxury Lanes - 10%
Tortilla Joe’s - 10% (excludes alcohol)
Uva Bar & Cafe - 10% (excludes alcohol)
Wetzel’s Pretzels - 10%

Shops

California Sole - 10%
Curl Surf - 10% (certain exceptions may apply)
Disney Home - 10% - 20%
Disney’s Pin Traders - 10% - 20%
Marceline’s Confectionery - 10% - 20%
Sugarboo & Co - 10%
Sunglass Icon - 10%
Disney Dress Shop - 10% - 20%
The Lego Store - 10%
WonderGround Gallery - 10% - 20%
World of Disney - 10% - 20%

4) You’re Limited On Reservations & Have Blackout Dates

Blockout Dates

As you’ve probably noticed in the graphic above, just because you’re technically buying an annual pass, it doesn’t mean you’ll be able to go whenever you want. You’ll have to deal with limitations.

The only way to ensure you won’t have blockout dates is to spring for the $1399.00, “Dream Key”. This pass has none. Including major holidays. However, you’ll still need a reservation, and you are limited on those.

Below are links to calendars listing blockout dates for each pass for your reference:

You’ll notice that all three keys above have major holidays such as Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving blocked. The lower two have most of summer plus a variety of weekends blocked as well.

Reservation Limits

Each key holder is limited on how many reservations they can make at a time. It goes off a rolling 90-day window and basically, once you’ve reached your limit, you won’t be able to make another one.

The top two passes, “Believe” & “Dream”, each allow you to make six reservations in a 90-day window. “Enchant” gives you four and “Imagine” (SoCal only) gives you two.

Once you’ve hit your limit, you won’t be able to make any additional reservations until you’ve used or canceled one. This was done to - you guessed it - manage attendance.

Reservation Cancellations

It isn’t something to be overly concerned about, but it’s worth mentioning. Magic Key holders who no-show on a reservation three times in a 90-day period will be suspended from making any reservations for a 30-day period.

You must cancel by midnight the day before for it to not count against you. Something to note - if you do get suspended, any pre-booked reservations you have will not be canceled.

5) You Get Additional Benefits

Aside from getting access to the parks throughout the year and discounts on some of the finest restaurants on property, there are a few other perks you’ll enjoy being a Keyholder:

MK Terrace: A Keyholder-only lounge in California Adventure where appetizers, small plates, and adult beverages are sold.
First Access: There are countless new things being introduced at the resort throughout the year. As a Keyholder, you’ll be given first crack at them.
MK Merchandise: You’ll be able to show off your Magic Key pride by purchasing and sporting MK clothing, collectibles, and more!
MK Holder Month: A special month celebrating Magic Keyholders.
MK PhotoPass Opportunities: You’ll get special photo spots and other opportunities throughout the year.
Much, much more!

We haven’t had the opportunity to experience the lounge (as we’re not yet keyholders), but we’ve heard some good things about the food and drinks. Check out this great review from, “Disney Tourist Blog”.

6) Monthly Payments Are Still Offered (For California residents only)

To the delight of former AP Holders - and the chagrin of practically everyone else - the monthly payment option is once again available for the Magic Key program. There’s a catch, though.

If you don’t live in the state of California with a zip code between 90000 - 96199, you are not eligible for monthly payments. For those of you who do, this is how it works:

California Residents

Let’s say you want to purchase the, “Enchant Magic Key”…

The total purchase price is $649 per pass
You’ll pay $179 as a down payment at time of purchase
You’ll then pay $40 per month for 12 months

After you’ve made your down payment and completed your purchase, simply link your new Magic Key to your account and start searching for open reservations.

Non-California Residents

This is a great, affordable way to be a Keyholder as you can pay over time with no finance charges. For those of you who live outside the state but still want to make payments, you can:

Open a credit card with a 0% APR intro rate with cash back. You’ll make payments without incurring interest (provided you pay it off before the special rate ends) and will get a discount with the cash back offer. Or….
Pay for the passes out of your savings (if you can afford it) and make payments back to yourself to your savings account. Or….
Figure out what the monthly payment on your MK of choice would be (also consider the down payment) and start putting that amount away for the next year. Then make your purchase in full.

*We’re not financial advisors. These are just a few suggestions from what others have said they’ve done.

7) Disney’s Genie+ Add On

The original AP program wasn’t the only covid related casualty this year. Time saving services FastPass (free option) and MaxPass (the paid, app-based version) were both done away with as well (we saw this coming, too).

However, it didn’t take long before Disney announced a replacement, and that replacement is Genie+ and, “Lightning Lane”, which will debut sometime in the fall (no specific date has been announced).

We’ll cover all the finer details of this new service in a separate article. Right now, just know that much like MaxPass was an optional add on for AP’s, this service will likely be as well.

One fact that has been confirmed is that all photos taken from PhotoPass Photographers will be included in Genie+ (much like it was with MaxPass). So while photos may not be included in Magic Keys natively, they can be with this potential add on.

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