One of the major changes that will be implemented when Disney World reopens is the Disney Park Pass System — which will require guests to make a theme park reservation in order to enter any theme parks.

Since this is a totally new system, our readers understandably have a lot of questions about how it will work. So, we’re breaking down the answers to your frequently asked questions here!

Remember ALL of this is subject to change. Disney can make changes anytime, so these are the best answers we can give you right now; but you should always ask your Disney representative when you call to get confirmation.

General Questions

This section takes a look at several general questions about the Disney Park Pass.

Can we leave the park and come back later in the day?

Disney has not yet confirmed the answer to this question. Our understanding is that as long as you have a park reservation for the day, you should be able to leave and return later in the same day. But again — not confirmed. Disney has also added a “time of entry” onto the Park Pass system, so that could mean that visits could be limited to certain timeframes to maintain capacity limitations.

Guests can still spot characters in the reopened Disney World parks — here’s how!

What if a linked member of my travel party has a regular ticket and another has an Annual Pass?

This has a few different applications, so we’ll give you all you need to know here.

1. Disney states that guests who have different types of ticket media may need to make different reservations. So that means that if you have an Annual Pass, but the rest of your family/travel party have regular tickets, you may need to make two separate reservations.
2. If you do NOT have a Disney World hotel reservation and you’re trying to secure a reservation on June 26th as an Annual Passholder, you won’t be able to make reservations for members of your party who have a regular ticket, as they aren’t eligible for park reservations until June 28th. In this case all you need to do is NOT select them as part of your party when you’re booking on the 26th.

If someone in my party isn’t going to the parks. Do I need to remove them from my account before I try to book my Disney Park Pass reservation?

No, you DON’T need to remove them from your account — just don’t include them in the “party” you’re booking Disney Park Pass reservations for.

Disney World WON’T use virtual queues upon reopening!

Do we know what happens to those of us looking to book later than September in 2021?

On June 28th, guests will be able to book new Disney Resort hotel packages and theme park tickets for 2021. However, theme park reservations are only available through September 26, 2021.

It’s unlikely that theme park reservation dates will be extended immediately, as Disney doesn’t typically open up reservations that far in advance. That said, you should call Disney for confirmation in your specific circumstance!

Disney World is discontinuing free MagicBands soon!

What is this “choose a time” thing all about? Will I have to choose a window of time? Start my day late if there aren’t rope drop times available?

The Disney Park Pass page on the Disney World website does indicate that in addition to selecting a date and a Theme Park, guests will also need to select a time. According to the site, this is “the time that you can visit the park.”

At this time, Disney has not clarified exactly what this entails, but they did implement a timed system with the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in Disneyland, so it’s possible that we could see a similar reservation window process. Unfortunately, we won’t know the details here until Disney offers more clarification.

Here’s the full list of tours that will NOT be available when Disney World reopens.

Will I be kicked out at a certain time?

While Disney hasn’t yet clarified what the “select a time” portion of the park reservation will encompass, it’s possible that guests could be given a specific window of time during which they are allowed to visit. However, that would significantly conflict with being able to leave the park and come back on the same day.

We’re keeping an eye on this portion of the DPP process for more details!

Here are seven problems you won’t have when Disney World reopens!

How will Disney know when people need to leave if I am getting kicked out at a certain time?

At the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge in Disneyland, guests were allowed to enter the land for a specific four-hour window of time.

This was managed using a wristband system, which allowed Cast Members to distinguish whether or not guests were within their allotted window of time. But again, it’s not confirmed that Disney will use any sort of time limit system at all.

Click here to learn more about Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge!

Is there a limit on the number of days I can make Park reservations? So if I have a three-week trip planned, can I book a Park for 21 days?

Your reservation eligibility is tied to your vacation package and tickets.

So, you should be able to make reservations for as many days as you hold tickets. Disney has used the term “length-of-stay” on their website.

That said, Disney has capped “length-of-stay” to 14 days for things in the past — like refillable mugs. So we’ll have to confirm the longer stays.

Click here to find out where you can attend character dining at the newly reopened Disney World.

If we need to change our reservations, can we? Without penalty?

Guests can cancel Disney Park Pass reservations in the My Plans section of their My Disney Experience account. We don’t know if there’s a “cancellation policy” that would incur a fee if you cancel too close to your reservation time.

As of now, guests are unable to modify their Disney Park Pass reservations. To change them around, you will need to cancel your existing Disney Park Passes and rebook — all subject to availability. We’re still waiting to see if guests will be able to modify Park Pass reservations to a different day or time at some point in the future.

Can I have a park pass reservation if I don’t have an on-site or affiliated hotel room?

Yes, Annual Passholders can hold up to 3 park pass reservations at a time. Guests with other ticket media can book starting June 28th and make park pass reservations for their park ticket dates.

Click here for more information on the Disney Park Pass system!

The new system only allows for parties of 12. My party is for 14 guests. How do I handle that and keep my group together?

With the party size for Disney Park Pass limited to 12, larger parties may have some concerns. We spoke to a Cast Member about booking for larger groups and they recommended breaking the reservations up into two sets. Of course, there is a possibility that availability could affect your ability to keep the two sets of reservations together.

If you’re concerned about getting everyone into the same park, or you run into the issue of a park booking up when you’ve only reserved half of your party, try calling the Disney Reservation Center to see if they have some other options available for you.

Click here to learn more about contacting Disney.

Resort Guest Questions

The following section takes a look at questions that are specific to resort guests.

If our friends who we add to my account are not actually staying in a Disney Resort, can we still get a reservation for them, too?

In order to make a reservation on June 22nd, all guests in your travel party will need to be added to the hotel reservation.

Otherwise, you won’t be able to make your reservations for them until June 26th (if your friends are Annual Passholders) or June 28th (if your friends have regular tickets).

These are the changes coming to Disney World hotels this summer!

If you make your Disney Park Pass with a Resort reservation and later cancel the Resort reservation, will you lose your DPP like you used to lose your FassPass+ selections?

You should approach this using the assumption that the system will work the same way that Resort reservations and linked 60 day out FastPass+ selections used to work.

Meaning, if you cancel the Resort stay, you’ll very likely lose all of the reservations dependent on the Resort reservation. We’re thinking you should be able to modify an existing resort stay (e.g. change to a different hotel, but keep the same confirmation number) without losing your park reservations, but that is not confirmed. Bottom line: don’t book a resort just to get the park passes and then cancel your resort reservation.

Here’s how Disney’s PhotoPass service will change when the parks reopen.

Annual Passholder Questions

This section takes a look at common questions that are specific to Annual Passholders.

My Annual Pass isn’t activated. It’s just a voucher. Will I still be able to make park pass reservations?

Yes. Guests who have an annual pass voucher that hasn’t yet been activated in the parks will be able to make park pass reservations using that ticket media.

Can Annual Passholders book Disney Park Passes for the length of the resort stay AND their 3 non-resort days?

Annual Passholders with resort stays are limited to 3-days of park pass reservations at one time. In the instance that an Annual Passholder holds a reservation in a resort hotel, they are able to make reservations for their length of stay. As we mentioned, Disney may impose a general cap on Disney Park Pass reservations that Passholders would be subject to.

It appears the system intends to have the resort guest status override your Passholder in a status. According to two separate guest services Cast Members, you cannot book for the length of the resort stay AND your regular three Passholder days.

One of the Cast Members explained that the system recognizes a guest as either a resort guest OR an Annual Passholder. So, if you are checked in already it will most likely hold you to your length of stay until check out or maybe the last two days. Cast Members noted that, since the system is new, they’re not sure how it will respond to certain scenarios.

With the launch of the Annual Passholder booking window, we found that Annual Passholders with resort reservations COULD book outside of their resort stay but only if they had unbooked days on their resort stay. For example, if you had six days booked in a resort reservation and previously reserved four of those days for entry into the park, you may have been able to book two more for dates OUTSIDE of your resort stay when the Annual Passholder window went live — but not the full three-day Passholder limit.

Still, folks have had conflicting experiences. It’s possible that we’re running into some hidden glitches today. Keep in mind that all of this is subject to change, so if you want to know about YOUR specific situation, you should contact Disney to ask.

Click here to learn more about park pass limits for Annual Passholders!

My Annual Pass hasn’t been extended from the park closures. Will I be able to make park reservations for dates past my not-updated expiration date?

Disney has been working on rolling out extensions for Annual Passholders. Most Passholders are set to receive an extension for the number of days that the parks were closed. However, some extensions haven’t gone through yet.

In our experience, if your extension has not happened yet, you will be unable to make Disney Park Pass reservations after your existing expiration date at this time. Again, this is subject to change so we will be sure to update you as needed.

Click here to learn more about the Annual Pass extension!

While we’re still waiting for Disney to provide further information about some aspects of the Disney Park Pass system, we hope that this FAQ has helped to clear up some of the confusion! We’ll be testing out the DPP system ourselves, so stay tuned for our first-hand account!

If you have heard different information to our answers above, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us with your experience. Like we said, this is all subject to change, and even the most seasoned Disney experts are still texting each other frantic questions throughout the day!

Check out our tutorial of the Disney Park Pass system!

What questions do you have about the Disney Park Pass system? Let us know in the comments!