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Disneyland is opening. Now what? Will you have to wait in hour long lines trying to get in? How do you make sure you will be able to get in before traveling? How do you get reservations to Disneyland? Let’s dive in and make sure you know how to get yourself reservations to Disneyland.
When Disneyland announced its reopening plans, they let everyone know that they would operate on a reservation system. Immediately, guests of Disneyland were left to wonder if they would be able to secure a reservation.
While Disneyland has not fully revealed how this reservation system will work, we do have some info. I will be continually updating this article, so be sure to keep checking back. In fact, it might be a good idea to bookmark this page.
In This Article
Timeline For Disneyland Reservations And Ticket Sales
On April 6, 2021, Disneyland gave the timeline for the opening of their ticket sales and reservation system. You can see that timeline here, but keep reading to get tips for how to be prepared to make reservations.
On April 9th – Disneyland will release their calendar through February with one-day tiered ticket pricing
Disneyland will release their one-day ticket tier pricing calendar on April 9th. You might be wondering how this will help you? First, it will let you know when they expect the park to be in high demand. If you already have tickets, and say you want to go on Memorial Day, and you noticed that is the highest priced tier, it means you will want to make your reservation early.
April 12th – Reservations will open, you can make them 60 days in advance
The reservation system will open on April 12, 2021. You will already need to have a ticket in order to access it on this date as ticket sales will not resume for a few more days.
A note: On Disneyland’s website the wording is “Theme park reservations can be made up to 60 days or more in advance, subject to availability.” (Emphasis mine) I think this shows that once they are able to allow out of state visitors, they may increase how far in advance you can make reservations.
April 15th- new ticket sales will open, you will be able to use my partners at Get Away Today for discount tickets
On April 15th, Disneyland will open new ticket sales to California Residents. My partners at Get Away Today will be able to sell tickets. They always have great deals, and if you book a hotel for 2 or more nights, you can also use code CrazyAdventure to save even more.
Out of state visitors?
Disneyland is currently only opening to California Residents pursuant to state guidelines. However, just after Disneyland’s announcement, the state of California announced their Green Tier: Beyond the Blueprint
In this, they set a target date for the state to fully open on June 15, 2021, as long as they are able to have enough vaccine supply to continue to offer vaccines to all who want it (age 16 and older) and if hospitalizations are stable. Specific numbers for these metrics were not released.
This means that out-of-state visitors will most likely be allowed at Theme Parks by mid-late June. Disneyland will most likely release a date that they will allow out-of-state guests closer to this time frame.
Other Important Information Released
Multi-day tickets will be allowed and parkhopping will be available starting at 1 pm each day.
For parkhopping, you will make a reservation for one park that day. You will head to that park in the morning, and then parkhop to the other park anytime after 1 pm. I definitely think parkhopping is a must-do at Disneyland so I am glad they were able to accomodate this option for guests.
Disneyland Reservations – What To Know Before Reservations Open
While we don’t know everything about the reservation system, Disneyland has revealed some information, and my Disneyland ticket partners at Get Away Today have confirmed some information for us as well.
1.You must have tickets purchased before making a reservation
This seems a bit backwards I know, but here is the deal, Disneyland wants to make sure that guests who have already spent money are able to visit the parks first, so the reservation system will require guests to already have tickets on hand in order to make a reservation.
Disney paused sales of Disneyland tickets as soon as the announcement was made, so if you do not already have a ticket, you will have to wait to see when ticket sales reopen before making a reservation.
What about tickets on layaway through Disney or Get Away Today?
While Get Away Today was able to sell tickets for a week or so after the original opening announcement, they are not able to sell tickets at this time for Disneyland. If you have already purchased tickets with them though, you are good to go.
They are being great about answering questions and helping people out so definitely reach out to them if you have questions about this.
YOU MUST HAVE PAID OFF YOUR LAYAWAY AND HAVE YOUR TICKET NUMBERS TO MAKE RESERVATIONS.
2. What about Legacy Passholders
Disneyland cancelled all Disneyland Annual Passes in early 2021.
They are not offering any special discounts or early ticket sales to Legacy Passholders (former passholders) at this time.
3. Multi-day Tickets
Disneyland has confirmed that multi-day tickets will be able to be used, but you will need to make a reservation for each day that you want to go to a park, day by day. For this reason, we will need to be flexible as to what days we attend which park, days off from the parks, etc.
Will I Be Able To Get A Disneyland Reservation? What Happens if I Can’t Get the Dates I Want?
This is the million dollar (or at least a few thousand dollars) question. How will you know if you can get the dates you need? What happens if you don’t lock in those dates, and now you have tickets you bought…
Deep breaths, it will be alright. Disney is trying to take care of everyone.
This is what I think most of us are worried about. Will we be able to get a reservation?
I think anybody who has purchased tickets will most likely be able to get a reservation. I am going out on a limb there, but I really do believe that.
That said, I think the first week will book up quickly, and the time around Avengers Campus opening (June 4, 2021) will also go quickly. So be ready to make your reservations ASAP.
I have been closely studying the booking habits of Disneyland guests. Most Disneyland visitors do not book their vacations until 30-60 days before travel (per my contacts about my customers’ booking habits via Get Away Today and unofficial polls I have done with my readers/followers).
Disneyland has also stated they will only allow reservations 60 days in advance to begin.
We have also seen from Walt Disney World that Disney will release reservations that have been cancelled for others to book. I think this is great news for locals that may want to visit on short notice.
Speaking of locals, a lot of the guests for Disneyland were local Annual Passholders. With the cancellation of Annual Passes, Disneyland is able to start fresh and take care of their guests holding onto tickets.
I really believe that Disney will be able to accommodate everyone who has already purchased tickets for their desired dates, or close to it.
But… If you don’t get your reservations
You will most likely be able to make reservations far enough in advance that you will be able to cancel most travel plans. If you book your hotel via Get Away Today and purchase the Peace of Mind plan, you may cancel your hotel up to 5 days before travel and still get a full refund (minus the POM cost) on your booking. Or you can change it for a later date. My plan is to just reschedule for later on if I can’t get my reservation.
Tip: If booking a hotel for 2 or more nights through Get Away Today, use code CRAZYADVENTURE.
And those Disneyland tickets you bought? Well, you can hold on to those for a future vacation. Disney extended ticket expiration dates on their tickets.
Not ready to visit in 2021? Even tickets that expire will not lose their value. If you end up putting it off until 2022, and your ticket expired Dec 2021, you simply go to a ticket booth on your visit, with those tickets, and pay the difference to upgrade to the current ticket prices.
How To Make Disneyland Reservations
So here is the biggest question of all… how do we make Disneyland Reservations?
And sadly, we just don’t know everything yet. However, I will be live streaming the process with my Disneyland with Kids Co-Founders on April 12th on Facebook. The live stream starts at 7:40 am PT on my Facebook page
Checklist For Making Disneyland Reservations
- Make sure you have a Disney account – you can sign up via the Disneyland website or via the app (this is the same account you use to sign into Disney+)
- When you have your e-ticket, you will need to attach these tickets to your Disneyland account. Tickets will need to be entered in your account to make reservations. (As of Sunday, if your tickets are in your Disneyland App, they will not show online, and will not let you add them. Disney has said this will auto connect on April 12th.)
- Get familiar with the Disneyland website for reservations.
- Click through the different tabs and make sure you are familiar with them.
- Know all the details. Example: You will be able to add up to 5 people in a group, and then add an additional 5 people after that. Max is 10 people per group.
- Check the Disneyland one-day ticket calendar. Even if you have multi-day tickets, this helps you know which dates they expect more people to want reservations. (The higher the tier, the more people they think will want to be there.) If you are only going for one day, be sure to check out my tips for maximizing one day at Disneyland.
- If you already have tickets, make your hotel reservations (refundable or changeable with Get Away Today’s Peace of Mind Plan is my suggestion) now as prices are already going up.
- Mark your calendar to be prepared to make your reservations the first day they are open if you plan on visiting in April or May.
- Follow me on Facebook, and turn on live notifications so that you can get all the breaking news and updates to Disneyland Reservations.
Disneyland Reservation Tips & Step-by-Step Guide
Once the reservation system is open, I will add step by step info, screen shots and tips here. If you are trying to make reservations on Monday, April 12, 2021, be sure to watch our livestream as we go through this process together.
So what do you think? Will you be trying to get reservations to Disneyland when they are available? Or are you going to hold off until ticket sales resume and reservations are hopefully no longer needed?
Hello Becca! hope you and your family are safe and well 🤗 I read your article and have heard about some of WDW reservations but I have two questions. I’m not sure if based on wdw anyone would know or when Disneyland starts reopening and reservations begin if you guys can help find out?
1st- if we get reservations for the park how would we reserve a spot for our kids who are under 3 that don’t require a ticket if we have to have a ticket to reserve?
2nd- when reservations start me and my family have a Nov/Dec trip booked but my sister, her bf and my brother all have park tickets but I have an AP. Since AP can reserve before ticket holders can I reserve their days at the same time if they’re all in my app? Or would I have to wait to reserve theirs when it’s open for ticket holders?
I understand if you guys don’t have any info on this yet but hoping to have these questions answered whenever you guys do know 🤗 thank you so much ❤
Hi! Sorry for the wait for the reply as I have been moving!
For under 3, we believe that it will either have a place to note you have children under 3, OR, they are just counting that they will most likely see x amount of children under 3 and they won
‘t need to be on the reservation.
As for the AP, this one we aren’t sure about. The WDW system was kind of hectic, but no doubt they had time to fine tune it. Also, Disneyland has a lot more locals, so I think they may be looking to take care of those guests from out of town first but we are unsure. I will definitely be updating this post as we learn more.
I still have my 3 day sol cal from last year I didnt get to use will I still get honored
Yes, Disneyland has extended ticket expirations. Be sure to check the Disneyland site for the most up to date changes.