Disney Planning Tips: Buying and Protecting Your Disney Tickets

You’re going to Disney World and have spent months researching where to stay, where to eat, what to see and do, and how to get there and back. A Disney vacation is a sizeable investment, and is worth spending all that time so that you and your family can get your money’s worth and have a truly magical vacation experience.

But what about your Disney park tickets? This is one of the most expensive parts of your Disney vacation budget, so thinking about where you get your tickets, or what to do with them after you get them, is just as important as all the other parts of your trip…..…because clearly, there will be no rides or attractions without them!

So my Walt Disney World Planning Tip for today is to give this some thought: carefully research where you are buying from if not getting them through Disney, be cautious, and then once you have them….protect that valuable investment just as you would anything else that costs you hundreds of dollars!

Here are 4 things you should know if you are buying your Disney World tickets yourself:

1.     Use Only Authorized Ticket Agencies

Authorized ticket brokers are able to sell tickets for less money than gate prices because they buy tickets in bulk from each attraction and theme park, and these large quantities enable them to receive discounts which they then pass on to their customers. An authorized Disney ticket agency will display the Disney logo and the “authorized ticket agent” designation.

In addition, check to see if the business belongs to the local Chamber of Commerce or the Better Business Bureau, as this is a good indication of the company’s standing in the community. It’s also worth it to see that they have been in business for at least several years.

2.     Cheapest is not Always Best

The key to saving money on Disney tickets is frankly to remember what your mother always told you: “If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.” So when doing your research, know that you will find websites with prices that are lower than the gate prices at Disney…but use some caution: if they are so low they are unbelievable, you should assume that it’s a scam. You can also take a look at the URL on the website: many scams originate in Romania (you will see an .ro at the end of the URL), where they will usually request that you pay by wire transfer, which is a huge red flag. Always buy discount Walt Disney World tickets with a credit card, so that you can get your money back if there is any problem.

3.     Craigslist or eBay? No Thank You!

Anyone who is familiar with Craigslist or eBay will know that really cheap Disney theme park tickets are available on these sites on a regular basis. But buyer beware! The problem with buying discount Walt Disney World tickets from eBay or Craiglist is that there is literally no way that you can be certain that you will get tickets that are valid…until you get to the park gate and try to use them. Only once the ticket is scanned at the turnstile, will you know how many days, if any, are on your tickets.

Sadly, there are many con artists on eBay and Craigslist who are supposedly selling Disney tickets for less. And even if you, in good faith, get a “partially used” park pass, since Disney tickets are non-transferable (and Disney enforces this through a biometric finger scan), you would not be able use it, since it is illegal in the state of Florida to re-sell partially used multi-day admission tickets.

4.     Keep Your Ticket Investment Safe!

Have you ever thought about what would happen on your vacation if you lost your tickets? I can’t think of many things that would ruin a vacation quicker than to spend hundreds of dollars on theme park tickets…only to lose them! Happily, there is one very simple way to make sure that your vacation is not ruined by lost theme park tickets: make a copy of the back of them.

The back side, with the magnetic strip, has coded information with all the details of your personal ticket. All these numbers, letters, and dates will actually help Disney replace the tickets if you lose them. And while the tickets do say “Disney is not responsible for misplaced, lost, or stolen tickets”, in all likelihood, if you can provide the coded information, they will usually re-issue the pass.

So save this valuable coded information by making a copy, or taking a photo of the backs, either with a digital camera or cell phone. By doing this, if you lose the tickets while at the park, you will have immediate access to the codes on your camera or cell phone.

It is important to note that receipts that you receive from ticket brokers, while important, will not help in getting your tickets replaced. You must have the codes from the back of your passes.

So that’s my Disney World tip of the day: Buyer beware….and then protect what you buy! Do these things and there will be no unpleasant surprises when it comes to your Disney park tickets!

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