Flex Pass: An Overview of the New Disneyland Passport

Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge is coming in hot. Disney has been playing with their ticket pricing system; even requiring reservations to get into Galaxy’s Edge after it opens. However, that was just the beginning. Disney recently announced a majorly restructured annual pass. It’s designed to restrict and curtail the crowd levels in the parks while managing to enforce less blockout dates. The Flex Pass may just be the annual pass of the future, but it will mean more planning from Southern California residents.

Why Get Flex Pass

To start with, the Flex pass is only $599 which is insanely low considering the price of a ticket in 2019 ($199 for a one day park hopper on a peak day as of this post!). Flex pass offers many benefits including limited blockout dates and more opportunities to enjoy the park, including seasonal events like holidays and festivals. Flex Passes operate with a live calendar that enforces what dates are open and which ones are no longer available. The idea is more open opportunities, but lower crowds, hopefully resulting in a steady level of attendance throughout the year.

How to Use Flex Pass

There are three kinds of dates on the calendar when you have Flex Pass. Green dates signify what green always signifies– those dates are always available and you can show up and enjoy all the advantages of being a pass holder. Grey dates are blockout dates. You can’t go into the parks on those dates at all. But there is now a whole new set of dates in blue, which allows Disney to limit the number of blockout dates. These dates require reservations. Simply log in, select your park(s) and reserve the date you want to use your pass. If the date becomes unavailable it will say so on the calendar.

Making a Reservation

Making a reservation is easy. You can reserve dates for yourself and others linked to your account by visiting the My Annual Passports page within 30 days of the day you wish to visit Disneyland or Disney’s California Adventure. You can only make two reservations within thirty days of each other, so you will need to wait for the first date to pass before making a third reservation.

Canceling a Reservation

You may want to cancel a reservation, which you can do easily on the My Annual Passports page or on your Disneyland app up until 11:59 pm on the date prior to your visit. If you “no show” three times within 90 days you will be suspended from making reservations for the next 30 days. Arriving at any point during the date you reserve at either park will avoid a “no show”.