If you're planning to visit the Happiest Place on Earth, "How long should I visit?" and "Which tickets should I get?" are probably your first questions ... well, right after "How do I get Disneyland discount tickets?" Lucky for you, we have answers!
We know the Disneyland Resort is a great value and the ultimate in family fun. There is so much hoppenin' at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure, and there are so many memories to be made. But still, there are so many decisions, especially around Disneyland tickets. Everyone wants to pick the best ticket and the right number of days for the best price. On top of that, you might wonder if you should get park hopper tickets and/or tickets loaded with Lighting Lane Multi Pass. Today, we'll explore all of the options so you can decide which Disneyland discount tickets to purchase!
Before we hop into the specifics, we should note that as an authorized seller, we're able to offer authentic Disneyland tickets at a discount. These are the same tickets you would purchase at the gate for hoppin' good prices. We guarantee the lowest Disneyland prices on multi-day tickets. If you find a lower rate from another authorized seller, just give us a call and we'll price match. Plus, our Disneyland tickets are refundable for up to 365 days. If your plans might change, you can feel safe purchasing tickets through us. Disneyland tickets purchased directly through Disneyland are not refundable.
If you already know which tickets you want, jump straight to our Disneyland ticket page and buy them. For those of you who still aren't sure, read on!
How Many Days Do You Need at Disneyland?
Families routinely spend a week or longer at Disney World, enjoying its four parks, two water parks and two shopping/entertainment areas (spread out over land roughly the size of San Francisco!). On the other hand, Disneyland's size lends itself to shorter visits.
At Disneyland, the entrances to the two parks plus the Downtown Disney entertainment area are within a minute or two of each other. Many of the hotels are a few minutes walk or a short drive away. With less travel time and ground to cover at Disneyland, you can spend three to five days in the parks and experience it all. Plus Disneyland Park has so much to do that you'll need a few extra days to experience it all.
What are your interests? If you have small children, you can easily spend a few hours exploring and playing in the refurbished Mickey's Toontown. If you have Star Wars fans in your party, you could easily spend several hours in Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge. You can drink in the Cantina, fly the Millennium Falcon, join the Rebellion and escape the First Order on Rise of the Resistance. You could also go bounty hunting with your MagicBand+ and the Play Disney Parks app. Or you can hack, scan, translate or tune into communication signals with the DataPad. You want to allow enough time to experience these lands without feeling rushed.
We offer 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5-day tickets to Disneyland Resort. The discounts are really evident if you purchase multi-day tickets. Most of our 1-day tickets are now less than Disneyland's prices! And they come with our refund policy, so that might be of value to you if your plans are subject to change. We always display the final costs of our online tickets upfront so there are no surprises when you go to check out. (Psst ... sometimes we have sales, lowering our already low prices, so keep an eye out for those, especially around holidays. Jump on them when you see them!)
How much entertainment you want to experience can affect how much time you need. A family that is all about the rides can knock those out quickly in about two days, especially with our tools and tips to maximize time.
A family that also wants to see parades, shows, nighttime spectaculars, holiday or festival offerings, meet characters, visit Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique and enjoy character dining or table-service restaurants will move at a slower pace and need to factor in waiting time (sometimes hours) for those experiences. Those travelers will want a few more days to experience everything.
Many families also plan visits to Universal Studios Hollywood, Six Flags Magic Mountain and other LA attractions or even make a trip to nearby San Diego to visit Legoland, SeaWorld or the San Diego Zoo. We recommend you also factor in what else you want to do during your visit. we have discount tickets for all those parks too (plus Sesame Place San Diego)!
For our visits to LA and San Diego, we always plan at least one fun beach day, and my wife, Flora, insists on at least one day of shopping. If you need a rental car to do some SoCal exploring, we have another money-saving hack for you. When you are purchasing your Disneyland tickets, put your car rental in the cart. You'll see the price drop by 50 percent when bundling your rental car with a hotel or theme park ticket purchase. (We also have discount hotel rates!)
Most families opt for three days in the Disneyland parks, and two is the recommended minimum. First-time visitors should plan at least a three-day visit and maybe a four-day visit, depending on how busy the park is (see the best times to visit Disneyland for suggestions). We recommend adding a day if you are visiting during a celebration such as the Disneyland 70th anniversary celebration in 2025, Food & Wine Festival, Halloween Time or Holiday Time. There is so much entertainment and food to try, you'll want that extra day to do it all.
If it's a less busy time of year, it will be easier to experience the major attractions in less time. The amount of days you decide to visit the parks also depends on whether you'll be park hopping or not. Don't froget — Disneyland introduced date-based, tiered pricing for single-day tickets a couple of years ago! The adult 1-day tickets can range from $104 to $206 or more for one-park-per-day base tickets. If you are looking for cheap Disneyland tickets, our multi-day tickets can cost as little as $79 per day.
Unless you're visiting during a non-peak time, the tiered 1-day ticket pricing adds an additional complexity (and potential cost) that you can avoid if you purchase multi-day tickets. Multi-day tickets are not subject to these tiers and are easier to change days to visit because they have no blockout dates. (However, on the lowest-tier days, you can save money with 1-day tickets if you know your plans are solid.) If you want to park hop each, then definitely go for multi-day tickets as park hopping is cheaper per day with those. Another great thing about all Disneyland Undercover Tourist tickets is that they are refundable up to 365 days after purchase. Other Disneyland tickets are not.
Depending on the time of year, some nighttime shows such as Fantasmic! and fireworks may be offered only on select days of the week, specifically weekends. A multi-day ticket can allow you to visit on a less busy weekday, but also catch great entertainment on the weekend. That way you get the best of both worlds.
Disneyland Ticket Types — Base or Park Hoppers
There are two ticket types available for Disneyland: the base ticket or park hopper (both of them come with Lighting Lane Multi Pass options, which we will talk about later). The base ticket gets you into one park per day. The park hopper allows you to hop between the two parks in the resort on the same day. With the park hopper, you can hop as many times as you like. Unfortunately, you cannot hop by using base tickets. Because of this, many families choose park hoppers. We'll share the reasons why (and whether we think Disneyland park hoppers are worth it) below.
Keep in mind that it is much cheaper per day to hop on a multi-day ticket vs. a 1-day ticket. However park hopper prices went up in October 2024. So getting 1-Park tickets is going to save you overall. Here's the cost breakdown of park hopping:
Disneyland has a new price chart for park hopping. We'll break it down by cost per day:
- 1-Day Ticket: $65 to 75 to add Park Hopping (Tier 0-2: $65 per day. Tier 3-4: $70 per day. Tier 5-6: $75 per day.)
- 2-Day Ticket: $80 to add Park Hopping ($42.50 per day)
- 3-Day Ticket: $90 to add Park Hopping ($30 per day)
- 4-Day Ticket: $95 to add Park Hopping ($23.75 per day)
- 5-Day Ticket: $105 to add Park Hopping ($21 per day)
We love being able to hop, especially when it comes to catching our must-see nighttime spectaculars, which might be in a different park from where we spent the day. However, these new prices make it not as worth it for a family. Buying 1-Park tickets is a good way to save hundreds of dollars on your ticket purchase.
When you make your Disneyland reservations with a park hopper ticket, you choose the park you want to start your day in. Then, beginning at 11 a.m., you can hop back and forth between the parks. If you arrive after 11 a.m., you can go to either park.
Promo Tickets
Most multi-day tickets have a limited time period in which they can be used. After the first visit, you have 13 days to use the other days and complete your remaining visits. There are no blackout dates for multi-day tickets. The exception to this rule is the limited-time promotional SoCal resident tickets and summer promo tickets. These tickets may have different restrictions and blackouts and can be used on three different days over a several-month span. The SoCal Resident promo tickets are back on sale for any three visits Jan. 1 through May 15, 2025. Look for Summer promo tickets in the summer, mid-June through late September. We sell those with a heftier discount too!
Another great deal is the Kids Special offer ticket for ages 3-9. If you can visit in January, February or March, you can save a ton of money on tickets for the tadpoles. Get Kids Tickets for as low as $47 a day! They are good for visits between Jan. 7 and March 20, 2025. Pair them with a Tier 0 or Tier 1 day for the adults and you can save several hundred dollars!
Is the Disneyland Park Hopper Worth It?
We think park hopping can be worthwhile for longer trips, and not just because we frogs like hopping! The main reason is convenience. With Disneyland and Disney California Adventure so close, it's easy to hop between them. In fact, you could spend your day hopping back and forth between the parks if you wanted. That's what we tend to do when we visit. Some people even hop as part of their ride strategy, since you can make Lightning Lane reservations in either park. It also opens up a larger variety of dining options. But due to the cost increase, we urge you to compare the cost of hopping vs. not hopping and making that decision based on your budget. Our thoughts on hopping are changing.
You want to maximize your time in the parks, and Disneyland often staggers park closing times. Typically, Disney California Adventure closes at 10 p.m. and Disneyland closes at 12 a.m. Our best time to visit Disneyland post has some exceptions to watch out for when it comes to park hours and more hopful information. On Oogie Boogie Bash nights, Disney California Adventure closes at 6 p.m., allowing park hoppers to head to Disneyland Park. On Disneyland After Dark nights, Disneyland may close at 8 p.m., allowing hoppers to extend their day at Disney California Adventure. So hopping does offer convenience.
By purchasing park hoppers, you can hop to the park open later, catching World of Color at Disney California Adventure and then Fantasmic! at Disneyland on the nights that it is shown. The only reason not to purchase park hoppers is if your budget just doesn't allow it or you only have one day or just a couple of hours to spend at the parks. For example, if you were attending a nearby convention for a few days and could only spend evenings at Disneyland, then adding on park hoppers probably doesn't make sense. If you have small children, you can get by without hopping, as one park may be enough for them each day.
If you have a longer trip, get the hopper if it fits your needs and budget. If you have a 1-day trip or maybe a 2-day trip, we say you can skip the hopper to save money. You can just fully explore one park a day. But if you only have one day to see it all, you might want to get the park hopper on a low tier day. It comes down to your budget and what attractions are most important to you. If you are going to hop with a 1-day ticket, get the Lighting Lane Multi Pass service to maximize time. We recommend starting in Disney California Adventure and then hopping to Disneyland. You'll have to identify your top few attractions in each park to do it all in one day.
Hop When Staying at a Nearby Hotel
If you are staying at a nearby hotel or one of the three Disneyland Resort properties, you may want to hop. You can visit one park in the morning. Take a break midday to swim or nap. Then hop to the other park for the evening. Guests of one of the Disneyland Resort hotels can also take advantage of Early Entry. Early Entry allows guests admission 30 minutes before park opening (on one park) during every day of a hotel stay at either Disneyland Park or Disney California Adventure Park (with ticket and reservation). Read more about the benefits of staying at a Disneyland Resort hotel.
A Fifth Day Free?
If you are debating between a 4-day and a 5-day ticket, it costs about $32 to add on the fifth day through Undercover Tourist. So, if you had a half day on arrival or checkout day of your trip, you might want to add that fifth day. If you compared an Undercover Tourist 5-day ticket with a 4-day ticket through Disneyland, you'll see that our 5-day base ticket is actually cheaper than Disneyland's 4-day base ticket. It's like getting that fifth day free and having money left over for a meal!
Lightning Lane Multi Pass Tickets
One more thing to consider is if you want to purchase a Lighting Lane Multi Pass ticket. You can purchase single, multi-day and hopper tickets pre-loaded with Lighting Lane Multi Pass. At Disneyland (as opposed to Disney World) you can purchase cheap Disneyland tickets loaded with Lighting Lane Multi Pass in advance. We have several posts about this optional service that allows you to skip the lines for certain attractions. These might help you decide whether to get a Lighting Lane Multi Pass ticket or wait until you enter the park each day:
- Answering Your Disneyland Lightning Lane Frequently Asked Questions
- Our Complete Guide to Disney Genie and Lighting Lane Services at Disneyland
- The Lightning Lane Guru's Take: Using Lighting Lane With a Group at Disneyland
Lightning Lane Multi Pass is offered with tickets for the lowest rate through Undercover Tourist. In fact, our discount Disneyland tickets with Lighting Lane are the cheapest way to get the service — and they come with extra savings. If you do not purchase Lighting Lane Multi Pass tickets, you can purchase the service in the theme park through the Disneyland app. Keep in mind, the price of the service can vary per day when you purchase in the park. That means, if you decide to get Lightning Lane every day, then you could end up paying a few dollars more for it by waiting until you enter the park.
We like to buy Lightning Lane Multi Pass when we buy park hoppers because hopping makes the Multi Pass a better value. (However, you do have to factor the increased cost of park hopping.) You can access over 20 rides across both parks using the Multi Pass. In addition, the Lighting Lane Multi Pass can be used across parks, allowing you to enter the other park and head straight to the ride you selected ahead of time. We love skipping lines!
When should you get Lighting Lane Multi Pass tickets:
- If you plan to use Lightning Lane Multi Pass every day of your trip
- You use PhotoPass photographers (images are included with the Multi Pass)
- When you want to lock in the lowest price
- You want to be ready to go and start reserving rides as soon as you enter a theme park.
- When park hopping
- When you have some people who want to ride thrills and others who don't. That way the riders can get through the lines and back to the group faster. (In that case, purchase Lightning Lane Multi pass tickets in advance for some party members but not for others.)
When you might want to wait to purchase Lighting Lane Multi Pass:
- If you do not plan to use the service every day of your trip
- If you do not plan to ride thrill rides or most of the attractions on Lightning Lane Multi Pass
- When you are visiting with toddlers who do not meet the height requirements for most Multi Pass thrill rides.
- If you're not sure if you want it and want to see how lines are the day you visit
So there you have it, the full scoop on Disneyland ticket discounts, cheap Disneyland tickets and our recommendations on which to get as you plan your trip!
Have questions about which discount Disneyland ticket is right for you? Drop us a line! Once you decide on tickets, check out our hopful Disneyland and Disney California Adventure park plans. Don't froget, we're now selling Disneyland discount tickets.
Related: Best Time to Visit Disneyland
Related: How to Save Money on Disneyland Tickets
Keep hopping!
