The 8 Best Ways to Buy Disney Tickets

Disney theme parks have set the standard worldwide for amusement park creativity and quality. Another way Disney sets the standard? Its pricing. Disney tickets are not cheap.

Nowadays, a single day ticket to Disneyland or Walt Disney World tops well over a hundred dollars per person. That’s without any fancy add-ons like Park Hopper or Disney Genie+.

Although you likely won’t find free Disney tickets (unless you're super lucky), you can do better than simply buying tickets off the official Disney website. Take a look at some of the best ways to buy Disney tickets:

There's no shortage of discounted Disney ticket websites willing to sell you tickets. Just make sure you shop with one that's reputable. Here are a couple that NerdWallet recommends:

Buy discount Disney tickets through AAA

AAA, the famous association that offers benefits on everything from hotel stays to restaurants, also sells discounted Disney tickets to members in certain locations.

AAA membership isn’t free, but it can be worth signing up for AAA for the other AAA discounts. Discounts vary by region, so confirm your region does in fact offer discount Disney tickets before signing up.

Buy discount Disney tickets through Undercover Tourist

Undercover Tourist is another popular, reputable website offering a cheaper way to buy Disney tickets.

Sometimes its discounts can be even more than those AAA offerings. And the real benefit? They’re available to everyone without a membership.

Undercover Tourist also offers deals that cover other theme parks, including Universal Studios discount tickets.

» Learn more: How I did a $4,000 Disney trip for $1,600

If you can be flexible with the day you go to Disney, you can save big. Disney tickets always follow a dynamic pricing model, where tickets on more in-demand days are more expensive than those in the off-season. Generally speaking, you'll pay far more to go to Disneyland on Christmas Day than a random Tuesday in early December.

And what's more, Disney sometimes runs its own ticket promotions — which almost always occur during off-season or shoulder season. Here are the best Disney ticket deals that come straight from Disney:

Walt Disney World ticket deals

If you're headed to Walt Disney World (and staying at a Disney hotel)...

If you're open to staying at a Walt Disney World hotel, you can save by bundling your theme park tickets with your resort stay. Disney is offering discounts of up to $200 per night on 3-night, 2-day room-and-ticket packages.

Disneyland ticket deals

If you're going to Disneyland with kids...

Disneyland Resort in California is running a limited-time offer for kids. For visits between Jan. 7 and March 20, 2025, kids between ages 3 through 9 can nab one-day, one-park tickets for as low as $50 per child.

If you're a Disney+ subscriber...

If you subscribe to Disney’s streaming service, Disney+, you can buy a three-day, one-park-per-day Disneyland tickets for $330, which is the standard price for just two days. That alone could make signing up for Disney+ worth it.

The Disney+ ticket deal is valid for visits to Disney's Anaheim theme parks between Nov. 18 and Dec. 27, 2024.

If you're a Southern California resident...

If you live near Disneyland, you might also qualify to buy discounted theme park tickets for visits before the busy summer season starts again. Right now, Disneyland is offering three-day tickets for customers with eligible Southern California zip codes:

• Three-day, one-park-per-day ticket for $199 ($66/day).

• Three-day Park Hopper ticket for $289 ($96/day).

• Three-day, one-park-per-day ticket with Lightning Lane Multi Pass for $295 ($98/day).

• Three-day, Park Hopper ticket with Lightning Lane Multi Pass $385 ($128/day).

That's not bad considering a one-day, one-park Disneyland ticket costs as much as $206 for certain high-demand days. These special tickets for Southern California residents are valid for visits Jan. 1, 2025, through May 15, 2025. The three-day ticket can be used on consecutive days or spread out on separate dates.

Visit before Jan. 6, 2025, and you can still experience the holidays at Disneyland.

If you’re looking to use points when purchasing your tickets, you’re in a bit of a bind. Currently there is no, say, AmEx discount for Disney tickets. It’s still possible to use your reward points to buy tickets, though it’s not necessarily a great value.

Websites such as Undercover Tourist allow you to pay with PayPal at checkout. Many card issuers, including Citi, American Express and Chase, have partnered with PayPal in order to redeem your points. The value you’ll receive isn’t great; AmEx points used this way are worth 0.7 cent each, while Chase points can be redeemed at a rate of 0.8 cent per point. Meanwhile, those who hold the Citi Double Cash® Card will receive a value of 1 cent per point.

If you hold a credit card with a purchase erasing feature, you can also redeem points for statement credits at a rate of 1 cent each. These include the Bank of America® Premium Rewards® credit card, among others.

» Learn more: How to purchase theme park tickets with points

This next option won’t have you using points, but it can still save money. Vacation packages bundle options such as theme park tickets, hotels, car rentals and airfare, typically for less than buying a la carte.

Costco Travel requires a membership card (which is its own annual fee), but it offers some of the best Disney vacation packages.

For example, we found one five-day vacation at a Hilton, including five-day park hopper tickets, for $2,008.56.

We priced out the cost to book that exact same hotel and tickets separately. It came out to $2,811.53 — and that didn't include the parking.

In this case, you’d save more than $800 by bundling your hotel and tickets together into a vacation package. Hilton Honors Disney ticket packages are also available, as are many different retailers offering vacation packages.

Many vacation packages also code as travel on your card. Maximize points earning by paying with a credit card that earns additional bonus points on travel.

» Learn more: How to go to Disney World for cheap

The United MileagePlus X app awards you bonus miles for purchases with hundreds of different retailers, including Disney.

Disney gift cards available through the app will reward you with 3 United miles per dollar spent. You can buy in increments up to $500 and then immediately use those gift cards to buy tickets on the Disney website. Even better, you’ll still earn reward points on the credit card you use to pay, which means you’ll be double-dipping on your earnings.

Sure, this isn't a discount upfront, but it makes for an easy way to earn United miles, and potentially rack up additional miles (particular if you spend on a United credit card).

And of course, you don't have to limit yourself to just buying Disney tickets. You can also use this trick to buy Disney gift cards that will cover food, souvenirs and other expenses on property.

Just understand that gift cards cannot be exchanged back for cash, so only purchase enough gift cards for what you'll actually spend. And keep in mind that certain retailers on Disney property might not accept Disney gift cards (e.g. third-party retailers on site, or certain vendors that operate in unconventional locations such as balloon vendors).

» Learn more: How to find cheap flights to Disney World

Here's a similar trick to the United trick above: use the Target Circle™ Credit Card to buy Disney gift cards. You can buy Disney gift cards at Target using your Target RedCard to get 5% off the purchase price. Yep, the card offers 5% off most Target purchases both in-store and online, and that extends to Disney gift cards.

This strategy effectively reduces the cost of your Disney tickets (and again, anything else you buy at Disney using those gift cards, like food or souvenirs) by 5%.

We said that free Disney tickets were near-impossible to come by, but here's one exception: you can get free Walt Disney World water park tickets (with limitations, of course). Here's the scoop:

Guests who book a qualifying stay at a Disney Resorts Collection hotel for stays with a check-in date anytime in 2025 receive complimentary tickets to either of the two Disney water parks—Blizzard Beach or Typhoon Lagoon.

Since Disney water park tickets cost about $80 per person, families or groups who would have purchased water park admission anyway might find this an incredible deal, particularly if they can book at one of the cheapest eligible Disney World hotels.

Just note that this benefit only works on your check-in day, so don't anticipate spending time in the traditional theme parks on that day. Additionally, check-in to your hotel early to maximize the deal's value.

Learn more about this deal here.

Disney often offers special offers for locals, as well as for people with affiliations such as U.S. military personnel.

For example, Disney is offering a discount on its 2025 Disney Military Salute Tickets, which are available to active or retired members of the U.S. Military and their spouses, and can be used by themselves, family members and friends.

Disney considers eligible service members as those in the the National Guard, Reservists, the US Coast Guard, the US Space Force, the Commissioned Corps of the Public Health Service (PHS), and the Commissioned Corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). 

There’s no bones about it: Disney tickets can be expensive. You could consider some cheaper Disney alternatives, but there are also plenty of ways to save on the cost of your vacation.

Whether you’re bundling together with a vacation package, purchasing discounted tickets or maximizing the amount of points you’ll earn, make sure you’re working out the best method for your situation.