Where Can I Buy Cheap Disney Tickets?

The terms of time and money, buying Disneyland® e-tickets online is the best way to locate the cheap discounted tickets to both Disneyland and California Adventure Parks. Do not purchase your tickets at the ticket booth since you will end up waiting in line and will not receive the benefit of online savings.

Your tickets are delivered to you within minutes by email or you can pay an extra fee to have them mailed to you if you don’t have access to a printer. After you purchase your tickets, you will receive a PDF that you open with Adobe Reader to print out. You should have one ticket printed out for each guest for park entry.

When you enter the theme park, bypass the ticket booths and go directly to the entrance. Hand your 8 ½ x 11 printed e-ticket to the cast member and you’ll get a new ticket stub good for the duration which was purchased.

If you purchased an Annual Passport, take the ticket stub to Main Street Bank (to your right just as you enter Main Street). You will get your picture taken and provided with a credit card-size passport good for both parks.

Your largest discount in Disneyland tickets comes purchasing an Annual Passport.  The passport gives you from 170 – 365 days of unblocked access. Obviously to take advantage of the discount, you need to reside near the park.   Even though we live more than 70 miles away from Disneyland – a short two-hour drive in LA traffic – we take advantage of our Annual Passports by staying at one of the hotels near Disneyland.   

Besides giving you Park Hopper access to Disneyland and California Adventure theme parks, you receive 10% dining discounts at select resort restaurants; special rates at hotels at the Disneyland Resort; and, benefits at Downtown Disney.  

The Premium Passport, with no blocked out dates, gives you free parking at the Mickey & Friends parking structure.  But you should upgrade one passport with a parking pass if you purchase one of the other three passports.

The Southern California Select Annual Passport gives you 170 days of admission to both parks; however, summer and weekends are blocked out. 

The Southern California Annual Passport gives you 215 days of admission with similar blocked out dates as the Select Passport; except that the majority of Sundays are open for admission.  (This is the Passport we purchased.)

The Deluxe Annual Passport gives you 315 days of enjoyment but the summer and most weekends are not blocked out.  The Christmas holiday from 12/24 – 1/1 is blocked out.

Signup for the birthday club and attend Disneyland for free on your birthday.  You need to bring proof of your birth date such as a driver’s license.  Disney will give you a nice medallion to wear with your name on it and everyone will wish you “happy birthday!”

Single day tickets must be purchased at the ticket booth but you should always purchase Park Hopper Tickets so you can enter both parks on the same day. You can also purchase 2-6 day hopper tickets which allow you to attend within a two-week period after first use. The multi-day hopper tickets are good for non-area residents spending a vacation in Los Angeles. The two week window is very flexible so you can visit other attractions in the greater Los Angeles area.

Sometimes these passes are listed on eBay. What happens is that a scalper will purchase a 6 day pass and will auction a set of tickets to the highest bidder. You have to pick up the tickets at a nearby local business that morning and return the tickets that night. The scalper requests a Drivers License or cell phone as collateral so that you will return the tickets that so that he can give them to the next person the following day. There is no guarantee that Disneyland will accept the reuse of the ticket.  Look for auctions that don't have the scalping smell and you should be just fine.

Besides eBay, you can try Craigslist for Disneyland Tickets. Some people receive complimentary tickets that either don't have the time to attend the park or just want to sell them for a little extra money.  Again, be wary of scalpers especially if they want to take possession of your Drivers License. 

Disneyland usually offers summer deals while the schools are out during summer vacation.  This may be a good option for you and your children.  The 4^th of July is normally the only day that is blocked out.  The “City Pass” ticket allows you to enter Disneyland and other theme parks such as Universal Studios.

Are you a member of the Auto Club of Southern California or AAA?  Sorry, you currently cannot buy tickets through them.  However you can get a discounted vacation package when booking through their local travel agent.

While AAA doesn't provide you a deal on ticket prices, Costco does!  Currently you can pick up a 4-day park hopper pass for $199.99.  It comes with a $50 Disney Gift Card so the net cost is only $149.99.  This is one of the better deals you can find online.  However, you need be a Costco member.

Disney Gift Cards can be used buy Disney theme park tickets, merchandise, food, parking, vacation packages, hotel stays.  Thus it is good as cash since you'll probably end up spending $50 per person on food and souvenirs.