Walt Disney World has released a new discounted ticket for Floridians for Summer through early Fall 2023, with deals on 3-4 day tickets for locals. This shares info & details about the limited-time offer, commentary about this Floridian special offer, return of Annual Passes, and historical comparisons.
This is one of several new deals; if you also need to add a hotel stay, Walt Disney World already released discounts of Up to 20% Off Walt Disney World Resorts for Florida Residents through July 10, 2023. Better yet, if you’re visiting for the back half of this promo, there are savings of Up to 30% Off Walt Disney World Resorts for Florida Residents Those are just two of the many discounts available right now at Walt Disney World that run through Fall 2023.
Between those resort discounts and this special offer on tickets, Florida residents can visit Walt Disney World this summer and early fall and actually have spend less money than the same dates and experience would’ve cost last year. It’s relatively unprecedented for year-over-year effective price decreases, but that’s precisely what we’re starting to see–and it’s very much welcome after a few years of massive price increases!
In terms of the details, this 2023 Walt Disney World ticket deal will offer Florida residents the ability to buy a 4-Day Disney Summer Magic Ticket for just $58 per day, plus tax (total price: $229 plus tax). A specially priced 3-day ticket is also available.
Ticket valid from May 16 through September 29, 2023 (subject to blockout dates from May 26 to May 29, July 1 to July 4, and September 1 to September 4, 2023). Ticket is not valid for admission on blockout dates.
Proof of Florida residency required. All adults will need to show proof of Florida residency at park entrance. Both a theme park reservation via the Disney Park Pass system and valid theme park admission for the same park on the same date are required.
Here’s a visual chart that might make the info easier to digest:
You can also purchase a Disney Summer Magic Ticket that includes these great options:
- Park Hopper Option – $40 More Per Ticket, Plus Tax – Visit more than one theme park on the same day. You must make a theme park reservation for each date of your visit.
- Water Park and Sports Option – $35 More Per Ticket, Plus Tax – Visit one theme park per day. Plus, get a certain number of visits to a water park, golf course or miniature golf course based on the length of your ticket. For example, if you purchase a 3-Day Disney Summer Magic Ticket with the Water Park and Sports Option, you can visit a Walt Disney World theme park on 3 days with a theme park reservation—and visit a Disney water park on 3 additional days by September 29, 2023.
- Park Hopper Plus Option – $55 More Per Ticket, Plus Tax – Visit more than one theme park on the same day. Plus, get a certain number of visits to a water park, golf course or miniature golf course based on the length of your ticket. This option is a combination of the Park Hopper Option and the Water Park and Sports Option. You must make a theme park reservation for each date of your visit.
The only option that’s “missing” from the Florida resident ticket deal for Summer 2023 is the Genie+ add-on. Previously, this could be purchased for the duration of the tickets at a flat-rate charge of $16 per day. However, this option has been retired for all tickets and Genie+ now uses date-based pricing that ranges from $16 to $35 per day.
The good news is that Genie+ will likely cost $16 to $22 most dates that these tickets are valid. It could get more expensive during the peak of summer vacation season, but we’re not expecting $30+ prices again until October 2023. There’s also the reality that you won’t need Lightning Lane access for all dates or all parks. Everything you need to know is covered in our Guide to Genie+ and Lightning Lanes at Walt Disney World.
If you’re trying to choose the best dates to visit or ones to avoid, consult our 2023 Walt Disney World Crowd Calendars. There are going to be many dates that have low crowds during this Floridian ticket promo, especially in the next couple of weeks.
As discussed in Sharp Shoulder Season Slowdown at Walt Disney World and Low Pre-Summer Crowds at Walt Disney World, attendance is already below-average for this time of year, and discounts like this only reinforce rumors of a summer slowdown in the parks.
Given all of that, we’re hesitant to make confident predictions for mid-June through late July 2023. That would normally be the heart of the summer season, but if things could be different this year if there’s a slowdown–or depending upon how aggressively Walt Disney World pulls “levers” to lure guests.
There’s also the reality that Walt Disney World hasn’t had a “normal” summer since 2018. Last year, pent-up demand collided with soaring gas prices and resulted in an earlier peak than normal. The year before that, the post reopening rush hit a wall due to the delta variant. The year before that, the parks were closed before reopening to very low crowds and capacity constraints. Even back in 2019, the looming opening of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge threw a monkey wrench into attendance dynamics, as many fans waited for that.
Given the multitude of factors at play, Summer 2023 probably is not going to mark a return to normal with attendance trends. One prediction we are somewhat comfortable making is that the blockout dates for this and the other ticket deal won’t end up being that busy, with the exception of July 1-4, 2023.
Memorial Day and Labor Day are already below-average holiday weekends (before and after the ‘real’ summer rush), and excluding them from these discounts will only depress crowds further. If you’re targeting a holiday weekend for your visit, those could be lowkey great options.
This is not the first Florida resident discount of the year. The first option was the Disney Weekday Magic Ticket, which started January 10 and ran through April 27, 2023. That offered Floridians discount tickets, with a 2-day ticket for $175 (plus tax), 3-day ticket for $195 (plus tax), or 4-day ticket for $215 (plus tax).
The 2022 Disney Weekday Magic Ticket discount was similar, just slightly cheaper. Those 2-Day Florida Resident tickets cost $149, the 3-Day version was $179, and the 4-Day Florida Resident ticket option cost $199. Additionally, there were fewer blockout dates.
If you’re wondering how this compares to 2021, back then Florida resident ticket prices for the first half of the year were $149 for 2-day tickets, $179 for 3-day tickets, and $199 for 4-day tickets. (Those had more blockout dates–but were also available during a busier season.)
Post-reopening, Florida Resident Discover Tickets started at $130 per ticket for the 2-day ticket. The 3-day option was $174 per ticket and the 4-day Florida Resident Disney Magic Flex Ticket was $195 per ticket. None of those tickets were limited to weekdays-only.
There are a couple of interesting changes here. The first is that this ticket deal is once again not limited to weekdays-only. This is going to be important to many Floridians; working 9-5 jobs Monday through Friday made the prior two resident tickets non-starters for many fans.
Even with this costing slightly more than the winter and spring discount, it’s probably a better value for at least some Floridians as a result. (And in fairness, average ticket prices are higher in June through mid-August than the weekdays in winter and spring when the last deal was available.)
From our perspective, this not being a weekday-only ticket is more interesting because of a recent dynamic we’ve observed with wait time and crowd trends (and even Genie+ pricing): weekdays are actually busier than weekends most of the time!
This is a trend that has emerged since the start of 2023, and at first we thought the resident ticket exclusion and lack of Annual Passes was a key cause. However, things haven’t really changed in a material way since the last promo ended or APs returned. Our leading theory now are that higher prices on hotels and airfare over the weekends have caused many tourists to cut weekends from their trips. (That was a theory before, but we thought the local dynamic was as big of a factor, and it has not proven to be one.)
Ultimately, the Disney Summer Magic Florida Resident Ticket offer is the best way for locals to save on park admission right now…unless you’ll get enough mileage out of an Annual Pass to make that worth the money. Frankly, we suspect that’ll be true for many Floridians who have an interest in Walt Disney World. Between that and a firsthand knowledge of summer weather in the Sunshine State, we wouldn’t be surprised if there’s limited interest in this deal among locals.
In short, if there is a summer slowdown on the horizon at Walt Disney World, this probably won’t be what “fixes” it. This should be an interesting saga to follow, and it’s almost certain that we haven’t seen the end of Walt Disney World’s efforts to woo back former fans and pull “levers” to incentivize more demand and guest spending. Stay tuned–there’s surely more to come in the days, weeks, and months ahead! We’ll continue closely monitoring what’s released and will notify subscribers of our free email newsletter when any Walt Disney World discounts are released or rumored!
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think of these park ticket promotions for Walt Disney World? Will you be taking advantage of the Florida resident deal for Summer and early Fall 2023–or did you already purchase an Annual Pass when those sales resumed? Do you agree or disagree with our assessments? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
