Disneyland Resort’s Magic Key pass is now on sale and available for those who wish to purchase. Sales opened yesterday morning for these tickets and fans immediately hopped on the Disneyland app and website to purchase one of the four options. The range of experiences for guests purchasing a Magic Key was quite vast.
DAPS MAGIC began a live stream shortly before 10:00 AM when the Magic Keys could begin to be sold at the earliest. Shortly after 10:00, the infamous Big Thunder Mountain Railroad hold screen appeared. This, however, didn’t stay for the whole morning. Instead, a new hold screen replaced it. This one was an animated Space Mountain. This was the real virtual queue that was utilized to purchase tickets. Both of these can be seen in the live stream with Mr. DAPS and Murray.
For some, the wait really wasn’t that long at all. One person who was participating in the chat reported getting their Magic Key within 8 minutes. For others, the wait was longer. For the DAPS MAGIC team, the online wait ranged from 3 to 5 hours it seemed. However, there were also some reports of up to a seven-hour wait for others who are friends of DAPS MAGIC.
The wait involved not just the Space Mountain graphic, but also a progress bar. This did help move the wait along and provide some hope. When it was time to make a Magic Key purchase, a little musical diddy played and guests were then redirected to a page with options for purchasing their Magic Keys. A few things were learned throughout the day of this process:
- Being logged in is a good idea but you might need to relog in if you get logged out during the redirect.
- This is especially important for those wanting payment plans and wanting to prove they are from California.
- Upgrading from a day ticket to a Magic Key didn’t always work online. While Disneyland Resort did say not to go to the ticket booths at the Disneyland Resort, this did become a necessity for some. Contrary to some reports, guests were able to pay with a credit card, upgrade their ticket to the Magic Key Pass, and also set up monthly payments.
- Only one Disney gift card can only be used per purchase (not per ticket).
- There IS a DVC discount of $20.
As the day wore on, it was expected that the virtual queue would get short. This did not end up being the case. Even into the evening guests were still getting the hold screen and were told that there was more than an hour wait as they went through the process. A long line formed in the evening as well at the Disneyland Resort ticket booths.
While the sales were not always quick for guests, it appeared that for the most part, nothing went overly wrong. As the day wore on, new Magic Key holders could be seen posting in the parks utilizing their new passes. The former Legacy Pass Terrace in Disney California Adventure was already rebranded for Magic Key holders. There was also at least one photo location behind the castle for Magic Key holders.
Those who purchase a Magic Key in the first 66 days of them being offered will be considered charter members. With this will come a welcome package. At the time of this writing, there were no dates where reservations were already full on the new Magic Key Access Calendar for Magic Key holders. It also appears that all Magic Key levels are still available. These can be found at disneyland.com/magickey.
Did you get a Magic Key on an opening day? What was your experience like? Share your experiences, thoughts, and opinions in the comments below!
