Welcome to planDisney, Shanyn! Thanks so much for coming to us with your question today. It's great that you're thinking about upgrading your ticket and joining the
Annual Passholder family! Upgrading your ticket in the
My Disney Experience app is definitely something you can do, but it works a little differently than just purchasing an Annual Pass outright.
Here's how it works: When you have a ticket as part of a vacation package, like you do now, you can't upgrade online by just trying to add an Annual Pass separately. The system won't recognize that you're upgrading, so it will charge you full price, just like you experienced. What you need to do instead is modify your existing ticket, and the cost of your current ticket will be applied toward the price of your new Annual Pass. If your ticket is eligible, the easiest way to upgrade is right in the My Disney Experience app.
Open the app and tap the main menu in the bottom right corner. From there, select "My Tickets & Passes" and find the ticket you want to upgrade. If it's eligible, you'll see an option that says "Change Ticket." Go ahead and tap that and follow the steps to upgrade to the Annual Pass.
Keep in mind that not all tickets, including special event tickets and some special offer tickets, are not eligible to be upgraded. If you're unable to upgrade your ticket or you have questions about applying the value of your existing ticket toward an Annual Pass, this process can also be done in person at any theme park ticket window or the
Disney Ticket Center in Disney Springs. Just let the Cast Member know you'd like to upgrade to an Annual Pass, and they'll take it from there!
Have a magical day, Shanyn!
Jessica