Hi Ariana! Welcome to planDisney!
Thank you for your great question. I'm sorry to hear you can no longer make your upcoming visit to Disneyland Resort, (bummer!) but what a generous gift for your friend!
Fortunately, the name on a Disneyland Resort theme park ticket doesn't matter too much until after the Guest's picture is taken at the park entrance where the ticket will then be officially linked to that Guest. If your ticket is unused, and it'll make you feel better, you may reach out to Guest Services beforehand to change the name either by giving the
Tickets line a call or initiating a chat from the
"Help" page on the Disneyland website. The help chat box hovers on the right-hand side of your screen and is a great resource to connect with a friendly Cast Member who can assist you.
Your friend will need the ticket ID number, however, and then they should be able to link the ticket to their Disney Account, either in the Disneyland app or website. In the Disneyland app, they can do this by clicking on the ☰ at the bottom right of the screen and selecting "My Tickets & Passes." Then click on the (+) sign in the top right corner and select “Link Tickets & Passes” to type in the theme park ticket number where it will be added to their Disneyland app.
Remember, park reservation dates can be modified at any time, Ariana, if another date works better and if there's availability. You can do this in either the
Disneyland app (from the ☰, select "Park Reservations" under Plan My Next Visit) or on the
Disneyland website.
Ariana, because I see you are from California, you may want to consider the incredible
Southern California Resident Ticket offer for a future visit! Going on sale December 3, 2025, this special 3-day, park hopper ticket is for Guests who reside within ZIP codes 90000 and 96199 only. If you are able to provide the required proof of Southern California residency with a government-issued photo ID, then you would be able to purchase this magical SoCal Resident Ticket - an amazing deal! You're then welcome to visit the parks three times from January 1 through May 21, 2026 - subject to theme park reservation availability.
I hope this information has been helpful for you, Ariana, and you'll be making your plans to visit the Happiest Place on Earth very soon. Lots to look forward to in 2026, like my very favorite
Lunar New Year!
See you real soon!
Magic awaits,
McCayla