Hello Zara!
Welcome to planDisney! I’m so glad you stopped by with your question, because a lot of the terms used tend to sound the same, and it can be confusing! I hope I understand what you are asking, and I am going to try to explain what some of the similar-sounding names are, and hopefully, help you understand what you need to know for a visit to the Disneyland Resort!
When it comes to admission to the theme parks, there are both Theme Park
Tickets and Theme Park
Reservations, and those terms sound a lot alike.
Both are needed, as well as California residency, to enter one of the parks of the Disneyland Resort. Theme Park Tickets are paid entrance tickets, and since they are a paid item, there is a state sales tax on them, just like merchandise or concert tickets. There are varying pricing tiers of Disneyland tickets, with weekends and school holidays being more expensive than weekdays and less busy times of the year. When you purchase your Theme Park Ticket, you will be prompted to choose the date you want to visit. This tells you which pricing tier you need to purchase for the date you wish to visit, but technically you can use that ticket on any date that is of the same, or lower, pricing tier. That ticket doesn’t guarantee admittance on that one specific day of the year. This is the way that tickets were sold before the Covid-19 pandemic.
New since reopening is the required
Theme Park Reservation which was designed to limit the number of Guests inside the theme parks to a level that allows for safe social distancing for Cast Members and Guests. Theme Park Reservations have no charge and by extension, no tax. Once you have a purchased Theme Park Ticket, you will need to make your Theme Park Reservation to be allowed to enter a theme park. The ticket is your paid admission on any day within the price tier you purchased, but the Theme Park Reservation is your admittance on that specific day of the year. You must have both to enter the theme park.
I hope this helps, Zara, as you plan your visit to the Disneyland Resort. Those Theme Park Reservations are available 60 days in advance, and they are filling quickly, especially for those wishing to visit Disneyland Park. I recommend making your Theme Park Reservations as soon as you are able.
Wishing you a magical visit to
The Happiest Place on Earth!- Kate