Hey Howdy Hey Tracy and welcome to planDisney!
Thank you so much for stopping by with your question about
Special Event Tickets versus standard theme park tickets. Let's get right to it so you have the information you need!
Long story short, yes, they are two different products and the use or modification of one does not affect the other. With Special Event tickets, say to
Mickey's Not-So-Scarry Halloween Party in Magic Kingdom, you typically purchase them for a specific date and there is not a whole lot of flexibility in the validation period.
Now that Disney has taken away the need for Theme Park Reservations for date-based tickets, you are free to use them as you wish during your stay. No worries if you wake up one morning and feel that your originally planned day to EPCOT should now be in Magic Kingdom. Head over to Magic Kingdom and enjoy the day! The only caveat to that would be if you purchased Lightning Lanes for one park but decided to go to another. But you should be able to easily modify your selections on the My Disney Experience app so you are all caught up.
The other thing to keep in mind when changing your plans is the
validation periods. With typical 4-day theme park tickets, tickets will expire 7 days after your validation date starts. So as long as you use your tickets during this window, you should be all set with your theme park ticket and Special Event ticket usage.
I hope this answers your questions about your options and usage of each ticket. If you have any other questions, please let us know!
To Infinity and Beyond,
Nick