Hey there, hi there, Jordan! You're as welcome as can be here at planDisney.
Woohoo! I couldn't be more excited to hear that the magic of Walt Disney World is calling, and you are answering the call by purchasing Annual Passes for yourself and your family. AND you have another group trip planned?! You are someone after my own Disney heart! I'm more than happy to answer your question today to help you maximize your upcoming year of pixie dust and fun.
Once you purchase your
Annual Pass, you will have one year to activate it, and your Pass will expire one year from its activation date. But if you're not quite ready to activate your Pass on your next visit, you can absolutely purchase and use regular theme park tickets to enter the parks. I do recommend stopping by
Guest Relations outside of the theme park before you tap into the park to let a Cast Member know that you would like to prioritize and use your regular tickets and not your Annual Pass. Then, at some point after using your ticket, just log into your
My Disney Experience app to double-check that your ticket was used and your Annual Pass was not activated.
While I completely understand wanting your family's Annual Pass expiration dates to be the same, I found that there is a benefit to having different expiration dates. Somehow, my family of three ended up with three different Annual Pass expiration dates. And while that seemed confusing at first, when it came time to renew our Passes, it was very helpful to be able to break up all three payments! Just something to consider if you think you may renew your Pass (with the renewal discount!) next year.
I hope this helps, Jordan, and I'm wishing you a year of magical memories! Please feel free to stop by any time with any questions you may have along the way. You've got a friend in planDisney.
Blue skies and sunshine,
Mandy