Walt Disney World is getting ready to change how Annual Passholders experience Magic Kingdom—and not everyone’s thrilled about it.
Starting July 20, 2025, the rules are shifting in a big way: even if you’re a Passholder, you’ll need a park reservation to enter Magic Kingdom any time of day, not just before 2 p.m. And yes, that includes weekdays too. This change is tied to the debut of the new Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away parade, which is expected to bring some major crowd surges back to the park.
For the last year or so, Passholders have gotten used to a bit more flexibility. If you wanted to swing by Magic Kingdom on a Tuesday afternoon after work, no reservation needed—as long as it was after 2 p.m. But with the Starlight parade expected to be a year-round draw, Disney’s trying to manage crowd flow ahead of time. The shift marks a pretty big departure from the slightly relaxed access Passholders have come to enjoy.
But before that change becomes official, Disney has dropped one more little surprise. And for once, it’s good news: two more “Good to Go” days have been added to the calendar.
On June 21st and June 22nd, Annual Passholders will be able to enter any of the four Walt Disney World parks—Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Animal Kingdom, or Hollywood Studios—without a reservation. Even better? It’s a Friday and Saturday. That’s a rarity, especially since weekends at Magic Kingdom typically do require reservations even after 2:00 p.m.
This short-term perk feels like a bit of a parting gift before the new rules come crashing down. While “Good to Go” days will continue to pop up on the calendar here and there, the flexibility to spontaneously visit Magic Kingdom is going to be far more limited after July 20. Disney hasn’t said exactly how often those days will appear in the future, and they usually don’t give much notice—so when one does get announced, it’s wise to take advantage.
It’s worth noting that once a day is marked “Good to Go,” it stays that way—Disney won’t take it back. So if you’re planning to be in the parks that weekend, you’ve just scored yourself a stress-free visit.
For Passholders, these kinds of changes can be frustrating, but understandable. The balance between spontaneity and structure has been tricky to navigate since the reservation system was introduced. And while some flexibility has returned in bits and pieces, this move feels like a clear pivot in the other direction—especially with a major new nighttime offering drawing extra attention to Magic Kingdom.
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