On May 16, The Happiest Place on Earth officially kicked off its 70th anniversary celebration. Crowds flocked to Disneyland Resort to celebrate all that the anniversary had to offer, including the return of the Paint the Night Parade and Wondrous Journeys fireworks, a new World of Color show, new dessert parties and dining packages, limited-time food and drinks, and, of course, new merchandise.
Disney loyalists love it when Disney drops a line of hot new merchandise, and they will arrive at the theme parks before they open in order to get their hands on it. And with the rise of Disney influencers, being the first to snag a new piece of merchandise is a must-do. And the merchandise put out for the Disneyland 70th was no exception.
@designerdisneybro The lines for merch are CRAZY! It’s the Hunger Games out there may the odds be ever in your favor! Thanks @James
for your service! #disneyland #disney #shopping #disneyshopping #disneytiktok
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There is A LOT of merchandise that will be available throughout Disneyland’s platinum anniversary celebration, including gorgeous new spirit jerseys, tumblers, hoodies, t-shirts, Minnie ears, tote bags, mugs, notebooks, and so much more!
However, one of the most in-demand pieces of merchandise is the Key to Disneyland. This key lets guests participate even more in the celebration by letting them “unlock” various stations throughout Disneyland Park. Once their key has unlocked all nine stations, they will receive one of nine Disneyland 70th commemorative trading pins.
Guests who want to get all nine commemorative pins will have to purchase nine Disneyland Keys.
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One issue that Disney frequently experiences when it drops new merchandise is resellers. Resellers go to the park, often with other people, buy as many pieces of merchandise as they are allowed, then go online and sell the merchandise at a considerable markup. For years, guests have been begging Disney to crack down on resellers, and Disney has done a little bit to combat the problem, but a lot of people don’t think it’s enough.
One Redditor visited Disneyland on the day the 70th anniversary began and called out someone they believed was buying a ton of Keys to Disneyland. They shared the image, and while many agreed that the person looked like a scalper, there was a bit of a debate on the person’s motives.
And so it starts…
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Many commenters agreed that the man and woman were buying the keys with the intent of selling them online. Recently, Disney has appeared to purchase a lot more of its in-demand merchandise, meaning resellers will buy items that Disney never runs out of, and that is what commenters are hoping happens this time around as well.
I always love it when Disney over produces the thing scalpers are trying to scalp and then they are clamoring to break even.
I don’t even buy the things they want to sell I just f***ing hate scalpers and hope they always lose their money
They also spoke about the Death Star popcorn buckets, which came to Disneyland for Season of the Force, weeks before they arrived at Walt Disney World for its May the Fourth celebration. Guests said that the buckets sold out at Disneyland, but there were a lot available at Disney World, hurting the chances for the scalpers to sell them at a huge profit.
We just got them out here at WDW on May 4th. I saw a bunch of people with large amounts of clone trooper and Death Star buckets. I got one Death Star for myself but I have seen guests picking them up as recent as yesterday. I’m glad the scalpers are getting screwed by how much Disney is producing items that people really want.
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However, others defended the people in the photo. They pointed out that there are nine commemorative pins for guests to collect, but only one key is allowed per pin. So, guests who want to collect all nine pins must purchase nine Keys to Disneyland.
I mean, there are eight different pins. Occam’s Razor says these folks are scalpers, but we all know there are some pin addicts that are THAT committed.
Getting all nine pins would be a big and expensive commitment. Each Key to Disneyland retails for $59.99, but Magic Key Holders will receive their discount. But even with the discount, collecting all nine keys will cost nearly $500!
Of course, those who were not interested in collecting the Key to Disneyland and the accompanying pin for themselves quickly listed the Keys for sale on eBay.
If you are looking to purchase the Key to Disneyland and collect one or more of the commemorative pins, below are the lock stations that you will need to unlock on your journey. Once activated, your key will keep track of the stations as you unlock them.
- Disneyland Fire Station on Main Street, U.S.A.
- Aladdin’s Lamp inside Adventureland Bazaar in Adventureland
- In New Orleans Square
- Outside of Pooh Corner in Bayou Country
- Across from Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge
- Wilderness Expeditions and Delivery Service Wagon (near the entrance to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge) in Frontierland
- Across from Roger Rabbit’s Car Toon Spin in Mickey’s Toontown
- Fantasy Faire in Fantasyland
- Near the exit of Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters in Tomorrowland
Disneyland’s 70th Anniversary celebration has just started and will run through the summer of 2026, so if you can’t get down to the Southern California theme park and purchase your must-have merchandise right away, have no fear. With the anniversary lasting for so long, much of the merchandise will be restocked throughout the year.
Do you think these guests were scalpers, or simply buying enough keys to get all the commemorative pins? Do you think Disney needs to work harder to prevent resellers from taking advantage? Share your thoughts with us in the comments!
The post Guests Debate as Resellers Descend on Disneyland, Buy Up Anniversary Merchandise appeared first on Inside the Magic.
