Disney’s popular Military Salute program (also known as the Armed Forces Salute) offers discounts on tickets and rooms for members of the U.S. Armed Forces. We’ll run down answers to questions about eligibility, current prices, how to purchase tickets, how to use them, and discounts on other vacation expenses such as hotels or Memory Maker. (Last updated December 27, 2023.)
Active, Reserve, or Retired members of:
Spouses may use the benefit in place of the military member. Un-remarried widows of service members, 100% disabled veterans (US Military ID with DAVPRM marking), and foreign military assigned to US bases with US Military ID are also eligible; check this Military Salute qualifying Military ID guide from Shades of Green. If in doubt consult your base ticket office or Shades of Green.
The 2023 Military Salute runs from January 1, 2023 through December 15, 2023. Although the start and end dates are the same at both Disney World and Disneyland, some dates at each resort are excluded from benefits. Tickets and options expire at the end of the promotion and can’t be used after the end date even if they still have unused admissions.
The 2024 Military Salute runs from January 1, 2024 through December 20, 2024 at Disney World; some dates are excluded from benefits. At Disneyland, the 2024 Military Salute runs from January 9, 2024 through December 13, 2024 and there are no blockout dates. Tickets and options expire at the end of the promotion and can’t be used after the end date even if they still have unused admissions.
Disney Cruise Line doesn’t have a specific program like the Military Salute, but they do offer special Military Rates from time to time. These offers are always for specific sailings, so check the offer page to see what’s currently available to book. Adventures by Disney does not generally offer any military discounts, although you can always check their special offer page just to be sure.
The ticket offerings and blackout dates are different at Disney World and Disneyland. Prices below are what you’d pay at the ticket window; the actual prices charged by US military base ticket offices may be less.
Disney World offers two different ticket types, the Park Hopper and Park Hopper Plus (Walt Disney World Ticket Options: FAQ – Park Hoppers, Water Parks, and More) One very important difference between Military Salute and regular tickets is that Military Salute tickets do not expire 14 days after first use. You can purchase the tickets in January, visit for 2 days in March, and come back for 3 days at the Food & Wine Festival in October. They are good through the expiration date of the tickets in December.
For 2024, the Military Salute offers the option of 4, 5, or 6-day tickets. They can be used from January 1 through December 20, 2024, except during the blockout periods of March 24 – April 6 (Easter) and November 24 – 30 (Thanksgiving). Park reservations are required to use these tickets.
The median price for a 4-day Park Hopper in 2024 is $672, a 5-day Hopper is $733, and 6 days is $758. So these prices are a significant discount; about 45%.
Disneyland also offers two different ticket types; Park Hopper and Park Hopper with Genie+ included. The same as at Disney World, the tickets do not expire a set time after first use; they’re good until the promotion ends in December.
For 2024, Disneyland offers both a 3- and 4-day ticket. The tickets can be used from January 2 through December 13, 2023; there are no blockout periods. Park reservations are required to use these tickets.
Note: the Disney Genie+ Service was rebranded as Lightning Lane Multi Pass on July 24, 2024. If you purchased a ticket with Disney Genie+ Service, you will now find that it includes Lightning Lane Multi Pass.
One thing to remember when purchasing tickets is that you’ll want to have them on hand in advance in order to make Disney World or Disneyland park reservations. If you wait until the last minute to buy, you may find that reservations are no longer available on the dates you want to visit. Although park reservations have not been much of an issue in 2023, they can still run out on the busiest dates.
Tickets can be purchased at your local base Information, Tickets, and Tours (ITT) Office; be aware that they may sometimes need to be ordered so leave yourself a few weeks slack. You can also buy them directly from ticket windows at Disney World and Disneyland. If you don’t have a local base where you can purchase tickets, you can order them online from Patrick AFB ITT or Shades of Green, or over the phone from Camp Pendleton ITT.
Each eligible member can buy up to 6 tickets per offer for use by themself, family, and friends – the eligible purchaser or their spouse must use one of the tickets. There’s a little bit of nuance here so let’s lay it out.
“Per offer” means that Disney World and Disneyland are separate offers. So 6 tickets can be purchased at Disneyland, and 6 at Disney World.
Remember that spouses are eligible to buy in place of the service member, not in addition to them. The exception is if the spouse has their own eligibility. In families where both spouses are members of the military, each can purchase 6 tickets per offer – 12 at Disney World, and 12 at Disneyland.
What if you need more than 6 tickets? If there are more than 6 people in the eligible members’ immediate family (that means spouse plus dependent children), Disney will allow the purchase of additional tickets as necessary.
Yes, the tickets can be linked in My Disney Experience just like a regular ticket. This is important because you need to have a ticket in MDE before you can make Park Pass reservations. Although your tickets will need to be activated onsite at the parks before you can use them to enter, you’ll be able to make park reservations as soon as you link the tickets to your account. Although park reservations are going away for regular tickets in January 2024, they will still be needed for Military Salute tickets.
Before the tickets can be used for entering the parks, they need to be activated at a ticket window or Guest Services at one of the theme parks. Disney World tickets can also be activated at Guest Services in Disney Springs. Everyone who will use the tickets needs to be present when they are activated, along with the eligible member or their spouse who will need to show their valid Military ID. But since they don’t expire until the end of the promotion, the tickets don’t need to be used immediately once they are activated. You can activate them on your arrival day even if you’re not visiting the parks until later in your vacation.
Yes. At both Disney World and Disneyland, park reservations are required for Disney Military Salute tickets in 2023 and in 2024.
Yes, there are! At Disney World, discounted rooms are available at Disney World Resort Hotels for stays most nights between January 1 and December 15, 2023, and in 2024 most nights between January 1 and December 20, 2024. The longest valid stay is 14 days, but there is no limit to the number of times this offer can be used. Some resorts and room types are excluded. At Disneyland, discounted rooms are available at all three resort hotels, and up to two rooms can be booked per reservation. Again, some room types are excluded. At both Disney World and Disneyland, the eligible member or their spouse must stay in the room and provide a valid Military ID during check-in.
You can book directly with Disney by calling (407) 939-7830 for Disney World or (844) 776-0015 for Disneyland and asking for the Military Salute room-only discount. Or, a Disney-specialist travel agency can book these rooms for you.
Have you heard about a Memory Maker discount? At Disneyland, digital photo downloads are included with the Genie+ version of the ticket. But at Disney World, eligible members or their spouses can purchase Memory Maker for only $98, up to two times throughout the year. (FAQ Walt Disney World PhotoPass and Memory Maker) The discounted Memory Maker can only be purchased at theme park ticket windows.
Originally published November 22, 2022.
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