Using Disney Tickets before Check in Date ?

[thecube]

Hi all.

Got a question if you can help at all.
If you book a Disney Hotel free dining package for say 10 nights with 14 day park tickets , if we arrive in Orlando a few days early & stay offsite, are we able to use the 14 day tickets at all before our Disney Check in date ?
Many thanks for any help.

[chmurf]

No

your tickets can only be activated from check in day (and must be activated before check out day)

they're not valid before check in

[Guest]

I have not tried it, but I have definitely seen people report that if you go to guest services they will activate them early.

[sha9]

Disney seem to have u-turned on this and now if you go to guest services when you arrive they’ll activate them early. I think I saw someone say up to 10 days.

[Andi]

Disney appear to keep changing this.

Years ago they would activate early then they stopped doing this if you had the free ddp and tickets could only be activated when checking in.

However, I have seen posts on here recently of people who went to guest services and got their tickets activated a few days early even though they had the free ddp.

[chmurf]

with all respect to recent experience of those who may, or may not have gotten their UK (or US) tickets made valid before check in date (all we got here so far is hearsay and not firsthand experience),

here is my viewpoint

OP when you booked (and if you go to manage my booking) it says your tickets are not valid until (insert check in date)

even if Disney was currently allowing tickets to be made valid before the check in date, it's a known fact that disney change policies more often then you would change your socks.

so the main question is rather to know if, on the day you're there, the cast member will be willing (and know how to) proceed

basically, what I'm saying is that, if you're building a whole plan around the fact that you'll get those tickets early, then you may be in for a large let down

if you're ready to not be able to go to the parks on your first days, then no problem. If they allow you to use the tickets sooner, it's all a bonus

also note that even if you're allowed to do that, it will be done in florida, meaning you won't be able to make FP+ selections for the offsite days at 60 days. You'll need to wait the 30 days mark for those first few days, so you'll essentially make the FP+ selection for the onsite part, before the selections for the offsite part (if MDX doesn't play up, and allows you to make FP+ selections for those firest few days, granted the tickets are not supposed to be used before check in)

but, keep in mind that, you may not be allowed to use the tickets before your check in at disney's, because you're not supposed to be able to

so plan accordingly
maybe do some offsite after disney, so you're guaranteed on tickets vailidity