I am reading a couple of WDW books, one saying that at 6 months out I should buy the tickets. Can I ask why I should do it that early? It was my understanding that I can buy whenever I wanted, even at check-in on arrival. I do plan on buying at the 2008 prices though if possible, but just wondered WHY it suggests to buy them so early. That way I'll know in case I can't buy them as soon as I hope for. Thanks.

Not quite sure why they recommend 6 months out, unless the idea was to spread out the expenses? But just so you know, Disney doesn't stick to calendar years for the price increases. I think they had one last year in August or so.

Well that's good to know. Do they give a heads up so others can try to buy them before the increase or is it automatically?

Not sure if they give advance notice, but in the last 2 years, they raised prices at WDW on 8/6/06 and 8/5/07. Before that it seemed like price increases were in jan/feb for new years. So might be wise to buy now.

Do they give a heads up so others can try to buy them before the increase or is it automatically?
IIRC, there is usually very little lead time between announcement and implementation of the price change.

Price increases are usually announced on a Friday and go into effect on Sunday.

I think why the guide book is suggesting buying them six months in advance (which is too early in my opinion - three months would be better) is for a variety of reasons -

- one less thing to think about
- you've spent the money so no need to put that into your budget for future expenses
- forces you to firm up your touring plans (park hop or not, water parks or not)
- saves time when you are actually on vacation

I always advise my guests to buy their tickets before they get there basically to save time and so I know what they want to do while they are there. It took me two weeks to get my in-laws to realize the benefits of park hopping. I actually did not trust them to get what they needed when they were there.

Price increases are usually announced on a Friday and go into effect on Sunday.

And either last year, or the year before, the 'buy your ticket online' portion of the website was "down" on Saturday when people were trying to buy tickets under the old system.

Well, if they do it in August this year too, it won't matter much because that is too soon for me. I too have finally switched over to the park hopper option. Took me about 2 weeks too lol. Thanks everyone!

I always get my tickets as part of the Disney package, becuase I am usually doing the dining plan.

If you do it as a package (with or without dining) the full payment is due 45 days before your trip. Therefore you could add them before the price increase (I think) and not have to pay for them for a bit.

If you aren't staying on property don't forget to check out a discount tickets sales agent. AAA if you are a member, undiscovered tourist is one...you can find ads all over just make sure it is a good one.