Walt Disney World Annual Passes are here. Should you get one? That all really comes down to when you want to go and how much you’re willing to spend to become an Annual Passholder.

Disney currently offers four different tiers of annual passes, each with a different price point and restrictions, at least until you reach the most expensive pass:

• Pixie Dust Pass
• Pirate Pass
• Sorcerer Pass
• Incredi-Pass

The admissions calendar is the first thing you want to check out before even considering putting hundreds of dollars down on a pass. Then, depending on how much money you’re willing to give, The Mouse will determine when you can use the pass.

The Pixie Dust Pass ($399) won’t allow you to visit the parks on the weekends, and large chunks of March and December:

The Pirate Pass ($749) gives you access to Walt Disney World during most weekends, but March and December are still limited:

Coming in close to $1K, the Sorcerer Pass frees up March, but the last two weeks of December are still blocked out:

Finally, for $1,399, the Incredi-Pass gives you complete access to the Walt Disney World parks:

Annual Passes returned this past April after a lengthy hiatus. Unfortunately, we heard from several passholders that they had to wait in an online queue for hours to secure theirs finally.

These new passes have several perks in common:

• Standard theme park parking
• Save on select dining
• Up to 20% off select merchandise in store

Regardless of which pass you choose, advanced reservations are required. Long gone are the days when you could show up at the parks with your pass and get in. Oddly, the Incredi-Pass does not give you preferred parking or a discount on it. The difference in perks at the end of the day comes down solely to blockout dates.

[Source: WDW]