A Complete Guide To PhotoPass At Disneyland- Is It Worth It?

Visiting the Disneyland Resort is always so much fun! You’ll want to make sure that you have all of those memories captured in pictures so you can enjoy them for years to come. Sure, you can take lots of your own pictures, but you might want to consider using Photopass at Disneyland too! Why not have some professional photographers snap a few pictures too?

Photopass at Disneyland is Disney’s photography service. You’ll find Disney Photopass photographers all around the parks ready and excited to take your photos! In this post, I’ll cover everything you need to know about PhotoPass at Disneyland, magic shots, how to find Disney photographers, and much more! Then, you can decide if this service is right for your family.

Discount Disneyland Tickets

Please be aware, that Disney theme parks all require park tickets and reservations. Make sure you have both! Please don’t pay full price for your Disney tickets or hotel. My partners at Get Away Today have the very best deals on tickets and hotels. Their customer service is top-notch and they even have layaway plans. You can find them here or call 1-855-GET-AWAY. Make sure you tell them Melissa from Mix In Some Magic sent you for the best deal! If you book a package with park tickets and a hotel room you can use my code MIX10 to save an extra $10. That’s more churro money, friends!

I have a bunch of hotel reviews that might be helpful for you if you’re still trying to decide where you’d like to stay. I prefer to stay at a hotel within walking distance of the Disney parks. This is a great option for our family because I love being able to just walk over to the parks and walk back to the hotel when the day is over.

Disneyland Planning Help

I’ve got bunches of information on planning a Disneyland trip that will be so helpful for you! Start with my complete guide to visiting Disneyland. It’s a step-by-step guide for planning your vacation that will be helpful. Check out my top 10 Disneyland tips and my guide to when to visit Disneyland to help you pick the best time for your vacation! I’ve also got a post on rope dropping at Disneyland that’s very helpful.

I have a planning phone call that’s super popular! In this phone call, I can answer all of your Disneyland vacation questions and give you lots of tips and info tailored just to you and your group!

How Does PhotoPass At Disneyland Work?

Here’s a brief overview of how PhotoPass at Disneyland works. It’s really pretty simple and if you have any questions, you can always ask a cast member or your Disney PhotoPass Photographer. They are trained on PhotoPass and happy to help!

Download The Disneyland App

First, you’ll want to download the Disneyland app. This mobile app is going to be your best friend while you are in the Disneyland theme park. You can use it to check wait times on rides, mobile order food and you can even upload your park tickets so you can just use your phone to get into the park! You can also use the Disneyland app to book your Disney Genie Plus Lightning Lanes. It really is quite handy and you’re going to be impressed with all the different things it can do!

Your Disney photographer will scan a code using your app to link your photographs to your account. It’s very simple and incredibly convenient!

Have a Disney Photographer take some pictures

Next, have a Disney photographer take some pictures of your group! There are photographers ready to capture your Disney vacation all over the park! We’ll talk about how to find them in a bit, but they really are all around, so you should have an easy time finding one. Sometimes there will be a line to wait in, other times the photographer will be just waiting for someone like you to ask for a photo!

Photographer Will Scan Your App

After your Disney photo session, your photographer will have you open up your app and show you where your PhotoPass QR code is located. They’ll scan your code and that’s it. All you have to do now is wait for your photos to appear!

Enjoy Your Photos

Soon, your photos will appear on your Disneyland app. You’ll also be able to view them using your “My Disney experience account” on the Disneyland website. Photos take anywhere from a few minutes to 24 hours to appear.

Using PhotoPass For Ride Photos

There are a few attractions that will take a picture of you while you’re on the ride!

Disneyland Park

• Space Mountain
• Splash Mountain

Disney California Adventure Park

• Radiator Springs Racers
• Guardians Of The Galaxy
• Incredicoaster

To get your ride photos onto your Disneyland app, you’ll need to take a picture of your ride photo. As you’re exciting the attractions, you’ll find photo locations with the ride photos on display. Your photo will have a number at the top. Take a picture of the photo and make sure you get the number in there too! You can then enter the number into your Disneyland app(in the photo section). Your attraction photos will soon appear in the Disneyland app.

Where To Find PhotoPass Photographers

The Disneyland photographers are located all around Disneyland! You’ll find them in iconic photo spots like near the train station at the entrance to the park, at the end of Main Street, in front of the castle, and in front of the Millennium Falcon in Galaxy’s Edge. There really are photo opportunities everywhere!

You can often find photographers around to capture your interactions with favorite Disney characters as well. Mickey Mouse will usually have a Disney photographer with him. You’ll find photographers in Pixie Hollow with Tinkerbell, in Fantasy Faire with the princesses, and in Pooh’s Corner with Winnie the Pooh and his friends.

You can use the Disneyland app to locate photographers as well. Go to the map section and from the drop-down menu, select “photo pass”. It will show you a list of locations to use PhotoPass on the day of your visit. It’s a pretty helpful way to find photographers around the Disney resort.

PhotoPass At Disneyland- Magic Shots

Magic shots are one of the best parts about PhotoPass At Disneyland! Your Disney PhotoPass photographer can add a little bit of digital magic to your photos. Sometimes they’ll add in a favorite character like Minnie Mouse or Tinkerbell. Sometimes they’ll add in a digital prop like balloons. You won’t know what’s there until you see your photos! You can ask your photographer to do some magic shots for you. Disney photographers are always happy to add some magic!

Disneyland offers special magic shots during the Holidays and Halloween Time at Disneyland! I love to take advantage of these special magic shots.

Using PhotoPass At Disneyland for Special Occasions

Using PhotoPass at Disneyland to capture special occasions is a great idea! There are lots of things to celebrate at Disneyland! Whether you are celebrating a birthday, anniversary, engagement, honeymoon or even a family reunion make sure you get some PhotoPass pictures to document the occasion.

A few years ago we had a family reunion at Disneyland and had our entire family in one picture in front of the castle. It was a really simple way to capture a special memory! Our photographer was great and also took individual family photos. He spent a lot of time with us making sure we had all the photos we wanted. Of course, we had all our family members in matching shirts. We’re one of those families! 😉

PhotoPass At The Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique

If you’re taking your child to the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique on your next visit, you might want to consider a PhotoPass package. Of course, you can use your own camera to document the special occasion, but it’s kinda fun to have a photographer take some professional pictures as well. The Castle Package comes complete with a portrait package, courtesy of Disney PhotoPass Service—which includes a photo taken near Cinderella’s carriage and assorted prints presented in a themed folder. You can check out all the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique packages here. Reservations are recommended.

PhotoPass At Disneyland And Character Dining

At least one PhotoPass photo is typically included with each character meal experience for no additional charge. I had my picture taken with Minnie Mouse before my Minnie and Friends breakfast at the Plaza Inn. After having your picture taken, the Disney photographer will hand you a Disney PhotoPass card with your picture on it. Later, you can scan it into your Disneyland app for access to the photo.

PhotoPass At Disneyland And Special Events

PhotoPass at Disneyland is often included with special events. After-hour special events like Oogie Boogie Bash and Merriest Nites usually have PhotoPass included with your special event ticket. I love to take advantage of free PhotoPass! These events usually include special photo backdrops and often special Disney characters as well. Double check when you’re buying a special event ticket to see if PhotoPass is included with the special event you’re attending.

PhotoPass At Disneyland Included With Disney Genie Plus

PhotoPass at Disneyland is included with Disney Genie Plus. Disney Genie Plus is the new system that has replaced the old Fastpass/max pass system at the Disneyland Resort. If you are planning on using Genie Plus on your vacation, it comes with PhotoPass! This is a huge perk of Genie Plus, so take advantage of it! Disney Genie Plus is a great system, but it’s not for everyone. You can find out more information about Disney Genie Plus to help you decide if it’s right for you you and your group here.

PhotoPass Photos Do Expire

You’re Disneyland PhotoPass photos won’t stay on your account forever! Make sure you download them before they disappear forever! Here’s some helpful information from the Disneyland website about PhotoPass photos’ expiration dates.

Disney PhotoPass photos, dining photos and attraction photos in your account will expire 45 days from the date the photo was taken. If you would like to extend the expiration date to 60 days from the date the photo was taken, you may purchase an Expiration Extension. All photos in your account as of the day the Expiration Extension is purchased will now expire 60 days from the date the photo was taken (instead of 45 days). Expiration dates of photos may only be extended once.

Disney does not offer options for permanent storing of photos or other digital content. Expired photos and other digital content will no longer be available.

How Much Does PhotoPass At Disneyland Cost?

There are two ways to purchase PhotoPass at Disneyland. As I said, it’s come with your Disney Genie Plus. Disney Genie Plus is $20 per person per day. If you are not interested in purchasing Disney Genie Plus for everyone in your group, you can still purchase it for one person and use it for the PhotoPass. So, this will cost you $20 per day for PhotoPass if you go that route. If you decide to go this route, you can add Genie Plus on the day of your visit using the Disneyland app.

You can also purchase Disney PhotoPass for an entire week(7 days) for $78. Depending on how many days you will be staying at Disneyland, this might be a good option for your family. On our last visit, we were going to be staying at Disneyland for 5 days and were not going to be purchasing Disney Genie Plus for each day of our visit. So, I purchased the PhotoPass for an entire week and it worked out great! I made sure to use it to it’s fullest and we had so many pictures taken by Disney photographers during our vacation. You can purchase PhotoPass at Disneyland for the week here.

Special Photo Sessions At Disneyland

If you’d like extra time with a Disneyland Photographer, you can book special 20-minute photo sessions to help you capture your magical vacation! Your photographer will take lots of different pictures and possess of your group in front of the castle. If you want two locations you can book two photo sessions back to back so you’ll have 40 minutes with your photographer and two separate locations. These special photo sessions are $99 each and do not include your digital photo downloads. Advance reservations are required. You can find out more information here.

PhotoPass Problems

I’ve never had any problems with PhotoPass at Disneyland, but occasionally some type of problem might come up. If you do experience a problem with yours, not to worry! Help is available. If you have an issue with PhotoPass while you’re in the park you can visit the Disney PhotoPass Concierge after 12:00 pm. They are located at the Newsstand outside the Disneyland Park Main Entrance.

If you notice a problem with your PhotoPass service after your vacation, you can call the guest support line at (407)560-4300 or you can send an email to disneyphotopass_support@disneyworld.com They will be able to help you and I’ve heard they are very successful at solving problems and finding missing photos!

PhotoPass At Disneyland Tips

Here are some tips for making the most of your PhotoPass at Disneyland!

• Take photos earlier in the day. Many of the photographers are not out after dark. Once it starts getting dark, the PhotoPass pictures just don’t turn out as well. Plus, your kids are probably going to be a bit tired towards the end of the day. It’s Better to take those pictures during the day before they start falling apart and when the lighting is still good!
• Listen to your photographer! They do this for a living and know just how to arrange your group and pose you for the best possible pictures! Let them guide you and your pictures will turn out great. However, if you have an idea for a photo let them know! They are happy to hear your ideas.
• Be yourself. Sometimes we all feel a little bit self-conscious taking pictures, but try to let that go and just be in the moment and enjoy! You’re going to look great, especially if you’re being yourself! Don’t sit out of the pictures because you don’t like the way you look. You deserve to be in your family photos!
• Your PhotoPass includes unlimited digital downloads, so make sure you download all of your images! I like to print them out and put them in frames around the house. I’ve also used them in our Holiday cards that we send out to friends and family.
• If you see a PhotoPass Photographer standing around, ask them to take your picture! Might as well have your picture taken every single chance you get. Plus, not having to wait in line is a huge bonus!

I love using PhotoPass at Disneyland. For me, it’s totally worth the extra cost. We only visit Disneyland as a family every couple of years and having a bunch of professional photos from our vacation makes me so happy! Having professional Disneyland photos is my very favorite souvenir and such a great way to capture some of that Disney magic!

I hope all this information has been helpful for you as you’re planning your Disneyland vacation! If you’re on the fence about PhotoPass at Disneyland, you could always try it for one day(using Disney Genie Plus) and get as many group shots as possible that day! I enjoy having it every day of our trip and just make sure we are having the Disney photographers take a lot of photos. This makes it totally worth it for our family! It’s the easiest way to capture all of those fun Disney memories!

Make sure to check out my podcast for lots of Disney planning information! You can find it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Just search for “Mix In Some Magic” Follow me on Instagram for more Disney tips and lots of Disney fun!