If you have ever been asked by Disney when booking your trip if you want to add Memory Maker to your trip, that is the same thing as Photo Pass! When you see the Disney photographers around the parks taking pictures of guests, those are Photo Pass photographers and they are awesome! These photos go directly to your My Disney Experience account where you can download them right to your phone or computer. Photo Pass also includes ride photos and sometimes have fun “Magic Shots” which we will talk about later. There are a few different options when utilizing Disney Photo Pass, everything from private photo sessions to in ride pictures! So although that’s the short answer to what Disney Photo Pass is, we are going to dive deeper and give you all the information you need to decide if it’s worth it for your family!
How Much Does It Cost
Of course the main thing you want to know is how much is it, right? So let’s just get that out of the way now! Memory Maker is what it will be called when you add it to your Disney Vacation Package and you can add it on to your package as follows:
- Memory Maker One Day – $69, this includes all your photos and videos from one day of your choice.
- Memory Maker Advanced Purchase – $169, this includes all photos and videos from one vacation period but you must wait 3 days after purchase to activate.
- Memory Maker – $199, this includes all your photos and videos from one vacation period and is available immediately.
- Annual Pass Memory Maker – $99, this is attached to your Annual Pass and includes all photos and videos for each visit.
There is another option that allows you to have a private photo shoot for a 20 minute session with your own personal Photo Pass photographer! You still need to have at least the One Day Memory Maker in order to download all your pictures. Each 20 minute session is $99. You will need to book a reservation online or through your My Disney Experience app. Currently this is only available in Magic Kingdom.
How Does Memory Maker Work
Memory Maker is pretty simple, you either have your picture taken with a Disney Photo Pass photographer at one of the many locations in the Walt Disney World Resort or you ride an attraction that has in ride photos and then those pictures are connected to your My Disney Experience account. When you go up to a Photo Pass photographer to have your picture taken they will scan your Magic Band, ticket card or Magic Mobile Pass to link the pictures. Once your done having your pictures taken they will be available in your MDE app where you can then download them right to your phone or computer!
For ride photos, sometimes you need to scan your pass as you exit the ride to attach your pictures to your account but most of them are done automatically now! This even includes the fun ride videos they have for some attractions!
Where Do I Find Photo Pass Photographers
EVERYWHERE! There are tons of them! They are stationed all over Walt Disney World and usually you can spot them because they are in lime green shirts and of course holding cameras! Hahaha! Some of the best places to utilize Photo Pass photographers for those iconic Disney pictures are:
- Magic Kingdom in front of Cinderella Castle (There will be multiple photographers as you walk up Main Street USA towards the castle)
- EPCOT in front of Spaceship Earth (There is a cool 360 picture opportunity here too!)
- Hollywood Studios in front of Grauman’s Chinese Theater, Sunset Boulevard in front of Tower of Terror and of course in front of the Millennium Falcon in Batuu
- Animal Kingdom in front of the Tree of Life and there is a really nice one on the water with Expedition Everest in the background
- Disney Springs has a whole Photo Pass studio! It’s located right next to Marketplace Coop and is very cool, we will talk more about that later.
- They have photographers at the resorts as well and with most character meet and greets!
These are just a handful of places you can find these awesome Cast Members but they truly are all over the place!
Disney Springs Photo Pass Studio
I have to say this is one of my favorite things about having Memory Maker with my Annual Pass! This is a small photography studio located, pretty much, inside Marketplace Coop. They have really cool green screen backdrops and props that are changed out seasonally and along with different things going on in the world of Disney! We had Christmas pictures taken here this year as well as some fun family pictures with Nanny and Poppy when they came down for a visit.
It was really nice to be able to go get professional pictures done with the grandparents while they were here without having to find a photographer or pay a sitting fee or any of that! We didn’t even have to wait for them, they were in MDE within a few minutes!
What Are Magic Shots?
Magic shots are the best! These are fun pictures that are always a nice surprise when you see them in your app. A Photo Pass photographer will have you pose in a certain way and adds some extra magic to your picture. It could be a character added in with you or Mickey balloons carrying you away. They are constantly adding new magic shots throughout the parks, they are some of my most favorite pictures!
Ride Photos
There are lots of attractions with in ride photos included with Memory Maker. Here is a list of rides you can expect to find pictures:
Magic Kingdom
- Pirates of the Caribbean
- Space Mountain
- Haunted Mansion
- Seven Dwarf’s mine Train
- Buzz Lightyear Space Ranger Spin
- Tron: Lightcycle Run
EPCOT
- Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind
- Frozen Ever After
- Test Track
Animal Kingdom
- Expedition Everest
- Dinosaur
Hollywood Studios
- Slinky Dog Dash
- Rock N’ Rollercoaster
- Tower of Terror
Conclusion
For many years of vacations to Walt Disney World we did not purchase Memory Maker and I have to say it’s one of my only regrets from our trips. Of course we have pictures and the Photo Pass photographers will take pictures of you on your phone and you can purchase individual pictures in the My Disney Experience app later, BUT….the ease of using and having the Photo Pass pictures is really nice.
Obviously it’s all about your budget and if you can swing the extra cost but in my opinion it is worth every penny! These pictures are priceless and the magic shots are something you can’t get anywhere else. I would definitely recommend purchasing Memory Maker, even if only for the one day and making the most of it!
As always, thank you for reading along! You guys make Thursdays the best days!! I hope you enjoyed some of our Photo Pass pictures. Have the most magical day!
