PhotoPass is that extra magical touch you can only find at Walt Disney World.
In this article, I’ll give you all the details that will make you fall in love with this enchanting service.
What is PhotoPass?
PhotoPass is a paid service that captures photos and videos during your character meet-and-greets, on attractions, and throughout the park.
Where can you buy the photos?
Photos and videos can be purchased individually through your My Disney Experience account — the same one you use for booking FastPass+ — but I don’t recommend buying them one by one as each costs about $16.
How can you save money?
To save, I strongly recommend purchasing the Memory Maker at least 3 days before your arrival at Walt Disney World for $169.
This service allows you to download ALL the photos and videos taken during your stay.
But the perks don’t stop there!
If you are a small group — like in my group trips — and you add everyone to the same account, you can share the photos with up to 25 people, splitting the cost among you.
How can you make the most of it?
Whether you’re a group or a family like us, right before meeting a character ask the Cast Member if you can take photos both as a group and individually.
Don’t worry — this is totally normal, and Cast Members are always friendly and helpful.
This “strategy” will help you get more photos while lowering the cost per image.
On our recent trip, using this technique, we ended up with 428 files between photos and videos in just 9 Disney park days!
How does it work?
Inside Walt Disney World Resort, you can take as many photos as you want with characters or at any PhotoPass locations — you don’t need to have purchased the service in advance. There are several ways to link them to your account. Let’s see how:
Photos on attractions
At the exit of PhotoPass-enabled attractions, you’ll find screens displaying your photos. Just tap your park ticket or MagicBand on the photo you want and it’ll magically appear in your smartphone app, which I highly recommend installing.
Photos with characters or around the parks
Character meet-and-greets are a whole experience of their own — I never miss Ariel and Chewbacca. The first has a stunning setup, and the second… hugging Chewie is always emotional (for me, at least!). 
Throughout the parks, there are plenty of spectacular photo spots. You can find them on the app under the PhotoPass section, where photographers are ready to capture some magical shots — sometimes with a surprise magical touch you won’t expect.
In both situations, once your photos are taken, simply hand your park ticket or MagicBand to the photographer — they’ll scan it and your memories will magically appear on your phone.
Videos on attractions
This type of memory was introduced a few years ago with the launch of Seven Dwarfs Mine Train.
It’s not always available and currently only on a few attractions — and the only way to get it is to wear a MagicBand. Just have it on your wrist and wait for the magic to appear in your account.
No screens like on other rides, no buttons to press, no photographers — just pure Disney magic.
But what do you do with all those photos?
You’ve got several options:
- Download and keep them on your smartphone (you have 45 days before they’re deleted)
- Customize them in the app’s dedicated section and then download
- Buy products you can personalize with your photos in the designated section
- Use online printing services and store them in an album — but let’s be honest, who looks at those again?
What I do
I usually select the 10 best photos and print them through TONKY, which creates 25×25 cm cardboard frames that can be hung on the wall or placed on a surface with the built-in stand. 
You’ve probably seen them behind me in my home videos.
I also gift them to Federico’s grandparents — trust me, PhotoPass pictures are never boring and are great quality, even for large prints.
And I’ve got a little gift for you too!
I contacted the folks at TONKY and they gave me a 10% discount code that you can use even for just one print.
Use the code parksandfun10 during checkout to get the discount.
In conclusion
PhotoPass at Walt Disney World will definitely give you memories that, even years later, you’ll say “It was totally worth it.” 
