If you love all things Disney, Pixar, Star Wars, and Marvel, then you absolutely must become a D23 Member!
Below, is a quick, in-depth review and breakdown of D23 that includes information about all their benefits, perks, discounts, and publication subscriptions.
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What is D23?
D23 is the official Disney fan club that celebrates the wonder and excited of Disney’s stories, characters, publications, songs, and experiences.
Founded in 2009, D23 is the Walt Disney Company’s way to bring fans closer to the magic through unique merchandise offerings, access to exclusive events and experiences, as well as other opportunities to get an inside look to anything Disney-related.
What types of D23 memberships are there?
There are two D23 memberships that you can join – Gold and General.
Gold Membership – $99 a year
Gold is the premier, paid membership that includes amazing benefits as well as access to VIP events and experiences (I’ll get into those in the next section).
General Membership – Free
General is the free membership that includes their weekly FanFare e-newsletter as well as access to select D23 exclusives
What do you get with a D23 Gold Membership?
Here are all the benefits you’ll receive when you a a Gold Member:
- Access to exclusive events plus the ability to bring guest(s)
- Annual D23 Gold Member Collector set which is essentially a custom-created set of collectible items that showcase unique elements from the worlds of Disney
- Access to exclusive shopping opportunities at shopDisney as well as limited realized D23 pins and collectibles
- Annual subscription to Disney Twenty-There which is a quarterly publication
- Year-round discounts on Disney products and experiences
How much is a D23 Gold Membership?
There are two options when it comes to purchasing a gold membership – the Individual Plan and the Duo Plan.
The Individual Plan costs $99 a year.
The Duo Plan costs $129 a year.
The Duo plan includes two Gold memberships. Both members will receive access to select D23 Gold offers as well as any virtual and in-person events. However, the primary member will be the only one to receive the D23 Gold Member Collector Set and the annual publication subscription.
D23 Review
I’m fairly new to D23 but I must say, as of right now, the experience was been very positive.
I signed up for the Duo Plan with my wife so I was pretty hyped once our box of collectible pins arrive showcasing all of the Disney Parks around the world as well as Disney Cruise Line!
Here’s a quick unboxing of everything I’ve received after I officially joined D23 Gold.
Loved the certificate…
…as well as the official membership card.
A pretty solid luggage tag and an aviation pin was also included.
But the best part was definitely the 7 pins featuring all international and U.S. Disney Parks as well as DCL.
Now in terms of benefits, the only ones I’ve used has been the 10% discount at Wine Bar George for lunch. But I am pretty excited take advantage of some more at both Downtown Disney and Disney Springs in the near future.
If there’s one thing I can’t speak of right now, it’s the access to VIP events and experiences only because I just missed out on the most recent offering at Epcot.
But hopefully, I’ll get a chance to participate in one of those insane event previews similar to the Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind preview in May where attendees literally got to ride the new roller coaster as many times as they want. And I mean for $40, that’s a huge steal especially since Individual Lightning Lanes costs $17 for one daily ride.
So fingers crossed a similar event is announced for the opening of Tron.
But in the meantime, you can use the official D23 app to stay up to date on any upcoming events, news, and discounts.
It’s pretty thorough.
A few weeks later, I then received a copy of Disney Twenty Three.
It’s basically a magazine filled with upcoming Disney news and articles.
A pretty good read.
D23 Expo
One of the biggest draws of becoming a D23 member is attending the D23 Expo every two years in Anaheim, California.
Held at the Anaheim Convention Center, the D23 Expo is three days of panels, discussions, presentations, merchandise, theme park previews, and so much more information that will take fans behind the scenes of the magic.
This expo is literally where Disney announces all their theme park and upcoming film/Disney+ plans. For example, this is where Disney announced Galaxy’s Edge, Zootopia at Shanghai Disney, Black Panther, Avengers Campus, the Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser, the Disney Wish, and even Genie+, just to name a few.
It’s basically an Apple Keynote and CES catered to us Disney diehard fans.
And as a D23 member, you get access to discounted expo tickets. For example, a one-day ticket costs $89 for Gold Members and $99 for General Members.
You can also get access to ticket pre-sales one day before they become available to the general public if you’re a Disney Visa card holder.
D23 Discounts and Offers
Here are all the D23 discounts available for Gold Members only at Disney World, Disneyland, and online. Just be sure to present your valid D23 Gold Member card at time of purchase.
- Alex and Ani at Disney Springs – 10% off purchase
- Arribas Brothers – 10% off purchase
- Basin at Disney Springs – 15% off purchase
- Ballast Point at Downtown Disney – 10% off purchase
- Besame – 23% off your order
- Blue Ribbon Corn Dogs at Downtown Disney – 10% off purchase
- California Churro at Downtown Disney – 10% off purchase
- Catal at Downtown Disney – 15% off meal
- Columbia Sportswear at Disney Springs – 20% off purchase
- Curl at Downtown Disney – 10% off purchase
- La Break Bakery at Downtown Disney – 10% off purchase
- Levis at Disney Springs – 15% off
- Ghirardelli – free bar with sundae purchase
- Howard and Johnson Anaheim – 15% off rooms and 10% off any purchases
- Jamba Juice at Downtown Disney – 10% off purchase
- Joffrey’s – 20% off purchase and free shipping for orders of $50 or more
- Naples at Downtown Disney – 15% off
- Oakley at Disney Springs – 10% off purchase
- Orlando Stroller Rentals – 10% off
- Paddlefish at Disney Springs – 10% off food
- Pandora at Disney – 10% off purchase
- Planet Hollywood at Disney Springs – 10% off food, beverages, and merchandise
- Post 21 at Downtown Disney – 10% off purchase
- Ralph Brendan Restaurant Group – 10% off
- Restaurant Marrakesh at Epcot – 10% off food and merchandise
- shopDisney and Disney Store – 10% off purchase of $50 or more
- Sperry at Disney Springs – 15% off purchase
- Sugarboo and Co at Disney Springs – 10% off
- Sunshine Churros at Disney Springs – 10% off your purchase
- Terralina Crafted Italian at Disney Springs – 10% off food
- Tortilla Jo’s at Downtown Disney – 15% off
- Under Armour – 15% off purchase
- Uva Bar at Downtown Disney – 15% off your meal
- Volcom at Disney Springs – 15% off
- Walt Disney Family Museum – $3 off tickets
- Walt Disney Hometown Museum – 50% off admission
- Wine Bar George at Disney Springs – 10% off lunch
- Wyndham Lake Buena Vista at Disney Springs – up to 20% off hotel rooms
- Wyndham Garden Lake Buena Vista at Disney Springs – up to 20% off hotel rooms
As always, be sure to check this list (or the official one) to stay up to date on any recent changes or additions.
So is a D23 membership worth it?
Yes, a D23 membership it is totally worth it.
But if you are going to join, I recommend you try Gold first beause at $99 a year or $129 for two people, it’s not too expensive.
Just the access to exclusive VIP events and experiences makes up for the cost alone. Plus, let’s not forget the exclusive collector set that you’ll receive every year.
But if you don’t want to make the financially commitment right now, the free membership is a fantastic way to get your foot through the door.
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