Are Merlin Annual Passes worth it and which pass is best?

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If you’re wondering ‘Are Merlin Annual Passes worth it?’ and which pass is the best option for your family then you’ve come to the right place. If you’re a parent looking to save on days out while still packing your calendar with fun, the Merlin Annual Pass might have already caught your eye. With access to dozens of attractions across the UK – from thrilling theme parks to interactive indoor experiences – it’s definitely tempting. But is it actually worth it and, with multiple types of Merlin Annual Passes available, which one offers the best value for your family? Here’s everything that you need to know to help you decide ‘Are Merlin Annual Passes worth it?’

CRAZY DEAL! 😍 When you book a short break stay between 3rd February and the 1st March 2026, you’ll get an Essential Merlin Annual Pass included for each person staying for FREE! Check out my guide for all the details: How to get a FREE Merlin Annual Pass – short break offer! Click below to check out the terms, or to make a booking, on the relevant websites – I’ve included the stay dates below as they vary with each resort.

Alton Towers Resort Short Breaks: For stays between 14th March and the 26th June 2026.
Thorpe Park Resort Short Breaks: For stays between 27th March and the 26th June 2026.
Chessington World of Adventures Short Breaks: For stays between 20th March and the 26th June 2026.
LEGOLAND Windsor Resort Short Breaks: For stays between 14th March and the 26th June 2026.
Warwick Castle Short Breaks: For stays between 28th March and the 26th June 2026.

What does a Merlin Annual Pass include?

In short – a lot! The Merlin Annual Pass gives you year-long access to some of the UK’s most popular family attractions. We’re talking theme parks like Alton Towers, Chessington World of Adventures, LEGOLAND Windsor and Thorpe Park; indoor fun like SEA LIFE centres, Shrek’s Adventure!, The London Eye and Madame Tussauds; and historical and immersive experiences like Warwick Castle, The Dungeons and even Cadbury World. To find out more about them check out my article: Merlin Attractions Guide: Where can you go with a Merlin Annual Pass?

There are over 20 UK attractions included, which means that you can fill your weekends, half-terms and school holidays with adventures and not have to fork out for tickets each time. Children under 90cm don’t need a pass, so if you’ve got younger children you’ll only need passes for the adults and the kids can access all of the attractions for free saving even more! They’ve recently simplified the passes to just three options whilst also making more dates available. The three types of Merlin Annual Pass are: Essential, Gold and Platinum – here’s a breakdown of what each one offers and you can click here to view the calendar to see which dates are excluded: (Prices accurate December 2025)

Essential Pass – from around £139 per person: The Merlin Essential Pass is the most affordable of the annual passes and it’s certainly worth looking at if you’ll visit multiple attractions each year. This pass offers access to the Merlin attractions for 339 days each year – the cheapest annual pass was previously usable for just 200 days so this is a really positive change. You can click here to view the calendar to see which dates are excluded in the Essential Pass. Keep an eye out for sales too – they recently had a few weeks where the Merlin Essential Pass was just £79 so that’s a huge saving! You can also get 10% off fast-track and reserve-a-ride passes with the Merlin Essential Annual Pass.
Gold Pass – from around £239 per person: The Merlin Gold Pass might be a better option for families who want more flexibility and some extra perks. This pass is valid for 364 days a year – excluding the Alton Towers Fireworks. You also benefit from free parking (a big bonus at places like LEGOLAND or Alton Towers) and up to 20% off short breaks, shops, restaurants and VIP tickets. It also includes up to 50% off tickets for family & friends and 10% off fast-track and reserve-a-ride passes. This pass could be beneficial if you’re planning to book short breaks, however it is obviously pricier so you’d want to make sure you planned in enough visits to get your money’s worth from the Merlin Gold Annual Pass.
Platinum Pass – from around £299 per person: The Merlin Platinum Pass is the most flexible option of them all as there are no excluded visit dates. You also benefit from free parking and up to 20% off short breaks, shops, restaurants and VIP tickets, plus you can get 4 free passes for friends and family each year. The pass also offers up to 50% off tickets for family & friends, 10% off fast-track & reserve-a-ride passes and one free one-shot fastrack per visit. If you’re planning to use it a lot, and you’ll make use of the extra discounts and free tickets, then the Merlin Platinum Annual Pass may be worth the additional cost – but it’s the priciest of the annual passes so you’d need to max out your visits to make it cost effective.

Are Merlin Annual Passes worth the money – and which pass is best for your family?

Here’s where it gets interesting if you love a bit of savvy saving. You’ll typically spend at least £30 per person for tickets for days out like Alton Towers, the SEA LIFE aquariums, Thorpe Park, LEGOLAND Windsor and The London Eye etc. So, if you’ll definitely visit at least 5 attractions in a year then you’ll be saving money with the Merlin Essential Annual Pass if you’re happy to plan your days out around the excluded dates. If you had a year of visiting as many Merlin attractions as possible then it could be a great way to visit these popular places with a small budget. And, remember that children under 90cm are free so, if you’re a parent with young children, you’ll only need a pass for yourself which could make your family days out insanely cheap!

The Merlin Gold Annual Pass can be really worthwhile too if you’re going to visit as many sites as possible, or will be looking to book their short breaks and will benefit from the additional discounts. The Gold Pass is probably the most practical option for families with school children as it includes all but one day a year – so you could definitely get your money’s worth by visiting lots of the attractions. For instance, if you spent a weekend in London visiting all of the attractions there and then had some theme park visits you could easily make it worthwhile. However, don’t forget that there are also multi-attraction tickets for places like London so compare your options.

The Merlin Platinum Pass is the best option for families who want no excluded dates and full access to all of the perks, discounts and free tickets on offer – but it obviously comes with a significantly higher price tag (especially when you’re multiplying the cost per family member!) so you’d need to be a hard core Merlin fan I think to make these costs worth it. If you think you’d happily spend most school holidays and weekends making use of your Merlin Annual Pass then it may still save you money but I think you’d need to do a lot of visits to make it worth the extra cost. Personally I think the best value for money for most families, which also offers a great selection of dates, will be the Merlin Essential Pass. (And even better if you can buy it when it’s on sale!)

The only downsides to a Merlin Annual Pass are that you must pre-book your tickets online so you can’t just rock up on the day – your visits will need a bit of pre-planning. You also need to look closely at the exclusion dates and be mindful that if you want to enjoy seasonal events your pass might not include those.

Final thoughts – so are Merlin Annual Passes worth it?

Yes, Merlin Annual Passes can be brilliant value for money (especially if you can opt for the cheapest Essential Pass) but they’ll only be worth having if you actually use them! For families who love getting out and about as often as possible, the Merlin Annual Pass can be a brilliant investment. It might encourage you to explore new places, make the most of your weekends and enjoy spontaneous days out without the guilt of ticket prices. It could also be a good Christmas present option if you like to give your kids the gift of activities rather than lots of material things. Whether it’s watching turtles swim, riding rollercoasters or exploring castles, there’s a year of memories waiting to be made. And, if you’ve got kids under 90cm then it’s no-brainer as you’ll only need your Merlin Annual Passes for the adults!

However, without proper planning and frequent use, the Merlin Annual Passes might not be such great value for money so if you’re only likely to visit a few attractions then it might be worth just booking your tickets as you go. As I mentioned above, you could also make the most of things like the London attraction combination tickets – so it’s also worth comparing with their other offers based around the specific sites you’ll want to visit. For 2025, Merlin also introduced annual passes that are cheaper and park specific – so if you always visit one particular attraction then those could be a good option too. You can get individual park annual passes from £64 for Chessington World of Adventures, Legoland, Alton Towers and Thorpe Park – just click the links for more info.

There are loads of attractions available – so to find out more about them check out my article: Merlin Attractions Guide: Where can you go with a Merlin Annual Pass? Let me know in the comments if you’ve used a Merlin Annual Pass and which one worked best for your family – or if you have any tips for making the most of it! 😊 Head to the Merlin Annual Passes website for more information about what’s included with each pass type and up-to-date prices. Plus, make sure you keep scrolling for my Merlin attraction guides and reviews: