The Disneyland stalwart who held the Guinness World Record for most consecutive daily visits to the “Happiest Place on Earth” said Saturday he has no plans to make another ride at the theme park.
Jeff Reitz, 50, of Huntington Beach, Calif., said after visiting 2,995 times between Jan. 1, 2012, and March 13, 2020, when the pandemic broke his streak, Disney installed a new annual admission system that would make the win his personal best even greater financial investment — and also less fun.
In addition to being more costly — the most expensive pass now costs $1,599 — the new system now has blackout dates and requires reservations to visit the park.
“The idea that I had to book, that there was just a big waterfall,” Rage told The Post Saturday. “I would go there after work and you know, maybe grab a bite to eat, you know, enjoy some rides or shows… It was nice to be able to pop in at will.”
Rage, a former Air Force firefighter who now works as an administrator at the Tibor Rubin VA Medical Center in Long Beach, said he has been able to afford thousands of visits to the park over eight-plus years by buying annual passes, with the cost peaking at $1,399 for the now retired Signature Plus Pass.
“For me going every day, 365 or 366 days, it brought it down to about $3.50 a day,” he said. “How many people go to Starbucks and spend more than that on a cup of coffee every day?”
During the eight-plus years it was a theme park regular, Reitz estimated he has given away over $100,000 to the House of Mouse between admission and parking, as well as food and memorabilia like shirts and collectible tiki mugs.
Since his streak ended, Rage has returned to some of his interests that predated his daily trips to Disneyland, including hiking in the local mountains and scuba diving in Redondo Beach or the San Diego area.
His friend Karen Bell added that since the Disney prince is no longer committed to daily visits to the theme park, the couple has been able to take longer trips and vacations together.
“We have time to go do those overnight trips, weekend trips, go to concerts and whatever, wherever,” Bell, 46, said. “It doesn’t have to be within a day’s drive of Disney so that ‘normal life’ is something we can do.”
