Dreaming of a Disney adventure?
There’s no doubt that a Disney vacation is an expensive one. The major costs include transportation, tickets, resort lodging, and food. There are ways to minimize the cost if you’re willing to do some work, however. To help, I’ve compiled a comprehensive list of money saving tips that will help you save money on your vacation to Disney. *NOTE* This post is a work in progress (I’ll be updating as I find new tips and wisdom)
First, let’s look at what a Disney vacation costs based on my research..
An average family of four budget for a 6 night/7 day vacation to Disney World for hotel, park passes and food comes to roughly $5075 ($1268 person)
One week Disney World budget for a family of four (source: Money We Have.com)
|
Estimated cost |
Notes |
| TOTAL |
$5,726 USD |
|
| Airfare |
$1,000 |
$250 X 4 |
| Car rental & gas |
$160 |
Car rental $100, Gas $60 |
| Accommodations |
$1,050 |
$150 X 7 nights |
| Disney World Tickets |
$1,576 |
$394 X 4 (Park hopper) |
| Other attraction tickets |
$700 |
This varies depending on the attraction |
| Food |
$840 |
$120 X 7 (just an estimate) |
| Additional costs |
$400 |
This depends on the family |
Deluxe Vacation:
Deluxe roundtrip flight to Orlando -> $350 per person ($1,400)
Deluxe villa at the Grand Floridian -> $955/night per person ($4278)
Deluxe food tab -> $1563
Deluxe admission price (Park Hopper passes for 5 days) -> $1,740
Deluxe souvenirs & extras: $800
Total: $9,781
Average Vacation:
Average roundtrip flight to Orlando -> $350 per person ($1,400)
Average Disney on-site hotel -> $436/night per person ($1744)
Average food tab (“Standard” dining plan) -> $854
Average admission price (Park Hopper passes for 4 days) -> $1,660
Average souvenirs & extras: $400
Total: $6,360
Budget (cutting back on hotel, food, and souvenirs):
Budget roundtrip flight to Orlando -> $350 ($1,400)
Budget “Value Resort” -> $150/night per person ($672)
Budget food tab (“Basic” dining plan) -> $553 ($953)
Budget admission price (Park Hopper passes) -> $1,660
Budget souvenirs & extras: $200
Total: $4,885
No Frills (cutting back on hotel, food, admission, and souvenirs):
No frills roundtrip flight to Orlando -> $350 ($1,400) + rental car and parking fees ($200) = $1600
No frills off-resort lodging (3 star motel) -> $60/night per person + taxes ($672)
No frills food tab (free hotel breakfast, non-Disney restaurants, cook) -> $425
No frills admission price (basic tickets; 3 days) -> $1,120
No frills souvenirs & extras: $150
Total: $3,564
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Tip #1: Plan early
To save money, you’ll want to prepare for your trip far in advance. Be sure to crunch the numbers to see how much the trip will actually cost. Think about factors such as when to go, where to stay, what tickets to buy and how each of these will influence the cost.
To help you make a decision on timing, visit a Disney-planning site like AllEars or this guide for first-timers from Touring Plans.
If you’re interested in a guided travel trip, you can also go here to request a free Adventures by Disney Destination Guide brochure.
⇒ FREE Disney Parks Vacation Planning Videos ⇐
⇒ FREE Printable Disney World Budget Planner ⇐
Tip #2: Book a trip with a Disney-certified travel agent to make the process less overwhelming
Specifically check out free authorized travel agencies like Mouse Fan Travel and Small World Vacations that specialize in travel to Disney destinations. They are experts in finding great deals on hotels and flights and in helping you to plan your trip in an effort to “get the most for your vacation time and dollar”.
Tip #3: Look for Discounts
Although Disney doesn’t offer an abundance of discounts (they don’t need to as it is packed year-round), there are some you can take advantage of to reduce the overall price of your vacation if you do your homework.
⇒ First off, hotels and food are always cheaper off Disney-owned property.
⇒ Military discounts – Active and retired military can get discounted admissions at Disney parks, as well as 30-40% off Disney resorts of all price levels.
⇒ AAA discounts – Check with your local AAA office to see what discounts they may offer, such as discounted tickets. To purchase tickets at the AAA rate, you must do so ahead of time at your AAA office, as the discounts are not offered on tickets purchased at Disney, or through the Disney website.
⇒ Disney’s Y.E.S program for school aged kids – Saves you about $150 on each 5 day pass bought through the program.
⇒ If you’re able to plan a longer vacation, you’ll save more money per ticket. You’ll save $20 per ticket when you purchase 3-day or longer tickets online as compared to the price at the ticket window.
⇒ Check out the “Special Offers and Deals” pages for Disney World here and Disneyland here
⇒ Be sure to sign up for emails from your favorite Disney park to be sure you don’t miss out on any deals as they offer several promotions throughout the year on hotel discounts, dining plans and more.
⇒ Disney usually offers a 20%-30% discount on park tickets for those staying at their hotels.
⇒ Consider “value” resorts when looking for hotels and “value” days when deciding when to travel to Disney.
⇒ Look out for special deals in the fall, when Disney often includes free meal plans with hotel bookings. The biggest discounts typically are between the winter holidays and spring break.
⇒ Disney will often offer discounts to current guests if they book their next trip while they are on vacation there (“bounceback deal”).
⇒ Free Dining is probably the most well-known promotion that Disney offers; however, the availability of Free Dining dates have dwindled in recent years and made it more difficult to book. Learn more about it in the “Food” section below.
⇒ Consider getting a Disney Visa card for exclusive promotions or dates.
⇒ Check out this spreadsheet for a history of when and what discounts have been offered.
⇒ Check out MouseSavers.com, a popular site devoted to saving money on Disney and other theme park vacations.
⇒ Check out Undercover Tourist for deals and offers on Disney tickets and hotels. They provide authentic attraction tickets at discounted prices, as well as insider planning tips and excellent customer service.
⇒ Finally, don’t be afraid to ask about special offers when you call to book your vacation. Discounts aren’t automatically added.
Tip #4: Skip the “Park Hopper” option
Park Hoppers are pricier than base tickets but allow you to visit multiple parks (Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom or Hollywood Studios) on the same day. Many people never end of using it or only use it one time, however.
Especially consider ditching this add-on if you are traveling with younger kids or older grandparents, since your family is going to tour at a slower pace.
If your vacation is four days or more and you do want to visit all four parks, consider buying the standard pass that allows you to visit one park per day. You’ll save around $275 on a four day pass for a family of four.
Tip #5: Know the Best Times To Visit
This may seem obvious, but busier seasons have higher prices, so you’ll want to avoid booking your trip during those times if possible. Also, Disney recently changed tickets to date-based (demand) pricing (instead of by park), but you can still save by knowing which “seasons” generally offer the lowest prices and to book during their off-season. These off-peak times are usually after the holidays—January and February are ideal—and from the end of August until mid-to-late October.
According to Undercover Tourist, the best days to visit Disney World in 2019 are…
- Jan. 7-11, Jan. 23-Feb. 14
- Feb. 25-March 8
- The second half of August until Aug. 29
- Most days in September*
- Most weekdays in October*
- Weekdays in November (minus the week of Thanksgiving)
- Weekdays in December (minus the weeks of Christmas and New Year’s Eve)
⇒ Disney’s hotels have seasonal pricing, which varies greatly depending on the time of year you visit.
⇒ Avoid weekends if possible, as Disney hotel prices often increase on Saturdays and Sundays.
⇒ Use this Crowd Calendar to see the best times to visit Walt Disney World.
Broken Down By Category
ADMISSION / TICKETS
Disney has dozens of admission options to choose from and finding the cheapest combination can be difficult. As of June 2019, the price for a one day ticket to any theme park ranged from $109 to $159.
Check out this handy Disney World Ticket Discount Calculator to help you find the cheapest tickets by comparing prices from Disney and Disney-approved wholesalers.
One thing to note is that Disney’s ticket prices are set up so the longer you stay, the less you pay per day. A five-day ticket will cost you $63 per day, while a 10-day ticket falls to $36.50 per day. A good strategy is to plan one longer trip every few years, rather than shorter trips more often.
Some other tips:
⇒ Skip buying admission at the gate. Instead, purchase your admissions online via the resort’s website. You will save roughly $20 per ticket by doing so.
⇒ Use reputable third-party wholesalers for multiday tickets (you can save up to $50 a ticket).
⇒ If you think you may return to Disney in a year, consider an Annual Pass. By purchasing the annual pass, you can return to Disney World next year (a few weeks earlier than this year) and not have to pay for admission tickets again.
⇒ Try not to buy tickets too early because all tickets now have expiration dates.
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Disney’s FASTPASS or FastPass+ service allows you to reserve access to select Disneyland or Walt Disney World theme park attractions, entertainment and Character Greetings in advance. There is no additional cost to use the FASTPASS service―it is included with your theme park admission.
FastPass+ tips and tricks you need to know
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FOOD
Every time you feed the family outside of a resort restaurant, you’ll be saving money.
Before you leave, plan out which meals, snacks, or drinks you most want to splurge on in the park. Bring everything else with you. I’ve been told there are even lockers you can rent by the main park entrance that you could put a soft case cooler in and access throughout the day.
Disney allows guests to bring in food provided that they are snack items or pre-made. This means sandwiches, carrot sticks, bags of chips, granola bars, apples, etc. Beverages are also allowed provided they are not in glass containers and non-alcoholic.
Be sure to pack a small reusable water bottle and refill at water fountains or in restaurants throughout the day to avoid the cost of bottled water. If you prefer soda, consider purchasing a refillable mug at your Disney Resort for $14.95 and refill as much as you would like at the beverage station at your resort.
Other options (not including the popular Dining Plan option which is introduced below):
- Buy groceries at the supermarket when you arrive and prepare as many meals yourself as you can manage throughout the trip
- Bring your crock pot for easy to prepare meals
- Preparing your own food is easier if you’re staying in a vacation home with a kitchen, but you can still use these tips in a hotel room
- Use Instacart to have groceries delivered straight to your hotel room (check first if your room has a refrigerator and that the hotel accepts food deliveries)
Is The Dining Plan Right For You?
| Plan Comparison Chart |
Quick-
Service |
Plus |
Plus
Deluxe |
| Number of table service meals included |
0 |
1 |
3 |
| Number of counter service meals included |
2 |
1 |
— |
| Number of snacks included |
2 |
2 |
2 |
| One Resort refilliable drink mug per preson |
 |
|
|
| Dinner Shows |
 |
|
|
| Pizza Delivery |
|
|
|
| Character Dining |
|
|
|
| Signature Dining restaurants, 2 table-service meals per person required |
|
|
|
| Private In-Room Dining, 2 table-service meals per person required |
|
|
|
Consider purchasing a Magic Your Way package that includes Disney Dining. Your meals will be paid for in advance, taking the worry out of obsessing over how much you are spending at every meal.
However, if you plan to be on the go a lot, the Disney Dining Plan may not be of great value.
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If you are planning to dine at the park, go here to check out all of the Disney World menus with prices (note that menus and pricing are always subject to change).
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HOTELS / LODGING
Disney Hotels can be are expensive. Fortunately, there are many affordable lodging options outside of the Disney property.
The biggest mistake you can make is choosing a hotel that is too expensive. You will be spending most of your time at the park, so don’t splurge too much on a fancy hotel.
Considering renting a vacation home or condo instead. I like this option because a vacation home has more space for the family, including more than one bathroom and as mentioned above, you can use the kitchen to save even more time and money. Check out VRBO, Airbnb, FlipKey or HomeAway for available properties.
The trick is to wait until about two weeks before your planned stay, and then search for available properties. Owners who’ve had a last-minute cancellation are usually willing to rent for a discount rather than have the property sit empty.
In my research, people have found 3 bedroom houses with private pools for only $100 a night. Such houses had Disney themes throughout, so it still felt like Disney.
Off-site Advantages:
- Generally larger accommodations for the same or a lower price.
- More likely to find rooms in desired price range at the last minute.
- Better access to restaurants, shopping and other non-Disney attractions.
- Some hotels offer scheduled shuttle service to the parks.
- Some hotels offer free breakfasts.
- Many off-site hotels offer discounts to non-Disney attractions and restaurants.
On-site Advantages:
- Getting to and from the parks is generally easier. This is more important if one plans to take afternoon breaks.
- Disney staff provides excellent service.
- Properties are always clean and well-maintained.
- Room-charge privileges throughout Disney.
- Merchandise delivery to your Disney hotel.
- Unlimited use of WDW transportation system.
- Magical Express transportation to/from airport to WDW Resort at no charge
- Able to purchase Disney Dining Plan.
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When it comes to the resorts, Disney offers three “seasons”. Around January, February, and the first three weeks of October, November, and December is the Value Season. If you manage to time it right, Value Season is the least expensive and least crowded time to book at the resorts.
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TRAVEL (AIRFARE)
The bottom line: Book your flight early and not on a Friday. Be as flexible as possible as to when you fly. Also, make sure to use different online tools to find the best flight prices.
Take a look at one of the various Internet reservation systems and find out what the airfares are 4 and 6 months from now. Even though this isn’t when you actually want to travel, it’s worth doing this search so you can figure out what the standard leisure fares are.
Google Flights – One of the most useful tools for finding cheap flights. This tool gives you the flexibility to check a variety of dates, times and destinations. It also shows you all of the carriers that serve the route you’re flying.
Hopper – Predicts whether fares on a certain route will go up or down and alerts you when your ticket price has dropped to its likely cheapest point. Hopper claims to save a typical user around $50 per flight.
Momondo – Helps you find and compare fares from 700+ travel sites, giving you access to the best rates for airline tickets online.
Airfare Watchdog – Monitors airline websites for deals and sends you email alerts regarding them.
Kayak – A aggregator that pulls together fares from a number of travel sites. They will email you daily or weekly when the price drops.
Travelocity – Another fare aggregator that will send you an email when airfare to your destination drops below the amount you’ve set the alert for.
Make sure to search for flights multiple times and over multiple days, both with and without the cookies cleared from your browser.
SOUVENIRS / MISC / ETC.
⇒ Skip souvenirs if possible. You can find many of them online for a better price. Save your money for things sold exclusively in the park.
⇒ Consider saving a few dollars by purchasing Disney Gift Cards before you go. You can purchase discounted gift cards on sites like Raise.com and eBay OR even cash in your reward points for Disney gift cards on sites like Disney Movie Rewards, Kellogg’s Family Rewards, etc. Occasionally, some stores like CVS, Walgreens, Target, Kroger, and Safeway will have promotions on gift cards.
⇒ Buy costumes beforehand
⇒ Always pick up a few ponchos and other items at a dollar store to bring into the parks.
⇒ Strollers – BYO from home or buy one in Florida as Disney charges $15-$31 per day to rent
After you find a good deal, make sure to compare it to the price on the hotel’s main website
Money Saving Quest 