A trip to the Disney Parks is magical and fun but can also be expensive. With the cost of getting to the Parks, a place to stay and food it can all add up fast. Not to mention the cost of getting to Florida if you live out of state and the souvenirs.
Ways to save money on your Disney Vacation
There are several ways to help you save money on your Disney vacation and today I’m going to share with you a few easy ways to save.
Visit during the Off Season
Visiting during the off-season will not only make admission prices slightly cheaper but hotel prices will typically also be lower. Not to mention that flight prices can be a lot cheaper at different times of the year.
Plus the parks will be less crowded during the offseason meaning shorter wait times!
Stay off-site or at a Value Hotel
When deciding where to stay there are several different things to consider. There are Disney Hotels, Non-Disney Hotels, and even vacation rentals. We have stayed in several different Non-Disney hotels and even a vacation rental that was only a short drive to the park. We have yet to stay at a Disney Hotel simply because the other options have been so much cheaper.
The Value Hotels at Disney or staying in a tent/ Motor home at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort are great ways to save if you want to stay on property.
Buy Your Tickets with Gift Cards
Purchase discount Disney Gift cards and use those to purchase your Disney park tickets. We even use them for parking, food, and shopping while in the parks. This won’t save you a ton of money but it will save you a little bit. Target and Sam’s Club are a couple of great places to pick up Disney Gift cards.
Bonus: Ask for Disney gift cards for your Birthday and Christmas to help fund your Disney Vacation. Or set a budget to purchase gift cards each month to go toward your vacation.
Drink Water
Drink water in the parks but not bottled water try getting Free ice water throughout the park at Quick Service Restaurants. We like to bring thermos water bottles of ice water and refill them as needed so we always have cold water.
Taking advantage of the Free Ice Water can save you a ton of money. Each bottled water in the park costs $3.50 and spending all day in the park you can go through a lot of water, especially when it’s hot!
Bring a Little Fan and Mister
On hot days at Disney having a little fan or mister can make the heat so much more bearable. Fan misters in the Disney park currently cost just over $20. You can get the same Disney mister fan for a little less on Amazon.
If you buy a nonbranded misting fan you can get it for half the price. Grab one of these fans in your favorite color and add a few Disney stickers and you now have a Disney Misting Fan for a lot less.
When you just want a fan without the misting we love these fan necklaces and our kids love their mini fans, plus they think they are souvenirs since we got Disney themed fans.
Bring Your Own Soda
You can bring in your own soda and bottled water just make sure they aren’t in glass bottles.
We like to bring in an insulated lunch box with a couple of sodas and a couple of the Disney good2row juice cups for the kids. These juices work great as fun Disney Surprises and they keep the kids hydrated.
The small cooler hangs perfectly on our stroller and we don’t worry about taking it with us when we go on rides.
Pack Snacks
We love trying the different foods at the Disney Parks but packing your own snacks is a must when doing Disney with kids and it’s a great way to save money. Some of our favorite snacks to take into the park are fruit snacks, snack packs of different crackers and fruit pouches.
I have seen several people with multiple coolers packing in food for the whole day. So if you really want to save money at Disney you can pack in food for the whole day, just make sure you check the policy on cooler sizes.
Eat at Quick Service Food Locations
The cost of food at quick-service locations is often less than at table service restaurants and you don’t need to worry about a tip. Quick service food options vary by which park you visit, but we have found delicious options in each of the parks we have visited.
Several menu items we have tried are large enough to share. (In Magic Kingdom the Fresh Fruit Waffle Sandwich and the Sweet and Spicy Chicken Waffle Sandwich are both big enough to share and delicious)
Share Food
I can’t tell you how many times I have seen a family of 5 each carrying around the exact same food. Even the little kids have their own doll whip or other food and there is no way they are going to eat it all.
If you want to try a variety of different foods at Disney split the portions so you save money to try more foods. This also helps prevent you from overeating. Because I’m sure you don’t want to overeat and then walk miles in the heat.
We like to eat something (snack or Disney food) every couple of hours while we are in the park this helps keep us all happy and we don’t get really hungry so we don’t overeat.
Bring Ponchos
If you’re visiting Disney World in Florida chances are high that at least one of the days of your vacation it will rain. Bringing your own ponchos not only saves you money it also saves you time since you won’t have to wait in line to buy them!
Bonus: If you have a stroller be sure to bring something to cover it as well.
Bring Your Souvenirs
Several of the rides at Disney parks exit into Gift shops enticing you to purchase a souvenir. Purchasing souvenirs and bringing them with you will save you time and money. Keep the souvenirs hidden until after the rides and then pull them out as a fun surprise for your kids.
Bring Your Own T-shirts and Ears
If you want fun Disney themed clothing and accessories get it before your trip. It will save you money and you will have more options, even customizable options that you won’t have at the parks.
Bring Your Own Stroller
Disney Parks have strollers you can rent but if you bring your own it’s another way to save money. We like using a double umbrella stroller with our two kiddos. It fits in the double stroller size guidelines and it’s lightweight and easy to use at the parks.
Related Post: 10 Things I wish I knew Before Going to Disney World
Take advantage of the Freebies
One of our favorite Disney freebies is the buttons. Grab a button for your first visit, celebrating, wedding or birthday. Not only are these a fun free souvenir by you will get congratulated/greeted by most cast members and you might get a surprise or two during your day at Disney.
Get a Multi Day Passe
Multi-day passes lower the cost per day of your theme park tickets so instead of getting tickets to other area parks you might want to consider spending additional days at Disney to experience additional parks and lower the cost per day of admission.
Skip the Park Hopper Option
Depending on how you want to spend your time at Disney you might be able to skip the park hopper option and save a little more on tickets. When visiting Disney World it’s often a good idea to do one park each day since the parks are spread out so much more than the parks at Disneyland.
Get Discounts on Tickets
When planning a Disney vacation check for discount tickets through a reputable company. One of my favorite companies to get tickets through is Get Away Today. You can get tickets to both Disney World and Disneyland.
Check out these awesome deals from Get Away Today.
Get a Resident Discount
If you live in Florida or own a property in Florida you can get tickets and hotel stays with the Florida Resident discount. Disney is continually updating what discount deals they have for Florida Residents.
Visit with Toddlers
Kids get free admission into the parks until they turn 3. So take your little ones and enjoy the park.
Both of our kids have been to Disney Parks before they turned 3. Though they probably won’t remember the trips they loved it while we were there and I love the memories we made.
Related Post: 10 Reasons to take your toddler to Disney
Skip Memory Maker
Memory maker is a great way to get magical Disney photos but if you aren’t going to make sure to take advantage of getting photos taken by Disney photographers throughout the park then it’s really not worth the cost.
We purchased the memory maker a couple of years ago and only ended up getting 2 or 3 photos taken during our trip. It would have been cheaper to purchase individual photos.
Set a Budget
Set a budget for your trip and then find options that will be fun but also keep you on track. Use the budget tracker in our Travel Journal to help you plan your trip budget.
Plan and Research
As you plan your Disney trip do some research about hotel options, which foods to eat in the park and what attractions you don’t want to miss. Don’t over plan but having an idea of what you really want to do will help you as you figure out your budget and how you want to spend your day at Disney.
What do you like to do to save money on Disney Vacations?
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