I hear often from family and friends about how they would like to go to Disney if only it wasn't so expensive. It's true, visiting the parks is a serious chunk of change, but there some are tips and tricks to saving while planning your vacation that can really move the needle when you add them all together. In the end, I find the cost going worth the experience our family has there, so we choose to make it work. I hope these tips help you find ways to make it work for your family, too!
Go During the Off Season
Mickey is no dummy, and Disney park tickets and Hotel rates fluctuate every dang day. Even Airbnb and off-property hotels base their nightly prices on Disney's calendar, so you're going to pay a premium no matter how you slice it if you go during holidays, Spring Break, peak summer travel, etc. Historically speaking, September has been the "slow season" in Disney, and pre-pandemic Disney has offered discounts like the Free Dining Plan for guests staying on Disney Property. Our kids are in elementary school, and I feel bad not at all letting them miss school in the beginning of the school year because cultivating a healthy belief in magic is education AF.
Here's an example of the same length stay (1 week, Friday to Friday) with 5 days of park tickets at the same resort, for 2 adults and 2 children, but two different times of year:
Going to Disney during the off season can save you hundred or even thousands of dollars if you can swing it!
You can buy Disney Parks Merch on Amazon
You can find current and past seasons Disney Parks brand merchandise on Amazon for a huge discount. Take these Bubble Wands for example. These are sold at every park and are located at every corner. Kids are drawn to these babies like bees to honey and they cost $25. This Cinderella Bubble Wand cost $13.79 on Amazon (you'll need to BYO bubbles).
Wait for Shopdisney.com 25% off sales
Loads of Disney Parks merch and accessories are also sold online, and Disney regularly runs a sale where if you spend $75 you get 20% off or spend $150 and get 25%. I create favorites in the app and wait until they're having a sale like this to order things I know I'm going to buy anyway. ShopDisney apparel is definitely pricier than buying character clothing at Target or Walmart, so I plan a few special outfits and Minnie Ears because the quality is so much better.
Shop at the Disney Store at Target
The Disney Store has a special partnership with Target and you can buy some of the very same apparel you're buying from Shopdisney.com on Target with your red card to save 5%. There have been times my kids sizes were sold out on Disney's website and I found the same item on Target's website, and some Target Circle discounts on apparel will apply to Disney Store items. If you have a red card you also can enjoy free 2-day shipping.
Buy Gently Used on thredUp.com
One of the reasons I love creating DisneyBound outfits is that you can use apparel you would actually wear IRL without feeling like the crazy Disney mom, but I still wind up buying some items I know won't get a ton of air time when I'm not at the parks. So, I try and buy used whenever I can. ThreadUp.com is a consignment website and you're buying from their company verses a private person on Mercari, Poshmark, or Ebay. The benefit I've found is that is that they scrutinize every item for wear, stains, holes, etc so it's not as time consuming as combing through thrift stores. Everything I've ordered has come to me smelling great, neatly packaged, and in very good condition. You can find lots of Disney brand merchandise and can also search by color making it easier if you're just searching for Jasmine teal or Belle yellow.
Grocery Delivery
Whether you're staying on Disney property or not you don't have to rely on the parks for all your snacks and meals (although see my two budget snack tips below). You can have grocery items delivered to your Disney World Resort or Airbnb rental from Amazon, Instacart, and Gardengrocer.com While you pay more than you would if you were buying groceries at home it's nothing compared to what you'd spend buying all your food from Disney. I also bring bars, applesauce pouches and peanut butter from home because I just hate overpaying for some items and I can if I want. Then when I eat all my snacks I have more room for souvenirs!
Book an Airbnb
Staying on Disney property can be great, yes, but Orlando has one of the hottest Airbnb markets in the country, and that keeps prices low because competition is so high. I've priced out Disney vacations for countless family and friends (I just like to, okay?) and even when you factor in parking and a rental car the money saved by staying off-site is substantial. If you can plan your vacation with family or friends and split place to stay there are some amazing Disney themed houses and condos with private pools
As an example, I just searched for a home during mid-March which is Spring Break for many families. You can rent this entire huge 6 bedroom/6bathroom home that sleeps 13, has a pool, and is 10 minutes from Disney for a week for $1549 including all the fees (I'm not affiliated with this property in any way.) If you can split that between 1-2 other families suddenly you'r nightly rate is looking more like $50-$100/night and you have a full kitchen + laundry.
We also have a rental home in Davenport about 11 miles from Magic Kingdom. We decked it out in Disney & Harry Potter because we wanted a fun place to stay and share with with our friends and family who feel staying on Disney property isn't an option.
6-8.
Buy a Refillable Popcorn Bucket
If you and your family love popcorn or even just like it then buy the Disney Popcorn Bucket on day 1. There are popcorn vendors on basically every corner or each park. The buckets that look like regular popcorn containers sell for $12 and can be refilled for $2 the rest of your vacation. If you want to level-up your popcorn game AND get snack container + souvenir then know that Disney is constantly releasing new, limited edition popcorn buckets in the shape of characters and attractions. You will have to work a little harder as different editions are sold in different locations. These character buckets sell for a bit more starting around $16 and up to around $25 depending on the design, and are refillable as well. They have become collectors items and some of them can be hard to find, so follow accounts like @disneyparksbog @allearsnet and @disneyfoodblog who regularly post about where to find them.
Mickey Waffles are Affordable, Filling, and Delicious!
There's a ton of amazing snack options in Magic Kingdom, but if you're looking for an affordable, shareable, crowd-pleaser you can't go wrong with a Mickey Waffle. You can grab one at Sleepy Hollow near the castle, they are as big a your child's head and cost $6.
Create a Budget
You knew this was coming, right, but hear me out? I'm TERRIBLE at budgeting. Numbers freak me out and budgets don't allow for my spontaneous personality...but because I am committed to going to Disney without accumulating a lot of stressful debt I made a plan.
I created a spreadsheet with every expense I could think of: a place to stay, the restaurants I wanted to eat at, Magic Bands, Memory Maker, snacks, souvenirs, outfits, the whole 9. Be thorough, but also don't stress too much because sometimes it's too overwhelming and then we don't do it. You can revise it later when you remember you so actually need to visit Droid Depot.
We use a cash envelope system for budgeting. I could write a whole post just on this, but basically we take out cash every month and put in an envelope marked with our various spending goals. This is the only system that has worked for our family, and we've tried a lot of them...If it's in an envelope I can discipline myself not to spend or it or "borrow" it from other categories. We do this got everything from groceries, clothes, haircuts to house projects. We still use out debit card for convenience for stuff like gas and unplanned shopping trips to Target, but then we square it with our envelopes and deposit the money back in our account.
What are your favorite money-saving hacks for going Disney??
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