Money-Saving Tips for Your Disney Trip

Traveling to Disney is a dream, but let’s be honest: the numbers can be scary! 😱 Between tickets, food, souvenirs, and hotels, the bill adds up quickly. The good news is that there are plenty of hacks to save money without losing any of the magic ✨.

Here’s a complete guide, organized by categories, with tips to save you money and headaches 👇

🛍️ Shopping and Souvenirs

1. Outlets before the park

Visit the Disney Character Warehouse at Premium Outlets (International or Vineland). It’s Disney’s official outlet: everything that’s no longer sold in the parks ends up there with discounts up to 70%!
👉 Tip: If you see something you like, buy it right away because stock changes constantly.

2. Walmart, your best friend

A true Orlando classic 😅. You’ll find cheap snacks for the park, rain ponchos for just a few dollars (they cost 10x more at Disney), and even souvenirs. Walmart ends up being another tourist attraction!

🍔 Food and Drinks

3. Bring your own food

Disney allows you to bring snacks and drinks (no alcohol or glass containers). Perfect if you don’t have a meal plan.

4. Popcorn Refillable Bucket

The bucket costs between $12 and $25 (depending on the design) and refills are only $2.25. You can share it with everyone, plus it makes a nice souvenir.

5. Free water

Instead of paying $4 for bottled water, ask for free cups of iced water at any quick-service spot or use the fountains.

6. Coffee and breakfast at your Disney hotel

Even without a meal plan, food courts have free coffee (use the mug from your room), plus toasters, microwaves, and condiments. With Walmart supplies, you can prepare cheap breakfasts.

7. Refillable hotel mug

Disney hotels sell a refillable mug that includes unlimited soda, tea, and coffee refills during your stay. Share it with your group and save a lot.

🏰 Tickets and Planning

8. More days, cheaper

The daily price goes down the more tickets you buy. If it’s your first time, it’s worth getting several days to explore calmly.

9. Lightning Lanes: yes or no?

They cost $20–30 per person, but they’re not mandatory. My tip 👉 use Single Pass for the most popular rides (e.g., Avatar Flight of Passage or Guardians of the Galaxy) and do the rest with the regular line.

10. Memory Maker shared or with your phone

The professional photo package costs about $185 if purchased in advance. Share it with other families and split the cost, so everyone gets the photos.
If you’re traveling solo or in a small group, ask photographers to use your phone—they’ll happily do it! 📸

11. Plan ahead

Booking early means better deals, cheaper dates, and interest-free installments. A Certified Agent (👋) can apply discounts as soon as they’re released.

12. Pay in installments

With packages (hotel + tickets), you can freeze the price, pay gradually, and cancel free of charge up to 30 days before.

13. Tickets vs. packages

Standalone tickets are non-refundable. With packages, you can change dates or cancel if something comes up.

🏨 Accommodation and Transportation

14. Magical Extras included

Booking a Disney package comes with perks:

  • Discounts at Disney Springs
  • Free mini-golf ⛳
  • Luggage tags with characters ✨

15. Free parking

Staying at a Disney hotel gives you free parking at the hotel and parks. If you stay outside, parking at Disney costs about $32 per day, plus your hotel parking—do the math if you’re staying several days!

🎉 In summary

Saving at Disney is totally possible. With good planning, some tricks, and smart decisions, you can enjoy the trip of your dreams without going broke.
👉 The key: planning ahead, smart shopping, and making the most of Disney’s built-in perks.

🚗 Rent a car with Rentennials!

If you’re traveling to Orlando or Miami and want to rent a car with no hidden fees, do it with
Rentennials 🚗.
Final price includes: insurance, tolls, and taxes.
Book easily, quickly, and in just minutes from your phone.

Es Disney Time, By Carla.

Agente Certificada Disney y Universal

Instagram: @esdinseytime

👉 Book now at rentennials.app

 

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Is staying at Disney hotels worth it? Pros and cons

When it comes to planning a trip to Disney, you’ll eventually need to choose where to stay. After seeing the park ticket prices, it’s easy to panic and just book the cheapest hotel, apartment, or place you can find—without even checking if the location is good, if there’s transportation, or if you’ll be charged for parking every day, etc. That’s why, my friends, I’m here to tell you why staying at a Disney hotel is totally worth it!

There are so many perks, you won’t believe some of them even exist!

PROS:

EARLY PARK ENTRY

You probably already knew about this one, but wait—there’s so much more. Early Park Entry lets you arrive 30 minutes before the park officially opens and do “Rope Drop,” where you can walk quickly (not run, trust me, they’ll call you out on it 😉 ) to the park’s most popular rides. This way, you avoid the 2-hour lines that form once the non-hotel guests are allowed in.

FREE TRANSPORTATION TO THE PARKS AND DISNEY SPRINGS

Depending on where you’re staying, you can use BUSES, the SKYLINER (gondola), or BOATS to get to all four theme parks, the two water parks, and Disney Springs. A bonus: when you go to Disney Springs, you won’t have to go through the security checks that everyone arriving by car has to endure, which often leads to long, uncomfortable lines. Plus, you won’t have to worry about leaving the parks, walking forever to the parking lot, and trying to find where you parked. The buses are right at the exit, so no extra walking! And after a long day, you don’t have to drive through a city full of highways when you’re already exhausted. TRUST ME, there’s nothing better than being dropped off right at your hotel’s doorstep, without anyone needing to drive after a day of walking 24,000 steps—which is the bare minimum you’ll walk!

FREE PARKING AT HOTELS AND PARKS

If you think this isn’t important, YOU’RE WRONG, my friend—it’s super important! Do you know how much parking at the parks costs? $35 per day. And if you keep adding that up, it’ll take a big chunk out of your budget. If you rented a car, you can park it for free without wasting extra gas or paying for hotel parking, which would be another $35. You’re saving around $70 a day, which you’d definitely have to factor in if you chose to stay elsewhere.

FLEXIBILITY IN PAYMENT METHODS

When you book what’s called a “package,” it means you’re reserving both your tickets and hotel. You can secure this with just $200, locking in your rate before prices go up. You can do this months in advance and pay however you like, with up to 30 days before your trip to finish paying it off. So when it’s time to travel, everything is already paid and ready to go—no need to worry about extra expenses! Plus, when you go through Customs (and we all know how strict they can be), it’s a big advantage to have everything paid for, as they always ask how much money you’re carrying to cover your trip!

RESERVATIONS FOR LIGHTNING LANE, SINGLE PASS, AND MULTIPASS BEFORE YOUR TRIP

With this new system similar to the old “FastPass,” you can make reservations up to 7 days before your trip if you’re staying at a Disney hotel. If you’re not staying at a Disney hotel, you can book up to 3 days in advance, but by then, the most popular attractions will likely be fully booked.

RESTAURANT RESERVATIONS

If you’re new to the Disney experience, you might think restaurant reservations aren’t that important. You might believe that if you want to have breakfast, lunch, or dinner with Disney characters, you can just walk into the restaurant that day and ask for a table. Well, NO—it’s not that easy. Reservations for these restaurants are always booked up, and you might not even know how to make them. That’s where I come in! If you’re traveling with a Certified Agent, the consultation is free. Yes, FREE! Disney pays me separately, so you’ll pay the same price as you would on the official website, but I make the reservations through Disney’s official system for Agents. And if you book a package, this allows us to link your reservation to the My Disney Experience app, letting you book restaurants UP TO 60 DAYS BEFORE YOUR TRIP! This way, you won’t miss out on a spot and will have a unique experience!

MAGICAL EXTRAS

When you book a package with a Certified Disney Agent, you receive a little gift from the Walt Disney Travel Company. You’ll get beautiful tags featuring various Disney characters for your luggage. Plus, you’ll receive a magical blue card that not many people know how to use, which offers discounts at shops and restaurants in Disney Springs. It also grants you tickets to play mini golf at Disney, a super fun experience—just like those mini golf courses you see in the movies! There are even more benefits included, but I’ll share those with you later!

MEAL PLAN

Do you want to travel without having to worry about anything, just like you would at an all-inclusive resort? This way, you can book a package that includes your hotel, park tickets, transportation, and a Dining Plan (an extra you can add if you’re staying at a Disney hotel). You won’t have to think about anything other than relaxing and enjoying yourself since everything will be paid for and sorted out, just like at an all-inclusive!

THE DISNEY MAGIC

Finally, there’s the magic of being in the Disney Zone (the bubble) all the time! Being on Disney property, without having to leave or drive a lot to get to a park or Disney Springs, is just wonderful. Everything is perfect; everything is magical, and this way, the magic never ends. From the moment you arrive to when you leave your hotel, you’re in the magic bubble 24/7. Trust me, once you experience it, you won’t want to stay anywhere else but a Disney hotel!

 It’s Disney Time, By Carla.

Certified Disney and Universal Agent

Instagram: @esdinseytime

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Rentennials is the new way to rent cars from local hosts in your city, quickly, easily, and affordably. It's also your new path to starting your own car rental business and making money every month.
Discover more.

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Download our App

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