When we started planning our Disney trip, we knew we wanted to stay in a resort, fly and rent a car. All these things were expensive and this did not even include park tickets. In order to save money at Disney, we had to do a fair amount of research, but we were able to save some money and still have a Magical Disney vacation.
Here, I will give you several tactics we used to save money on our trip. They are simple and I feel like they can benefit anyone going to the Most Magical Place on Earth.
Renting DVC Points
Biggest way to save money at Disney
Disney has a program where people can buy a little piece of a resort for their own. This is called the Disney Vacation Club (DVC for short). This is the Disney version of a timeshare.
But why am I telling you about this? This is something that can benefit you greatly for your vacation.
We rented DVC points to stay at the Polynesian Resort for about half the price you would pay to stay there! It was incredible because the Polynesian is a deluxe resort on the Magic Kingdom monorail line.
How do I rent DVC points?
There are several ways to go about renting DVC points. There are facebook groups where owners are shopping their points and you can ask about certain days. Or, you can use a third party like David’s Vacation Club Rentals and they find the dates you want and work with the owner.
I would highly recommend David’s because you don’t have to directly deal with the owner and it is binding. We requested the dates we wanted and they let us know when points were found. It was simple and we will do it again.
Includes Free Parking at Disney Resorts and Parks
There are several other perks with renting DVC points. Disney has started charging for parking at resorts and obviously at the parks. If you are staying as a DVC guest, all you have to do is tell the parking attendant, get your magic band (or phone) scanned and pay nothing!
Includes Free Laundry
Another perk (I guess!) is the access to the free laundry on property. The last thing I want to do in the Most Magical Place on Earth is laundry, but we needed it. There was a facility that I was able to use as a DVC guest for free that was only accessible with my magic band.
Chase Credit Card
We got a couple new credit cards prepping for this trip. The first was the Chase Sapphire Card. This credit card gave us points if we spent a certain amount of money in a time frame. These points were used to purchase our flight tickets. It paid for about half and it was not hard to spend the amount they wanted.
Another bonus to this card is if you get stuck somewhere because of the airlines, they will pay for lodging and food up to $500 per person. This came in handy when we got stuck in Philadelphia overnight.
Disney Rewards Credit Card
10% off really adds up when trying to save money at Disney
The Disney Rewards card was great for us while we were in the parks. We received 10% off with purchases over $50 and got reward dollars to also spend at Disney stores.
Another perk were special photo ops and character meet and greets in the parks for cardmembers.
Using a reputable third party for tickets
We did not buy our tickets for the parks directly from Disney. Instead, we decided to go with Undercover Tourist. This way we were able to save money off the tickets overall and lump them together. The more pass purchases you make, the cheaper they get. Undercover Tourist does the math for consumers and you pick what works for your family.
We also purchased Sea World tickets here and got free meal vouchers with our tickets.
Bringing your own snacks and drinks
This one is huge for saving money. Disney snacks and food is great! However, food gets expensive in Disney. For example, my husband and I shared a 50th anniversary ice cream cookie sandwich. It was over $7 and the Mickey pretzel is also over $7.
BYO snacks and drinks really helps you save money at Disney
We packed some snacks from home to travel with us and my husband would go to the grocery store to pick up jugs of water, drinks, and snacks for our family. This saved us a large amount of money and we had food ready to go when anyone was hungry.
Don’t rent strollers from Disney
When looking for a stroller for the week, I recommend looking somewhere other than Disney. Their strollers are hard plastic and not the most comfortable.
This is a small way to save money at Disney but its better for the kids
Scooterbug is the company we went with and it was perfect. They delivered it to our resort and picked it up as well. We used a Bob stroller and they are so much more comfortable for the kids. I even ran with it in Epcot trying to make it to a ride before closing and it was so smooth.
This saved us a few dollars and it felt like a better product to use.
Sharing Meals
As I said before, meals get expensive at Disney. Our family ended up sharing a lot of meals and snacks when we bought them. We ended up not being stuffed and saving some money along the way.
Save money at Disney with Target Gift Cards
This one is really small but if you are a Target Redcard holder, you receive 5% off your purchases. If you thought of this ahead of time, you can buy gift cards for 5% for Disney. Just keep in mind these only work for Disney and there are better discounts out there.
BYO Glow Sticks
A fun way to save money at Disney
At night, when the fireworks shows start, you may notice kids with light up toys everywhere. These toys that Disney sells are usually around $20 or so. We decided to bring some glow sticks. Our kids were easy to find and they were having a blast lighting up with the fireworks.
Other Helpful Links
How to Avoid Disney Weight Gain
Is Disney Genie Plus Worth It?