Disney Travel Tips

If you want to cut cost out of dining expenses at Disney then you need to consider bringing your own snacks, water bottles & even PBJ sandwiches. If you look at the Disney World Restaurant Menus, you will notice that kid meals are usually easy something you could easily pack yourself.

For instance, at Cosmic Rays in Magic Kingdom, Peanut Butter and Jelly w/ 2 sides (grapes, carrot sticks or apple sauce) & Drink (1% Mickey Milk, small bottled water or apple juice) is $4.99.

If you have more than one kid, this can add up.

Why not make your own PBJ sandwich (or buy a box of Smucker’s for $2) and bring it with you! It is super easy to bring in the little snack packs of carrots & water bottle as well.

Instead of wasting money on lunches you could pack yourself, save your money for souvenirs or treats that you can’t get anywhere but the park (like yummy Mickey Mouse Ice Creams)

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Chasing down characters can take the fun out of the experience, so here are some helpful hints as to where you can find them at the World Showcase section of Epcot:

• France- Aurora can be found in the Rose Garden in the back of the country near the Perfume Shop. Belle (ball gown) and Beast can be seen near the lake and one of the Aristocrats is known to appear near the bridge by the artwork display.
• Morocco- Aladdin, Jasmine & the Genie are usually pretty easy to see and will be along the lake’s edge. If it rains, they are back behind the shops.
• Germany- Snow White & sometimes, Dopey, are known to be found right as you enter Germany from the Outpost near the fence.
• China- Mulan can be spotted near the Japanese Garden
• Mexico- Be on the lookout for Donald Duck dressed in his 3 Caballeros outfit hiding in a wooded pathway.
• United Kingdom-  Look for Mary Poppins as you cross over the bridge from France into UK. You will find the Pooh Characters in the back of the town bookshop!

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Similar to the Kidscot Fun Spots at Epcot, Animal Kingdom has a great learning activity for kids called Kids’ Discovery Club where kids can learn about animals and their habitats.

You can pick up your Discovery Passport at any of the KDC locations throughout the park. Simply see one of the guides at the location, learn about animals and their habitats and your child will get a stamp in their passport. After filling up the entire passport, the kids take a pledge with one of the guides to take care of animals & the environment.
Check it out because it is free and is very educational!

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In Minnie’s House, be sure to check out the kitchen. There are buttons that aren’t labelled that do “magical” things like make popcorn pop in the microwave & a cake rise in the oven!

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Disney’s FastPass is free and is something you should take advantage of while at the park. FastPass rides are clearly marked both in the map & by the attraction itself. Each FastPass attraction has two displays of time (waiting time & when you should return with your pass to ride).

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If you have vacationed at Disney before, you know how difficult is can be to find your stroller at the park.  Anytime you go to see a show or get on a ride, you will have to park your stroller. While you are on the ride (or at a show), chances are a park attendant will move your stroller. They try to organize the strollers similiarly to parking cars so that no space is wasted.  This is great for them, but can cause your a problem when you come back to retrieve it.  All Disney strollers are the same (except for the name-tag) and even many other stroller models look similar. How can you easily spot your stroller among the other 75?

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When traveling to Disney World, you have a few different options as far as accommodations: stay at a Disney property resort, stay at a hotel, or rent a property nearby. If you are on a budget, you may think that your best best is one of the first two options, but today I want to tell you why you should consider renting a home or apartment near the Disney Resorts.

When looking for details on saving on accommodations, I turned to my close friend Crystal, who is a Disney Vacation specialist with Dream, Wish, Believe. She said that one advantage to renting a house/apartment/townhome is that you are obviously getting more space. This might not be important to you if you are traveling as a couple or with one small child, but if you are a family of 4 or more looking to stay on Disney Properties, you might notice that two bedroom units are hard to come by. Not only that, but they are not cheap!

Crystal shared with me that she recently booked a client a 5-bedroom vacation home near Disney for $1200 a week. This client was traveling with a few other families, so split 3 ways, this ended up being $400 per family for the week. This home came with a full kitchen, laundry facilities, and a complete game room (pool, air hockey, etc). Many homes even come with private pool! If you don’t need that kind of space, Crystal insists that she can find a 2 bedroom apartment (with full kitchen & laundry) at almost any time of the year for $500-$600 for the week. You’d be hard-pressed to find a nice hotel that cheap!

While staying right on the Disney property can be a magical experience, the price often makes people feel like their Disney Vacation is out of reach. Weigh the options of each choice carefully and do what is best for your family & situation. I just wanted to let you know that there is more than one choice when planning your vacation accommodations!

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Do you have tips on how do you save money on Disney World Accommodations?

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If you are considering going to Disney World and want to get the most for your money, your first step in the planning process should be choosing your travel dates. Why do travel dates matter? Peak season travel can mean more people at the park and higher prices on accommodations.

For the optimal visit, try to pick a time when Disney is less crowded. Notice I say “less crowded.” Disney World is crowded throughout the year due to several factors, but there are certain times of the year when the crowds aren’t as heavy.   According to the Disney website, the lowest attendance runs just after New Years Day until President’s Day; After Labor Day until Thanksgiving; and the week after Thanksgiving until the week prior to Christmas. These are great times of the year to go to Disney if you don’t mind getting a chill after getting out of the pool or going to Florida during peak hurricane season.

If you want to experience the full Florida effect of Disney World (warm weather at the parks & sunny pool days) then consider going to Disney World between the 2nd week after Easter through the week before Memorial Day. That is typically the time my family travels to Disney every year & I really feel like the crowds aren’t as bad as other times of the year (like summer and Spring Break which we have done in the past).

The reason for this is two-fold: Spring Break is crazy because most children have off either the week leading up to Easter or following Easter so it is ideal travel time for families throughout the US. AmeriCheer championship, which is held annually at Disney, draws huge crowds and is typically in late March.

Why travel before Memorial Day? Many Southern school systems, like Mississippi & Georgia, get out the end of May (usually prior to Memorial Day) & many people like to vacation right when their kids get out of school for the summer.

Another great reason for traveling to Disney World in the off season is that the price of accommodations is much less. While the price of admission to the parks doesn’t change because of the season, the prices of accommodations do rise & fall depending on the time of year. Peak season for Disney Resorts runs Feb 15 – March 27. Rates are also higher during Holiday (Jan 1-2, Jan 15-17, Feb 12-14, March 28 – April 10, July 2-4, Nov 24-27, Dec 17-24, Dec 25 – Jan 1). You can expect premium prices during those dates, so choose a date not in that list to get significant savings!

Staying off site may be an even better option if you are looking to save money. The prices of off-site accommodations will change as well based on peak-season, but you may find they are less expensive than on-site stays throughout the year.

If you can’t swing going to Disney in the “off season,” don’t worry, you will have a blast no matter when you go! The important thing is that you don’t wait until the last minute to plan your Disney Vacation. If you can plan a year in advance, you will have an entire year to save money for your vacation!

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