The Hotel Perk Fans Fear Disney World Will Kill Next

Will you be staying at Disney World soon?

Wilderness Lodge

Now, we can all agree that the Disney World parks are magical, but the hotel perks seem to be quite fleeting. Over the years, Disney has quietly trimmed away perks that were once part of the package deal, and that really has left us all on edge wondering what might go next. To that point, we thought we’d reach out to you and get your takes.

We reached out to our followers on Facebook and Instagram to ask: “What hotel perk do you think Disney World would get rid of next?” We had quite a few people leave their opinions in the comments!

What do you think?

Now, let’s go over some of your top responses!

The Front-Runner for the Chopping Block: Free Parking

There was one response that really struck a chord with a lot of you, and it came from our reader Juan, who shared, “Perks that still exist are: Early theme park entry, extended evening hours for deluxe and DVC guests, free transportation to the parks, early access to ADR’s and lightning lane selections, and free parking at the theme parks for hotel guests. The most likely among those to go would be the free theme park parking.”

Magic Kingdom Parking Lot

Now, Juan isn’t alone in this prediction. Free parking at the theme parks is a convenient perk for resort guests, but let’s be real – parking fees are an easy way for Disney to pad its bottom line. For many of you, it wouldn’t be a surprise if this benefit was next to vanish. After all, similar perks, like free MagicBands, have already been quietly phased out.

“What Is Left to Get Rid Of?”

Many of you voiced a similar sense of resignation, pointing out that a lot of perks are already gone like Cara when she shared”What is left to get rid of. Most of the perks are gone, magic express, package delivery, extended hours for ALL guests not just those staying high end. They are all gone. It’s sad!”

Package Delivery

This sentiment definitely echoes the frustration of a lot of you who have watched perks disappear, often without significant replacements. For those of us on a budget or those nostalgic for the days when Disney felt more inclusive, these losses are tough to swallow.

Is Early Entry On Borrowed Time?

Christy went with a bold prediction about early park entry when she said, “Early entry will be DVC only, you wait.” The early theme park entry perk allows all Disney resort guests to enter the parks 30 minutes before opening is a nice way to beat some of the crowds. But what Christy’s shared sparked a lot of discussion.

Cast Member during Early Entry

Could Disney limit this benefit to its high-paying Disney Vacation Club (DVC) members? It wouldn’t be the first time Disney tied a perk to an upsell, and we’ve all known it’s always a possibility.

Could Disney Start Charging for Transportation?

Free transportation to and from the parks has been a staple of the Disney experience for decades. However, Laura speculated that Disney might find a way to monetize this convenience: “Park bus 🚌 they will start to charge a fee.”

Disney Bus

While it’s hard to imagine Disney buses requiring a ticket to ride, it is worth noting that other perks, like the Magical Express airport service, have already been replaced with paid alternatives. With that in mind, Laura’s prediction doesn’t really seem far-fetched, and it’s enough to make anyone start side-eyeing those iconic buses.

Are Extended Evening Hours A Likely Target?

Another common prediction focused on extended evening hours for deluxe hotel guests as Sarah explained with, “Extended evening hours for deluxe hotel guests. It would allow Disney to sell more after-hours tickets.”

Extended Evening Hours at Animal Kingdom

This perk allows deluxe hotel guests to stay in the parks for a few extra hours on select nights. Now, if Disney can turn those hours into a separately ticketed event, it’s pretty easy to see how quickly this benefit might disappear.

We Didn’t See These Predictions Coming

Not all of the predictions were focused on the major perks. For example, Justin had this to say: “Refillable mugs and arcades.”

Refillable hotel mug

Sure, refillable mugs and resort arcades are small potatoes compared to park access, but they’re still part of the Disney hotel charm. Losing them might not ruin anyone’s vacation, but it would still sting for families who enjoy these little extras.

Julie also pointed out another unexpected potential cut: “Celebrating buttons because social media encourages people to over consume them instead of just getting one on your birthday or on a legit day of celebration. Not exclusively a hotel perk but still.”

Celebration Button!

While celebrating buttons aren’t technically a hotel perk, they’re one of those little touches that add magic to the Disney experience. Losing them would feel like yet another way Disney is chipping away at its once-incredible attention to detail.

Is Disney “Killing the Magic”?

Lastly, Eric summed up what many of you are feeling: “Considering Disney seems to be in a race to see how else they can kill the magic. They’ll probably make using magic bands in the resorts a paid service but make it mandatory.”

MagicBand+ at Critter Co-op in Magic Kingdom

While that prediction may feel a bit excessive, it reflects a widespread concern among many of you that the magic is increasingly being replaced by a focus on profits.

MagicBand+ interacting with Luminous at EPCOT

Well, those were just some of your thoughts on the hotel perks do you think Disney World would get rid of next, and now we want to hear even more from you! In the meantime, stay tuned to AllEars for all the latest Disney news!

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9 Replies to “The Hotel Perk Fans Fear Disney World Will Kill Next”

  1. I can see them charging a flat rate for transportation. $10/person length of stay. They could cut out free parking at parks for hotel guests forcing them to use Disney transportation. Disney will lie and say it’s for the environment. Green, alright. Green in their pockets.

  2. I can’t see charging for resort/park buses becoming a thing, many visitors from UK and beyond stay in Disney resorts because of the transport and not having to have a hire car, which is an additional expense plus y’all drive on the wrong side of the road 😊

  3. I used to always recommend staying at a Disney resort when you visit–all the perks made it worthwhile. But now that so much of it is gone, you might as well save money where you can and stay anywhere else.

  4. I don’t foresee them ever charging free Park transportation. They know that would upset too many people and also make more people go and stay offsite.
    I could see them starting to implement paying for parking At the parks if you’re staying at a resort To encourage more people to use the transportation.
    The cost of that transportation is built into the hotel fee. The resorts are already extremely overpriced.
    We stayed at cabana Bay at Universal and found it extremely similar to staying at a deluxe hotel in Disney. The amenities and type of hotel with indoor corridors, pool, lazy river, etc. etc. and I believe I only paid $129 a night there.
    For The same hotel in Disney, they were probably charge at least 700 to 800 a night. That also included free transportation to the park at Universal.

    I am a DVC member, but with the recent changes to DAS And all of these cutbacks, I am seriously considering selling my contracts. Right now, we are avoiding the parks and using our points at Aulani. We plan to use other points in Tokyo or Paris instead as well. It is extremely tough for us to do the lines without disability access service as it used to be. It’s very sad because Disney is my happy place And I no longer feel so happy there.

  5. Come on, guys, some of these predictions here, are frankly just not realistic. No more free perks are going away, period.

  6. Free parking seems the most likely to go. I can’t imagine the rest in this article would be on the chopping block. What would most likely happen is Disney would raise their resort fees and ticket prices to cover the cost of the perks of early entry and bus transportation. That would be the smart thing to do. However, it would have been smart to keep the free Magical Express perk and raise the cost of staying at a resort, and that didn’t happen.

  7. I agree with that Free Parking would be the next to go.

    Not early hours, because what those really are doing is managing crowds coming in. Staging people. Managing traffic. For the same reason, the buses will always be free because those are all about crowd control and managing traffic.

  8. I think charging to use resort busses would be the nail in the coffin for our family. Part of the initial charm so long ago was not having to drive your entire vacation. Now, the roads are way busier too. I don’t see it happening tho. Early theme park entry is kind of a waste as it is now, half an hour is laughable.

  9. Magical Express, magic bands, early and late park hours for ALL resort guests. Not ever “free”, but included in the expensive price that is already being paid. You pay the same price for that park ticket, whether you stay at a value, a moderate or a deluxe hotel. There should be the same park availability no matter where you are staying. All of the price increases without additional services makes Disney no longer viable for many people. But I guess that is what they want. Fewer average families going, and more of the higher income adults. It’s working for them for now, but over time, I guess we’ll see.