Tips for Disney Parks & Cruise Lines
Since milk is not included in the Disney refillable mug program we always purchase the largest container of milk from the resort store. Price is much cheaper than food court. Saves time in the morning since the kids can have some milk and cereal in the room. - Steve
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Whatever you do don't spend money on bottled water. It is so expensive and there are water fountains everywhere. This goes for the theme parks and the airport. Simply bring an empty bottle and fill it up as you need it. If you are really hardcore about it you can drink water the whole trip and skip buying drinks at the quick serves entirely. Also think about bringing lots of snacks from home such as granola bars and peanut butter cracker packs that you can eat instead of buying snacks and treats in the parks. You'll save a bunch of money this way. - Chris Kulp
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We love the Disney dining plan, but have learned that three meals a day, even counter service, can be a bit much, and if one of the meals is a buffet -- calorie overload! We discovered that by having a late breakfast (often snack credits) on a buffet day, we could save that counter-service credit. Then, on our last day, we could use it, plus any leftover snack credits, to get food to take on the plane ride home that afternoon. Earl of Sandwich makes sandwiches that are wrapped well enough to be carried around, and Goofy's Candy company has lots of bags of candy that are one snack credit each. By taking an extra-large tote purse with me, I could carry two sandwiches, two cookies, and whatever candies we got and not have to rely on buying airline food. Next time, we may try combining two of our table-service credits and eating an upscale meal! - Joyce A. Deen
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The Disney Dining Plan is a must, especially since we usually get it for free in the fall. We also bring a case of water bottles and cereal to eat in the room for breakfast. - Tammy W.
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I think it is important to know that you do not have to order a "meal" at a quick service restaurant. If you just want pizza without a salad, or a hamburger without fries, you can have it! And it costs less! - Kathy Jo Horan
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Put money you would spend on food onto American Express gift cards, especially if they can be purchased as part of a school fundraiser (http://www.shopwithscrip.com)!. - Cindy
We have learned how to do "Disney on a Dime". All my husband's business expenses go on our Disney Visa Card so that we can get about $1000 a year in reward dollars to put toward our trip (you could also do this with personal expenses). We pay the entire balance every month so there are no charges. - Tammy Wilczek
The latest edition of My Disney Experience allows you to maintain and change your PIN number on your mobile phone. Be sure to make and/or verify your PIN at check-in to avoid potential problems when you try to charge something. It's good practice to make sure your MDE App is always up-to-date because Disney frequently makes adjustments. The iPhone app is generally updated ahead of the Android app. - A Cast Member
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A way my family saves money is by using Mypoints and cashing in our points for gift cards. I have been able to redeem my points for $50 gift cards to BP and Shell gas, $50 Visa gift cards and gift cards to restaurants, i.e. Rainforest Cafe, Subway, etc. All you have to do is click on emails, take surveys and buy through Mypoints from your favorite retailers to earn points on purchases. For our trip this March, my mom and I cashed in points between the two of us for $200 worth of Visa gift cards that we are using for food, gas and souvenirs in Disney World! - Shannon Mason
We rack up Disney Reward Dollars on the Disney Visa like mad for the time between trips. We recently upgraded to the new premier version of the card, and that has helped immensely! Two percent back on groceries and gas? DONE! We use it like a debit card and just pay it off each month. That really helps! Then we cash it in right before the trip and use it for food, souvenirs, park tickets, etc. - Faith
The best thing we ever did was to get a Starwood American Express card. Starwood Hotels runs the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin. You accumulate points through purchases. We haven't paid for lodging on our last two Disney trips. And I think we found out about it on AllEars.Net! - Julie Maguire
On a recent trip I discovered that the new touch and go, RFID cards will still work while in a lanyard pouch. However, after I traded my paper annual pass for a new touch and go pass, it would not work in the pouch anymore. Apparently if you have more than one of the new types of cards together in a pouch or hold them together the sensors pick up both chips and can not tell which is which. The cards do work if you hold them up to the sensors one at a time still. They just can not be stacked together.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Annual Passholders can log into their My Disney Experience account and order a Magic Band at no additional cost.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Annual Passholders can log into their My Disney Experience account and order a Magic Band at no additional cost.
Buy tickets in advance (as soon as you know you're going). We usually have about a year between trips, and with four travelers, I'll buy one ticket a month, for example. If the timeframe for the next trip works out, we upgrade the pre-purchased tickets to annual passes when we arrive at the resort. Ticket prices rise every year, but a ticket you buy at today's prices does not begin the expiration countdown until it is used for the first time at a park; so you could buy a ticket today, and hold onto it until that dream trip finally happens! - Bitterchickey
