Disney World Money, Time and Sanity Saving Tips

Getting ready to head to Disney World? This list of tips is just for you! Feel free to comment with YOUR favorite pieces of advice below!

Try to plan early! By booking your Dining Reservations 180 days in advance and FastPass+ Reservations 60 days in advance, you‘ll have your best chance to get the restaurants and attractions you want. If you have your heart set on a particular restaurant or attraction and cannot get reservations, keep checking! A great way to get into restaurants is to check 24-hours before you want to dine, as those holding reservations have to cancel them at this time if they do not plan to use them to avoid being charged.
It will more than likely rain at some point during your vacation. Save money by purchasing ponchos at the Dollar Store before your vacation and keeping them in a backpack with you while at the parks.
Target Red Card and Sam’s Club offer discounted Disney Gift Cards. These are great to use to pay for your trip, or to purchase in advance to pay for dinners or souvenirs!
Bring more than one pair of shoes!
If lines are long, try utilizing Single Rider Lines on some of the blockbuster attractions such as Test Track and Expedition Everest. Everyone in your party will wait together in this line, but you may not ride at the same time, as this line is used to fill empty seats that crop up among larger parties.
FREE ice water is available at all counter service and snack locations throughout all of the parks.
Snacks and bottled water are allowed to be brought into the parks. This is a great way to save money!
Wear sunscreen!
Many attractions have two lines—a right line and a left line. If you cannot see the end of the line, choose the left line as it’s usually shorter.
Don’t have a FastPass but really want to ride a certain ride? Arrive 30-40 minutes before the park opens and head directly to that attraction!
During the Fall and Winter, the Magic Kingdom hosts two ticketed parties: Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party and Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. These are held on select nights, and they close the park at 7PM for non-party goers. If you are visiting Magic Kingdom September-December, pay attention to the dates of the parties. If you don’t have a park hopper, be sure to visit Magic Kingdom on a day that the party doesn’t occur. If you do have tickets to one of these events, please note that you may enter the Magic Kingdom at 4PM. This is a great way to use your event ticket and not use an entire park day ticket.
Celebrating something? Be sure to stop by Guest Relations or any indoor merchandise location. You can ask for a complimentary button to wear during your visits. Buttons include: Anniversary, Birthday, First Visit, and Just Married.
FastPasses – Make your selections early in the day… after you’ve used your last reserved pass, you may select additional passes at any of the parks based on availability!
Have the Waterpark Fun & More option on your tickets? Keep in mind that the water park admissions are based on the number of days you have on your tickets and do not have to be used consecutively. For instance, if you have a five day ticket, you get five admissions to the waterparks to be used within 14 days. This is a great way to slow the pace of your trip a bit!