By Katie Penn & Stephen Ashley How Annual Passes Can Save You a Lot of Money When Used Fully We’ll go into depth about how to use an annual pass as a tool for almost anyone looking to save money at Disney World. First, the following are recent related announcements by Disney: Disney World Annual Passholer – Updates Disney is now selling the Disney Incredi-Pass, Disney Sorcerer Pass and the Disney Pirate Pass, in addition to the Pixie Dust Pass. The quantity of passes are limited and passes, or a pass type, may become unavailable for purchase at any time.…
Author: Stephen
Stephen
I'm Stephen Ashley. My wife and I are huge fans of Disney World. I'm the author of Walt Disney World With Disabilities. I also wrote a book called Walt Disney World Made Easy for Everyone, but rather than have it published, at this point we've decided to place all the material from the manuscript on this website so everyone can have access to it! I hope you enjoy it, and I hope it makes your day just a little bit brighter and easier.
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By Katie Penn What is the Disney World Park Pass Reservation System? First, let’s go over some recent Disney World change announcements, then we’ll go into detail about the Disney World Park Pass Reservation System, and what it is. We’ll also answer commonly asked questions. In essence, this system seems to be on a path to being diminished. This could be good because it makes for a greater ability to have more spontaneity when at Disney World. Here are the Disney announcements as of 5-11-2023: Disney Announcements about the Disney World Park Pass Reservation System: “Starting with park visits on…
DISNEY GENIE, GENIE+. INDIVIDUAL LIGHTING LANES (Updated 12-5-2022) If you’re going to a Disney World park, you’ll want to use Genie. You’ll also want to decide on whether to use Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lanes or not. This article will cover these options. Though Disneyland will also have the new app, there will be some differences. So keep in mind that we’re dealing with Disney World here, unless Disneyland is specifically mentioned. You can visit Disney World’s Genie page here. We’ll cover everything you need to know about: Disney Genie Genie+ Individual Lightning Lanes Genie+ and DAS (Disability Access System)…
Disney allows guests to bring their dogs to four of it’s resorts. While service animals were always permitted, Disney is allowing pets that are not service qualified in four of their resorts. There will be approximately 250 dog-friendly rooms in those resorts. This will be an option for those who don’t want to leave their pet friends behind. (See the Allergy Alert below). This may also be a great solution for visitors with emotional support dogs. While service dogs can stay in any Disney resort, emotional support dogs do not qualify because they are not covered by the Americans With…
All You Need to Know About Babysitting, Child Care, Mother’s Helpers & Senior Care at Disney World There are various options when it comes to hiring assistance while you’re at Disney World. Here is what’s available: Babysitting in-room Babysitting in a club format Parent-free Child adventure (Captain Hook’s Pirate Crew) Pet sitting Elder Care & Companionship Mother’s/Father’s Helpers Using Babysitting services during your visit to Disney World is an option. You may want to plan in advance to get some adult time in during your visit. For example, you can go out to dinner or enjoy the adult options in…
Here’s all you need to know. Disney World Resort Parking Fees Resort parking for guests: Self-parking is FREE at all of the Disney World resorts. Parking for Disney Vacation Club members: Parking is free for DVC members staying at a Disney Vacation Club Deluxe Villa or a Disney Resort hotel. It’s free whether you’re using Vacation Points or another form of payment. Resort day guests: If you’re visiting a resort to experience dining, shopping and entertainment, Standard Self parking is free. Parking at The Campsites in the Fort Wilderness resort: Each campsite has one parking space which is free. Resort…
Disney World is full of magically fun, enticing items for sale. Everywhere you look there are stores. Even when you leave a ride or attraction. For almost every one of them, when you get off the ride or leave the attraction, you’ll walk through a store or past a kiosk. It will be filled with items that are themed after the ride/attraction you just experienced. It can be difficult for a child or even an adult, especially those with certain issues such as autism, to be told they can’t have everything they want. So Justin Lopes has created a visual…
Header photo by Cameron Watkins Everything you need to know about Early Theme Park Entry at the Disney World parks While Disney World used to offer Extra Magic Hours, that’s no longer available since the post-Covid re-opening. Now Disney World is offering Early Theme Park Entry and Extended Evening Hours. These options are completely different from Extra Magic Hours. We’ll cover Early Theme Park Entry here. For Extended Evening Hours visit here. Here’s what you need to know about Early Theme Park Entry. What is Early Theme Park Entry to the Disney World parks? This is designed to help you…
Header castle photo by Heather Raymond Gable Disney has put this new program in place along with Early Theme Park Entry. We’ll go over all you need to know. What is Disney World Extended Evening Hours? Certain guests are allowed to participate in extended evening hours on select evenings, in select theme parks. Currently the parks included in this program are Magic Kingdom, Hollywood Studios and Epcot. Currently this is not available every day. To see the schedule for Extended Evening Hours visit Disney’s site here. To date, when a park has Extended Evening Hours, Disney has been keeping the…
Where are the quiet spots in the Disney World parks to take breaks and to rest? Sometimes you just need a little down time. The Disney World parks can be highly stimulating and this can be challenging for some. Those with certain health and emotional issues really need to break way for a while. Really, anyone might need a restful spot. Some people need relief from sensory overload. You can always go back to your resort for a break. That’s one of the benefits of staying on Disney property. Your resort is going to be nearby. Many Disney resorts have…
When you visit Disney World, you can count on walking for miles and standing for hours in ride and attraction queues. For anyone who finds this idea physically challenging, or even painful, we strongly suggest renting a scooter or wheelchair. It’s usually the very best solution and it can make a huge difference to the quality of your trip. If walking and standing that much sounds difficult, or if you feel an aversion to using a scooter or wheelchair, we suggest you read this article: Should I Walk or Use a Wheelchair/Scooter on my Disney World Trip? Can I sit…
Header image by Stephanie Pini Pratt Location: In the Magic Kingdom theme park area. Address: 1600 Seven Seas Drive, Lake Buena Vista, FL, 32830. Phone: (407) 824-2000. Fax: (407) 824- 3174. Parking fee: $25 per night Self-Parking/ $33 per night Valet Parking. Check-in: 4 PM for Villa guests, 3 PM for everyone else. Check-out: 11 AM. Resort Type: Deluxe & Deluxe Villas. About Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort & Villas The Polynesian resort is a “monorail” resort, situated in the Magic Kingdom area of Walt Disney World. It’s on the shores of the Seven Seas Lagoon. One of two original opening…
Can crowd sizes impact my visit Disney World? There’s no doubt that the lower the crowds, the better the time you can have at Disney World. When crowds increase, so do resort costs. During peak crowd times, ticket prices go up. Lines grow, and wait times can become crazy long. I recently heard comedian Jim Gaffigan joke about his family trip to Disney. He said that visiting Disney was like going to the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles). Anyone who’s been to the DMV knows that it’s all about lines and waiting. Though anything can change at Disney World at…
Location: In the Epcot area. Address: (for both BoardWalk Inn and BoardWalk Villas) 2101 Epcot Resorts Blvd, Lake Buena Vista, FL, 32830 Phone: (for both) (407) 939 5277. Fax: (for both) (407) 939 5150 Parking fee: $25 per night Self-Parking/ $33 per night Valet Parking. Check-in: 3 PM. Check-out: 11 AM. Resort Type: Deluxe & Deluxe Villas. About Disney’s BoardWalk Inn & Villas The BoardWalk Inn blends the best of Coney Island and Atlantic City in the Roaring ’20s. Carousel figures, artwork, candy-striped tents and a roller-coaster–inspired water slide are just a few of the elements that make up this…
Header photo by professional Orlando photographer Candi Hall Location: Magic Kingdom area. Address: 4510 North Fort Wilderness Trail, Lake Buena Vista, FL., 32830 Phone: (407) 824-2900, Fax: (407) 824-3508, Kennel: (407) 824-2735, Check-in: 3 PM for cabins and 1 PM for campsites. Check-out is 11 AM. Parking fee: $20 per night for the Cabins. Guests staying at the Campsites get complimentary standard parking for one vehicle. Check-in: 3 PM. Check-out: 11 AM. Resort Type: Moderate. Overview of The Campsites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness and The Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness While the Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness are considered a Moderate Resort, the campsites are considered a…
