Great Disney Vacations

Disney World specials come in some different ways.  Sometimes for everyone and sometime for Florida residents only.  Let’s take a look at some of the specials Disney World has to offer.

One Day Specials

Some of the offers Disney has available comes in to form of free tickets.  For example, right now Walt Disney World has a deal that if you do volunteer work for one of the specified organizations, you’ll receive a Disney parks pass for free.

In the past there has also be where on your birthday, you get a ticket to the Disney World parks for free as well.

Both of these options are open to everyone, no matter where they live.

Florida Resident Specials

These Disney World Florida resident specials apply only to Florida residents or those who qualify (military stationed in Florida, full time students at a Florida school).  Generally, they come in two forms.

Disney parks passes are good for anywhere from 3 months to a year, and may or may not have blackout dates (it depends on the offer).  Other options would be a special rate for a Disney World resort stay + tickets.

And yes, they do check your identity with photo ID, so don’t even think of trying to say you’re a Florida resident when you aren’t.

Disney World Specials

There are more Disney World specials that apply to everyone!  And these come in the form of Disney World vacation package stays.

These special vacation packages to Disney World include a stay at a Walt Disney World resort and tickets for each day of your stay.  Sometimes the Disney Dining Plan is included.  In any case, if you’re coming into Orlando via the airport, you’re picked up by a Disney World coach and are whisked away to Disney World — the magic actually begins when you step onto the coach!

You can find Disney World specials online or through a travel agent offline.  So take a look around the internet and you too can fins some great Disney World specials at great prices!

You’ve heard of a Disney World park hopper pass…but you’re not quite sure what it is.  Or why it’s so popular.  Not to worry, here’s what you need to know before you buy your Disney park tickets with a park hopper pass option.

What the Park Hopper Pass Does

The Disney park hopper option, when added onto the base “Magic Your Way” ticket, lets you visit multiple theme parks in one day.  Hmm, doesn’t sounds like a big deal, but here’s why it it.

While all the parks have parades, only the Magic Kingdom has an evening parade with all kinds of illuminated costumes.  Nor does any other theme park have as good a fireworks show as the Magic Kingdom.

But say you want to spend your day at the Animal Kingdom.  It closes earliest of all the parks, due to the animals.  And along those lines, there aren’t any fireworks.

If you have a regular ticket, you can’t go over to visit the Magic Kingdom after Animal Kingdom closes.

But if you have a Disney World Park Hopper pass, you can go on over and spend the evening at the Magic Kingdom, see the light parade, fireworks and ride a few rides while you’re at it.

Two Other Hopper Advantages

This really applies more if you are staying at a Disney World resort, but the advantage here is that when you get hot and tired in the afternoon (and maybe a little cranky), you can go back to your resort room for a power nap, a dip in the pool or both!

The refreshed, you can go off and visit whichever park you’d like to see that evening.

Another advantage that most people don’t think about is dinner reservations.  Maybe you’ve spend most of the day at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, but you really want to eat at the Coral Room at EPCOT (where the walls are an aquarium).  If you have a Disney World park hopper pass, it’s no problem.

If you don’t have the hopper option, you either have to skip the Coral Room or buy a full-price ticket to go to EPCOT for dinner.

How Do You Get a Disney Park Hopper Pass?

When you purchase your ticket, you almost always have the option to add park hopper to it (I can’t remember not being asked if I wanted it).  It is an extra cost, in the range of $10/day, but it’s worth it.

It’s worth it, that is, unless you only have 1 day for Disney, in which case I’d say just pick a park and stay at it for the day.  But if you’re staying multiple days, it’s the one Disney park ticket option I always recommend (and yes, which I also get).