Category — e. What to Budget for Walt Disney World

DISNEY WORLD VISA DEAL LIKELY TO BE RELEASED TO THE REST OF US ON APRIL 2

Update April 2: This deal is now out!  See this for more.

There’s a new Disney World room rate deal out for Disney Visa cardholders. Multiple sources predict or assert it’ll be available to the general public next week–e.g. on Tuesday April 2, 2013.

It covers most arrival dates from June 13, 2013 through August 14, and needs to be booked by June 14.

The deal follows Disney World’s recent pattern of different discount levels based both on starting price and demand, and also excludes what has typically recently been excluded:

• Save 30%: Animal Kingdom Lodge (standard view), Bay Lake Tower, Beach Club, Beach Club Villas, BoardWalk Inn, BoardWalk Villas, Contemporary, Grand Floridian, Old Key West, Polynesian, Saratoga Springs, and Yacht Club
• Save 20%: The Cabins at Fort Wilderness, Caribbean Beach, Coronado Springs, Port Orleans Resort Riverside, The Villas at Wilderness Lodge and Wilderness Lodge
• Save 15%: All-Star Sports, All-Star Music, Art of Animation Family Suites and Pop Century
• Explicitly excluded: Campsites, 3-Bedroom villas, Art of Animation Little Mermaid
• Possibly available at low (e.g. 5%) discount some dates: All Star Movies, Port Orleans French Quarter, other unlisted resorts

More next week when the general public deal comes out!

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SUMMER 2013 DISNEY WORLD ROOM RATE DEAL AND FALL 2013 FREE DINING

Update 3/28:  See this for more on the room rate deal out next week.

Crack commenter J., a South American travel agent, noted earlier today two interesting points:

• A room rate deal will be coming out next week for the South American and European markets.  Since US discounts end this Sunday, March 31, there’s a darn good chance the next US deal will come out then too, or not a whole lot later. The overseas deal covers arrival dates June 13 through August 14.
• She also had a thought to offer on the possibility of fall 2013 free dining at Walt Disney World being shortened compared to usual dates for moderates and values, noting that South American spring breaks are common the third week of September…

So what we have here from J. is a report and a fact, and added to it my speculation.  We won’t really know about 2013 fall free dining–or even the summer room deal–til we see it; but J.’s comment, and our subsequent email correspondence, are intriguing…

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WALT DISNEY WORLD DEAL EXPIRES SOON

Disney World currently has just one deal running, for arrival dates into mid-June.  This deal needs to be booked by March 31st!  See this for more on the deal.

DISNEY WORLD FREE DINING IN 2013?

It’s been unusual recently for Disney to have no deals out, so rumors are rife that a new deal will come out as early as April 1.

And everyone is hoping that it will be the usual fall free dining deal!

We’ve seen no free dining so far in 2013, and I expect the factors that have led to this to mean we won’t see a lot of free dining at Disney World the rest of 2013.

But I do forecast that we will see the return of the traditional fall free dining offer. It may be very different than in the recent past, and it may not be announced on April 1…but I do expect to see something, sometime soon!

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ACT FAST TO BOOK DISNEY WORLD DISCOUNTS FOR MARCH

A deal out right now on Walt Disney World hotel rooms (and tickets) for arrival dates up until March 23, 2013 expires on March 7th.

There’s more on this deal here.

But to get it, you’ve got to move quickly!

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THE LEAST EXPENSIVE ON-SITE OPTION FOR LARGE FAMILIES AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

Welcome to the first stop aboard Magical Blogorail Teal. Enjoy the ride as this month we discuss some lesser known tips and tricks for Walt Disney World visitors.

This site has tons of advice for large families trying to figure out where to stay.  It begins here, then continues with

• Large Families: Value Prices
• Large Families: Deluxe Spaces and
• Beds and Sleeping Spaces

But there’s no great lower-priced answer for staying on site with a really large group–say ten people.

What I recommend on Large Families: Value Prices for groups of this size is a family suite and a standard room at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, at a price (during the 2013 Fall price season)  of $45/person/night. Another even less expensive option is two Alligator Bayou rooms at  Port Orleans Riverside, at $41/person/night.

The problem with both these options is that your rooms might be a real hike apart…and no one would ever call them cheap…

Or ten people could tent-camp at The Campsites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort for about $62 bucks a night during the same season*…or about $6.20 per person per night.

Fort Wilderness campsites hold as many as ten people, and, in a change from past practice, there’s no difference in cost between one person and ten on the site. That’s my lesser known tip!

However, tent camping at Disney World is not for the inexperienced, and not really a good idea for first time visitors.

PROS AND CONS OF LARGE FAMILIES TENT CAMPING AT FORT WILDERNESS [Read more →]

MYMAGIC+ AND FREE DINING IN 2013 AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

On Tuesday, Disney released its Q1 (October-December 2012) earnings and discussed them with analysts on its earnings call.

There wasn’t anything momentous in the earnings or the discussion, but a few tidbits, when combined with some recent Disney behaviors and my experiences at Disney World last week, lead me to two inferences (“inferences” being  a two dollar word for “guesses”):

• We won’t see a lot of free dining at Disney World in 2013
• MyMagic+ as a way to pre-reserve attraction times and manage your day at Walt Disney World is a ways off. Update 4/3: For more on MyMagic+, see this.

FREE DINING IN 2013 AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

[Read more →]