Military Families at Walt Disney World
By Dave Shute
MILITARY FAMILIES AT WALT DISNEY WORLD
The general advice for first time visitors to Walt Disney World provided on this site applies equally to military families.
However, military families have access to special military deals and discounts, especially the Disney Armed Forces Salute, that other families don’t, and also have access to Shades of Green (below).
The links below provide specific details and guidance for how to find out more about these, and the best ways to take advantage of them.
Eligibility for these and other Disney military deals has always been complicated, and the process for getting and using some of them even more so.
Steve Bell is the Military Moderator on this site. And Steve’s Military Disney Tips has always been the go-to site for military families looking to make the most out of their Disney World vacations.
But like every other website (especially mine), finding exactly what you need to know, in the right order, sometimes isn’t as easy as you’d like it to be.
So the great news is that Steve has just published a Disney World guidebook for military families.
With entire chapters devoted to the 2016 salute, to Shades of Green, and to other deals and perks available to military families, I can’t recommend it enough!!
It’s available as a PDF–probably the most convenient format–here, and on Amazon.com here
.
This book will be a great help to military families contemplating a Disney World visit in 2016!!
LINKS FOR MILITARY FAMILIES AT WALT DISNEY WORLD
- Military Families at Walt Disney World
- Deals and Discounts
- Shades of Green
Comments moderated by Steve Bell of Military Disney Tips.
Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook or Google+ or Twitter or Pinterest!!
213 comments
Just one correction Dave,
Shades does have a DTD bus which also hits Typhoon lagoon
Downtown Disney/Typhoon Lagoon: Once per hour
Leaves Shades of Green on the half hour (starting at 0830)
Leaves Typhoon Lagoon at 10 till the hour (Space #9 from 0950)
Leaves Downtown Disney on the hour (at the top of lot E by the burnt orange building)
http://www.militarydisneytips.com/Shades-of-Green/Shades-of-Green-Transport.html
Thanks Steve!!!!
Thank You so much!
🙂
Quick question do you have to purchase tickets from a military base or can you get them at the ticket counters on site? Also do the discounts apply if you only need a one day pass to Epcot?
Hi Alexis,
You can purchase your Disney Armed Forces Salute Tickets at any military base ticket office, Shades of Green at WDW, The Orlando ITT (all of these with no tax added) or from Disney ticket windows (plus tax).
https://yourfirstvisit.net/2010/02/22/review-shades-of-green-resort-at-walt-disney-world/
http://www.militarydisneytips.com/Tickets/Orlando-ITT-Ticket-Office.html
Thanks Steve!
Hi Dave,
Has Disney World ever extended the time on a military salute ticket if requested? My family was on vacation to Disney World the last week in June when my daughter had an emergency and had to get her appendix removed so my family were not able to use two of the four day tickets. I emailed Disney World as they requested for ticket questions and attached all the necessary information to include her hospital records and they emailed me back today saying sorry for your mishap but there is nothing they can do for me. Is this a dead end street or is there still hope to get my unused two day tickets extended so I can come back in the Spring or next summer? It is not like I am asking for a refund.
Gina, as things stand right now, my guess is no. If DIsney “extends” the salute–whihc it may do it has done that befroe, then you’ll be ok. If it does a new offer–or doesn’t renew it at all–my guess is that all the bureaucracies involved (Disney and DOD) will get in the way…
I am gonna ask my expert to weigh in, so don’t treat this as the last word…
Follow yourfirstvisit.net on Facebook!
Thank You Dave for your help!
Hi Gina,
My thoughts run parallel to the second part of what Dave said. Currently the Disney Armed Forces Salute has a set in stone end date. and unless you can get there to use your 2 remaining days prior to 28 September I think you’ll be out of luck.
On the bright side you still paid less than a comparable 2 day ticket for the 2 days you used.
My only thought is that on your next trip you could bring the tickets and all the documentation and try to find a sympathetic ear. WDW CMs have been known to stray outside the rules in favor of the guest. Gut I’d say it is a long shot.
I have no indication from Disney right now that the current Salute would be extended past the current end date.
Thanks, Steve!!
Thank you!
Hello,
My cousin purchased our tickets here at a base in Ft. Worth,TX. They will not be going to Disney, as she didnt get her vacation approved. Can we activate the tickets w/o her if she lends us her ID?
Hi Carolina,
Only a military member or spouse can activate the Disney Armed Forces Salute tickets and it must be in person at a Disney park. The reason being is that the purpose of these highly discounted tickets is for the military member to spend time with family and friends in Disney’s parks, not to give the tickets away or to sell them.
Plus how would your cousin have access to the base and computer network to work without their ID?
If your cousin bought the Regular Military Discounted Magic Your Way tickets rather than the AFS tickets (these are just slightly discounted) they could be used without your cousin, if they are the ready for use kind and don’t need to be exchanged at the park with an ID (Disney sends both kinds to bases).
Perhaps if they got the AFS tickets they could attempt to exchange them at their Base Ticket Office.
I called disney works 4 times. The first two times, they said I’d be perfectly fine. However today, I called just to triple check.. And they said I have a problem.
My dad is an active duty Lieutenant Colonel of the Army.
He purchased two 4-day park hopper tickets for me and my Girlfiend. (I’m 22 and she’s 21).
We got the tickets in the mail last week (very exciting!)
I called today to triple check on the situation, and asked “my girlfriend and I are driving 16 hours to Orlando, and I just wanted to triple check that we will be able to get into the park as long as I had my military I.D. (I’m still under my Dad’s insurance, so I get most benefits that he gets)
Today the women on the phone said that she’s pretty sure he has to be there at least on the first day of the trip, in Disney to activate the tickets.
This is a problem because he can not just come down to Florida for one day and then go back home.
I was told twice before that I would be completely fine getting into the park if I have my military I.D.
I’m extremely stressed out. Trip is in 2 weeks. Please help.
Bren, everything I’ve ever seen or heard on this is that the eligible member or spouse must be there in person to activate the tickets. I’m sorry you were led astray…I’ll reach out to some experts to see if they have any thoughts for you…
Thanks for responding so quickly, Dave.
I would really appreciate it if you did that for us. I just feel like my Dad should be allowed to buy Disney tickets as a gift for a family member who has a military I.D.
Or that there should be a way that he is able to activate the tickets while being in Pennsylvania rather than Florida with special permission.
Again, I would extremely appreciate it if you could reach out to those people.
Thanks Dave,
-Bren
Hi Bren,
Unfortunately you’ve run into a situation that trips up some people.
First I want to address one of your points. Disney offers the Disney Armed Forces Salute tickets to military members at a huge discount so that they can spend time with family and friends in Disney’s parks. The intended purpose isn’t to give them away or worse scalp them, which is why Disney put in place very restrictive rules.
The Base TIcket Office where your dad purchased the tickets should have told him the rules. The military member or spouse has to activate these tickets in person at a Disney park and one of the tickets has to be for the member/spouse. Non spouce dependents are not eligible for this discount.
Disney does still offer the Regular Military Discounted Magic Your Way tickets, which are slightly discounted tickets. Many Bases sell a variety.
Example prices: http://www.militarydisneytips.com/Tickets/Magic-Your-Way-Tickets.html
I have only one suggestion for you.
I’d have your dad take the tickets back to where he got them and ask that they apply his cost to tickets that you can use as they didn’t inform him of the rules.
I’m not sure this will work as the tickets are non refundable. But tell him to stress that they didn’t tell him the rules for use of the Disney Armed Forces Salute tickets.
A very last resort would be taking the tickets and his receipt to WDW, perhaps with a copy of his ID and a letter from him explaining what happened. They “might” let you use the cost of the tickets towards full price tickets.
Thanks Steve…isn’t there also the option of “find an eligible friend who lives in Florida and swap tix”?
Excellent point Dave, if she knows any military member really who will be going prior to 28 Sept. she could swap her AFS tickets plus some cash for the Regular Military Discounted Magic Your Way tickets.
Can a veteran who has a service related military disability , but not 100% still use ticket sales and shades of green?
Hi Rub,
As a non-retired veteran you wouldn’t be eligible for any discounts from Disney.
But you are eligible for this offer from Shades of Green during the months of January and September, which include the ability to purchase tickets.
http://www.militarydisneytips.com/Shades-of-Green/Non-Retired-Veterans.html
Hi, Dave! Your site has been a tremendous help to me in planning our family’s first trip to Disney World – thank you so much! I haven’t found a better website or resource anywhere – yours is wonderful. We’re planning our trip for March 2-9, 2014 and want to stay at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge resort. My husband and I have 3 kids (2 girls ages 6 and 4, and a toddler son who will be almost 23 months when we go), and we’re taking my parents with us. My dad is retired military, so I’m torn between 2 options that are available to us at this time: a 2 bedroom villa for all 7 of us (which is what we’ve wanted all along), or the combination of a 1 bedroom villa for my husband/me/kids and a deluxe suite for my parents with the HOPE that Disney will be able to connect us in a “lock off.” The reason it’s a difficult decision is that there is currently a military discount (35%, maybe?) for the 1 bedroom villa and deluxe suite…making it about $3,000 less than a 2 bedroom villa. That’s a huge savings and really hard to pass up, but we really want to be connected to my parents if at all possible. Do you have an idea of what the odds might be for us to get a “lock off” that week? Could we hope for that, or would we most likely be separate from my parents if we take advantage of the militaty discount? (And in that case, do you think that Disney would at least be able to put us close to each other?) My mom is fighting an aggressive form of breast cancer right now (but she’ll be done with chemo and surgery by then), so we really want her – and my dad – to be able to enjoy the “magic” and experience the excitment with our kids as much as possible. Thank you for your feedback on this!
Hi Carrie and thanks for the kind words about the site.
Here’s the scoop on the Wilderness Lodge Villas: it’s a very small property, without a whole lot of studios.
So the good news is that–given how small it is–you will be close to each other. The bad news is givne how few rooms are there, that I’d have to guess that the odds of being right next door are slim.
For more on these villas and studios, see this: https://yourfirstvisit.net/2011/02/07/review-the-villas-at-disneys-wilderness-lodge/
Thank you so much, Dave! That helped a whole lot. In fact, given the smallness of the property (looking at the map again helped, too – thanks for the link), we actually decided not to gamble on a l0ck-off and instead book two 1 bedroom villas. Your review on the studios helped me realize that 2 separate villas will be worth it (with the military discount, of course), since no matter what, we won’t be far apart. I’d been torn on the options before, but I feel much better about this arrangement — thank you again so much!!! You and your site have been more informative than our travel agent. 🙂 I’ll be sending family and friends your way in the future!
Carrie, I’m blushing! So glad this all is gonna work out for you and your mom!
Was this even remotely helpful? Then mosey on over to the home page, and like it on Facebook or pin it on Pinterest!
Leave a Comment | Ask a Question | Note a Problem