How To Pay For Disney Vacation

Paying For Disney World With Credit Card Rewards

Now that your hotel and airfare are squared away, youre probably wondering how youll pay for park tickets with credit card rewards. Rest assured its possible, even easy.

All it takes is for two spouses to sign up for a Barclaycard Arrival Plus® World Elite Mastercard®.

Signing up for the card and meeting the minimum spending requirement will net you miles that are worth travel credit, which can be used to purchase your park tickets through sites like Undercover Tourist or Expedia.com.

Your out-of-pocket costs will vary depending on how many days you visit the park, but as of this writing, a five-day Magic Your Way ticket costs approximately $400.28 per adult and $381.37 per child on Undercover Tourist. This means a family of four would pay $1,563.30 for park tickets alone. Splitting your costs across each Barclaycard Arrival Plus® World Elite Mastercard® after you earned your signup bonus means you would save big on park tickets.

The key is to order your Disney tickets from a website that will code them as a travel purchase. That way, you can safely redeem your miles for the purchase and enjoy some seriously discounted Disney tickets in the process.

Benefits Of Booking With Dif: How To Put Your Disney Vacation On Layaway

Its true that Disney World vacations arent exactly cheap. It can be intimidating to think about spending a couple thousand dollars all at once to pay for your familys vacation. The great news is that you can put your Disney vacation on layaway to make it more affordable and easier to pay off!

In order to book a Walt Disney World Resort vacation, you just need a $200 deposit to guarantee your trip. The remaining balance is not due until 45 days prior to arrival so the earlier you are able to book your trip, the longer you have to pay it off!

You can decide if youd like to make weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly payments towards your vacation. Your travel agent can help you calculate how much you need to pay each time to make sure your vacation is paid in full in time. Since there is no payment required by Disney after your deposit until the 45 day mark, if things get tough for a bit with unexpected expenses, you can always skip a payment. On the other hand, if you have some extra money that youd like to apply towards your vacation, you can always do that, too! We are here to help you!

The layaway program works for all Disney vacations, too! The deposit amount and final payment dates are different for Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, or Aulani, but all of these vacations can be paid on our layaway program as well!

Remember, you can use always Disney gift cards for these payments, too. This can help you save even more money for your trip!

Get The Disney Debit Card

With the Disney debit card through Chase, you can get some great benefits while you’re in the park. Perks include complimentary photos at private locations discounts on dining, merchandise, select guided tours, spas and salons and much more.

There is a Disney co-branded credit card, but the low earnings rate and the annual fee make it an underwhelming choice. It does offer some Disney-specific discounts and perksnearly all of which are also available with the debit card.

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What Are The Payment Plan Options For Disney World Vacations

Because guests can choose the payment plan that works best for them, there are endless payment options you can set up.

You can make as many or as few payments during that time period as you desire, depending on what works for your monthly budget.

Since you can book a trip up to 499 days in advance, you can give yourself as much or as little time as you need.

Its up to you if you want to make payments every week, every month, or just make one or two lump sum payments leading up to your trip. Each installment payment does need to be at least $20.

If you prefer a monthly payment plan, you can split your payments into equal monthly payments.

Simply consider what you can reasonably afford each month, then determine how far in advance you need to book your vacation package in order to keep your monthly payment under that dollar amount.

Many people like the predictability of a monthly payment option , since they know exactly what to expect and can plan accordingly for their installment payments.

Never Pay Full Price For Hotels

For most people, hotels are the single most expensive component of a trip to Walt Disney World. If you plan on staying in a Deluxe Resort, your hotel could eat up more than half of your entire vacation budget. While we love the Deluxe Resorts, we hate their pricing, and think they are not worth their rack rates. We have four alternatives to paying full price for Deluxe Resorts, with the best option last, so you have plenty of options if you need posh accommodations.

First, consider downgrading to a Moderate Resort. Two good options for this are the new Gran Destino and Caribbean Beach Resort. Both are essentially Deluxe Minus hotels, albeit for very different reasons. Gran Destino has upscale amenities, fine dining, and feels reminiscent of a Las Vegas tower.

If you want an actual Deluxe resort at a Moderate price, your best option is renting Disney Vacation Club Points. If you want to know more, we cover the exact steps for doing this, and why we recommend it, in our Tips for Renting Disney Vacation Club Points post, which offers a great way to stay in Deluxe-caliber on-property rooms for significant savings.

Also Check: Amenities Checklist For Vacation Rentals

How Much To Save For Disney Is Different For Everyone

The amount you’ll need to stash away for a Disney vacation comes down to what kind of trip you want to have.

Keep in mind:

Spending more money doesn’t necessarily mean more fun. Someone who books a lower budget Disney trip can still enjoy themselves as much as someone who breaks the bank.

And speaking of banks, consider where you’ll keep your Disney vacation savings.

Tucking it away in a high-yield savings account is a great way to keep your money safe and watch it grow. Just watch out for banking fees, which could eat into your interest earned. Our list of Best Savings Account Rates is a good place to start, found here.

Consider going with an online bank for your Disney savings account. Online banks tend to offer the highest rates, with the fewest fees.

And, that adds up to more money you’ll have to spend on your Walt Disney World getaway.

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Tips For Dealing With The Disney Reservations Center

Be polite but persistent when calling the Disney Reservations Center. Some of the agents answering the phone know more than others, and some will try harder than others to get you the best deal. If the first agent you speak with isnt helpful, say thanks, end the call and try again. With hundreds of agents at the call center, its unlikely youll get the same agent twice in a row.

Keep calling back periodically if your dates are not immediately available at the discounted rate, because people change and cancel reservations all the time. Something is quite likely to open up eventually.

If you work with an agent at the reservations center who is especially helpful or friendly, be sure to do the survey at the end of the call. Or get his or her name and take two minutes to send an email complimenting the agents work!

Planning your Walt Disney World vacation should not leave you stressed out.

MouseSavers.com® is not an official site of The Walt Disney Company or of Universal Studios.

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Remember To Take Breaks

Yes! I know this might sound odd because youd paid all this money to be in the parks, but yes. Take breaks! If youre following my advice and hitting the parks first thing in the morning, you are going to be ready to head back to the resort come lunchtime. By lunchtime, the parks are going to start filling up. If you are going to Magic Kingdom or Disneyland Park Christmas morning, the park will likely reach capacity before Noon. Anyone traveling from off-property or those who want to get their beauty sleep, have now made it into the parks and the crowds and lines are continuing to grow. This is when I like to head back, take a dip in the pool, let the littles take a nap, or just cool off in the A/C . Then when you head back to the parks, you will be rejuvenated and have a whole new fresh set of patience.

Another thing to do while youre taking a break from the parks is to wander around the resorts and take in all the beautiful Holiday Décor.

Im not sure why but there is a huge Disney Resort misconception and its that people either dont know or think that if youre not a guest of that resort, you cant walk around.and that is entirely UNTRUE!! You can visit any Disney Resort regardless of whether or not youre staying there. And during the Holidays is one of THE best times to wander around and take in all the beautiful Christmas trees, Holiday decorations, and Gingerbread houses!!!

How To Fly To Orlando On Rewards Points Or Miles

Orlando International Airport is just 20 minutes from Disney World. More than 30 airlines fly to Orlando, including some well-known domestic carriers:

• Alaska Airlines

These are example flight costs based on the date of research and are always subject to change. Costs may also vary if you use rewards earned with a flexible travel rewards cardwe’ll cover that in a minute.

The general rule of thumb for redeeming rewards points is to find an option where your points have a value of at least 1 cent per point. If the point value is lower than that, you may want to save your miles and pay with cash instead if you can. You can calculate the value by dividing the dollar price by the number of miles needed. For example, if you redeem miles for the Delta Air Lines flight above, each mile will be worth 1.48 cents, which is a good value. For the Frontier flight, your miles would only be worth 0.66 cents eachbelow our 1-cent-per point threshold.

Also, it’s important to note that these flights are based on summer travel dates, and summer is the peak season for Orlando. This may result in higher award flight costs. If you want to maximize your savings, consider booking a trip at a different time of the year, preferably one that doesn’t coincide with school breaks.

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What About Rental Cars

There aren’t any co-branded rental car credit cards, but you can typically use general travel rewards points or even airline miles or hotel points to book a rental car.

With Chase Ultimate Rewards credit cards, for instance, you can book rental cars directly through the Ultimate Rewards travel portalthe same goes for American Express with the Membership Rewards portal. With Capital One, you can book through the card issuer’s travel portal or you can book the car through a travel agency website or directly with the rental car company, then use your miles to get reimbursed for some or all of the purchase amount.

Orlando International Airport has 10 rental car companies, including:

• Alamo

If you don’t use rewards to book a rental car, make sure you at least earn extra points on your rental car reservation. The best credit cards for car rentals earn at least 2 points per dollar spent on rental cars, plus rental car insurance. If you book it through an airline or hotel loyalty program, you may earn rewards with that rewards program.

Check your credit card terms before you book. Some cards, like those from American Express, offer secondary car rental collision insurance when you pay for a rental using the card. These policies dont help you until youve exhausted other options . Cards that offer the best car rental insurance provide primary car rental insurance. That means in the event of an accident, you may not need to involve your own insurer at all.

Payment Plan For Disney World

Disney World accepts installment payments. Great! Now how exactly do you space out those installments?

Well, since you can make your booking up to 499 days in advance, its a wonderful opportunity to spread out your installments over a lengthy period. If youre on a tight budget, then this should come as great news for you! You now have over a year to save up for that Disney vacation.

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Disney Hotels: Are They The Best Value For Your Vacation Budget

When youre making your Disney vacation budget, you might wonder whether or not its worth it to stay at one of Disneys beautiful on-property resorts. Theres no denying its more expensive, but staying on property will save you money on transportation and gives you perks you wont get anywhere else.

So, lets break it down: The Wyndham Bonnet Creek Resort is right next to Disney World in Orlando, and I found a rate for $121 per night. Disneys own Pop Century Resort is $164 per night. At first glance, staying at the Wyndham looks like a savings of $43 per night.

However, Disney offers free shuttle transportation to and from all of the parks. Wyndham charges $7 per person for this service, which would be $28 per day for a family of four. If youre flying, Disney also offers free transportation to and from the Orlando airport. This saves about $70 in Uber costs.

The other major benefit to staying at a Disney hotel is the ability to book your dining reservations and FastPasses early. And you guys, FastPasses are everything. Theyre free, and youre guaranteed three per day with any park ticket. FastPasses are a huge time-saver because they let you go right to the front of the line at whatever attraction you want!

Did You Know: Disney World Offers Payment Plans For Disney Vacations

by Vanda Bean | Disney Planning Tips, Walt Disney World

New blog series coming from your friends at Walt Express! DID YOU KNOW: Disney World Offers Payment Plans For Disney Vacations.

Walt Express is super excited about a new blog series we have been working on! We get asked A LOT of questions and thought all of our readers might benefit from them if we just wrote a blog about it! This way, everyone can be in the Disney know!

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Travel During Discounted Months

As I mentioned above, Disney typically offers some really great discounts. I believe the largest savings are found during the months of August and September when Disney typically offers their Free Dining promotion.

TravelingMom Tip: If you opt to travel from August through November, it is a good idea to add Disneys vacation insurance, as this is the height of hurricane season.

If you cant get to Disney in the fall, another good time to visit price-wise is during the months of January and February. The only issue here is that this is typically the time when attractions go down for scheduled refurbishment.

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Stock Up On Disney Gift Cards

One of the best ways to save for a Disney vacation is to purchase Disney Gift Cards. You can find these at most grocery stores, pharmacies, and large retailers. If you start purchasing Disney Gift Cards months ahead of your trip, you will find that you have plenty of spending money when it is time to go. You can use the gift cards to make payments towards your package, as well as pay for dining and most everything while you are on vacation.

TravelingMom Tip: If you have a Target RedCard you can save 5% on your Disney Gift Card purchases. Other large retailers such as Sams Club offer gift cards at a discounted rate.

Get A Disney Travel Agent At No Cost To You

Whats even better is that the services of a Disney Travel Agent are 100% free of commission. That means you wont have to pay more than what youre already paying for the trip. By the end of the booking process, you could end spending less because Disney Travel Agents monitor new promotions and discounts.

Disney Travel Agents will help you throughout the entire process. They can make planning your dream vacation a lot easier.

Of course, their services arent entirely free. While they receive a commission from Disney for their work, this cost is borne by Disney and not by you.

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