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We all know that going to Disneyland is not cheap. But that doesn’t mean you can’t find ways to save money on a Disneyland vacation to make it more attainable. After all, saving money on Disneyland is the entire reason I started this blog- to share my save money on Disney tips.
Now over the years, those tips have changed, and it has gotten harder and harder to go to Disneyland for as cheap as I used to. Never fear though, there are still plenty of ways to save, and while it might not make it a cheap vacation, it will definitely help you get to the happiest place on earth a little faster.
These Are The Best Ways To Save Money On Disneyland Vacations
Today I am going to share with you the 5 best ways to save money on a Disneyland vacation. And guess what, almost all of these are something anybody can do. So check it out.
1. Pack in your own food
Bringing in your own food to Disneyland is a great way to save money. I talked about it in my 23 MORE Must Read Disneyland Tips post that you CAN bring a small cooler into the park with food in it.
Bringing in even one meal of sandwiches and chips will save you at least $5/person off the cheapest meals in the park. To save even more, we like to take a big cooler and rent a locker in the picnic area of Disneyland (one of my original tips on saving money at Disneyland 4 years ago).
A medium locker in the picnic area costs $12/day and can fit a good size cooler, extra bag with dry foods, plates, etc and even hold your sweatshirts until you need them. It would cost more than that to feed just Mike and I a meal of hotdogs, chips, and not even a drink so if we eat even one meal with our whole family out here it is a savings. If you don’t want to rent a locker, you can take a small, soft sided cooler into the park. If you thought all coolers were banned, they aren’t! Just ones over a certain size.
2. Stay a little further away from the parks
There are a lot of great options of hotels near Disneyland park (even within walking distance). I should know. I just did an entire post listing the ones that can accommodate large families. That said, even the two star hotels near the park can be pretty spendy for some families. I find that broadening my search, and staying farther away can save us a ton.
My family often stays in Buena Park. The hotels in this area are often much cheaper than comparable hotels near Disneyland. I often score hotels here for around half the price as those closer to the park. Even better, some of these hotels partner with Get Away Today to get even more savings and extra perks.
The saving there makes it so even with paying for parking you save a lot of money, but most hotels also have free shuttles to Disneyland. A great perk for those who don’t want to spend money on parking.
3. Get Away Today
No, I don’t mean, leave today for your vacation, or even booking a last minute vacation. I am talking about our friends at Get Away Today. They almost always have discounted tickets or package deals that will be Disney’s prices. They can also add on some extras for you. You can book with them by visiting their site here.
Even better, if you book a package you can score 3rd, 4th, or 5th night free on many hotel, PLUS on pacakges of two more nights you can code ThisCrazy10 to save an extra $10. I also keep an up to date list of the best Disneyland ticket deals with them.
4. Target Red Card Trick for Disney Savings
This is probably one of the best ways to save on Disney that only probably half of the Disney fans out there know about. If you have a Target Red Card (and they have a debit card version you hook up to your bank account- so we aren’t talking credit cards) then you can save 5% on your spending money, and even tickets if purchased through Disney. To learn more, check out the video below!
5. Transportation
Okay, I know I mention this a lot, but seriously think about what your time is worth to you? Driving, for a family especially, is often times more cost effective than flying to Disneyland. And to be honest, I feel like most families in the western states do tend to drive to Disneyland a lot more than fly, but it is still worth mentioning. For our family, we can drive to and from Disneyland for just about the same price of one person flying round trip.
On top of the initial savings, we do not need to rent a car while we are down there if we want to go do other things (yes, we do other things besides visit Disneyland while down there). Yes, the drive down takes us 17 hours (that is with stops), but it isn’t bad. We take turns driving and drive overnight.
To us, it is worth it to be able to go on vacation more by driving. This may not be true for you and you may find that flying is worth the extra cost. But this post is all about the best ways to save money on Disneyland, and this can really save you the big bucks.
We have lots of other ways we save money on our Disneyland vacations, but these are the ones that tend to save us the most money. What do you do to save money on your Disney vacations? Leave a comment sharing your tips below.
Book your Disneyland vacation with Get Away Today for the best of both worlds- convenience of a Travel Agent, but some of the best deals around! You can book by clicking the image below!
This was a perfect read for me today! We just decided last night to plan a trip to Disneyland (thank you tax refund!) and I’ve been looking for tips and tricks for saving. I will definitely check out your other posts too.
Perfect timing then! Yes, be sure to check out our other posts, including our Disneyland 101 series. 🙂
This is one that will not work for everyone but one way I save is with my Chase Disney Visa. I use my it for every purchase I can including some of my utilities, groceries, gas, everyday expenses and I earn points on all of those purchases which can be used towards Disney gift cards. The key is paying off the balance every month because if you are charged interest it pretty much defeats the purpose of it.
Our family stays in one hotel room and splits the cost. And we also drive together in one vehicle. Those two things alone saves us a lot!
I agree with getting the Disney Visa. We bought tickets into the park with the points we earned on everyday purchases. Just make sure you treat it as a debit card and pay it off every month! You can also get discounts if you use it in the park.