{"id":24,"date":"2015-07-29T17:51:30","date_gmt":"2015-07-29T21:51:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/?p=24"},"modified":"2015-07-31T17:40:09","modified_gmt":"2015-07-31T21:40:09","slug":"save-money-on-lodging-disney-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/save-money-on-lodging-disney-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Save Money on Lodging (Disney World)"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

We are always looking to save money when visiting Walt Disney World.\u00a0 One of the primary expenses<\/a> to consider when planning your trip is lodging.\u00a0 Any money saved on lodging can be directed to other expenses or set aside to upgrade your lodging on a future trip.\u00a0 Here are various options for getting your lodging costs down:<\/p>\n

Discount packages<\/p>\n

Disney will often discount the “rack rate” of the rooms at different times of the year.\u00a0 “Rack rate” is the published price of a hotel room.\u00a0 The rate will change throughout the year based on what Disney perceives the demand will be.\u00a0 The perceived demand often doesn’t match the actual demand, so Disney will offer limited discounts to the rack rate.\u00a0 These discounts will be offered to annual passholders, Disney Visa Card holders, and\/or to the general public.\u00a0 These will sometimes be detailed on the Disney web site.\u00a0 We always look at our favorite website, MouseSavers<\/a>, to see what is available.\u00a0 Any reputable Disney Travel Agent should also look for and apply any available travel discounts to your reservation.<\/p>\n

Value resorts<\/p>\n

Disney offers a number of onsite properties that are fantastic places to stay, especially if you won’t be spending much time in the room.\u00a0 The key draw to going to Disney World is all the available activities outside of your hotel room.\u00a0 We have stayed at many of the Disney value resorts, including Pop Century, All-Star Music, and All-Star Movies.\u00a0 We haven’t stayed at All-Star Sports or the Art of Animation Little Mermaid rooms, but have walked through those properties several times.\u00a0 The rooms are clean, and the resorts have great themes for families.\u00a0 The rooms are a bit on the small side, but we didn’t consider this a major issue since we really only spent time sleeping in them.\u00a0 We enjoyed the pools and amenities at those resorts just as much as we have at more expensive resorts.<\/p>\n

DVC Rentals<\/p>\n

The Disney Vacation Club (the alleged “best kept secret” at Disney World) is Disney’s answer to the traditional timeshare.\u00a0 However, DVC works a little differently than the traditional timeshare; instead of buying a specific week, you purchase a number of points per year at a home resort.\u00a0 Disney publishes a list of charts each year that detail how many points each DVC resort will cost to stay at depending on the type of room and the “season.”\u00a0 The DVC owner can make reservations 11 months in advance for their home resort and 7 months in advance for any other DVC resort.<\/p>\n

DVC owners have a limited window in which to use their points.\u00a0 When owners are unable to use their points, they may rent them out to other people.\u00a0 This gives you an opportunity to stay at a DVC resort without being a member.\u00a0 There are many ways to connect with a DVC owner to rent their points.\u00a0 We have used David’s Vacation Club Rental<\/a> to rent a room at Disney’s Old Key West (OKW) Resort.<\/p>\n

Why would you choose to do this?\u00a0 You can save a great deal of money and get a great room.\u00a0 We got a huge studio room at OKW for 12 days for only $200 more than we would have paid to stay at Pop Century.\u00a0 OKW gave us two queen beds vs. two double beds, plus a larger room with a mini-kitchen (sink, microwave, coffee maker, fridge, and plates).<\/p>\n

What are you giving up by doing this?\u00a0 You lose some some control over the reservation, since you will have to get the DVC owner to add Disney’s Magical Express transportation or the Disney Dining Plan.\u00a0 You can’t take advantage of any discounts or packages (including free Disney Dining).\u00a0 You have to trust the owner to make the reservation for you and not cancel it.\u00a0 This is the reason we went with David’s Vacation Club Rental,<\/a> as they guarantee your transaction.\u00a0 It does cost a bit more than if you found an available DVC rental on a message board, but your risk is greatly reduced.<\/p>\n

Nearby Hotels<\/p>\n

There are thousands of hotel rooms in the greater Orlando area, ranging from economy to outrageous (I’m looking at you Four Seasons<\/a>). Picking one to stay at depends on a multitude of factors, including cost, location, any hotel affiliation programs you have, and\/or amenities of the hotel.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Ultimately, your best lodging choice depends on what makes sense to you as a family.\u00a0 Feel free to share your best ideas for saving on lodging costs in the comments!<\/p>\n
\n
\"\"<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

We are always looking to save money when visiting Walt Disney World.\u00a0 One of the primary expenses to consider when Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"{title}\n\n{excerpt}\n\n{url}","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-hotel-cost","no-post-thumbnail","no-read-more-tag","no-sticky","use-excerpt","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4487,"url":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/saving-money-on-lodging-at-walt-disney-world-updated\/","url_meta":{"origin":24,"position":0},"title":"Saving Money on Lodging at Walt Disney World – Updated","author":"Joseph","date":"September 4, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"We are always looking to save money when visiting Walt Disney World.\u00a0 One of the primary expenses to consider when planning your trip is lodging.\u00a0 Any money saved on lodging can be directed to other expenses or set aside to upgrade your lodging on a future trip.\u00a0 Here are various\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Hotel Cost"","block_context":{"text":"Hotel Cost","link":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/category\/travel-cost\/hotel-cost\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Wilderness Lodge","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/backtothemouse.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/IMG_4433-1024x768.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/backtothemouse.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/IMG_4433-1024x768.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/backtothemouse.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/IMG_4433-1024x768.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":482,"url":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/planning-a-trip-to-hawaii-part-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":24,"position":1},"title":"Planning a trip to Hawaii – Part 2","author":"Joseph","date":"November 29, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Planning 1 | Planning 2 | Planning 3 | Travel | Disneyland\u00a0 (Day 1 - Day 2 - Day 3 - Day 4) | Arrival | Surfing | Aulani | Excursion | Hyatt This is Part Two of Three on planning a future trip.\u00a0 Look for Parts One and Three.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Credit Cards"","block_context":{"text":"Credit Cards","link":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/category\/credit-cards\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":20,"url":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/disney-world-costs\/","url_meta":{"origin":24,"position":2},"title":"Disney World Costs","author":"Joseph","date":"April 25, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"When we plan a Disney World trip, we break the trip into 5 basic components. Transportation This is the cost to get you and your family to Disney World.\u00a0 Transportation costs vary based upon the way you choose to arrive in Orlando, the distance involved, and the level of luxury\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Food Cost"","block_context":{"text":"Food Cost","link":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/category\/food-cost\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/backtothemouse.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/IMG_4492-1024x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/backtothemouse.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/IMG_4492-1024x1024.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/backtothemouse.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/IMG_4492-1024x1024.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":345,"url":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/alaska-cruise-part-1-planning\/","url_meta":{"origin":24,"position":3},"title":"Alaska Cruise – Part 1 – Planning","author":"Joseph","date":"March 20, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Planning In 2012, we were considering upcoming vacation alternatives.\u00a0 We had been on multiple trips to Walt Disney World over the years.\u00a0 We considered ourselves to be Disney World pros, we knew where to go and what to do.\u00a0 However, one Disney experience we had not done was a cruise.\u00a0\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Disney Cruise"","block_context":{"text":"Disney Cruise","link":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/category\/disney-cruise\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Disney Wonder in Juneau","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/backtothemouse.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/IMG_1937-1024x683.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/backtothemouse.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/IMG_1937-1024x683.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/backtothemouse.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/IMG_1937-1024x683.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":901,"url":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/useful-websites\/","url_meta":{"origin":24,"position":4},"title":"Useful Websites","author":"Joseph","date":"March 4, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Planning a Disney trip (whether to Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, or elsewhere) requires a bit of research to make sure your trip goes as planned.\u00a0 We spend a great amount of time performing research so we don't run into any surprises.\u00a0 Plus, we consider planning the trip\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Disney Cruise"","block_context":{"text":"Disney Cruise","link":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/category\/disney-cruise\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"mouse-savers","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/backtothemouse.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/mouse-savers-1024x654.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/backtothemouse.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/mouse-savers-1024x654.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/backtothemouse.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/mouse-savers-1024x654.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":135,"url":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/jacksonville-special\/","url_meta":{"origin":24,"position":5},"title":"Jacksonville Special","author":"Joseph","date":"August 10, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"One of the tricks I've described before is to look at alternate travel arrangements.\u00a0 When considering whether to upgrade our tickets this summer to annual passes, I looked for economical travel\/lodging arrangements for other possible trips.\u00a0 We had several school breaks to consider, including a Halloween-based trip (which includes some\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Disney Parks"","block_context":{"text":"Disney Parks","link":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/category\/disney-parks\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/peu3ZL-o","jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":166,"href":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24\/revisions\/166"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/backtothemouse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}