Planning a Trip to Walt Disney World on a Budget: Park Tickets

Disney World park tickets are probably one of the hardest spots to save money on your trip. There are only a few legitimate places you can buy tickets. So knowing what kind of tickets you want, and finding a good vendor is important.

Different types of Tickets

There are 4 different kinds of park tickets:

• Base Ticket
• Water Park and Sports Option
• Park Hopper Ticket
• Park Hopper Plus Ticket

A Base ticket will let you get into one park per day.

The Water Park and Sports Option will get you in to one park per day, plus access to Blizzard Beach Water Park, Typhoon Lagoon Water Park, NBA Experience, ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, Disney's Oak Trail Golf Course, Fantasia Gardens Mini Golf Course, and Winter Summerland Mini Golf Course.

You get as many visits as the length of your park ticket to any of the places listed above for the length of your tickets (5 day tickets gets you 5 entries to any of the above)

A Park Hopper ticket lets you get into any of the 4 parks in one day.

Park Hopper Plus tickets allow you to do everything the Park Hopper tickets do, but they also include the two water parks, miniature golf before 4 pm, and a round of golf at Oak Trail. With this type of ticket, you get one entry to one of these places per day.

You get as many visits as the length of your park ticket to any of the places listed above for the length of your tickets (5 day tickets gets you 5 entries to any of the above)

What kind of ticket should you buy?

A base ticket might be for you if:

• You are looking for the least expensive option
• You know you have time to plan one park per day (you have a long enough trip to devote a full day to each park)

A Water Park and Sports option might be for you if:

• You want to check out the water parks, golf courses, or sports complexes, but have no plans on park hopping

A Park Hopper ticket might be for you if:

• You want to spend the morning or extra magic hours at one park, but avoid the day crowds by moving to another park
• You stay within walking distance to one of the parks. I love staying the at Yacht Club or Boardwalk and just leisurely walking to Epcot for dinner. Or I also love after a long day just being able to easily catch the Magic Kingdom fireworks by walking from the Contemporary (and walking back instead of waiting for a bus).
• You are on a quick trip (3 or less days). You may want to fit in more per day, and park hopping is the way to do that.

A Park Hopper Plus ticket might be for you if:

• You want to hit the water parks, and the price of the tickets by themselves is more than the hopper plus option.

Where Should You Buy Tickets?

There are multiple places you can find park tickets

1. Direct from Disney

Disney World prices their tickets based on several factors:

1. A sliding scale based on how many days you purchase
2. The dates you choose
3. The type of ticket you choose

If you are buying a Base Ticket the scale starts here:

Number of Park Days	Starting Rate
1	$109
2	$107
3	$107
4	$106
5	$91
6	$78
7	$69
8	$65
9	$60
10	$56

If you are buying a Park HopperTickets rates start here:

Number of Park Days	Starting Rate
1	$174
2	$144
3	$132
4	$127
5	$108
6	$92
7	$81
8	$76
9	$70
10	$64

If you are buying a Park Hopper Plus ticket rates start here:

Number of Park Days	Starting Rate
1	$194
2	$154
3	$139
4	$132
5	$112
6	$96
7	$84
8	$78
9	$72
10	$66

If you are buying aWater Park and Sports Optionticket rates start here:

Number of Park Days	Starting Rate
1	$179
2	$142
3	$131
4	$123
5	$105
6	$90
7	$79
8	$74
9	$68
10	$63

A few things to note:

• You pick the starting date of your tickets, but Disney does give you a little bit of flexibility. Your tickets are valid on the start date you pick. If your ticket is for more than 1 day you get a window in which you can use your tickets (if you have Park Hopper Plus add another day to this window)
• 2 day tickets have a 4 day window
• 3 day tickets have a 5 day window
• 4 day tickets have a 7 day window
• 5 day tickets have an 8 day window
• 6 day tickets have a 9 day window
• 7 day tickets have a 10 day window
• 8 day tickets have a 12 day window
• 9 day tickets have a 13 day window
• 10 day tickets have a 14 day window
• Tickets do NOT need to be used on consecutive days.
• If you don't use all of your tickets you can use the unused days towards the purchase of new tickets. Changes can be made online, but if you pick cheaper tickets you wont be refunded the difference.
• If you want more flexibility you have the option of adding a "Flexible Date Option" for an additional cost. This will give you open ended tickets that are good through the end of the year.

Purchasing direct may seem like the most expensive option, but it can definitely make sense. There are often discount packages that are offered when you group your hotel, tickets, and food together.

In the past, I have been able to purchase Disney gift cards at a discount, and the money saved on those discounts ended up being greater than some of the other options listed below.

2. Undercover Tourist

Undercover Tourist is possibly the most trusted third party seller of Disney World tickets. You'll find hard to beat prices, and a wide variety of tickets. They can mail or email your tickets, and you can easily add them to your My Disney Experience account for use.

You can find the best rates on 3-10 day tickets from this source.

3. Military Tickets

If you are an active or retired member of the United States military you can purchase discounted park tickets, and even discounted Memory Maker through your military base ticket office.

Where Should You NOT Buy Disney World Tickets

Do not buy from an unauthorized third party seller. There are only a handful of places where you can buy legitimate Disney World tickets, so make sure any company you buy from is an actually authorized seller.

Do not buy from someone claiming they are re-selling tickets. This includes eBay and Craigslist. When you use your ticket Disney will also scan your fingerprint. If your fingerprint does not match you won't be able to enter the park.

Also, do NOT try to use a ticket that a friend or family member is no longer using. If they purchased a 5-day ticket, but only used 4 days, you are not able to use their extra day. If Disney catches you doing this they can confiscate the ticket, and maybe even kick you out.

Ready to Book?

If you want someone to help you price watch tickets and package deals we can help. Get your free Disney World vacation quote here.

Still Confused or Need Help?

I am happy to help! Contact me.

See you at the parks,
-Julie