As we told you this morning, Disney will now be charging resort guests for overnight vehicle parking at their resort hotels. Moments ago, Disney finally made it official to authorized travel agents.
Effective for reservations made March 21st, 2018 and thereafter, standard overnight self-parking is available to guests staying at resort hotels for a fee that will be applied to their hotel bill upon check-out. All parking fees include applicable tax.
Standard overnight parking charges vary per resort category:
- Value Resorts: $13 per night
- Moderate Resorts: $19 per night
- Deluxe and Deluxe Villa Resorts: $24 a night
Complimentary standard parking is available to guests staying at the campsites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort. Each campsite includes a parking space for one motorized vehicle.
Valet parking at Deluxe Resorts has raised their prices $33 per night (sales tax included).
Resort guests with disabilities and Disney Vacation Club members staying on points will not pay these fees. Day guests visiting for shopping and dining will not incur any charges.
The nickel and diming of people have begun. And for the people that say they’ll stay at the Disney Springs hotels, they already charge parking.
So.. technically if you made your reservation before the 21st you’re excluded from this fee since you were not aware of it at the time you made your reservation.
It is frustrating to see this. I’m glad we got our reservations in early. If this trend continues this may be our last time staying on property.
Could you park at downtown Disney and just take a bus to the hotel? Trying to think of a workaround…
Whats next a $5 fee to get stuck on the ghetto falling apart open door monorail? I need my car since the buses, boats and monorails are never on time or even working. Disney should give me a credit not to use their terrible underfunded outdated transportation options. Leave two hours before if using WDW transportation and you will still be late or drive and get there in 20 mintes tops.
You’ll get towed after 3am. I believe they were even towing cars that parked their during Hurricane Matthew.
Utter disgrace. Guests pay enough to visit WDW without extra costs being added. Costs go up year upon year without justification. Disney earns more than enough profits to sustain the parks without adding these sort of additional costs. I’m appalled. Disney you should be ashamed of yourselves.
To think there are still suckers out there who will pay these prices no matter what. So many other places in the world that are as nice as Disney a world at a fraction of the cost. To think, people will pay this insane amount of money to see a person dressed in a mouse costume!
To each is own Stan.. everyone has different things they like. No one said that you need to pick going to Disney World over some other place. Go for it! Disney World won’t miss you
Yes!!!
Meant for Dan
Is there a link to this statement?
We can’t link to the travel agent website, it requires a log in.
Thanks Tom, I just wanted to know A. what the source was and B. how they attempted to spin it.
It’s posted on the Disney website.
I am wondering as to where they will draw the line on what disabilities “count” for the parking fee being waived. If I get worried on crowded buses, will that anxiety “count” or will they tell me too bad, so sad? I feel like this is just not going to go well. I never drive at Disney but I feel this parking charge is definitely a bridge too far.
The fee is waived if you have a handicap sticker or tag hanging from your mirror. That’s what is recognized as handicapped and allows the vehicle in the disignated spots.
What if you are a disabled visitor from abroad? Would they accept a foreign disabled “Blue Badge”?
I just called (407) 939-5277 and was directed to Guest Services, and I lodged my complaint. I would suggest doing the same. If they get enough pushback, maybe it changes.
We generally stay at the Fort Wilderness cabins, which each have their own parking spot, and this just might be the point where we decide the Disney greed is too much.
The woman I talked to, Dianne, was sympathetic and seemed to think this fee was ill conceived, without exactly saying so.
Hahahaha!
That’s cute. Certainly they will listen and change. Bless your heart.
You probably just got poor Dianne terminated from her job. I know first hand that Disney will not tolerate insolence towards them from a lowly employee.
Disney, Any way to make a buck and make the Trip to Disney world for rich and famous only
that being the case they need to enlarge the spaces. my car received 2 dents this year at all star movies, one on each side. i had been staying at pop century for 11 yrs and never got a ding but was able to park farthest away from the buildings. they need to restripe and put spaces on an angle like publix
guess this is helping to affset the new road construction and transportation
So, let’s examine some logic:
— You get free parking at the parks if you stay on site, but you pay to park at your resort. Makes no sense.
— Fewer people driving now means more people using Disney transportation. Think the bus system is ready for that?
Oh so you want to limit my pay stockholders, well……… I’ll show you
I hate to see this. Prices are already high enough, and now it just seems that Disney is “nickel and diming” people to death. I am a die-hard Disney fan…at 45 years old, going to Disney Parks is an experience that immediately takes me back to childhood. The fact that parking was free did not go unnoticed or unappreciated by me. It was one, if not the only “free” thing that Disney offered its guests. I get that $13 a night is not that much in the scheme of things, but it’s frustrating. Sad day.
Screw Disney, they have crossed the line of greed.
$336 for a 2 week stay at a deluxe resort
$256 at moderate
$182 at value
For overseas guests who will stay for 2 weeks, this is extortionate. Regardless of the ‘free’ parking at the parks
Over the past several years my family has been looking into other vacations options as the prices continue to rise and the value goes down. We used to travel to WDW twice a year but we have been vacationing at other destinations more and more. This may very well be the straw that breaks the camels back. This is just another senseless money grab, which has become a fine art at WDW.
This will actually be the straw that breaks my back. Just cancelled 9 night reservation at poly . Sent an FU email to guest services as well. We drive from texas to save money on flying. This is the last straw for my family. I now wish nothing but failure on this souless company.
You realize that if you already had a reservation they weren’t going to charge you, right?
The Swan and Dolphin already charge for parking as do the Universal Orlando Hotels.
this*
How long will it take for off-property lots to pop up just like the ones near the airport?!? Then they bus you in to your resort…
Fine. Use this new revenue stream to fix the monorails.
So this is a move to deter people from bringing a car in order to keep them onsite for their whole vacation, no?
I just spoke to a cast member. If you have booked your reservation and received your reservation number BEFORE march 21, your parking will remain free. But if you do your booking the day after and beyond, you will be charged the parking. And the parking is not charged to you untill the day of check out.
I wonder how I can claim a disability. Seriously, wouldn’t it have been smarter to raise the hotel prices by a few dollars and still offer “free” parking?
Hmm… guests staying on property don’t have to pay theme park parking fees. So as long as resort nightly parking fees << theme park parking fees, most families who drive to and/or at Disney will begrudgingly accept this.
APs who never have to pay for parking at the parks can and probably will find it much more cost effective to stay off-property… which I'm sure is one of the major factors driving this decision.
The Big Winners here are the Disney Springs-area resorts. Stay at the Hilton and you even get a character breakfast at a fraction of the cost.
What’s next a $5 change to get stuck on the open door monorail? Disney should pay me to not use their outdated underfunded transportation network
Guess Star Wars Land got expensive.
Lol that’s pretty funny
This is a rip off! I’ve stayed at the Contemporary for the last several years paying close to $400 a night and now you want to slug me with a daily parking fee of $24.00 too. I spent over $8,000 last summer spending a week with the family at Disney World. Seems to me that that should more than cover parking. This type of nickel and dime mentality is what gave the airline industry a bad reputation. If this keeps up, I’m taking the family to Universal and so long and good bye to you Mickey!
Totally agree. We just paid close to $500 a night at Boardwalk and you are going to ask me to pay for parking on top of that? Nope. Sorry. Going elsewhere next time.
$400 a night???? That’s a steal! I’ve been paying over $600 per night to stay there the last two times! No more for me after this! Isn’t this NUTS????
By the way, Universal ALSO charges for parking. As do most hotels in Orlando.
not up to $24 a night. I can name a few hotels that offer free parking right across from Disney Springs
*shrug.. every other hotel on the planet has been charging for parking for quite some time now. Short of the cheap stop hotel/motels.
Right… stay at the motel 6 offsite or pay to park at AK Lodge. I’ll do the latter
My biggest complaint is the difference in pricing for the different resorts. It should have been consistent across Disney property.
Just got off the phone with Disability Guest Services. I have a son with CP and when he is with us, we use our handicap parking pass. With the loophole being that you do not have to pay for parking if you use handicap parking, won’t folks just “borrow” dear old mom or dad’s who may be getting up there in years?
I have already called their phone number and I would suggest everyone else to do the same: Disability Services (407) 560-2547
Those folks that game the system will wind up leaving very few handicap spots for those that truly need it.
It’s almost getting us to the point of completely quitting Disney… almost. This will definitely make us have to adjust our length of stay for every future visit until Disney prices us completely out. And I’m sure they will at some point. It’s not a matter of “if”, but “when”.
It’s going to break our hearts for sure.
This is the new Di$ney!!
And Disney will STILL be cutting resources, quality, cleaning, safety and STILL not adding ANY new attractions by any measure compared to the number of increasing guests. What a scam.
So apart from the obvious cash grab, I can only theorize two things:
1. Disney is trying to deter you from driving there, thus making you more confined to the property unless you want to Uber/Lyft.
2. Disney wants to host conferences in their hotels, make some daytime money, and need the parking for that?
Just speculating honestly, but I expect more of this from Disney as overpopulation is the problem, not under. If they can have 100 people paying $100 each ($10,000) or 70 people paying $150 each ($10,500), it’s an easy decision.
Is there going to be a discount offered for AP holders?
No
Lifelong Disney-goer. I’m 42 and I’ve been going every year since I was 2 years old. We are now annual passholders as well. Because of the exorbitant resort prices, we recently purchased a Marriott timeshare but occasionally will spend a few nights on the grounds for nostalgia. After hearing this news about overnight parking fees at the resorts, Disney has officially lost us. They cannot keep price-gauging ya like this. It’s comoletely unreasonable now. I hope more people start to follow suit so we can hit Disney right where it hurts – their bank accounts. This is absolutely disgusting.
That’s cute.
90 percent of the people complaining will still go.
Have fun at the Marriott roach motel.
Amen Lin.
But probably closer to 99%.
True most Disney park goes are pretty much sheep. Not the smart folks in class for sure. They’d pay a mint for nothing. And gladly stand in a long line to pay it. Guaranteed.
Haha. Preach
Just another way of Disney screwing us for more revenue dollars. How dare them. The problem is that we are stupid enough to keep paying these fees.
What happens for those who stay rent points from a DVC owner? Will we have to pay or nah?
Wow! Glad my trip was booked in February. Adding more charges to something like parking for guest that stay at your resorts will definitely make us choose a different destination for our summer vacation next year. That is just awful to increase ticket sales and add parking charges. I guess I could see charging for people not staying on site to encourage more people to stay in their resorts but to “punish” the people that are already paying more money to stay on site is horrible.
I write this as someone who regularly visits Disney every 1 to 2 years. It is so sad that Disney is putting Corporate Greed and monetization above everything else. At this rate I will not be able to afford to go back to Disney as this starts to price them out of my budget. After all, people like to go off property to visit friends or relatives, or take in other non-Disney attractions or dining experiences. For the prices they charge for everything else, you would think that they could afford to give you a parking space while you are staying with them.
And while Disney has free transportation available today, it appears that they are moving to a pay to transport model by slowly increasing where and when the “Mini-Van” service is available. Nice way to turn people away by nickel and dime-ing them to death. #DisneyIsBecomingTheEvilEmpire.
Fees such as these are the reason there are no income taxes for FL residents, taxes in the form of resort fees are paid by the tourists, in state and out of state tourists
Insane. This is a piss-poor customer relations move by Disney.
I get the need to increase ticket prices during peak times (which one could argue is to improve customer service / quality control during peak times), but charging guests staying on property to park at the resort where they are paying to stay? There’s no other way to spin that other than corporate greed. Why not charge the guests per-flush once their in their room, too?
And I can’t tell you how much we’ve spent on Disney vacations over the years. And now to add this fee, too?
I literally finalized our fall 2018 Disney trip about an hour before I saw this article, so apparently we’re “grandfathered” for this trip. But this pay to park nonsense — had we missed the deadline this time around — I assure you we would have opted not to go back to Disney, because based on the length of time we stay and where we stay, we’d be adding an additional $288 just to park at an already expensive resort at an already expensive theme park.
Insane.
I have my doubts that this will last. Once they see their numbers drop they will freak out and change it. I will diffinately start staying off site at my go to locations if this is still in place after my next visit (already booked). Being AP holders, who really cares about extra magic hours (just go at non busy times) and long bus lines….wont miss it and D-resorts will not get our money.
Just when you think you have enough $ saved to suprise your family to go to Disney and now another fee added. I think we will take our $ elsewhere now. It’s sad that they keeping families from coming by discouraging parking or adding another fee.
Wow. Seriously? Because it’s not expensive enough, you have to go the extra mile to punish people who can’t afford airfare for their family on top of the insanely high park admission and hotel price? Where are families who just drove 20 hours to visit your resort supposed to park their cars while they sleep in a room they’ve also paid for?
“Disney increased prices/added a fee…I’m not going any more!!”
Yes you will.
I see these comments all the time, here and all over the internet. Wanna know what the wait time for Space Mt. was at 11am this morning?? 180 minutes. Same at Flight of Passage. Mine Train was 130. Haunted Mansion was 120. Rock N Roller Coaster was 120.
All of people say one thing, but do another.
You’re right. I’ll still go. And pay to park my car every night.
People actually do stop going to Disney World. I know a ton of people who have had that “straw that broke the camel’s back” issue and they just stopped going. The reason the lines are long has nothing to do with total attendance. Attendance has leveled off on the whole and not grown much the past few years. Ride closures and partial opening of rides with multiple tracks/cars/boats is what makes the lines long no matter how many people are in the park.
The people that are first time visitors are actually pretty significant. They even have a button for those people to wear, and we all know everyone who is a first time visitor doesn’t wear one. Yet you see them all over the park. So yes, it really doesn’t matter if the loyal Disney patron stops coming. Some other fool will quickly fill their place and Disney will profit even more. The real question is at what point will enough people say to themselves, “Yeah…I know I’ve never been to Disney, but at those prices I think I’m good never going.” My prediction is that about 3 years after Star Wars land has opened and the prices have risen 4 more times we will reach that point. The newness of Star Wars land will be wearing off and most people won’t be able to stomach the price. We’ll have to wait and see…
No I won’t. I’ve visited many times in the past and have put up with the yearly increases by searching out deals and being judicious with extra spending. This is the last straw as this is just a way to leverage more money from those already overcharged. There are other hotels around Disney that don’t charge resort fees if you’ll take the time to search. This is just Disney’s way of weeding out the value customers in favor of whales (Vegas reference). This is my last trip and only because I booked before this came out. There is nothing magical about Disney greed.
When is enough, enough with this place. As it is now they have implemented tiered ticket pricing, pay extra for a hopper ticket, pay extra for a non expiration ticket, it’s over one hundred dollars for a one day ticket. Everywhere where you turn there’s an extra charge for a hard ticket event and hours are being cut to accommodate these events. Ticket prices increase at least once if not twice a year. I’m sure I’m missing some of the other upcharges. Deluxe room rates are through the roof and Disney has the nerve to add a parking charge to their guests. As someone who has made Disney their families primary vacation destination for many many years I am so disheartened and disgusted by the blantant nickel and diming. As sad as it is I will be looking for other vacation destinations in the future.
Hey Tom, have these 2 articles about paying for parking sparked the most comments on your site ever? haha
I was wondering the same thing! Lol
Do you suppose that people staying on property but driving will park at MCO and take the Magical Express? Parking at the airport is less costly that what Disney will be charging at their high end hotels.
That aside, what is next? Bill us for our memories?
Charging for monorail or ferry rides to and from MK? Or for taking a parking tram? What about the new skyway?
I do not like this pay more to get better service concept they are pushing. It doesn’t seem to align with the kind of guest service or experience Disney is famous for providing. Historically, guests expected the same quality experience at the parks and resorts. Now there seems to be an issue of entitlement and resentment among park guests these days. I’m not sure how these new concepts follow the Company policies regarding inclusion.
I am a Florida resident and have had an Annual Pass for years. We take 5 trips a year to Disney and stay at the onsite resorts always and certainly spend enough money at the parks. This will now come to an end. My annual pass days are up. Disney is becoming a playground for the Rich and no longer a family orientated attraction like Walt had intended it to be. It’s all about money, money, money. Disney is raking in millions in profits and could care less about the core groups of people that have always supported their efforts. Disney is nothing other than another big time Wall Street Mega Company that keeps finding ways to stuff their coffers.
The sad thing is rake in the profits yes but not for its employees. Not even a bonus after the tax cuts. Cast members (at least full time) were excluded. Bob igor, 45.8 million dollar bonus this year. It’s outragious.
Robertroe, An AP question if I can. We live in Florida and have an AP. The current one expires in late April.
I’ve heard that if you renew early, Disney starts the renewal that day, so you have an overlap of AP’s.
That the renewal doesn’t start at the anniversary date.
Thoughts. Thx
I called member services just to ask the question, Why? I received the standard answer of ” Disney is aligning themselves with other full service resorts”. So I responded with…Disney at one time SET the standard for resorts when did Disney start following the other resorts who have a long way to go to meet what I call the Disney standard..atleast DID call it a standard. The cast member did not have a response and I didn’t think he would. He did tell me there has been a lot of questions being asked and plenty of people unhappy with this decision. All I wanted to know was what is the goal for this charge…is it to stop parking issues at the reosrts (it does nothing about daily parking) is it just another money grab? (it certainly looks that way) The cast member could only give me the email address of guest.services@disneyworld.com to send my questions to.
Why didn’t they just quietly raise room rates instead to include parking?
I can see charging guests for a second vehicle per room. The room rate should include parking. This seems like it would mostly hurt or discourage local/Florida/regional guests from staying on Disney property. Uber or Lyft should build a parking lot just outside of Disney property and charge for a little less than Disney does. We have taken Uber from Disney hotels to parks because it is way cheaper plus they can drop off at spots sometimes even closer to the park entrances than some of the Disney Resort buses. I still can’t justify paying for parking at Magic Kingdom/TTC at current rates and then still have to trek through the parking lot to the parking tram, security at TTC then wait in line for the monorail or ferry and then walk to the entrance wait in line at the turnstiles to finally get into the park when an Uber can pick me up in front of my house and drop me off near MK/Contemporary entrance for $11-12 in a quarter of the time.
Are you kidding me?!?! This is just plain RUDE in my opinion!! We spend all our money coming to visit WDW, plan our summers and/or holidays around vacations there, and then when we finally DO make it there, we are charged yet ANOTHER fee, to park our cars there!?!?! UNBELIEVABLE!! Is the fact that I am staying at your resort, visiting your park, eating at your park and buying souvenirs not enough for you!?!
We usually go 9 nights once every 18 mo in a moderate. And then a 4 night trip in between in a value. That’s approx 200$ for my big trio and 60$ for my short trip. Not enough to make me stop going on a vacation my family and I love. Call me what you must. I’ll still go!
I’ve been going to Disney for many years spending 10’s of thousands of dollars at their resorts. This is probably the most disturbing money grab. After dropping hundreds of dollars a night I now have to add on parking? I’ve absorbed many price increases over the years but I think I’ve finally reached by tipping point to stay off property. This is going to leave a bitter taste in many diehard fans. Shame on you Disney.
How unfortunate that Disney, over the last 5-10 years, has shifted its focus from family vacations to catering to the rich. Golden Oak, Four Seasons, extra fast passes for a fee, Vacation Club, etc. I have been lucky to have been able to take my kids to WDW when they were young before this greed set in. Disney always found a way to turn you upside down as you were leaving so they could shake out whatever change you had left in your pockets but this parking fee at their hotels is just highway robbery. First off, we paid more to stay at Disney hotels. We did that because we are truly Disney fans. We didn’t mind the few extra dollars for the ambiance and environment. Now, I will not be staying at their hotels. There are literally hundreds of hotels within 10 miles of the property that are cheaper and more affordable and will shuttle you to the parks. Hint, hint: Disney, your bus transportation system stinks. Not convenient, not timely, and not practical if you want to go from resort to resort say for a dinner reservation or shopping, etc. You have known this since day 1 and you haven’t done a thing to remedy it. To pay $13.00 a night at a value resort is a 10% penalty for the “convenience” of staying on property. The funny thing is, the last 4 times I have been in Orlando, I didn’t even go to the parks because I refused to pay over $110.00 for entrance. They obviously have focused on the Vacation Club. They keep enlisting more and more club members, which now fill the regular hotel rooms, because even though they keep building more and more vacation club rooms, there still aren’t enough rooms for these people. At the same time,all of these thousands of vacation club people still only have 4 parks to go to making the parks at capacity many more times. Have you noticed that they aren’t charging the vacation club people for parking each night? How thoughtful of Disney to not screw the Vacation Club people. Follow the money.
The difference between a “regular” hotel charging for parking and Disney is that you are probably also paying to go to the park and spend money in the park and the restaurants. People don’t go to Disney hotels to visit Orlando. We budget about $500 a day for the two of us to go and stay at moderate resorts. Will another $20 break us? No. Will it make us go less? Very likely, yes. We were looking at where to go for a vacation of 4 or 5 nights in May – it is between Disney and Sanibel. Now I’m leaning towards Sanibel.
We stay at a resort villa. More of our meals will be had there to offset any additional expenses. Also, we probably won’t buy a carload of presents for the grandkids. We have a budget for total expenses and can stay within that. Disney won’t get more money from me and, overall, will probably get less.
Coming over from uk. In November it’s already costing 5-6 thousand pounds. If we stop in a villa and hire a u have to pay to park on Disney them parks. They basically ripping everyone.
Can u not just park at Disney springs and use buses for free?
I believe you must pay to park at Disney Springs already.
Image was everything to Disney.
Very poor decision by Disney execs.
It’s all about money, catering to those who they think have it, and will gladly part with more of it.
This may seem like a small fee, but when you add it to the constantly increasing park admission costs and the ever increasing on-property hotel costs, this is a black eye to the face of Disney.
Few people will stop going to WDW immediately.
But many will begin to consider other locations.
Image is no longer important to Disney’s execs.
This really sucks! Talk about extortion. What’s the option other than paying $13 to $24 per night?! Not per stay…per night! I take my family to stay at the resorts a few times a year. No more. I’m done with the hotels, the overpriced park admissions, and the continual gouging of customers for drinks, food, et al. WDW is run by greedy SOBs who pay their park employees nothing, and have destroyed the Disney experience for average American families. I bet Walt is rolling over in his grave. I hope they lose so much revenue from this move. They’ve lost my business. Former WDW fan.
I am not in favor of this fee for parking! I come to WDW regularly. We always stay at a “Deluxe Resort” on a club level. $$$! The Animal Kingdom 99% of the time. This is one of those charges that just aggravate me enough to stay off property. I am already waiting to take a bus to the parks. I love the animals and tea on the balcony in the morning but a great pool resort for half the price is sounding much better now! With most resorts in the area offering free rides to WDW, why not? I am saving even more money!
WDW, needs to eliminate the position of the person whose position it is to SUCK the money out of all of us!
This probably the same person who put the locking shampoo, cream rinse and body wash dispensers in each of the showers! Can’t wait to hear of the disgusting things that are found on these! Yuck!
Your ROI is not going to be there when you loose regular repeat customers! (Are you listening WDW)?