There are a lot of things you can do in Disney World outside the parks…and we mean a LOT.
Outside of the four main parks there are dozens of hotels, two water parks, Disney Springs, golf courses, mini golf courses, the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, and much more. It would take you weeks, possibly months, to do everything. But the good news is — you don’t have to be staying on property to knock most of those activities off your to-do list!
At the Disney World resorts, there are a wide variety of fun activities and offerings that are scheduled each day of the week. We’ve seen everything from painting classes to campfires to movie nights to drink tastings.
And guess what? You don’t have to be staying at that particular hotel to sign up for those activities! You can pay to do the Sangria University at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort, pick up the free hidden Mickey hunt at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge, or sign up for the Wilderness Back Trail Adventure at Disney’s Fort Wilderness without having reservations for any of those spots.
If you want some low-key hotel activities that happen pretty regularly, make sure to check out the nightly campfires at the resorts (weather permitting) where you can make s’mores. The Disney hotels also offer Movies Under the Stars most nights with various Disney classics playing on large screens outdoors.
If you’re not sure what activities are available, stop by the main building of the hotel and you’ll usually find a sign that lists the offerings for that particular week. We often see scheduled activities like arts and crafts as well as ongoing offerings like tours and seminars on the list.
We’ll keep you in the loop with more things that you can check out during your Disney World vacation, especially all the freebies! Stay tuned to DFB for the latest news and tips that you need to know.
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Have you ever checked out the hotel activities? Tell us in the comments!
Maureen says
Are you allowed to use the pool at another hotel when staying at a Disney hotel? Ex. Staying at Sports, going to character breakfast at Beach Club and would love to stay and swim afterwards.
DFB Gigi says
Hi Maureen! Unfortunately, you can not use different resort pools than the one you’re staying in.
Dottyanna says
Hi Gigi! Thanks for the great information! This sounds like a great idea, but since you can’t gain entrance to a resort except by Disney transportation. Would your best bet be to go to Disney Springs and then take a bus to one of these resorts?
DFB Gigi says
Hi Dottyanna! Sometimes you can park on site if you show security that you have a reservation for a particular event. At Fort Wilderness, for instance, you’d just tell them that you’re there for horseback riding, archery, etc. and show them your reservation and they have a parking lot you can park in. If it’s something like Movies Under the Stars, however, where you wouldn’t have a reservation to show, then I would suggest parking at Disney Springs and taking a bus ONLY if you’re not staying at another resort onsite. If you’re staying at the Contemporary, it would be easy to just take a boat from Magic Kingdom to Fort Wilderness. It really just depends on where you’re staying and which Disney transportation is open to you and there are a lot of variables. To sum it up though, if you’re not staying onsite and you’re not in a park that day, parking at Disney Springs for free and taking a bus is definitely an option, but also there is a boat from Disney Springs to Saratoga Springs, Old Key West and Port Orleans (so more variables) so it depends on where you’re trying to go.