Value is in the eye of the beholder.
It’s no secret that a Walt Disney World vacation while staying on property is an expensive proposition, and honestly always has been (comparatively speaking). That said staying on Disney property has traditionally offered a slew of perks that “made up” for the price difference. Those perks have evolved over the years, with some being changed or eliminated entirely while other offerings have been introduced and tweaked. So, what Disney perks make vacations better and which are “worthless”? We recently asked our readers, and we got a HUGE – – and in some ways unexpected – – response.
One of the first responses we received dealt with the newest perk Disney introduced. As of January 1st, 2025, guests staying at a Disney hotel received FREE access to whichever of Disney’s water parks was open on the check-in date. While that sounds great in theory, some of our readers had… differing opinions.
As reader Jenny wrote, “The free waterpark entry on check-in day. So many of us don’t arrive until too late in the day. It seems like the kind of perk they put into place to look good knowing how few people would be able to use it.”
Several other readers expressed frustration with the current version of the early entry perk provided to hotel guests. As reader Sue spelled out, “Extra morning hours are hopeless, too many people. Too many partner hotels make staying on-site for early entry almost worthless” to which reader Terri responded with “I think the early entry needs to be 1 hour, not 30 minutes. And it definitely should be Disney property only IMO, not the partner hotels.” Many of their fellow readers also lamented that 30 minutes is not nearly enough time for early entry to hold any value to them as a perk.
Reader Steve called out the Disney Dining Plan, writing “… Disney specifically sets it to make sure they make money, so unless you really focus on maximizing the dining plan (which actually minimizes your choices since it makes no sense to order an entree that costs less than the dining plan has charged you), you don’t get your money’s worth.”
Speaking of dining, many, many readers called out refillable resort mugs. The majority lamented that they couldn’t be used in the parks, while others were unhappy with the beverage options provided. As reader Steve put it, “… for me personally, refillable drink mugs, don’t drink pop (SIC: soda) hardly at all and hate coffee out of a plastic mug lol.”
Finally, many readers took the chance to vent about older perks they missed and a general feeling among some that Disney no longer offers valuable perks at all. As reader Ray extolled, “Wait there are still perks? Like things you get for free for being a Disney customer especially while staying in the bubble? That’s what a perk is. A free incentive for being their customer. I don’t see any free “perks” at Disney anymore. No Magical Express, no free Magic Bands with on-property stay, no free Fast Passes, no free sending souvenirs to resorts for on-property guests, etc…”
On paper, Walt Disney World offers several perks for those staying on Disney property. However, according to our readers, some of these so-called “perks” are practically worthless. Stay tuned to DFB for more thoughts from YOU, our readers!
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What Walt Disney World perks do you find worthless? Let us know in the comments below!
Wow people enjoy complaining and being petty. Just don’t go to Disney World and stop pretending you are a fan. Ridiculous.
By the way — the dining plan is not a “perk”. It’s a paid product. Extremely beneficial for some, not great for others. Same for the refillable resort mugs. Not a perk. A product.
We totally agree 100% with all of this. Skipped a year of AP & so far don’t miss it. Just not enough incentive to do AP. And AP too expensive now too without perks like free PhotoPass. Disney marketing makes it sound good but supposed perks are really not worth it. Best thing they did was bring free resort parking back.
I agree completely about the early entry. Making non-deluxe Disney resorts on the same level as the partner hotels makes it not really a perk for staying on site. We have always stayed on site – usually in a moderate resort and always loved the evening extra magic hours. When they brought them back it was only for deluxe resort guests. This isn’t adding a perk for deluxe, it’s removing a perk for the value and moderate resorts. Even a moderate resort is around $300 or more and should have this perk.
The free water park day of arrival is great (when it get warmer and they can be open) we always get to park (hotel) about lunch time. We either have to eat at the hotel,off property or at the park. We have always want to sample the food offered at the water park and dip our toes in the water. But don’t want to pay for a day pass just for 1-2 hours. Sure hope it warms up soon. We usually don’t do that rope drop thing but when we do that 30 minutes is just enough to get passed the mob being held back. We can get far enough into the park to miss that mess. Sure hope Disney keep these great perks.
I could see amending Early Entry, 1 hour for direct Disney Owner/Operated Hotels and 30 minutes for Partner/Good Neighbor hotels.
I agree that early park entry is too short to be worthwhile. Maybe an hour would be better, but honestly, the huge crowds are a turnoff no matter how long early entry is. And I agree with Vanessa that the dining plan is a product, not a perk, except when it’s offered for free, and even then it’s not actually available to everyone. But as a paid service, the cost of the adult plan is too high, and it’s very difficult to get your money’s worth.
They don’t offer the perks to Disney guests like they used to and it’s not complaining to say you feel taken advantage of. Case in point, I spent extra $$ to stay at a deluxe resort during our November trip in order to take advantage of the extended evening hours. Only to have those hours opened up to all park guests.
It was infuriating. I spent more to get a promised perk that they essentially gave to everyone. Had I known they would do that I would’ve just stayed at the Grand Destino tower to save nearly $1000
Missing the perks of good quick service food in Magic Kingdom. The menu changes have been awful! Don’t even get me started on the BBQ chicken pizza at Pinocchio Haus. Probably the worst thing I’ve eaten WDW. Pecos Bill’s used to have great options. They have gotten rid of their higher quality food and replaced it with garbage.
Columbia Harbor is keeping prices high but reducing portions. The grilled shrimp plate now only has 1 skewer of small shrimp instead of 2 skewers like it has for years.
I must take umbrage with Vanessa’s comment. As a long time DVC member (1993), I have seen MANY changes in Disney’s business model. Many changes were necessary albeit sometimes inconvenient. Most changes were necessary to accommodate the growing popularity of Disney World. I can live with that! However, I have also witnessed the transition of Disney World from the “Happiest place in the world” to the “most expensive vacation spot in the world”. Corporate greed or as they would call it, “cost cutting measures”, have taken away most of those “little things” that made our vacations “special” such as the “perks” described above. On the whole, I found this article to be a true representation on how most of us long time supporters feel.
Since our group usually drives, doesn’t rope drop (much less use early park entry), and usually has water park included in our tickets (although we also prefer to visit in the winter now), many perks we loved (or even cared about) are the ones that have vanished. I have begun to think that the free first day water park offer is more likely about a write-off rather than increasing affinity for the water parks or reducing first day crowds in other parks. While I have been among the first to defend Disney as not immune to the rising costs everyone is experiencing, there are several ways that Disney has reduced the value of their resort packages and added perks and add-ons that are not only high cost, but sometimes only available to those that spend the most in other ways (like Deluxe resorts). While we are fortunate to be able to craft the Disney trips that we want in general terms (lack of resort package delivery still impacts our decisions and our trips), I won’t deny the cuts and the cash grabs that have changed significantly over what was offered to (all) resort guests for a long time. Although we are grateful that they stopped charging resort guests for parking.