For many families, there's nothing more magical than a trip to Walt Disney World. Whether you're a fan of Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, or Epcot, even a single day at Disney World has the potential to lead to a lifetime of memories.
But a vacation like that is going to come at a cost. It's not a secret that Disney World is a pricey destination. And what makes budgeting for a trip like that even harder is that there are so many variables at play that dictate how much you'll spend.
Obviously, the more tickets you're buying, the more of a credit card tab you're going to rack up. But aside from that, the cost of a Disney trip will depend on:
- Your travel dates
- The parks you want to visit
- Whether you want the option to visit more than one park per day
And none of this includes the add-ons you might end up paying for, like the option to skip lines or attend special events.
Disney World recently put 2025 tickets on sale. But if you're shopping for dates next year, you may find that the price of many tickets has increased -- so consider yourself warned.
Prepare to pay more
As mentioned above, because the price of a Disney ticket varies by date and park, it's impossible to sum up Disney's price hikes in a single sentence. It's not like the cost of a ticket is now $185 across the board, because it all depends on where you're going and when.
However, some of the lowest single-day, single-park tickets have increased by $10 for 2025, bringing the price up from $109 to $119. And for high-demand periods, the cost of a single day at Magic Kingdom has gone from $184 to $189.
However, the maximum single-day, single-park ticket price in 2025 is $189. And that's the same as the peak price in 2024.
But it's worth noting that ticket prices for November and December 2025 are not yet on sale as of this writing. December is a popular time to visit the park, especially during the week between Christmas and New Year's Eve, so we could see higher single-day ticket prices pop up.
How to save on a Disney vacation
You can easily break the bank by spending a week -- or even a few days -- at Disney. But that doesn't mean there aren't steps you can take to spend less. Some of those include:
- Sticking to one park per day, since you'll pay more for a hopper pass
- Staying off-property (meaning, at a non-Disney hotel), since you might pay a lot less for lodging
- Eating off-site (an option if you stay off-property)
- Forgoing the photo packages (it's convenient, but not a necessity)
One Disney add-on you may want to spring for, though, is Genie+, which lets you skip the lines at certain attractions. The price varies by park and by date. But the logic is, if you're going to be spending a lot of money on a Disney vacation, you don't want to waste half of your day waiting in long lines if you can avoid that.
Another option you may want to consider is booking your Disney vacation through Costco. Many of Costco's deals include resort credits, free food, and cash to spend at Costco after your travels.
All told, Disney World is not an inexpensive trip. And come next year, your tickets might cost even more. But if you plan accordingly, you might manage to shave a little bit of money off of your total.
