6. Use the Play Disney Parks app (especially in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge)
I was skeptical of the Play Disney Parks app when it first came out, but I will say, I’ve become a fan of this easily-overlooked and totally free addition to a Disney day.
Play Disney Parks is a smartphone app that integrates phone games with your experience in Disney parks. Some of these games are simple phone games, while others have tangible effects on attraction queues (such as the trivia game in the Soarin’ queue). If you have a means of keeping your smartphone charged, the app can make for a lot of fun while passing time in lines.
The place it really makes a big difference is in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge…
Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge was designed for guests to feel completely immersed in the Star Wars universe, and one of the ways Imagineers did this is by integrating the whole land with a game called Star Wars Datapad (found in the Play Disney Parks app). The game allows guests to interact with elements throughout the land in a variety of ways, such as by sending guests on missions for the Resistance, First Order, or for neutral parties like Hondo Ohnaka. These quests involve using your Datapad to hack terminals, tune into communications frequencies, scan the contents of crates, or translate alien languages. Some of these actions will cause elements of the land to respond in tangible ways: ships, droids, and speeders may power up, terminals may produce lights and sounds, or you might even lure a dianoga eye out of the drinking fountain.
Using the app adds all sorts of new elements into a visit to Galaxy’s Edge, to the point it can feel like a secret attraction. It is particularly integrated in the queues for Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run and Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. Both rides have special missions in the app to test guests’ skills and integrate them into the land’s story while waiting in line.
7. Have a scavenger hunt
This one requires some dedicated creativity, but it can prove a major source of fun, particularly for guests who have already visited—put together an epic scavenger hunt for your next vacation.
Fans have produced a number of these online (I even cooked one up some years ago), but the sky is really the limit. You can focus on something simple like a photo scavenger hunt, or you can integrate props and unique experiences. You can really make things interesting if you throw a prize into the mix for whoever completes the most items on your list.
Here are a few ideas for each park:
- Magic Kingdom
- Get someone passing on Splash Mountain to wave back at you
- Find the chicken-with-an-ill-favored-look on Tom Sawyer Island
- Count the Pascals in the garden in Fantasyland
- Epcot
- Take a photo of the leaping fountains mid-flight
- Get a reaction video of trying Beverly at Club Cool
- Find the Hidden Mickey in The Seas aquarium
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom
- Identify five birds in the aviaries at Gorilla Falls Exploration Trail and/or Maharajah Jungle Trek
- Find the anteater (or any specific animal) on the Tree of Life
- Find the creepy raptor fountains
- Disney’s Hollywood Studios
- Identify 3 props in Dok Ondar’s Den of Antiquities
- Try blue and green milk and decide which is better
- Find the handprints closest to your hands outside the Chinese Theater and get a picture
8. Take advantage of freebies, perks, and clever shenanigans
Disney may be cutting perks left and right, but that doesn’t mean all of the freebies are gone. Indeed, in some cases, you can make your own upgrades.
A number of simple freebies still exist in Disney parks. Guests can still get celebration buttons at resort desks or at Guest Services, marking any celebration from a birthday, to a first visit, to a wedding or anniversary. If you are celebrating something, that can sometimes open the door to getting free dessert in restaurants (though this is entirely up to the cast members—be nice to them!). Several locations onsite not owned by Disney also offer free rewards for birthdays if you sign up for mailing lists and rewards programs: a few of these include Starbucks, Shula’s, Rainforest Café, Sprinkles, and even the Swan and Dolphin Hotel (they gave me a coupon for free ice cream once when they realized it was my birthday).
You also can eke out upgrades at no extra cost if you are particularly disciplined building credit card points. This one comes with a huge if. Debt is a lousy souvenir for a Disney vacation—if you’ve had challenges in this area, stay away from anything that will trick you into debt.
For those who have some disciplines already in place, building credit card points can open doors to some free upgrades at Walt Disney World. The most obvious option is, of course, using the Chase Disney Visa to build up points that can be exchanged for Disney gift cards, but this isn’t usually the most effective option since the card has a lot of limitations compared to others.
Travel credit cards can be useful for reducing costs on flights and lodging at Walt Disney World. Any airline credit card will help you build up points that can go towards covering the cost of a flight (we prefer the Southwest Rapid Rewards Visa as Southwest points are very flexible) or securing an upgrade. If you stay periodically at Marriott hotels, you can also use the Marriott Bonvoy credit card to build up points to stay at the Swan and Dolphin—an excellent pair of resorts. You also could use the aforementioned trick of getting a Target RedCard (credit or debit—that second one is a particularly nice option) to purchase Disney gift cards online or in store with 5% cash back—a great way to save a little on tickets, lodging, and other budget items.
With all of these, of course, we encourage good financial sense—you want your vacation to be a happy memory, not a source of stress. With some safeguards in place, you can use points and rewards programs to secure some great upgrades for your next Disney vacation without any additional upcharge.
Enjoy this article? Let us know your favorite ways to upgrade your trips without an upcharge on Facebook or in the comments. Thanks for reading!
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