Disney+ subscribers can now save up to 25% on Disney World Resort stays

Disney World has been bursting at the seams in recent months, and the resort hotel prices have largely reflected that level of demand. It's been extremely common for the deluxe tier of Disney resorts (which includes big-name spots such as the Contemporary, Grand Floridian and the Riviera resort) to price at or above $500-$600 per night for standard rooms.

But now, as a refreshing price break for those planning a summer vacation to Disney, there's a legitimate sale that can save you 25% off going rates.

The catch? You just need to have a $7.99-per-month subscription to Disney+, which isn't really much of a catch at all. (Oh, and there's a way a credit card you might already have in your wallet can make that a $0 cost to you.)

For more TPG news delivered each morning to your mailbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.

What is the Disney World hotel offer?

If the steady stream of new Marvel and Star Wars series (and the ability to watch “Encanto” on repeat) haven’t been enough to convince you to subscribe to Disney+, Walt Disney World has just given holdouts a new reason to hop on the bandwagon.

This new sale gives subscribers to Disney’s streaming service the opportunity to save 10-25% on eligible stays at select Walt Disney World resort hotels on most nights from July 8-Sept. 30, 2022.

How to book

To access the offer, subscribers can book online or through a travel advisor. Remember, booking via a Disney vacation planner can save you lots of hassle without adding to the total cost of the trip.

FOR NO COST ASSISTANCE WITH PLANNING AND BOOKING YOUR NEXT DISNEY VACATION, CHECK OUT TPG'S DISNEY BOOKING PARTNER, MOUSE COUNSELORS.

But either way, the first step is to subscribe to Disney+ if you haven’t already. If you don't yet have Disney+ but do have The Platinum Card® from American Express, note that Disney+ was just added as an eligible category for the $20 monthly digital entertainment credit, so you could add Disney+ without it costing you out of pocket if you have that card. Enrollment is required.

Disney+ subscribers must have their subscription associated with their My Disney Experience account and be logged in to My Disney Experience with that account to view availability and book online. To confirm that your Disney+ subscription is associated with your account, log in to My Disney Experience to check your Memberships and Passes.

If your Disney+ subscription appears under your Membership and Passes, you can view offer details and book online.

If your Disney+ subscription does not appear under Membership and Passes, log out and log in again using the same email address you use to log in to Disney+. If you’ve just subscribed and your subscription isn’t showing up yet, wait an hour then try logging in again.

In order to take advantage of the offer, the Disney+ subscriber must be a guest staying in the hotel room. Additional charges may apply for more than two adults per room in some room types. This offer can’t be combined with other discounts or promotions and the number of rooms included in the offer is limited.

Discounts range from 10-25%, depending on the resort and resort tier. As a refresher, Disney has value, moderate and deluxe tiers of resorts.

We priced out a five-night stay from July 16-20 for a family of four at all resort tiers and compared standard rates to Disney+ rates. You can view the results of different rate types by selecting either the standard or Disney+ discount rate at the top of the results page once you click through to specific resorts. Alternatively, you can search the same dates in two different browsers, one where you’re logged in to My Disney Experience and one where you’re not.

The offer excludes only a few room types across Walt Disney World resorts: three-bedroom villas, cabins at Copper Creek Villas & Cabins at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge and Disney’s Art of Animation Resort — Little Mermaid standard rooms.

Here are examples of the savings available to Disney+ subscribers.

Related: These are the best Disney World hotels

Save 25% at Disney deluxe resorts

Many of Disney World's deluxe resorts qualify for the highest tier of savings for this promotion:

• Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge.
• Disney’s BoardWalk Inn.
• Disney’s Contemporary Resort.
• Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa.
• Disney’s Riviera Resort.
• Disney’s Yacht Club Resort.

A five-night stay for our selected July dates in a standard view room at Disney’s BoardWalk Inn is $528.75 per night, or $396.56 per night with the Disney+ discount, for a total discount of $660.95 on that sample stay.

Save 20% at Disney mid-range resorts

An assortment of moderate resorts, with some outliers from other resort tiers, qualify for the 20% off promotion:

• The Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort.
• Disney’s Art of Animation Resort -- Family Suites.
• Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort.
• Disney’s Port Orleans Resort -- French Quarter.
• Disney’s Port Orleans Resort -- Riverside.

A five-night stay for our selected July dates in a Garden View Room at Disney’s Port Orleans Resort -- French Quarter costs $292.00 per night at the standard rate; $233.60 per night with the Disney+ discount, for a total discount of $292 for the stay.

Save 15% at select value resorts

Select value resorts included in the promotion are:

• Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort.
• Disney’s All-Star Music Resort.
• Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort.
• Disney’s Pop Century Resort.

A five-night stay in a standard room at Disney’s Pop Century Resort for our selected dates costs $212.75 per night at the standard rate; $180.84 per night with the Disney+ discount, for a total discount of $159.55 for the sample stay.

Save 10% at other Disney World resorts

These other resorts are offering 10% in savings:

• The Campsites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort.
• Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort.
• Disney’s Wilderness Lodge.

As an example of the discount at this tier, a five-night stay at the Campsites at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort for our dates costs $102 per night at the standard rate; $91.80 with Disney+ discount, for a total discount of $51 for the stay.

Is it worth it?

Aside from getting access to ad-free streaming content from Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic and more with your Disney+ subscription, even the lowest-tier 10% discount saves you more than a month’s subscription to Disney+, which costs $7.99, making this one a no-brainer.

TPG's Disney booking partner, Mouse Counselors, was able to apply the discount on one of its clients' existing reservations to the Grand Floridian and saved a staggering $1,400 thanks to a monthly streaming membership. That's clearly worth it.

Even if your savings won't be in that ballpark, booking our sample Pop Century value resort stay at the Disney+ rate would still save $159.55, which is about double the price of a whole year of Disney+ ($79.99).

Disney does periodically extend similar discounts to other groups like annual passholders, Disney Vacation Club members and Florida residents, but those all require a much higher buy-in (or a move to Florida).

If you’re not a Disney+ subscriber yet, only want to subscribe in order to take advantage of the offer and aren’t flexible on resort or dates for your visit, you may want to use a travel advisor who can check rates for you both with and without the Disney+ discount before you take the plunge.

Shop around among resorts

It’s important to note that not all resorts and room types are available at the discounted rate on any given date.

For example, at Port Orleans -- French Quarter during the dates we searched, the resort’s least-expensive room type, a standard room, is $276.50 at the standard rate — cheaper than the $292.00 per night garden view room, but isn’t available with the Disney+ discount. However, with the Disney+ discount, you’re still saving more than $40/night by booking the more expensive garden view room type at the discounted Disney+ rate.

This isn’t always true, though.

Sometimes, the cheapest room at a particular resort isn’t part of the offer, but it’s still the cheapest option. At Disney’s Wilderness Lodge during the dates we searched, the cheapest discounted room type is a courtyard room, at $460.80 per night. However, a standard room at the standard (no discount) rate is $421/night.

In this case, if you have your heart set on Wilderness Lodge, the standard rate will get you the best price, but we’d recommend shopping around and trying to find a discounted room that works with your budget in order to take advantage of that 25% savings on a potentially more desirable room.

Bottom line

This new offer is available for stays from July 8-Sept. 30, 2022, right in the midst of ongoing festivities for Walt Disney World’s 18-month 50th-anniversary celebration and summer vacations.

As part of the celebration, which kicked off Oct. 1, 2021, Disney World introduced a number of new experiences and offerings,- from new nighttime spectaculars Harmonious at Epcot and Enchantment at Magic Kingdom to new rides like Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure and forthcoming Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind, opening May 27.

As of March 31, 2022, all Walt Disney World resorts have officially reopened after pandemic-era closures. Also, beloved experiences continue to return, such as the Festival of Fantasy Parade at Magic Kingdom and the return of hugs and autographs during character meetings, part of a phased return to traditional character experiences beginning April 18.

Halloween festivities also typically kick off at Walt Disney World in mid to late-August, so expect extra tricks and treats as fall approaches.

An important note to remember: To visit a Walt Disney World theme park, you must make a theme park reservation. Confirm theme park reservation availability for your selected dates before you book. Otherwise, you could find yourself all packed up and ready to go to your Disney hotel but with no way to get into the theme parks themselves.

For rates and fees of the Amex Platinum card, click here.