Disney World: 50 free, cheap things to do in Orlando

If you haven’t visited Walt Disney World in a minute, prepare yourself for sticker shock: a single day’s ticket to the Magic Kingdom can set you back a whopping $164, with the other parks not far behind. And while stays at a few WDW resorts are priced at about $200 per night, most are higher.

Indeed, the cost of everything at the Happiest Place on Earth has gone up, from food and drink to souvenirs, which is why it’s not uncommon to see visitors sporting T-shirts like "Most Expensive Day Ever" or "Hakuna No Dolla: It Means No Money for the Rest of Your Stay."

Thankfully, however, as Newsday discovered during a recent Orlando jaunt, there are lots of ways to enjoy Disney on the cheap. And by lots, we mean 50.

1. FLY FROM MACARTUR Flights from Long Island’s best-kept secret start at just $58 during October on Frontier Airlines. And while for that price you can’t take more than a small personal item with you, families with a yen for packing light may well save a bundle.

2. CONSIDER OFF-SITE HOTELS Disney World’s resorts are charming, convenient and (usually) costly, but there are deals aplenty only a few miles from Cinderella’s castle, especially along State Road 535 near I-4, where I paid just $62 a night for a stay at Cypress Pointe Resort (pool with faux volcano included).

3. TIME IT RIGHT Prices on everything from park tickets to hotel stays are lower in January and February, aka the months you’ll most need a Florida vacation.

4. GET A CHEAP CAR RENTAL Orlando’s car rental market is the largest in the world, and one in which fierce competition can often mean compact cars renting for less than $20 a day. Check the agencies themselves or Priceline or Hotwire for the best prices.

5. TRANSPORTATION IS KEY That said, you’ll want to ditch the car as quickly as possible, if only to avoid the traffic and exorbitant parking prices that often plague Disney World. Luckily, there are lots of ways to get around the kingdom for free. Disney Springs (see below) is the nerve center for a free bus system so extensive, it rivals that of a small city.

6. TAKE THE MONORAIL Ostensibly for those staying at Disney’s dozens of resorts, anyone can hitch a ride, explore the properties, and take advantage of even more free transport. For instance, from three of the resorts — the Polynesian, the Grand Floridian and the Contemporary — you can travel by free monorail to the Magic Kingdom, Epcot and more, or just ride for the fun of it.

7. TRY THE SKYLINER From others, you can take advantage of Disney’s newish free Skyliner tram service, which glides between a number of resorts and offers fine aerial views of the parks, hotels and what’s left of undeveloped Orlando.

8. CROSS THE LAGOON And then there’s the large network of free water taxis and ferries, offering beautiful trips across Disney World's lakes and lagoons, especially at night.

9. PARK AT DISNEY SPRINGS This 100-plus-acre shopping and entertainment complex has gone by several names over the years — Downtown Disney among them — with Disney Springs being its latest, greatest incarnation. It’s a sprawling outdoor mall with lots of surprisingly good food and drink options, and, crucially, parking is free. All those rentals have to live somewhere while you’re visiting the Magic Kingdom, but they don’t have to live at the Magic Kingdom, which charges $30 for park visitors not staying at Disney World resorts. Instead, park for free at Disney Springs and take a bus to the Contemporary resort, then transfer to the free Disney monorail. You’ll be at the Magic Kingdom in minutes.

10. GET THERE EARLY Physical exhaustion and sensory overload are an essential part of the Disney experience, but things are quieter at 9 a.m. — an hour before the parks and most of the Springs is open. Enjoy the silence and fortify yourself for the day ahead at Everglazed Donuts, where good cups of coffee go for $4 and ginormous doughnuts for $4.95.

11. CHECK THE SCHEDULE Much of the Springs’ musical entertainment is both free and freewheeling, like the Strolling Piano, which roams the complex with a pianist in tow, and one with a passion for Dylan and the Beatles, at least on the day we visited.

12. GO DURING HAPPY HOUR Disney might be the last place you’d expect to find a happy hour, much less one with high-quality, low-cost adult beverages, but at Paradiso 37, a Latin-themed restaurant, margaritas made with fresh fruit juice and Corazon tequila go for $9. Oh, and happy hour starts at ... 11 a.m.

13. PLAY AT THE LEGO STORE Its incredible collection of large Disney-themed sculptures is worth a visit all on its own — don’t miss Sorcerer Mickey or a giant dragon in the adjacent lagoon — but the Springs’ Lego store also has free play stations featuring enormous piles of bricks of every color and configuration. Elbow your way past the 5-year-olds and build a car to race on Lego’s makeshift track.

14-15. GRAB A PICK-ME-UP & STAY FOR THE MUSIC Want to turn a cup of joe into a fleeting souvenir? Head to Joffrey’s, where the lattes are $5.39 and for a few pennies extra, a barista will etch your favorite Disney character or even a selfie into the foam. Multiple musical genres + multiple bands, each playing multiple sets + the Springs’ multiple open-air venues = lots of free music whatever your taste. Check the calendar for listings.

16. SEEK OUT A VALUE PIE At Summer House on the Lake, which opened in 2023, California is the stated cuisine, but it’s the good-value pizzas (starting at $19.95) that diners are raving about, thanks to the pies’ fresh ingredients and cracker-thin, leopard-spotted crusts.

17. VISIT THE ART WALK The Springs’ Art Walk is little more than an alleyway, but its walls lined with large-scale works by truly talented muralists are worth a look, if only for the welcome contrast they provide to Disney’s temple of merch.

18. SAVE ROOM FOR TAPAS What’s better than visiting celebrated chef Jose Andres’ Jaleo? Visiting during sangria hour, which thankfully lasts most of the day (11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.) and features spiced wine that’s frozen and on tap ($7 a glass), along with a selection of wallet-friendly tapas to include patatas bravas ($5) and cups of gazpacho ($5.50).

19. GRAB A FREE SAMPLE Skip the crowds lining up for hot fudge sundaes at the Springs’ Ghirardelli soda fountain and head to the retail shop next door, where you’ll find loads of cute chocolate souvenirs and, most days, an employee handing out free squares of chocolate goodness.

20. WATCH THE WATER Floating around a lake in a flooded car is not much fun, as anyone who’s watched wall-to-wall hurricane coverage on The Weather Channel will readily attest. But you know what is fun? Watching other people pay for the privilege at the Springs’ Boathouse Orlando, the only place in the world where you can see rare amphibious cars in action (word is they can reach speeds of 70 mph on land and 7 knots in the water). Only a few thousand of the vehicles were ever made (in Germany in the ’60s) and captain-led 20-minute rides set patrons back $120 a carload, but landlubbers can take in the weird spectacle without taking the plunge — for free.

21. TRY A TREAT A $6 cookie belongs on no one’s list of cheap thrills unless said cookie is produced at the Springs’ Gideon’s Bakehouse, a pilgrimage site for Disney fans the world over owing to its nearly-half-pound treats, including the celebrated coffee cake cookie. Lines are long, as the treat regularly sells out by midmorning. On the plus side, just one will feed a family of five.

22. MORE FREEBIES At the 10,000-square-foot M&M’s store, the lines are shorter for a kiosk staffed by an employee of infinite patience. The job? Handing out free candies to visitors in tiny condiment cups. How tiny? So tiny, many visitors get in line again and again till they’ve had their fill. 

23. GET A GOOD SOAK Let’s face it, Florida can be brutally hot any month of the year. Which is reason enough to head to the Springs’ springs, a fountain whose arc and trajectory are unpredictable, but a good soaking for the willing guaranteed.

24. TAKE IN THE COKE STORE An even cooler place to decamp is the rooftop of the Coca-Cola Store, a great place to relax and take in panoramic views or indulge in the so-called Around the World Tray. For 16 bucks you can try 16 different samples of America’s favorite soft drink and discover how the formula is tweaked for fans all over the globe.

25. STOP BY MAGIC KINGDOM FOR ADULTS At Enzo’s Hideaway, which Disney has variously described as a "speakeasy-inspired tunnel bar" and a nod to Florida’s rum-running past, the drinks aren’t particularly cheap — we threw this one in just to see if you’re paying attention — but it’s definitely one of the Springs’ shrewder gambits, a magic kingdom for adults seeking a civilized, dimly lit temple of top-drawer scotches and rums.

The 25-plus hotel complexes Disney operates on the edges of its parks offer wildly different themes — from Polynesian tiki to old Hollywood — and wildly different price points to boot. What do they have in common? All are open to non-guests, all are reachable by free buses from Disney Springs, and most offer opportunities for free or cheap fun.

26-28. LODGE AND RESTAURANTS At Animal Kingdom Lodge, for instance, you won’t be able to splash around in the spectacular pool at this Africa-themed resort, but it’s free to visit the on-site game preserve, with its equally spectacular collection of giraffes, zebras, wildebeests and more. The lodge itself is beautiful and contains, according to Disney, the biggest collection of African art outside the continent itself, and there are several fine restaurants as well, including The Mara, a quick-serve establishment that serves up a smashing chermoula-sparked shrimp bowl for $14.79.

29-30. LEI AND LANDSCAPING Disney’s Polynesian Resort will welcome you, guest or not, with a free lei and invite you to enjoy the grounds’ lush and extravagant tropical landscaping.

31-32. CHEAP CUP OF JOE OR TOAST While there, indulge in one of Disney’s signature creations, the pineapple and vanilla ice cream concoction known as a Dole Whip, a good value at $5.49 a cup or head to Capt. Cook’s at breakfast time for Tonga Toast, a decadent slab of sourdough bread stuffed with banana, battered, fried and served with your choice of meat for $10.49.

33. SAVE ROOM FOR THE FOOD COURT As the name implies, Port Orleans Resort—Riverside is dedicated to all things Louisiana, and its large, well-priced food court serves up surprisingly good jambalaya ($12.49).

34. CATCH PIANO CLASSICS And at the nearby River Roost lounge, it’s free to watch and sing along with Yehaa Bob Jackson, a beloved fixture, as he plunks out piano takes of Disney classics most evenings. 

35. CONSIDER LUNCH Dinnertime at well-regarded Steakhouse 71 in the Contemporary Resort can be a pricey affair, but the lunch menu includes a $21 prime rib sandwich for the ages.

36. DON'T MISS THE MURAL And while there, don’t miss the monorail-adjacent Grand Canyon Concourse mural, a stunning, nine-story ceramic work by legendary Disney illustrator Mary Blair.

37-38. ENJOY THE FIREWORKS The Grand Floridian is one of the more expensive resorts, but it’s free to enjoy the Magic Kingdom’s nightly fireworks display from the boat dock there, or just feast your eyes on the Victorian-inspired, marble-floored, chandelier-bedecked lobby, one of the most sumptuous you’ll see anywhere.

39-40. S'MORES AND SING ALONGS Wilderness Lodge is Disney’s homage to America’s national parks complete with its own geyser modeled after Old Faithful. The resort is also home to the nightly free — plus $10 for the optional s’mores kit — Chip N Dale campfire sing alongs.

41-42. VISIT A RANCH And at Fort Wilderness Resort, it’s free to visit Tri-Circle-D Ranch, where you can get up close and personal with Cinderella’s ponies and the horses of Main Street, U.S.A. Generally speaking, all of Disney’s swimming pools are worth a look, many of them — like the Mayan ruins number at the Coronado Springs resort — tributes to aquatic imagination.

43-44. DON'T FORGET THE WATER SHOW Oh, and visible from several of the resorts is the nightly Electrical Water Pageant in Disney’s Seven Seas Lagoon, and of course the parks’ nightly fireworks displays, all of which are equally enjoyable from the hotels, if not more so.

45. HEAD TO THE BOARDWALK A resort-entertainment complex not as monolithic as Disney Springs, the BoardWalk, a nod to turn-of-the-20th-century Atlantic City is nonetheless chock full of budget-friendly fun, like the BoardWalk Deli, which serves up monumental Reuben sandwiches for $14.49.

46-48. CARNIVAL GAMES AND MORE And then there’s the BoardWalk itself, which plays host to free shows by mimes, mystics and rope-skipping flappers, a covey of creative carnival games, and at boardwalk’s end, the Atlantic dance hall, whose entrance, and dancing, is free.

49. GO BARGAIN SHOPPING Take advantage of some of the above deals and — who knows — you may well have money leftover, money that’s sure to come in handy when purchasing souvenirs — not at the parks, but one of many bargain shops on SR-535 or International Drive nearby.

50. FIND DISNEY MERCH Or, believe it or not, at Orlando’s own Walmart and Target, which hawk official Disney merch too, although often at budget-friendly, big-box store prices.

By Scott Vogel

scott.vogel@newsday.com

Newsday writer and restaurant critic Scott Vogel aims for a refreshing, gimlet-eyed take on the Long Island food scene, often while drinking a refreshing gimlet.