If you want to stay as a registered guest at a resort property at Walt Disney World in Florida without having to pay as much as $24.00 in parking fees per night, you need to book your reservations prior to Wednesday, March 21, 2018, which is the day when the fees for standard overnight self-parking will be in effect to guests with every reservation booked on that day and thereafter.
Mandatory Fees to Park at Disney World Resorts as of March 21, 2018
According to this announcement at the official Internet web site of Walt Disney World, the parking fee — which will include applicable sales tax and will be applied to the hotel folio upon checking out of the resort property — will vary by the type of category of resort property at which guests stay:
- Disney Value Resorts: $13.00 per night
- Disney Moderate Resorts: $19.00 per night
- Disney Deluxe and Deluxe Villa Resorts: $24.00 per night
Exceptions to Mandatory Parking Fees
Complimentary standard self-parking will still be available to:
- Guests staying at the campsites at Fort Wilderness Resort; and a parking space for one motorized vehicle is at each campsite
- Day guests while enjoying select dining, shopping, entertainment, and recreation experiences at Disney Resort properties
- Members of Disney Vacation Club when staying at a Disney Vacation Club Deluxe Villa — regardless of whether they use vacation points or another form of payment — and members also will not be charged to park their vehicles when using vacation points to stay at a Walt Disney World Resort property
- Guests with disabilities who park their vehicles in designated parking areas which are available throughout Walt Disney World Resort; and the vehicles are required to have a valid disability parking permit
Valet Parking
Valet parking is available at select Disney Deluxe Resorts and Disney Deluxe Villas for $33.00 per night — which includes applicable sales tax.
Summary
“At first, I thought these fees weren’t that bad”, Edward Pizzarello of Pizza In Motion wrote in this article. “Then, I started thinking about a typical week-long family vacation. At a moderate resort, that’s an extra $150 out of your pocket. We rarely rent a car when we stay at Disney World. Those trips have typically been very focused on the parks themselves. The Disney World transportation system is such that you’re unlikely to need a car, especially with key upcoming changes like the gondola system. Fold in services like the renowned Minnie Vans, and you’ll find plenty of reasons to leave the rental car behind.”
Walt Disney World is not considered a Mickey Mouse operation; but I believe that charging parking fees for guests at resort properties is a Dumbo move. Some guests might feel Goofy about paying for skyrocketing prices — which increased significantly last month for single-day tickets, multiple-day tickets and annual pass holders, according to this article written by Amanda Kondolojy of Theme Park Tourist — as well as fees which seem to go all the way to Pluto.
I have read criticism from multiple sources which accuse Walt Disney World of having intentions which are less than Snow White by doing whatever is possible to simply grab more money from its guests — which is a similar opinion to what some people thought about hotel and resort properties in Las Vegas not only implementing parking fees; but also increasing them — at least twice.
Walt Disney World is apparently slowly losing its luster of being the happiest place on earth for guests and their families who are on a tight budget…
Photograph ©2016 by Brian Cohen.
