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In today’s post we’re going to take a look at the best ways to save money at Disneyland.

I live in Southern California and have been going to Disneyland for over 30 years. On top of that I used to be a Cast Member at Disneyland and know the best tips and tricks for having an awesome visit.

In this post you will learn how to save money on Disneyland tickets, where to find cheap hotel rooms, food and beverage hacks, and money-saving tips for visiting Disneyland with kids.

These tips are going to help you and your family save a ton of money at Disneyland.

Let’s get right into my top 10 ways to save money at Disneyland!

1.   How to Save Money Purchasing Tickets for Disneyland

You basically have 2 ticket options when going to any Disney park: admission to one park per day or a Park Hopper ticket.

The difference being you are either confined to one park per day or you can bounce between the different parks with your ticket.

When going to a Disney theme park I highly recommend getting a Park Hopper ticket.

The benefit of a Park Hopper ticket is if one park is super crowded, you can just hop over to the other park with shorter wait times. A Park Hopper ticket also gives you the opportunity to get in more rides each day at Disneyland.

If you are only going to visit Disneyland Resort for 1 day, you need to get a Park Hopper ticket so you can visit Disneyland and Disney California Adventure.

These tickets are more expensive, however, in my opinion they are totally worth it.

After using several sites, the one I found with the best prices was Undercover Tourist.

A 3-day Park Hopper ticket for 1 person purchased through Disney was going to be $355.

Whereas through Undercover Tourist it only cost $329. That’s a savings of $26 – a total win in my book!

You need to print that out and bring it with you to Will Call at any of the parks to get your actual ticket.

You might be able to just pull up the email to show them and receive your tickets. However, I always recommend printing out the email and bring it just in case.

You do not want to travel all the way to Disneyland only to be told that you can’t get a ticket because you didn’t have the printout.

Take a look at the table below to see how you can save up to $29 per Disneyland ticket by purchasing through Undercover Tourist!

Bonus Tip

The daily ticket prices drop for each additional day you add to your purchase.

A 1-day Park Hopper Ticket was $129. However, the per-day price of a 3-day Park Hopper ticket was $118.33.

Also, ticket prices vary depending on the day of the week and time of the year.

2.   Purchase MaxPass to Save Money on Disneyland Pictures

For only $15/guest per day you can purchase MaxPass.

MaxPass allows you to make FASTPASS reservations through the Disneyland mobile app instead of having to go to the machines in front of the actual ride.

This is such a huge time saver!

Once you walk into the park, start making your reservations and just hit the rides.

You also get unlimited free Disney PhotoPass downloads with MaxPass. That means you get every photo taken by the Disney Cast Members and ride photos for only $15/day.

PhotoPass+ is another other option, which is $99 for your Disney PhotoPass photos taken during your stay (for up to 7 days).

If you want to download the photos individually without a plan, be ready to shell out $16.95 each! Yowzer.

MaxPass is a big money saver over the other options.

3.   Save Money by Staying at an Off-Site Hotel Near Disneyland

Looking for a way to stretch your dollars a little more and save some money during your trip to Disneyland?

Stay at a hotel near the park! There are several that are under $150/night.

There are about 5,000,000 hotels within 15 minutes of the park that are much more affordable than the Disney hotels.

Some are walking distance away, some a short bus ride away (yes, the buses and public transportation in California are safe), and others are a short Uber away.

If you stay at a hotel near Disneyland, you will never have to pay for parking. There are much cheaper and easier options available to you.

4.   Have Groceries Delivered to Your Hotel to Save on Food

Disneyland can take a lot out of you.

Sometimes you just don’t have the energy or the time to go to the store to reup on snacks and meals to bring into the parks.

That’s where a service like Amazon’s Prime Now delivery comes in.

With Prime Now you can get tens of thousands of daily essentials and groceries delivered to you in 1-2 hours.

You can wake up, order your groceries with Amazon Prime Now and have them delivered to your hotel room each morning before heading into Disneyland.

Prime Now delivery is a game changer!

Sign up for a free 30-day trial for Amazon Prime now to take advantage of the Prime Now delivery.

5.   Save Money at Disneyland by Bringing Your Own Snacks and Drinks

Disneyland Resort is super expensive, especially if you are with a family. Paying for snacks, meals, drinks, sweets, and souvenirs really adds up.

Good news is that Disney theme parks allow you to bring in bags, food and drinks.

You cannot bring a cooler, however, everything else is pretty much fair game.

That means you can pack meals and bring them into the parks, which is a huge money saver at Disneyland.

I always bring drinks (like Gatorade) and snacks.

Protein bars are great because they give you energy throughout the day without having to splurge on a meal. Also, stopping for meals cuts into your time spent on rides!

For kids, bring juice boxes and whatever snacks they like.

6.   Adult Beverage Hacks to Save Money at Disneyland

Hey, you’re out there walking around all day, lugging kids around and standing in line. There’s nothing quite like having a beer or cocktail to get you through the day.

Both Disneyland and DCA have alcohol for sale, but those drinks are hella expensive.

The only place to get any alcohol at Disneyland Park is at Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge.

There is a way to have easier access to alcohol and save money while at Disneyland.

A simple little hack I do is, well, I just bring my own alcohol on the DL!

Take a Gatorade bottle, dump it out (or some of it out) and fill it with the cocktail or liquor you want that is a similar color. I would take a lemon-lime Gatorade, pour it out, then fill it with a margarita. Then, you just need to get a cup of ice from anywhere and you’re good to go!

I have brought ice packs and stuffed them in my backpack to keep the bottles cold, however, they don’t really work as well, especially on hot days.

If you have a stroller, fill a flask and mix it in with all the stuff you’re bringing on the bottom. I recommend using a plastic flask – it’s what I use. You can also fill a plastic water bottle up with tequila, rum, gin or tequila.

Cast members search your bags before you enter. They do not, however, take the lids off bottles to give a sniff test.

That being said, if you spill on the outside of the bottle, wash it off so your bottle doesn’t smell like booze. Let’s be smart about this.

Also, don’t get too wasted or they will kick you out.

Be sure to drink plenty of water, too, especially on hot days. Heat stroke and alcohol poisoning are real folks!

READ MORE: See my Ultimate List of Disneyland Tips and Tricks

7.   Save Money at Disneyland by Bringing a Refillable Water Bottle

You can bring your refillable water bottles and fill them up at select locations throughout Disneyland Resort. Disneyland and DCA offer free cups of water at all counter service restaurants.

Just be really nice and ask. If one place shoots you down, go to the next one.

I never had any difficulty having my water bottles refilled. Often times the cast members would ask if I wanted ice, too.

Be polite and you’ll get hooked up.

8.   Bring Your Own Stroller to Disneyland

If you are thinking, “Should I bring a stroller or not,” bring one. Even if your child walks around all the time, going to theme parks is exhausting and involves a ton of walking.

Younger children will wear down and pushing them in a stroller is much easier on everyone than carrying your worn-out kiddo.

Stroller rentals at Disneyland are $15 for a single stroller, $25 for 2 single strollers, and $35 for a double stroller per day.

Instead of shelling out money to rent a stroller, bring your own.

There are stroller parking areas near most of the attractions with tons of strollers there.

I believe it to be totally safe to leave your stroller parked amongst them. I’ve never heard from anyone I know or anyone I talked to at the parks about any theft issues.

I feel it’s very safe, however, as always, use your best judgement.

Another smart thing to do is to mark your strollers so they stand out in the parking areas. A popular way of doing this is by attaching a balloon to the handle.

As an added bonus, you can pack up your stroller with sweatshirts, sunblock, hats, and other extras you won’t have to carry.

9.   Pack Your Own Autograph Books for the Kids

Toddlers and little kids love getting their pictures taken with Disney characters.

Once with the characters you can have them sign an autograph book for an awesome souvenir.

Autograph books inside the park are going to set you back $10 to $20.

You can save a bunch of money by purchasing a Disney autograph book before you enter the park.

A package of 2 autograph books (1 Mickey Mouse and 1 Minnie Mouse) is available on Amazon for only $6.

You can also find autograph books at some Dollar Stores for even bigger savings!

10. Save Money at Disneyland by Bringing Your Own Light Up Toys and Glow Sticks

Disneyland lights up and comes to life once the sun goes down.

Children throughout the parks bring out their light up toys and wear glow sticks. However, purchasing these inside the park can set you back a pretty penny.

Be smarter than the rest and purchase yours before going to Disneyland and bring them into the park.

You can get a light up spinner, Mickey Mouse light up wands, and glow stick bracelets and necklaces each for under $15. These make the perfect fun accessories for the kids to play with during the night at Disneyland.

Final Thoughts

I know that Disneyland can be really expensive, especially for families.

From purchasing tickets to hotel rooms to food and drinks, Disneyland can really drain your wallet.

Hopefully these tips will help you save a bunch of money at Disneyland and take away a big stress from your trip.

Now I’d Like to Hear from You

I hope you enjoyed my post on the best ways to save money at Disneyland.

Now I would like to hear from you.

What did you think of my money-saving tricks for Disneyland?

What is your favorite way to save money at Disneyland?

Is there anything you think I left out?

Let me know by leaving a quick comment below!

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