Anyone do Disney but not the parks?

[la79al]

We're trying to convince my brother and his girlfriend to join us for our spring trip. My mom is planning on paying for their transportation and there will be plenty of food for them to eat but money is a huge concern for them so I'm not sure if they will be getting park tickets. I'm trying to come up with as many things as I can for them to do for free/really cheap around Disney. Ideas?

 

[GrahamOrlando]

Downtown Disney is a great place, and best of all, free. Lots to see and do without having to spend a dime. The same can be said for Disney's Boardwalk.

Will they have access to a car? If so, there's lots to see and do locally that don't cost a dime. If they won't be driving, they'll be a little more limited.

 

[jamala]

Boardwalk is great at night, lots to see, magic shows, stunts etc. If at BC/YC there would be the great pool to enjoy. Lots to explore at the different resorts. They could go hop a monorail at one of the resorts and tour all the hotels on the monorail route. Go catch the boat at WL and go to MK then catch the boat without going into MK to go to GF and take a peek or to FWC and tour.

 

[hfuellgraf]

I would encourage them to at least do YOUR favorite park one day! What about any siblings or parents pitching in for their tickets for B-day or Christmas presents. Then on that actual day you could give them photos of the trip. Just a thought.
Other things to do is visit each resort to look around; Downtown Disney and Boardwalk. They could plan breakfast at a food court at the Value resorts and Dinner at DD or Boardwalk. Good Luck!

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

We had done it many times in fact next month we are not going to any of the parks.

Even though they are not staying at a particular resort you are more than welcome to visit any of the Disney resorts. They can go to the Animal Kingdom lodge and walk around the resort and look at the animals. At 4:00 they can go to Boma, (the restaraunt at the lodge), and take the free tour of the restaraunt and sample some of the foods. It last 30 minutes.


Something to do that is cheap is go to the Wilderness Lodge and rent a bicycle. THere is a nice paved walking path that leads from the Lodge to the camp grounds where you ride around and see some of animals there. Check out how some of the campers decorate their campsites. They could pack some sandwiches and go on a little picnic over there.

They can ride the monarail and visit the Poly & Grand Floridian hotels. Catch the fireworks from the beach at the Poly.

Go over to the Boardwalk hotels in the evening and stroll around watch a magician, eat some ice cream, and watch the fireworks from Epcot.

If they can afford it encourage them to buy at least one park day ticket.

I love spending one day doing nothing but hanging out at the hotel pool. It so relaxing especially when its hot.

 

[couchpotato]

Can you tell me more about the restaurant tour at Boma? That would be interesting to DH and I on our arrival day. Do you need a reservation for the tour?

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Can you tell me more about the restaurant tour at Boma? That would be interesting to DH and I on our arrival day. Do you need a reservation for the tour?

Sure.. No you do not need a reservation. I would however recommend arriving at the resort at 3:30 p.m just so you have enough time to find your way to the Boma which is located at the Jambo house. Boma opens for dinner at 4:30 and the tour takes place at 4:00 p.m just before they open.

The group is rather small and the tour guide who is usually from Africa will walk you though the restaruant and tell you about the architeture of the main dinning area in relation to how things are done in Africa. Which I found very interesting.

They take you through the buffet line and tell you about the different foods offered. The allow you to sample certain foods. We try soup, a dessert - which was the zebra domes, and there was one other thing that I don't remember.

After your are finished at Boma you will be lead across the hall to Jiko and you will be given a tour there as well. You will also get to sample one food item here and it is the cracker and dips.

It a nice thing to do if you are interested in dinning here since most of the food is prepared using African recipes. A few years ago we did dine at Boma and loved it. My husband is a picky eater and he loved it. They use common times like chicken, prime rib, pasta, ect but it is just cooked differently.

 

[TeamTilson]

I think they will have a great time using the monorail and just "getting around". I especially like taking the Epocot monorail because it loops over the park, so they can see Epcot from this angle.

The resorts itself are so much fun to explore! Most resorts have a "movie" night where they can set up a lounge chair and watch Disney movies. The Poly does smores on the beach and it's a great place to catch the Electric Water Parade and the fireworks from MK from across the lagoon. If they get a re-fillable mug, they can save on coffee, tea, and soda. Sea Raycers (the 2 person boats) are affordable and might be fun to take out and explore the lagoon (not sure where the boundaries are). The walking paths between the Grand Florian and the Poly offers great views and it's quiet and romantic. I'm sure they will have a great time without the parks.

 

[goofystitchfan]

I have to be honest, I totally understand. It is so expensive to go to the parks, especially when you have a family. The last time we went to the park was a few years ago when they had the Give a Day Get a Day promotion. We go down there every year and go to DTD, visit the other resorts, swim... Definitely plenty to do without spending an arm and a leg. People watching is a wonderfully fun thing to do.

 

[MannyB]

My GF and I have stopped at Disney to break up our drive to Jupiter or vacation and have did what we call "Disney on a dime" a couple times. Seen some good ones mentioned and the free movies are great, especially at Ft. Wilderness. Here's a couple of our personal favorites :

1. Park at the the Boardwalk resort in mid-late afternoon.
- Swim in the Boardwalk Inn's Pool and enjoy a cocktail at the poolside bar.
- Check out the shops and the art at the Boardwalk
- Take a picture in the photo booth
- Play some games at either the kiosks on the Boardwalk or at the arcade
- Walk around to the Yacht Club and down by the beach.
- Get an ice cream cone from beaches and cream
- Ride the full route of the boat, across the lake, to the Epcot dropoff, to the Hollywood Studios dropoff and back.
- Get off at the Lighthouse and grab a bench to watch the fireworks at Epcot
- Go back to Boardwalk and enjoy the street performers.
- Stop in Jellyrolls for a nightcap and some entertainment


2. Park at DTD early afternoon.
- Check out all the shops and walk around
- Grab lunch at Earl of Sandwich
- Watch them make candy at the Candy Cauldron/Goofy's Candy COmpany
- Play with the Lego's at the Lego
- Go into the Rain Forest Cafe and see all the different fish in the aquariums
- Catch a bus to Port Orleans Riverside
- Rent a cane pole and fish at the fishin' hole
- Catch a boat to take you back to DTD

 

[NJtoATL]

Lots of times.....
This summer I went with my cousin and her 9 year old daughter. We were there for 5 days. I only went to the park one day and I have an annual pass. My family did not go at all. They stayed in the pool most of the time, 6 hours straight. The other times were spent at Downtown Disney and the Boardwalk.

If I am staying on property and don't go to the parks, I like to hotel hop.

If I am staying off property, I go to the outlets, movies, or miniature golf.

Sometimes (the summer and holidays) the parks can be too much of a good thing.

They will be okay.
Have fun.

 

[LSchrow]

If at BC/YC there would be the great pool to enjoy. .

1. Park at the the Boardwalk resort in mid-late afternoon.
- Swim in the Boardwalk Inn's Pool and enjoy a cocktail at the poolside bar.

just a reminder that resort pools are restricted to registered guests of that resort ONLY. each resort's guests pay for use, and upkeep, of the pools. at the BC/YC pool (SAB), one needs resort ID to enter the pool area. at the BWI/BWV, we have witnessed non-BWI/BWV resort guests being escorted out.
absolutely encourage them to use the pool at their resort, play mini-golf, go to DTD, browse the outlets, visit different resort lobbies, etc. there is a lot to do outside of the parks

 

[Barbydoll8]

Ok, so many great tips but here are a few others.

In Port Orleans River side, at night they have a piano show put on by piano Bob. It's corny but fun and FREE!!

Ride the water taxies from Port Orleans to DTD and back or to Saratoga Springs to DTD and back.

Animal Kingdom and Wilderness Lodge have hidden Mickey tours that you can ask for a map at the front desk. Totally Free.

If you are in Animal Kingdom at night, check out the night vision goggles to view the animals. Totally free.
Talk to the cultural guides there. Most of them are from Africa and LOVE to talk about their home. It's very interesting.
They also do a camp fire with toasted marshmallows at night at both Jambo and Kidani village.

Enjoy free music at the Grand Floridian.

Walk the nature trails at Fort Wilderness Lodge. There seems to always be lots of deer and critters to see there and they are beautiful grounds. It's about 2 miles.

Not necessarily free but pretty "cheap" by Disney standards is to go to the campground and kayak or in the evening, they have wagon rides (not carriage rides but a hay type wagon w/o the hay) that was only like 12 bucks a person or something like that. It's about an hour. Did it at dusk last Nov and it was great.

Go to any hotel and ask to tour the rooms. If they have one available, they'll let you.

There is a ton to do w/o going into any park there but of course, that is the main thing.

An idea for park tickets is to go to Target or anywhere that sells Disney gift cards. Buy one of the smallest amounts you can each time you can (I think $25.00 is the smallest I've seen) and keep them until the trip. Then they might have enough in gift cards to buy at least one park ticket and it won't feel like they've shelled out a ton of money at once.
I always ask for gift cards for any holiday for meals etc.

Hope this helps a little.

 

[dsneprincess]

Mousesavers.com has a lot of ideas on the free/cheap things to do at WDW. I think there is a campfire with Chip & Dale, maybe Fort Wilderness? Electrical parade is a must see for me. I know there are hammocks at CBR, which are nice to enjoy for a while. Watch the boats from the beach at Poly. I have heard that you can get discounted admission to DQ, if you ask. Have a friend who did this, but not sure if they just did so she would go away I bet they'd have fun without tickets & I know what you could get them for Christmas. Souvenirs can be bought for much less at the Disney Outlets. I got a sweatshirt there in August for $8.99, don't think I could find one in Target for that. Good luck & have fun!