No, there is no admission charge to DTD. However, there is admission required to Disney Quest which is located in DTD, and of course, you'd have to pay for performances of Cirque or concerts at House of Blues, which are both located at DTD. Or the AMC cinema.
There are lots of shops and restaurants at DTD. Our favorite is probably the Virgin Megastore -- two stories of CDs, DVDs (all genre), books, magazines, video games. Also has a nice cafe on the upper floor where you can sit outside with a panorama view of DTD and the lake.
There is a
Lego store where kids can build stuff. Pleasure Island is right in between the Marketplace and West Side, where there are clubs in the evening for music, dancing, comedy (admission required to the clubs after a certain time in the evening).
There are a few specialty shops like a cigar shop, magic shop, celebrity memorabilia, magnets, World of Disney.
There is a boat from one side of DTD to the other, as well as boat transportation to POR from DTD, which can be a pleasant break.
Susan