How we spend 1/3 of the year at Disney for just $1,495
Updated: Apr 7
Making the most of a vacation rental pass most people don't even know exists
It’s no secret that Disney vacations are EXPENSIVE. Lodging is a good chunk of that with value resorts starting at $113 a night and luxury resorts starting at $417 (Magic Guides, 2023). Personally, I’m not trying to spend that, and you don’t have to either.
We've gotten our nightly price down to just $18.50!
In the past 4 months, we’ve taken 5 Disney vacations (3 of these have each been a week long) without breaking the bank. In fact, lodging has only cost us a grand total of $1,495 (+ taxes & cleaning fees)...
And for the next 8 months, it doesn't have to cost us a dollar more.
In total, we can spend 1/3 of the year here, meaning 4 entire months right next to Disney for that one fixed price...and a pretty affordable one at that!
For that price, you might imagine we're staying in some dingy small room somewhere, but that's definitely not the case. We always book a 2 bedroom house at a resort, haven’t had to use any time off of work because we use the extra room as an office, and we bring our pup with us too! (So no expensive boarding fees to worry about either!)
No credit card points needed, no timeshare presentations, no gimmicks. Just smart planning and getting the most out of a brand new “all you can stay” pass that most people don’t even know exists yet.
Check out these drive times from where we stay!
I feel like we cracked the code for an affordable & convenient stay at Disney. In this guide, I’ll show you how you might be able to do this too.
Here’s everything I’ll cover:
Getting the best reservations (Like Disney & the Florida Keys!)
Conclusion: Would I buy the pass again & who is it a good fit for?
Bonus 🎉
Let’s get right into it.
About the “All You Can Stay” Cabin Pass
In August, a company that I was super familiar with from our RV travels (Thousand Trails) created “The Cabin Pass”. It allows you to stay a week at a time in cabins, tiny homes, yurts, and glamping tents at 125+ different locations all around the country (currently it’s sitting at 134 locations) for an entire year for just $1,495.
One of those locations is Tropical Palms, and that’s where we stay for our Disney weeks. It’s just 9 minutes from the entrance of Hollywood Studios!
Obviously, people close to the rentals will find it easier to take advantage of it more often but there's plenty of options.
Here’s a look at all their locations:
The rules for booking
We can book 7 days at each location, and we just have to spend 14 days out of the system before booking another 7 days at one. We can have 2 reservations on the books at a time, and we can book 60 days out.
1 week at a rental, 2 weeks at home. Rinse & repeat.
Update: Since we purchased ours, a few high-use places like t