Many people are jumping back into travel again. Whether you’re planning your first trip to Disney, your first in a long time or you go every year, there’s a lot to know. Upon reopening in 2020, there were many extra steps to be aware of and plan in order to visit Disney Parks. As Disney continues to get back to normal, many of those extra hoops to jump through are still in place. The addition of paid Disney Genie+ in lieu of complimentary FastPass+ also adds a layer of planning. You might be wondering if there is an easy way to plan a Disney vacation. Are there all inclusive Disney World packages for 2023? Not quite.
Without the Disney Dining Plan, there are only rooms and ticket packages. Let’s go over the basics. Here’s what you need to know to visit this year and what we’re all still waiting to find out.
Are there all inclusive Disney World packages for 2023?
Walt Disney World is not a true all-inclusive type destination when it comes to vacation packages. All inclusive Disney World packages are not offered. However, at this time, there are vacation packages that include the big expenses like resort rooms and park tickets. Even after you have a room booked and tickets purchased, there are many upsells you can opt in or out of from the start of the planning process through your actual trip. For example, the option to wait in shorter lines used to be a free experience. It was called FastPass or FastPass+. Now, Disney calls that offering Disney Genie+ and charges $15 or more to reserve that type of skip the line access. This is a service you book on the day of your visit in the My Disney Experience app.
How Disney World is like an all inclusive
People often like the idea of an all inclusive vacation because it’s easier to plan or easier to budget for. Whether it’s one of these reasons or something else, we have tips for planning and enjoying a Disney vacation. One way Disney World does feel like an all inclusive is that it’s a complete destination. Many visitors travel to Orlando, check in to their Disney hotel, then use Disney transportation to get around the property for their whole vacation without leaving. There are the theme parks, varied recreation offerings, many hotels, more restaurants than you can imagine and a range of places to shop at Walt Disney World Resort. Having all of this in one destination, and with complimentary transportation to get around, makes it feel like you’re in a bubble similar to an all inclusive. Some people even jokingly refer to it as “the Disney bubble.”
How Disney World is different than an all inclusive
At a real all inclusive, you may not have to make dining reservations. Usually, everything is included and easy to enjoy on your trip with little to no additional planning. This is one way Disney World vacations differ. Each dining reservation for sit down and signature restaurants must be made in advance. You can dine at walk up locations or try to get reservations for more elevated experiences during your vacation but it’s not recommended. It’s a popular place to visit and reservations are often booked months in advance.
You can pay for much of your Disney trip upfront if the budgeting aspect of an all inclusive is what’s appealing to you. However, dining is one place where that can’t be done at this time. Without the Disney Dining Plan, more on this below, there isn’t a system that allows for advanced payment for dining on your trip. One way to get around this is to have a travel planner help you budget for food expenses on your stay. Disney restaurants can be quite pricey, especially for unique experiences like character dining. Researching and planning before hand, or hiring someone to do that for you, can help you have the best meals on your trip while staying under a certain price point overall.
Travel Planners Can Do The Work
As you may have discovered, planning a Disney trip can be overwhelming. Some fans of the magic know all of the ins and outs and love to plan their own vacations. If you’re not even sure where to start, travel planners offer services at no additional cost. With so many moving parts, if an all inclusive Disney World package sounds like a dream, you may want to work with a travel planner. While all inclusive Disney World packages technically don’t exist, working with an authorized Disney vacation planner can give you the closest experience to that.
You can talk about what you would like to include in your trip, set a budget and take recommendations from your planner. They do all of the work for you, take your budget into account, organize your days and make the reservations for your stay. Talk to your travel planner up front about how detailed they get when putting trips together so you can set expectations.
Disney World Vacation Packages 2023
There are vacation packages that still make things a bit easier and sometimes save you money. With Disney world packages you can typically expect to book something that includes tickets, dining and/or your hotel room. Usually all three of these together! At this time, only hotel and tickets are part of the deal. Disney vacation packages can be booked through a travel planner or directly by you on DisneyWorld.com. On the top of the site, it’s easy to find where to put in trip date information or click on tickets or places to stay. As you move through a hotel search, there will be a place to add tickets on. It’s a build your own experience type of package based on your hotel choice and ticket selection.
Disney Park Pass Reservations
Note that in 2023, there are still some extra things to do and remember while planning a Disney trip. Though you pay for a ticket that is priced based on the day of your visit, you still need to make a Disney World park pass reservation for each day separately. Disney ticket prices are dependent upon when you visit and cost more at busier times. The park pass reservation is still a separate task. You need to use your My Disney account to connect your ticket to your hotel reservation. Then you can reserve a Disney park pass reservation based on availability for your ticket type.
The only exception is when you buy a one day ticket for a specific date and park. In this case, a reservation is automatically made for you at the time of purchase. In 2023, park hopping is available but only after 2:00 p.m. You do not need a reservation for any park but the first of the day.
When Is The Disney Dining Plan Coming Back?
The closest thing Walt Disney World Resort offers to an all-inclusive experience is the Disney Dining Plan. This all-inclusive style of meal planning usually provides more than a person can really eat in a week. In the past, it was credit based and could include up to breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. The flexible system was a real draw for many guests. Though dining reservations are still needed in many locations, using the dining plan provides an easy way to pay and set your budget beforehand. The offering did not return when the parks reopened in 2020.
In the summer of 2021, Disney said the dining plan would return ‘soon’ and that an official announcement would come at a later time. Unfortunately, things seem to have worked out differently than the company anticipated. The Disney Dining Plan symbol still appears around Walt Disney World. However, there is no anticipated date for a return or even an announcement of a return. Purely speculating here but I would be surprised if the dining plan were to return in 2023.
Traditionally in the first half of the year, Disney starts to announce holiday season offerings for later in the year. It is still possible the Disney Dining Plan could become available in 2023. Especially since resort discounts have become more regular again. However, we’re still waiting for some Disney World restaurants, shops, entertainment offerings and more to return since the reopening. Disney has promised the return of quite a few things and not followed through. One example being trams at all of the parks. There hasn’t been a mention of the dining plan again in quite some time.
No 2023 Disney Dining Plan?
At this point I think we would have heard about the Disney Dining Plan if it were coming back any time soon. I hope I’m wrong and that it pops up. The Disney Dining Plan seems like a good bargaining tool to draw vacationers in. Paying for all meals up front and using credits on the trip is one method many visitors prefer. If people are already booking without it, there may not be incentive to bring it back yet.
Disney World Packages vs Disney Vacation Club
If you love the thought of vacationing at Disney every year, the Disney timeshare is something to consider. Disney Vacation Club is a flexible, point based system that allows you to pay for years of vacations at today’s DVC rates. The price of Disney resort hotel stays continues to rise over time. With Disney Vacation Club, you choose a home resort and point value based on your vacation needs. Then, that part of your trip is financially taken care of for the duration of your contract. DVC Members just have annual dues to cover each year. The cost of dues is based on the amount of points purchased. Disney Vacation Club does not include meals or park tickets.
Purchasing a resale Disney Vacation Club contract can save you thousands of dollars and provide an amazing value on Deluxe resort stays. Resale refers to buying a contract from a Member that’s selling rather than from Disney directly. Prices can be surprisingly lower while still offering the same fantastic Deluxe Disney resort hotel stays. Working with a licensed real estate broker ensures you have an experienced professional to guide you through the resale buying process.
DVC Resale Experts
DVC Resale Experts is a licensed real estate broker with a team that specializes in selling resale DVC. The Experts used to make magic for the mouse as Disney Vacation Club Guides. Now they work independently to help make vacation dreams come true for people buying resale and selling DVC. Our licensed real estate agents have decades of experience and work to provide each client with pixie dusted service. You can feel peace knowing you have someone to answer your questions along the way. Take a look at our resale DVC listings for current pricing and availability.
No Comments