FREE things to do at Walt Disney World - with or without a park ticket!

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Best FREE things to do at Walt Disney World

Visiting Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida is magical, but can certainly be a blow to your budget. Single-day tickets can run over $100/person. So how can you save money when visiting Walt Disney World? There are some budget friendly activities, and cheap eats to be found there, but Disney also provides a lot of free experiences and things. You just have to know where to look, and maybe go with a childlike view. But really, as Disney-lovers, we’re all big kids at heart, right?

As former Cast Members and Annual Passholders, we have visited Walt Disney World often. Our favorite park is Animal Kingdom – we even got engaged there! We’re always on the lookout for free and cheap, but also quality things to do. We were then, and we still are now as we continue traveling around the world on $2,000/month. Here are our favorite FREE things to do at Walt Disney World.

Free things to do WITHOUT a park ticket

Yes, there are free things to do at WDW without a theme park ticket! Even if you don’t want to/can’t purchase theme park admission, you can still enter Disney property and enjoy some free activities.

Get your photo taken by photopass photographers

Capture your memories at Walt Disney World by getting your photo taken by the PhotoPass photographers. They will take your photo with their camera first, and those are available for purchase through the PhotoPass service or Memory Maker. BUT they or their assistant will often also take your photo with your personal camera – or cell phone – for free! To be fair, most PhotoPass locations are in the parks, but you can also find them at Disney Springs. There is even a PhotoPass studio at Disney Springs!

Ride the Monorail

You can ride the monorail around for free. You can even ride the monorail from the Transportation and Ticket Center to Epcot and get free views of inside the park. When my cousin’s kids were under 5 years old, they said that the monorail was their favorite ride after spending a day at Magic Kingdom. Followed closely by riding the escalators at the Contemporary Resort.

Go Resort hopping

You can ride the escalators! Ha. Seriously though, each Walt Disney World Resort Hotel has fun details and things to discover. You can even do a hidden Mickey scavenger hunt at the Wilderness Lodge. Just stop by the front desk to pick up a free copy.

BONUS: Visit the resort hotels during Christmas to view the holiday decorations. Be sure to check out the gingerbread house at the Grand Floridian, and the gingerbread displays at the Contemporary, Boardwalk, and Yacht & Beach Clubs!

Ride the boats

There are boats all over Walt Disney World. Our favorites are the ones that run between Disney Springs and the nearby resorts – Saratoga Springs, Old Key West, and Port Orleans Riverside & French Quarter. Check out the ones that run between Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios with stops at the Boardwalk, Yacht & Beach Clubs, and the Swan & Dolphin resorts as well.

Ride the sky gondolas

Since we mentioned the monorail and boats, we should add the Skyliner to this list! Click here for a map of where the Skyliner runs. The newest form of free transportation around Walt Disney World property gives bird-eye views of the areas around Epcot and Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

Boat art collection at the Boathouse

The Boathouse at Disney Springs has a great restaurant, oyster bar, and offers paid rides on their amphicars. They also have a collection of specialty boats near the seating areas on the water. You don’t need to dine at the restaurant to check out the boats there. It’s free to take a look and admire the cars and they encourage photo-taking.

Enjoy entertainment at Disney Springs

Free entertainment can be found every night at Disney Springs in multiple locations. Check the stage across World of Disney for dance performances throughout the day. There are often musicians next to the Boathouse, in front of Paddlefish, near Characters in Flight, and between the Orange garage and the Coca Cola Store.

Enjoy entertainment at the Boardwalk

Another great place to enjoy free entertainment is the Boardwalk. You may see a juggler, magician, or musician performing by the water. There isn’t a set schedule, so go check it out and enjoy the atmosphere.

Watch Epcot fireworks

You can’t hear the music playing at the World Showcase from the bridge between the Boardwalk and the Beach Club, but you can still see the fireworks in the sky.

Watch Magic Kingdom fireworks from the Polynesian or Contemporary resorts

If you’d like to see a Disney fireworks show with the synced music, head to Disney’s Polynesian Resort Beach, or Disney’s Contemporary Resort bridge between the main building and Bay Tower DVC villas. The music is piped in and you can view the show without entering Magic Kingdom. If you go to the Polynesian, you can even get dole whip at the Pineapple Lanai! The dole whip isn’t free, but it sure is delicious!

Chocolate samples at Ghirardelli

Ghirardelli at Disney Springs has two parts, the ice cream shop and the store. If you enter the store side, they hand out free squares of chocolate as samples. Find a friend that doesn’t like chocolate to go with you and you could score their sample too!

Birthday cupcake at Sprinkles

Sign up for Sprinkles Perks, and you can get a free cupcake for your birthday! Sprinkles is also at Disney Springs in the Town Centre. You can also earn points when you purchase cupcakes, but that isn’t free. You don’t need to purchase anything to get your free cupcake – you just need to sign up for the perks program.

Character experience at Fort Wilderness

All of the Walt Disney World Resort hotels usually have nightly marshmallow roasting and Disney Movies playing somewhere on their property. But at Fort Wilderness there is a free character experience too! Chip and Dale have a nightly sing-a-long at the campfire. Official details here.

View safari animals from Animal Kingdom Lodge

Pick up a free Wildlife Field Guide from the front desk and use it to help you identify the animals you spot at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge. There are viewing areas at both Jambo House and Kidani Village. You can even visit multiple times and see different animals depending on the day & time.

Take an animation class at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort

There used to be drawing classes at Disney’s Hollywood Studios where you could learn how to draw a Disney character from an animator. I was so sad when it was discontinued. But you can still learn how to draw a Disney character without even entering a Disney theme park by visiting Disney’s Art of Animation Resort! They have free classes daily, usually at 11AM, 2PM, and 5PM.

FREE things to do inside the Walt Disney World parks

You’ve purchased a ticket to one or more of the four parks at Walt Disney World. Great! The price keeps going to each year but thankfully there are still many free things within the parks to enjoy. Of course the attractions and shows are included with Disney park admission.

Let’s move on to more of the lesser known free things to do in Walt Disney World parks now!

Free water

I didn’t think this was such a big secret, but apparently first-timers don’t always know about it! And it’s an important one to know in the Florida heat & humidity. You can go to any quick-service – fast-food – type restaurant and request a cup of water. Ask for a large cup. Or a cup of ice. Or both. It doesn’t cost anything and will help keep you hydrated.

Pro tip: The water at Magic Kingdom doesn’t always taste the best so we like to bring some flavor packets these ones have electrolytes to help with hydration

Games

There are free games/quests you can play in the parks. They are generally geared towards kids, but kids at heart can play too.

• Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom
  Pick up your free pack of cards and map at the Firehouse on Main Street. You can get a new free pack each day that you visit the Magic Kingdom Park.
  
  

• A Pirate's Adventure - Treasures of the Seven Seas
  Check in at the Crows Nest in Adventureland at Magic Kingdom to pick up your free talisman and map.
  
  

• Wilderness Explorers in Animal Kingdom
  Pick up your free handbook on the bridge between Oasis (the entrance of the park), and Discovery Island (where the tree of life is located). As you complete the nature-themed challenges, you’ll earn badges. The Wilderness Explorer Troop Leaders will also teach you the Wilderness Explorer call from the movie UP!
  
  

• Play Disney Parks app games
  There are trivia games and attraction themed games in the new app.
  
  

• Agent P’s World Showcase adventure - Phineas and Ferb fans will enjoy becoming a secret agent and foiling Dr. Doofenshmirtz’s plans in the countries around the World Showcase at Epcot.
  
  

• Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge enhancements - Not really a game, but the app lets you control/play with items in the Star Wars land area at Disney’s Hollywood Studios and helps immerse your experience further.

Collectibles / Souvenirs

• Celebration buttons
  The buttons can be found at merchandise stores, and Cast Members will be happy to personalize the buttons for you. If you wear your buttons around WDW, you may even score a few bonus freebies as Cast Members congratulate & celebrate with you.
  
  If you happen to visit on an anniversary of a park opening day or Mickey’s birthday, you may receive a special celebration button when you enter the park.
  

• Paper Maps
  Did you know you can ONLY get the paper maps in person? With a move towards being environmentally friendly, the paper maps are no longer sent out if guests request them for planning purposes. But they are still free at the parks. The covers are changed regularly and have become collectibles for some.
  

• Epcot festival passports
  The World Showcase at Epcot holds many festivals throughout the year. Festival of the Arts, Flower & Garden, Food & Wine, and Festival of the Holidays run almost back-to-back. Each festival has pop-up kiosks with food and drink, and there are passports listing all of the festival offerings available for free. The passport usually comes with stickers included that you can paste into the book when you’ve visited a kiosk.

• Treasure hunt

  Join the Facebook group “universally crafted (Walt Disney World).” Members of the group leave/hide small crafts in the parks (all EXCEPT Animal Kingdom due to animal safety) for other guests to find and keep. You may even be inspired to join in on leaving some magic!
  

Food

• Bring your own food into the parks for free. You don’t need to purchase food in the parks if you bring your own. Just make sure they are not in glass containers. You can even bring a small cooler under 24” long x 15” wide x 18” high. See official rules here.

• Find free toppings for your burgers at Cosmic Rays, and toppings for nachos at Pesos Bill – both in Magic Kingdom. To be clear, I am recommending that you purchase something from the restaurants before helping yourself to the all-you-can-eat toppings bars.
  
  However, when I worked at the ABC Commissary at Disney’s Hollywood Studios – I did see guests pull out sandwiches they brought themselves and use the condiments from the restaurant to dress up their food. I’ll let you decide on the ethics yourself.

• Score free snacks/samples. This takes a little bit of luck and good timing. Sometimes Cast Members will hand out free samples at the Main Street Confectionery in Magic Kingdom if it isn’t too busy. We’ve scored free bags of popcorn or a giant pretzel from the Germany pavilion in Epcot at the end of the night.
  
  Big Top Souvenirs in Magic Kingdom also sometimes hands out cookies as they’re closing up the shop for the night. If you watch the fireworks from outside the tent, you don’t get Cinderella’s castle in the background, but you get an up close look. It’s also less crowded. Then you can wait around while the park empties so you don’t have to fight any crowds, and you may score the free cookies!

As you can see, there are plenty of free things to do all around Walt Disney World property. Whether you are going to one of the Disney parks or not, you can enjoy a day at Disney without going broke. Try a few of the free things on this list and let us know what you think! Your wallet will thank you!

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