Cheapest Dates to Visit Disney World in 2026
Walt Disney World is never cheap, but some times of year are significantly less expensive than peak dates, which can cost over double the off-season. Wondering when it’s cheapest to visit Walt Disney World? This offers a list of days, weeks & seasons in 2026 that have lower prices and crowds!
As suggested above, “cheapest” is a relative term and not an absolute one. Walt Disney World is an undeniably expensive vacation destination, and the least expensive dates are still priced on par with traveling to Europe, Asia, or many tropical locales. Compounding that is the reality that total trip prices to Walt Disney World are up by thousands of dollars since 2019–and had risen by around 5% per year in the decade before that.
The increase since 2019 doesn’t even take into account all costs, like transportation (airfare, rental cars, rideshare, etc.) or added expenses, such as souvenirs, dining, and more. It also doesn’t factor in the shift from free FastPass to the date-based and per-park pricing for the Lightning Lane Multi-Pass line-skipping service. What was once free jumped to $16 per day and now is triple that on busier days.
On a positive note, Walt Disney World has gotten more aggressive resort discounts as “revenge travel” has fizzled out, resulting in most resort rates effectively decreasing as compared to the last two years. In fact, several discounts for 2026 are already available, with more likely to be released in early 2026.
This includes the deeply-discounted Disney+ 3-Day, 3-Park WDW Ticket, the popular Save Up to $250 Per Night at Walt Disney World in Winter to Summer 2026 special offer and the straightforward Save Up to 25% Off WDW Resorts Room-Only Discount for January to Spring Break 2026. There’s also the $99 Per Night at Walt Disney World in Winter 2026.
The first and last deals on that list are most notable, as they’re repeats of scorching special offers released last summer. Once one of the most expensive seasons, Summer 2025 saw the most aggressive discounts we had seen in a long time. By carefully taking advantage of the latest wave of discounts for this summer on tickets & resorts, you could get the lowest prices for Walt Disney World vacations in over 6 years. (See How to Get the Cheapest Walt Disney World Trip Since 2019.)
As we like to point out, Walt Disney World long ago adopted the “Kohl’s Model” to pricing, where the sticker prices are almost meaningless due to discounts. Kohl’s learned ages ago that if the base price is higher, it makes the discounted rate look like even more of a bargain.
That could explain why prices are up again with the release of 2026 vacation packages, resorts & tickets–because Disney knows many/most guests won’t pay full price. Even during the Great Recession, it was common for Disney to raise prices very year–it’s what Wall Street expects!
Honestly, that makes a post like this one more of a challenge–and less reliable. When comparing dates based on resort rack rates and full-priced tickets, everything below is accurate. The problem is that discounts are a difference-maker, and last year, Walt Disney World was far more aggressive with summer deals than any other season. July ended up being one of the cheapest months of the year to visit if you took advantage of the best special offers, despite being more expensive to begin with.
This trend is likely to continue, and in ways that are not easily foreseeable. It is likely that the hottest months of the year will continue to need further discounting, whereas winter is already a higher occupancy time. As a result, we actually expect prices to gradually increase more during January and February in the years to come, and continue dropping in summer.
This is our long-term expectation, but honestly, I’ve been surprised by just how good the deals already are for Winter 2026. If Walt Disney World is releasing deals this aggressive during a higher-occupancy period, it really makes me wonder what’s to come for Summer 2026! (It’s also possible those discounts end up underwhelming, as Walt Disney World realizes it can release more modest deals earlier to avoid big last-minute savings. There’s not complete certainty when it comes to deals!)
That makes what follows an incomplete picture of the cheapest dates to visit. It won’t come into complete focus until more special offers are released–subscribe to our free Walt Disney World email newsletter for discount details & analysis as those go live.
In addition to helping you choose the most economical dates to visit, our Top 15 Money Saving Tips for Walt Disney World offers assistance with reducing your vacation budget by eliminating expenses that do not enhance your trip. In fact, some of that advice actually improves your trip–for example, doing breakfast in your room (saves money and time–plus food court breakfasts generally underwhelm unless you like powdered eggs).
This post is similar in that choosing cheaper dates will generally also improve your trip and can save you money. That’s because the dates with the highest prices are typically busiest, and vice-versa. As a general rule, higher prices do not deter people from visiting or “redistribute” attendance. Crowds are almost always a good proxy for prices–the lower the prices, the lower you can expect attendance to be. Double win!
That’s one of the general “rules” when it comes to the cheapest times to visit Walt Disney World, and there are a few more. Another is that prices typically go up every single year. These increases take many forms, and are staggered across the calendar. Typically, the cost of snacks, sodas, and other pre-packaged items increases in late January or February and potentially again in September or October.
Consequently, it’s usually less expensive to visit sooner rather than later. If you’re waiting for prices to drop, history typically is not on your side. However, as noted above, the last few years have been anomalies. Prices for 2026 could end up being lower than 2022 when revenge travel was running hot and not all hotels had fully reopened.
The general rule is that traveling in the current year is cheaper than in the following year. But there can be exceptions to that. For example, if you book your vacation early and lock-in pricing on tickets and hotels, it will likely be less expensive to travel most dates in January or February 2026 than in November or December 2025. That’s because prices usually decrease in the winter as compared to the prior holiday season, and there are also typically better discounts for the off-season.
While it’s debatable whether July or September will be cheaper within 2026 after discounts, it’s likely that both of those months will offer lower rates than their counterparts in 2027. It’s also likely that September 2026 will be cheaper than January 2027, as price increases typically occur at the start of the new fiscal year in October. That’s why prices are typically lower sooner rather than later, and also a big part of the exception in Nov/Dec 2025 vs. Jan/Feb 2026–because all of those months are after the new fiscal year increases in October!
In other words, the advice here should be applied to dates or months in the same year (with the aforementioned carve outs). Unless you’re “banking on” another recession or economic downturn, it’s a safe bet that the general trend line for Walt Disney World prices will continue its upward climb on an annualized basis.
To continue that point, the least expensive time to visit Walt Disney World are usually the winter off-season. This basically encompasses January and February, with the exception of the very beginning of the year when schools are still on Christmas break plus the weeks around MLK Day, Mardi Gras and Presidents’ Day.
The general rule is that January and February are the cheapest months of the year, on average. There’s a little more nuance to it than that, as the fall has had better discounts (historically) and other variables that can move the needle on a case-by-case basis. That is starting to change a bit, as winter is becoming the highest-occupancy time of the year for the hotels due to more favorable weather and flexible work schedules.
As mentioned above, this past summer offered the best discounts since 2019, but there’s reason to believe Summer 2026 could come close or even surpass last year depending upon the circumstances. Same goes for August and September. The post-summer period usually sees the lowest attendance and hotel occupancy of the entire year, so our expectation is that more discounts are to come for those months. Stay tuned.
If you’re looking for the best timeframes in the winter off-season when Walt Disney World is cheapest, January 5 through mid-February is best. Again, prices spike for the week of Presidents’ Day/Mardi Gras, falling again the next week–but not as low as those early-year off-season dates.
Following that, prices in March and April are hit or miss, usually driven by the timing of Spring Break and Easter. Whenever goes are on break, you can expect significant spikes to both pricing and crowds. This, Easter is early–meaning that March is more expensive (on average) and prices drop in mid-April. Next year, Easter will occur later, meaning prices don’t decrease as soon.
Fast-forward past Easter, and that week (after the holiday) through the week before Memorial Day once again see lower prices. This is technically considered “regular” season, but it’s on par with some dates in mid-February and is the cheapest Walt Disney World will be until early August.
About a week before schools go back into session, prices decrease again. This occurs earlier on the hotel side of the equation than with park tickets, presumably because locals continue visiting after tourists stop traveling–and only the latter books hotel stays.
Starting the third Sunday of August, prices return to near their lowest levels of the year and stay there until mid-September (with the notable exception of Labor Day weekend). Costs do get higher from then until early October, but it’s by a nominal amount. Technically, these rates are higher than off-season dates in January and February. As noted above, that can be further exacerbated by intervening price increases on tickets, food, etc.
However, it can also be more than offset by discounts that tend to be offered in the fall offseason (as discussed above). Prices for October through early December tend to be a veritable roller coaster depending upon whether it’s a holiday week/end or not. Columbus Day, Veterans Day, and Thanksgiving all see spikes–some fairly massive. Same goes for runDisney race weekends.
If it’s not one of those weeks or weekends, pricing is near its lowest levels of the year through the first week of December. That gradually escalates beginning the second week in December, culminating in the weeks of Christmas and New Year’s Eve. Beginning December 16 and lasting until the end of the calendar year, holiday season kicks in and prices hit their highest levels of the entire year.
If you’re simply looking for the very best dates in each season, they are as follows:
Winter 2026
- January 5 to 9, 2026
- January 12 to 16, 2026
- January 19 to 23, 2026
- January 26 to 30, 2026
- February 1 to 6, 2026
- February 8 to 13, 2026
- February 23 to 26, 2026
Spring 2026
- March 1 to 6, 2026
- March 16 to 20, 2026
- March 23 to 26, 2026
- April 14 to 16, 2026
- April 20 to 24, 2026
- April 27 to 30, 2026
Summer 2026
- May 1 to 21, 2026
- May 25 to 28, 2026
- All Sundays through Thursdays approximately equal in June and July 2026
- August 2 to 6, 2026
- August 9 to 13, 2026
- August 16 to 27, 2026
- August 31 to September 3, 2026
Fall 2026
- September 7 to 10, 2026
- September 13 to 17, 2026
- September 20 to 24, 2026
- September 27 to October 1, 2026
- October 12 to 15, 2026
- October 19 to 22, 2026
- October 25 to 28, 2026
Holidays 2026
- November 1 to 4, 2026
- November 8 to 12, 2026
- November 15 to 18, 2026
- November 29 to December 3, 2026
- December 6 to 10, 2026
A couple of things to note about the above. First, these season by season prices are relative to other dates within each season. For example, that last set of December dates costs exactly $100 per night more than the cheapest dates in January. If the entire calendar is open to you and you’re primarily concerned with price, you really want to be looking at winter or the late fall and early fall off-season.
However, not everyone can or wants to visit during those timeframes, so we’ve also included dates throughout the entire year that are cheaper than comparable alternatives. In the case of the above example, those dates are nearly $100 cheaper than the two weeks that follow. So significantly higher than the true off-season, but far lower than the true peak season. It’s all relative.
Second, there are major price changes in Spring 2026. This is the result of Easter moving forward, which consolidates the higher-priced dates into a few-week stretch from mid-March to early April 2026. Expect crowds to follow suit.
Next, it’s mostly Sunday through Thursday nights that have the lowest prices, with Mondays through Wednesdays having the absolute cheapest rates. If you’re looking for the least expensive options, you’ll find them at the All Stars. Those Value Resorts start at $133 per night in the off-season, which will likely be just over $100 per night after discounts.
In general, Friday and Saturday will be the most expensive days of the week to visit Walt Disney World, with Thursday and Sunday costing less–but still more than Monday through Wednesday nights.
As for the most expensive dates to visit, we can say with almost complete confidence that the most expensive dates to visit Walt Disney World are December 11th 31st. (January 1st is also extremely elevated–prices drop like a rock the following night.)
If you want more specificity in the least & most expensive dates to visit and the best & worst dates to visit, it can be useful to consult our Walt Disney World Crowd Calendar. Look for the least busy dates, you’ll also generally find the cheapest dates.
Ultimately, that should answer some questions about when it’s cheapest to visit Walt Disney World…and perhaps raise even more. Basically, the least expensive dates on paper as of right now are January through early February and mid-August through September, followed by late April to late May, then October through early December–all minus long holiday weekends and the full weeks leading up to major holidays.
Against that backdrop and with that bias, if forced to choose dates to visit Walt Disney World in the next two years–for a range of reasons both qualitative and quantitative–I would consider the winter months. Though great from a weather perspective and for EPCOT Festival of the Arts, winter is no longer the sleepy off-season it once was. So you really need to determine how much crowds matter to you.
If primarily concerned with crowds and not weather, I would look to late August through mid-September. Even though the weather is far less desirable in the early fall off-season, this is reliably the best stretch for crowds and deals at Walt Disney World. It’s also a great time of year with Halloween, EPCOT’s Food & Wine Festival, and more. The big caveat here is that you need to be able to bear the heat and humidity if you choose these dates.
Personally, I’d actually go beyond September for my travel target and book the week after Thanksgiving. This is nothing new and actually has nothing to do with pricing–we’ve been recommending that week for ages, and it’s our personal favorite week of the entire year at Walt Disney World for a mix of reasons related to pricing, weather, crowds, and Christmas.
Late November and early December are “objectively inferior” to September, but the reality is that humans don’t take vacations in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. That’s the better week on balance. It typically offers superior weather (far lower likelihood of high heat & humidity…or hurricanes!), seasonal events, and more. It’ll be slightly more crowded and expensive, but that’s a worthwhile tradeoff in our view.
Everything has a cost, whether in dollars or otherwise, and you could argue that the non-monetary costs of visiting in September are higher than in the lull between holidays. For other dates we love to visit (and ones we dislike), see our Best & Worst Weeks to Visit Walt Disney World in 2026 & 2027.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
What do you think about this look at the cheapest times to visit Walt Disney World? Which would you pick in the January/February vs. August/September dilemma? Think discounts will continue to improve throughout 2026 and put a reality-check on runaway prices? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
I reside in the UK, and just love Disney in fact the whole of Florida. I am truly one of the lucky ones who was hooked on the magic of Disney, I always find the customer service in Disney to be one of the highest I have encountered. We have visited Florida twice a year sometimes more going right back from the mid 80s, we have been in every month of the year, Christmas is so special my personal favourite. We also stay for 3 weeks on our visits, we rough it first in a hotel and spend the last two weeks in Disney. I have seen so many change in Disney over the last 35 years I could write a book. I feel no matter when you visit Disney it’s expensive, you can never stay in budget no matter how hard you try Disney are experts on how to get every cent out of you, but I would never ever have changed a thing, the memories are so wonderful. Now with Co-Vid we have not visited for 2 years and have no idea when we shall visit again. Or what to expect, which is exciting. At 66 years of age I and my family have been blessed to have seen the mouse that lives in Disney so many times.
Agree 100% with your suggestion that late August/early September may be the best bet. Although it’s an OG strategy many of us used for years pre-pandemic, key planks haven’t changed. As this also includes humid wet weather, risk of hurricane disrupting flights, as well as back to school, its a no for some guests and puts a bit more pressure on WDW to offer some kind of savings. While festivals pop up year round, the old favs of Food & Wine and either some kind of Halloween Party of HHN at nearby Universal are a bonus. My bet is some form of free dining for Aug-Sep will drop for a Jan or Feb booking. Whether it will be the same as what we loved is very uncertain. But if WDW makes a new free dining offer, or any standard paid dining plan, wildly complicated and restrictive than that will be one more barrier to guests who already struggle with the new Disney. I have never heard and read of so many guests complaining that a WDW vacation makes their brains hurt. But they still book. And they still pay. Even when they can’t wring the same value and enjoyment out of the trip. Has to be a tipping point. Think that may be mid summer and early fall.
You picked it. You said the most expensive dates were December 16-31, 2022, and we will be leaving WDW on December 16th, Our dates are from December 9-16, 2022. How funny is that or what?
Were trying to book for next year it’s so hard we have seen every season but halloween so we want to go for that. But so hard we want to go with the best deal and best time. But not sure when they start Mickey scary halloween is it all sept do they have it in august. But everyone says it’s so hot in sept and August. And the weather is really raining because of hurricane season. Can anyone help us. We were thinking october 4-10 or 11-17th. Or would it be better to go middle of september
Starts mid August and the party gets more expensive the closer you get to Oct 31st. It’s a great evening and be sure to wear a costume but keep it light in August.
I just came back from a WDW trip the week after Thanksgiving. 11/27-12/4/21.
It was MOBBED.
This post was a breath of fresh air! I didn’t think there were any writers on the internet who had the ability or inclination to put sentences together properly, use the appropriate words to communicate the meaning and PROOFREAD. Of the many things that unravel the fabric of our society, disintegration of language may be the worst. I’m a “retired” homeschool mom but still a card carrying member of the grammar police!
Thank you for this blog. I plan to go back and read several of the links in this article. We are hoping to visit Walt Disney World just after Thanksgiving 2022.
I fear your praise might be premature, and setting yourself up for future disappointment.
While I’ve gotten a bit better about proofreading, it’s still not my strong suit. If this post is truly free of grammatical gaffes or stylistic snafus, that can probably be filed under “even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while” rather than being a testament to my acumen or adeptness. 🙂
My wife and I went two years ago with our two young boys pre-pandemic (thankfully) for our first times at the end of January. We went hoping for low crowds but they were actually high crowds when we went. We are taking our second trip this coming end of January. Should I be afraid of everyone thinking and wanting the same low crowds I want as predicted by all of the experts so forth driving crowds up. We had a wonderful time regardless of crowds and are excited to go back, Please tell me I can really expect low to moderate crowds this time around. I apologize this isn’t really cost related besides the fact it should be a cheaper time to go
Tom, how do I find DVC points available for families and for the weeks available?
Here’s our guide to that: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/renting-disney-vacation-club-points/
For best success, you’ll typically want to book at least 7 months in advance, but both major brokers should have some confirmed reservations available that might work for your dates.
While the price of the hotel has got to be the major cost drive in terms of variability, how much more will ticket price increase over the next year?
That’s really tough to say. WDW ticket price increases have been fairly flat since reopening, but that doesn’t mean there won’t be a big one in February 2022.
We are anxiously awaiting our 2 youngest to be vaccinated and have Disney vacation placeholders for both June and October. Hoping for discounts to return by October to better justify keeping both reservations!
I was there for the end of September this year, and I’ll be back for mid-September again next year. It really shocked me how hot it still was! Not as bad as July/August, which I have somehow managed to hit two years in a row now, but…still hot. But when you posted the DVC point charts for the Galactic Starcruiser I was able to see, laid out nicely, a very good spread of when things were generally the cheapest for accommodations. It was eye-opening!
First, I want to thank you Tom, and Sarah, for the work you put in to this blog. As an obsessive planner, I could not do this without you guys. This year we are going to the dark side and doing the 3rd week of August, oppressive heat be damned. For years, I would pull my daughter out of school, and enjoy the September/October crowd levels, and relative lower prices. But, with High school this year, no longer an option. Monday thru Friday, rented DVC points at the Polynesian (again, thanks!) Lake view, 2400. 3 day park hopper for 3, 1160. Flights, 1000. All I need now is for Disney to restart the dining plan and I will be able to give them the rest of my money. I’m beginning to think I may have a Disney problem. Totally will look for Mickey1928
I love the pricing for the end of January like we did in 2020, however people have to be aware that in those months there are also rides closed for refurbishments, if not entire water parks, And park days are shorter because of days getting darker sooner. For some there might be a monetary exchange on that loss of time/experience. (And I’m skeptical about our outdoor pool at Contemporary being heated like they are supposed to be in Winter)
Very astute young man. I had to rush that post to get to my booster shot appointment so not my best work. I’m writing this at CVS during the 15 minute waiting period to see if I have a mini stroke or heart failure. Fingers crossed. We’ve been lucky with the weather but you’re right as usual. Very humid, sticky hot and they closed for a hurricane one year. This year, and I know you advised against it, were going to start by tenting the first 3 days. Ok I should close either they just turned off all the lights in CVS or
The last two weeks of August!!! Folks you DO NOT want to go then. It’s terrible. Nobody wants to go then. People there are miserable because they’d rather be anywhere else. Do you want to be around miserable people? I’m telling you stay away! Only uncool really stupid ugly fools are there the last two weeks of August, I know because we go at that time every year for my wife’s birthday. How I wish I’d married someone with a birthday at some other time of the year. Honest you don’t want to go then. You’ll be unhappy. Please remember what I’m telling you. Everyone stay away the last two weeks of August. Just so we’re clear here, forget what Tom says, NOBODY GO THE LAST TWO WEEKS OF AUGUST.
While I assume you’re joking because you want your ‘secret’ window of low crowds to remain that way, I think there’s some inadvertent truth to what you’re saying–the weather in August is pretty miserable, especially as compared to January/February and November/December!
Even after living here several years, my body is still not acclimated to summers* in Florida.
*The months of April through October
Planning is definitely half the fun for me. I’ll reminisce over a well prepared and executed spreadsheet vacation anytime 😛
I enjoy planning, daydreaming, researching, etc. but NOTHING bores me like putting together a spreadsheet. To each their own, though! 😉
We usually go in the third week of January and have plans to do so again next month. I have been trying to prepare the family for higher crowds than we are used to and changes in procedures and services that we may not love. We are all so looking forward to it. I hope our expectations will have been tempered to the extent that we will still have a great time.
Our ticket pricing was about as low as it gets, which is good, but seeing how little availability there was at the 7-month window for points, and no availability for cash rates when we considered adding a studio at Saratoga so that my in-laws could spend a few days with us was a shock. I know that may be due in part to pent-up demand but I am also assuming that they are not filling all available rooms due to staffing issues.
We have always felt fortunate that the best times for us to visit are the last two weeks in August and mid-January.
I don’t think the room-fill issues extend to DVC. Those units need to be rented to capacity (or close to it) throughout the year, or it creates significant downstream issues–plus potential problems with owners who don’t have access to their property. We’ve discuss DVC’s “point pool problem” here: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/disney-vacation-club-point-pool-problem-closed/
Sounds like you’re going into the trip with a good mentality, regardless! 🙂
My two trips this year are scheduled in these “cheap” windows, and I’m already feeling the squeeze of 2022 prices! Unfortunately, I do expect price increases to continue, resulting from a combination of inflation and pent up demand. I’ll be thrilled if resort discounts come through for late August/early September, but I’m not holding my breath.
I’ve been wrong plenty of times before, but I’m not that pessimistic. If all of the current issues extend into next August/September, the world has far bigger issues than the lack of Walt Disney World discounts! 😉
Speak for your own reality. All the cool kids know the best family vacations are taken inside of an Excel Spreadsheet. When I need to reminisce about the good times we had do I pull up some old photos? Hardly…that’s for sentimental suckers. I merely peruse the tabs on my vacation planning workbook. The rows and columns really come alive if you just let them. And if I need a good cry, I can just stare longingly at the price on that first bounce back.
Before the internet, people hid their peculiar predilections for fear of ostracization. I miss those days. 😉
Being Canadian we are basically screwed. Continued unrealistic demands on each side of the border, NEXUS centers completely closed in Canada, the exchange rate and much more makes it very difficult to justify a Disney trip moving into 2022 and beyond. And this is coming from a DVC member since 2005. Thank goodness that we got in on DVC resales when there were no restrictions at it was priced at $75/point. But even with DVC, the annual fees have gone through the roof and that is with Saratoga which is supposed to be one of the cheapest for fees. In 2010, for 250 points, were we looking at $1000.00 per year. Now it’s north of $1800!! My wife and I make decent salaries but even those salaries are not keeping up with the inflation going on in Canada and the US. Meaning some things get cut, like lavish Disneyworld vacations. Renting our DVC points have been helped offset the fees but for how much longer, I do not know.
A lot of the decision making at the top is plain disgraceful. Sure, the company is there for the shareholders, of which I am one, but this is plain robbery. I get the sense, Bobby C. and company are not interested in the fan base and could care less about regular visitors. They appear to want the first timers and perhaps the only timers! Be careful what you wish for as everything that has a beginning has an end. Especially if you continue to charge more and offer less and less value.