Save Up to 35% Off Disney World Hotels in Spring & Summer 2021!

Walt Disney World has released new hotel discounts through Summer 2021 with the “Spring into Magic” room-only deals. In this post, we’ll share the details of these special offers, and share some analysis as to how much money you’ll actually save with each.

There are actually three new resort discounts, which are essentially “extensions” of the previous promotions released for Annual Passholders, Florida residents, and the general public that offered up to 40% Off Hotels at Walt Disney World Through Spring 2021. That deal is still available for booking and travel dates through April 17, 2021. There are obviously some differences (which we’ll get to below), most obviously in the discount rate.

These are in addition to new ticket deals for Florida residents and the general public, plus the a widely-targeted 35% off PIN Code that covers some (but not all) of the Summer 2021 travel dates of this “Spring into the Magic” promo. There’s also the Half-Off Hotels at Walt Disney World, but that only runs through early spring, so we’ll probably get a new special offer for Visa cardholders soon…

This is a tiered discount, with each category of guest (Annual Passholder, Florida resident, general public) receiving different discount levels. Obviously, you should apply the best deal for which you qualify.

Let’s start with the Annual Passholder options.

Here are the official details: Annual Passholders can save up to 35% on rooms at select Disney Resort hotels for stays most nights April 18 through July 10, 2021. Walt Disney World’s “Spring into Magic” AP discount is available for booking through July 10, 2021.

This special offer excludes the following room types: 3-bedroom villas, Cabins at Copper Creek Villas & Cabins at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge and Bungalows at Disney’s Polynesian Villas & Bungalows. Additional per-adult charges may apply if more than 2 adults per room at Disney Value, Moderate and Deluxe Resorts and Studios at Disney Deluxe Villa Resorts. Maximum length of stay under this deal is 14 nights.

Here are the resort by resort savings rates:

For all of these discounts, Walt Disney World is touting that guests can “book with confidence.” For extra peace of mind, know that if your plans change, any Disney-imposed change and cancellation fees will be waived up to the date of check-in for reservations with arrivals through April 30, 2021. This is consistent with Walt Disney World’s temporary new cancellation policy, applicable to anything booked.

Interestingly, this modified cancellation policy had been extended with past promo releases to encompass all of those travel dates, but that has not occurred (yet?) here. With so much uncertainty for many people to feel comfortable booking travel without incredibly flexible modification and cancellation policies, it seems inevitable that this will eventually be the policy for all of 2021–perhaps even into 2022.

Next, the “Spring into Magic” discount chart for Florida Residents:

Terms and conditions are pretty much identical for the Florida resident deal. Same exclusions, stay limitations, and extra guest fees. The only material differences are that this is available to all Florida residents, not just APs, and you save 5% less across the board.

Finally, the general public discounts:

The general public “Spring into Magic” offer is very similar to the one for Florida residents, with the main difference being the discount rate for Moderate and Value Resorts. Room inventory and availability will also likely end up being different, but we haven’t had time to see that play out yet.

It’s also noteworthy that there is no difference in the discount for weekdays versus Friday and Saturday nights, which was the case for the previous room-only discount that runs through April 17, 2021.

When that previous up to 40% off discounts was released, we noted that it made sense given that weekends are currently significantly busier at the hotels due to Floridians and other Southerners doing long weekends.

That absolutely remains the case, and will as long as tourist numbers are down. We’re still expecting Revenge Travel in 2021 at Walt Disney World, but it’s going to take a few months for the bookings to reflect that. In other words, expect weekend dates to sell out of these discounted rates faster than weeknights.

Benchmarking these discounts as compared to historical offers is pretty easy, as a very similar slew of room-only discounts was released last year on January 6 (so one day earlier this year!) that covered travel dates for April through July 9 with the same exclusions and similar hotel options. Obviously, there were slight differences since some hotels are currently closed and there’s a new cancellation policy, but you get the idea.

That spring & summer discount offered 15%-25% off room-only rates for general public, 20%-30% off room-only rates for Florida Residents, and 25%-35% off room-only rates for Annual Passholders. Basically, this discount is identical except for the “Spring into Magic” general public deal which offers an additional 5% off at Deluxe Villa and Deluxe Resorts. Close enough.

One difference, and something we’ve seen with other recent deals, is the rather paltry rates for Bay Lake Tower at Disney’s Contemporary Resort, Disney’s Beach Club Villas, and Disney’s Polynesian Villas & Bungalows. Each of these expensive resorts is only 15-20% off, as compared to 30-35% off other Deluxe Villas and Deluxe Resorts.

This is undoubtedly due to the popularity of each, and in the case of the Beach Club and Poly Villas, the fact that the main hotels aren’t available for booking most travel dates. Nevertheless, we’d strongly discourage you from booking these resorts. Do BoardWalk Villas instead of Beach Club–the rooms are similarly bland and locations are comparable. In the case of BLT or the Poly, choose the Grand Floridian instead.

Other than that, the biggest difference is that last year on January 2, the Free Dining at Walt Disney World discount was released. Granted, it ended up being cancelled before any of those travel dates came around, but that’s like the Super Bowl of Walt Disney World discounts and room-only discounts are like the World Series.

Some of us might prefer the latter–especially given the perpetual, conspicuous omission of the Detroit Lions in the former–but the Super Bowl is unquestionably the “bigger deal” for most people.

As we discuss in the aforementioned post, we still expect Free Dining to be released this year, but it could be a few months–or more–because that happens. When it does come out, it almost certainly won’t cover the same dates as this room-only discount.

Last year, there was also the “Kid-Sized Package” which was not worthwhile for the vast majority of Walt Disney World deal-seekers. Basically, equivalent to this year’s Two Free Days Discount.

Even though you can save more with Disney Vacation Club Point Rentals (especially confirmed reservations) or Priceline Express Deals, the flexible cancellation policy here (which neither of those offer) is huge. For many people, booking directly from Disney is going to be the only way to go in 2021 given the lingering risk and uncertainty.

Of course, value for money still depends upon what crowds, wait times, and entertainment offerings are looking like inside Walt Disney World’s parks, but comparing the apples to apples of the resorts, these “Spring into Magic” discounts running through Summer 2021 are better than their counterparts from last year.

As with most discount release days, Walt Disney World’s phone lines will be jammed and the online system will likely slow to a crawl at peak times, with Stitch eating the occasional page here and there.

Despite that, we’d encourage you to book this deal ASAP, especially if you’re considering one of the Deluxe Villas. Walt Disney World doesn’t have much inventory for those Disney Vacation Club resorts, so those rooms in particular are likely to book quickly.

In any case, here’s a look at what should be the best per night prices at most of the eligible resorts:

Keep in mind that if you already have a resort reservation booked under another discount (or no deal at all), you can modify your reservation and apply this deal (pending availability and eligibility). Since this is the best deal Walt Disney World has released for these travel dates, you will definitely save more money–unless your room category isn’t available and you have to do a forced/unwanted upgrade.

If you want to help determining what discounts are available for your travel dates and which resort will work best for your family, we recommend requesting a quote from Be Our Guest Vacations, a no-fee Authorized Disney Vacation Planner that we recommend. The agents there will book your vacation and help take the stress out of planning.

Ultimately, some of these room-only discounts for the “Spring into Magic” deal at Walt Disney World are pretty decent, but there’s nothing groundbreaking here. Just a familiar “workhorse” discount that doesn’t grab headlines or fan excitement, but often ends up being the best rate for some fans or (especially) couples looking for nice accommodations.

To that point, Deluxe Villa and Deluxe Resorts are going to offer the best savings—we’d skew towards the standalone properties rather than the add-on wings for maximum savings. Unfortunately, due to the loss of the extra 5% off (as compared to the previous deal through April 2021) plus higher room rates for the summer months, the net prices end up being more expensive. Nevertheless, if you’re eager for an escape to Walt Disney World in the coming months and don’t mind the in-park sacrifices and need flexibility on the cancellation policy, these price points are pretty attractive.

Hopefully, Walt Disney World will release more Summer & Fall 2021 discounts for the general public in the coming months. It’s good to see Disney getting back on track with general public discounts, and also reopening more hotels and restaurants. If history repeats itself, the next major round of discounts would be released the third week of April 2021, and would include a room-only offer through the end of August 2021.

It could also include Free Dining if we’re jumping back to the “old” discount schedule from a few years ago. While it’s premature to predict the return of the Disney Dining Plan and that highly-coveted deal on that timeline, it’s certainly possible. Walt Disney World has already surprised us countless times during the reopening process–a good surprise for once would be nice! We will be closely monitoring what’s released and will notify subscribers of our free email newsletter when any Walt Disney World discounts are released or rumored!

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 of these room only discounts for the general public, Annual Passholders, and Florida residents? If you booked this, do you think you ended up with a good price? What was available or unavailable for your dates? Is 30-35% off enough to convince you to book a trip, or is too much still missing from the full Walt Disney World experience to justify even those prices? Do you agree or disagree with our assessments? 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!

37 Responses to “Save Up to 35% Off Disney World Hotels in Spring & Summer 2021!”
  1. Amanda E Wells May 23, 2021
  2. Rebecca March 29, 2021
  3. Gabe Paul March 24, 2021
    • DebC March 27, 2021
  4. Lynsey January 8, 2021
  5. Soraya Zreik January 6, 2021
  6. Dennis Schoeb January 5, 2021
  7. Asmaha January 5, 2021
  8. Amy January 5, 2021
    • Tom Bricker January 5, 2021
  9. Justin B. January 5, 2021
    • Stacey January 5, 2021
    • Tom Bricker January 5, 2021
  10. Lourdes Jimenez January 5, 2021
    • Tom Bricker January 5, 2021
  11. Daniel January 5, 2021
  12. Ash January 5, 2021
  13. Ben January 5, 2021
    • Krista January 5, 2021
    • Ben January 5, 2021
  14. Andrew Maxwell January 5, 2021
  15. Maria January 5, 2021
    • jenn January 5, 2021
    • DebC January 5, 2021
    • Tom Bricker January 5, 2021
  16. Bambi January 5, 2021
    • Tom Bricker January 5, 2021
  17. Melissa Brewer January 5, 2021
  18. Jamie O. January 5, 2021
    • Tom Bricker January 5, 2021
    • Jamie O. January 5, 2021
    • Aaron January 5, 2021
  19. Drew January 5, 2021
    • Tom Bricker January 5, 2021
  20. DebC January 5, 2021
    • Nicole Brown January 5, 2021
    • Tom Bricker January 5, 2021

Leave a Reply to Rebecca Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *