Hey there! Today I have written you a list of how to spend your rest days off at Disney World. I know, it’s hard to spend an off day while on a Disney vacation because you A) feel like you are missing out on the magic or B) feel like you are wasting money on a resort night. I am not going to lie, it’s hard to stomach spending money on a deluxe resort if you aren’t there for Disney. But trust me, your poor feet will thank you at the end of the day.
Don’t feel bad about just relaxing for one day or even two, you deserve it!
Free ways to spend your rest days:
Hang By the Pool: Disney has amazing, themed pools. It doesn’t matter if you are staying in a value, moderate or deluxe resort! Let the kids hang out in the pool while you soak your feet!
REST!!: I know, you don’t want to spend all this money to just rest in your room… But let me tell you, the next day everyone will be so energized and ready to go!
Disney Springs– Disney Springs is much like Downtown Disney in California. There are several restaurants, entertainment areas, shopping, and the Lego Store. Kids can play and create with Legos for free.
Resort Activities– Every resort has free activities to help keep kids entertained throughout your stay. Contact your front desk for a list of free activities.
Window Shop: Head to Disney Springs to window shop, or window shop at your resort.
Movie Under the Stars: Contact your front desk to see what time the movie starts, and where it will take place.
Electrical Water Parade: Enjoy this free nighttime electric parade out on 7 Seas Lagoon, starts at 8:25pm.
Ride the Monorail– Take a trip on the monorail to get the kids out of the hotel. You can also use this to resort hop!
Animals Watching at Animal Kingdom Lodge – Head over to the Animal kingdom resort, where you can watch the animals from the resort. They also have fun activities for kids throughout the day.
Visit The Boardwalk – We stopped over at the Boardwalk after dinner one night, and it was so beautiful and fun. There are a lot of great restaurants to try, and you’ll also find the famous Kitchen Sink ice cream treat on the boardwalk! Activities for the kids such as hula hoops, arcades, and watching the movie under the stars.
Chip and Dale’s Campfire Singalong – Fort Wilderness has Chip and Dale’s campfire sing-along, enjoy smores around the campfire.
Resort Hopping– You can take the Monorail, Ferry, or Bus to any resort location. Go check out the other resort activities and see where you are going to stay on your next Disney trip.
Activities that are fun but not free:
Mini Golf– Mini Golf is available for an extra fee $14.00 for adults and $12.00 for children or sometimes free with your Extra Magic pass.
Visit A Water Park– Disney does have two themed water parks, Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Bay, that look like they would be super fun for everyone. I haven’t personally been the water parks yet, but we will be going next year for sure! You can add these tickets to your park passes, for an additional cost. Depending on the length of stay, it will be around $20.00 per ticket to add the water parks to your hopper pass.
Take A Pony Ride at Ft. Wilderness– Pony rides are available for the littles ones for $8.00 a ride. According to Disney’s website, riders must be at least 2 years of age, under 80 pounds, no taller than 48 inches and able to hang on by themselves.
Extra Magic– Vouchers for a round of mini-golf, admission to ESPN Wide World of Sports, discounts on bowling, dining and shopping.
Character Dining at a Resort– Disney has several different character restaurants that are at the resorts, and not inside the park. This is a good way to keep the magic alive without being in the parks.
Disney Springs Hot Air Balloon Ride – At Disney Springs, you can actually go up in the Hot Air Balloon! Don’t worry it doesn’t go anywhere, but it will take you up above Disney Springs for an awesome view of the surrounding area. You can do this for an additional $25.00 per adult and $20.00 for children.
Visit The Spa– Who does want to visit a spa?! In my dreams, I imagine laying in the spa while the kids are hanging out by the pool… A dream is just a wish your heart makes… RIGHT?
Drawn to Life presented by Cirque du Soleil– Also in Disney Springs, you can actually see a Cirque du Soleil show. They have performances most evenings and tickets are recommended in advance.
Disney Quest – Disney Quest is located in Disney Springs is a 5-story attraction that houses an array of virtual reality games, fantasy adventure games, and classic arcade games. There is a separate entry fee… NBA Experience has now taken the spot of Disney Quest as of July 2017!
AMC Dine-In Theater –Disney Springs also has a movie theater so you can catch up on the latest Disney films.
Pub Crawl Around Resorts –Most of the hotels have bars, many with interesting and unique drinks that are worth trying.
Trader Sam’s Grotto – A unique tiki bar experience with delicious drinks and interactive elements for you to enjoy.
Carriage Ride at Port New Orleans – If you are looking for a romantic idea for your honeymoon or anniversary, consider taking a horse-drawn carriage around the Resort for only $55.00.
Water sports – A the Contemporary Resort, they offer Parasailing and hang gliding!
If you have a car:
Universal Studios– I would highly recommend heading over to Universal Studios if you have Harry Potter fans or teens who love thrill rides. I would give yourself two days to see and do everything in the parks. They now have Volcano Bay, a water park that is separate from Universal that looks like a blast! We again didn’t try this water park either, I promised the kids we would go to this one next year too.
Kennedy Space Center- I was very impressed with the Kenndy Space Center. I’ll be the first to admit, I highly underestimated it. We slept in, and then just moseyed on over. I wish we had either gotten there at opening or spent another day there. They close the launchpad tours at 4:00pm and we didn’t make it on that tour!
Sea World– I know that this a touchy amusement park for some folks who are against the captivity of animals, apologize ahead of time. I have not personally attended Sea World in Florida, only in California. I can’t tell you what condition everything there is in, though I can say, I was severely disappointed when we visited the one in California. Do your research very carefully and decide for yourself if this is one you want to visit.
Lego Land– Again, I didn’t visit Lego Land in Orlando this time around. I have been to the one in California, but it has been several years. It looks like a ton of fun for the little ones, and we did have a blast last time we stopped in. I wouldn’t recommend going there if your children are teens and above. I just don’t really think they would enjoy as much as the younger kids.
Beach– We stopped into several beaches to watch the surfers and collect seashells. We had so much fun looking for seashells the first day, that we actually went back for the second day of fun! Stay for a beautiful sunset but be aware that it can get a little chilly at night.
To save some money you may want to consider:
To save some money on your resorts, you can do what we did, and this of course depends on what resort you stay at. If you are in a value resort, the cost will be about the same. On our last trip to Disney World, we stayed in a deluxe resort for our time at Disney. Then we switched over to Universal Studios resort for the last half of our trip, they are much cheaper. We then went to Universal for 3 days, the beach for 2 days and the Kennedy Space Center for one day. This saved us a ton of money on our resort stay and we were closer to the area that we wanted to be for our last leg of the trip.
Additional ways to save money are to buy items before you go and pack in your own snacks and meals. Check out my complete packing list of what to bring and what to buy before your next trip to save you money. I also have a complete list of the easiest meals and snacks to pack in. Don’t want to rent a car to go to the grocery store? There are 5 grocery stores near Disney world that will actually deliver your groceries to your resort!
What’s your favorite thing to do with for rest day at Disney World?
Great list! Thank you- I thought Disney Quest closed?!? Makes me very excited that it’s still open since I worked for the one in Chicago 1999-2000
OMG Kelley, Disney Quest did close right after our last visit! It has now been replaced with NBA Experience! What a bummer, I knew there were rumors of it shutting down but I didn’t think it would ever actually happen!
Skip Sea World! Wasted a fortune on a day that had major areas closed without notice. Parking was expensive. Make popcorn and watch the nature channel!
Ive actually heard that before but with the one in California. It sounds like they are some what the same! They are getting so run down, it makes me wonder about the animals care. I’m with you, skip it!