Normalizing Yearly Trips to Disney World

Back in the early 1990s, when I was around five years old, I sat in a guest hospitality office while my parents signed the paperwork to make our family official Disney Vacation Club members. Since the DVC program was new, there was the added perk of free park tickets for the family for the first five years. Thus, our annual family vacation to Disney World was established.

I don’t remember much from those early trips (except for smaller crowds and being able to ride The Barnstormer over and over again without having to get off), and I definitely didn’t appreciate the luxury of visiting Disney World every year. It wasn’t until I met my now-husband that I realized yearly visits weren’t normal. I was shocked when he told me he had only been to Disney World once as a kid and that his parents didn’t enjoy the park environment. It didn’t take long for him to discover that visiting Disney World is my love language and that he would need to adapt to my park experience expectations. In our thirteen years together, we’ve been to Disney World seven times (soon to be eight with our upcoming inaugural trip to Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party in October) and Disneyland twice.

Since the pandemic and park closures in 2020, my craving to visit Disney World as often as possible has grown exponentially. That’s also when the era of Disney live streamers began (shoutout to ResortTV1 and Ron On The Go), and my obsession skyrocketed with my daily stream viewings. When the parks reopened, however, my dream of yearly trips was hindered by a significant factor: price increases. Suddenly, we’re a family of four and dreading breaking down the budget for a three-day trip. Do we cut costs by staying at an off-property value hotel, sacrificing the amenities and magic of staying on property (I’m nostalgic for the sound the Disney buses make when they stop to pick up guests)? Do we limit ourselves to one park day instead of two and try to cram everything in? Do we leave the kids at home to cut our costs in half (they don’t really care about the parks; they just want the treats and a toy from the gift shop)?

The answer to those questions is no—we aren’t going to sacrifice the magic. Instead, we’re going to find ways to maximize it. I invite you to follow along as our family of four from central Texas sets out to make the most of each Disney trip without straining our budget or diminishing our experiences.