It’s been called “The Happiest Place on Earth.” But there’s no denying that when it comes to going to Disneyland or the Walt Disney World Resort, not all trips are created equal.

Just like how there’s a big difference between watching the Super Bowl at home and attending the game in-person, there’s a big difference between feeling like you’re stuck in lines all day and staying at the cheapest motel you can find and skipping the lines and staying at a one-of-a-kind themed resort.

“Many people across the country want to spend their free time making the very best of their vacations, and if they have children, they want to make those moments magical for them as well,” says Leonard Kim of AdvisorCheck. “Most people are under the impression that a lot of the planning that goes into their financial goals are limited to what they could do on their own. However, that isn’t further from the truth, as financial advisors can help anyone plan out how to achieve their own financial goals, whether they are aligned with retirement planning, or even going to the most magical place in the world,” Leonard continued.

When done right, a family trip to Disneyland or Disney World can truly be a luxurious experience!

But this isn’t going to happen by accident. It requires a fair amount of planning, including understanding the costs of what you want to do, as well as enlisting the help of a financial advisor to turn those vacation goals into reality.

Let’s break it down …

How Much Will That Luxury Disneyland or Disney World Vacation Cost?

Whether you want to ride on the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad or join the Guardians of the Galaxy for Mission: Breakout!, your first order of business is getting tickets and accommodations for your luxury trip.

For the sake of this example, we’re going to be talking about a luxury Disney World trip for a family of four, with two kids under the age of 10 (since that’s when Disney starts considering you an “adult” for ticket pricing purposes). Keep in mind, too, that since we’re planning a luxurious, all-out trip, we’re not necessarily going to be looking for the cheapest options.

Park Admission

Walt Disney World offers several different admissions options to its parks — but for the sake of our example, we’ll plan on a 5-day trip for a full-scale experience that gives you time to (hopefully) do most of what you want to do.

While 5-day tickets currently start at $99, prices at Disney World vary based on seasonal demand and other factors. For example, purchasing a 5-day ticket that starts on April 24, 2023, has tickets starting at $121 per day. 

If you go with the cheapest option (the 1 Park Per Day ticket), you’d pay $601.72 per adult and $582.12 per child age 3-9. On the other hand, if you go for the Park Hopper Plus ticket, which lets you visit multiple parks per day and visit water parks or sports parks, you’d pay $711.72 per adult and $692.12 per child. Going for the luxurious option, your total ticket costs here would be $2,807.68.

Tickets are a little cheaper at Disneyland, with 5-day tickets starting at $83 and coming out to a total of $415 per adult and $390 per child age 3-9 for the same time period. The Park Hopper Plus ticket at Disneyland costs $475 per adult and $450 per child. The luxurious option here would cost $1,850, close to $1,000 cheaper than the Walt Disney World Resort. 

Accommodations and Travel

Getting to and around either Disneyland or Disney World should also be accounted for in your vacation planning. Naturally, plane ticket prices will vary based on where you are traveling from. For example, to fly from LAX to Orlando at the end of April, passengers could pay as little as $268 per person for a basic economy ticket, or upwards of $1,300 per person for a first-class ticket. Flying from JFK airport in New York is much cheaper, with direct flights as low as $178 per person or $578 for a first-class ticket.

Fortunately, vehicle rental fees are currently quite affordable when picking up from the Orlando Airport. For our end of April trip example, 5-day vehicle rentals are available in Orlando for as little as $90 and $131 in Los Angeles.

Of course, you’ll also need a place to stay during your weeklong Disney adventure. For those who want the ultimate Disney experience, you can’t beat staying in one of Disney’s resorts that are located on the park grounds!

At Disney World, there are 33 Disney World resort hotels to choose from, from Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge to the fully immersive Star Wars Galactic Starcruiser Adventure. Using the same example as before (a family with two adults and two kids, staying for 4 nights/5 days at the end of April), it’s easy to see that staying at one of the Disney resorts can also add a fair amount to your travel expenses.

For example, while Disney’s All-Star Movies Resort has a standard rate of $188.25 per night, staying at a Garden View Club level room at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort will cost $973.75 per night. Opting for the more luxurious experience here means you’ll be spending $3,895 for your accommodations (before taxes). Of course, with the more expensive resort comes additional exciting experiences, such as an electrical water pageant, spa and more!

Disneyland’s hotels range in between $349 a night for Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel, $508 for the Disneyland Hotel and $766 for Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel and Spa.

Extra Experiences

Of course, having a nice place to stay and park tickets is just the start. A trip to Disney World is all about the experience — and there are plenty of extras that will go a long way in making it unforgettable in the best way possible.

If you’re looking to skip lines, Walt Disney World’s Genie+ will cost $15-$25 per person per day ($25+ at Disneyland). You can also purchase individual Lightning Lanes for $10-$25 per ride. According to many guests, these add-ons are essential for any Disney World visit.

There are a wide range of extra experiences that you can also book for an additional cost. For example, you could take a private safari tour at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, with ticket prices ranging from $147.90-$174. A trip to the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique will cost $99.95 per child.

Finally, the average family of four spends an average of $250 on souvenirs. When it comes to food, expect to spend an average of $50 per adult per day, and $35 per child per day. Of course, depending on which restaurants you go to, your totals can easily get much higher than this — at ’Ohaha, dinner prices are $55 per adult and $33 per child, while dinner entrees at The Boathouse can cost as much as $62.

How a Financial Advisor Can Help You Plan to Get to Disney World or Disneyland

Crunch all those numbers, and it’s clear that like Scrooge McDuck, you’ll be counting every penny to save up for your ultimate Disneyland or Walt Disney World experience. Depending on the length of your stay and the types of experiences your family wants to participate in, your Disney World vacation will very likely reach the five-figures range.

For most people, this is no small sum — and even if you’re in a financial position where you could afford that kind of a trip every few years, it will still require some careful planning. After all, without proper financial management, even millionaires can go bankrupt.

This is where meeting a financial advisor comes in. When you meet with a good financial advisor, their first order of business is to discuss your life goals. This doesn’t just include saving retirement — it also includes goals like being able to go on luxury vacations!

A financial advisor can help you figure out exactly how much your luxury Disneyland or Disney World vacation would cost using your specific plans and family situation (you don’t just have to rely on the examples from this article). After determining the total cost that you would need to budget for your trip, they will then help you develop an investment strategy in line with achieving that goal.

It’s worth noting that your financial advisor can adapt your vacation investments while accounting for factors like your income, total investable assets and other financial goals. For some people, a luxury Walt Disney World trip might be a once in a lifetime experience. For others, this could be something they’d like to try to do every five years — or even every year.

No matter what your current financial position and your luxury vacation goals, a quality financial advisor will develop a strategy tailored to your unique needs. This includes making investment recommendations with varying levels of risk based on what you’re comfortable with and what is best suited for your situation.

Taking Additional Steps to Secure Your Overall Financial Future

Meeting with a financial advisor can be a valuable step in putting your money to work for you. With wise investments, you can grow your Disneyland or Disney World vacation budget much faster than if you simply set that money aside in a standard savings account.

However, you need to be doing your part to ensure that you can regularly add additional funds to your investment portfolio in the first place. Regardless of how much you earn, finding ways to reduce spending in other areas will make it easier to save and invest for an experience that would be more meaningful for the entire family.

This is especially true with current high inflation rates causing the cost of everything from food to cars to go up substantially. Even something as simple as driving less often so you can save on gas or buying a less expensive brand at the grocery store will leave more money in your bank account that you can invest with the help of your financial advisor.

With more money available to invest, you’ll be that much more likely to achieve your luxury Disney World vacation goal in the timeframe that you want.

Make Memories that Last a Lifetime

With the help of a financial advisor, your family trip to Disney World can be a truly unforgettable experience — one that you will be able to remember fondly for years and years. Whether it involved meeting Cinderella or enjoying a fully immersive Star Wars experience, these exciting trips can offer something for the whole family.

Best of all, with the help of a financial advisor, you can have confidence that your trip isn’t going to break the bank or throw off your other financial goals. AdvisorCheck makes it easy to find the right financial advisor for your needs. The free Advisor Search provides a comprehensive listing of advisors, as well as detailed information such as years of experience, disclosures and other factors that will help you choose who to work with. Signing up for a free AdvisorCheck membership will also give you access to multiple financial literacy and financial freedom resources as well, delivered straight to your inbox. 

That luxury Disney World trip isn’t going to happen by itself! Use AdvisorCheck to find a quality financial advisor near you, so you can start planning how to turn that dream vacation into a reality.

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Written by Lucas Miller, Entrepreneur Magazine Contributor

Fact checked by Billy Quirk

Reviewed by KJ Kim

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