There’s lots to know about taking a solo trip to Disney World, but if you’re going to start thinking about a solo trip at natural first question is how much will it cost? In this post, I’m going to break down how much a solo trip to Disney World costs, focusing on three sample trips (budget, baseline, and expensive). Read on to learn all about how much it costs to travel to Disney World solo!
Not Pictured: Anyone Else
About This Post + Related Posts
This post focuses on solo trips to Disney World. Theoretically it could also be good if, for example, you and a few friends are traveling together and plan to split hotel costs (just take these numbers and divide the hotel cost). But most groups, particularly families, should probbly consult our more general post on How Much It Costs to Go to Disney World. And we also have a Complete Guide to Planning a Disney World Trip.
This post covers flights, transportation to/from MCO, tickets, hotel, food and drink, and Lightning Lanes. It doesn’t include getting to/from your home airport, and it doesn’t include expenditures for souvenirs. This post currently uses 2024 pricing.
I’ll build three example trips here. The “baseline” trip is (as always) just what I’d recommend to anyone without knowing anything about how much they want to spend. The budget trip is for people who want to save a little, and the expensive trip is for people who are willing to spend a little more.
As always, I want to be clear that “budget” does not mean “cheapest possible trip.” If you were asking “what the minimum I should plan to spend for a solo trip to Disney World”, this is where I’d start. If you said “but I can’t do that and I’d really, really like to go”, then yea—you can find ways to save even more.
Solo Trips Should Be More Flexible
Look, you don’t have to do a solo trip with a “budget” mindset (that’s why we have three examples here), but you should go into it with some more flexibility than when planning for a larger group.
Flexibility is worth a lot at Disney World, and it’s a lot easier to be flexible when you’ve got only one person to corral and plan for (yourself) than a whole group of people of wide ranging ages, interests, and temperaments.
A classic example would be a split stay. We think split stays are an awesome option at Disney World. But with even with our small family, split stays are difficult. With multiple generations or multiple families? Often impossible. A solo traveler has a much easier time packing a small bag of stuff and getting out of a hotel room mid-stay.
So we’re going to lean into flexibility here. We’ll provide budget and expensive options, but our “baseline” is going to be a semi-flexible solo traveler.
Split stays are a great way to experience deluxe resorts
Picking Dates and Trip Length
Picking dates and trip length is probably the trickiest part of this post. It can impact your costs greatly, but people are going to vary widely in what they think is reasonable, particularly on the “budget” end of things.
Some budget travelers might think two full days plus some time on the travel days is enough, setting up a truly “budget” trip. But some might want the full four days, an extra two nights of hotel stays and two days of park tickets.
As I said above, I think a solo traveler should be more flexible, but that doesn’t mean you’ll want to be racing to cram everything in (and still missing out, if you don’t have enough days).
Dates also matter a lot, but they’re going to come down to so much of your personal circumstance and preferences. If your group has five people of varying ages, then pretty much everything at Disney World is going to be on someone’s “must do” list, so a longer trip is needed. But if your solo “must do” list is short, maybe you decide a short trip during Christmas season is a better option than a long trip during off season.
That’s the long of getting to my point. I’m going to use a June trip for my sample pricing, because June is a pretty average month and a good month to visit Disney World. If you’re really interested in bringing down price, read about the cheapest times to visit Disney World.
I’m going to assume the budget traveler visits for three full days (four nights) with three day tickets (if you have extra time on a travel day, do things like resort hopping, a resort day, mini golf, or Disney Springs).
For more information on short trips, read:
I’m going to assume the baseline and expensive trips include four full days (five nights). Here are the specific dates I’ll be using:
Budget Solo Trip — June 6 - 10
Baseline Solo Trip — June 6 - 11
Expensive Solo Trip — June 6 - 11
Flights
I’m more willing to fly a budget airline like Spirit or Frontier when I’m solo. I can get by for even a long trip with just a personal item (i.e. a small backpack, no paying for a carry on). I also can get by without paying for a seat assignment, but if I do decide I need a seat assignment it’s at least only a fee for one person.
Looking at upcoming rates out of LGA (my current home airport), I think a reasonably flexible budget traveler can find a flight for $150 roundtrip. Most roundtrip flights along this route cost under $250, so that’s a reasonable baseline to target. (From LAX, on my peak summer travel dates, currently starts at $307.) And yes, we’ve flown Delta First Class along this route a few times, which is currently going for around $700 roundtrip.
Budget Solo Trip - $150 for roundtrip flights on a budget carrier
Baseline Solo Trip - $250 for roundtrip flights on a legacy carrier
Expensive Solo Trip - $700 for roundtrip first class flights
Airport Transportation
Everyone who flies in to MCO has to then get from MCO to Walt Disney World, and there’s no more complimentary option from Disney. A budget traveler can spend just $33.60 roundtrip for a Mears Connect shuttle.
An UberX will cost somewhere around $100 roundtrip, and a more expensive Uber option will cost closer to $130 roundtrip.
Budget Solo Trip - $34 for Mears Connect roundtrip to/from airport
Baseline Solo Trip - $100 for UberX to/from airport
Expensive Solo Trip - $130 for nicer Uber to/from airport
Tickets
I think solo travelers should always get park hopper tickets. This is related to some of what I said above. It’s not hard to tell a large group how to fill a day at any park (“do this for the kids, do this for the teens, do this for grandparents”), but a solo traveler might get to a park, zip through the things they care about, and then feel like it’s time to leave.
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with leisurely spending full days in the parks without hopping. But maybe your hotel is off the Skyliner. Maybe you get back at 6PM from Animal Kingdom and think “ya know, I’d really like to just go see Hollywood Studios at night again.” You don’t want the only thing that’s stopping you to be the lack of park hopper. (You can add park hopper to your tickets after buying, but I advise just getting it initially so you can start taking advantage on your first day.)
For a budget trip, three days of park hopper is enough. For the baseline trip, a goal of one full day at each park, plus park hopping to enable you to play favorites, is a good idea. And for an expensive trip, get five days with park hopper so you can spend some of your travel day time at the parks, too.
I’m going to use pricing from Undercover Tourist, my preference for buying Disney World tickets:
Budget Solo Trip Tickets — $540
Baseline Solo Trip Tickets— $677
Expensive Solo Trip Tickets — $723
Hotels
Ah, Disney hotels. Want to spend over $1000 per night? You can. Want to spend under $100 per night? Well, you can’t, but you can get close…ish.
If you want to stay in the general area of Disney World, you can find stays for under $100 per night, but they won’t be at Disney’s own hotels. On this site, we generally consider that to be “too budget.” We think the Disney value resorts are worth the perks (mainly Early Entry and easy transportation to/from the parks), particularly for first time visitors. (If you’re not a first time visitor, you can think through some of these issues a little more on your own.)
There are five options I want to present for hotels. I’ll pick one for each of our three trips (budget / baseline / expensive), but there are two alternatives I want to mention, too.
First, our budget traveler can stay at any of the All Star Resorts, like All Star Movies. It’s a fun, very “Disney” hotel. It’s got free transportation (buses) to the parks, and you’ll have access to Early Entry. When I’m at the All Star resorts I like to allow for a few Uber rides in my budget rather than relying totally on the buses, but this is still the “budget” call. It’ll cost our budget traveler $894 (that includes tax) for four summer nights.
Personally, I’ll always make the upgrade to Pop Century, a value resort with access to the Skyliner. This would cost a total of $1,091 for the four summer nights, but I find the Skyliner access to be worth the additional cost.
This brings us naturally to our baseline trip. Here I’ll recommend Caribbean Beach. This is a Disney moderate resort that serves as the hub of the Skyliner. It’s got good amenities itself, plus Riviera resort is right next door if you’d like an expanded restaurant / bar selection. Five nights here will cost $1,729. (FWIW, my personal favorite accomodation at the moderate level is Gran Destino Tower at Coronado Springs.)
An alternative option that would work well for both our baseline and expensive trips would be a split stay. Book three nights at Pop Century so that you have access to the Skyliner to get to Epcot and Hollywood Studios. Then book two nights at Contemporary for easy access to Magic Kingdom (via monorail or walking path). The total here comes to $840 + $1,411 = $2,251.
Finally, a hotel stay for the expensive trip. I don’t think you need five nights in the Boardwalk area or five nights around the monorail. For this many nights, you’re good to go with one of the less expensive deluxe resorts—Wilderness Lodge or Animal Kingdom Lodge. The five nights at Wilderness Lodge come to $3,074. If you have some flexibility, this is a great time to consider renting DVC points for a deluxe stay.
Budget Solo Trip Hotel — $894
Baseline Solo Trip Hotel— $1,729
Expensive Solo Trip Hotel — $3,074
Food and Drink
Food and drink is another area where you’ll have a lot of flexibility. For starters, my general recommendation is to skip Dining plans, and that goes doubly for solo travelers. That said, you might want to learn more about Disney Dining Plans.
I prefer almost always to have quick service meals, which allow me a more flexible schedule. However, on solo trips if I can snag a good table service reservation for myself, I’ll occasionally do that. If you can look at the menu ahead of time to be prepared to order, you can get in and out of a solo table service meal in a timely fashion.
Our budget traveler can stick to quick service meals. For three full days in the park plus two travel days, I’ll account for 11 meals plus a small daily snack budget. This comes to $245.
For the baseline trip, doing two table service meals in four full days is a good option. This trip is one day longer than the budget trip. We’ll account for 12 quick service meals, 2 table service meals, and a snack budget. This comes to $384.
Finally, an expensive trip might include four (or more!) table service meals. This will bring the cost up to $454.
Budget Solo Trip Dining - $245
Baseline Solo Trip Dining - $384
Expensive Solo Trip Dining - $454
Lightning Lanes
Prices of Genie+ and Individual Lightning Lanes vary day-by-day / park-by-park / ride-by-ride. To that end, we’ll assume that either Genie+ or an Individual Lightning Lane costs $23. (If you’re new to all this, learn all about Genie+ and Lightning Lanes at Disney World before your trip.)
Generally, you will probably want Genie+ at Hollywood Studios and Magic Kingdom and probably not at Animal Kingdom and Epcot. Individual Lightning Lanes vary a bit more by precisely what you’re planning.
Even our budget traveler should plan for two days of Genie+ and one Individual Lightning Lane. This comes to $69. For a baseline trip, I think three days of Genie+ and two Individual Lightning Lanes is enough. This comes to $115 And for an expensive trip, just get Genie+ four days and an Individual Lightning Lane four days, spending $184.
Budget Solo Trip Lightning Lanes - $69
Baseline Solo Trip Lightning Lanes - $115
Expensive Solo Trip Lightning Lanes - $184
Bring It All Together…
Here are the totals once we bring everything together, with some commentary to follow.
Budget Solo Trip to Disney World - $1932
Flights - $150 (roundtrip on a budget airline)
MCO Transportation - $34 (Mears Connect roundtrip)
Tickets — $540 (3 days with park hopper)
Hotel — $894 (4 nights All Star Movies)
Dining - $245 (all quick service, snacks)
Lightning Lanes - $69 (3X Genie+ or ILL)
Total - $1932
Baseline Solo Trip to Disney World - $3255
Flights - $250 (roundtrip on a legacy airline)
MCO Transportation - $100 (UberX to/from airport)
Tickets— $677 (4 days with park hopper)
Hotel— $1,729 (5 nights at Caribbean Beach)
Dining - $384 (quick service, 2X table service, snacks)
Lightning Lanes - $115 (5X Genie+ or ILL)
Total - $3255
Expensive Solo Trip to Disney World - $5265
Flights - $700 (roundtrip first class)
MCO Transportation - $130 (nicer Uber to/from airport)
Tickets — $723 (5 days with park hopper)
Hotel — $3,074 (5 nights at Wilderness Lodge)
Dining - $454 (quick service, 4X table service, snacks)
Lightning Lanes - $184 (4X Genie+, 4X ILL)
Total - $5265
Closing Thoughts
Probably the biggest thing I want to point out is how much hotel choice (along with stay length) matters. The expensive trip is $3333 more than the budget trip, but $2180 of that is hotel / stay length. Disney’s deluxe hotel prices can really push your budget up, and if you aren’t spending a lot of time at the hotel it might not be worth it.
If you pressured me to get the budget trip down a bit, I’d find a way to cut accommodations to $100 per night (saving about $500). At that point, you’re closer to $1500. Maybe you cut your Lightning Lane budget, but without Early Entry you might actually want to spend more on Lightning Lanes (since you’re only one person, this can still be cost effective).
In any case, enjoying a solo trip is possible on a wide range of budgets. Taking a solo trip is all about knowing what’s important to you (and you alone!!) and how to build the trip that best fits you. Have a magical time!
All Your Other Disney World Planning Questions Answered
Don't be overwhelmed by Disney World planning! Take a second to check out our most important content and you'll not only be an expert, but you'll save big $$$ along the way.
Just starting out? Check out our Walt Disney World planning guide! If you're still picking dates, we've got everything you need to know about Disney World crowd calendars. For picking your hotel, check out our Walt Disney World hotels guide.
When it comes time to book we’ll help you find discount Disney World tickets. Decide whether you need a dining plan in our Complete Guide to Disney World Dining Plans! And don't forget to book those Disney World Advance Dining Reservations!
Don't forget to master your Disney World Genie+ and Lightning Lane strategy a few months in advance. We'll keep you out of long lines so you can maximize the magical time in the parks! We've got park-specific guides as well: Magic Kingdom Genie+ and Lightning Lanes, Epcot Genie+ and Lightning Lanes, Animal Kingdom Genie+ and Lightning Lanes, and Hollywood Studios Genie+ and Lightning Lanes.
Know what to ride with our guides to: Magic Kingdom rides, Hollywood Studios rides, Epcot rides, and Animal Kingdom rides! Plus learn about the water parks with our guide to Blizzard Beach and our guide to Typhoon Lagoon! And for some some fun prep, check out our Ranking of Every Ride at Walt Disney World.
Finally, before you head out, be sure to check out our to-the-point packing list, 10 essentials you forget to pack for every Disney trip. And if you're interested in saving, there's no better list than our 53 Ways to Save on your Disney trip from start to finish.