When you visit Disney World, do you stay at a Disney World hotel? Sure, you might save some money by staying at a hotel off-property, but you might just be missing out if you do.

You see, staying at a Disney World hotel doesn’t just get you a prime spot for all the action (so to speak), but staying at a Disney World hotel also gets you perks you can’t get at most other hotels. We’ve taken a look at all the perks you’ll get when you stay at a Disney World hotel perk in 2026, so you can look at that and maybe decide that 2026 is the year you’ll stay in a Disney World hotel when you visit the parks.

Here’s what staying in a Disney World hotel in 2026 will get you.

Early Theme Park Entry

If you’re staying at a Disney World hotel, you qualify to get Early Theme Park Entry. Basically, this means you can get into the theme parks 30 minutes before everyone else. During this time, you’ll be allowed to ride certain attractions, meaning you can get a jump on knocking some rides out of the way before everyone else is in the park.

Note that not every ride is open during Early Theme Park Entry — you can see a full list of rides open during this time here.

Everything you need to know about Early Theme Park Entry

Extended Evening Hours

If you’re staying at a deluxe Disney World hotel, you also get access to Extended Evening Hours. On select nights, a Disney theme park is open for a few hours after its official closing time. This time is JUST for guests staying at deluxe hotels, so you’ll get some time in the parks with low crowds and low wait times.

You can check which parks are open for extended evening hours on the Disney World calendar.

Extra Theme Park Hours Benefits for Disney World Resort Hotel Guests

Free water park tickets

In 2025, Disney revealed a NEW perk for all Disney World hotel guests. If you’re staying at a Disney World hotel, you can get FREE water park tickets for either Blizzard Beach or Typhoon Lagoon for the day you check in at your hotel during the summer of 2026 (note this is only for the summer).

This is why we recommend packing a bathing suit and water park items in a bag that you have quick access to, so you can check-in to your hotel (if your room is ready) or store your bags at the hotel and head straight to the water park.

Typhoon Lagoon vs. Blizzard Beach — Disney World Water Parks Showdown

Free transportation and parking

If you drive to Disney World and are staying at a Disney World hotel, you get free parking both at your hotel and at the theme parks. Free parking? Now that’s A PERK.

However, if you’re not driving or just don’t want to, you can also use Disney World’s extensive transportation system FOR FREE, which will get you to pretty much everywhere on property. This transportation network includes buses, boats, the Monorail, and the Skyliner.

Learn more about Disney World’s transportation

Early access to Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Lightning Lane Single Pass

If you’ve got a room booked at a Disney World hotel for your trip, you can start booking your Lightning Lanes through Lightning Lane Multi Pass and Lightning Lane Single Pass seven days before your trip (everyone else can book three days ahead of time). That will give you a leg up on getting those coveted Lightning Lanes for popular rides.

By comparison, those not staying at a Disney World hotel can only pre-book Lightning Lanes three days in advance.

Everything you need to know about Lightning Lane Multi Pass in Disney World

As you can see, staying at a Disney World hotel could pay off in ways you hadn’t thought of yet. But there’s another big perk of staying on property. Staying in a Disney World hotel means that you get to live inside the Disney bubble and away from the rest of the world for the length of your stay. Now, THAT’S what we call a vacation.

Stay tuned to DFB for more.

A Definitive Ranking of EVERY Disney World Hotel!