Disney World: How We Used Points & Miles to Save Thousands

Disney vacations are magical... but they're definitely not cheap. When I started planning our trip, I knew I didn't want to pay full price if I didn't have to. Instead of relying on one rewards program, I combined four different credit card strategies to dramatically reduce the cost of our vacation.

Here's exactly how we did it:

1. Disney Swan Resort → Chase Sapphire Preferred

Instead of paying cash for our hotel, I used Chase points from the welcome bonus for the Chase Sapphire Preferred to book three nights at the Disney Swan through the Chase Travel Portal. Booking this way actually required fewer points than transferring to Marriott, and because the Swan is a Marriott property, I still received my Marriott Gold Elite benefits during our stay.

The Swan, Dolphin, and Swan Reserve are not technically Disney-owned hotels, but they are considered Disney Deluxe Resort hotels and are located in the Epcot resort area, making them incredibly convenient options for Disney vacations. You’re within walking distance of both Epcot and Hollywood Studios, with easy access to the Disney BoardWalk and complimentary Friendship boats that take you to the parks. There is also a bus to Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom. We always use our rideshare credits to Uber or Lyft to Animal Kingdom.

Guests also have access to many of the same perks available at Disney Deluxe Resorts, including Early Entry every day and Extended Evening Park Hours on select nights. For our family, the combination of a deluxe resort experience, an unbeatable location, and the ability to use points makes these hotels one of our favorite Disney options.

One thing to keep in mind when deciding between the Swan, Dolphin, and Swan Reserve is the room setup. The Dolphin typically has the lowest cash rates and often requires the fewest points. However, its standard rooms have two double beds, while the Swan and Swan Reserve offer two queen beds.

2. Flights → Delta SkyMiles Gold American Express Card

I used the welcome bonus from my husband’s Delta SkyMiles Gold American Express Card to book our flights using miles instead of paying cash. I love this card because the annual fee is waived for the first year, but you can still take advantage of all the benefits right away. Some of my favorite perks include:

✈️15% off Delta award flights

🧳Free checked bags for everyone on your reservation

🏨 $100 Delta Stays hotel credit

🚗 $10 monthly rideshare credits

You can even get all of these perks, along with the welcome bonus, and still cancel the card after one year. I have kept mine because all the perks are worth it to me, especially the 15% off Delta award flights.

*If you happen to qualify for a business credit card, I would highly suggest considering the business version of this card instead (Delta SkyMiles Business Gold). Chase has a rule called 5/24, which means you typically won’t be approved for most Chase cards if you’ve opened 5 or more personal credit cards across all banks in the past 24 months.

One of the benefits of business cards is that, in most cases, they do not count toward your 5/24 total. Many people qualify for business cards if they have a side hustle, freelance work, an online business, or other small business.

3. Disney Tickets → Capital One Venture

Park tickets are another major Disney expense. This is where the Capital One Venture Card welcome bonuses made a huge difference.

I opened the card first and then referred my husband (which is where my four-card strategy really helped maximize our rewards). By doing this, I was able to earn a 10K referral bonus, and we each earned the 75K welcome bonus miles, giving us a combined 160,000 Capital One miles before even factoring in the miles we earned from our everyday spending. Those 160,000 miles are worth $1,600 toward travel expenses.

Capital One has another feature that helped us save even more on our Disney tickets. Inside the Capital One app, there are targeted offers available for different merchants. A few months before our trip, I saw an offer to earn 50,000 Capital One miles after spending $1,000 with Undercover Tourist. This was a huge opportunity because Capital One has a feature called the Travel Eraser, which allows you to use your miles to offset eligible travel purchases made on your card.

Since our Undercover Tourist purchase coded as travel, we were able to purchase our Disney tickets, earn the bonus miles from the offer, and then use our Capital One miles to erase the charge. The result? We were able to completely cover the cost of our 3-Day Disney tickets using Capital One miles. This was one of my favorite examples of stacking rewards: using a welcome bonus, a referral bonus, a targeted offer, and everyday spending rewards together to turn a major vacation expense into a much smaller out-of-pocket cost.

This is the current Undercover Tourist offer available in my Capital One app.

Bonus Tip: If you have Florida family, you could save even more

My parents are Florida residents, and for years they've purchased Florida Resident Disney tickets for our kids as their Christmas gift. In doing so, our kids get an experience they'll actually remember, and we avoid adding more toys and clutter to the house.

Over the years, we've never had an issue using these tickets. That said, there have recently been rumblings that Disney may begin requiring children using Florida Resident tickets to live with the Florida resident purchasing them. As with any Disney policy, it's always a good idea to check the current terms before making plans, as policies can change.

If you have parents or grandparents who are Florida residents, it's definitely worth looking into. For us, it's been another creative way to make Disney vacations more affordable while swapping "more stuff" under the Christmas tree for unforgettable family memories.

*An important note: the Florida residents do need to be present to activate these tickets at Guest Services before they are eligible for use. We always go over to Guest Services outside Epcot's International Gateway to activate the tickets the night before our first park day. This is especially convenient when staying at the Swan because it's only a few minutes away and a perfect time to explore the Boardwalk and ride the Friendship Boat.

You Don't Have to Do It All at Once

If you're brand new to points and miles, don't feel like you need four new credit cards tomorrow. I certainly didn't. This trip came together with about a year of planning.

If I were starting from scratch today, I'd still begin with the Chase Sapphire Preferred because of its flexible points and generous welcome bonus that is ending on 7/30/26. Once you're comfortable with one rewards program, you can gradually add others that fit your travel goals. Before you know it, you'll be putting together vacations the same way - using the right card for each piece of the trip instead of paying full price for everything.

Where We Chose to Save and to Splurge

One of the biggest reasons we were able to keep this trip affordable is because we only planned three park days. For our family, three days at Disney is the sweet spot. It's enough time to experience our favorite parks and attractions without the added cost (and exhaustion!) of a longer trip. Because we saved so much on our flights, hotel, and park tickets, we felt comfortable spending more on the things that made the biggest difference to our experience.

For us, that meant:

✨ Park Hopper tickets - We love the flexibility of being able to start the day in one park and end it in another. Since we were saving so much in other areas, upgrading to Park Hoppers felt well worth it.

⚡ Lightning Lane Passes - This is one Disney expense I will never regret. Spending less time waiting in line means more time enjoying the parks, and with kids, that's worth every penny to me. If there's one place I'm happy to splurge, it's here.

🚐 Minnie Vans to/from Magic Kingdom - This is another splurge I'll happily make at least once during our trip. After a long day in the parks, there's nothing better than skipping the transportation chaos and getting picked up right at the front of Magic Kingdom. Unlike regular rideshares, which can't pick up directly at the park entrance, Minnie Vans (nicely air conditioned Suburbans with car seats driven by cast members) can. Since the Swan isn't on the monorail loop, taking a Minnie Van back to the hotel after the fireworks is incredibly convenient. They're definitely more expensive than other transportation options, but after a full day at Magic Kingdom, we think the time and stress they save are absolutely worth it.

My favorite part of using points and rewards is being able to save money on the biggest expenses - like flights, hotels, and tickets - so we can comfortably spend more on the experiences that make the trip even more enjoyable.

If you're thinking about getting any of these cards, I'd really appreciate it if you used my referral link. If you're approved, you'll receive the same welcome offer, and I'll earn referral points at no additional cost to you. Those referral points help us book more family trips and continue sharing our points and miles strategies with you.

Send me a message if you have any questions about how I planned this trip!