Guide to a Nearly Free Disney Vacation

How To Get Free Airfare To Disney

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is one of our favorite cards. Sign-up bonus: Earn 75,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. The annual fee is $95.

Points are worth 1.00 cents through Chase Travel℠ (the easiest redemption method).

More detail from Chase on this redemption method:

Starting today (6/23/2025), there are even more ways to make the most of your trips on Chase Travel. With new Points Boost offers, your points will be worth up to 1.5x on thousands of both top booked hotels and flights with select airlines through Chase Travel - and up to 1.75x on premium cabin tickets on select airlines.

For Chase Travel purchases not eligible for Points Boost offers, starting October 26, 2025, all new points earned can be redeemed at a 1:1 rate on Chase Travel (replacing 1.25x on all Chase Travel purchases).

For points earned prior to October 26, 2025, you will automatically get the best offer available, whether it’s Points Boost or 1.25x on Chase Travel - maximizing the value of your rewards for the next two years.

Chase Ultimate Rewards® (UR) can be used just like cash to pay for travel. When using Chase Travel℠, there are no blackout dates, so rewards points can be used to book any available flight, making it ideal for family travel.

Flights from most major US cities to Orlando can be found for $300 or less. With this one credit card sign-up, two family members should be able to book flights to Orlando. However, both adults in a household are eligible to sign up for their own Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and earn the corresponding sign-up bonus. So that should cover all four family members.

Helpful Tip: Don’t worry if there’s only one adult in the family earning a paycheck. Use household income when applying for credit cards even if you aren’t the one earning it.

How To Get a Free Hotel Stay At Disney

Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card:

Earn 3 Free Night Awards after spending $3,000 on eligible purchases within 3 months of account opening, and an additional 1 Free Night Award after spending $4,000 total on eligible purchases within 4 months of account opening with the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card.. $95 annual fee.

Orlando has more than 450 hotels to choose from, but when using credit card points to visit Disney World, we recommend focusing on Marriott for a few reasons.

• Marriott gives the fifth night free when redeeming points
• Two on-site Disney Resorts to choose from
• Shuttles to the parks

Staying on-site provides guests with a few extra perks that can make paying the premium worthwhile, such as Extra Magic Hours, FastPass+, package delivery, and on-site character dining.

On-site options:

• Walt Disney World Dolphin

• Walt Disney World Swan

Or choose to stay off-site and spend even fewer points. Some of these nearby off-site options include free breakfast, free shuttles to the parks, or kitchens/kitchenettes.

• Sheraton Orlando Buena Vista Resort
• Fairfield Inn and Suites Orlando Lake Buena Vista
• Delta Hotels Lake Buena Vista
• TownePlace Suites Orlando at Flamingo Crossings
• SpringHill Suites Orlando at Flamingo Crossings

Helpful Tip: To book with points and receive the fifth-night free perk, all the points need to be in one Marriott account. Marriott allows the transfer of 100,000 points per year to another member by calling Guest Services at 1-801-468-4000.

How to Get Free Disney World Tickets

Yes, you can use credit card reward points for theme park tickets! Miles earned with the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card can be redeemed toward travel purchases made with the card.

Simply make the purchase with the card, log in to the account, and redeem the points for a statement credit against travel purchases. The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card will earn Earn up to $1,000 towards travel once you spend $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of account opening.  The annual fee is $95.

The Secret To Making This Work:

Point redemptions can only be made against travel purchases. To qualify, the purchase must code as “travel.” Tickets purchased from the Disney website do NOT code as travel.

Fortunately, theme park tickets purchased from the authorized seller, Undercovertourist.com, DO code as travel when you use your Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card to pay for the tickets.

Bonus: Undercovertourist.com tickets are often cheaper than when buying through Disney!

The Step-By-Step Path To Disney on a Dime

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

Step 1: Parent 1 opens a Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and meets the minimum spending requirement for the sign-up bonus.

Step 2: Parent 2 opens their own Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card and meets the minimum spending requirement for the sign-up bonus.

Step 3: Log in to the Chase Travel℠ to book airfare to Orlando. Fares are listed in both dollars and points. When booking through Chase Travel℠, the ENTIRE fare may be paid with points making it potentially 100% free. No separate taxes or TSA fees!

Helpful Tip: For easier booking within the Chase Travel℠, points may be combined between members of the same household.

The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card

Step 4: Parent 1 opens a Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card.

Earn 3 Free Night Awards after spending $3,000 on eligible purchases within 3 months of account opening, and an additional 1 Free Night Award after spending $4,000 total on eligible purchases within 4 months of account opening with the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card.. $95 annual fee.

Step 5: Parent 2 opens their own Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card.

Earn 3 Free Night Awards after spending $3,000 on eligible purchases within 3 months of account opening, and an additional 1 Free Night Award after spending $4,000 total on eligible purchases within 4 months of account opening with the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card.. $95 annual fee.

Helpful Tip: When additional points are required, Chase Ultimate Rewards® Points can be transferred to Marriott at a 1:1 ratio.

Step 6: Log in to Marriott and search for the Disney World area hotel you are interested in. Reserve with your award nights.

Helpful Tip: Marriott allows you to make points reservations before you’ve earned all the points. If you know your dates, you can make a reservation and lock it in while still working toward your Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card sign-up bonus.

The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Step 7: Parent 1 opens a Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card and meets the minimum spending requirement for the early spend bonus. Total earned: Earn up to $1,000 towards travel

Step 8: Parent 2 opens their own Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card and meets the minimum spending requirement for the early spend bonus. Total earned: Earn up to $1,000 towards travel

Undercover Tourist

Step 9: Purchase Disney World tickets at Undercovertourist.com with your Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card and then redeem your Venture Miles after the fact to offset part or all of the purchase.