Subsonic Radio

At work today I found a WDW book (I work at a library) and I skimmed through it a bit (I always do this when I find a Disney-related book ) and I found a chapter titled "Top Ten Free Things To Do At Disney" (or something like that). Then it listed things such as

-Ride the Monorail
-Pool Hopping
-Band at the Grand Floridian nightly between 5 and 9pm

I was wondering if anyone else had completely free things they like to do at WDW.

Hmmm, I love to sit on a bench in front of World Showcase Lagoon, people watch and just enjoy the day. Oh, I know you are going to say "that really isn't free, because you pay for park admission." Normally you would be right, except my sister is a CM and gets me in for free. The only thing it costs me is being nice to my sister for a few days before.

Resort hopping is pretty fun.

Also catching the Electrical Water Pageant as it comes around the MK resorts.

Ride the Friendship from DHS to Epcot.

Also pool hopping is not free at all resorts. I know the Yacht/Beach only let resort guests into the pool so it is not a free thing to do.

A really good one that nobody mentioned yet is Downtown Disney. It ends up not becoming free after you take one walk through the World of Disney, but there is no admission fee.

That is all I can think of.

I've done hotel hopping, rode the monorail all the way around WDW Resort, and like Len90 mentioned i always go to Downtown Disney.

people watching is always fun.

over at the Ft. Wilderness campground, they have a movie and campfire every night with 2 movies on Fridays and Saturdays (at least that's how it was back in December 2006) and that was completely free. you could even toast marshmallows there.

of course there is always resort hopping and wandering. This is especially good during the holidays because of all the decorations.

I'd say the most obvious is resort hopping, which is a persoanl favorite. Another free activity, which really doesn't even require that your a paying WDW guest, is watching Wishes from either the Poly, GF or Contemporary. You can get a great view looking over Tomorrowland by going up to one of the mid-upper floors of the Contemporary, then walking down the corridor toward the MK end and going out on the end balconies.

Wow you guys are fast. Most of the really good stuff is taken.
I would add three things here....
1. Take the boat launches. The Monorail was mentioned, but some of the launches have beautiful trips - particularly Magic Kingdom/Fort Wilderness and Port Orleans/Downtown Disney.
2. Wander around Fort Wilderness. FW itself is rather large (larger than any of the parks) with paths everywhere. If it isn't much hassle, and you have your own vehicle, bring a bike, park at the front gate, and bike around for awhile. There's a reason you can rent bikes there. There's also a long nature trail to the Wilderness Lodge (goes right along the bus route from the Settlement area; most FW buses also stop at WL.
3. Wander the Boardwalk. Especially at night. I would equate this to DTD - there's just a lot going on. I've seen magic and juggling acts there. And if you're on the bridge that the launches to Epcot pass under at 9, it's the best out-of-park view of Illuminations.

I also LOVE hanging around the Boardwalk. You can enjoy the entertainment and games at night or it's a great place to people watch and enjoy great views of the Yacht and Beach Club. Also, during the day, the place is pretty much dead so if you need to get away from the crowds at Epcot of DHS, it's a good place to go.

I couldn't imagine living in Orlando and not having an annual pass. i could see going to disney with a sack lunch....i could see exploring the niches of Disney... but that close without an annual pass...ouch

Croaker wrote:I couldn't imagine living in Orlando and not having an annual pass. i could see going to disney with a sack lunch....i could see exploring the niches of Disney... but that close without an annual pass...ouch

Growing up, we had first Florida Resident Passes and then Annual Passes. We would go every weekend. We were only thirty minutes away. We'd head out around three o'clock, drive through the daily, summer storm and arrive right as the crowds were leaving. Even if we didn't stay til close (which we did often) it wasn't a big deal, because it was nothing to come back in a week or so. Of course this was before annual passes cost $500 and gas was under $1.00 a gallon (No, I am not that old; gas has just risen 400% in the ten years since I have gotten my Driving License). I, unfortunately, am a little further away now and don't have the money to spend on an annual pass.

Don't forget the entertainers on the Boardwalk. Many nights you can walk the boardwalk and see jugglers or musicians, have your face painted, or receive a balloon animal.

It's interesting they'd have pool-hopping in there when the official Disney policy is pool hopping is against the rules except for DVC members. Not that they're out enforcing that in droves.

Resort hopping has a lot to offer, at least at the Deluxe resorts. Taking a peek at the savannahs at AKL (also frowned upon ), watching the fire-lighting ceremony at the Polynesian. Hidden Mickey hunt and Lodge tour at the Wilderness Lodge.

Pool Hopping is impossible to enforce, and most signs say only "resort guests", implying that anyone within WDW is allowed to. Plus, I'm pretty sure at least the Yacht/Beach Club pool is open, which is good, because their pool RULES.
Had no idea that looking at the animals at AKL was against the rules. shrug. I guess it's one of those things, it's not worth enforcing, because enforcing would make Disney look bad.

It's interesting they'd have pool-hopping in there when the official Disney policy is pool hopping is against the rules except for DVC members. Not that they're out enforcing that in droves.

Did they change this rule? Last time we asked about pool hopping they told us anyone at a Disbney resort can pool hop except at Stormalong Bay and the upcoming AKLV pool (only DVC people could "hop" to those pools).

I guess it doesn't affect my family either way... I'm just curious about the official rules...

Thinking about it... anyone (even off property) could park in a resort, say they're going to dinner, and use the pool.