One of the first things you need to know as you plan your Walt Disney World vacation is when you are going to travel. Disney bases the prices for the  resort rooms on their property around 5 seasons. Room prices can vary greatly between the seasons. These prices are the base prices that the rooms are available for. Often times, especially in the slower seasons, Disney offers codes that give discounts on the base prices. For this post I will be using the base prices as Disney published them for 2009 updated for 2014.

Disney’s 5 6 seasons are:

• Value Season-the least expensive and least crowded weeks of the year
• Fall Season-a little more expensive and a little more crowded nice temperatures
• Summer Season-a little more expensive, more crowded and hot temperatures
• Regular Season-a little more expensive and a little more crowded
• Peak Season-a little more expensive, more crowded
• Holiday Season-the most expensive and most crowded **avoid at all costs

The dates for these seasons can vary slightly by resort.

• Value Season is January 2-February 12 (except for MLK weekend), and August 3-12
• Fall Season is September 13-December 11 (except for Oct 10-12, Nov 22-28)
• Summer Season is May 30-August 2
• Regular Season-February 23-March 6, April 27-May 29
• Peak Season March 7-April 12 and December 12-18
• Holiday Season prices vary based on the popularity of the holiday. Holiday Season is January 1, January 9-11, January 17-19,  April 13-20, and the busiest time of the year December 19-31.

The Disney resorts are categorized into 4 groups the value, moderate, deluxe and Disney Vacation Club. Next week we will get into the specifics of the resort categories but to give you a hint of how the prices can vary throughout the seasons here is the high and low for each resort type.

• Value Resorts- $96-$511 (including family suites)
• Moderate Resorts- $182-$1077 (including themed rooms and suites)
• Deluxe Resorts- $378-$3182
• Disney’s Vacation Club $367-$1720 (this includes multi-bedroom villas)

So, before you start planning your Disney vacation check which season you will be visiting in so that you can be prepared for both the cost and the crowds.

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