Aside from our incredible winter in Baja in 2023 and the few months of winter that we spent in Southern California, our family has spent all of our RV winters in the sunny state of Florida. That’s six full winters of sunshine, beaches, and of course, camping near Disney World Resort!
Yes, we have spent time at Disney World every single time we’ve wintered in Florida. Not only that, but we actually visit the Disney parks 50+ times while we’re there.
Many people wonder why; others wonder how. I’m here to explain all of that. Maybe you’ll want to join us next year!
Rent an RV near Disney for your next adventure.
Affordable Family Fun
One of the number one reasons we enjoy spending our winters in Disney World is that it’s totally affordable fun. I know, I know, I sound crazy, but I’m actually serious. Disney World is budget-friendly fun when you do it the right way.
The key to doing Disney World on the cheap? Our Florida address. As full-time travelers, we had to set up a mailing address somewhere, and we chose Florida. This simple fact allows us to purchase the least expensive Florida resident annual passes, which are much more affordable than the regular annual passes. That said, even if you are not a Florida resident, the regular annual pass can be a good deal if you’ll use it enough, so purchasing one is still worth considering if you plan to be in Florida for months.
Once we have our annual passes, we can visit the parks without paying anything extra for parking or for park entry. Because we visit so often, the total cost works out to be $35 per visit for our entire family. While this is obviously more than we would spend on a hike or a beach day, it is much less than we would spend on single-day tickets to any amusement park in the country.
The Takeaway: If you plan to visit Disney World often, look into annual passes, especially if you are a Florida resident.
Roadschooling in Disney World
As a road schooling family, we also really appreciate the educational perks of camping near Disney World. While most people are turning their brains to vacation mode during their time in Disney World, our kids are often fully engaged in learning.
There are lessons around every corner in these parks and when you visit as often as we do, you start to get a pretty good feel for where to look.
Finding Roadschooling Opportunities in Disney World
One of the best ways to get in a roadschooling lesson while at Disney World is to engage with Cast Members (the employees). This works especially well in the Epcot World Showcase, where most of the employees are from different places all around the world and are happy to chat about their home countries. We’ve also found enthusiastic Cast Members to chat with in “The Seas” building in Epcot and at the Wilderness Explorers stations in Animal Kingdom.
Speaking of Wilderness Explorers, this is another awesome way to get in some fun lessons in the parks. This program is found in Animal Kingdom and features stations throughout the park, as well as a fun little handbook with activities for the kids. Do an activity, visit a station, and earn a sticker badge.
Other great educational opportunities in the Disney World parks include:
- Kilimanjaro Safaris in Animal Kingdom
- “Living with the Land” in Epcot
- Designing a car at the Test Track ride in Epcot
- Mission: Space in Epcot
- Spaceship Earth in Epcot
- The Seas Building in Epcot
- Soarin’ Around the World in Epcot
- “Journey of Water” in Epcot
- The Carousel of Progress in Magic Kingdom
- Hall of Presidents in Magic Kingdom
- “One Man’s Dream” in Hollywood Studios
Disneyschool Unit Studies
If you decide to do some Disneyschooling of your own, I highly recommend expanding upon whatever you learn in the parks with related YouTube videos, books, documentaries, etc.
Some fun Disneyschooling unit study ideas include:
- Animal unit study — Kilimanjaro Safaris, Animal Kingdom animal habitats, and The Seas building
- American History unit study — Hall of Presidents, Frontierland, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Liberty Square, Main Street, U.S.A., and Carousel of Progress
- Classic fairytale unit study — Peter Pan’s Flight, Mad Tea Party, The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh, Journey of the Little Mermaid, Seven Dwarfs Mine train, etc
The Takeaway: Disney World presents many great learning opportunities that can be a great addition to a homeschool or roadschool curriculum.
Great RV Park Options
I do have to admit that part of the reason we end up in Florida almost every winter is the fact that we can find affordable camping easily.
These days we tend to use our Thousand Trails membership with the Trails Collection add-on, which allows us to stay without nightly fees at the Thousand Trails Orlando resort as well as the many Encore resorts in the area. That said, we have also stayed at Bill Frederick Park at Turkey Lake, which is very affordable, quiet, and pretty, despite being in the middle of the city.
Just know that no matter where you plan to stay, it is crucial that you book wintertime stays in Florida early on. Most state parks, county parks, and private resorts book up months (or sometimes even a year) in advance. Meanwhile, those using Thousand Trails and Trails Collection will need to book the day their window opens up in order to get what they need.
Note: If you do need to book a last-minute stay in Florida, try using Wandering Labs to watch for last-minute openings.
The Takeaway: Book your campsite early. Look into a Thousand Trails membership if you plan to visit the area often, or check out Bill Frederick Park for cheap camping near Disney World.
Tons of RV Friends
Okay, now for my kids’ favorite part of camping near Disney World all winter: friends. We aren’t the only ones who have discovered that Florida is the place to be in the winter. The entire state of Florida fills up between the months of November and April, and the Orlando area is a particularly hot spot for RVing families.
For my family, this means lots and lots of socializing. We are often parked right next to our best friends, and kids are found in every section of the RV parks we choose. In the aforementioned Thousand Trails Orlando park, there is a whole field of sites that has essentially been claimed by RVing families, and once schoolwork is finished in the morning, the field fills with kids of all ages.
Not only is all of this socialization a lot of fun for our family, it’s also an excellent way for our kids to learn things like teamwork, compromise, and other social skills in a nurturing environment. This field is in many ways the “village” that we so often hear is required to raise a child, and it is something that was definitely missing from our lives when we lived in a sticks-and-bricks home.
The Takeaway: Check out Thousand Trails Orlando if you’re looking to make RVing friends.
Amazing Weather
Of course, this article really wouldn’t be complete if we didn’t mention the amazing weather in Florida during the winter season.
Obviously, the weather does factor into our decision to spend our winters camping near Disney World year after year. This is the case for most snowbirds, in fact. We absolutely love the fresh air and sunshine, and ability to spend time outside even in the middle of January. In fact, it’s been so long since I’ve experienced anything close to a “real winter” I’m not sure I could even handle it any more.
The Takeaway: Visit during the winter for amazing weather and an escape from the cold.
I hate to make the Sunshine State even more crowded during the winter months, but I have to say that if you’re looking to go on an RV adventure in the winter, Florida is your state. If you’re not sure what to do when you get here, maybe try camping near Disney World with me, meeting some new friends at the RV park, and throwing in a roadschooling lesson or two while you’re at it. I promise you won’t regret it!
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