Orlando Summer Vacation Deals

If you're considering an Orlando summer vacation trip this year, there's a lot of ways to save money as a Florida resident. And even deals for out of staters. There's theme park and hotel deals, plus special events you may not have known about. Here's some of the discounts we found for your Orlando summer vacation. Click on the link for details, there's some exclusions, and some differences between Florida and non-Florida resident, so read the fine print.

Walt Disney World Resort theme parks: 4-Day, 4-Park Magic Ticket from $94 per day. The price varies up to $112 a day based on when you want to go, but it's certainly a less expensive way to do all 4 parks.

Universal Orlando Resort theme parks: Play 4 Days Ticket from $67 per day. This allows you to go to both parks for 4 days within a 7 day window. So you can squeeze in a rest day or 2.

SeaWorld Orlando: Save up to 50% on admission. Sea World Orlando actually has some of the best coasters in Florida. I think people overlook that and think that it's all about whales and dolphins and stuff.

Legoland Florida Resort: $29 children's tickets. And that's for 2 days for all 3 of their parks. You do need to buy at least one adult ticket to get the deal, you can't just drop your kids off at the gate. The adult ticket is $104.

The best case when doing an Orlando summer vacation is having a relative that lives in the area where you and the kids can stay. When I was a kid it was my Uncle Ernie in Lakeland. DO NOT FEEL BAD ABOUT STAYING AT A RELATIVE OR FRIEND'S HOUSE. Anyone who lives within 50 miles or so of Disney World expects this. They knew it when they moved there. It's like a rule or something. If you need, or would rather, do a hotel -here's some summer deals.

Walt Disney World Resort Hotels: 30% off at select resorts for stays of five nights or more. This deal ends July 7th.

Universal Orlando Resort Hotels: 20% off stays four nights or more; 30% off a 3-park, 5-night vacation package for select resorts. There's several different packages on that link.

Conrad Orlando: 20% off stays at the waterside retreat with dedicated butler service when you book 5 nights. It's still gonna be 2 grand, but the place is really nice.

Marriott's Grand Vista, Marriott's Cypress Harbour Villas, Sheraton Vistana Resort Villas or Sheraton Vistana Villages Resort Villas:10% off 3-night stays, 15% off 4-night stays and 20% off five or more nights. This is a much cheaper alternative.

Grand Bohemian Hotel Orlando: 10% off 2-night stays, 15% off 3-night stays or 20% off stays four nights or more. A little pricier, but this place is amazing.

Four Seasons Orlando: Pay for 3, get the fourth night free.

Instead of an Orlando summer vacation, if the beach is more your thing, the newest resort in Southwest Florida has a summer deal going on as well.

It's nearly impossible to go to Disney World in Orlando and ride everything in all the parks in a single visit. I did it once, but it'll never happen again. It was about 10 years ago when Magic Bands first came out. For some reason they wanted to show them off to radio dj's in Fort Myers. The two of us were given Magic Bands with unlimited park hopper, unlimited fast passes and no scheduling. We did the Aerosmith coaster 3 times and I think we rode Expedition Everest 5 times in a row. No lie, we got off, and walked right back on. it was crazy. I doubt that'll ever happen again. We did so many rides at Disney World we were exhausted.

Now you need to choose what to do. And do your research so you can get to do what you want. There's a new study out that ranks the popularity of Walt Disney World Rides. The crazy part of this list is that the top ride no longer exists. Did I give it away? Read on.

The research, conducted by Disney travel planning experts MagicGuides, examined every ride from all four theme parks at Walt Disney World Resort, Orlando – Magic Kingdom Park, Epcot, Disney's Animal Kingdom, and Disney's Hollywood Studios –based on three key factors: Instagram hashtags, Tripadvisor ratings and average monthly search volume for each ride. These factors were combined in an index to give each ride a total score to discover the most popular rides at Disney World. 

6 of the Top 10 most popular rides are in Magic Kingdom. So, if you can only do one park, that might be the one.  Here's the Top 15, including a POV video of each. Plus a bonus at the end.

This Epcot favorite does not disappoint. Plus it's at Epcot, so you'll probably be 'drinking around the world' when you ride.

Waiting in line is actually as much fun as the ride. There's so much to see. Plus it's a great spot to get some air conditioning. Especially the air conditioning.

The new ride at Magic Kingdom. So new that I haven't been on it, yet. Looks amazing.

One of the comments on the video says it best. "you can smell the sea and feel the breeze and little water droplets and you can even feel the creature breathing under you." True story: I fell asleep in the theater watching the original Avatar. Only time that's ever happened to me.

It was a relief to find out that the rumors of a rebranding were false. Aerosmith is still a very big part of this ride. And hopefully they'll always be. You forget just how many hits they had until you do this.

Some of the original elements of the ride were scrubbed as Disney removed elements they deem 'culturally insensitive'. So this may look a little differently than you remember. Still a relaxing adventure.

A must for Star Wars fans. Lots of original Star Wars stuff here. Love it. I got a selfie next to Chewbacca.

The scenery on this ride is amazing. I like to ride and just look around.

As old as this one is, it's still quite popular. Haunted Mansion, ranks in seventh place. It's also the ride where people like to scatter their dead relative's ashes (don't do that). 

It always seems like something on this coaster is broke when I go. Animal Kingdom’s Expedition Everest is the sixth most popular ride. The almost 200-foot-tall rollercoaster is the only ride from the top 10 to have a 5 out of 5 rating on Tripadvisor and one of only three rides in the top 15 to have this rating too, along with Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith and Avatar Flight of Passage.

Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance ranks as the fifth most popular ride at Disney World. As the newest ride to feature in the top 10, the ride opened in 2019 in Disney’s Hollywood Studios as part of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, which covers 14 acres. Rise of the Resistance receives 84,218 Google searches a month in America, the third highest number of searches for any ride, and has 130,677 Instagram hashtags. 

‘It’s a Small World’ places next in the ranking, in fourth place. Over 250 million people have ridden the ‘It’s a Small World’ attraction at Magic Kingdom, the gentle boat ride that showcases different cultures from around the world. The ride receives an average of 49,558 monthly searches and has 352,796 hashtags on Instagram. 

The research revealed that the thrilling indoor rollercoaster Space Mountain ranks as America’s third favorite ride. Space Mountain is the second most Googled Disney World ride in America, receiving 128,593 average monthly searches, and has the fourth highest number of Instagram hashtags in the ranking, with 128,593 hashtags. Opening in 1975 in the Magic Kingdom, Space Mountain’s popularity has stood the test of time, as it is also the oldest operating rollercoaster in Florida. 

The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror ranks as the second most popular ride. Located in Disney's Hollywood Studios, Tower of Terror is a thrilling drop tower ride with a haunted hotel theme inspired by the classic TV series. The spooky ride has the highest number of hashtags out of any ride on Instagram, with 465,274 hashtags, a 4.5 out of 5 rating on Tripadvisor, and receives an average of 75,943 monthly searches in America. 

The study revealed that Magic Kingdom’s Splash Mountain takes the top spot as the most popular ride at Walt Disney World. The beloved log flume ride has always been a favorite among fans and receives an average of 205,193 monthly searches, 323,813 Instagram hashtags, and a high rating of 4.5 out of 5 on Tripadvisor. Interestingly, despite ranking as the most popular attraction, Splash Mountain is currently closed while undergoing a major re-imagining to ‘Tiana's Bayou Adventure’, inspired by Disney’s The Princess and the Frog. 

The research also revealed each state’s top three favorite rides at Walt Disney World. Splash Mountain is the number one favorite attraction in 49 states, except for Florida. Interestingly, Splash Mountain does not rank as one of Florida’s top three favorite rides, and instead the new Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind ride takes Florida's top spot. Located in Epcot, this new thrill ride takes you on an intergalactic chase through time and space alongside Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy. 

This study was conducted by MagicGuides, the ultimate source for the best Disney vacation planning advice online.