Taking your family on a Disney vacation is bound to result in memories that last a lifetime. It’s also guaranteed to leave a dent in your wallet.

But with the right credit card, you can balance the high cost of a Disney trip with great rewards and benefits on your spending. We compared today’s top rewards credit cards against the cost of a family Disney vacation to find the card with the best benefits on Disney flights, hotels, park tickets, and food.

Before planning your next adventure, read on to find out which travel cards can best help you maximize spending at Disney and beyond.

Why we like it: The Chase Sapphire Preferred offers great rewards in addition to a solid welcome offer, up to $50 in annual hotel credits when you purchase through Chase Travel℠, a 10% annual points boost, and travel protections.

Plus, you can increase your rewards value with the right redemption. Travel transfer partners like Marriott Bonvoy and Southwest Rapid Rewards may be great options for saving on your next Disney trip with 1:1 transfers. Or you can redeem Chase Sapphire Preferred points for a 25% boost toward travel with Chase. So if you earn 21,911 points on your upcoming Disney trip, you could use that for $273.89 toward your next vacation via Chase Travel (25% more than the standard $219.11 redemption).

This card is also useful beyond your Disney trip, with bonus rewards on a variety of everyday purchases — such as restaurants, streaming (including Disney+), and online groceries. Families can easily use it to accumulate points over time to put toward an annual vacation.

Read our full review of the Chase Sapphire Preferred

Potential rewards: 21,911 Chase Ultimate Rewards points

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Why we like it: Chase Freedom Unlimited is a great no annual fee card for travel. The Freedom Unlimited’s minimum 1.5% cash-back rate in non-bonus categories exceeds the flat 1% offered by many other rewards cards. It’s only a small difference, but could add up to big savings over the long term.

If you prefer cash back over points and miles rewards, it’s hard to beat the return you’ll get from the Chase Freedom Unlimited. But this flexible rewards card also lets you redeem your cash back as points for flights, hotels, and more through Chase Travel. If you have a Chase Sapphire credit card, you can even transfer your Chase Freedom Unlimited points to that account and pool points for a boosted redemption rate.

Read our full review of the Chase Freedom Unlimited

Potential rewards: $229.98 cash back or 22,998 Chase Ultimate Rewards Points

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Why we like it: Capital One Savor Card is one of the best cards for earning cash rewards on dining, with a great 3% cash back on dining out at restaurants. While restaurant purchases make up a relatively small portion of our average Disney vacation budget, this can help you save whether you’re eating and drinking around the world at Epcot or sitting down for dinner at Disney Springs.

Beyond restaurant spending, the Capital One Savor is one of the only cash-back cards with boosted rewards on “entertainment” spending. This category includes amusement parks, so you can also get 3% back on your Disney park tickets (though be aware that this can depend on where you purchase and how the expense is coded by the merchant).

Read our full review of the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card

Potential rewards: $195.08 cash back

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Why we like it: If Hilton properties are your preference, the Hilton Honors Surpass card from Amex offers a big welcome bonus and a wide range of bonus categories, especially for a co-branded hotel credit card.

Ongoing benefits include complimentary Hilton Honors Gold status, up to $200 back annually ($50 statement credits each quarter) for eligible purchases with Hilton, a free night award after spending $15,000, and more.

For your Disney trip, Hilton has several hotel options around the parks in both Orlando and Anaheim. Orlando’s Signia by Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek is even an Official Walt Disney World Hotel if you want the added perks of staying on-site. Even after visiting Disney, the Hilton Honors Amex Surpass Card can make a solid choice for earning rewards toward future stays with everyday spending, especially considering its 4x points on U.S. online retail purchases, which isn’t common among rewards cards.

Read our full review of the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card

Potential rewards: 37,989 Hilton Honors Points

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Why we like it: The Chase Sapphire Reserve may be the most expensive credit card on our list, but its potential value can make the cost more than worth it for frequent travelers. If your family’s trip to Disney is just one among many vacations you’ll take in the year ahead, a premium travel credit card like this one could be worth it for you.

One of this card’s biggest perks is a $300 annual travel credit. This credit applies to the first $300 you spend on travel each year, and you’ll only earn the card’s ongoing travel rewards rates (including those shown above) after maxing out this credit. Other benefits include up to $120 toward TSA PreCheck or Global Entry every 4 years, airport lounge access, high-value travel protections, and more.

Transferring to Chase travel partners like Marriott Bonvoy and Southwest Rapid Rewards is one valuable way to redeem your points. And like the Sapphire Preferred, the Chase Sapphire Reserve also gets a boosted redemption value when you use your rewards toward travel booked through Chase Travel. With this card’s 1.5x boost, the 31,424 points earned on your Disney vacation could be worth an incredible $471.36 toward future travel.

Read our full review of the Chase Sapphire Reserve

Potential rewards: 31,424 Chase Ultimate Rewards points

Depending on your travel preferences, you may also want to consider the cards below for your Disney trip:

Why we like it: Not only is it one of the largest hotel chains in the world, but you’ll find plenty of Marriott hotels near Disneyland and Walt Disney World. A few Disney resorts are even Marriott properties, including the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin. With up to 17x points on Marriott hotel spending, it’s hard to beat the rewards you’ll get on your Disney hotel stay with the Bonvoy Boundless card.

It also comes with a free night award (worth up to 35,000 points) each account anniversary, automatic Silver Elite status, 15 Elite night credits each year, and more. Like any co-branded card, the Bonvoy Boundless is best for cardholders who already travel somewhat regularly and prefer Marriott hotels. While it does offer rewards on some everyday purchases, you’ll only get the full value of this card’s rewards and benefits when you stay at Marriott properties.

Read more: Best hotel credit cards

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Why we like it: Among the major domestic airlines, we included a co-branded Southwest Airlines card because it offers frequent flights into and out of both MCO in Orlando, Fla., and SNA in Orange County, Calif. Plus, frequent Southwest Airlines flyers can get more than enough annual value from this card to outweigh its annual fee.

The Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier card’s ongoing benefits are targeted to Southwest savings, such as an annual 6,000-point anniversary bonus and two annual Early-Bird check-ins, which can help you score a better boarding position. Like any airline credit card, it’s not worth opening a co-branded Southwest Airlines card unless you already frequently fly its routes. But if Southwest is your preferred airline, the Rapid Rewards Premier can be a great companion for your travels to Disney and elsewhere.

Read our full review of the Southwest Rapid Rewards Premier Credit Card

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Why we like it: If you live near a Disney park and visit regularly, you may benefit from having a Disney credit card. The Disney Premier Visa Card does charge an annual fee, but also has a welcome bonus and everyday rewards categories to help offset the cost.

The rewards you earn with this card come in the form of Disney Rewards Dollars, which you can redeem for Disney theme park tickets, Disney Resort stays, and more. With this card specifically, you can also redeem Rewards Dollars for statement credits toward purchases made directly with airlines.

More benefits for Disney travel include 10% off select merchandise purchases and select dining locations, special financing on select Disney vacation packages, and 15% off select guided tours at both Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resorts.

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Why we like it: The no-annual-fee Disney Visa Card doesn’t earn much in rewards value, with 1% in Disney Rewards Dollars on every purchase. But it does offer some benefits you can use on Disney spending, like special financing on vacation packages, 10% off select merchandise and at select dining locations, 15% off select guided tours at Disney parks, and 10% off at DisneyStore.com.

Both Disney Visa cards may earn significantly more limited rewards than the other travel credit cards on our list, but they can be useful for Disney fans who want to save up rewards on spending specifically to use on Disney experiences.

To maximize your rewards value, you may want to consider pairing the Disney Premier Visa Card or Disney Visa Card with a more general rewards credit card. Then, you can use the rewards card for everyday spending while reserving the Disney credit card spending in the parks or with Disney online.

Read our full review of the Disney Visa Card

No two families’ trips to Disney will be exactly the same. But considering how big an investment a family Disney trip can be, it’s still helpful to compare average costs. So, we did the math to determine what you can expect to spend on a family vacation to the most magical place on Earth.

We planned our trip around a family of four — two adults, one child over 10, and one child under 10. Their Disney vacation is a five-night stay with four park days in mid-October 2025. They’ll be going to either Disneyland or Walt Disney World (averages are based on the cost of both destinations) from their home in the Chicago area.

We separated trip costs into four primary categories: airfare, hotel, park tickets, and food. All average costs include both Disneyland and Walt Disney World Resort.

Flights: Airfare for four passengers across major domestic airlines, prioritizing lower-cost flights with times conducive for family trips (avoiding very early or very late departures). Average cost: $1678.31 for four round-trip tickets.

Hotel: One standard room with two queen beds at regular rates (before any discounts for members, room add-ons, etc.) at a hotel close to the parks. We compared rooms from multiple major hotel brands, as well as Disney hotel properties via Disney’s site. Average cost: $1,902.59 for five nights

Park tickets: Standard one-park passes for four days, without any park hopper add-ons. For our example, that’s three full-price tickets and one discounted ticket for the youngest child (applies to ages 3-9). Average cost: $2,173.37

Food: Because different families have different strategies for meal planning travel days, we only accounted for meals over park days — a total of 12 meals per person, or three per day. We broke these meals down into 10 “quick service” meals (Disney’s lowest cost tier at under $14.99 per person), and two “table service” meals ($15 to $59 per person). In total, all 12 meals would cost an average of $596. Average cost: $596 for 12 park day meals

Total cost: $6,359.17

This total cost may be on the lower end for many families, especially if you incur additional expenses for food and drink purchases each day.

But keep in mind that prices fluctuate depending on the details of your specific trip. For example, the time of year you visit can be a big factor. You could get additional savings during off-peak days or spend more during high-volume seasons. How and where you book can make a difference, too. Start comparing prices as early as possible to score extra savings, since flight and hotel prices are always fluctuating.

It always pays to shop around and stay flexible with your plans to score the very best Disney vacation deals.

The best credit card for your next Disney vacation may not be a Disney credit card. Instead, you can maximize your spending on travel, dining out, and more with a cash-back or travel credit card that rewards your spending on your trip and at home.

A new card shouldn’t only benefit you for a single vacation, after all — especially if it comes with an annual fee. Here are a few card details you should look for to make sure the card you pick for your Disney trip helps you save now and over the long term.

• Annual fee: Travel credit cards can get expensive. But even if you avoid premium cards, plenty of the best rewards credit cards will still carry an annual fee. An annual fee can be worth it if you use your card often and get enough value to outweigh the cost. However, this also requires that your regular spending aligns with rewards categories, even after your Disney trip. Make sure you do the math to determine your potential earnings before committing to an annual fee card.

• Rewards: Travel card rewards categories can vary greatly. You may want a card that gets you the best rewards during your trip, but also think about what you spend money on throughout the year. If you don’t fly often, for example, airline spending probably shouldn’t be your card’s top rewards category. Alternatively, top rewards at restaurants could go a long way if you eat out a few nights each week.

• Benefits: Annual perks like statement credits, discounts with partners, savings on specific card purchases, and more, can help add a lot of value to your rewards card. Like rewards, look for benefits that fit with the purchases you already make, so you can maximize their value long-term.

• Introductory APR: A 0% introductory APR offer isn’t necessarily the first thing to look for in a travel card, especially if you’ve already budgeted for the cost of your trip. But it can help you bank some time to pay off your Disney vacation without paying added interest for the first several months after account opening. Just make sure you have a plan to pay the balance in full before the intro period ends, or you could take on a lot of extra cost in interest charges later on.

Like you’ll find above, any one of our top cards for Disney vacations can offer hundreds of dollars back on the cost of your trip. But if you’re willing to do a bit more strategizing, you may save even more by combining different credit cards for maximum rewards value.

Chase credit cards are a great example of this. Let’s say you already have the Chase Freedom Unlimited card and you open a new Chase Sapphire Reserve for your Disney trip. You can divide your purchases between the two cards to get the highest rewards rates on each.

This could mean booking your hotel through Chase Travel with the Reserve to get 10x points (after maxing out the annual travel credit), but purchasing your park tickets with the Freedom Unlimited to get 1.5% back on non-category spending.

Here’s a look at potential rewards with these two cards using the same average spending example as above:

Potential combined rewards: 32,511 Chase Ultimate Rewards points

The best part of this strategy? You can transfer your Chase Freedom Unlimited rewards to the Sapphire Reserve and redeem them for the 1.5x boosted rate toward Chase Travel bookings. With the boost, you’ll increase the value of the 32,511 points earned on this trip to $487.67 toward a future vacation.

This can work with a variety of cards, even from different issuers. For example, you might use the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless to maximize your hotel stay, but charge your park tickets and food purchases to the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards Credit Card.

Based on our example trip, this combination could net you 32,344 Bonvoy points on your hotel booking and $83.08 in cash back on just tickets and food on park days.

Booking flights with one of these cards would add another 3,375 Bonvoy points or $16.87 cash back at either card’s standard, non-bonus purchase rate. However, because neither of these cards offer airfare rewards categories, this could be a great combo if you’re within driving distance of the Disney parks and want to make a road trip of it. In that case, you could also use the Bonvoy card for 3x at gas stations.

Read more: Best credit cards for gas stations

Co-branded preferences

In addition to our picks, don’t forget about other co-branded credit cards from your preferred travel brands.

A hotel or airline card may not be the right travel card choice for everyone, but if you always fly with Delta Air Lines, for example, or travel where IHG has a large hotel presence, using a co-branded card that works for your longer-term spending could offer savings on your Disney vacation.

Related: How to earn elite airline status with a credit card

By strategizing how different combinations work with your spending and the cards already in your wallet, you can guarantee the most value from every dollar you spend on your next trip.

Most Disney visitors can probably get more value from a flexible rewards credit card than they will from a Disney co-branded card. Other travel cards offer more varied rewards categories, a range of redemptions, and added benefits you can use even after you return from your Disney vacation.

However, a Disney credit card could be worthwhile if you live near Disneyland or Walt Disney World and you’re an annual passholder. You may visit often enough, then, that Disney Rewards Dollars could help you save a lot on Disney-related redemptions.

We like the Disney Premier Visa despite its annual fee. It offers higher-value rewards and some added benefits that can go a long way for people who spend a lot of money at the parks. You’ll get Disney-specific perks like discounts at parks and on Disney Cruise Line ships, and special photo opportunities with Disney and Star Wars characters in the parks (with a complimentary download of your photos). Plus, it has more flexible redemptions. Both cards earn Disney Rewards Dollars, but only the Premier Visa also lets you redeem rewards as a statement credit toward airline purchases.

The no annual fee Disney Visa Card isn’t a bad option for frequent Disney visitors, but with only 1% back on everything, your Disney Rewards Dollars won’t go very far.

Some American Express Cards, such as the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express or the Platinum Card® from American Express, offer statement credits for subscriptions to select streaming services, including Disney+.

Additionally, some Amex cards offer The Hotel Collection perks, giving you special discounts and benefits on eligible hotel stays. When you stay at the Walt Disney World Swan or Walt Disney World Dolphin as an eligible cardmember, for example, you can take advantage of perks like a $100 property credit to use on dining or spa treatments, room upgrades, and late checkout.

Read more: Best American Express credit cards

There isn't a Disney-branded card specifically for people with poor or fair credit. You’ll have the best chances of qualifying for both the Disney Visa Card and the Disney Premier Visa with good to excellent credit, meaning a credit score of 640 or higher.

The Disney® Visa® Debit Card may be a useful alternative. Or, check out secured credit cards and credit cards for building credit that can help you save money on your trip while you develop good credit habits.

There are several ways to save money on a Disney vacation:

• Time your travel: With Disney vacations, timing is everything. During peak travel times, such as school vacations or the week between Christmas and New Year's Day, hotel prices are much more expensive. For example, a night's stay at the Disney All-Star Movies Resort — a "value" hotel, Disney's least-expensive tier of hotels — can be as low as $160 per night. However, during popular travel times, rates can skyrocket to more than $250 per night. If you can travel during the less-popular months, such as the fall or early winter, you can take advantage of discounted hotel stays (and less crowded parks).

• Stay off-property: Although staying at a Disney resort can be convenient, Disney hotels are generally more expensive than other area hotels. You could book a hotel suite or home rental with a full kitchen for much less than you'd pay to stay on property.

• Use your credit card rewards: If you have credit card points, miles, or cash-back saved up, redeem them for airline tickets, rental cars, or statement credits to offset the cost of your vacation.

• Take advantage of trip financing: With some credit cards, such as the Chase Freedom Unlimited, you can qualify for 0% APR on new purchases. Those promotions give you time to pay off your trip without interest throughout the introductory period.

In general, the Disney Visa Card may be easier to get than the Disney Premier Card. It has fewer perks than the Premier Card, but it also doesn't have an annual fee.

What are the best Disney credit cards to use for rides, food, and souvenirs?

For Disney fans who regularly visit the parks and collect themed merchandise, the Disney Premier Card could be a good fit. With this card, you'll qualify for 10% discounts on merchandise and dining at select locations throughout the resorts, plus earn 2% cash back on dining and Disney U.S. locations.

A great option for more general rewards that can help you save on these purchases is the Capital One Savor card. You’ll earn cash back across multiple categories that include dining and entertainment, including amusement parks.

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To find the best credit cards for Disney vacations, we started by finding the average cost of a Disney trip, accounting for four primary categories: flights, hotel, park tickets, and food.

We based these averages on an example trip taking place in October 2025 and booked in June 2025. Travelers included a family of four, with two adults, one child over 10 years old, and one child under 10 years old. Prices are based on this family traveling from the Chicago area, and accounts for prices to both Disneyland or Walt Disney World.

First, we looked at flight costs. Our example family flies to Disney from Chicago, a relatively large city with multiple flight options to Disneyland and Walt Disney World. We compared flights for our chosen dates across several airlines to both destinations (SNA Orange County airport and MCO Orlando airport) — JetBlue, Southwest Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, and United Airlines. The average cost is the mean amount for four round-trip standard tickets across these different airlines and both destinations. The prices used came from each airline’s website in early June 2025.

When looking at hotels, we compared prices for one standard room at introductory rates (no savings for members or add-on services) from Marriott and Hilton and for resorts on both Disneyland and Walt Disney World properties. We averaged the costs for a five-night stay among lower-priced hotels within a short distance of the parks (if not on the property). The prices used came from the hotel websites or Disney in early June 2025.

Just remember: Everyone’s real-world experience will vary depending on the details of their specific vacation.

Flight and hotel prices can vary greatly depending on the details of your trip, your booking method, and when you book. While we tried to find representative prices for a family of four traveling to Disney (and booking several months in advance), these prices may not align with your own research.

Our given ticket prices are the average between Disneyland and Walt Disney World park passes for the dates of our example family’s trip (prices can vary depending on demand throughout the year). We averaged prices for one-park passes across four days, not including tax. This includes three adult passes and one pass for children ages 3-9.

Finally, our average food prices include only food purchased on park days. We assumed our family would buy three meals per person daily while in the parks. Over the four days, we broke those 12 meals into 10 quick service meals and 2 table service meals. On both the Disney parks websites, we filtered for meal prices listed as $14.99 and under for the 10 quick service, and between $15 and $59.99 for the table service. These price distinctions are the same for Disneyland and Walt Disney World restaurants.

The potential earning rates above include only the rewards earned based on our average cost calculations in these four categories. We did not add any welcome bonus earnings, annual credits, or other credit card offers. We also did not subtract any value for the annual fee cost or include any purchases outside of these four primary categories.

Trip cost breakdown

To determine our final list of cards, we began with more than 20 rewards cards rated using our travel credit card methodology. Ratings are based on several criteria that can help you save on travel and offer value over the long-term (annual fee, relative rewards value, sign-up bonus, and more).

From there, we calculated potential rewards for a Disney vacation among the highest-ranked cards. We applied the highest-earning rewards category for each purchase to find these rewards totals (listed under each card above). For example, if a card offers 5x on travel booked through the card issuer’s portal, but 2x on travel in general, we assume the cardholder books through the higher-earning 5x option. We also assume cardholders use the card for all their spending in the given categories (flights, hotel, park tickets, food) throughout their vacation.

After calculating the rewards total (either in points or cash back, depending on the card’s rewards structure), we determined our final picks based on a combination of the highest rewards potential and overall ratings. We also prioritized a mix of cards with different annual fees, welcome bonus offers, and more that would make sense for a wide variety of Disney vacationers.

All calculations and ratings were conducted solely by the Yahoo Finance team without input or review from any of our affiliate partners.

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Editorial Disclosure: The information in this article has not been reviewed or approved by any advertiser. All opinions belong solely to the Yahoo Finance and are not those of any other entity. The details on financial products, including card rates and fees, are accurate as of the publish date. All products or services are presented without warranty. Check the bank’s website for the most current information. This site doesn't include all currently available offers. Credit score alone does not guarantee or imply approval for any financial product.