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A 20-Year-Long Vacation: How Long Can You Stay at Disney?

disney fort wildnerness
Credit: Disney

The worst part of visiting Walt Disney World is leaving the Disney bubble and returning to reality at the end of your trip. Even though most Disney trips are action-packed and exhausting, it is still hard to leave the theme park and return to normal life.

Some Disney guests love the parks so much that they even move to Anaheim or Central Florida so they can always be close to Disney. Still, there is nothing that compares to an on-property Disney vacation.

This brings up an interesting question: if money was no object, how long could you vacation at Walt Disney World Resort? For one woman, her Disney vacation lasted over twenty years.

Cabin

Credit: Disney

Related: New Disney Vacation Club Resort Opening in Disney World’s Magic Kingdom Area in 2024

The Never-Ending Walt Disney World Vacation

Vacationing at Walt Disney World Resort is not cheap. Park tickets, food, merchandise, and accommodations all cost a lot of Disney property. Walt Disney World Resort has lots of different hotels to choose from when planning a trip.

There are three tiers of Disney Resort Hotel at Walt Disney World: Value, Moderate, and Deluxe. Even at the Value Disney Resort, the rooms are not cheap and will run you hundreds of dollars a night.

If you were trying to stay at Walt Disney World Resort for an extended time, you might be interested in staying at the cheapest accommodation on the property, Fort Wilderness. Here, you can rent a tent campsite for $76-$105 or an RV site for around $150-$250. While these prices are still high, some Disney fans pay the premium to stay on property for an extended time.

disney-wilderness-lodge

Credit: Disney

Related: New Florida Law Means Certain Disney World Accommodations Can Be Booked Almost a Year in Advance

Technically, the longest you can book a room or campsite for is 30 continuous days. However, one woman has continued to extend her camping “vacation” and lived at Walt Disney World Resort full-time. A Reddit user shared the story of a woman in response to a Reddit question, “What’s the longest anyone here has ever stayed at Disney?”

What’s the Longest anyone here has ever stayed at Disney?
byu/lipmanz inWaltDisneyWorld

UPDATE: While the commenter has since removed the post from this Reddit thread, they originally shared that the answer is reportedly 20 years and counting.

According to the original comment, a woman lived at the Fort Wilderness Campground on Disney World Property for nearly 20 years. The commenter noted that the woman reportedly tried to sue the Walt Disney Company when they wanted to kick her out during the COVID-19 pandemic. Another commenter followed up this story with an update that the woman had since been evicted from Fort Wilderness Resort and was no longer a travel agent.

How Long Can You Stay at Disney?

Fort Wilderness Disney World Resort new florida law

Credit: Disney

As noted above, 30 days is the window for a continuous booking. That said, you can Resort hop and stay longer if it’s in the budget and you desire to do so. Of course, if you’re refusing to move locations and insist on staying put regardless of issues such as the COVID-19 pandemic, according to this Reddit thread, it seems like Disney will ask you to move on.

What is your longest Walt Disney World vacation? Let us know in the comments!

About Eva Miller

Eva was born and raised in the beautiful state of Oregon but has since relocated and lives in New York City. Since she was young, Eva has loved to perform in musicals, especially Disney ones! Through performing, Disney’s music became the soundtrack of her childhood. Today, Eva loves to write about all the exciting happenings for the Walt Disney Company. In her free time, Eva loves to travel, spend time in nature, and go to Broadway shows. Her favorite Disney movie is 'Lilo and Stitch,' and her favorite Park is Disney's Animal Kingdom.

One comment

  1. Move on? Bummer. I wnat to move in!