10 Free and Cheap Ways to Cool Off at Disney World This Summer

🐭 Jump to: Water Parks | List of Attractions with AC | Frozen Treats | Splash Zones | List of Disney Water Bottle Refill Stations | Disney Transportation with AC | Indoor Meet and Greet Characters | Window Shopping | Pool Days | Cooling Gear

1. Spend a Day at the Water Parks

First things first, ALL Disney World resort hotel guests in 2025 and 2026 automatically have FREE access to a water park of their choice (Typhoon Lagoon or Blizzard Beach) on their check-in day. So drop off that luggage and get ready to hop into the pool because chances are, you won’t want to do anything else anyway.

2. Aim for the Attractions with AC

Next, try to prioritize the indoor attractions with AC (which, fortunately, is a lot of them). Here’s a complete list of every air-conditioned attraction at Disney World:

Animal Kingdom

Animal Experience at Conservation Station
Festival of the Lion King
Finding Nemo: The Big Blue…and Beyond!
Flight of Passage

Epcot

American Adventure
Awesome Planet
Beauty and the Beast Sing-Along
Canada Far and Wide
Club Cool
Cosmic Rewind
Disney & Pixar Short Film Festival
Frozen Ever After
Gran Fiesta Tour
Journey Into Imagination
ImageWorks
Impressions de France
Living with the Land
Mission: Space
O Canada Circle
Reflections of China Circle
Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure
Soarin’ Around the World
Spaceship Earth
Test Track
The Seas with Nemo and Friends
Turtle Talk with Crush

Hollywood Studios

Beauty and the Beast Live on Stage
For the First Time in Forever: A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration
Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy
Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway
The Little Mermaid – A Musical Adventure

magic kingdom

Carousel of Progress
Country Bear Jamboree
Enchanted Tales with Belle
Enchanted Tiki Room
Hall of Presidents
Haunted Mansion (queue is mostly indoor)
It’s a Small World
Mickey’s Philharmagic 3D
Monster’s Inc Laugh Floor
Pete’s Silly Sideshow
Peter Pan’s Flight (queue is mostly indoor)
Pirates of the Caribbean
Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
Space Mountain
TRON Lightcycle Run
Under the Sea – Journey of the Little Mermaid

3. Eat Some Cheap Frozen Treats

From Frozen lemonade to Mickey ice cream bars, Disney World has a variety of cheap snacks to help cool you down. Check out my discount food guide to get them at the lowest price possible.

4. Hang Out in the Free Disney Splash Zones

Disney has a variety of free splash zones that you can access whenever you want, including:

• Casey Jr. Splash & Soak Station (Magic Kingdom)
• Cool Zone (EPCOT)
• Disney Springs splash pad (no park ticket required!)
• Dumbo Play Area (Magic Kingdom)
• Journey of Water (EPCOT)

5. Stay Hydrated for Free

Quick-service restaurants often provide large water cups for free upon request, and some have water bottle refill stations that don’t require a cup at all such as:

• ABC Commissary (Hollywood Studios)
• Backlot Express (Hollywood Studios)
• Connections Cafe & Eatery (EPCOT)
• Cosmic Ray Starlight’s Cafe (Magic Kingdom)
• Milk Stand (Hollywood Studios)
• Pinocchio Village Haus (Magic Kingdom)
• Restaurantosaurus (Animal Kingdom)
• Regal Eagle (EPCOT)
• Satu’li Canteen (Animal Kingdom)
• Sunshine Seasons (EPCOT)

Not planning to do quick service dining? Here’s a list of Disney World water bottle refill stations outside of restaurants:

animal kingdom

Avatar Flight of Passage Queue
Flame Tree Barbecue
Mombasa Marketplace
Na’vi River Journey Queue
Satu’li Canteen

Animal Kingdom resort area

Calypso Pool Restrooms
Duck Pond Pool
Fantasia Pool/Guest Laundry
Grand Slam Pool Restrooms
Kidani Lobby Restrooms
Lobby Restrooms/Zebra Trail Restrooms
Lost City of Cibola Pool Restrooms
Mara/Uzima Pool Restrooms
Piano Pool Restrooms
Surfboard Bay Pool Restrooms
Survival of the Fittest Health Club Outdoor Restrooms

Disney springs

Community Hall
Doubloon Lagoon Restroom
Lobby Restrooms
Ol’ Man Island Restrooms
World of Disney Restrooms

Epcot

Connections Cafe Restrooms
International Gateway Entrance Restrooms/Lockers
Odyssey Building
Rose Walk Restrooms

Epcot resort area

Beach Club Lobby Restrooms
Beau Soleil Pool Restrooms
Boardwalk Tennis Court
Fuentes del Morro Pool Restroom
Lobby Restrooms
Luna Park Pool Bar
Martha’s Vineyard Restrooms
Old Port Royale Restrooms
Riviera Pool Restrooms
Stormalong Bay Restrooms
Yacht Club Lobby Restrooms
Yachtsman Steakhouse Restrooms

Hollywood studios

ABC Commissary Restrooms
Black Spire Market Restrooms
Blue Milk Stand
Bus Loop Restrooms
Grand Ave Restrooms
Guest Relations
Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run Exit Queue
Sunset Blvd

magic kingdom

Cosmic Rays Starlight Cafe
Pinocchio’s Village Haus
Tron Restrooms

the wide world of sports

AdventHealth Arena 1st & 2nd Floor Restrooms
Big Blue Pool Restrooms
Champion Stadium Section 113-114
Classic Hall Restrooms
East Field House (Between State Farm Field House & Champion Stadium)
Farm Field House
Field 9
Multiuse Fields (Field 2)
North Field House
Petals Pool Bar Restrooms
Practice Fields
Soccer Fields (Between Fields 17 & 19)
Softball Fields (Between Fields 13 & 15)
Station at the Diamondplex

Magic Kingdom resort area

Bay Cove Pool Restrooms
Bay Lake Tower Lobby Restrooms
Beach Pool Restrooms
Boulder Ridge Cover Pool Restrooms
Contemporary Feature Pool Restrooms
Great Ceremonial House Restrooms
Lava Pool restrooms/connected to the Marina building
Lobby Restrooms
Main Building 1st Floor Restrooms
Meadow Swimmin’ Pool Restrooms
Reception Outpost Restrooms

*Bonus tip: Pack a hydration multiplier, such as Liquid IV.* Not only does it help keep you cool, but it also masks the funky taste of Orlando water.

6. Ride the Free Disney Transportation with AC

If you’ve ever been on the Skyliner, then it’s an attraction in itself and the best part. It’s free! The views are amazing, and the ventilation helps to keep you cool. Other free Disney transportation options:

• Monorail- enjoy the AC while doing a monorail bar crawl by stopping at places like Geyser Grill, Crockett’s Tavern, Steakhouse 71 Lounge, Trader Sam’s Grotto, Tambu Lounge, Citricos, and the Enchanted Rose.
• Shuttle buses – resort hop to places like the Polynesian (and yes, the buses have air conditioning, too!)

7. Meet with Characters Indoors

Meeting the characters is one of my favorite experiences when visiting Disney parks; they know how to make your day no matter how old you are! Luckily, some of the more popular characters have their own designated indoor meet-and-greet stations with plenty of AC, including:

• Adventure’s Outpost (Animal Kingdom)
• Ariel at Walt Disney Presents (Hollywood Studios)
• Anna and Elsa at Royal Sommerhus (EPCOT)
• BB-8, Chewbacca, and Darth Vader at Star Wars Launch Bay (Hollywood Studios)
• Mickey at Town Square (Magic Kingdom)
• Mickey and his friends at CommuniCore Hall (EPCOT)
• Minnie and Mickey at Red Carpet Dreams (Hollywood Studios)
• Olaf at Celebrity Spotlight (Hollywood Studios)

8. Window Shop Indoors

This tip is not for those who are prone to impulse buying; however, places like Mitsukoshi Department Store in EPCOT and World of Disney make for a vast and enjoyable window shopping experience.

9. Fit a Pool Day into Your Itinerary

For people staying off-property, fitting a rest or pool day into the middle of your trip is not just helpful —it’s pretty much necessary. You will NEED a break day if you’re planning to do a whole week at Walt Disney World, so you might as well take advantage of the free hotel pool.

10. Pack Cooling Gear from Home

And finally, the most important tip of all is to pack cooling gear before you even leave for your trip. Some of my essentials include portable fans, cooling towels, sun hats, and breathable clothing, among others. For a complete, detailed list, check out my 10 Disney Summer Packing Essentials post.

What are some of your favorite ways to cool off at Disney World? Share in the comments below!

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