Hello Dana! You are planning one of my favorite things to do while visiting the Most Magical Place on Earth! My wife and I enjoy exploring the resort hotels! We like to visit some of our favorite past resorts or discover new resorts that we might consider booking in the future!
You are welcome to enjoy
Disney Dining and shopping in a
Disney Resort Hotel that you are not staying in as a Guest. In fact, if you are driving your own vehicle to that resort, you will not have to pay a parking fee as you will be considered a “day Guest” of the resort. You are welcome to enjoy as much time as you like dining, shopping, and exploring the resort hotel. My wife and I like to arrive early and stroll the grounds. We’ll then enjoy our dining reservation, do some shopping at the resort, and then walk around a little more before returning to our resort hotel.
Dana, as I mentioned, you can park your own vehicle free of charge at a Disney Resort Hotel that you are visiting for shopping and/or dining. However, you are also welcome to take
complimentary Disney Transportation as well. For example, you can take complimentary Disney Transportation from your resort to a Disney Park or Disney Springs and then use the complimentary transportation to travel to the resort where you have your dining reservation! You’re on vacation! So, whether by bus, Monorail, Disney Skyliner, or even by boat, sit back, relax, and let Disney do the driving!
Happy planning!
Jonathan