Hi Meagan!
Welcome to the Disney Parks Moms Panel! This is a great question as there is so much information floating around the internet these days regarding
parking fees. I recently spent a full week at Walt Disney World Resort with three of my best mom friends and our collective five children, all of whom were under three. There were definitely mornings where we just couldn't get our act together to catch the Disney Resort Transportation bus on time, so we had to drive to our Dining Reservations. We also found that for our group it was easier to drive to Disney's Theme Parks as we had huge strollers and lot of gear, and only four adults. We were seriously out numbered, but had so much fun.
I'm happy to share with first-hand knowledge from my trip one month ago that guests of
Disney's Resort Hotels do not have to pay for parking at any of Disney's Theme Parks. Once you approach the theme park parking lot entry booth area, a friendly Cast Member will scan your MagicBand to confirm that you're a current resort hotel guest. After that you'll be able to park and enjoy your Disney Day!
All guests who have a confirmed
dining reservation for a table service restaurant that happens to be located in a Disney Resort Hotel also do not have to pay to park at that resort hotel. You'll have a time limit of three hours to leave your car in that hotel's lot, which should be plenty of time for even the most popular of dining reservations.
Bonus Tip: You may still drive to visit a Resort Hotel's Quick-Service Dining Location, however you may be restricted to a shorter parking time limit.
I hope this helped, Meagan, and We'll See You Real Soon!
~Kristen