Why This Discount History Still Matters
For many years, Shades of Green discounts followed a surprisingly repeatable annual pattern.
The same seasonal offers tended to return during roughly the same months, and their announcement timing was often consistent enough that military families could look at previous years and estimate when a discount for their travel dates might be announced.
That was the original purpose of this page.
I began tracking Shades of Green discounts not simply to record what had been offered, but to help military families answer a practical planning question:
When should I expect a discount for my travel dates to be announced?
Before 2020, the historical record was genuinely useful for doing that.
That changed after Shades of Green’s temporary closure in 2020. Discounts eventually returned, but the modern offers have become less predictable in their announcement timing, the dates they cover, their discount percentages, and sometimes even how long an announced offer remains available.
For current offers, dates, percentages, and packages, see my regularly updated Shades of Green Discounts, Specials, and Packages page.
How Shades of Green Discounts Evolved
2009–2017: From Experimentation to Predictable Seasonal Offers
Shades of Green’s discount history started after Disney introduced the modern Disney Armed Forces Salute in 2009.
Shades of Green had never offered discounts prior to that.
Disney was offering substantial military room discounts at its own resorts, and Shades of Green began experimenting with ways to make its already lower-priced military room rates more competitive.
The earliest attempts were modest. In 2009, offers included only about $10 off a room or $5 off Regular Military Discounted Disney tickets.
But Shades of Green quickly began experimenting with a much wider variety of offers, including:
- Percentage discounts on rooms
- Room-and-breakfast packages
- Packages including breakfast and dinner
- Four-night minimum stays
- Four- to eight-day packages
- Discounts that changed as the travel dates approached
At times, the room discount reached as high as 50%!
By 2012, Shades of Green was using an early-reward approach. A deeply discounted offer could be released well in advance, then reduced in stages as the actual travel dates approached and rooms filled.
Shades of Green discussed this strategy directly in my 2012 interview with the resort.
Over time, the experimentation developed into a fairly recognizable annual cycle.
Certain months repeatedly received discounts. The same promotional names often returned from year to year. Even the approximate timing of the announcements became predictable enough that I could use past years to help readers estimate when a future offer might appear.
By 2014, many offers had settled into roughly the 20% to 30% range for room-only or room-and-dining packages, sometimes with a four-night minimum stay.
Shades of Green also became increasingly active about adjusting the offers after they were released. As rooms filled, the resort could:
- Reduce the available travel dates
- Lower the discount percentage
- Remove package features
- Cancel the offer entirely
- Occasionally restore dates later if room availability changed
That behavior is important because Shades of Green discounts have always been closely tied to occupancy.
2018–2020: Smaller Discounts and Reduced Availability
Beginning in 2018, Shades of Green entered another period of change as the resort undertook a multi-year renovation of the Magnolia Wing guest rooms.
With rooms out of service for renovation, the resort had fewer rooms available to sell.
That reduced the pressure to offer aggressive discounts.
During this period, the percentage discounts generally became smaller, often falling into the 10% to 15% range. The number of eligible dates also contracted, and some offers were announced closer to the actual travel period.
The old seasonal pattern had not disappeared, however.
January, February, April, May, August, September, October, and November still showed recognizable recurring discount behavior, and looking at previous years could still provide meaningful clues about when another offer might appear.
Then 2020 disrupted the system entirely.
See: The History of the Shades of Green Resort at Walt Disney World
2021–Present: The Predictable Calendar Breaks Down
After Shades of Green temporarily closed in 2020, previously announced offers were canceled, and the normal discount cycle stopped.
That continued through much of 2021.
One particularly revealing example came in September 2021.
For months, there had been very little room availability because Shades of Green was scheduled to house participants in the Warrior Games at Walt Disney World. Many military families were unable to book rooms during that period.
On August 17, 2021, the Warrior Games were canceled.
That suddenly left Shades of Green with a large block of open rooms for September.
The very next day, Shades of Green announced a discount covering much of the month.
That episode is a good illustration of what has always driven these offers: room inventory and projected occupancy.
Discounts returned more broadly for 2022, but the old predictable annual calendar did not fully return with them.
In the years since, Shades of Green has continued to experiment. Offers can cover relatively narrow blocks of dates, appear at different times than they once did, be reduced or canceled after announcement, and sometimes use different structures for the same general travel period.
Room-only offers and room-and-breakfast packages have also appeared together or for overlapping dates.
Some familiar months still receive discounts, but the old historical pattern is no longer dependable enough to say:
“They usually announce the September discount at this time of year, so the next September offer should appear then too.”
That was once a reasonable planning technique.
It isn’t anymore.
What the Historical Record Can Still Tell You
Although I no longer recommend using the old calendar to predict an announcement date, the history still tells us quite a bit about how Shades of Green uses discounts.
Discounts Are Closely Tied to Occupancy
Shades of Green does not need to discount rooms that it expects to fill at regular military rates.
Offers become more useful to the resort when bookings for particular dates are softer than expected.
That is why discount dates can sometimes seem irregular even within the same month.
Available Dates Can Shrink
One of the most consistent patterns in the historical record is that an offer can begin with a relatively broad range of dates and then lose dates as rooms fill.
The original announcement is therefore not necessarily a permanent list of discounted nights.
The Discount Itself Can Change
Historically, Shades of Green has changed:
- The percentage off
- The included travel dates
- The package components
- The length-of-stay requirements
In some cases, an offer disappeared completely before the eligible travel period arrived.
Canceled Dates Can Sometimes Return
The opposite can happen as well.
If projected occupancy changes or a block of rooms becomes available, Shades of Green can bring back dates that previously disappeared or introduce an entirely new offer.
The September 2021 Warrior Games example demonstrates just how quickly that can happen.
Historically Favorable Months Are Still Worth Watching
The archive below shows that some parts of the year received discounts much more consistently than others.
That history is still useful context.
But there is an important difference between saying:
“Shades of Green has historically discounted this period.”
and:
“Shades of Green will announce a discount for this period again.”
The first is historical fact.
The second is no longer something the old calendar can reliably predict.
If a Current Offer Works for You, Don’t Assume a Better One Is Coming
The historical record repeatedly shows offers being reduced, shortened, or canceled as room inventory changes.
If Shades of Green releases a current discount that covers the room and dates you want at a price that works for your family, there is little in the history that suggests waiting will necessarily produce something better.
Historical Shades of Green Discounts by Month
The records below preserve the recurring discount calendar I tracked during the period when Shades of Green’s seasonal offers were much more predictable.
I have kept the old promotional names, announcement timing, reductions, cancellations, and reappearances because they document how the discount system operated.
Do not use these historical announcement dates as a forecast for current or future Shades of Green discounts.
January
Typical historical offers: Pre & Post Marathon Special — four days before and four days after Marathon Weekend; Escape the Frost or January Special — generally the last ten days of the month.
- 2022: Announced mid-August 2021 for two periods in the month totaling 11 days, reduced within days to only three days in the month, then canceled a couple of days later
- 2021: Announced late January 2020 for some weekdays during the first two weeks of the month, canceled September 2020
- 2020: Announced late February 2019 for 18 days throughout the month, canceled late November 2019, canceled September 2020
- 2019: Announced late February 2018 for three days in early January and a few days at the end of the month, canceled late December 2018
- 2018: Announced late August 2017, features and discount reduced in early October, discount reduced again in late October, canceled mid-November
- 2017: Announced late March 2016, dates reduced in early July, features reduced in mid-September, discount reduced in early December, then ended
February
Typical historical offers: The Carnvale Special — using Shades of Green’s spelling — or Leap Into February Special. Discounts were generally available for much of the month except around Valentine’s Day and the Disney Princess Half Marathon.
- 2022: Announced mid-August 2021 for four days during the month
- 2020: Announced late April 2019 for sporadic days throughout the month, canceled late November 2019
- 2019: Announced late April 2018 for sporadic days throughout the month, canceled late August 2018
- 2018: Announced mid-May 2017, canceled late August
- 2017: Announced mid-March 2016, dates reduced in early July and again in late July, canceled late August
March
Historically, I did not see recurring March discounts.
April
Typical historical offers: Spring Into Savings or Month of the Military Child, usually covering much of April.
- 2022: Announced mid-August 2021 for two weeks during the month
- 2020: Announced late May 2019 for sporadic days throughout the month, canceled late January 2020
- 2019: Announced early July 2018 for sporadic days throughout the month, canceled late January 2019
- 2018: Announced late July 2017, dates reduced in early October, dates and discount reduced in late October, a second discount with reduced features and dates was offered in late October, dates on the first discount were reduced in mid-November, and the first discount was canceled in late November
- 2017: Announced early December
May
Typical historical offer: Military Appreciation Month, historically covering much or all of May.
- 2022: Announced mid-August 2021 for a good portion of the month
- 2020: Announced late September 2019 for the first three days of the month, canceled September 2020
- 2019: Announced early July 2018 for sporadic days throughout the month, canceled late October 2018
- 2018: Announced late July 2017, dates reduced in early October and again in mid-December, canceled late January
- 2017: Announced early October 2016, discount reduced in mid-January, canceled in early February
June & July
Historically, I did not see recurring June or July discounts during the period covered by this archive.
August
Typical historical offers: Book Early and Save or the Endless Summer Special.
- 2020: Announced late September 2019 for eight days during the month, canceled September 2020
- 2019: Announced late October 2018 for sporadic days throughout the month, canceled late December 2018
- 2018: Announced mid-November 2017, dates reduced in mid-December, again in late December, and again in late January, canceled in early July
- 2017: Announced late October 2016, features reduced in late March, then ended
September
Typical historical offers: Ease Into Fall or Fall Back and Save.
- 2022: Announced mid-August 2021 for a good portion of the month
- 2020: Announced late November 2019 for the entire month, reduced to about two-thirds of the month in late December 2019, then canceled in late December 2019
- 2019: Announced late October 2018 for a few days in the month
- 2018: Announced mid-November 2017, dates reduced in mid-December, canceled in late August
- 2017: Announced early December 2016, canceled in mid-January, brought back in mid-April, canceled again in mid-May
October
Typical historical offers: Shades of Fall Special or Spooky Savings in October, generally for select dates.
- 2020: Announced late November 2019 for a few days during the month, canceled September 2020
- 2019: Announced mid-January 2018 for a few days in the middle of the month, canceled by mid-April 2019
- 2018: Announced late November 2017, dates reduced in mid-December, canceled in mid-June
- 2017: Announced early December 2016, discount reduced in mid-December, canceled in mid-January, brought back in mid-April, dates reduced and features and discount reduced in late July, dates expanded in late September, dates reduced in late October, then ended
November
Typical historical offer: Florida Harvest Special, generally covering parts of the first and third weeks of November.
- 2020: Announced late December 2019 for the third week and the final two days of November, canceled September 2020
- 2019: Announced mid-January 2018 for a few days in the middle of the month
- 2018: Announced late June 2017, dates reduced in mid-December, canceled in late January
- 2017: Announced late June 2017, canceled in mid-January, brought back in mid-April, canceled again in mid-May
December
Typical historical offer: Deck the Palms Special, generally covering the first half of December.
- 2020: None offered
- 2019: None offered
- 2018: Announced late February 2017 for a few days in the middle of the month, canceled in November
- 2017: Announced late August 2017, canceled in early October
Current Shades of Green Discounts
The historical calendar above shows just how much Shades of Green’s discount strategy has changed over the years.
Today, I track current offers separately because the dates, percentages, packages, and announcement timing are no longer predictable enough for this historical calendar to serve as a reliable planning forecast.
For all currently available offers and the changes I am seeing as Shades of Green modifies them, see:
Shades of Green Resort Discounts, Specials, and Packages
That is the page to use when planning an upcoming stay.
This page will remain the historical record of how Shades of Green discounts developed, how the old annual cycle worked, and how that cycle changed after 2020.
This article was written by Steve Bell, founder of Military Disney Tips.
Steve is a retired U.S. military member who has been visiting the Disney Parks since 1971 and writing about Disney military discounts and vacations for the military community for over 18 years.
Read Steve’s Full Bio | Follow Military Disney Tips on Facebook
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