HELP pay in full due in 2 weeks. Need advice!

[MinnieLovesMickey12]

ONLY ON THE DIS would someone recommend dipping into retirement accounts or selling off investments to pay for a cruise or Disney trip. That is ridiculous.

If you don't have the money to go, then cancel. Very simple.

 

[TheWescotts]

ONLY ON THE DIS would someone recommend dipping into retirement accounts or selling off investments to pay for a cruise or Disney trip. That is ridiculous.

If you don't have the money to go, then cancel. Very simple.

We won't have the money by PIF date. We almost certainly will have the money later in the month or next month. DW is picking up extra shifts at work, I should have more commissions coming in before then. In 3 years this is the first commission I have counted on that is just not going to come. It is rare for them to get canceled.

 

[tweis]

If you can comfortably downgrade financially then I would do that. If you can't then I would push the cruise back a few months until money wasn't so tight. If you need the cash back from the deposit then I would cancel the cruise all together until cash flow is a little better.

While some of the options suggested may work for some I don't think I would add more debt onto an already tight budget. Hopefully your commissions will come in as expected and you can pay off the medical bills and your cruise.

 

[cruisecrasher]

do NOT borrow money or sacrifice long term investments to make up your trip. Yes you only live once, but making the hard choices and staying the course with financial discipline will reward you much longer, you never know what else can happen. downgrades or rebooking last minute if you still plan to go are solid options, along with skipping an excursion, etc. Disney isn't going anywhere

I know this isn't what you want to hear, but I'd probably cancel. It sounds like money is pretty tight and if you recently had some medical expenses that were put on your credit card you probably shouldn't add more debt to the card, but that is just my opinion. Now, if you don't want to cancel and since you should be getting some commissions at the end of the month, could you put the balance on a credit card and then pay it off when you get the commissions before any interest is incurred? I'm not even sure if that is possible, as we rarely us a credit card, but I thought I'd throw it out there. I really hope things work out and you are able to go on the cruise. Sending pixie dust your way.

I'm with them^^^
Basically if I'm having to worry about cutting excursions, etc. while on the trip, canceling is the way I would go.
I personally wouldn't enjoy myself during the cruise itself if I was having to worry about payments, so credit is a no go.
I've cruised interior several times before, they're nice too!
I've also left the kids with their grandparents after they were old enough to guilt trip me about it. Mom and dad need time to themselves sometimes, too!

Basically if your vacation causes more stress than it relieves, in my book, that's not vacation.

 

[linetbo]

So sorry to hear that. Can you just cancel and do something else? maybe you can take advantage of the free dining plan and go to WDW on those days.

 

[4HppyCamprs]

I'd push the date back so you don't lose any of the deposit if it is at all possible

Sent from my iPhone using DISBoards

 

[klineyqueen]

do NOT borrow money or sacrifice long term investments to make up your trip. Yes you only live once, but making the hard choices and staying the course with financial discipline will reward you much longer, you never know what else can happen. downgrades or rebooking last minute if you still plan to go are solid options, along with skipping an excursion, etc. Disney isn't going anywhere

Exactly!!!!!!

 

[neg58]

My SIL had an emergency and was able to borrow against her life insurance policy. She had the check in hand within 2 business days.

A vacation is not an emergency. Don't go on the vacation if it isn't paid in full before you go.

Nancy

 

[n8nally]

Some update:

1. Putting on a credit card is not a viable option. We don't have a lot of credit card debt, or available room on the card. We don't want to add to that.

2. I have learned the ship has about 230 rooms available right now. making it about 75% full.

So, when the PIF date hits, that number could go up some. GTY rates could become available..or it could sell out quick.

I am leaning to canceling and hoping to rebook. I don't want to dissapoint our 2 daughters and our friends.

This wouldn't help the issue with your friends, but I noticed this is a four day cruise. Could you maybe downgrade to a three day cruise in an inside room? Then your daughters would still get to go, but it would save you tons.

 

[WanderlustNZ]

I am leaning to canceling and hoping to rebook. .

I think you are leaning in the right direction.

If it's meant to be your commission will come through and you will rebook with a great GTY rate (perhaps even cheaper than what you are booked at now).

If it's not meant to be, you will be able to clear your other debts and then enjoy a fantastic cruise one day in the future when you're more financially content.

 

[jjje]

Well, since you asked ... If it was me I would cancel and then rebook if/when the pricing came down and/or the money came in. I personally would not be able to enjoy myself if I was worrying about how I was going to pay for tips and excursions. I also couldn't enjoy a cruise knowing I jad borrowed against my life insurance policy to pay for it. I freely admit that my family spends a larger % of our income on vacations and travel than most would but to me a vacation that can't be paid for is a vacation that isn't happeneing.

 

[Jenna45]

Did you try contacting Disney? I know I Have read in the past when this situation has happened to other folks on the park boards and Disney has been able to extend their dates. Personally, it has not happened to me so I can't be sure, but I'm sure it wouldn't hurt to try.

 

[Donna3271]

ONLY ON THE DIS would someone recommend dipping into retirement accounts or selling off investments to pay for a cruise or Disney trip. That is ridiculous.

If you don't have the money to go, then cancel. Very simple.

Hi, If you are referring to Mike's comments, I believe that was tongue-in-cheek.

 

[darkwing818]

Some update:

1. Putting on a credit card is not a viable option. We don't have a lot of credit card debt, or available room on the card. We don't want to add to that.

2. I have learned the ship has about 230 rooms available right now. making it about 75% full.

So, when the PIF date hits, that number could go up some. GTY rates could become available..or it could sell out quick.

I am leaning to canceling and hoping to rebook. I don't want to dissapoint our 2 daughters and our friends.

I agree, with the way you are leaning, you should cancel & hope to rebook at a later date. Your funds sound really tight, as another PP noted, wait until your financial situation has stabilized. While it maybe disappointing to your daughters & friends in the short run you really need to be thinking long term. Just my 2 cents worth, Good Luck.

 

[quickcat]

Did you try contacting Disney? I know I Have read in the past when this situation has happened to other folks on the park boards and Disney has been able to extend their dates. Personally, it has not happened to me so I can't be sure, but I'm sure it wouldn't hurt to try.

This is a good idea. I never thought of it but like they said, it doesn't hurt to ask! Who knows, maybe they'll extend it to the date you need.

 

[MinnesotaMouseketeers]

This is why we always save up the total cost of the vacation plus extra before booking. So if I were in your shoes, I would cancel and rebook when you know you have the money. No way would I put it on a credit card, borrow against something that will cost a small fortune to pay back, etc. in the hopes that the money will appear on time. JMHO

 

[over50visits]

It hurts to say this, because I know what this cruise could mean to family and friends, but I can't advise borrowing money for a cruise (that includes credit cards that aren't paid in full each month). However, such blanket advice isn't really fair, since i don't know your situation and your expectation of near term income. Just a thought......

 

[NWmom]

I would cancel and rebook once I had cash in hand.

Learned the hard way once about counting on getting extra hours when something unexpected happened and all OT was cancelled. Won't ever make that mistake again.

I think all the advice to pay before you go is great advice. I love DCL, yet never forget it is a luxury item and other things just have to come first in our priorities.

Most of the health benefit of the vacation comes from the looking forward to it and not having regrets after. That includes the money part.

Even if you end up rescheduling, when you do go-- you will enjoy it more if you are not worrying about the money part.

 

[AquaDame]

I too would advise cancelling. My husband was facing a strike last winter and when our PIF date came it was still up in the air. We decided to cancel and even though he did not strike in the end we are still happy we made the decision we did. It would have been far more stressful to have hoped for the best! We pushed it out and are now looking forward to it this coming June.

 

[MND]

Hi, If you are referring to Mike's comments, I believe that was tongue-in-cheek.

Actually, I'm totally serious with my suggestions.

Granted, I was thinking outside of the box when I suggested plasma sales, or medical research. However, dipping into your retirement is not a bad idea as long as you "pay back" your retirement savings. I'm assuming the OP doesn't have much in the way of non-retirement savings/investments to tap into, otherwise he/she wouldn't be in this pickle.

I did like the idea of leaving the children at home, but run the numbers first to see if you could afford to take one child. If so, you could perhaps come up with a contest to see which one gets to go.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Mike