I hate being on a budget at Disney

[tink2007]

Our vacation $$ this year is very slim so we have had to make some adjustments to our vacation plans. Though we will be in Orlando for a week, we will only be able to go to one Disney park for one day. We haven't decided which park yet. We are doing 2 days at Universal. The rest of the time we will be hanging out at the pool. We are staying at Harbour Lakes and they have a fantastic water park complex. I hate that we can only go to Disney one day. I know I will get "Mouse" fever and will be sad all week. I can always dream of going to Disney and have an unlimited bank account to pay for it.

 

[Donaldswife]

Our vacation $$ this year is very slim so we have had to make some adjustments to our vacation plans. Though we will be in Orlando for a week, we will only be able to go to one Disney park for one day. We haven't decided which park yet. We are doing 2 days at Universal. The rest of the time we will be hanging out at the pool. We are staying at Harbour Lakes and they have a fantastic water park complex. I hate that we can only go to Disney one day. I know I will get "Mouse" fever and will be sad all week. I can always dream of going to Disney and have an unlimited bank account to pay for it.

I'm sure you will have a fantastic time even if it is only one day. I wish for an unlimited budget all the time but my genie must not be listening.

 

[chiefmickeymouse]

I feel your pain, Miss Tink! I'm trying to figure out a way we can go at all in the next year, and it's just not happening. I guess I'll just have to live vicariously through the Disboarders!

 

[deuceswild10]

Our vacation $$ this year is very slim so we have had to make some adjustments to our vacation plans. Though we will be in Orlando for a week, we will only be able to go to one Disney park for one day. We haven't decided which park yet. We are doing 2 days at Universal. The rest of the time we will be hanging out at the pool. We are staying at Harbour Lakes and they have a fantastic water park complex. I hate that we can only go to Disney one day. I know I will get "Mouse" fever and will be sad all week. I can always dream of going to Disney and have an unlimited bank account to pay for it.

Be sad all week? You'll be on vacation! It sounds cheesy, but just try and focus on the good, ya know?

 

[OandA]

Why not save up and not go, then next year do a big tirp?

 

[CamdenScott4]

Tink - we are in the same Jungle Cruise that you are in. Our kids have never been to Disney though. So hopefully they will still find this trip amazing. We are doing IOA one day, MK later in the week. The rest of the time we plan to do things like Titanic (which our oldest DD loves!!) and Wonderworks (which both DD will love!!). And like you we are doing a smaller water park - we are going to CoCo Key. Oh we did manage to get a character breakfast at Cape May for our 7 yr old bday. I'm happy for those families who can go for 2 weeks at a time and hit every theme park. But that's not in the cards for some of us this year.

 

[SJMomof4]

Haha I hear ya! But hey, one day at disney is better than no days Make the most of it and enjoy it too!

We said we would go "all out" 4 years ago when planning this upcoming trip. We still can't do "everything" we would like too since we have the same mtg. payment, the same bills, etc af 4 yrs ago, but we are getting there and that's what counts!

A vacation is a vacation

 

[Jacksnsteve19]

We are also debating what park to do as the cruise we are doing is taking up a pretty big chunk of the vacation ca$h (our resort is paid for with my work training). So I was thinking of doing the Halloween party and being able to do the park from 4pm til midnight, enjoy the holiday wince we won't be home (and we normally hold a neighborhod wide party which my kids love) and there are less lines....but I love Epcot so much that it is killing me not being able to go there!!!
And the kids want to do a water park while I am at training....so we are going to have to really decide what we want to sepnd the $$ on. But I am remembering last time we were there they didn't want to leave the pools! I think my husband and I missed the parks more!
Best of luck with your vacation planning - and I am sure that no matter what you decide the vacation will be magical!!!

 

[mombrontrent]

I know exactly how you feel. We are also doing a week in Orlando. We are doing one day at IOA, one day at Seaworld with a free day at Aquatica and one day at Magic Kingdom. Unfortuatley these 4 days are going to cost more then a full week at the Disney parks would because we aren't taking advantage of multi-day discounts. However we are going as a large group of extended famiily and everyone wants to do different things which is great and we are all glad to do them all it just costs more. We are also planning on one day at Cocoa beach and one day at DTD and hanging out at the resort. I wish we could fit in one day at AK but at about an extra $400 just for our family of 5 it's pretty pricey and DH is already complaining about the theme park ticket prices.

 

[momtoejanda]

We are also debating what park to do as the cruise we are doing is taking up a pretty big chunk of the vacation ca$h (our resort is paid for with my work training). So I was thinking of doing the Halloween party and being able to do the park from 4pm til midnight, enjoy the holiday wince we won't be home (and we normally hold a neighborhod wide party which my kids love) and there are less lines

That was my plan....cruise with a ticket to MNSSHP. Best of both.


Also to the OP dont forget about all the other disney things to do. Go to DTD, maybe play mini golf, character breakfast at a hotel etc...

 

[SDSorority]

Our vacation $$ this year is very slim so we have had to make some adjustments to our vacation plans. Though we will be in Orlando for a week, we will only be able to go to one Disney park for one day. We haven't decided which park yet. We are doing 2 days at Universal. The rest of the time we will be hanging out at the pool. We are staying at Harbour Lakes and they have a fantastic water park complex. I hate that we can only go to Disney one day. I know I will get "Mouse" fever and will be sad all week. I can always dream of going to Disney and have an unlimited bank account to pay for it.

I think the amount of people with that type of bank account are few and far between

You'll have a great trip! Go to Epcot. (just my 2 cents )

We weren't going to be able to go again until 2013 because DH wanted to go 'somewhere else'. I dunno why, but he decided that we're going back in September! This certainly doesn't make you feel any better, but we're only going for a few days. Disney is $$$! What we did to save is EVERY gift giving holiday (including Easter, Valentines Day.... EVERYTHING) we gave eachother a Disney gift card. And we asked for that for Christmas from my family. We have $250 in Disney Gift Cards to use on this trip!!! It's a great way to save money, plus if you get them from the grocery that has a gas station, you most likely save money off of your gas, too! So, guess what the Easter bunny will be putting in our Easter baskets this year? ...yep!

Sure, you don't get any big 'gifts' by doing it this way, but it spreads out the expense and makes you look forward to using them on your trip.

 

[Jaime4004]

I hear you! We're going to FL for 2 weeks in the summer, but not Disney. We went for 10 days last Oct so the money tree has been picked dry. But I'm still getting my Disney fix by a couple of character meals, minigolf, DTD. The kids can spend hours running around the dancing water fountain there. Mostly will be doing a lot of swimming (the kids favorite part, anyway), and Seaworld because we are passholders. Grandparents are coming for part of the vacation, so DH and I will ditch the kidS with them while we visit Harry Potter, also. We'll still have fun but do wish we could do a few days at the parks...

 

[DReynolds86]

I'm in a unique situation, too. My parents and I are taking my three adopted sisters to WDW in March of 2012. I'm paying for all of the tickets through the Air Force and my parents are paying for their airfare and lodging for the week. Money's probably going to be tight.

 

[stitchfan18]

Definitely try and do some things on Disney property throughout the week to get excited for your day in one of the parks. Do a character breakfast one morning, get ice cream and watch the fireworks outside MK or Epcot one night. Walk around DTD, or go to the BW at night and watch the street performers. There is a ton to do for little or no cost. I would also save the disney day for one of the last days in your vacation if that is going to be the high point. That way you can look forward to it during your trip instead of being bummed that it's over for the rest of your trip.

 

[eliza61]

I hate being on a budget period!!

I know it's not the best situation op, but hey you're on vacation. think of how many people unfortunately can't even do that.

 

[indimom]

Our vacation $$ this year is very slim so we have had to make some adjustments to our vacation plans. Though we will be in Orlando for a week, we will only be able to go to one Disney park for one day. We haven't decided which park yet. We are doing 2 days at Universal. The rest of the time we will be hanging out at the pool. We are staying at Harbour Lakes and they have a fantastic water park complex. I hate that we can only go to Disney one day. I know I will get "Mouse" fever and will be sad all week. I can always dream of going to Disney and have an unlimited bank account to pay for it.

Can I make a couple suggestions for free/inexpensive Disney extras that might help on your "off" days? We did a Universal trip in 2008 (it's pretty expensive to do both Disney and Universal in the same trip since you get more value for multi day tickets). I knew I was going to miss Disney so we added a few inexpensive options to get a taste of Disney without the $$$.

1. You can drive to Downtown Disney and shop/explore.
2. From DD, you can grab a Disney bus to any resort and explore the resorts. We went to the Contemporary, and then used the monorail to explore all the resorts on the line. We added a character meal to this evening, but this can get $$ all on it's own, so not necessary.
3. We stayed late at the Gr. Floridian and walked down to the dock, rode one of the boats to MK and back, saw the Electric Water Parade on the lake, and then saw the MK fireworks from the dock. It was just a nice quiet evening with Disney flair.
4. We didn't get to do this, but we wanted to also explore the Ft. Wilderness campground. There is an evening sing along with Chip and Dale, followed by a movie every night. And, I think, there budget friendly activities like fishing pole rentals, etc. that might fit your budget.
5. The Disney putt-putt golf courses aren't super cheap, but may also fit your budget and are themed as well as any other part of the resort.

Have a great trip!! Hope this helps!

 

[kathy884]

I think you'll end up having a terriffic time. When you are only doing a few theme park days, you really look forward to those, get up early for rope drop and stay for nighttime parade and fireworks. (Really fun). // And boy do my kids like resort days at the pool too -- nice to sleep in after a busy theme park day and hang out with family / extended family.

It might not be the vacation that you were hoping for, but I think it sounds absolutely wonderful. No it's not Disney 24/7 and different than the immersion Disney vacation, but IMHO a terriffic time and a great relaxation/activity combination with lots of variety.

 

[es45]

I think the amount of people with that type of bank account are few and far between

You'll have a great trip! Go to Epcot. (just my 2 cents )

We weren't going to be able to go again until 2013 because DH wanted to go 'somewhere else'. I dunno why, but he decided that we're going back in September! This certainly doesn't make you feel any better, but we're only going for a few days. Disney is $$$! What we did to save is EVERY gift giving holiday (including Easter, Valentines Day.... EVERYTHING) we gave eachother a Disney gift card. And we asked for that for Christmas from my family. We have $250 in Disney Gift Cards to use on this trip!!! It's a great way to save money, plus if you get them from the grocery that has a gas station, you most likely save money off of your gas, too! So, guess what the Easter bunny will be putting in our Easter baskets this year? ...yep!

Sure, you don't get any big 'gifts' by doing it this way, but it spreads out the expense and makes you look forward to using them on your trip.

(Except for the EPCOT suggestion. Gotta go MK if you have just one day )

 

[srutko1226]

Unless you were a banker with a golden parachute, we are all in the same boat. We all have to think about money so much more now than ever before.

Count your blessings and enjoy your time away "from real life". As I get older it gets easier to seperate what I really love from what I really want.

I am so not being judgemental here...just saying enjoy, enjoy today.

 

[seetheworld]

Definitely try and do some things on Disney property throughout the week to get excited for your day in one of the parks. Do a character breakfast one morning, get ice cream and watch the fireworks outside MK or Epcot one night. Walk around DTD, or go to the BW at night and watch the street performers. There is a ton to do for little or no cost. I would also save the disney day for one of the last days in your vacation if that is going to be the high point. That way you can look forward to it during your trip instead of being bummed that it's over for the rest of your trip.

Great advice!