Anyone else feeling priced out of disney?

[CruellaDuVille]

see for me that's more of a "value" question. I refuse to pay that price to stay in a glorified marriott. NO where else would get away charging those prices with what is offered.
That's what burns my britches. well actually not really since I don't pay it.

I'm going to Honolulu next week. The average room price is $350 for a Sheraton/Hilton type hotel.

Seattle, San Francisco, Boston, Chicago, New York....pretty much the same, you have to work at finding discounts. The discounts come when the rooms don't fill.

 

[mommycrawford]

Congratulations to your daughter!!! I am also taking my daughter as an "8th grade Graduation - Congratulations on getting into 1st choice High School" trip. Here in Virginia kids compete for a seat in the High School Specialty Centers. Each HS in our county has a different one with a differnt focus/subject (humanities, math, engineering, comp sci, IB, education, etc). They are like mini private schools within the regular public high schools and are very competitive.

To make the trip affordable this year we are driving. I also looked at YES tickets OR buying 10 day no expire WP&more tickets to use over 3 trips. I ended up buying the 10 day No Expire tickets. With the change in the YES program tickets, I think I chose well. And my teens aren't obligated to attend a class. We are staying at Wyndham Bonnet Creek (my family owns Wyndham) - so much cheaper than onsite and more space. I have been buying a $50 Disney gift card once a month since Dec 2011 so food is covered.

There is another thread about what your 2013 WDW trip will cost. I am shocked at the total trip prices folks are paying, especially those staying in deluxe resorts. $7,000 to $12,000 easily! ALL my trips this summer are costing less than that and we are going to WDW for 8 days (Wyndham Bonnet Creek), Disneyland for 4 days (Desert Inn or my sister's house, haven't decided yet), Hawaii for 11 days (7 days on Kauai at Westin Princeville Ocean Resort Villas, 4 days on Oahu at Wyndham Waikiki Beachwalk). Total cost for all three trips with airfare, rental car, food, lodging and activities is about $6500! There is no way I'd ever spend $7000 on just WDW, no matter how much I LOVE it.

Thanks for your congrats!...but we have not even found out where she got in yet (supposed to hear on the 15th!...the day she has the National Latin Exam )

I will get her there, but if free dining does not come out , and at values, we will stay at DTD Holiday inn at a rate of $78. a night plus tax( ...the only DTD w/o added resort fees I have found.)

We will eat a lot of fruit and cereal, I predict, and use restaurant.com vouchers and giftcards bought at discounts. She deserves better, but I am a debt free kind of person, and believe we will have a wonderful trip all the same....

Just to make you all laugh, I will tell you that we take a 23 hour Amtrak train to Kissimmee (in coach,)which saves money since a child under 16 is half the adult fare (HEAR THAT, DISNEY!)and a cab to our hotel is about $35...still pretty budget!...BTW, two free carry on bags per person, and up to 3 free checked bags per person (think cereal and sunscreen.)

Anyway, I am just glad to see that I am not just being delusional about the prices being signifigantly different this year! Thanks all!

 

[beansmom]

i think it depends on what stage you are in in your disney life. having been about 20 times in the last 5 years, I would say the answer for us is 'yes'. We can spend $3-5k on a week at disney or the same going to Europe or Hawaii.

And when we go to hawaii, we can actually relax...we don't feel compelled to run like crazy all the time as we do at Disney.

 

[granmanh603]

We are DVC members and have been going to Disney 2X a year since 2000 in March and Oct...this year we got sick of the prices for everything and are not going this March.. Did not renew AP they were running a deal on PAP for a little mere so we just got that voucher and will go back in Oct. Obviously our room is paid for with hefty DVC dues but the continued rise in cost of everything there and the so so food options now. sad. They keep raising the prices of the food and deminishing the quality. and ticket prices, I was shocked when our DS and family came last Oct and I looked for tickets for them WOW. and those too each year so up I do not know how families do it. I think they are getting like Kohls... mark stuff high and then run sales to make people think they are saving... Like room discounts and FD... where you eat more food than you need to make it seem like it is a great deal... We did the meal plan once and never again just forces you to make plans and eat too much food.

 

[Eliza32]

We live in the UK, so usually visit for 14 nights. Last time we visited was in Sept 2010.....simply can't afford it any more. Everything is going up in price here (whilst the economy gors down the toilet!!)...food, gas , electric, water, mortgage rate, you name it, all gone up about 15-20%,

We're hoping that we might be able to swing a trip to a value resort next September (2014) but even that will be a struggle. Our holidays at the moment are camping in the English countryside. Nice, but not as nice as Disney!!!

 

[lucas]

Im shocked what people pay to stay on Disney property for some of the deluxe resorts. $300-$500 or more for one night. Plus tickets, airfare, food, souviners, etc.

I feel the same way. (I'm jumping in here, I haven't read the whole thread.)

We are Florida residents and go to WDW a lot, usually for long weekends. It is just dh and myself and we can afford to stay in a deluxe whenever we want, but I refuse to pay that kind of money - for a room that you aren't even in that much. We stay at POP Century and visit the other hotel lobbies and shop/eat/pin trade while there. For what the deluxe resorts charge for a few nights, we can go on a 7-night (non-Disney) cruise for 2 and the food and entertainment is included.

ETA: And, lately even the prices at POP Century have been going up!

 

[robsmom]

I was shocked at the hotel prices for this summer. We have not been to Disney since 2009, because DS 13 decided he was getting too old. We decided that we really wanted to go back to Universal for some Harry Potter and we have 4 days left on non-expiring hoppers so we decided on a split trip. We started looking at some of our prior favorites including Poly, Yacht Club, AKL, and Wilderness Lodge. They all seem way overpriced right now. We decided to try the Swan and Dolphin instead. If I did not have the hoppers, I would skip Disney completely. I am contemplating staying at Universal the whole time and renting a car so we can go to Disney. I think this will be our last Disney trip for many years. There are so many other ways that I can use my vacation dollars.

 

[chobie]

We're Fla residents and the prices are ridiculous. We rarely stay on site, I use Priceline or my gov discount and stay off sight. I got Omni for $79 for a couple nights during the last week in March. I think Pop century is 2x's that during the week.

We eat very little in the parks anymore. Usually breakfast in the room, split some CS for lunch and use restaurant.com coupons for dinner offsite.

The only TS we eat at us HOB with the coupon. It's been years since we had TS at Wdw. Since the DP the prices have gone up and the quality down, IMO.

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

I will be when my oldest starts college in the Fall of 2014.
Then I'll have to ditch the AP and only go once per year solo instead of having an AP and going 2 or 3 times a year solo.

For us as a family, this June trip is costing us the same amount of money that we spent flying to MN to see the families last summer.

According to my husband and DD13, they don't want to go back to WDW after this trip. My DS17 hasn't said anything but I doubt once he starts college and working that he'll go on vacations with the family. I know I didn't.

So I guess being priced out won't matter since no one but me wants to go.

 

[manning]

I bought DVC in 2002 at $70 point. won't buy today at over $100 a point. Do most of our eating in room. Rarely go into parks. Getting to a point we may take a sandwich in.

Free Dining. Great advertising ploy. That free dining is factored into the hotel price. As grandpa used to say "you don't get something for nothing. You pay for it one way or another". He used to also say "You want to part someone from their money, make em think it's free."

He used to laugh when he advertise buy 3 get the 4th free. Said it worked better than 25% off. why? IT WAS FREE!!

 

[maxiesmom]

Everything is getting more expensive, food, gas, school tuition, everyday necessities. Disney is no exception. Expanding and creating new and up to date attractions to keep the guests happy and interested doesn't come cheap either.

Agreed. And A trip to WDW is not out of line with other vacations. Try pricing a week at the beach during the summer season. Even up here in Michigan that can cost hundreds of dollars a night!

I think many people are not priced out as much as they can't vacation in the style to which they have become accustomed.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

We paid $748 for YES tickets last year. Same tickets today at over $1,300. Ouch.

 

[2Pirates2Princesses]

Yes, WDW will never be a cheap vacation and unfortunately the prices will continue to go up just like everything else in life; but I think there will always be ways to make it a financially attainable trip such as taking advantage of available discounts and making modifications to how you do your WDW trips such as how often you go, how long you go for, where you stay, and what you eat. Modifying how we do our trips will be my family's answer to the price increases. I also think this is just like anything else in life in which we have to modify how we do things to adjust to the higher prices (e.g., higher cost of gas, food, utilities, etc.). This will be our second family trip to WDW and this time we are staying six nights instead of seven, not doing the dining plan, only doing two ADRs, and are staying in two standard rooms at Pop Century. We know we can save a lot more money and get more space by staying offsite, but since we have two kids still in car/booster seats and would have to rent a minivan (for various reasons we cannot do the 17 hour drive to WDW), we figured we would stay onsite with the spring discount promotion for this trip and will probably stay offsite for our next trip. Because of the cost of airline tickets for all six of us we cannot go to WDW every year; but we want to try to get in at least two more WDW trips while our children are still young. We figure once our children get older our travel interests as a family will evolve and it will be more practical logistically for us to do other big trips across the country and abroad. So for now Disney World is great for us as it is a quick 2.5 hour flight down to Orlando and Disney World provides us with a very family friendly, safe, and accommodating vacation with one of a kind experiences our entire family enjoys.

 

[sherilaine]

Our trip to DLR is going to be a bit more than last year but we equate that to Carsland opening. We never went until last year as we wanted to wait for our kids to be older - but honestly compared to going to the Caribbean or Hawaii or even on an extended ski holiday - Disney is not crazy in it's price. Off site hotels are not bad in price and airfare is actually cheaper than last year so the increase is for the Disney part of it that is for sure.

However, the economy is recovering and they must be thinking they are now able to increase prices and still be plenty busy.

 

[Egdisney]

That honestly doesn't even sound fun to me....to spend almost $3,000 on a 4 day trip.

We have driven that far (further) with young children and they were fine. We have opted to drive straight through on occasion and we have opted to stop overnight on other trips.

Do you have school aged kids? You could do a YES program for them and get reduced ticket prices.

If you have your car you could stay off-site in a 2 or 3 bedroom condo for much less and eat some of your own food.

Dawn

I am a tightwad at heart, so it is kind of hard for me. I have also been waiting to go to Disney World my whole life. So has my mother, she wanted to take us when we were young but always felt that she couldn't afford it. We have also never been on a family vacation, so it is time. With the limited time my husband has for vacation right now(his company is being bought out, and he needs to make sure he is a busy beaver to impress the new owners) driving 20 hours each way is not feasible, especially when the flight is less than 3 hours. We have the money to do this, but since I am a tightwad, I do not see myself doing it this way again. The Dining Plan will probably also help me not obsess about every penny spent while there, which I have a tendency to do. In fact, I get anxiety when my grocery bill is too high or when we make large purchases. I hope I can get past the anxiety that the prices of my Disney trip is causing me.

 

[Egdisney]

Yes, WDW will never be a cheap vacation and unfortunately the prices will continue to go up just like everything else in life; but I think there will always be ways to make it a financially attainable trip such as taking advantage of available discounts and making modifications to how you do your WDW trips such as how often you go, how long you go for, where you stay, and what you eat. Modifying how we do our trips will be my family's answer to the price increases. I also think this is just like anything else in life in which we have to modify how we do things to adjust to the higher prices (e.g., higher cost of gas, food, utilities, etc.). This will be our second family trip to WDW and this time we are staying six nights instead of seven, not doing the dining plan, only doing two ADRs, and are staying in two standard rooms at Pop Century. We know we can save a lot more money and get more space by staying offsite, but since we have two kids still in car/booster seats and would have to rent a minivan (for various reasons we cannot do the 17 hour drive to WDW), we figured we would stay onsite with the spring discount promotion for this trip and will probably stay offsite for our next trip. Because of the cost of airline tickets for all six of us we cannot go to WDW every year; but we want to try to get in at least two more WDW trips while our children are still young. We figure once our children get older our travel interests as a family will evolve and it will be more practical logistically for us to do other big trips across the country and abroad. So for now Disney World is great for us as it is a quick 2.5 hour flight down to Orlando and Disney World provides us with a very family friendly, safe, and accommodating vacation with one of a kind experiences our entire family enjoys.

If you don't mind me asking, how much are you saving by staying in 2 standard rooms instead of a suite?

 

[DawnM]

It is interesting to see we all vacation very differently.

 

[kristenandrick]

I agree that staying on site can be prohibitive. We had reservations in Feb for three rooms at ASMo. When we had to cancel and try for April, the prices were so much more that we are now going offsite. We are renting a condo that sleeps 14 for $179 a night and has a private pool. Even with having to rent a car and pay for parking we are still coming out ahead. As well as having the perks of being able to make breakfast and dinners at the condo to save money. I love staying onsite but realistically it makes much more budget sense to stay off.:

 

[olecow]

We're not priced out at this point but we only go every three years or so. It takes us that long to save up and go the way we want to. We could probably go more often if we stayed off site but we don't want to do that. When we're there we want Disney 24/7. Others don't and that's fine. I get it. Disney is expensive no matter how you look at it but I think it's worth every penny.

 

[Muushka]

OP, I am right there with you.

There is a limit as to what I will pay for something regardless of whether I can afford it or not.
For example, soda. If I was very thirsty and really wanted a soda and it cost $2 a can, I would drink water.

Disney has slowly eroded to that point with me.

Their dining costs have risen so high we refuse to pay it. We rarely dine on site.

We own DVC so we are immune to the cost of rooms (not dues though!). At least we can eat there.
Plus the food at Disney is not that good. No great loss!

Next to go will be the parks. The price of admission is so high. Once our Annual Pass and non-expiring passes are used up,
we will probably not even bother to go into the parks any more.
The parks are so much more crowded. No great loss!

The bean counters at Disney are really pushing their luck.