Anyone not go to WDW on a budget?

[skiwee1]

Originally posted by iwannabeminnie
In a way we budget, but in a way we don't. I'm not sure what you mean by "budget". The room, passes, airline tickets, etc. are paid for before we leave home. Cirque tickets, show tickets, etc. are paid for before we leave. UPH's offer the most flexible options for us. However, I do the traveler's checks in the envelope game. One envelope per day. Most days we have money left over at the end of the day. I tuck that into the next days envelope and maybe splurge a little on something I maybe wouldn't do without the extra (like the pictures of you on the rides......those can get steep). We rarely use the credit card on vacation, but if we see that special something that we just CAN'T live without......... Anyway, it keeps the credit card bill down. I don't think I could enjoy myself on vacation knowing I would be facing a huge bill when I got home. I would rather work first and then play than play and then spend the next year working it off.

I don't know how anyone can vacation knowing that they will take a year to pay it off. We do charge everything, and I mean everything, while at WDW. But we pay it ALL off when the bill comes. We use a certain CC that we download onto out computer and it automatically does everything for us. I don't even write checks anymore. Everything gets put on that card and let me tell you it is a huge bill each month! But it gets paid off each month or we wouldn't do it.

 

[heart4pooh]

I've got excellent deals on airfare and resorts. I'm splurging on a towncar for transportation from MCO. My five year old has $200 saved from his birthday to buy a Pal Mickey, disney gameboy, pressed pennies/book, GOH badge, and whatever else he wants. I don't usually like to buy souviniers, but I'm going to DD for the 1st time so who knows??? We're doing CRT for dinner, Mama Melrose dinner package and Mickey's icecream social. And Ohana's. Otherwise I'll probably watch what I spend on food and eat lite. Is this a budget? I hope to enjoy every minute with the people I'm with. The look on my son's face will be priceless.

 

[GlennandAnn]

Having taken lots of trips, we basically know how much money we need to make it through the vacation. We do not spend one minute worrying about money, however. That would ruin the vacation state of mind. If DS sees something and wants it (within reason) we get it for him. For that matter, if DH or I see something we want, we get it. When we travel to WDW (or anywhere else) we leave our worries behind and think only about how to enjoy ourselves to the best of our abilities. We want our kids to grow up with happy memories about family vacations, instead of thinking, "I wish we could have..." or "I really wanted a... but mom and dad said no" (and yes, I understand that kids can have happy memories without having their every whim satisfied- this is just our philosophy).

Ann

 

[BounceyOne]

Thanks for your replies everyone. I was starting to think we were the only crazy ones ~
One trip to the budget board and I was wondering how people vacation like that. I know it is needed for some, but I can't do it.
Thanks again.

 

[coli]

Nope - you're not the only one - I usually have a vague idea of daily limit but fortunately money is not tight - but monitoring makes it go further.

 

[disneysteve]

We fall into that group of folks who have the means to spend more, but choose not to. We definitely don't vacation with a set spending limit for food, souvenirs, etc. I could never do that. But that doesn't mean we go and blow money all over the place.

Most of the "budget" work happens before the trip. I will hunt down the lowest rate for our accomodations and airfare. Then we usually drive to Florida from NJ which saves us hundreds of dollars. Since we stay in budget hotels/condos and drive down, that gives us more freedom while we are there so we don't have to count every penny we spend. If we want a hot dog, we get one. But if we want a nice sit down dinner, then we do that.

I guess the bottom line is that we both have the good sense and self-control to spend within our means without obsessing about each purchase or tracking our spending along the way. As someone said earlier, we've traveled enough to have a pretty good idea what a trip will cost us.

And we are also heavy credit card users. I think it is a waste to pay cash and forfeit all the reward points you could earn by charging everything and paying the bill in full when it arrives. We just returned yesterday from 8 days-7 nites in Massachussets. Six hotel nights were on reward points largely earned with our Marriott Visa. We only paid for 1 nite. As a result, we chose to spend more than we otherwise might have on nicer meals and daily activities (whale watching, museums, tours, etc.).

Everyone has their own comfort level when it comes to spending. I also think (and have read a number of posts on the boards to support this thought) that a lot of folks take Disney vacations that they clearly can't afford. Many people have mentioned charging everything then taking a year or more to pay it off. At least one person even said he had taken out a personal loan to finance his trip. I love WDW and would hate to not be able to visit, but no way would I go into debt for it. It just isn't that important in the grand scheme of things.

Steve

 

[dijid]

Originally posted by disneysteve
We fall into that group of folks who have the means to spend more, but choose not to.

This used to be us when we were DINKs (Double Income, No Kids). It made the adjustment to me being a SAHM much easier. I for one, could never enjoy a vacation if I knew I was going into debt as a result. If we can't afford it, we won't do it. And the way for us to afford it is to watch what we spend.

On our last trip, our family of 4 spent less than $400 in the parks the entire week (not including hotel). And I think we had every bit as great of a time than people who spent that much a day.

 

[Mady/Sophiemom]

I do try to get the best deals, on tickets, airfare, and hotel.
we don't rent a car. Not because we can't afford one, but it's nice to have someone else do the driving.

We stay in a moderate. We can afford a deluxe, but decide to save a little. It would have to be a killer deal to stay off-site, after staying on-site.

As far as eating in the rooms. We don't cook, but a bowl of cereal, in the mornings, and snacks for the pool, and parks, is much more convenient. It does save $$ too. If I had to walk somewhere every time my daughters wanted a nutra-grain bar, it could get old fast.

I do pack a cooler for the water parks. PB&J actually tastes good when I'm swimming. I know it's wierd. I don't eat it any other time.


I plan out my meal costs. We eat a couple times a day. We don't choose cheap places. Our list for this trip includes 4 character meals, along with Boma, O'Hana, Teppanyaki, Le Cellier, and a few others. I budget the max, including appetizers, and dessert. We usually don't eat all that, so that leaves extra for the next day.

I allow the kids to buy the stuff they want. Last time they pretty much got whatever, and if you ask them now, they can't even remember the things they brought home. What they do remember is how much fun they had. They look at the pictures at least once/week. This trip, I've told them we are cutting back a little.

I pay everything almost everything up front, and pay any balances as soon as we get home. We do this for every vacation we take (which is 2-3 per yr).

 

[lsutigger2]

DH and I usually plan a loose budget. We figure out about how much we need for one day. We own DVC so room is paid for (sort of!), airfare pd before leaving home, this year we have ap's. I do extra work on the weekends to pay for our Disney-habit! and we always have a wonderful time because like others have mentioned, I don't want to worry about what I'm spending when I'm at Disney. That is what the extra $$ is for - to enjoy!

 

[helenm29]

Basicaly, we start "researching" the prices as soon as we get the idea into our head to go! THEN when we get there, we wing it! I think if you are going to make a big trip like this, you might as well splurge and have as good of time as you can. Helen

 

[CamColt]

We definitely arent rich(1 income for 4 people and a pretty big monthly mortgage payment), however when we go on vacation we enjoy ourselves. We arent big crazy spenders, in fact we usually stay at the All Stars, but we also dont count pennies. If we see something we want we buy it. If we want another drink by the pool we get it. I dont go crazy and buy a new wardrobe, fine jewelry, and all sorts of collectibles on our trips, but anything within reason, I will buy...no set limit.
But thats how we live at home too. We dont have an official budget. We buy what we want, within reason. It just works for us.

 

[arminnie]

I don't budget at all, but I am very frugal on every purchase. I do try to get the best price and think twice about the money I spend while there.

When I'm ready to eat I really stop and think - how much is it worth it to me to eat at this place. I love sci-fi and Prime Time Cafe so I will spend the money to go partake of the ambience.

At other times I'm perfectly content with counter or snack food. A seated meal would be wasted on me.

I always look for souveniers at the Outlet stores first or even at Walmart. I love a bargain. That's just part of who I am. While I do not have unlimited funds (does anyone these days), I probably could afford to spend a lot more than I do.

 

[mmausse]

Yes, I can feel for those who do have to "budget" WDW into their plans.

But not me.

I have vacationed at WDW solo for the past 10 years and have never budgeted nor worried about what I spend. I buy an all-inclusive package and stop worrying. Yes, I have heard people say the packages don't save any money. Well, I tend to disagree.

I keep all my receipts from all my trips and at the end of the trip I count up my receipts. I keep waiting for Eisner to send me a letter requesting me to stay away - cause WDW never makes any money off of me!

But I am fortunate. When I go in Feb., I'm taking my niece. But she won't arrive for 3 days. SO I'll probably take some total strangers to dinner while I'm there - since I'm already paying for it.

It brings good will all the way around. And after all, isn't that what Disney is about - to bring a little spontaneity and magic into people's lives?

 

[Minky]

We kinda budget, I have a seperate bank account that I leave a good amount in for when we go away and I have an atm/visa card that we use while away (to avoid credit cards). We usually get a house when we go, we love having a pool and jacuzzi to ourselves and ALL THAT SPACE! Theres only two of us but its still cheaper for us to get a huge house with pool and hottub 2 miles from Disney than stay on property. Although we are staying for 2 weeks next time and the lst 3 days we are booked on property. However we are not huge souvenire types, and generally just eat wherever so we dont end up spending that much. We do one or 2 character meals...Im from NJ, we drive down so that saves a lot, and we love to eat at Waffle House!! We dont have that in Jersey, and that is always some thing I look forawrd to we get TONS of food way more than we can eat for like 15 bucks and they are open 24/7 LONG LIVE THE WAFFLE!

 

[cinmell]

We try to get the best possible rates on the resorts and airfare but once we get there, we just go with the flow, I don't plan a budget for each day. We eat when and where we want to and if we see something we want, we buy it. We don't go nuts buying stuff throughout the year, but when we are on vacation, anything goes, it's vacation for us!

 

[Mommy Poppins]

Well, I do look for a good rate for airfare, resorts and rental car. We are extremely luck that usually my in-laws travel with us. Most times my FIL pays for the airfare, room and park tickets. This year we are using the military 5 day park hopper for $99 (I'm going to miss the UPH!!) so we will buy their tickets as well as ours when we get there. I usually make 1 PS per day, sometimes 2 if we are doing an early morning with a late dinner. For other meals we eat wherever/whatever we want. The kids each have about $100 so far for our December trip. They have to spend their money for most of their souvenirs. If there is something special they want, we will usually get it. We also usually get them a shirt/sweatshirt, etc.

So, once we are there, we don't really worry about budgeting. I know how much we have with us to spend. I also usually leave a safety net in our bank account that we can use if we need to. We really try not to charge while on vacation.

Edited to add, we also try to get the kids to hold off on buying their souvenirs until later in our trip so that they have "seen" everything.

 

[apirateslifeforme]

My husband and I budget for the hotel, airfare, tickets, and to/from airport transportation. While we're at the parks, we make an effort not to go overboard, but we don't nickel and dime everything. If we're hungry, we eat, and we don't choose the cheapest thing on the menu if it isn't what we want. We don't always split meals either - my husband is a big eater, and if he wants an entire meal to himself, then I'll get one of my own as well. If we want some t-shirts or postcards, we buy them. We do think about it before we buy, though - usually we'll walk away and come back later if we still want the item. And we always make sure that we've paid off the credit cards before we go, so that we have a way to pick up any overflow (but still be able to pay them off when we return!).

I guess it's a half-hearted budget, but we don't want to analyze everything while on vacation.

 

[AirForceRocks]

I guess we kind of do budget, and kind of don't. I know what tickets will cost, and have an upper limit of what the hotel will cost. I figure $150/day for food, then throw in $1500 for the "extras" - mini-golf, souvenirs, etc.

The key for us is that we don't want to have to worry about money while we are there, so I get a ballpark on what the trip will cost, allowing for us to do the things we want to do and buy the things we want to buy, then we save accordingly, and usually end up taking more money than we think we'll need.

From the time we pull out of the driveway until we get home, the only thing I do to make sure that we aren't going nuts is to pay my room charges every day or every other day.

Sometimes we've spent less than I thought we would, and sometimes more. If we go over what we've saved, we just pay it when we get home.

 

[AirForceRocks]

This year we are using the military 5 day park hopper for $99 (I'm going to miss the UPH!!) so we will buy their tickets as well as ours when we get there.

If I'm not mistaken, the 5 day military pass is like the UPH, rather than being like a PH or PHP.

 

[Mommy Poppins]

The military pass is like the UPH; however, it is only for 5 days and we will be there for 8. So, what I meant was I am going to miss being able to go in and out of the parks whenever we want. We have to pick 5 days.