Budgeting questions . . .

[mom2dzb]

I'm trying to put together a budget for an upcoming trip that I am taking with friends. Some of them are overwhelmed with what they anticipate the costs to be, so I'd like to give them some idea. Unfortunately, I've never put together a budget for any of my family trips, so I'm looking for some help . . .

The costs that are obvious to me are: hotel, airfare, transportation to and from the hotel, park tickets, food and souveniers. Am I missing something?

Hotel, transportation, park tickets and airfare are all easy enough for me to estimate. Souveniers are completely up to the individual so I won't give them a number there. I'm stumped with the food part, however. What would you budget for food daily? Any tips for surviving the parks with a small food budget?

Thanks!

 

[CrazyDuck]

I usually do $50 per person per day. That'll net us usually a quick breakfast (muffin etc...), 1 counter service meal, and 1 table service meal.

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

$50 per person per day is nice and all, but unfortunately does not qualify as a "small food budget" for us. Our family of 4 can eat on $50-$60 a day, sometimes even less, if we are particularly trying to save money. We accomplish this by eating something in the hotel for breakfast before we leave and bringing apples and other snacks to munch throughout the day. We usually can afford one counter service meal with each person getting a full-size portion and then we get a couple of treats to share sometime during the day. Or we can get two counter service meals during the day if we decide to share meals instead of each having our own. Depending on portion sizes, we can sometimes share two or three meals among the four of us at each sitting and still have money leftover for treats. We also try not to buy drinks in the parks but instead bring some water bottles and/or ask for ice water with our meals.

 

[brenda1966]

I don't budget for food unless we do a fancy sit down meal or character meal. Then I will put those costs into my budget. For counter service and such I figure we'd be eating at home too, so the food costs should be nearly a wash or not too significant (we split meals a lot).

Some of the things I include beyond the obvious 3: airfare, hotel, park tickets...
transporatation (shuttle to and from airport or rental car)
parking for my car back home if I leave it at the airport
dog boarding (adds up for a weeklong trip)
Any special sit down dinners or special tickets (like to halloween party).

Sometimes I'll add an extra $200 for "spending". But when we are home, we are spending money on things like gasoline, food, movies, etc. So I feel it's an offset mostly.

 

[skiingfast]

Stay in a hotel that has a free breakfast. If you don't mind the security check you can carry in food for at least lunch for a $4-5 a person and drink water or bring flavor packets and fill a waterbottle in the park through the day. Dinner at CS can be done for $10 to $17 or $18 a person. You can also walk out of the park and go to McDs or subway but still expect to pay $7 for a value meal, they are at the high end of McDonalds rates.


For the airfare add luggage fees.
For the hotel add tax which is extra high and a parking or resort fee if the hotel has those.

As far as extra will you have kids begging for glow sticks at night? How about $4 snacks for popcorn or churros?

Lastly will anything require tips? Nice dinner, bell hop....

 

[Mugglemama]

I would think that if an adult going with no kids really, REALLY needed to manage on a tight budget, they could get by on $25 per day. That would cover 2 counter service meals, with drink.

 

[Mommy2PrincessAbby]

We do $50 per person for food per day too... CrazyDuck hit it--for us it is 2 cs's and 1 table service a day. So, yeah, that can be less. But I'd rather over budget there than under. We pack snacks, water etc, and rarely buy snacks in the park.

 

[iKristin]

I made this list a while back for DL and DCA for people looking to spend less on food. A few places obviously are closed now but still Hope it helps!!

California Adventure:

BL – Bugs Land | PP - Paradise Pier | PW - Pacific Wharf | SOC - Soarin’ Cali

- The Cove Bar (under Ariel’s Grotto) Under $10
* PP Alcohol and snacks

- Bountiful Valley Farmer’s Market Under $10
*BL Chicken and Fish

- Burger Invasion Under $10
* PP McDonalds Burgers & Fries

- Cocina Cucamonga Under $10
* PW Mexican Grill

- Pacific Wharf Café Under $10
* PW Sandwiches & Soup

- Pizza Oom Mow Wow Under $10
* PP Pizza & Pasta

- Taste Pilots’ Grill Under $10
* SOC Burgers, Shakes & Fries

Disneyland:

AL - Adventureland | NO – New Orleans Square | FanL - Fantasyland
FL - Frontierland | MS - Main Street | CC - Critter Country | TL – Tomorrowland

- Bengal Barbeque (Snacks) Under $10
* AL Beef Skewers & Pretzels

- Café Orleans $13 - $16
* NO Crepe, Monte Cristo & Salads

- Carnation Café Under $10
* MS Breakfast, Sandwiches, Pot Pie & Salads

- Enchanted Cottage Treats (Snacks) Under $10
* FanL Bratwurst, Knockwurst, Ice cream & Brownies

- Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor Under $10
* MS Ice Cream & Sundaes

- Hungry Bear Restaurant Under $10
* CC Burgers, Fries & Sandwiches

- Main Street Cone Shop Under $10
* MS Ice Cream & Sundaes

- Rancho Del Zocalo $10 - $14
* FL Mexican Food

- Redd Rockett’s Pizza Port Under $10
* TL Pizza & Pasta

- Refreshment Corner Café Under $10
* MS Hot Dogs, Chili & Pretzels

- Royal Street Veranda Under $10
* NO Gumbo & Chowder

- Stage Door Café Under $10
* FL Fish & Chips, Chicken Strips and PB&J

- The Golden Horseshoe Under $10
* FL Fish & Chips, Chicken Strips and Salads

- Tiki Juice Bar (Snacks) Under $10
* AL Fruit Bowls & Juice

- Tomorrowland Terrace Under $10
* TL Breakfast, Burgers, Fries and Sandwiches

- Village Haus Restaurant Under $10
* FanL Burgers, Pizza, Salads and Sandwiches

 

[Lissame]

I'd suggest looking over the menus at allears.net and looking at the places you think you might be eating. Food is VERY expensive at DLR, even for counter service. You can get a general idea that way to see where you might want to eat and what you might spend.

 

[Lisa S.]

I made this list a while back for DL and DCA for people looking to spend less on food. A few places obviously are closed now but still Hope it helps!!

California Adventure:

BL – Bugs Land | PP - Paradise Pier | PW - Pacific Wharf | SOC - Soarin’ Cali

- The Cove Bar (under Ariel’s Grotto) Under $10
* PP Alcohol and snacks

- Bountiful Valley Farmer’s Market Under $10
*BL Chicken and Fish

- Burger Invasion Under $10
* PP McDonalds Burgers & Fries

- Cocina Cucamonga Under $10
* PW Mexican Grill

- Pacific Wharf Café Under $10
* PW Sandwiches & Soup

- Pizza Oom Mow Wow Under $10
* PP Pizza & Pasta

- Taste Pilots’ Grill Under $10
* SOC Burgers, Shakes & Fries

Disneyland:

AL - Adventureland | NO – New Orleans Square | FanL - Fantasyland
FL - Frontierland | MS - Main Street | CC - Critter Country | TL – Tomorrowland

- Bengal Barbeque (Snacks) Under $10
* AL Beef Skewers & Pretzels

- Café Orleans $13 - $16
* NO Crepe, Monte Cristo & Salads

- Carnation Café Under $10
* MS Breakfast, Sandwiches, Pot Pie & Salads

- Enchanted Cottage Treats (Snacks) Under $10
* FanL Bratwurst, Knockwurst, Ice cream & Brownies

- Gibson Girl Ice Cream Parlor Under $10
* MS Ice Cream & Sundaes

- Hungry Bear Restaurant Under $10
* CC Burgers, Fries & Sandwiches

- Main Street Cone Shop Under $10
* MS Ice Cream & Sundaes

- Rancho Del Zocalo $10 - $14
* FL Mexican Food

- Redd Rockett’s Pizza Port Under $10
* TL Pizza & Pasta

- Refreshment Corner Café Under $10
* MS Hot Dogs, Chili & Pretzels

- Royal Street Veranda Under $10
* NO Gumbo & Chowder

- Stage Door Café Under $10
* FL Fish & Chips, Chicken Strips and PB&J

- The Golden Horseshoe Under $10
* FL Fish & Chips, Chicken Strips and Salads

- Tiki Juice Bar (Snacks) Under $10
* AL Fruit Bowls & Juice

- Tomorrowland Terrace Under $10
* TL Breakfast, Burgers, Fries and Sandwiches

- Village Haus Restaurant Under $10
* FanL Burgers, Pizza, Salads and Sandwiches

That is just fantastic - thanks so much!!!!

 

[bumbershoot]

This site (just click up towards the top on DL Dining) has menus with prices. Also check allears.net for their Disney dining section. That gives you a really nice idea on what you might eat and the costs associated with that.

But it's just an idea, because menus and prices might be outdated, so don't get your mind firm on any of it OK?

For us, DH and I tend to share meals. If one of us is still hungry later, that person can get something else. When I've gone on solo trips, I get the kid's meals (I've only done that at counter service or the hybrid places like Plaza Inn at lunchtime) and that's a really perfect amount of food for me, especially since I get get a small water and apple slices too. I might supplement the kid's meal with a little salad, too.

We're vegetarian and my family can't have certain corn-based sweeteners, so we are limited in the snacks...we generally bring in "safe" granola and protein bars for that, and we love buying the fruit that's in season and for sale in the parks.

So we generally budget $100 a day for the 3 of us (DS was 5 on his last trip to Disneyland), and that includes souvenirs. We've never even hit that level and have budget money to spare. (now at WDW we're budgeting $100 per day just for food (plus $20 tip money just to OVERestimate)! A little different there. Maybe. Maybe not. best to budget that just in case.



Oh, and speaking of that...tips! Food tips and bell services tips, shuttle driver tips, etc.

 

[CrazyDuck]

Also... If ya really want to save money bring a water or soda in the park with you. If there is 1 thing that can really blow a budget is sodas and water @ $2.75 each... Especially on a HOT day!

 

[pixiewings71]

yes, bring your own water bottles in, you can refill them various places in the parks for free. iKristin has a great list, but some of it's not 100% exact, for instance I don't think CO is doing bfast anymore and the Cove Bar in DCA is above Ariel's Grotto, not under it. So make sure you check the menus yourself to be sure of pricing.

We have a family of 4, we can easily eat for $25-50 a person a day, it depends on how hungry we get and whether we share or not. Which we normally do, DBF and I normally share meals and then snack. You can take your own snacks and drinks in, there is no problem with that.

 

[brenda1966]

kool aid has those new flavor pouches and flavor tablets that you can bring to add to water. I like them because they do not contain artificial sweetners (just sugar). the crystal delight and tea ones all contain artificial sweeteners that we won't consume.

At the CS places that give you drinks in cups, you can ask for ice water and make your own kool aid!

 

[mom2dzb]

Lots of great advice, everyone! Thanks!

Re: published menus . . . I can sit and stare at them for hours and enjoy every minute of planning my meals. My friends, on the other hand, have no interest in that and I don't eat out enough with them to speculate on what they would choose.

I do believe they would be interested in that list of places and prices that iKristen has put together. Thanks! Oh, and we'll either pack some water bottles, or buy one and then use it for the rest of the trip.

Since we aren't staying somewhere that has free breakfast, I think I'll tell them that $30 will feed them for a day and $50 would feed them for a day and include a table service meal. I think that will satisfy their curiosity about the food budget.

Thanks again for all your help!

 

[BELLEDOZER]

From personal experience of a family of 4 in DL in Feb/09 we averaged around $80.00 a day as a family. We got danishs, and cereal at HOJO's gift shop for breakfast, counter service in DL or CA and MIMI's or ate at one of the restaurants along the S. Harbor Blvd strip for dinner. I'm planning on around $30. per day for my solo trip per day in Oct, as I tend to be a light eater and not into big, heavy meals, so to each their own.

 

[azdisneylover]

Depending if you are flying or driving, you can pack some food that you can take to snack on in the parks. Buying a case of water is cheaper than buying drinks in the parks too. Maybe you can place an order and have groceries delivered? We bring Gogurts,yogurts, fruits like bananas, apples, grapes, etc, string cheese, crackers, goldfish crackers, granola bars, and other things we like to snack on during the day or for breakfast. We take instant oatmeal packets, Costco muffins. If your room has a microwave, that is great. You can warm things up.
There are many places that give larger portions of food.
Don't forget about going to the Disney Outlet store. You can get things cheaper there.