Can 4 people do 5 days for under $2000?

[ncbyrne]

I just found out that my DGDs school will be closed the first week in November (moving from one bldg. to another). My DD (their mother) is a teacher here in NJ so she will also be off Nov 4+5 for teacher's convention, (and she can eek out one more day . It's the perfect opportunity for another trip! However, I don't have any $ saved for another vacation this year. If I do this I NEED to keep the cost under $2000 for 5 nights. I have enough frequent flyer miles for 4 free airline tickets. But, we'll need 4 day PHs, 5 nights lodging, a rental car (a must for me) and food. Can I do this? Any suggestions how?

 

[NotTooGoofy]

It's possible, but it may be tight, especially with a rental car. If you purchase your 4 day PHs in advance at a Disney store they should be $215.16 plus NJ tax for adults or $172.53 for kids 10 and under (assume worse case - total $940). If you can get a room at a value resort using a discount code (here is web site for more info http://www.mousesavers.com/disneyresorts.html ), that will be around $410 including the 11% room tax.

So at this point you probably have $650 left for food and car rental. I haven't seen car rental rates lately, but check out rentalcodes.com to get a first estimate. Hopefully it shouldn't be over $300 for the five days. So now you're left with $350 for food and souvenirs. This is doable if you don't splurge too much and maybe stop off at a local grocery store or Walmarts for breakfast foods like poptarts, donuts, muffins, etc. vs. eating at the more expensive park or hotel restaurants.

Lots of maybes and ifs here, but hopefully it can work out. Good luck!

 

[vettechick99]

I think you can. Hotwire has adult 4+1 PHP's for $208.96 / child $167.75 tax and shipping included. That will be about $750-830.

Get some vouchers and eat your sit-downs at lunch and counter service at dinner. Or order pizza / cook in your room.

You can definitely swing this!

 

[powellrj]

check out mousesavers for rental car codes. try priceline.com for car rental. Use www.biddingfortravel.com for all the information. Get groceries for breakfast and snacks, eat your dinner off-site. Maybe stay onsite a few nights and off site for even greater savings( once again use biddingfortravel if you would like to get rock bottom prices on priceline). Instead of 4 day hoppers, what about 3 day ones and spend a day shopping or at the beach? Your trip is very doable. Have a great time!!

 

[sweet maxine]

Have you thought about using the getravelop website for government workers? I would think a teacher would qualify, as she would be a state employee. The accomodations there go for $249/week, and are some of the nicest places. You could also try skyauction for a cheap accommodation, and that would cut down on some of the room expense.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Another possibility is one person get an AP or PAP and then get AP rates for the room.

 

[disneycrazed139]

Since you already have your plane tickets paid for, I think this should be easy. Is this for four people?

First, figure out how many of your days you are really going to be in the park. Do you really want park hoppers, or could you do maybe 3 1-park days to shave off some of the cost?

Maybe mix those park days with doing free things like going to Downtown Disney or the Boardwalk. Or head over to Fort Wilderness in the evening for Disney movies.

Make your main meal a late lunch. The crowds are less then and the cost is lower. Then just have a late snack and eat breakfast in your room.

As others have said, try mousesavers codes for the value resorts, use a AAA discount if you have it, or try priceline for maybe a three star hotel in the WDW area. Check biddingfortravel for recently won bids. You could try Hotwire too so you know exactly what you would be paying and the hotel amenities.

Go to mousesavers for tons more money saving hints. I don't think your budget should be a problem at all.

 

[pjlla]

I hope this isn't considered blasphemy, but you could consider staying offsite if you are really watching the $$. Especially since you will have a rental car anyhow. You could probably get something for as little as $35-45/night through Priceline. Or even just by calling the hotels! I actually just saw over on the "Orlando Hotels" board that someone got the Sheraton Safari for something like $29/night!! (With Priceline) I think that is a 3 or 4 star hotel! WOW!...................HTH..............P

 

[ncbyrne]

We have often stayed off site and always enjoyed every trip. But, this time I prefer to go as cheaply onsite (DD hotels are ok too)for one reason. I will be traveling with my DD and 2 DGDs who have a lot more energy than I do. Although I used to be queen of the commando style, I want the option to head back to the hotel whenever I want to get away from the hustle and bustle, and then right back to the parks after a quick rest. WDW busses run more frequently than offsite and will be ideal for this trip if the kids are at the park without the car. I'm hoping to get a value resort for $49, but the BAT code will work for $55. I won't chance Priceline or Hotwire with kids in tow. Have also seen the Grosvenor for $59 and I love the location within walking distance of DD.

 

[miche61]

I think you can do it! Here's our budget trip for Nov. 4-8:

Air- 707 (yours $0)
resort- 221 All Star Music Pass holder rate four nights
car- 110 (we're using a car service for DH's peace of mind)
passes- 300 (going 2 days only using "bounce back")
food- 300

TOTAL- 1638

There are four of us going- me, DD11, DD8 and DS8. We don't need a lot of food, we're not getting any souvies, and we're spending one day at the pool, DTD, and anywhere else Disney transportation can take us.

You can easily do it if you don't have to pay for airfare. The kids and I always share food, so that's why our budget for that is so low.

Good Luck!!

 

[MrsJ Henry]

Try Dollar rent a car. We just got our car (economy) for 8 days $138-tax included. We used the code on mousesavers.
I heard that someone else got a mid size for 98 for 4 nights I think it was.

 

[lorilori]

miche61 - hi, can you tell me please how/where you're getting 4 bounceback tickets for $300? Disney told me they were only available at the gate (had to buy tx for both days at the same time) and that they cost $111.29 per adult and $87.86 per child... thanks!

 

[miche61]

Yes, we are getting the bounce back tix at the gate. I have to get one adult for DD11, two children passes. We will only need two days, because one day we will be not going to the parks, so yes, we will be able to do it for around $300. I already have my AP- so that is it.

Originally we had rented a car at National and got the rate of $98 for a mid-size using an Entertainment cpn, and mousesavers discount also. DH really wasn't too keen on me driving by myself, so he suggested that we hire a driver to pick us up and drop us off. That's okay with me, less time for me driving, and no hunting for gas to fill up before we return the car.

 

[lorilori]

hi miche61, thanks for the quick reply and for confirming I need to buy the bouncebacks at the gate. I just get so caught up in all the planning, I prefer buying tickets ahead of time! Enjoy your trip. That's a great time of year to go. We used to go mid November when we lived in NJ but now it's October when the kids have fall break. Have fun!

 

[Raggedy]

what about the convention rates for the parks? or us hotwiresavingsclub.com using the convention rates you go to the parks after 2. They didn't work for me, but may for you. Go to the disney website and look for the convention rates.