Cheapest Disney Vacay Possible?

[MyKidsMom1820]

So I am trying to convince my husband we can go to Disney this year. He is suggesting we do a week at Busch Gardens, Va instead (he thinks this will save us money). He doesn't really want to go to Va, he has said he really wants to go to disney but doesn't think we can afford it.

In my internet research a week in VA is going to cost around 1500, not including driving costs. (we live in MI and would drive to WDW if we went there too). I am thinking if free dining comes out in fall I would LOVE to do that.... and i might be able to convince him with the promise of "free" food (and when I say free, I mean totally NOT free, hahaha -Heinz Doofensmirtz)

Is Disney totally clouding my financial judgements?? Do I need an intervention???

Could we do a vacay for $2000 or less?? Any thoughts??

 

[Warren W]

Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

 

[GingerJay]

Is it just the two of you? You could probably do it.

 

[danielle79]

So I am trying to convince my husband we can go to Disney this year. He is suggesting we do a week at Busch Gardens, Va instead (he thinks this will save us money). He doesn't really want to go to Va, he has said he really wants to go to disney but doesn't think we can afford it.

In my internet research a week in VA is going to cost around 1500, not including driving costs. (we live in MI and would drive to WDW if we went there too). I am thinking if free dining comes out in fall I would LOVE to do that.... and i might be able to convince him with the promise of "free" food (and when I say free, I mean totally NOT free, hahaha -Heinz Doofensmirtz)

Is Disney totally clouding my financial judgements?? Do I need an intervention???

Could we do a vacay for $2000 or less?? Any thoughts??

I think you probably could, we went Feb 2011 and stayed at Fort wilderness cabins and opted for the 30 % off the room instead of free dining. The cabins had a big kitchen with dishwasher, full size fridge and stove. I think my 7 night 8 day with no park hopper for my family of 5 was right around $2500. If you cut out a day or maybe just enjoyed the Fort for a day( there are so many things to do there) you could probably get it to around $2000!

 

[MyKidsMom1820]

Is it just the two of you? You could probably do it.

no, I didn't clarify, it would be all five of us, but the baby doesn't count yet being under 3.

 

[nunzia]

I'm sure you could do that..I'd break down the costs for the Busch Gardens trip and find comparable WDW choices to compare. $1,500 for a week sounds pretty cheap for anywhere..how is this broken down?

 

[carrie1626]

Maybe



First, price out a Value resort for your l.o.s.
Then add the tickets. Skipping the PH option will save about $50.00 per ticket. You don't have to go to a park everyday. A day at the pool can be just as fun. Bring along some board games, then you can always go to the Poly and GF at night just to see the Fireworks. I've spent a day like that and it was a nice breather.
Budget for meals- you said you're driving so I would have all kinds of dinks, water, breakfast items and snacks bought ahead of time. That leaves one big or two meals everyday and there are ways to save there by splitting up meals ( counter service).

Good Luck!!

 

[kisaacs]

I'd say possible but you need to be flexible. If you want to do it, I'd look at YES tickets. If you can get one of your children into one of their classes, you can get 5 day tickets for 164.27 each, so you're looking at 657 for the tickets. I'd guess you can easily find an off site condo for $700 for the week. That leaves you with $600 or so for food and such, and you have a kitchen. So yes, I'd say it's possible.

Kristen

 

[MyKidsMom1820]

I'm sure you could do that..I'd break down the costs for the Busch Gardens trip and find comparable WDW choices to compare. $1,500 for a week sounds pretty cheap for anywhere..how is this broken down?

just doing preliminary internet research,
a monday thru saturday stay in June at a comfort suites in Williamsburg Va, came to 798, this includes breakfast, Then a "bounce Pass" for the family which includes busch gardens, a waterpark and colonial williamsburg, would be just uner 300. So were at 1098, add in another 400 for food/ a few small souvies. (we pack ALOT of our own food for lunches, and my kids ARE NOT into sitting still for sit down dinners). I figured around 1500...give or take... This figure is not including gas to get there..

 

[torinsmom]

Go during June, July, August, September or October and sign your 6 year old up for a Disney YES class. They are 3 hour behind the scenes classes and entitle your whole family to get discounted tickets. For 7 day base tickets, it would cost $728.32 compared to $1096.96 for the same tickets through Disney. There are a few threads about this on the budget board.

So, you COULD go during free dining, but you would need to pay for at least 2 day tickets. I would opt instead for room only code if you can get it. With that, you could probably do a value room for around $70/night, so $550 for the week. OR you could stay offsite in a 2 bedroom condo or a hotel suite for less and save money by cooking your own meals. Either way, I think you could do it for $2000 if you eat fairly frugally and don't spend a lot of souvenirs. Better yet, have the kids save their own money for souvenirs.

 

[MyKidsMom1820]

I'd say possible but you need to be flexible. If you want to do it, I'd look at YES tickets. If you can get one of your children into one of their classes, you can get 5 day tickets for 164.27 each, so you're looking at 657 for the tickets. I'd guess you can easily find an off site condo for $700 for the week. That leaves you with $600 or so for food and such, and you have a kitchen. So yes, I'd say it's possible.

Kristen

what are yes tickets??

 

[MyKidsMom1820]

Thank you thank you THANK YOU everyone for the awesome Ideas!!!! yay!! I have some hope... You guys are all soooooo smart!! I have been a WDW fan forever, but we just did our first FAMILY trip in 2011, so now I am learning the ins and outs of booking it myself, I love you all you are AWESOME!

 

[englishteacha]

You can "Do Disney" if you're willing to make some compromises. Well, to us they aren't compromises, but to many here they are.

When we go to WDW, we stay offsite in a condo through VRBO. It has a kitchen, laundry, 2 baths, 3 bedrooms. We've never paid more than $600 for a week. If you wanted to be more frugal than that, you can stay at one of the hundreds of offsite hotels/motels near Disney for just a hotel room. Eat breakfast in your room, pack a lunch/snacks, and get a counter service meal in the parks. Get a 4 or 5 day MYW Disney pass (I know the more days you add, the cheaper it gets per day), and on the day(s) you don't go to the parks, go to Downtown Disney and stroll around, swim at your hotel pool, and relax!

For us, this is how we can afford to travel. We have friends who think we must have a basement full of cash because we go somewhere each year. In truth, we plan carefully, save, and spend consciously.

We did a VA vacation back in August 2009. It was fun, but I don't think I could spend a whole week at Busch Gardens. We did 2+ full days at BG, went to Jamestown (Colonial Williamsburg was more expensive than Jamestown, and we only had a day), and drove around looking at all the pretty sights, etc. The first 2 days of our trip were spent at King's Dominion near Richmond. (That is NOT a two day park, but we had 2 day tickets so we went 2 days. We won't be going back.) It was a fairly inexpensive trip. We stayed at Super 8 motels, packed a lot of snacks, and ate cheaply when we could. Kings Dominion and BG don't allow you to bring in outside food unless you have a medical reason. They even gave me a hard time about my granola bar in my bag when we went to KD!

 

[momto2inKC]

Our cheapest trip so far was $1200 for 3 people, 10 days. We booked free dining and stayed at a value resort. It can be done. For your family I would say free dining would be the biggest savings at keeping you under $2k.

 

[kisaacs]

Here's the link on YES tickets. I wish my kids were a year older so we could do it this summer, but the youngest they can be is 5 or 6, and mine is still 4

http://www.disneyyouth.com/individual-enrollment/

Kristen

 

[Marionnette]

So I am trying to convince my husband we can go to Disney this year. He is suggesting we do a week at Busch Gardens, Va instead (he thinks this will save us money). He doesn't really want to go to Va, he has said he really wants to go to disney but doesn't think we can afford it.

In my internet research a week in VA is going to cost around 1500, not including driving costs. (we live in MI and would drive to WDW if we went there too). I am thinking if free dining comes out in fall I would LOVE to do that.... and i might be able to convince him with the promise of "free" food (and when I say free, I mean totally NOT free, hahaha -Heinz Doofensmirtz)

Is Disney totally clouding my financial judgements?? Do I need an intervention???

Could we do a vacay for $2000 or less?? Any thoughts??

I don't think that it's possible unless you have a lot of Disney GCs that you got from rewards and gas cards from a points program.

Think about tickets alone for 4 people. Even if your 6 year old does a YES program, you're talking about 1/3 or more of your budget going to tickets.

Then, you'll need a room but even a value room is going to cost more than something that you can find offsite. Figure on $100/night between the cost of the room, resort fees and parking at Disney. There goes another 1/3 of your budget.

So, you would have about $500 left to cover gas, tolls, hotels on the way to Florida and back, and food for the entire trip. I'm not feeling optimistic about gas prices. There was a report this morning that gas could hit $5/gallon before the end of the summer.

Maybe I'm wrong and if you plan and dig for bargains, it could possibly happen. But you really need to work the numbers for yourself. Take a look at the Individual Enrollment website to see what it will cost to sign up and purchase tickets. Go to the Disney World website and check the price on rooms for the days that you think you might go then go to hotwire to see some offsite prices. Look at homeaway.com for vacation homes. Calculate your fuel costs on AAA's website. And go to Allears.net to see Disney menus and prices so that you can see what food will cost you.

Good luck. I hope you can come back and prove me wrong.

 

[Nayan]

Don't forget to add gas since you're driving and with them expecting to go up over $4/gallon that could be a huge buster. My advice? If you can't afford to go on a Disney trip without 'free' dining (seeing that's what will make/break you) I wouldn't go. Not saying it to be mean but realistic.

 

[arihillfarm]

So I am trying to convince my husband we can go to Disney this year. He is suggesting we do a week at Busch Gardens, Va instead (he thinks this will save us money). He doesn't really want to go to Va, he has said he really wants to go to disney but doesn't think we can afford it.

In my internet research a week in VA is going to cost around 1500, not including driving costs. (we live in MI and would drive to WDW if we went there too). I am thinking if free dining comes out in fall I would LOVE to do that.... and i might be able to convince him with the promise of "free" food (and when I say free, I mean totally NOT free, hahaha -Heinz Doofensmirtz)

Is Disney totally clouding my financial judgements?? Do I need an intervention???

Could we do a vacay for $2000 or less?? Any thoughts??

I think most of us on here need a Disney intervention from time to time. I'm not sure asking about this on a board filled with Disney addicts is going to help.

Yes, if you are not including transportation costs in that $2000, you can do a Disney vacation, although not likely for an entire week. Your 6 year old is old enough for the YES program, which would allow your entire family to buy discounted park tickets. 5 day base YES tickets for 4 would run you $620. 6 nights at a value resort, non-preferred in Aug. is around $610.

If you got free dining (if it is offered), you'd have to buy reg. park tickets and the PhotoPass CD. 4 day reg. price base tickets and 5 nights at a value with free dining would run about $1600 with the CD. You'd have to factor in other meals not included, although you can sometimes use some snack credits for breakfast the next morning (like danishes and muffins) if you plan properly.

Your best bet would be to get into the YES program and plan to stay off property, which you could do pretty cheaply even factoring in paying parking. Look on Sky Auction for cheap rentals and if you are military, or gov't. (federal, state or local) or municipal employee, there are super deals to be had during the off to slightly off-season through getravelop.com

-Astrid

 

[Mrs D]

Since you are driving you might want to look into staying offsite. For anyone flying I find the cost of a rental car devours all savings but in your situation it could work.
Mousesavers has a pretty great deal at Buena Vista Suites.
Also found a great deal at the Fairfield thru Mousesavers

Even if you do stay onsite make a stop at the grocery stop and stock up on foods that can keep your family happy and full and keep from spending $ on QS meals.

For onsite, because your little one is under 3 you could still do a room at a value resort. After 3 yrs you will be looking at rooms for 5 or 2 value rooms.

 

[DawnM]

We are always under $2,000, but I will warn you that most do NOT want to "Do Disney" the way that we do. There are 5 of us.

All costs are aprox.

$800 Y.E.S. tickets
$200 eating at Disney (all other meals in condo with our $150 regular grocery budget.) Lots of coupons eating too, like .99 kids' meals at T-Rex and Rainforest.
$300 Gas
$200-$250 SkyAuction condo, 7 nights
$100 parking

We eat a lot of our own meals and take a backpack cooler into the park most days. (sold at Target, Igloo brand.)