DISNEY $50 gift cards

[Cuddlemama]

We came back last month from a 3 week trip. We had around $2500 in gift cards between us (2 families in one DVC unit). They were all purchased at Target during the spend $50 get $10 event with our Target Red card. So, we saved approximately 25 percent (actually 24%)on their actual cost. That's a pretty decent savings on a vacation.

We used them to pay for pretty much everything besides our tickets (Y.E.S.) and room (DVC points). What concierge at Kidani suggested was that we just spend on the room charge and then come down every 3-4 days and pay off that portion with gift cards. So we didn't really carry around any gift cards. They stayed in the room safe and were pulled out when we needed them.

Another hint is to make sure that you go down before midnight the night before you check out, since things that are on your portfolio for room charge will be charged to you credit card on file in the middle of the night that night.

 

[davedmaine]

Question: how many people do you think are doing this and not immediately paying off the balance of their credit cards? Save 5% to pay 18% interest?

 

[mom2jcg]

Question: how many people do you think are doing this and not immediately paying off the balance of their credit cards? Save 5% to pay 18% interest?

Mine is a debit card, so cash comes out in 3-4 days. Some people are using credit cards, though, so I don't know. Not many, I hope!!!

 

[andee515]

I use debit so basically cash transaction

 

[livibug]

cash only!!

Question: how many people do you think are doing this and not immediately paying off the balance of their credit cards? Save 5% to pay 18% interest?

 

[MrsBlovesDisney]

Me and DH each buy a $25 GC every payday and are saving them for our cruise in November, which is already paid for. We figure we'll have well over $1000 for "fun" money, but no big out-of-pocket expense at one time. Works for us!

Great idea!!! I'll be picking up GC's once a week using my Target ATM card from now til April (tho I think they're only avail in increments of $50.00 - that'll do)!! Thx!!

I have not tried it yet but there is a Disney Gift Card app that helps you keep up with remaining balances of all your gift cards. I have one loaded on my app now but we will have a few more by the time we go in June.

Just downloaded it this morning! Thx!

You don't need to carry the gift cards on you if you are staying on property. Charge back to your room and pay the desk at your resort with the gift cards. Some resorts have allowed you to give them the gift cards in advance to charge on the room, however I have not done that, just heard of it. We carried only our KTTW card and drivers license. Nothing else

Excellent idea!!! We will do that too!!! Thx!!



......and this is why I LOVE my Dis friends!!! Thx all!!

 

[TygerHawks]

Love using the gift cards, vey easy way to "manipulate" reward points Paid off my vacation package this way. Charged it to a credit card with points at a location that gave me triple points on a certain day, then pay off card. $1700 in gift cards gave me $30 to use on groceries plush whatever Discover gives me in points.

It isn't much, but I was going to spend that money anyway.

 

[AlohaAnnie]

Question: how many people do you think are doing this and not immediately paying off the balance of their credit cards? Save 5% to pay 18% interest?

We actually use the Target Debit Card which is like a check directly from your checking account. So it is not a Target Credit Card but there is a target credit card that will also give you 5% off your purchases.

 

[Carlyzmom]

OP here. With my original question, I was thinking of getting each kid ONE $50 card. I had NO idea people were getting a ton of them for purposes of saving money. Great idea! But I have another question now. Do you get the savings from using your Target CC? I don't use CCs. I pay cash for everything!! (Dave Ramsey fan). I even make out envelopes for meals every day and put cash in them. I LOVE getting home and not having to deal with it!

 

[twinmamaplusone]

Cuddlemama: I have Target Redcard that is a debit. When do they do buy $50, save $10?!?!

 

[the little marla]

i love the idea of using the target RED card to get the gift cards but here is my question if anyone can answer... i typically charge our vacations to my disney premier visa to get the rewards points and then immediately pay it off (we just use it to get rewards), but could i, lets say, charge our vacation to the card and then pay our disney visa off with gift cards? is that possible - i'm thinking it would have to be done over the phone or in person in disney? if anyone has any info i'd greatly appreciate it!

 

[mom2jcg]

OP here. With my original question, I was thinking of getting each kid ONE $50 card. I had NO idea people were getting a ton of them for purposes of saving money. Great idea! But I have another question now. Do you get the savings from using your Target CC? I don't use CCs. I pay cash for everything!! (Dave Ramsey fan). I even make out envelopes for meals every day and put cash in them. I LOVE getting home and not having to deal with it!

You can get the debit card and get the same deal. You can also sign up for pharmacy rewards and get a 5% off shopping day for every 5 prescriptions filled. It's not a 10% discount total, but if you buy $500 with 5% off shopping day, it's $475. Then you get 5% off of $475 for using red card, making it $451.25, for a total savings of $48.75.

 

[mom2jcg]

i love the idea of using the target RED card to get the gift cards but here is my question if anyone can answer... i typically charge our vacations to my disney premier visa to get the rewards points and then immediately pay it off (we just use it to get rewards), but could i, lets say, charge our vacation to the card and then pay our disney visa off with gift cards? is that possible - i'm thinking it would have to be done over the phone or in person in disney? if anyone has any info i'd greatly appreciate it!

I don't think it would be possible since the credit card is owned by Chase.

 

[cajmom]

Do all or most places in the Disney parks let you charge back to your room? CS, TS, Food Stands, Shops, etc? Thanks!! I don't want to take cash/cc with me if I don't have to.

 

[Disfamily0405]

For those that have used multiple cards at the resort.

If you put 20 x $50 cards on your KTTW card and have a balance of say 100 left what do they do?

Put the balance on each card evenly? Put the balance on one card? Put the balance on each card up to $50?

Also, do people find it easier to give the resort ALL of the cards up front or go down to pay off the KTTW every couple of days?

This will be the 1st time for us using gift cards for spending.

I used several gift cards for souviners and didn't spend them all. They refunded the amount up to $50 starting with the last gift card. ie I put 4 $50 gift cards on my account used $126.05 for souviners they refunded me $50 on the last card I gave them and $23.95 on the next to last gift card. a partial card number was listed on the account reciept I was given when checking out so I just double checked the balances and got rid of the empty ones.

 

[Tbiafore]

What debit card are you guys referring too? Any Debit card or is there a Target Debit card?

--Thor

 

[KimK2006]

What debit card are you guys referring too? Any Debit card or is there a Target Debit card?

--Thor

Yes, Target has a debit card to use at their store. You get 5% discount when you use it.

 

[KimK2006]

Do all or most places in the Disney parks let you charge back to your room? CS, TS, Food Stands, Shops, etc? Thanks!! I don't want to take cash/cc with me if I don't have to.

Yes. There used to be a few snack kiosk that only took cash, but I am thinking most of those, if not all, now let you charge to room. We don't take our CC's to the parks. We take like $20 cash just in case....

 

[dminnie]

Question: how many people do you think are doing this and not immediately paying off the balance of their credit cards? Save 5% to pay 18% interest? - See more at: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3072855&page=2#sthash.mfeGMalv.dpuf

This is why any rewards type card is best used by people that are budgeting to pay off the balance every month. You get the rewards without paying interest charges that way. I'm sure most people know their own financial situation and whether it works for them.

I think the OP was asking where the gift cards can be used. The thread quickly turned into a discussion about getting discounts by buying the gift cards at Target, etc. To the OP: yes, you can use them for Disney hotels, Disney cruises, dining, shopping at WDW or the Disney store at your local mall. I think just about all the stores in DTD will take them. For our kids, we usually give them a set dollar amount they can spend on vacation. Anything they don't spend, they get to keep. The gift card might not work as well for us, since our kids typically like to go home with some money left over. If it's leftover money on a gift card, we would have to be sure not to lose the card once we're home.
Although...our teenager will be going to WDW on a school trip. We're thinking of giving her a gift card to pay for things instead of cash. We figure it will be easier to replace a gift card than cash if it gets lost.

 

[nfceagles]

I've done this a couple times to pay off my DVC dues and to pay for other trip expenses, but I think I'm done, having concluded that it's more hassle than it's worth. On our last trip I was trying to use GCs to pay for park tickets and the lady at the front desk kept running them and telling me there was no balance on them. I had saved all the activiation receipts so I knew eventually I could get it all worked out with Target when I got home, but at that moment I wasn't about to miss my vacation. So I was preparing to put the park tickets on my VISA when the lady realized she was running them the wrong way and had to back up and start over. I knew if I'd gotten stuck with the cards I could at least use them to pay off my DVC dues the following year, but for someone else in a different situation you could get stuck with a lot of money tied up in Disney GCs if there is a computer snafu. Plus it took FOREVER for the lady to run them all. My family just wanted to get to the parks, not spend an hour in the lobby trying to get the cards on the room.