Disney isn't looking all that expensive

[chickenskin]

I'm glad you brought this up, I've never claimed that a Disney vacation is cheap, but compared to many other destination spots, it is a deal. I've lived in a small beach town in south Jersey for many years and what the local hotels get per night during peak summer season is ludicrous for what you get in the room and amenities. My best friend lives in the Charleston SC area and says the same thing about the hotels in downtown Charleston. What I see a family spend for a week at the Jersey shore they could do a value resort.

 

[freemore]

Don't forget also that if you go during the value season, the resort hotels are so much cheaper and if you fly and stay at a disney resort and use the magical express, there is no need to rent a car. If you eat at a counter restaurant instead of a sit down restaurant you save big bucks, and if you eat lunch instead of dinner you save big bucks.

 

[Amy&Dan]

I totally agree with you too! We stayed two nights in Rehoboth last year (just up the beach from OC) and I was shocked at the price. Now it was right on the beach and we had a nice view but my inlaws paid for it. I think it was almost $400 a night. Very nice place but I would never pay that on my own. I think WDW is a great value when you look at the total experience. And if I was doing a beach vacation, I would do FL over Rehoboth because of the cost. That is a very expensive stretch of beach imho.

 

[dixipixi]

I can see both sides on this one. We went to the Smoky Mtns. 6 years ago and spent $4,000.00 in one week. There were 5 of us (DH,myself, and 3 kids). 2 of the kids were charged adult prices for everything and the third was about 1/2 the time.

The next year we went to Orlando and spent the same amount for a 12 day trip!!! We did a lot on that trip...US, IOA, SW, BG, all 4 Disney parks and TL and BB! Plus we bought a lot more souvenirs and I think we ate better in Orlando.

We have also spent over $10,000 on Disney trips as well (onsite for 2 weeks). These were trips we really saved for...stayed in a Deluxe resort, did the dinner shows, several character breakfasts...pretty much whatever we wanted.

Disney can be "cheap", but you have to prepare for it. There is no way to go to Disney for more than a week, stay deluxe, eat whatever you want, do as many extras as possible, buy souvenirs (especially all the pictures!!) very cheaply (by that I mean less than $3,000). Especially for larger families with children over 9 years old. I'm also talking about paying rack rate...no discounts or specials on anything.

 

[PA Princess]

We have spent many years as a family renting a beach house at the Jersey shore. I love the beach, but dh can take or leave it. We had literally rented a house every year for the last 10 years.

We never stayed on the beach, but generally a block away...last house we rented cost $3000 for the week (July 4th week, but not even the most expensive week of the summer). that did not include food or any entertainment expenses. We agreed on that trip for a larger family event, but after that we said...let's re-think this.

We had done sporatic WDW trips until that point (every other year or every 2 years, sometimes 3 years). But now we have done WDW 3 years in a row, and to get in my beach time last year we tacked on a cruise (not Disney) after the parks and that was awesome. The real kicker is that the whole trip with WDW and cruise cost less than that last NJ beach trip

Oh, and another annoyance in the NJ shore town we stay in (Ocean City) the restaurants are awful! You pay an arm and a leg and the food is medicore at best, and we have seriously tried to find good restaurants for years.

Funny, I was just looking at old pics at the beach and thinking maybe we should rent a beach house again some time. My dh thanks you for reminding me why we stopped doing that!

 

[Shmily1]

As long as it's Disney... it's only money!! No matter what the costs, it's well worth the memories!!! My last full week's stay was right at 5Gs.... It was my dream vacation and I had earned it!

 

[ilovecountry]

I went for the first time in June w/ friends & it wasn't as expensive booking it as we thought. However before we left, everyone kept telling us that the prices were hell & we needed to watch our money, etc. Well as soon as we got there....um the prices were cheaper then half of the attractions here! I kid you not, the food at Disney is cheaper then Six Flags Great America here in IL. My friends & I just thought that was so funny- we spend more money for 1 day at Great America, then for 1 day at Disney World.

 

[Luv2Roam]

Anyone who thinks WDW resorts are high should price a room in Chricago or NYC. WDW looks like bargain prices.
A few years ago DH stayed in NYC to run the NYC Marathon. I about croaked at the prices, and never realized there were actually places where guests had to share bathrooms!
I think he got a room mid town on Priceline, Best Western or something. It was still just over $300 a night and the room was so small he had to climb over the bed to get anywhere in the room.
Needless to say NYC does nothing to entice either of us.

 

[lvloopingbag]

I agree! Have you priced places like Atlantis in the Bahamas?

 

[matthew&haleysmom]

My DH was complaining about the cost of our annual WDW vacation. We always stay at a Value or Mod with 7 day hoppers and DDP in the beginning of Dec. So to humor him I looked into other all inclusive vacations such as Beaches or Sandals Resorts. HOLY COW!!! $11,000 for a family of 5 - three of which are under 5 years old and no airfare included. Once I showed him the numbers he agreed, you get a lot of bang for your buck at Disney. Not to say we don't desire to ever vacation anywhere else, but Disney will always be a family favorite.

Last weekend, I priced out Beaches for our family of 5. i was about $7,000 for the week not including the plane tickets. Plane tickets were over $900 per person.

 

[murphnjamie]

I think Disney can be as expensive (or as cheap) as you want to make it. That's what I love about it too. No matter which way you go, you are still going to have a wonderful trip.

If you go during the value season and stay at a value resort, not do a lot of sit down meals, it's actually a really good value. If you decide that you really don't want a value resort and do a lot of fine dining, golfing, tours and stuff like that, you could spend a ton. But it is your choice, not someone else's.

Thanks to the 40% coupon I got, we are staying at the WL for a full week and with tickets it's costing my $2500. To me, that's a deal. And since we are driving, we will be saving a lot there.

But I think if you aren't careful, you could blow a lot of money at Disney.

 

[pepe of ohio]

We've done the math for other places and still return to WDW. We've just returned from our 40th visit a few weeks ago. We purchased AP's on the visit before so we had no ticket purchases this past trip. We stayed at the WL for 9 nights, and got up graded from standard view to courtyard do to a dirty room issue. It's just the wife and I, we're late 50's and do everything we want while at Disney. We had a grocery stop before arriving and had ample supplies and drinks, we also purchase the refillable mugs and get our moneys worth and then some. My Discover bill just came and I wrote out a check for the complete stay, room, food, souvinoirs, the whole kit and kabootal and it was 2056.00. Nowhere am I going to see what we've seen, have as much fun, never used a car, been wined and dined and cater to for 10 glorious days at roughly 200 bucks a night.

We've found Disney meals to be huge, we share meals alot, we have our own fixin's for pool picnics, we have our own booze and beer for quiet times, we never do ddp, never bought a package ever, we dine in all our favorite places and since we purchased AP's previous trip, we pop in and out of parks on a whim, maybe for a favorite attraction or just to grab a few Casey's kraut dogs. We never go peak season or in the heat of summer and only go either on an AP discount rate or AAA rate, room only. We never use a travel agent or company and after 40 trips have no regrets, we see all and do all and enjoy our stays like it may be our last, been saying that for 35 years, and can't wait to go again.

 

[TheSlough4]

I'm SO with you guys on this one!

Most of my friends (and family for that matter) look at me like I'm a nuts when I tell them that we're going back yet again. The funny thing is that I honestly think they're nuts for thinking it's a "been there, done that" kind of place!

I totally agree. Like some others have said these are the same people who go to the beach EVERY year I too looked for something else to do this year for vacation but still after comparing prices at other destinations, we just came back to a place that has something for all of us... WDW.This will be year four in a row for us. Look out CSR here we come July 2008

DH DW DS DD

 

[Family Fun Mom]

Disney is a lot more expensive for those of us with more than the standard two kids. We can't do the values without booking two rooms or a suite, and that adds a whole lot of expense. However, I will agree that you get a lot for your money at Disney. Shows, parades, fireworks, character interaction, rides, animals, atmosphere. Try doing all that seperately somewhere and see how much it costs. Disney might not be cheap, but it is a good value.

And the wonderful family memories are priceless, aren't they?

 

[fla4fun]

If you want expensive, try booking a London hotel. They're expensive to begin with, and then the exchange rate doubles the price! OUCH!

I like the fact that you can pretty much spend as much or as little money as you want and still figure out a way to visit Disney. Whether you stay in a pup tent at FW or a suite at GF, you'll still have a fun time. I have as much fun on my mini-trips when I stay at value or moderate resorts as I do my mega-trips at deluxes and DVC. Although you can splurge on fine dining and tons of souvenirs, it's not necessary to do that - you can still have a great vacation eating counter service and buying one balloon. There is so much variety in the offerings at Disney that there is literally something for everyone, whether your budget is on a shoestring or the sky's the limit.

I usually take a non-Disney vacation about every other year or so. I am on a budget, so my vacation dollars don't vary much from one year to the next. I've found that vacations just about anywhere (unless you're staying with relatives) will cost about the same, and sometimes more. It's nice to be able to work in a Disney weekend here and there because I've planned my Disney trips when they are the most economical. I can't always do that during the years I do my non-Disney trips.

 

[grannyminnie]

As usual, Disney wins by a landslide...
Aren't we Disney fanatics SOMETHING ELSE??

 

[joenan88]

I think Disney can be as expensive (or as cheap) as you want to make it

That statement sums it up I have 3 kids and it can get expensive because I stay in deluxe resorts..add food, concierge and all the nonsense my kids wanted and it can really add up....but it is my choice to do all that...so therefore I can not complain

 

[jimlin]

Only taken one Fort vacation with park tickets and for the wife and I it was very reasonable. With the souvenirs it got out of hand but thankfully no kids to buy for. I'd rather use the Fort and at it's cost knowing the quality that is there compared to some other campgrounds we have stayed at.

Sorry I'm only mentioning the Fort but we have not stayed in any of the hard sided resorts.

Jim

 

[Aliceacc]

OK, for us, it's not cheap.

Admittedly, we're staying at the Poly (thanks mostly to that 40% off code.) Still, there are 5 of us, so that single room at a Value just wasn't happening anyway.

But a normal vacation for us is a week upstate at a lake. Hotel runs about $1200-- we're paying almost that in airfare to get us to WDW. On a typical vacation, we eat pretty much what the DDP offers: breakfast in the room, fast food lunch, and dinner out. So let's call the meals a break even.

Souvineers: let's assume that we would spend no more in Lake George than we will in WDW (trust me: that's a very safe assumption.)

So this vacation IS a lot more expensive for us: There's the additional cost of the resort and the tickets.

So we've saved and we're doing it up big this year. Next year, it's back to our beloved Lake George.

We knew going in that this year would be the only time in the forseeable future that we would go to WDW, so I'm certainly not complaining. And I know I could have made much cheaper choices, in resort and DDP.

But for my family, this most certainy is an "expensive" vacation. We knew that from the start, and we're OK with the prices we're paying.

 

[Crazy Kanga]

We usually only spend between $2000- $2600 per trip(usually 6 days) family of 4, 2 kids over 9. Here is how we do it.
Resort- Use discount codes for Disney Resorts, or Teacher rate at Swan/Dolphin(deluxe for between $150-$180 per night) with Starwood AMEX I earn free nights so a few nights are free.
Food- no dining plan- we eat pop tarts etc. for breakfast. We bring drinks and snacks, and usually eat only 3 or 4 TS meals per trip. We are not huge eaters so we save a lot on food by sharing and snacking.
Tickets- I buy 10 day no exp. and get at least 2 trips out of them which saves a few hundred dollars.
Transportation- we drive and will spend about $225 in gas. If we flew it would at least double that if not more.
If we went to the beach for a week we would spend almost our whole WDW trip budget for the condo alone. Add on all the stuff the kids would want to do that cost $$$ and we would end up spending twice as much.
No brainer...We are going to DISNEY WORLD!!!!!!!!!