Disney on a Nickel

[I~heart~Mickey]

I always check disneyshopping.com months before the trip for good things to take.

We save gift cards that have been given to us throughout the year so we can use them while in Florida. Or ask for disney gift cards when asked what you want for a birthday/Christmas.

Save all your change in a jar before the trip.... I just cashed in my jar and had over $300 in it.

Bring snacks in a carry on size bag so you can have snacks while in the hotel and then you can use it to carry all your goodies home.

Praticipate in the DIS boards share boards. To save money on things you need.


Have a great trip!

 

[joy13]

For those with Princesses - check Ebay for Disney dresses ahead of time - many times you can get the same dresses Disney sells for more than half the cost. If you don't need the actual dresses from the parks, check the Disney Store or Disneyshopping for dresses. This site has nice dresses as well:
www.mydressupshop.com

 

[fires_grumpy]

One sure way to save your money at WDW is. After a long day at the parks,get a piece of cardboard and go to DTD. Write on it I`m not lying the money is for my next day at the parks . And hopefully the kind DISER will put money in your hat. Not that I ever tryed this Oh and be ready to run if security shows up

 

[DalGal]

Do rewards programs (MyPoints, Sunshine, etc) to earn gift cards, DD, etc.

 

[snowmouse]

We always make a grocery stop for breakfast and snack foods for the room. It saves us both time and money.

I buy disney dollars ahead and give each child a preset souvenir spending limit (say $50 for the trip), when their money is gone they're done. Saves me from lots of 'gimmees'.

Now that our kids are older, 17, 17, 11 we give them the opt out option at dinner. They are often much happier with the food court or pizza in the room for dinner, while we head for a nice sit down. Quiet and a lot cheaper!

Read these board consistently and subscribe to all of the newsletters out there.

 

[joy13]

I buy disney dollars ahead and give each child a preset souvenir spending limit (say $50 for the trip), when their money is gone they're done. Saves me from lots of 'gimmees'.

We did that with DD last fall and it worked great

 

[disneyorvegas]

We give dd's disney dollars for their birthdays and sometimes for their allowance, so they have their own money to spend. (This also teaches fiduciary responsibility!)

If you can not make a grocery stop before you get to WDW, you can go to gardengrocer.com and place an order for groceries (I think they may also deliver beer as well). We get cereal, fruit, milk, disposable bowls and spoons for breakfast, snacks and cases of water too. (We contemplated getting a loaf of bread and PB & J for my dd who wouldn't eat anything else during that trip!) They charge $12 and will deliver to Disney hotels. Order before you leave home!

 

[zaja]

Stay off-site.
Eat off site.
Bring your own snacks into the parks.
Buy base tickets, instead of park hoppers - or, an annual pass for two or more trips in a year.
Buy souvenirs off-site - outlets, ect.

Yeah, I'm probably not Disney's ideal 'guest'. I think I can live with that, though.

 

[aimeeg]

Here are a couple of ours.

1. Save change in a jar. (It really adds up.)
2. Kids old clothes to consignment shop. (I have taken stuff there the last three weeks and made $360.)
3. Yard Sale- Getting rid of crap and earning money for WDW.
4. Disney Dollars- My DD is earning $50 for the BBB. She has a chart on the firdge. It has been a great reward system.
5. Refillable mug
6. Booked through AAA and got the Diamond Card. 10% off the World of Disney Store.
7. Limited DD's to one treat a day. They knew they were allowed to get something each day. (They are not old enough to understand . . . your $50 is up for the week.)
8. Pin Trading- buy lots of cheap pins and then trade. I bought a lot of 25 pins on ebay for $50. That has kept us busy for two trips.
9. Chracter Hunt for Autographs. Then turn autographs into somthing creative at home.
10. Tee Shirts at the Disney Store- $5 tees this past weekend.
11. Mail diapers and wipes.
12. Pack non perishable snacks.
13. Write a good budget before you leave. Find out how much stuff costs so you are not surprised and then add 10%.
14. Photo Scavenger Hunt
15. Hidden Mickey's
16. Take silly pics of hats in gift shops. (My girls love making Daddy try on all the hats.)

 

[fla4fun]

My best tip is to do a lot of research before you go. The people who get the least for their money are the ones who spend the least time finding out what's there in the first place. Look at all the great ideas in this one thread alone!

Sometimes the trick is not to go as cheaply as possible, but to get the best value for your money. Such as, although people have recommended staying off property, if you really want a good value, stay off property at a hotel that includes breakfast (especially if it's an all you care to eat) so you get a good hot meal to get you going, without the extra expense. Sometimes you can't work out your vacation time to coincide with the free dining that Disney offers, so this is the next best plan.

When I'm on a budget trip (such as, I had a bad week at work and need a pixie dust pick-me-up), I look for the best room I can get for the least money (sometimes that's not the cheapest room, sometimes it is), I plan in advance to eat CS and snacks, and I plan to focus on the four main parks without any add ons (like water parks, backstage tours, boat rentals, etc.) since they are covered on my AP. Although the extras are great, you don't HAVE to have them to have a great Disney trip.

Also, some of the best souvenirs are the photos you take of your friends and family having a great time. In this age of digital photography, it costs next to nothing, and you have wonderful memories to share.

 

[gingerale]

Don't just assume that the Dining Plan will save you money. We used it on our last trip and with 15 people it was totally worth it in terms of saving time dividing checks or charging to the rooms and then trying to figure out later who owed what. That said, depending on your circumstances, it's not always the best value. My group wouldn't generally do as many table service meals as the plan allows. We typically eat most of our meals at counter service restaurants. Make sure you look at the menus based on how your group would eat and then run some numbers. The dining plan is a great value, but you may be surprised to find that it's not worth it for your family.

 

[Cadillac_Dreamgirl]

This Thread is a great idea............

 

[disneyfan55]

I know a few have suggested staying off site. I feel that staying in a Value Resort might be actually the same or cheaper. It would be cheaper if you go during the free dining offer. We did last year and actually didn't spend much at all while there. It cost us 1190 for a week with food and hoppers. ( If we realized we wouldn't have even purchased the hoppers. We didn't end up using them due to the meal plan. Could have saved 90!) We did bring a couple cases of bottled water as well as some snacks, most of which came back home with us. Just an idea. There is no parking fee when staying in the park plus, I just found out some of the close outside the park hotels charge for transfers to the parks. The Vistana Sheraton charges 9 pp for one round trip per day. My daughter will be there and that's the deal she was told.

 

[ChrisinNJ]

For us it is more than just saving money by staying off site, it is a matter of more value for the dollar off site.

We are a family of 5, it seems almost impossible to get a value resort room for 5 people, though I have heard they exist. Even if we could get one, the thought of 5 people sharing 1 room & 1 bathroom for 10 nights does not appeal to me. Plus my DH & I are big people (He's 6'5" & I am 5'10") we would kill each other in a double bed.

So in leiu of staying on disney property, we have rented a 3 bedroom 2 bath condo for the week for $1100.00. We will eat breakfast in the condo, bring our owns snacks & water to the park, have our own car, and not have to wait in line for transportation back to our room. And when we get to our room, we will have enough room to spread out, rest comfortably & have a bit of privacy.

We will eat some meals in the park, some out.

We have enough Disney Reward Dollars from our Disney Visa cards to pay for our admission tickets.

We buy our disney shirts at the outlet & Disney store on sale.

Since we are driving I have already started stocking up on things to take with me (cans of coffee, a bottle of laundry detergent I picked up for $1.99, electrosol tabs for the dishwasher, an array of ziploc bags etc.)

Overall, it will be a great trip & a good value.

I know a few have suggested staying off site. I feel that staying in a Value Resort might be actually the same or cheaper. It would be cheaper if you go during the free dining offer. We did last year and actually didn't spend much at all while there. It cost us 1190 for a week with food and hoppers. ( If we realized we wouldn't have even purchased the hoppers. We didn't end up using them due to the meal plan. Could have saved 90!) We did bring a couple cases of bottled water as well as some snacks, most of which came back home with us. Just an idea. There is no parking fee when staying in the park plus, I just found out some of the close outside the park hotels charge for transfers to the parks. The Vistana Sheraton charges 9 pp for one round trip per day. My daughter will be there and that's the deal she was told.

 

[seashellmom]

Keep calling to check for discount PIN codes attached to your name. We got 40% by calling and asking. I never received the offer through mail/email.

 

[GlendaO]

Keep calling to check for discount PIN codes attached to your name. We got 40% by calling and asking. I never received the offer through mail/email.

I haven't received a promo card in years! Who do I call? TIA

 

[disneyfan2]

if you are on DDP, BF you can use the snack to get a small cereal box with milk, instead of using CS meal

 

[GlendaO]

We use the Disney Visa for gas and pay every month. Then a month before our trip, transfer the points. Our DDs get to split the points for souvenirs and it literally saves hundreds. They know how much they can spend, I'm buying gas anyway, and nothing costs us!
The trick is to not carry a balance; that APR is steep!

 

[GlendaO]

I saw this mentioned before about outlet store. If you are not close to an outlet store, there is the www.disneyshoping.com outlet store. There are some good deals if you watch it. We bought disney clothes before hand which is about a 1/4 of the price at wdw.

I couldn't get this to work. It loaded but in no way was it a disney link. Do you have another address?

 

[GlendaO]

I couldn't get this to work. It loaded but in no way was it a disney link. Do you have another address?

Never mind. Just realized it's missing a "p"! Got it