Do you ever second guess your Disney vacations?

[blanq]

Another poster with a house that needs fixing! We own a 1903 Victorian, and have plowed so much money into that house that it makes me cringe. It still needs more work though, and DH has been pressing to back off vacations for awhile so we can finish the house for good. I am so torn. Our DS is 11 and I know the time will soon come when he doesn't want to vacation with us. I so enjoy our family trips to WDW, and the other trips we take, and we all have wonderful memories as a result. I am trying to think of ways we can compromise, and maybe do both the house and at least one trip per year for the next couple of years. Up until now we have been vacationing 3-4X per year, but I know that it's not realistic to continue to travel that often if we want to get the house done too. My DH more easily seems to be willing to give up our trips than DS and I are!

 

[VAN]

Years ago my family and I started taking Spring Break vacations (it was either WDW or Las Vegas). My DH used to get depressed in the winter and since we have had an annual trip, it gives us all something to look forward to and he doesn't have winter depression problems anymore.

Anyway. We drive from SW Michigan and camp at Ft Wilderness. We buy PHP tickets and limit our visits to the parks to 3 times per trip with a couple visits to the water parks. Because our visit to WDW is as much for the warm weather as it is for the atmosphere this works well for us. We spend a lot of time by the resort pool and walking through the various resorts at WDW.

Even though prices have gone up through the years, we still are able to do the trip at a resonable cost. Please note because of cost we have never been to the Hoop-de-doo Review, any character meals, etc -- but that's okay because we are able to go and that's what counts. The last couple of trips we did fit in O'Hana's but that is really the only "big expense" other than tickets that we have.

We have now worked our way up to 2 weeks and since our kids are both in college this year, we'll fly them down for their week off.

When we used to visit when the kids were little we didn't have much money so we never got food (except for ice cream) in the parks ... always ate at the camper or took snacks in. Also we gave the kids a set amount for spending money.

You can go the econo route and still have the time of your life!!!

 

[hookedup]

Hmmm, dh and I have been discussing this issue a lot lately. We have recently switched to one income, and of course this is a choice we have made, but the reality of how this has impacted our budgeting process is a hot topic. We are going to WDW in December but this may be our last trip for a while. Of course I always hold out hope that some super bargain miracle will occur and that we can keep going each year, but I know that spending a few thousand yearly for WDW is not a prudent decision when there are a lot of other ways to spend our vacation fund.

We also have bought AP's at DL yearly since we live close enough to visit easily, but this too has to be re-evaluated. I think that we will get them again - but it still will be a big spend for us on our income. I guess what we decide is that we would rather enjoy Disney than go somewhere else or buy a new couch or spend our discressionary (sp?) dollar elsewhere. I have traveled all over the world and I have never gotten the warm fuzzy feeling I get when I visit a Disney park anywhere else!

 

[rockin_rep]

I loved reading all of your posts and can really relate to everyone! And yes, reading the DIS makes me even MORE resolved and excited!

Traveling has always been a HUGE priority in our home. We've always included trips to WDW over spring break along with our long road trips in the summer that often include DL. And now that we're fast approaching the time when both kids will be in college, i am soo thankful we did. Our time together is more precious than jewels!

Some things in life are totally priceless and have a small window of opportunity ~ and that includes having our children at home. So we'll do all we can to juggle schedules and find the time and $$ for trips together. As others have said, we do not neglect our responsibilities but we'll have many years to redecorate etc.

That's why two of my all time favorite quotes include:

"The world is like a book. Those who do not travel read but a page." ~ St. Augustine

"Some people know the price of everything and the value of nothing." ~ Oscar Wilde

Happy travels!

 

[mrsgus06]

We are one of the families that take multiple trips to WDW. This year we have been there for spring break (4 kids in school), stayed 3 weeks in the summer and have reservations to bring in the New Year in Dec/Jan. We also stay in our camper and eat most meals at the camper. With 5 kids (9 and under) I take a soft sided cooler on wheels filled with frozen juice and water and I bungee another soft sided cooler on top of that filled with snacks. I load up on snacks when they are on sale. Our youngest is still only 2 so we rent a double stroller and put the coolers on one side and Logan on the other. We buy season passes (that is our biggest expense) but, usually, with ap you receive discounts on the camp site. For the summer we paid about $300.00 for 7 nights. When we did not have all of the little ones, I would rent a cabin. This was at full price and we could never afford one of those for a week 3x a year. One week in the cabin at full price is 6 months worth of camper payments! Not to mention we all fit in the camper nicely thanks to our 4 bunks. We live about 7 hours away so pulling it down is no inconvenience. Without the camper, I would probably be a once a year person. If you ask the little ones where they want to go on vacation, it is always the same. It did not take a lot of bribing to yell Disney

 

[Tiggerlover91]

No I don't second guess my Disney vacations because DH and I don't go often. Last time we went was May of 2001. Our next trip won't be til May of 2006. It doesn't fit our budget to go every year or every 2 years even though we are FL residents and can get great deals. I just chose to save for special times and I make the trips to Disney trips of a lifetime!

 

[diznee25]

My husband and I have only second guessed a potential trip that we would have taken a few weeks ago. (In August for my B-Day). In fact we went so far as to buy airfare back in June, and then a week later we called off the trip! Sure we were out $500, but we would have been out a lot more had we gone thru with the trip.

Reason we backed out of this trip is because we really need to fix up our condo and put it on the market. We just got married 9 months ago, (and honeymooned at WDW), and would like to get into a house.

As BIG as a Disney fan as I am, there are priorities that come first. I'm proud of myself that I saw planning this trip was a mistake, and stopped it before more money was spent! My husband has promised me though, that next time we plan a WDW trip we will certainly go! He promised this because I cried was upset when we cancelled the trip. I was the one who called back Disney reservations....it was hard.

Bet you can guess who the big crazed Disney fan in my family is!

 

[dizagain]

Ya know, I used to second-guess my Disney plans all the time, but no longer. Our first family trip was May '03...I worried and saved, worried and saved, and everything was totally magical. Now I'm planning our second trip for June '05 and I'm not feeling guilty at all. I teach private Kindergarten, so I just got back to work and I'll get my first check next week. So I'm excited to be officially saving now and it seems real!!! We have discovered that a love of travel is something all four of us share and DH and I have made it a priority to make special trips each year. Disney every year for us? No, but fo me it makes it all the more special. Of course, I thought we'd go every 3 or 4 years before I saw my girls faces at the gates of MK for the first time! We'll probably go every other year as long as they love it so! Oh, and we're cash all the way - absolutely!!!!

 

[HenDuck]

Just wanted to say I truly appreciate everyone's responses. I have nothing to complain about. We will be taking our trip in December as you can see by my counter.

I am trying to be supportive of my DH's desire to fix up the house. Hopefully, we will be able to do everything he wants to do and maybe have some money saved to take DS back to DL before the 50th Anniversary is over (2006?).

You guys are the best. Thanks again!

 

[Jen D]

Yep. We don't own our own home yet-- we're in an incredibly expensive housing market, so it isn't that unusual in our city for a family in our age / income bracket to still be renting-- it's just such a long, hard road to get that down payment. We're probably still a few years away.

I know some people- like my parents-- and some people on the Dis-- think you shouldn't be blowing your money on things like Disney vacations until you own your home... but that could be a long way away-- and my children are only this age now-- and we just need a break every now and then.

 

[VALDAN]

I went to WDW for the first time 2000. Since then I've become addicted to it. We go once a year, and find ways to save for our trip. I have the Disney Visa and although the rewards don't add up as fast as other cards, it's just part of our saving. We came back last week, between Disney reward dollars and saving change we had $1400.00 in spending money. We actually came home with $100.00. Which went right back into the jar for next year.
Granted there may be other items we need for the house, but for the next few years while are kids are with us, we enjoy these trips. My only regret is that I waited until I was 40 until I finally went!!

 

[DiznEeyore]

Originally posted by Jen D
I know some people- like my parents-- and some people on the Dis-- think you shouldn't be blowing your money on things like Disney vacations until you own your home... but that could be a long way away-- and my children are only this age now-- and we just need a break every now and then.

I know exactly what you mean!

We are a single-income family, own a small house (we are in the process of finishing an addition that is giving us a much-needed additional bathroom and a little more space) and yes, we do have a small amount of debt.

However, dh and I are young (35) and our ds is going to be 12 soon. We feel like we only have so many more "family vacation" years with ds (we didn't even take our first family vacation 'til he was 5) and we want to make sure we do Disney every year 'til ds has his own stuff going on and doesn't want to or *can't* go anymore (I mean, when he's 18 and in college, dh and I will only be 41). At that point, God willing, we'll have plenty of years to work and sock away money for the future.

Everyone has to do what works best for their family.