Doing RunDisney on a budget...

[goofeygirl]

This would be more for 2015 since your choices now are limited. However I am staying at the Dolphin hotel and they did offer a decent chunk of money off it I paid the WHOLE thing up front! So basically my hotel room is now paid for.


Meanwhile, this is what I could do for the FOLLOWING year....

Book a hotel EARLY...even call Disney reservations up before they post the actual dates of the race. You can always cancel the extra days as you have 5 days before to do that. By booking really early you will get a very good rate.
In 2012 , perhaps around Feb (before the registration opened for Rundisney in Jan 2013) I had booked the Pop Culture (I don't remember which one but there are a few)/ All Stars hotels. The price was around $80 something dollars and with tax it came to just around $100/n. I asked to pay the whole thing up front and they were happy to accept that. So that hotel was paid for well in advance of the RunDisney event.
The resturants in there are also reasonable. I don't believe they charge you to park your car as most hotels now do. And for RunDisney in Jan they do have the same bus service to and fro the expo and race day.

The key is to plan ahead. Disney will give out the expected dates of Jan 15 and you book the hotel around those dates...when they come out with the actual dates then you can cancel the extra rooms.
Remember that (as of now anyway) these hotels also include transport to and from the airport so you haven't to worry about that either.

Limit the entertainment. You do not have to go to a park. You can proudly display your medal in downtown Disney. You can view some animals from the animal kingdom by taking a bus there and viewing them along the rails of the hotel there, without going into the park (assuming the animals are there at the time).

You can do Disney at a value. It does require very early booking though. So for anyone planning ahead for 2015....its not a bad way to go.

 

[jmasgat]

Disney hotel rates vary by season, and January is value season--although now they boost the rates of all resorts during Marathon Weekend. Gone are the days of getting Pop Century for under $100.

But that said, the idea of how to save money is good. Let me add another one or two. Most are probably obvious for seasoned Disney travelers.

--Consider carefully which RunDisney event you plan to do. Marathon weekend in January would be cheapest for onsite stays, and January airfares are generally better than later in the winter/spring. ToT 10 miler and W&D 1/2 are in the fall and hotel/airfare rates are not the worst. Princess has to be the worst--it's peak season. This is based on rack rates, and doesn't account for any discounts Disney may offer.

--Take advantage of race discounts. The longer you wait to register, the more expensive the race will be (not to mention it may sell out). And make sure you look for discounts available to Disney Visa/DVC.

--Consider staying offsite....but make sure to consider the "total cost" of your hotel stay. Staying offsite may mean a rental car, and parking fees, and resort fees. Make sure you look at the total picture.

--Consider renting DVC points to stay at a DVC villa. This can be done through legitimate 3rd party brokers at a cost less than rack rate or even sometimes Disney discounted rate. At least, for now. My sister just told me she got some communication through DVC that may make this more difficult in the future.

--Ticket discounts through RunDisney seem to be disappearing (I still am pissed about the bait and switch they did for Princess). But they do still exist out there. Look at places like Undercover Tourist. Look at any corporate affiliations with discounters your company may have (e.g. Tckets at Work). Stick with a base ticket.

As for booking early--yes, generally a good thing. But I also would stay on top of every reservation you have to see if prices come down. Airlines like SW will give you credit for the fare drop. Rental cars have a tendency to drop closer to travel dates.

In the end, a RunDisney race is not a cheap experience. But yes, you can mitigate the damage on the purse!

Maura

 

[goofeygirl]

Its probably one of the most expensive races I have been in.

However that $100 rate was for this January...not from way back in the past.

I had booked about 8 mos prior. So their prices may have really jumped since this January.

Of course there is the nice campground...if I drove to Orlando...and made a real

holiday out of the event. Their campground is quite nice.

 

[steph0808]

For the 2013 Disney marathon, I signed up for the race early to get the cheapest rate. However, I booked everything else fairly late in order to get the best deals. I didn't get airfare until October. Then I got rooms. We stayed at POR for about $135/night.

I am kind of regretting signing up for the Glass Slipper Challenge in 2014 - I had no idea that February was peak season and it will be a lot more expensive (well, we also want to stay on the monorail this year so that increases it anyway). I'd like to do one of the fall races, but I prefer morning races over night ones.

 

[cewait]

being a frequent traveller...

Airfares are cheapest about 4 months out... later than most folks who plan want to wait. Check on Wednesday for fares. Subscribe to the frequent flyer club or e-blast service for the airline you usually use - specials are announced there a little earlier than to the public. Depending on load, a couple months out the fares cheapen again for a very limited number of seats.

Note that if you are shopping price on an airline day after day, delete the cookies from the airline. If the airline senses through these cookies that you are shopping, you will not see the cheapest rate.

With regard to room rates...
I find that Disney reserves at rack rates if too early the year before. Generally, the actual room rates for the following year will not be published until June/July. Reservations made earlier are at the highest rate for that season. Nevertheless, I agree with making reservations at the resort that you want as early as you feel comfortable making the reservation. Deposits are cheap and refundable. Start looking for discounting to occur 4-5 months out from your race date. Subscribe to a web service like MouseSavers for an announcement of the release of discounts. Act fairly quickly once announced as there is a limited number of discounted rooms at each resort. If you can snag a discounted room, you simply cancel your existing reservation.

- Make your room reservations through Central Reservationsn(407 WDW Disney) NOT Disney Sports Reservations. You may hear things like no race transportation, yada yada if you do not use the sports service. It is bunk. CRO generally has access to better discounting and cheaper deposits and friendlier cancellation policies.

- if really on a budget, consider staying off site. Most race weekends are over a weekend of lighter crowds. Simply stated, the off property guys are really hungry and may have really great deals.



Hope this helps.