Extremely budget trip ~ anyone else?

[stacy347]

It won't be so bad, right?

Our original plan was to use part of the tax return for our 2010 trip but it will instead be paying a large bill. I'm fine with that part ~ I really want this bill paid off ASAP.

So, to still be able to go, I had to get a little creative, LOL.
The kids have agreed to get their WDW tix as Christmas presents so that is taken care of.
We will be driving down (we've already done this 2 times and we're fine with it).
Our hotels rooms on the road will be free with HHonors points (I earn a lot of these by doing e-rewards!).


I just have a few questions:

We have decided on a hotel on 192 near the outlets ~ the reviews are pretty good since they had a remodel and we are going to be there mainly only for sleeping ~ this area isn't too bad, right?

Also, we are looking to save a few dollars by having some meals offsite at the buffets ~ any other good places to try along 192 (we'll be within 5 miles of the maingate)?

And are the outlets here worth the time (Kissimmee Value Outlets)? The kids are bringing their own money and if they could get souvenirs at an outlet, that would be great!

Anyone else had to do a really budget trip lately?
Thanks for any info!

 

[MagiKitty]

We ALWAYS do a budget trip. That being said, its become more of a game to save on everything! It'll be fun to be frugal. (I do e-rewards too!)

We go to the outlets for our souvenirs...there's rarely something I see in the park that I must have for full price. Also, the Walmart and Target in that area also carry Disney merchandise.

Check out the free publications at your hotels...a lot of times they have coupons for nearby restaurants. Also check restaurant.com to score cheap gift certificates. Does your hotel have free breakfast?

Also, join Friday's club, they have great coupons. The most recent ones were B1G1 free entrees, and $5 off everyone's entree. When you sign up, you also get a free appetizer, which can easily be used as someone's meal.

I've driven by 192 and for the most part, the hotels seem decent, but that's from the outside, so I can't really vouch for them.

Good luck and congrats on your upcoming trip!

 

[HeatherC]

When are you planning on going? The reason I'm asking is because sometimes you can get a 2 bedroom condo/villa for less than a hotel and you have a full kitchen.

You could look through www.skyauction.com. If anyone in your family works for the govt. (town, state or federal) you can reserve places through www.govarm.com or www.getravelop.com.

You could also try to rent a week at Windsor Hills. Many owners will negotiate on their prices. If you join the Windsor Hills Club they will send you specials for certain weeks that are like $199 for a week.

Also...check out www.bookit.com. They have great rates on hotels. And check out the preferred hotels on Mousesavers. Sometimes they have great rates.

Finally, check out www.travelzoo.com. Each week they list the best travel deals on the internet. We've been able to get rooms very cheaply as a result.

Hope this helps you!!

Have a great trip!

 

[BrettS]

It won't be so bad, right?

Of course not... any Disney trip is a good Disney trip

We will be driving down

If you plan on driving in and parking at the parks, remember to budget for the $12/day parking fee.

Also, we are looking to save a few dollars by having some meals offsite at the buffets

As one who lives in Orlando and does a lot of day trips to Disney I simply can't afford Disney food every time I go, so I try to do budget meals a lot. One thing I will say is that going offsite for lunch costs a *lot* of time. By the time you walk out of the park and get to your car, drive to the restaraunt, eat, drive back to Disney, park again, and get back to the into the park you can easily lose two or three hours and trying to do that for two meals a day is even worse.

We bring picnic type lunches (sandwiches and chips) into the park all the time. Usually we'll leave them in a locker until we're ready to eat, but if you don't have too many people or have a stroller to help carry things then you could probably just carry the food around with you. Sitting and waiting for a parade or fireworks is also a good time to eat your picnic lunch/dinner. Bringing food in will save a lot of time over trying to go offsite to eat.

If you plan to have breakfast at the hotel or on the way in and bring in your own lunch or dinner then you'll only have one more meal to have at Disney or offsite. Maybe even plan to bring your own food for lunch, plus some snacks for late afternoon/evening, and then do a late dinner offsite when you're ready to go back to the hotel for the night.

Also note that most of the table service restaraunts are more expensive for dinner than for lunch. If you do want to do a table service restaraunt or two, definitely plan them for lunch time because it will be cheaper then. Counter service restartaunts are the same price all the time.

~ any other good places to try along 192 (we'll be within 5 miles of the maingate)?

We like Cici's pizza. All you can eat pizza, salad, and some pasta for only about $6 per person. It's certainly not the best pizza that I've ever had, but it's not bad and you can't beat the price.

Depending on when you're going, drinks can be a real budget buster too. If it's warm out while you're at Disney you need to keep drinking, but $2+ for a glass of soda or bottle of water can add up pretty quickly. Definitely bring in your own bottles of water or ask for ice water at the counter service restaraunts to keep hydrated.

 

[stacy347]

Thanks for the tips!

I will definitely sign up with the links you guys provided and be on the lookout for coupons.

We are getting our room for $200 for the week (and we do get free breakfast) but if we can get a nicer place for the same price, that'd be great!
This one also has a mini fridge, coffeepot and microwave in the room which is a huge plus for us ~ and they have free wireless which the DDs are thrilled with because heaven forbid they should be disconnected from their friends for a week, LOL.

Since we are driving, we can bring a case of water and a bunch of snacks so that will already save us a lot of $$ right there.

The trip is planned for the week of June 20th, so I'm not expecting too many great discounts (peak season) but I knew if anyone could help me think of more ways to save, it would be this board!

I guess mainly we'll be looking to save on meals, souvenirs and some free or cheap things to do in our down time (we'll have a couple of days with no tickets).

Some things we are thinking of doing are spending an evening on the Boardwalk watching the entertainment, taking the free tour at AKL (hope they are still doing this), and having dinner at Captain Cook's one evening and then watching wishes from the Poly beach.

 

[cglaura]

Since you are already familiar with e-rewards and that type of thing, have you looked into other sites like Sunshine Rewards? For June, you'd have to cash out by early April to allow for shipping time, so that would give you 7 months to earn. I bet you could get at least $100 disney gift card if you have time to try for daily survey, then cash back if you shop online. Could pay for some disney cs meals! They have a great forum to help you get started.

On our down days we like to take the monorail around and visit resorts, then end the day in DTD.

 

[stacy347]

Since you are already familiar with e-rewards and that type of thing, have you looked into other sites like Sunshine Rewards? For June, you'd have to cash out by early April to allow for shipping time, so that would give you 7 months to earn. I bet you could get at least $100 disney gift card if you have time to try for daily survey, then cash back if you shop online. Could pay for some disney cs meals! They have a great forum to help you get started.

Thank you, I will sign up for that! I remember reading about it but I haven't tried that one yet. I also do Mypoints and I will have enough for a $25 GC before we go so that will help, too (I just have to decide which one to get now).

BrettS ~ I agree about any WDW trip being a good one! This will be very different from our other trips but it will be great just to get away for a week. The kids said they'd be happy just staying at a hotel for week and swimming so anything we get to do on top of that is awesome!

 

[DisneyAndRedSox]

As for the food, I buy DD a kids meal in the park since it is pretty cheap (I only have one kid to feed). For the adults.... on the way to the park we order a large sub from the deli at Publix, bring in our own drinks (or crystal light sticks), a bag of chips and bring it into the park in a small cooler. A large sub will feed two! We always do this when waiting for Fantasmic!

 

[*pixie*dust*]

I will be taking my 4 year old son on his first trip in January. It will be a budget trip for us as well. ( I am hoping for a discount code at that time.) Since it will just be the two of us, we will be staying onsite in a value. I bring snacks and water for in our room. We share meals normally and if we are having a TS meal I will opt for lunch since it is often much cheaper than dinner.
Any trip, budget or not, is a great trip to WDW! Have a great time.

 

[cglaura]

Thank you, I will sign up for that! I remember reading about it but I haven't tried that one yet. I also do Mypoints and I will have enough for a $25 GC before we go so that will help, too (I just have to decide which one to get now).

BrettS ~ I agree about any WDW trip being a good one! This will be very different from our other trips but it will be great just to get away for a week. The kids said they'd be happy just staying at a hotel for week and swimming so anything we get to do on top of that is awesome!

I always get Landry's from MyPoints,they are good at Rainforest Cafe, TRex or Yak & Yeti. I think they might have gas cards too, that might be good for the drive down.

Every once in awhile they run a special on Drugstore.com purchases, increased points + 500 bonus. That is how I usually rack up points, I save all my shampoo, makeup, soap, etc purchases for that order, and over $75 is free shipping. Otherwise, most of my shopping is done through SR, I've found the best luck with them, I've only had one not credit, and it was my fault b/c I used a gift card for the purchase, which I didn't realize for that particular company didn't qualify. Great people to work with.

 

[Simba22]

I guess mainly we'll be looking to save on meals, souvenirs and some free or cheap things to do in our down time (we'll have a couple of days with no tickets).

How old are your DDs? A cool tip I got a while back is to buy "souvenirs" before you get there, and present the children with a new item each morning before you head out to the parks. Parents used it as motivation for getting up and getting ready to leave, and therefore as reward for being well behaved. However it was made clear that they were then only able to buy 1 or 2 souvenirs from the parks during the rest of the trip and they have to wait until the end of the trip (like the last two days).

If your kids are younger that might work but I can't imagine that working with teenagers! LOL

 

[bgdiznee]

If you do have some extra days to fill, I think the "Mickey's Campfire sing along" and movie at FW is free. Just bring along your own hotdogs and smore making supplies. They offer these for sell at the campfire but are pretty pricey. FYI, you can buy the stickes to use to roast your hotdogs and smores there also for cheap.

 

[akayek31]

We ate at Sweet Tomatoes (pictures of the food in my TR) in May and it was really good. Also what are e-rewards?

 

[englishteacha]

We usually eat breakfast offsite, eat a late lunch in the parks, and then either have snacks in the park or eat dinner offsite, unless we're doing a park commando day. I usually bring some snacks with us, but DH isn't a fan of picnic lunches. We just did a Virginia vacation and I brought some Kool-Aid packets with us. We got free ice water at Busch Gardens and put Kool-Aid in it. It was refreshing and cheap. We refuse to pay for water, so every theme park we go to we just get ice water at the restaurants. We share sodas and meals when we can. Usually it's so hot that we don't eat a whole lot anyway. We stay in a condo and keep snacks handy, and some breakfast items. DH is happy to eat every meal out, but I actually like sitting at the kitchen table and eating my bowl of cereal. It's relaxing.

We might see you in WDW next year! We're planning a trip for sometime in 2010 with some friends!

 

[momejay]

We just got home from a budget trip. I used gift cards I earned from mypoints for Outback, Subway & Walmart. We had Chinese Food delivered once.
Our hotel offered a free breakfast & we ate bagels with creme cheese & cereal for breakfast. We took a piece of fruit from breakfast as a snack into the park.
Our hotel had a kitchen & a fridge & we brought water & some frozen meals. Even after driving 18 hours, the food was still cold & for the most part frozen when we arrived. I brought granola bars (with coupons on sale), chips, fruit snacks & other things as treats. I also brought a case of soda I got on sale too, but 2 cans leaked in the car, so I am not sure I saved anything there.

We made pasta one night, had soup another, hot dogs mac & cheese, salads & I made chicken & rice. We ate out about 3 times. We had a late lunch in the parks & shared larger meals. We didn't starve. We did drink more water than I thought we would. Which was probably a good thing. I could have easily used 3 cases of water for the 4 of us in the week. We had a coffee maker in our room & I also made some iced tea for variety.

We survived on $400 cash for the week for food & souvenirs. Each child came home with 2 t-shirts & a toy. (I had about $150 worth of gift cards too.)

It can be done! Good Luck!

 

[cjnix29]

Also think about the orlando entertainment book, lots of BOGO coupons. Restaurant.com, you can get some great certificates cheap for off site dining. Does your hotel have a shuttle? Even if you don't want to do it every day, maybe one or two days you could take it. Would save you $12 each time. I agree with looking at travelzoo. Great place to get bargains. The outlets are great for souveniers. Get souveniers before you go, hide them, and leave them on pillows like they are from Mickey or something. May help with the "I wants" during the day if they already have a goodie, even if it is only a pair of socks you got at Target's dollar spot! Make sure you get your tickets from undercover tourist, will save you a couple of bucks. Can be done. My last trip was a budget trip. Fun figuring out how much I didn't spend. Also...for food in the parks. We found that kids meals were about the perfect portion for us. So we ate a lot of those, or split meals.

 

[wdwfan16]

It won't be so bad, right?

Our original plan was to use part of the tax return for our 2010 trip but it will instead be paying a large bill. I'm fine with that part ~ I really want this bill paid off ASAP.

So, to still be able to go, I had to get a little creative, LOL.
The kids have agreed to get their WDW tix as Christmas presents so that is taken care of.
We will be driving down (we've already done this 2 times and we're fine with it).
Our hotels rooms on the road will be free with HHonors points (I earn a lot of these by doing e-rewards!).


I just have a few questions:

We have decided on a hotel on 192 near the outlets ~ the reviews are pretty good since they had a remodel and we are going to be there mainly only for sleeping ~ this area isn't too bad, right?

Also, we are looking to save a few dollars by having some meals offsite at the buffets ~ any other good places to try along 192 (we'll be within 5 miles of the maingate)?

And are the outlets here worth the time (Kissimmee Value Outlets)? The kids are bringing their own money and if they could get souvenirs at an outlet, that would be great!

Anyone else had to do a really budget trip lately?
Thanks for any info!

What outlets are you by? If it is the ones by DTD that is a nice area. They have a golden corral there. It is not a favorite of mine, but many do seem to like it.

If you are talking farther east on 192 then I would be worried. That can get a little seedy as you go farther east.

We like the two Disney outlets

 

[wdwfan16]

As for the food, I buy DD a kids meal in the park since it is pretty cheap (I only have one kid to feed). For the adults.... on the way to the park we order a large sub from the deli at Publix, bring in our own drinks (or crystal light sticks), a bag of chips and bring it into the park in a small cooler. A large sub will feed two! We always do this when waiting for Fantasmic!

She is going in late June, so a sub would spoil quickly. She would need to keep it cold.

For adults just buy the burger without fries/carrot and ask for a glass of water. This is what DH and I do at many of the counter service restaurants. You could add a snack from your bag if the adult is still hungery.

 

[bear74]

I second the question what is e-rewards?

 

[cglaura]

e rewards is something you can sign up through one of your loyalty programs, like Hilton Honors, Continental, USAir, Delta etc. It is invitation only through them. Check with any programs you already use, there should be a link on their site for it, or if they have a search function try that.