Give me some $$ saving tips for our next trip

[goofiecrazy]

There will be 6 of us when we go down next time me, husband, kids (5&3) and my parents. I am looking to go during the value season to cut down on the cost plus my parents are members of AAA so we will save $$ on our package and car rental..I think I will buy breakfast foods when we get there t o eat in the room as well as bringing my bottled water.. What else does everyone do to save money when down there?? Help me out here...

 

[Bob P]

Have you checked this website?

www.mousesavers.com

You can spend days reading all the tips there!
Bob

 

[buzz2400]

Parks will give you free cups of water with ice if you ask. If you have car, go to walmart and buy snacks to bring into the parks, ie pretzels. You can also split meals. Also like last poster stated check mousesavers.com. Since you are renting a car, double check the car rentals again with the codes on this website. I just did mine again and saved another $50.

 

[Pixiedust34]

If you don't have a Disney Visa already, you might want to get one. You earn $1.00 for every $100 you spend, and that adds up quickly if you use your card for big purchases.

We used our Disney Visa credits and ate at LLT and H & V for free, plus we had enough left over for a Christmas ornament!

 

[hopesmommy]

If you are staying on property, don't rent a car. We went the first of September and did not need one at all. I took snacks with us, but did not need most of them. Yes we were on the dining plan, but we even did not use most of those snack credits.

I don't know if you are already doing this but I started putting all of our change into a piggy bank (yes it really was a pig ) about 2 months before out trip and then about 3 weeks before we left I started putting our one dollar bills in too. This added up quickly about $125. We do not use cash that often.

As for souvenirs, do not buy the shirts on property. I found one that I really liked and almost bought, but it was $20 for a child's shirt. I was glad I bought shirts from the Disney Store before. I also got to wash them before we wore them that way.

Have a great time and tell Mickey and Gang we miss them.

 

[anty30]

I would agree that you do not need a car. We never rent a car and go every year. Bring water bottles to fill at fountains. Bring snacks for the kids. Order from Disney.com sale items and bring them with you to give to the kids while down there. This way you don't have to buy a lot of "new" souvies. Bring your camara and take your own pics. You don't need to buy the ones they take. My all time favorite tip is to make ressies for a late breakfast. We usually book a character breakfast for around 10 am. We load up on food. Eat tons. Then we do not have to eat lunch and we make a ressie for an early dinner, like 5:30. The breakfast gets us through the day, and we just pack some snacks in the bag for the kids. Crackers, and fruit snacks and such. Definately carry a backpack with lots of pockets and water bottle holders on the sides. Good luck.

 

[goodeats]

Share meals at the counter service. Some of the adult meals could easily feed 3 light eaters!

Ice water is free! Maybe carry in one bottle each.

Bring snacks (bars, fruit, PBJ) in a backpack. Security doesn't care (in my experience).

Plan on 2 meals a day. A big breakfast, and an early dinner. Subside on snacks the rest of the time.

 

[Jim5150]

We actually take picnic lunches in with us.

 

[dyna]

Yeah save that change and if you have a disney store near you go there and trade the change for disney dollars that way not tempted to dip in the disney fund when ya run low on cash.

We drive so always have a car but have never ever used the car once we there in more than a dozen visits. I agree really don't think the rental car is a must have.

We too take stuff for breakfast in room sure speeds the getting ready in the morning up too as well as saving money. Some can eat while others showering and getting dressed.

We don't take backpack or snacks into the parks but rarely buy any food or drinks in the parks either. Most of my disney visits we have ate peanut butter sandwiches in room for either lunch or dinner if not both.

If you have the time before you go give the kids disney dollars for Christmas and Birthdays this way they have their own spending money. Even then mine was limited on what they could buy tho. In other words just because they had the money didn't mean they could buy it unless mom and dad thought it was worth buying.

Saving money while at home can help the cost of disney visits. Everytime you tempted to eat out ask yourself if you'd rather save that money for disney visit to spend there or if you really want to eat out now? When ya choose to eat a cheaper meal at home put the money saved in the change jar. Same with going to movies verses renting a movie put the money saved in the jar.

 

[JJ's Laughing Place]

We traveled by plane. We did not rent a car because we stayed on Disney. So, for snacks we packed a large suitcase full. It worked out great.

 

[gt0163c]

A note on snacks.
Some people note that the kids (and the adults too) would rather have Disney food rather than the same snacks that are available at home. And that makes sense.
My thought is to get the snacks that your family really likes but you don't normally buy at home (sugared cereal, chocolate sundae pop tarts, the expensive fruit snacks, chocolate covered oreos (but only if you're going in the winter cause otherwise they'll melt), etc.
Yeah, they're not as healthy as some of your regular snacks might be, but they are probably better for the family than Disney snacks (most fruit snacks have 100% of daily vitamin C. Of course, they also have that much sugar too, but it's vacation, relax. ) But, even the more expensive snacks in the grocery store are less expensive than Disney snacks. And, if you're trying to save money, the family is more likely to settle for the "good snacks" over Disney snacks than they are to settle for "the same old boring snacks from home".

For my family's trip to Disney at Thanksgiving, I've already got some dinosaur eggs oatmeal for breakfast, cookies and creme granola bars and chocolate sundae pop tarts set aside (and this is all for me. I'm the big kid on the trip.). I'll add Combos and maybe some home made chocolate chip cookies and/or rice krispie treats to that as well as some small size chocolate bars (although I might make a deal with Mom and Dad that they bring the chocolate and I'll bake the cookies. Have to see.)

 

[KeepSwimming]

These are ideas I've gotten from other threads, but have tried them all and found them worth passing along:

#1. Buy a double cheeseburger meal at a counter service. Ask for an extra bun (50 cents) and make the double burger into two singles and share the fries. That stretches out the savings.....

#2. Bring your own snacks. Sure, splurge a little and buy a Mickey bar here and there, but if you have a snack in your bag it saves you money AND time.

#3. Eat breakfast in your room. Pack some easy breakfast meals and eat in your room every morning. Again, saves money AND time.

#4. A la carte - ask for it. Even though most counter service menus advertise "meals", you can order any meal a la carte (without the fries). This saves you money and guilt about the size of your bumper (I speak from personal experience).

#5. Bring treats for the kids. We certainly splurged and bought the kids a lollipop here and a disney bar there, but overall we brought sugary treats in with us and reminded them that we are BLESSED to have treats period. Whether we bought them at wal-mart or from the cart at WDW is just a detail....

Hope this helps....GOOD LUCK!

 

[jarw00]

We always take something like peanut butter crackers in a fanny pack and a bottle of water if its hot. Like everyone else we eat breakfast in the room. Most of the counter service meals are large, my wife never finishes it. Since you have a car check out the Disney outlet at the end of International drive. They have some very discounted prices and some park prices so check out the shops before you go. We also use our Disney Visa at the downtown shop for 10%, if we find something we just have to have. We also keep a cooler in the room for drinks.

 

[sandiegosusie]

If you have a stroller with you take a small collapsable cooler and keep it in the basket. (I got ours at Target, it's made by Igloo). We fill ours with small water bottles and the new mini bottles of soda for DH that we also buy at Target. We save bundles on drinks and we have the kinds that we enjoy the most also. We also have purchased spinning suckers that are Disney themed. They sell them at the candy store on Mainstreet for several dollars a piece. I just saw Cinderella ones at, where else, Target for around $3. You can replace the sucker and keep them several trips.

 

[Momerath]

I know this has been stated before on the boards, but check airfare prices everyday . Airfare prices go up and down so much in just the span of a week...I just booked a flight that was $50 cheaper than it was last week on United's web site (for the same flight). When we went to WDW in August I was able to find flights about $80 cheaper than I had budgeted by regularly checking on the ticket prices and jumping on a good deal. Good luck getting the most bang for your buck!!!

 

[connorsgram]

We went to the Super WalMart on Route 423 (I think) and bought lots of Disney souvenirs. They had Disney brand T shirts, sweatshirts, fleece, adult denim jackets with embroidered characters on the back,(wish these were available in kids sizes), plates, glasses, caps, etc. Some of these same items were in the gift shop at our resort, but for a higher price. While you're there you can pick up food and drinks. We also went to the Disney Outlet store at Premier Outlet Mall. They had great buys too.
This is my first post. I love this site! Just ordered a Pal Mickey that I learned about from reading the Budget Board.

 

[Jim5150]

I totally agree with buying snacks at home and taking them. We are fortunate enough to drive each year so space is not a problem. We visit wholesale stores before we go and allow the kids to pick out the huge boxes of individually packaged snacks, chips, etc to take. This gives them the feeling of picking out treats once we get to WDW. We do usually buy an ice cream each day but still save tons by packing lunches and taking them in a backpack. It is nice to be able to stop and sit down anywhere we like to eat lunch without having to stand in line and drop $40-50. You can really find some neat little places to stop and eat away from the crowds to enjoy alittle family time (in january anyway.)

PS-Am I the only adult here that just loves Nerd Ropes????

 

[gt0163c]

PS-Am I the only adult here that just loves Nerd Ropes????

I'm 30 and like the Nerd Ropes. Although I'm still hesitant to call myself an "adult". I prefer ATP (adult type person, what we call the leaders of my church's youth group (of which I am one).) or tall kid with a big allowance and no curfew.

Oh, and Sams for snacks, good idea (just to keep us on topic. )

 

[Wendy1953]

I agree with most, have a healthy breakfast inyour room, skip lunch---bring snacks, and have a great dinner....you are on vacation and deserve a good meal! All in all if you are not on the meal plan, you can go to the restaurants and share plates! Enjoy.....stop worrying about the food aspect...you know, you can always stop at the store and pick something up if you're hungry(eating offsite is the most cost effective way....but it tends to cost more time)

 

[Tigger2252]

I take breakfast items, snack food, cereal, paper plates, etc. in a suitcase with us. We stop at a store for bread, lunchmeat, milk, etc. to put in the fridge in the room. Normally we eat breakfast in the room, make ADRs for late lunch and then eat sandwiches in the room at night. To switch off, we may go back to the room for lunch then have a late dinner reservation. We generally try to eat one or two meals a day in the room. This year I plan to buy a case of water when we get there and I'm taking a few boxes of the individual Crystal Light packs for the water bottles. I picked up water bottle clips that go on your belt loop at Wal-Mart for a couple of dollars. Drinks alone will kill you in the parks. Another trick we learned last year was to buy the kids meals at lunch. You can get a PB&J, small drink and chips for under $4.00. The people at the counter don't ask to see the kids