Haven't Been in 4 Years, IDK How to Plan Anymore!

[usschmidt]

The girls are now teens. We no longer have AP's. Carsland is open. Aladdin is gone. There doesn't seem to be any spectacular deals or specials. (Remember when you got in for free on your birthday and HoJo had 50% off deals?) And we have to go during the summer instead of the school year.

I feel like a total newbie!!! Help! Right now we're thinking of going June 13-18, 2016. We're driving from the SF bay area, so Sunday and Saturday will be travel days. M-F will be park days. I have a budget of $2500. Is it doable?

 

[sherilaine]

Our first trip was 4 years ago and yes, it has changed a LOT since then. We were right at the end of the park not being busy phase as we first visited in March of 2012 before Cars Land opened in May. We had days that were so empty - we would look at ride times of 20 minutes and be like "who waits for that?". Then we returned in May of 2013 after Cars Land had been opened for a full year almost and man, a LOT busier. Sure it was a bit of a busier time but California Adventure all of a sudden had a bunch of people in it - what was up with that. And of course the recession, or whatever you guys had was over, and the prices started creeping up. Our first visit we paid about $175 for the kids suites at HOJO with our AAA rate and this year going the exact same time it's $233. We had AP discounts our last two trips as we bought an AP to cover across two trips. It has gotten a lot busier and we are bracing ourselves for it.

One of the big changes is FP return times - you can no longer get a FP and then take your good old time to use it - you have to return within the return time window - I have seen people turned away for trying to do this. There are also a fair number of closures around the Rivers of America area in DL which are ongoing for about a year or more to make room for renovations to add a Star Wars land. Star Wars has meanwhile pretty much taken over Tomorrowland in the mean time although not sure how long that will all last. Buzz Lightyear has a FP now, if that doesn't say it I don't know what does!

So if you are planning to be in the parks for 5 days, with a family of 4 all of which have to buy adult tickets then you are looking at $1260 in tickets - however, there are places to buy discounted tickets but the lowest I have seen is maybe saving about $30 a ticket. Then if you are planning to stay for 7 nights, that leaves you needing to find a place to stay for about $165 a night including parking. That is without any food factored in. I honestly don't know if I'd agree that $2500 is doable. But heh, you are not coming from Canada so count yourself lucky for that. Right now our exchange rate is adding close to 50% onto the price of our hotel, car rental and food! This trip staying 8 nights at the Hojo in the kids suites, renting a car through Costco and buying our tickets in CDN dollars discounted is over $5000 CDN and that is before we buy any meals or add the cost of our flights (which were a smoking deal which starting the whole idea of returning). Disney is no longer a cheap holiday but we absolutely love it!!

Still the good news is there are so many people here that have so many great ideas and advice so just roll up your sleeves and dig in and before you know it you will be much more at ease planning your trip!

 

[usschmidt]

Yeah, I know that $2500 is pushing it...probably impossible. I girl can dream though Thanks for the info.

 

[DLfan4]

if you bring in your own snacks, water and breakfast items from home.... and eat offsite for most meals i think its doable, as long as you find a decent priced hotel.

 

[Gisele]

The girls are now teens. We no longer have AP's. Carsland is open. Aladdin is gone. There doesn't seem to be any spectacular deals or specials. (Remember when you got in for free on your birthday and HoJo had 50% off deals?) And we have to go during the summer instead of the school year.

I feel like a total newbie!!! Help! Right now we're thinking of going June 13-18, 2016. We're driving from the SF bay area, so Sunday and Saturday will be travel days. M-F will be park days. I have a budget of $2500. Is it doable?

Well ..... if ya'll have one or two awesome credit cards, then do what Wilma Flintstone and her friend Betty would do..... CHARGE IT!

 

[disneychrista]

Assuming a family of 4 adults you are looking at $2690 - $3710, without any extras.

5 day passes are $275 (no hopping) or $315 (with hopping) = $1,100 - $1260
Plan food/drinks to be $30 - $50 per person per day = $840 - $1400
Hotel $100 - $150 per night = $600 - $900
Gas - $150

 

[Gisele]

Assuming a family of 4 adults you are looking at $2690 - $3710, without any extras.

5 day passes are $275 (no hopping) or $315 (with hopping) = $1,100 - $1260
Plan food/drinks to be $30 - $50 per person per day = $840 - $1400
Hotel $100 - $150 per night = $600 - $900
Gas - $150

Man like you are good at figuring that out. Anyway, hopefully the OP will be able to get a great deal on a hotel through a site like Price line. Maybe costco will have a good deal on multi day tickets. Or someone else. I see their trip as being doable too.

 

[usschmidt]

Dh just said 2 things: 1. June is out due to work, and 2. $3k was ok to spend

 

[chickapin parterre]

with that budget, they may have to lodge far from the park , but $30.00 a person is high for a "on budget" trip eating outside the park

 

[chickapin parterre]

well then, you can find lodging within walking distance, and the later into the summer, probably better on your budget and crowds. have a talk with the teens about what you can eat at lodging.

 

[beachdreamr1229]

Definitely do-able. I recently booked a trip for my family of 5 for the week of Thanksgiving for about $2000 including hotel (HOJO) and tickets. So, with $3000, there's a lot you can do. With driving, make sure to bring snacks and maybe some easy breakfasts with you. If you only do one TS or just stick with CS for food, you should be more than fine. We spend maybe $50 on food per person per day (sometimes less if we share a larger portion) and do about $20-$30 for each of us for souvenirs.

 

[disneychrista]

with that budget, they may have to lodge far from the park , but $30.00 a person is high for a "on budget" trip eating outside the park

I honestly do not find dinning out side the park to be any more "budget" than counter service inside the park. Plus all the park time lost coming & going, just not worth it.

 

[chickapin parterre]

Your math equation was great and very agreeable and when adding all those correct numbers the trip is out of the question. My point is that if you bring your own food and eat at lodging, $10.00 a person is very doable, especially if you do your packaged purchases at home. And the coming and going in the summer time is worth it because of hydration, showers, rest, and eating carbs

 

[luulu1999]

Try and get a hotel with free breakfast, the Homewood Suites even has a light dinner and drinks during the week, if you could get a good rate there! Lastminute travel club and way.com usually has a little cheaper tickets also

 

[RemainSeatedPlease]

I have regularly stayed across the street for less than $150 a night, so it is definitely doable. You want to be sure to book as early as possible, so be on the lookout right now for good prices. Choosing a hotel with breakfast is also a good idea, as well as bringing your own breakfasts and snacks from home. To save money, I usually aim to eat breakfast at the hotel, eat a sandwich I made and snacks brought into the parks for lunch, and eat dinner at CS in the parks. One of my meals per trip is TS.

Also, I'm sure it will go up again for summer, but thankfully gas prices are pretty low right now!

 

[tlovesdis]

I honestly do not find dinning out side the park to be any more "budget" than counter service inside the park. Plus all the park time lost coming & going, just not worth it.

I agree 100%!!

 

[disneychrista]

Your math equation was great and very agreeable and when adding all those correct numbers the trip is out of the question. My point is that if you bring your own food and eat at lodging, $10.00 a person is very doable, especially if you do your packaged purchases at home. And the coming and going in the summer time is worth it because of hydration, showers, rest, and eating carbs

I didn't read the question as how cheap can we do it, I read it as what is a typical budget for 5 days. Which turns out is pretty close to the OPs original budget of $2,500.

And YES there are ways to make food less expensive, not arguing that, just saying going off site (as in eating at Denny's, Mimis, etc does not save money vs counter service).

 

[usschmidt]

Thanks everyone!

 

[agamble]

I say go with the non hoppers and do 3 at DL and 2 at DCA if you really want to save some money. But since your husband said $3,000 was okay maybe you won't need to. As far as hotels go, decide on your week and book now. Desert Inn across the street has rooms right around $100 plus their fees and taxes. That's still less than $900. That only puts you at $2000. Add gas to drive down and cheaper food options and you could make it at $2,500. Bonus, you have an extra $500 to play with. So you could stay at a nicer hotel, or spring for the hoppers, or have some sit down dinners. I say go for it, and have fun planning!

 

[minniegirl25]

For hotel stay check out Getawaytoday.com I just got 4 nights across the street from entrance at Castle Inn for $377. $94.25 per night isn't bad considering it's within easy walking distance! That included taxes and Castle Inn does not charge for parking which is $8-9/day at most hotels close to Disneyland.