Help me convince hubby for a Disney trip

[NoNameNecessary]

Hubby and I got married three weeks ago and went to Disney on our honeymoon. We had a fabulous time. He said the only thing that made him sad was that his daughter (who lives with us) couldn't be there to share it all.

We decided we will take our first family vacation next summer. He stated that we might want to consider somewhere close, as he said that's what we could afford. But I budgeted and looked at how we can cut costs and realized we CAN book a Disney trip. If we stop eating out so much, stop drinking so many sodas, and stop little impulse purchases, along with other saving strategies, we can absolutely make it happen.

He doesn't know I would like to do a Disney trip, because I'm trying to come up with the best strategy to convince him. Here's why I want to do it.

Hubby wants to do an educational trip, like to Washington DC or to a national park. While I want to do those, too, those are not trips his daughter (who is now 9) will outgrow anytime soon. I know that Disney fans never OUTGROW Disney, but you all know as well as I that when a kid reaches about 9, there is only so much left of the magical childhood time before the tween mindset sets in, and it's just different.

I see a Disney trip as something we should do now, and not wait until she is a teen, so that we can take her while she still appreciates it from a kid perspective. I love traveling to many places, but she will have her teen years to appreciate the places mentioned above. She is fast reaching young adulthood. Am I making sense?

Help me with strategies to convince him we need to go for it and save the money!

 

[whoopsiedoodle]

I think the best way is to lay out the budget and tell him how you can make it work! Tell him that his DD will soon miss the special "kid magic" but will never miss out on the educational value of other trips. Show him how you can cut costs on the trip and how you plan on saving for it before hand.

 

[mad madam mim78]

I had to do the same for my DH and I. He was convinced a Disney trip would be too expensive and basically if I wanted it I would have to save for it. So I changed everything. I NEVER ate out, even fast food. I took my lunch to work everyday. I made dinner at home every night. I had a bag of money in my drawer I would contribute to every week. I realised when I cut back all the unnecessary spending I saved $2000.00 in 3 months. I was amazed!!!

Well seeing what I was able to accomplish inspired me to keep going. I've lost weight from not eating out so much, and I get to go to Disney twice a year because I can save for it now. We only eat out on rare occasions these days. It's worth it to me.

 

[mrsklamc]

Well for starters it's cheaper if she goes as a nine year old than a ten year old.

As far as cutting the budget, well, show him the math you've done- but to be honest a National Parks type trip is probably not going to be a lot cheaper than Disney.

 

[Colleen27]

Lay it all out for him. A few points to touch on:

Disney's booking policies make paying over time super-easy. Book the trip with $200 and make payments as you go, and you have up until 45 days before the trip to pay it off. No interest, and no keeping those savings around in cash if that would be a temptation.

His daughter is cheaper at 9 than at 10, when she will be considered an adult for tickets and dining.

If you're able to go in late Aug or any time in Sept there's a pretty good chance of getting the dining plan for free. They've run that discount offer for that season every year since '05.

Compare the real costs of the alternatives. I would be very surprised if DC or the national parks worked out to be much cheaper than WDW unless you're semi-local to the destination he has in mind.

Good luck to you! I tend to agree with your thinking - your step-DD will have less interest in/love for Disney as she gets older, while places like DC and the national parks will become more meaningful as she matures, learns, and has more appreciation for the historical and cultural significance of those sites.

 

[beansmom]

Vacations are expensive...period. We can easily spend $500 on a weekend out of town once you pay for a room, gas, food, entertainment. Disney just seems more expensive.

I think if you show him your budget, then implement it and show him the savings piling up in the piggybank...and give him your well thought out (and it is, imo) opinion on why Disney is a good choice now, he might change his mind.

Good luck.

 

[franluvsbubba]

Lol. Thts the same for us. I'm a single Mom who's the sole provider for my two girls on a nanny salary. I've been taking my girls to WDW twice a year for the past 7 1/2 yrs! Plus gone to other attractions in FL. We always stay at ASM & gt the Dining Plan and stay btwn 15-10 days. Dis is def affordable. It helps tht my girls are homeschooled so we go in May, Sept/Nov. whn the rates are cheapest.

 

[Mom2Ben02]

Look into the Y.E.S. program!!! There are several threads - if DSD takes a (free) class in one of the parks, the whole family gets almost half off tickets.

 

[luv2sewtjr]

I would take a different angle, to be honest. You are a newlywed and a stepmother and that can be difficult (I've been a stepmother for 17 years, so I know what I'm saying. )

The conversation I would have would involve setting a vacation budget up first. Ask for numbers and how we can get there. If travel is a value of yours, you should have some discussions about it. The two of you should set your travel priorities, too.

Good luck!

 

[torinsmom]

Our 4 day trip to DC cost almost as much as our 7 day trip to WDW. The hotels are crazy expensive and since we were in a hotel vs. a condo, we had to eat every meal out.

Like someone else said, check out the YES program. You get tickets at around 40% off when your child takes a class. Go during value season, so the room is cheap or stay offsite to save money.

 

[NoNameNecessary]

Our 4 day trip to DC cost almost as much as our 7 day trip to WDW. The hotels are crazy expensive and since we were in a hotel vs. a condo, we had to eat every meal out.

Like someone else said, check out the YES program. You get tickets at around 40% off when your child takes a class. Go during value season, so the room is cheap or stay offsite to save money.

Thanks for the information. He assumed DC would be cheaper because all the museums, etc are free. Thanks for that insight.

I will look into the YES program. I cannot go during value season because I'm a teacher.

 

[torinsmom]

Thanks for the information. He assumed DC would be cheaper because all the museums, etc are free. Thanks for that insight.

I will look into the YES program. I cannot go during value season because I'm a teacher.

Me too! You can also stay offsite to save money, or if you are a AAA member, use that to get a discount on a room at Disney.

 

[Glenn]

Got to agree that DC is expensive for hotels & eating. While youre doing your budget why not start saving now to show things can be done. Coupons, change jars even if its just pennys & nickels, watch utilities and the like. When you were at WDW did you have a car or used their buses. In DC you will use metro or cabs or pay high parking fees at hotels. As others have said 9 is cheaper than 10 at Disney. Look at bringing snacks into the park, saves alot. If your room would have a fridge think of simple breakfast a few times, coffee, cereal & milk, bagels.Yes sit down & character dinners are fun but expensive. Think of cutting them back same with souvenirs. One of the best things to bring home are park CD & lots of your own pictures. It can be done saving both on wasted things at home & not over doing it at the parks. Good luck. Hope it works.

 

[torinsmom]

Yes, so many ways to save money while at WDW. Free ice water instead of drinks, eating some meals offsite or sharing meals, bringing in snacks, eating a character breakfast vs. dinner, etc. For souvenir money, have family give your DSD Disney gift cards, and/or have her save her allowance/change to spend there. I always give my son a set amount of money and when it's gone, it's gone.

You mentioned you're a teacher. I always get a few gift cards at Christmas. If they are Visa gift cards, I save them for the trip. If they are for stores like Walmart, I put that much money aside for the trip and use the gc instead. You can do the same thing with coupons and reward card savings.

 

[Suz D]

Look into the Y.E.S. program!!! There are several threads - if DSD takes a (free) class in one of the parks, the whole family gets almost half off tickets.

This is exactly what I was going to suggest. And this would also fit his desire to have this be an education experience.

 

[CatNipRules]

Thanks for the information. He assumed DC would be cheaper because all the museums, etc are free. Thanks for that insight.

I will look into the YES program. I cannot go during value season because I'm a teacher.

The museums are free, but the food is crazy expensive in DC. For the three of us in our family we spent more on food and the hotel room than anything else. It actually cost us more to go there for a week than it does to go to Disney.

And Disney can be an educational trip. There are plenty of things there that can teach children different things. I can post a letter than my TA gave me to give to the school. It outlines all the educational qualities that a Disney trip can do.

 

[eliza61]

Hubby and I got married three weeks ago and went to Disney on our honeymoon. We had a fabulous time. He said the only thing that made him sad was that his daughter (who lives with us) couldn't be there to share it all.

We decided we will take our first family vacation next summer. He stated that we might want to consider somewhere close, as he said that's what we could afford. But I budgeted and looked at how we can cut costs and realized we CAN book a Disney trip. If we stop eating out so much, stop drinking so many sodas, and stop little impulse purchases, along with other saving strategies, we can absolutely make it happen.

He doesn't know I would like to do a Disney trip, because I'm trying to come up with the best strategy to convince him. Here's why I want to do it.

Hubby wants to do an educational trip, like to Washington DC or to a national park. While I want to do those, too, those are not trips his daughter (who is now 9) will outgrow anytime soon. I know that Disney fans never OUTGROW Disney, but you all know as well as I that when a kid reaches about 9, there is only so much left of the magical childhood time before the tween mindset sets in, and it's just different.

I see a Disney trip as something we should do now, and not wait until she is a teen, so that we can take her while she still appreciates it from a kid perspective. I love traveling to many places, but she will have her teen years to appreciate the places mentioned above. She is fast reaching young adulthood. Am I making sense?

Help me with strategies to convince him we need to go for it and save the money!

Is he a planner?

What my dh and I do is we research both options and then decide. So in this case your dh wants to do Washington. I absolutely love dc and sorry folks there are tons of low option eateries in washington. way more than at Disney where if you are stuck on site the food is nasty and expensive. (yes I think disney food is mediocre at best) You will eat waaay better in DC.

So in this case, have dh research DC and you do disney.

My word of warning. Don't concentrate on how to do disney bone cheap but instead be realistic. For example, my sons and husband are very tall and big so while it would definitely be cheaper for us to do a value, for me to budget for that would be unrealistic. we would be miserable in a value so that's not an option.
Is this your step daughters first time? would you realistically NOT do a character meal especially since the reason you want to do disney now while she is young is because of the magical moments?

After you've research both then make an agreement.

Sorry Im not one who feels disney "has" to be done. Disney is a luxury, no child suffers for not going to disney. what you want to do is build memories with your kid and that can be done at home, at a state park or at disney.
If it's out of the budget or it would be a no sell for various reasons, your step daughter would still be loved.