Here's a new question that popped in my head...

[dudedisney]

What do you do when you bring cash/valuables to Disney? Do you divide it up and carry it on you when you go everywhere? Leave it in the room? Is there a safe at the Resorts and how safe is it?

And just how much cash is reasonable for a week assuming that some purchases can/will be on the credit card...

 

[Mom to Jordan]

All the rooms at the WDW resorts have safes and we were very comfortable leaving our stuff in there. We bring mostly travlers checks and charge everything back to the room and then settle up at the front desk.

 

[becca011906]

here's our plan... we can use our debit/ CC card for $100 cash a day and $300 purchase value, so we aren't going to spend that much ever in a day... but we also don't want to be stuck with out cash. we plan on taking X amount of cash with us, then use the debit card for gas on the way down, tickets already purchased, hotel already covered... we will use our card for grooceris the day we get in, and for souvenieors. we plan to ue cash for food in the parks, each day we will only take enough cash for food for the day and in the park dh and i will split it between the two of us. the other $ will be left in the resort in a safe, the safes in our resort, we pick the code # and can be reset as many times as we want. we only have house keeping 1 time durring the say so not that worried but feel better now that the resort we are staying at offers the safe...

 

[rt2dz]

Both DH and I carry about $40 cash each. We then pretty much charge everything back to the room, getting a print out each night to double check everything. DH also carries the debit card, just in case. Everything else we leave in the hotel safe. If you don't like the safe in the room, they can put it in the safe at the front desk. We do bring very minimal with us, just in case we loose anything at all during our trip.

 

[DisFlan]

Even with a safe, it's not a good idea to bring your family jewels with you. Don't travel with expensive jewelry you couldn't stand to lose. Leave Grandma's treasured brooch at home. The only things I bring are my wedding rings, watch and faux jewel earrings or necklaces. I leave everrything else at home.

I also no longer bring my laptop. I bought an extra memory card for my digital camera so I don't need to upload pics onto my laptop during the trip. I can leave the camera in the safe when I'm not using it, which isn't often. Less stuff to worry about means more time for fun.

As for cash - we carry a small amount, maybe $50, for smaller purchases. We charge everything else to the room or cc. We find an ATM as needed.


DisFlan

 

[imwithgoofy]

What do you do when you bring cash/valuables to Disney? Do you divide it up and carry it on you when you go everywhere? Leave it in the room? Is there a safe at the Resorts and how safe is it?

And just how much cash is reasonable for a week assuming that some purchases can/will be on the credit card...

Hey! We usually bring about $100 for the parks for the day, and we'll have that handy dandy ATM card ready...if needed.

The credit card is a back up... cause with the cash and ATM there is no bill waiting for ya later

We always use the safe for our important stuff (airline tickets, IDs, etc.)
Also, you could store some important items in your suitcase and LOCK IT!

We've never had a problem.

 

[chrisn]

My DH INSISTS on always paying every aspect of our vacation in cash. This has always scared the begeezus out of me but he won't let me do it any other way. So what I do is I pay for everything that I can before we leave. Then I just use envelopes marked appropriately. I even have one for parking (we stay in dad's timeshare) and keep it in the glovebox. Everyday DH hands me a daily allotment (usualy $200) and well...it just works for us. We do take a high end credit card in case of emergencies but he always says if we can't afford to pay cash for our vacations, then we don't belong going on vacation. At least he keeps us stright this way but sometimes...UGGGHHH!

 

[tn_disney_addict]

Even with a safe, it's not a good idea to bring your family jewels with you. Don't travel with expensive jewelry you couldn't stand to lose. Leave Grandma's treasured brooch at home. The only things I bring are my wedding rings, watch and faux jewel earrings or necklaces. I leave everrything else at home.

I also no longer bring my laptop. I bought an extra memory card for my digital camera so I don't need to upload pics onto my laptop during the trip. I can leave the camera in the safe when I'm not using it, which isn't often. Less stuff to worry about means more time for fun.

As for cash - we carry a small amount, maybe $50, for smaller purchases. We charge everything else to the room or cc. We find an ATM as needed.


DisFlan

Well, just a note...I did that one year and the card corrupted the next to the last day and we lost ALL of our trip pics. I know carrying a laptop down there is a pain, but I download every night now..

 

[pjupton]

My DH INSISTS on always paying every aspect of our vacation in cash. This has always scared the begeezus out of me but he won't let me do it any other way. So what I do is I pay for everything that I can before we leave. Then I just use envelopes marked appropriately. I even have one for parking (we stay in dad's timeshare) and keep it in the glovebox. Everyday DH hands me a daily allotment (usualy $200) and well...it just works for us. We do take a high end credit card in case of emergencies but he always says if we can't afford to pay cash for our vacations, then we don't belong going on vacation. At least he keeps us stright this way but sometimes...UGGGHHH!

My IL's do this too. Drives me crazy thinking of all the cash back or frequent flyer rewards they miss out on. Just because you use a credit card doesn't mean you aren't paying the bill in full every month! Too me, it's like leaving free money on the table - just like getting a big tax refund or not contributing enough to your 401K to get your employers matching funds.

 

[all4fun]

There was another thread someone started quite a while ago where someone mentioned having some medications stolen out of their room that they had left sitting out. Some Rx are controlled substances and if they are essential to you, then I would suggest locking them up (or at least putting them in a hard to find place like inside your suitcase). The main thing is don't leave valuables sitting around your room where someone could walk in, quickly snatch them, and leave. I guess the Mousekeepers generally will work in about 4 rooms at a time so it's possible for someone to sneak in when they're not looking and steal things. This is why we always lock our valuables, extra cash, etc in the room safe and if it's too big (like a laptop) put it away in the suitcase where it's not visible. I don't think theft at WDW is that common, but it is still possible. Better to be safe than sorry.

ETA: We usually have a minimal amount of cash and just use our credit card for everything and then pay it off when we get home. Almost every vendor has a credit machine that will take your KttW card or CC and ATMs are also available. That way you don't have to worry about losing your cash, which is irreplacable.

 

[rt2dz]

My IL's do this too. Drives me crazy thinking of all the cash back or frequent flyer rewards they miss out on. Just because you use a credit card doesn't mean you aren't paying the bill in full every month! Too me, it's like leaving free money on the table - just like getting a big tax refund or not contributing enough to your 401K to get your employers matching funds.

BINGO!!

We actually have vacation funds. We spend only what we have money for in the bank, but we use credit cards. Credit card use also protects you in many cases for theft/loss, defects, questionable billing, etc. Cash is good in many circumstances, but I like the safety of a credit card. Besides, if you loose your cash, you're out. If you loose a credit card, you can get it replaced without loosing anything.

 

[Amyg]

We will use the meals program and have about $50 cash for smaller items and the rest will be travelers checks and CC for larger items. Our cash will come from ATM's on an as needed basis.

Have a great trip!