How can I plan a cheap trip to WDW?

[gr8tpanther]

Not going to be in the room enough to need more than a room really, and I am not one for cooking, so one room onsite will be alright, budgeting more money for food than for room stay

And I don't want to pay $8 a day to park the car in the parks, I want to park it somewhere and hop a bus.

 

[disneysteve]

Originally posted by gr8tpanther
And I don't want to pay $8 a day to park the car in the parks, I want to park it somewhere and hop a bus.

Onsite is the way to go if you don't want to drive. If you stay offsite, you need your own car because you can't really depend on the hotel shuttles to get around.

Of course, staying onsite you will save the $8/day for parking, but you'll spend an extra $10 to get a fridge (along with paying more for the hotel).

As long as you've compared the options and figured out your own priorities, then go with what works best for you whether it be onsite or off.

 

[etwinchester]

I've always stayed offsite and NEVER will again...

As a child, I was at Disney maybe 3/4 times. All of which were offsite. Last year DH, DD and myself were asked to go for 2 weeks with 10 other family members, again, offsite.

I could see all the action at some of the resorts while riding the monorail. It looked so fun to say onsite. I LOVE being in the center of the action. Our next trip will just be the 3 of us (DH, DD and myself) and I VOW to NEVER stay offsite again. I'll spend the extra $$ to have those memories.

I don't care what the cost and if I can't afford a moderate (for whatever reason), then I'll go to a value. Since I always plan the next trip so far ahead (actually, as soon as I return), there is no reason why I can't afford to budget for a moderate. I just budget all my expenses, divide it by the months/weeks, and keep saving...Income tax really comes in handy...

I'm so bad that even when I stay at Knoebels, I HAVE to stay in the campground. I love being right across the street and hearing all the action.

It's all a matter of personal pref.

 

[HenDuck]

If you have a large enough group, or if you like the convenience of a home for a reasonable price, rent a vacation home in Kissimmee. You can do a Google search on "Kissimmee vacation home" or something like that and you will find thousands of vacation homes, some with pools and security, for less money than you will spend on a value resort.

You can also eat breakfast at the house every morning and save money there. You can chill your own bottled water and save money there too.

Oh yeah, the house we rented the last time had a jacuzzi too!

I personally think this is the best way to economize and yet still have comfort and even luxury when visiting WDW. And if you travel with more than one family, you can split the cost!

I know you are getting great advice from everyone else on these boards. This is just my 2 cents.

Have fun!

 

[gr8tpanther]

I have researched off and onsite, and yeah, I have to be where the action is, so I HAVE to be onsite

I have just NEVER been to Disney and doubt that I will ever get there again, so I want to make this the experience of a lifetime (I dont' get many), SOOOOOOOOOO, POP it is, will just have to budget in other areas.

Ok, question.... what do normal people budget for souvies... I am looking at:

4 - T-shirts
a magnet or 2
a keychain
and maybe some little things like a necklace for DD

What am I looking at here?

 

[renessa]

Buy the tshirts from the disney store or disneystore.com on clearance...or hit an outlet while you're in the Orlando area. Do a search for outlets.

Lots of people are buying stuff ahead at Dollar tree (glow necklaces, mini fans, mickey stuff) and other places, hiding it in their luggage, and suprising their kids when they arrive.

Then you can allow a few inexpensive souvies and you don't break the budget with a case of the "I wants".

 

[gr8tpanther]

Awesome idea... but the "i wants" are mine, lol, not the kids...

 

[disneysteve]

The problem with buying "souvenirs" anywhere other than at Disney is that they aren't actually souvenirs. A generic Mickey keychain from TDS won't say "Walt Disney World" on it and you'll know where you actually got it.

The outlets, however, can be a great place to shop since they do sell park merchandise at reduced prices. There is still an emotional disconnect though. Buying at the outlet just isn't the same as saying, "I got this at the little shop in Fantasyland after we rode the Snow White ride."

For gr8tpanther, though, I would just buy stuff on property. Your want list is pretty small and you aren't talking about high priced items. Keychains start under $5. Same for magnets. T-shirts probably start around $20 for printed ones and up to about $40 for nice embroidered ones. And depending on DD's age, some simple Disney kids jewelry is under $20. So you can definitely get everything on your list for under $200, probably closer to $100 depending on the shirts you pick.

 

[crazelion]

2) Where are some cheap places to eat?


There is plenty of cheap places to eat Orlando. For example : Shoneys, Golden Corral, Ci Ci Pizza, Applebee's and Olive Garden.


3) AAA or somewhere online?

WDW has AAA room discounts all how to do is call CRO and book a hotel room with them.

Also in going places AAA magazine in the back that tells about discounts on Park hoppers and hotels in WDW.

You can go any hotel website and look up the AAA rate on there website. Example when I went Memphis , TN I stay at the Hampton Inn and Suites at the Peabody Place on the AAA rate for 148.00. How did was I went to the Hampton Inn website type Memphis TN brought up the hotels in Memphis and pick to see if had my dates available and ask me for my AAA number to see the discount rate.

Another website go for good hotel discounts is hotelkingdom.com they have excellent rates.

Then I would check out tripadsvior.com for hotel reviews.