How do you guys afford it?

[Disrookie0704]

This will be our first trip as a family and DD is 9 yrs. old. I see alot of you guys go every year. My DH and I make a fairly good living, but we could never afford it.

Are you all wealthy? Our trip is costing approx. $5,000 without food! Is that normal? Am I just cheap?

 

[keriannhoward]

Well, I don't ever go for more than 4 days, and since I live close enough to drive it (just 2 hours) that I can do it several times a year. I don't go in peak season, always in the off season since I don't like heat and crowds. Most of the time I stay onsite using discount codes for either FL residents or AP rates. If I can't get a good rate onsite, I dont' mind staying offsite either-I love Priceline!

I bring things I can easily fix in the room for breakfast-like instant oatmeal or grits-I can just heat hot water in the coffee maker, or bagels and cream cheese. I either get a fridge or keep a cooler stocked with ice in my room.

I also bring my own uncrustables for my youngest DS to eat, they're much much cheaper that way than buying a child's meal at the park.

If we didn't live so close and have the discount codes available, we wouldn't be able to go as often as we do.

 

[tmq2766]

That is very high..... My DD9 an I are going in December and our airfare from Chicago Ohare is 296.00(total) non-stop.
Annual passes 740.00. Waiting for the AP rates to come out for December to get our Hotel.

 

[dmonroe]

That does seem high. We're going in December too (driving) and staying at Boardwalk Villas in a 1 Bedroom (on rented DVC points). Our lodging (7 nights) and 5 day passes for the 3 of us is less than $3000.

 

[cruisnfamily]

We go every year for 3-6 days(we're Fl Residents so we drive). Our trip this year(5 days end of May at POFQ) is costing us about $900 for lodging and admission. We have budgeted about $600 for food. We're also doing an illuminations cruise and the Luau. Our total cost including food and souveniers should come in around $1800 for our family of 4(2 adults, 2 kids {8 & 11}). If it cost $5000 we couldn't do it every year. No way.

 

[punkin]

Unless I am seriously splurging, we never pay more than $3000 for the trip. If I can't get airfair and rental car to fit into that, I'll drive.

For example, my friend and I are taking our kids in June for 6 days. I am paying:
$59 per night for Hotel (5 nights)=$300(plus tax) ASMU; $360 for airfare for 3 on Southwest; $157 rental car. I'm not paying for tickets because I have an AP and my kids will use leftover hopper days and plusses. So total (without food) is about $820 for me and two children (my oldest is an adult in Disney's eyes).

If I had to buy tickets in addition; that would be an extra $180 pp (cheaper for the little one) for 3 day hoppers with one plus. That's 4 days at the big parks, one water park day, and swimming at the pool on arrival and departure days.

So, for about $1500 (I'm including tickets even though I don't need any on this trip) for the trip, I could take several for the money you are spending.

Caveat: My husband is not comming. If he was, my budget would jump by about $1500 because he only does first class everything. No All Stars for him.

 

[Disney Debbie]

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=549023&highlight=+nosy

Here's a whole thread about how people afford it!

I don't know how long you're staying or where - but you need to do some research here, the resort board, the budget board and at www.mousesavers.com I have a feeling you're paying way too much.

 

[Regenia]

Last visit 2000 me and DS flew from VA. We stayed off-site...the hotel had a mini-fridge so we did breakfast in room and carried snacks/water ate them around 10:00am. Offsite lunch 1:00 at Ponderosa (kids under 12 eat free) went back to the room took a nap, then went back to park (4:00) and stayed until it closed 11:00pm. The only meals we ate onsite was dinner. I averaged $30 a day for food and $10 for souvenirs. I spent less than $1000 for 3 days including rental car. I'm not big on hotels we spent most of our times in the park except to come back to sleep.

Going back June 1st. I've already paid for hotel $129 Ramada Plaza Gateway (heard good and bad rumors). I live in FL now so we can take advantage of FL resident special 4-day hopper pass @ Disney $109 pp. Once again we will try breakfast in room, bring snacks and dinner in park.

$5,000 seems a bit much!!!

 

[Iheoma]

Hi,

We don't go to WDW every year, but when we do we usually go for seven nights/eight days. It seems like your trip is on the expensive side. Are you staying at a deluxe or paying rack rate for your room onsite (or off site)? This year we're going for seven nights/eight days, staying off-site, used hotwire for the hotel and flew SW from Chicago. We bought PHPs, vouchers and gift cards from HWSC (during the free membership trial period). I have religiously searched the web for rental car deals and finally got a good one with National today. We always try to travel off-peak as well. For the three of us (DH, DD and me) we'll be spending approx. $1,200 for tix, hotel, rental car, some vouchers and air fare. It's been great to have budgeted more than we need because we'll do plenty of shopping and eating in lots of sit-down resturants. I like to really plan and budget so that we can spend "freely" once we're there. I am not a fan of on-site stays (please don't flame me) because we can usually stay twice as long off-site in nicer accomodations. HTH

 

[Tigger&Belle]

Wow, $5000. That is a lot. I woul also be interested in knowing how long you're staying, where, did you book a package, etc.

I'm pretty cheap when I go to WDW, especially with food, which can be a big variable. Like others have said, we keep food in the room for breakfast (breakfast bars, cereal, milk, juice, fruit), bring food into the parks for a snack or light lunch and really just eat out one meal a day. Either a late lunch (and then a sandwich in the room if the parks close early) or the food we brought for lunch and then dinner out. We're on the go so much we don't want to take a lot of time to eat sit-down meals and it costs a lot for three meals a day.

We usually stay onsite, but I hope to meet my mother there (81yo, would be her first WDW trip) in December and would then stay in her timeshare.

T&B

 

[C.Ann]

$5000??? I'm in upstate NY and although I would have to fly (with my grown DD and my 5 yr. old granddaughter) and then get a rental car, depending on the length of stay, I think I could get almost 3 trips out of that!!

Please come back and tell us the details so we can help you get that figure WAAAY down! You might end up with enough to go back again next year!

 

[zurgswife]

Originally posted by Disrookie0704
This will be our first trip as a family and DD is 9 yrs. old. I see alot of you guys go every year. My DH and I make a fairly good living, but we could never afford it.

Are you all wealthy? Our trip is costing approx. $5,000 without food! Is that normal? Am I just cheap?

That seems very high for 3 people..

Rooms: Moderate resort for 7 nights would be $1280 (approx.) Sounds like you are traveling from July 3 to July 10 (approx.) If you book your room as a room only you have a chance of saving money when codes for that time of year come out in a few days.

Tickets 6 day plus: $930.86

Arifare: $750 ($250 per person estimated high because I'm not sure where you are traveling from)

airport transfer:{color=red] $100[/color]

Food budget $150 per day.$1050

Total INCLUDING FOOD $4110

Can't imagine what you are spending $5000 on without food???

 

[dsnycrzy]

we go for 2 weeks 14-16 days. Our total is about that but I take 2 adults (including me) and 8 kids(3 of which don't pay and 3 others that pay adult tix prices). Our train fare was $940, our hotel for 15 nights (2 rooms 1 of which is kitchenette) is about $1,500 our park tickets cost about $2,000. We put 4 $500 m/o aside for spending money (2 for each adult) and each big kid (5 of them) get $50 cash and $50 disney dollars. Since I pay for the whole trip myself, my sister does her part by buying the food with her food stamp card. That total for 10 people is $6,950.

So if just you and your daughter go that is only 2 people, I take 8 more people for 2 grand more.

Do you stay on-site?

 

[jcemom]

That's about what we spent on a 10 day trip for a family of 5 staying at AKL and eating sit-down as much as we wanted, which definitely wouldn't have been necessary if we were trying to do it on a budget. I agree with the others that your total sounds very high, especially if you don't WANT to spend that much.

 

[fabwallsmom]

I can see a $5000 trip. DW is expensive!!!!!! I don't go every year. The last time I went was 1999. This year our trip will be pretty expensive, even though our air fare is free:

Airline tickets: $50 ($10 per ticket charge for frequent flyer miles)
Hotel: Yacht Club standard room/7 nights $2255.68
Food Budget: $120 per day/7 days $800
Tickets: 6 day Park Hopper Plus/5 tickets approx. $1400
Disney Quest Tickets/3 people: approx. $75
Wishes cruise: $120 plus tip

With tax that's probably over $5000, and we have FREE AIRLINE TICKETS! This doesn't include stuff that the kids will want to buy, either. This is why we don't go every year. One big splurge every few years is all I can take!

It's quite easy to spend $5000 on a DW vacation. I can't imagine how much it would be with air fare, a concierge floor, or a sit-down meal three times a day.

If you can do it, you're lucky!

Robin

 

[DisKim]

I have two words - tax refund. I treated it like found money this year and decided to go on vacation. I would suggest looking everything over to see why your total is $5000. I have used mousesavers.com and these boards for tips on everything from flights to hotel rates. They even saved me money by telling me when the ticket rates were going up. I'm paying half of that with airfare, annual passes and nine nights at POFQ.

 

[Eeyore2003]

Well, I don't spend that much either. We always go for 4 nights and 5 days.

I usually make my initial reservation at rack rate. Then I change it as I find better deals. For December we stayed at the Boardwalk Inn.
I changed it to AAA rate one time, then the Dreamaker Pkg came out so I changed it to that. I just watch mousesavers too. I finally had chipped about $800.00 off the initial rack rate, so tickets and room at the Boardwalk Inn came to about $1500.00 for 4 nights and 5 days for two people.

This time I'm renting points from a DVC owner and my brother's family and us each have a studio at Old Key West for $484.00 each for 4 nights.

They are getting Ultimate Park Hopper Passes for $1000.00 for the 4 of them for 5 days and since we're going again in December, I think it will pay for us to get Annual Passes which will come to $400.00 a vacation for the two of us.

I figured out their meals for the trip. I have planned two counter service lunches and 5 sit down dinners and for the 4 of them it came to $384.00 not including tips. That includes Cindy's, Chef Mickey, Hollywood and Vine, Biergarten and O'hana's.

We always have breakfast and snacks in our room or just pick up a donut and coffee or something like that. I usually only figure one larger meal a day.

For hubby and I, we have a Disney Visa and I charge absolutely everything on that card and pay it up every month. I don't think we'll have to pay for any of our meals either time. We have at least $200.00 to $300.00 saved up in there.

We drive from MN, so anyway, I figured the trip for them totally will cost between $2000.00 and $2500.00, but that's not including all the incidentals that you end up picking up.

For us about $1200.00, not including that incidental stuff.

We DID pay over $5000.00 one time. We treated my in-laws to the Contemporary Tower when my boys were little and had two rooms. That one was pricey for a 4 night 5 day stay.

I guess I always figure between 2 and 3 thousand, generally speaking.

 

[zurgswife]

While it is easy to spend over $5000 my point is you definately can do it for less if you know the tricks...

I'm tryingt to take our famliy of 6 in June and it looks like it will run about $28 for 6 nights and 7 days.

Southwest 6 tickets $750

POFQ 2 rms discount 6 nights $918

Transfer to hotel $110

Food
Breakfast in room
Lunch
B&C $65
counter service $180
Dinner
Whispering Canyon $130
Counter Service $180

Souveniors...None this trip(we go so often we can do this)

Total Approx. $2800 for 6 people...

 

[kilee]

We've been going on the average twice a year for a family of 3 (DS is 11). Anyhow-- I spend between $2000-3000 per trip and that's for 7-10 days. I could never spend $5000, because I'd be thinking I could do 2 trips for the price of that one alone.

We never lack for anything either. We cut corners by flying cheap carriers (usually Southwest or Jetblue). We usually reserve a rental car through Alamo-- they are a bit of a pain, but they are usually the cheapest. We don't stay onsite (which is the cincher of the deal). I like to priceline our rooms-- So far I have paid anywhere from $19-38 a night for various trips. That cuts costs considerably. I'm sure there's more magic to be had staying on site-- but we go to the parks from opening to closing. So if it means 2 trips a year instead of 1 every 18 months-- I'm gonna stay offsite. We limit our sit down meals at Disney to 3/4 each trip. That saves money too. We also never eat breakfast anywhere but our room. We usually keep the souvineer spending to $100 a person too.

Check out the budget board for more money saving tips.

 

[skeletor40]

Not much advice I can give you other than this. Check out www.mousesavers.com everyday. You should be able to chop that $5000 down to size. Good luck!