How do you justify?

[RachaelA]

We've only paid full price once and that was our very first on-site trip at Pop. Since then we've always booked with a % off code (for deluxes) or free dining (for values).

We only vacation at Disney and we don't spend a lot of money on stupid stuff every month plus all we have is a mortgage which we are already paying extra on. That's how I justify it to DH

We'll only be staying on the monorail starting in 2012 because we'll have a child so trips will probably be less frequent, but I think its worth it for the convenience!

 

[MusiqChic99]

I think it just depends on what your spending priorities are. As much as I would love to stay at a Deluxe resort, and we could afford it I can't justify spending the money on it. However I would not hesitate to pay $100.00 for a good pair of shoes, which would be a total waste of money in another's mind kwim?

Maybe for our trip in September 2012 if I can figure out how to rent DVC points and it's a good deal I could do a deluxe, but for now I am content with a value

I completely agree. We don't do much during the year so we either buy something nice for the house like new bedroom furniture or take a trip. And I save for what I want to do. If I want a deluxe stay at Disney, I just save what is needed.

Next year it's a new dining room table. Let the saving begin!

$100.00 shoes......but my DH doesn't think so.

 

[Aliceacc]

I don't justify it.

I do most of the planning, but my husband and I run financial decisions past each other. We both agree on what's a priority. As a couple, we tend to wait until we can do things in the fashion we want to, then we splurge for the kind of quality we want. So yesterday we spent $1300 on a backyard patio set to replace one that was well past its prime; this one should do us for the next 15 years.

We can't afford Disney this year; we're going upstate for a week. So last week we took the kids for a stay in Mystic CT.

We want to stay at a Deluxe in Disney. So we save up, look (like crazy) for deals and specials, and stay Deluxe.

 

[SaraJayne]

I usually save 2 years for our vacation so we can afford to stay for a longer visit and a Deluxe. However I always have a pin code because I could not justify paying rack rate.

Since we are there longer we do spend time at the resort. In Nov we will be at Boardwalk. I picked it since my daughters like the Studios and Epcot and there is easy access.

We can't sleep in a double bed, need at least a queen so it is either a Deluxe or Corando Springs.

It is easy for me to justify because I really like staying Deluxe. If you are having a hard time then maybe Deluxe isn't for you.

Port Orleans French Quarter now has queen beds.

 

[sydneysmom]

I agree w/ others... I don't justify it and I don't feel like I have to I guess. It's our family's vacation and our choice how we spend our money. We don't go to Disney every year, so we save up during the year's that we aren't going. If you can plan around when Disney has discounts, it's very affordable....but each family has to determine their own comfort level. Ours might be very different than someone else's. I don't see how someone could spend the money to go to Victoria and Albert's for one dinner...but hey, if you have the money, go for it. Someone might not "get " why we choose the Grand Floridian. But we chose it for a variety of reasons that work for us. Now, we can't go every year and do the GF and deluxe dining... so we go every 3 years. It works for us.

Justification of anything is all what you're comfortable with...whether it be vacation, a washer and dryer or a car. It's all relative. That's why there are so many things in so many price points. Disney makes it very easy for EVERYONE to come and stay at Disney without having to sell their first child.

We budget for everything.....we bring our lunch to work, we don't drink / smoke so we're not spending a ton of money on little stuff....so this is our family's entertainment. and it's worth every penny.

 

[Pigeon]

I couldn't justify it.

I could afford it, too. But the incremental enjoyment I would get from staying at a Deluxe just isn't worth the money to me. We are at the parks way too much of the time for me to feel like we'd gotten a good value from a Deluxe.

I'm not much on lavish spending. There aren't many luxuries that really appeal to me. I'd rather do something more moderate and keep the difference in the retirement fund.

 

[Junebugwv]

We have stayed at every level resort and DVC just to experience the differences. If you have no aversion to a split stay, you might consider staying at your favorite moderate resort and then spending your last 1 or 2 nights at the Poly. Plan it at a time you would do MK or EP so you can enjoy the benefit of the monorail.

 

[disneyfreakk]

For me, I would LOVE to stay at the Contemporary with the Magic Kingdom view. But I just can not justify paying almost $600 a night to do it. We always stay atleast 7 nights, so that adds up to big bucks. If I got a 40% off, then I would do it in a heart beat!

And to be honest, the Deluxes IMO, are just better themed La Quintas. The rooms really aren't posh, and the beds aren't all that comfortable.

This year we are chosing to stay at the Hilton with a DTD view for 8 nights for around $300 a night

. I refuse to stay at a Value, I would just rather not go if that was the case.

But OP, you have to do what you are comfortable with.

 

[hannahdrewmom]

I justify it as part of our entire trip experience. Unlike some other posters we actually enjoy the resort as much as the parks. My kids are young... we enjoy having afternoon naps every afternoon and being able to just hop in and out of the parks. We enjoy being able to have a character meal in the morning at our resort. Ohana and Kona are probably our 2 favorite restaurants for all meals so being able to just walk out your door and eat is a HUGE plus! We enjoy hanging out and watching fireworks in our pj's (the kids not me!) from the beach. We enjoy our resort time.

We normally wouldn't pay $300 a person to go into theme parks either... but when it comes to disney I can justify it. I normally don't spend $100 on breakfast... but I can justify that with characters (to me this is more painful than the rooms... I mean how many eggs can you buy for $100!!???). The bottom line is it's just another line in the total price that I am willing to pay for the experience. I have a budget and I stay within that budget but you better believe that other budgets I have are smaller throughout the year so that my vacation budget can be bigger! (And that goes for all vacations not just Disney. My DH works hard, I save hard, and we like to play hard as a family on vacation!)

With that said... I don't justify it without a coupon. Cause even if it's expensive... a couponing mama can only go so far without a coupon!

 

[ssawka]

Value is not always about price! As a PP stated, everyone has their own spending priorities. For us vacations are a big one, that's why we bought into DVC. However, we also skimp in other areas. For example, we have not had cable tv in over 5 years. We simply do not get enough value out of cable TV to justify the cost.

 

[MomToOne]

I say come at things from a slightly different perspective.

Before you decide where to go or stay, ask yourself how much you are comfortable spending on ANY vacation.

Only after you have your budget set, start making decisions about where to go and stay. You might go with a shorter time at a better resort - esp. if you only have a small amount of vacation time. Or you might decide a longer time at a lesser resort is what you want - that's what I usually go with, but I have plenty of vacation time at this point and prefer the extra days over extra ammenities. Or you could go with a lesser resort AND shorter time but better activities or flying instead of driving - that all has it place too. But the decisions are usually obvious to you once you set the dollar amount and look at the trade offs - your personal priorities will instinctively kick in and let you know what the right decision is FOR YOU

 

[a1tinkfans]

I'm having a hard time with this. We are planning our next Disney vacation and want to stay at the Poly. We can save the amount we need to have in order to afford it. The only debt we have is our house and car payment, which we are trying to pay off early, so finances are OK. We both really want to stay there but in my head I am having a REALLY hard time justifying the cost. We will be staying at the resort less than a week and paying more than our mortgage payment for a whole month! While we could afford it, I can't wrap my head around it once I make that comparison!

How do you guys "let go" and splurge on things? I really want to... I just can't seem to do it!

Ya know, if it bothers you Now, it will be worse later After you spent it
We actually LOVE por and stay there as a choice, tho we can afford Deluxe, we just choose not too, every once in a while when we do disney, we'll change it up, last year we did Poly CL for the holiday and I have to say, I did LOVE it....but Deluxe over the savings each trip, just not worth it for us. Its a choice.
It is nice to change it up, but do what you are comfortable with. I mean, obviously you are "doing it right" you have no Debt WOoHOo, so if the splurge "feels right" go for it...if there is already hesitation, (Like it seems or else you would not be dwelling on it , you may really wanna skip it.
Good Luck deciding, I think that wherever you stay you will have an Amazing time.

 

[madry2009]

I would highly suggest renting DVC points you can't go wrong. You will end up staying in a nicer place than the Poly and it will be alot cheaper. I myself refuse to stay at a value resort. After being to disney so many times I have seen the lines for those buses and that is not worth saving the money. You can stay at a Deluxe DVC for alot less. Look into it an buy points from someone. We are vacation club members and people often buy points from us. It is really easy to do. The only thing at the Poly is its on the monorail and the pool is very nice. But there are alot of options.

 

[dhardawa]

I simply don't. We stay at a value every time. I did a moderate once and wasn't overly impressed so I don't even spend the extra there.

I see a lot of people saying there is something I want more. Yeah, I want my money more. There is nothing else I want to buy with it, I just don't want to see it gone on something I, personally, consider not worth the cost.

 

[crispychicky]

Thanks everyone for the input! I really need to figure out how to find one of these 40% off codes!

There are other discounts out there. Try other travel agencies. There's one that's recommended on Tikiman that had some great deals for the Poly.

 

[mousegear]

We've stayed in most of Deluxes and Mods. It really depends on trips; longer ones (8~10 days), we like to splurge and stay in Deluxes since we'll have more resort time. The shorter ones (5~6 days) we spend most of our time in the parks so Mods are fine. Yes, rooms are bigger, better TS restaurants and better pool is plus but only if you USE it.

DH won't go DW unless we stay at deluxe which is fine since he's the one who works hard. This year, unfortunately DH will be away for his business trip and DS 7 has his mind set to celebrate his birthday at DW so it's just two of us for eight days. I've decided for POFQ since it's newly refurbished with queen size beds. It should be perfect since it's small and I don't like to drive rental cars (DH does, not me) so being first bus stop works.

So do what is more comfortable.... if you know you are going to miss those extra $$ spend on deluxe for one or another reason, than maybe keep peace in you mind and stay mod.

 

[quasar4legs]

It's all about personal priorities, do what makes you happy and have a fun trip.

There are lots of things we could afford that we don't buy but we do have a 'healthy' travel budget because it is something that my hubby and I really enjoy.

hope your next trip is magical

 

[DisneyAndRedSox]

In February I wanted to stay in a deluxe for 3 nights before our Dream cruise. DH finally made me offer I couldn't refuse... Skip on-property, use the timeshare (split a 2br at Grande Vista w/my parents using a bonus certificate I had) and buy a new Cannon Rebel camera. We had hertz points so the car was free.

No regrets, I love my camera!

 

[Aliceacc]

Also keep in mind: for many of us, with families of 5 that are too big for the POR trundle, the mods aren't a choice.

 

[GinnyEmma]

It depends. Sometimes I can justify it and sometimes not. Right now with gas over $4 I am a bit creeped out. What we can afford is a logical decision, whereas what I feel comfortable with is entirely emotional. My weird, I guess. Right now I wouldn't do it, with the exception of renting points.