How do you keep track of what you are spending?

[Dallas_Lady]

We plan to use our room key for spending as well. I have been to several hotels that have it where you can just view your account balance on your room TV throughout your stay. This would help us keep track of our spending easier. Does Disney do this?

 

[Took]

Not that I know of. However, we have sometimes asked for an updated bill after a few days just to get this same info. The CM's have always been happy to comply, especially when we ask during a "non-busy" time at the desk.

Took

 

[Shannon G]

I usually add up all the receipts at the end of the each day, to keep a running total. Midweek I may get a printout from the front desk to make sure everything matches up. I get another printout the night before we checkout, so I can have any errors corrected without having to deal with it the next day when we're checking out. Make sure you check your statements from the front desk - like any other resort - Disney can make mistakes. On our trip in 1998, we had dinner at the Concourse Steakhouse and charged it to our room. When I checked our statement, two meals had been charged to our room, 5 minutes apart - yes, we had a big dinner, but even we couldn't eat that much! The front desk is excellent about helping staighten out any errors.

 

[Magic2000]

Whether we charge to the room, or pay cash, I try to keep track of what I spend each day. At the end of the day, while the kids are bathing and getting ready for bed, I write down where we ate and approx what we spent. Then, if we did any shopping, I write that down too. I usually get it pretty close too! I try not to charge to the room - I find we spend too much!!!

 

[AF Brenda]

On our last trip, we took cash with us. Every evening, I walked down to El Centro, had them tally up my expenditures for the day, and then paid them in cash. It made me much more aware of what I was spending.

 

[soccerchick]

We did a day by day budget before we left. We included all three meals per day, snacks, drinks, souvenirs, and incidentals. We knew where many of our meals would be (w/ a PS) and checked out wdwig.com and figured out approximate costs. Each night we recorded what we actually spent. We found we were always way under our budget, mostly because I over-budgeted for incidentals and souvenirs. We also really didn't spend much on snacks and drinks (thanks to our Brita H2O bottle and bringing some snacks in with us). At the end of our trip we splurged a little more on souvies and went home and put the left over travelers checks right back in the bank!

 

[MelissathePooh]

Y'all do better than me - I just close my eyes - pick up the bill at the end and swear next year we won't drink so much! But then again what fun would drinking around the world be without the drinking part!

Our biggest expenditure is always food & alcohol - we try to estimate meals ahead of time, that usually gives us a pretty good idea. I don't do a daily check - too much to keep up with.

 

[Liam]

By counting

 

[Cinderella]

Okay - maybe I am sad but, I take a little booklet with me and before I leave home I set it out with a couple of little pages for each day. One page has my ps ressies on and my plans for the day. The page next to it has sections to fill in what I am spending. I usually take cash for food and write down in one section how much cash I have spent each day. I charge everything else to the room and keep receipts so that I can add up at the end of the day what I have spent and charged to the room also. It doesn't take long if you draw a little basic chart for each day before you leave and it is great for checking against your bill when you check out.

 

[CaliforniaDreaming]

Spend, spend, spend, the bill will be waiting check-out morning with the total! LOL, it's best not to worry how much we are spending!

 

[eeyore0062]

We usually charge to the room, and the beginning of each day, before we go to the parks, we go to the front desk and request a printout of all of our charges. That way we know, if we need to adjust our spending for that day, or if we are right on target.

 

[LuvTigger]

My method is similar to Cinderella's...

A couple of times I carried a little notebook with pages reserved for each day. Our general schedule including PS confirmations was on one side, and a list of what we spent on the other side. I try to write down the cost of things right away, but if not, I just try to get a receipt for everything, except for things like water and ice cream from carts.

Once (and this worked well too), I printed out sheets from my computer, one sheet for every day. On the front, I had the schedule for the day. On the back, I broke it down into 3 sections: expenditures, food reviews, and miscellaneous comments.

I guess it all depends how obsessive you want to be about it!!

 

[Laurabearz]

We draw up a basic plan and I divide our money into different envelopes, one for each day. What ever is left over from the day's activies gets placed in the next days packet.... and so on and so on....

I also prestuff Mousekeeping envelopes before I go and pull them out as needed.

Since becoming DVC members, we try hard not to charge anything to our room so our bill is ZERO when we leave

 

[DixieDreamer]

LauraBearz... I like your idea! We budget a sizeable amount per day. Generally I only charge certain types of expenditures to the room - souvenirs generally. I bring travelers cheques and cash for meals and incidentals. I start out with more than what I need per my budget.. and then spend as we see fit. As I approach the end of the stay - I usually have MORE cash left over than I expected... mainly because I budget so much in the first place. I don't want to worry or short myself while on vacation. However, by using cash... I try to avoid the BIG BILL at the end blues. Unfortunately, our most recent Disney adventure was a Magic Cruise... where you MUST use your Keys to the World card to charge everything too.. So naturally we had the BIG BILL blues at the end of our stay. I was expecting it... but it does kind of put an even more depressing tone to the end of a great stay.

 

[kimmar067]

that is a GREAT idea. I think that I will use my little "notbook" that I received in the mail from the DC. Then,everything will be right at my fingertips - ressies, expenditures, itinerary, etc. I really have to do some major plsnning this time out, because there will be 13 of us (possibly 15!!) and I am considered the "expert" of the group, so all eyes will be lokking to me.... !

 

[DawnCt]

I use my palm pilot. The calculator keeps a running total and does not clear when it is turned off. For back up, I enter the day's total in the calendar or memo section.

 

[Laurabearz]

Gosh... I am in awe of those of you who keep recipts and log expenditures as you go. I wish I was of "that mind"

There is NO way I could do that!

Our two girls keep us running..... I like our envelope system. No thinking! Well... no thinking once on site.... a lot of preplanning ahead of time! Plus at the end We often have enough for a "big" souviener.... I am hoping to score a watch this time!

 

[caitycaity]

dawn that is a GREAT idea! i never thought of that!

i'll have to try it when we go. thanks!

 

[bigsis1970]

I also do the envelope thing..
looked at the menus figure the budget put it in the envelope and put the reciepts back in the envelope and tally at night on the outside ..

I also pre-fill my "MouseKeeping" envelopes..

Michelle

 

[kimmar067]

..."do" the envelopes, is there any "leftover"money at the end of the day? (and if so, do you transfer it to the next day's envelope?)