How do you save for your Disney trip?

[Surfinpiratee]

Are there any little ways you save for a Disney trip?
Or do you guys just put it on a credit card to pay it off?
I'm just curious because I have way less saved then I would like to at this point

 

[bbak3030]

Both DH and I are able to work overtime. I'm an ER nurse so I pick up an extra shift a week, usually at night. All the OT, coupled with the differentials I get adds up quickly! And DH makes more than me, so his OT is even better.
So we take anything past out base paycheck and put in savings or make a payment on the trip.

 

[disny_luvr]

I put $200/paycheck into an ING account (well, I guess it's technically Chase now ). I get paid 26 times a year, so 200 x 26 = $5200. I also save $1 bills and all of our change. If I need any extra money we usually get a pretty hefty tax return that I could take some money from, but we can go to Disney for lots less than $5200 so I don't think I've ever needed to use money from our tax return. Also, if I can stay below $100/week at the grocery story I buy a $25 Disney gift card. I then use the gift cards for food, souvies, etc.

 

[alyssa810]

We save returnable bottles and all the money goes into our Dis Fund. We also use e-miles, e-rewards, surveysavvy.com, quickrewards.net and mypoints.com to earn airline miles and gift cards to various places that we use on vacation, like Landry's gift cards, and Disney gift cards. We also use all our credit card points/rewards toward our vacation fund. We also used to each throw $10 in the fund every week, and my DH throws all his change in "the jar." It adds up, slowly but steadily.

 

[Surfinpiratee]

We save returnable bottles and all the money goes into our Dis Fund. We also use e-miles, e-rewards, surveysavvy.com, quickrewards.net and mypoints.com to earn airline miles and gift cards to various places that we use on vacation, like Landry's gift cards, and Disney gift cards. We also use all our credit card points/rewards toward our vacation fund. We also used to each throw $10 in the fund every week, and my DH throws all his change in "the jar." It adds up, slowly but steadily.

What are those web sites you go to? Like, what do you do on them? They send you gift cards..?

 

[beansmom]

we do the 52 week money challenge.

 

[MonsterWDWmom]

Right now we are saving up for Sept 2014 we are putting all left over money at the end of a paycheck into the "Disney Fund" we are not going to put this vacation on a credit card as I do not want to be paying off a vacation after it is over. So if we have to push it back then we do!

 

[drgnfly30]

I put $200/paycheck into an ING account (well, I guess it's technically Chase now ). .

ING is now owned by Capital One not Chase

I buy a $50 GC from Target using my Redcard every paycheck, sell stuff on eBay and have a (very) PT job that goes into the fund.

 

[disny_luvr]

ING is now owned by Capital One not Chase

I by a $50 GC from Target using my Redcard every paycheck, sell stuff on eBay and have a (very) PT job that goes into the fund.

You are correct. My Disney Visa is through Chase. The irony of this is I have my iPhone with the Capital One app sitting right beside me. I guess I should have put two instead of one since it is Capital One and not Chase.

 

[Marionnette]

Are there any little ways you save for a Disney trip?
Or do you guys just put it on a credit card to pay it off?
I'm just curious because I have way less saved then I would like to at this point

I like to break it down into the components of a trip and then save for each part in whatever way that I can. For instance, a trip might be composed of:

• airport shuttle to/from home airport
• airfare
• rental car in FL
• resort room
• tickets
• food
• souvenirs
• tip money
• emergency cash

Then I go through each to determine if there are any ways to reduce those costs or get them for free.

• The airport shuttle company sends me coupons in their newsletter. The airfare can be covered with FF miles.
• The rental car can be paid for using Ultimate Rewards points from my Visa card.
• The resort room is most likely from our DVC membership.
• Tickets can be purchased from Undercover Tourist or Orbitz at a discount.
• Food and souvenirs can be paid for using Disney GCs purchased with my Target REDCard at a 5% discount.
• Food can also be paid using GCs earned through online programs, as was mentioned by a PP. I usually earn enough Landry's GCs at MyPoints to cover a meal at Yak & Yeti.
• I save my change and use it to pay tips.

I also put money aside every week for the sole purpose of paying for vacations. That's the money that I use to pay DVC dues, purchase tickets and pay off my REDCard.

 

[Narnia_girl]

I like to break it down into the components of a trip and then save for each part in whatever way that I can. For instance, a trip might be composed of:

• airport shuttle to/from home airport
• airfare
• rental car in FL
• resort room
• tickets
• food
• souvenirs
• tip money
• emergency cash

Then I go through each to determine if there are any ways to reduce those costs or get them for free.

• The airport shuttle company sends me coupons in their newsletter. The airfare can be covered with FF miles.
• The rental car can be paid for using Ultimate Rewards points from my Visa card.
• The resort room is most likely from our DVC membership.
• Tickets can be purchased from Undercover Tourist or Orbitz at a discount.
• Food and souvenirs can be paid for using Disney GCs purchased with my Target REDCard at a 5% discount.
• Food can also be paid using GCs earned through online programs, as was mentioned by a PP. I usually earn enough Landry's GCs at MyPoints to cover a meal at Yak & Yeti.
• I save my change and use it to pay tips.

I also put money aside every week for the sole purpose of paying for vacations. That's the money that I use to pay DVC dues, purchase tickets and pay off my REDCard.

That's a great idea to spell out each expense and how you can save on them. I think I'll give that a try!

 

[Sagginit]

i tend to use extra money. i get paid bi-weekly so i have two months a year with an extra paycheck, i typically use one for vacation. i am also blessed enough to have gotten a bonus the last few years that I can use towards it as well. this past fall is also my first trip since 2010 so i have over $500 on my disney visa rewards. for just covering myself with a free dining promo that helps a lot.

i too figure out when planning what i think each item will cost. i budget for essentials first (package, airfare, and some spending money) then add extras (car service, MVMCP tickets, photopass) once the other expenses are covered.

 

[ToodlesRN]

No credit cards usage for our vacations, all paid in cash/debit.

I pick up extra shifts at work, at least 1 a month sometimes 2.

Sell items we no longer use on Craigslist/eBay
I use my red card at target and get $200 in gift cards monthly.

All our change goes in a jar and before our trip we cash it out and give that amount to the kids to spend on whatever they want.

We own at DVC so our expenses are flight, park tickets if our annual passes are exp., dining, spending money and rental car.

 

[worm761]

I do the same as a PP and make a budget, then figure out where I can save. I figure out where the money has to come from.

I don't work outside our home. I save where I can. I do mystery shopping and some rewards programs to help. I am working MyPoints to get gas gift cards to help offset the cost of gas. Swagbucks I will cash out for Paypal after I get Christmas money. It isn't much but they do add up. And any time I have cash, I drop the coins in cups and stash any $1's that I get. The $1 help pay for tolls and tips.

 

[pryncess527]

We use budgeting software (YNAB) that helps us assign all of our dollars to jobs every month. Once all the major jobs have been assigned (bills, groceries, gas, some rainy day savings) we look at what is left over and decide how we want to allocate it. Then if we underspend in a category one month (yeah right!) we review the budget at the end of the month and decide how to allocate those left over dollars.

Right now, our main focus is paying off debt, so we put a token $1 per month in our Disney fund and the rest goes to debt. We expect to have our only credit card paid off this month and at that point we'll start putting a more significant amount towards the Disney trip.

When we have about 85% of the trip saved for, I'll feel comfortable making reservations and possibly putting it on a card because at that point I'll have a reasonable belief that the Disney card could be paid off during the 6 month interest free window.

If you've never tried it, I highly recommend a budget-to-zero system. It's fairly new to me, but I'm amazed at how clear it makes our financial picture and how obvious it makes the trade offs.

 

[chimilady]

I put $200/paycheck into an ING account .... I get paid 26 times a year, so 200 x 26 = $5200.

I do this as well, on payday so I don't miss it. And then I cash that in to buy Disney GCs with my Target red card to save even more.

 

[MrsDrewsky]

I'm a SAHM, but during the holidays I work a seasonal job for a big toy company. It's only a few hours a week from September until Christmas, but it's enough to pay for a week long trip.

 

[chrystalc77]

We don't have credit cards so we pay for our trips in cash/debit. We aren't able to go every year. We've been in 2004, 2007, 2012, and have a November 2014 trip on the books. We book as far in advance as we can so that we can start "making payments". We knew booking for 2014 was opening up in July so a few months before that we started saving $5 bills to use as our down payment. We ended up with $650 instead of the required $200. Now I pay either $100 or $150 each time I get paid (every other week), and we only pay $25 on my non-pay weeks (DH gets paid every week). $25 isn't much, but it makes the balance on our package go down! Also I was buying a $25 gift card every 2 weeks from CVS (I work there so it was easy to grab one while at work). But now that I've received my Target red debit card I've upped it to $50 every 2 weeks. This money will be spent for any souvies, alcoholic beverages, snacks or food not covered by DDP. We are still saving $5, and every time I get a large amount I make a payment on our trip. And we do the change jar, only we keep our change only silver....no pennies allowed. I usually take a handful of pennies and change them into silver at work. I also do swag bucks, and so far have cashed out for a $25 Landry gift card to be used at T-Rex. Hopefully will have a few more of those by next November. That way it will free up a dining credit or two on our DDP.

 

[carymomof3]

52-week savings challenge, beer rebates and Field Agent app. Our May 2014 trip will be completely covered by December.

 

[texasroni75]

We do not use credit cards for our vacations. Basically, DH works his butt off LOL. He puts in overtime and does side-jobs to save up for big expenses like vacations. Since I'm now a SAHM, I do my best to keep utility costs as low as possible (making sure the kids take shorter showers, keeping central air at a moderate temperature, etc.), I watch for sales on groceries to keep food costs down - using store brands and watching their weekly flyers saves us at least $35 a week and sometimes closer to $60. Whatever the "savings" are (they show you on your receipt), I put that amount in the Mickey Jar. It really adds up!

We rarely eat out at restaurants or fast food. I also try to arrange my errands so that I use as little gas as possible in our vehicle. I stay home A LOT - but I'm willing to just take walks to the park and maybe a trip to the zoo with the kids for the entire summer if it means I can go to WDW again! During the school year I walk our son home from school instead of driving whenever the weather permits (above 55 degrees, below 85).

Since I've been a SAHM, I've become pretty frugal and passed on purchases for myself (like new clothes and shoes) many many times, just so we can squirrel away more savings. I also do my own hair - I color and highlight it myself - it costs me a TENTH of what the salon costs, and I've become really good at it. We also do garage sales once or twice a year and put the money aside into our "Mickey Jar". I shop consignment and yard sales and clearance racks in the stores.

And, of course, I look for promotions to save on the trip itself. Free Dining this trip - can't wait!