How Much Do We HAVE to Spend at Disney

[Susan Storm]

UPDATED: My trip is coming up on the 22nd and we've had some unexpected financial issues (our house flooded). We have the regular dining plan for the first 5 days of our trip, and then we're staying at AoA for the last two days with no dining plan. My question is, we're looking at REALLY tight finances during the trip. Like maybe we'll have a hundred dollars to spend outside of money for gas while we're there. My mom is coming and since we covered her trip she is paying tips at the TS restaurants.

It seems like most people I see talk about needing a lot of extra money while at Disney, and I'm wondering if we're going to be okay with what we have? I've got some overtime hours I'm going to work to try to make some extra. If there's an absolute emergency (someone mentioned car troubles) then we can get some emergency money.

We live on a tight budget from day to day, we're very careful with money. We definitely had more than enough saved up but this flood really devastated our house. Flood insurance should kick in, but we don't know when that will happen yet. Some people might think it's irresponsible to take this trip, but it's something that the kids and all of us have looked forward to all year and it would be a really bright spot in our summer.

Any tips on saving money in the parks, saving money in a couple of weeks before we go, or anything like that would be appreciated! Thanks!

 

[Jadyreen1282]

That's tight. We bring 500 extra for two people but we do a lot of extra things. Can you delay your trip? Have you considered staying off site?

 

[rwdavis2]

Have you visited the Budget Board forum? Does the dining plan make sense in your case, assuming you paid for it? It's not designed to save money. Maybe you should do some calculations to see if it makes sense.

As the PP said, staying offsite is an easy way to save money even if you have to pay for parking.

 

[SaintsManiac]

When we did the dining plan we did not spend any extra money on food. Last time we did NOT do the dining plan and I shared a lot with my 5 year old, so it wasn't too pricey at the QS locations.

Personally, I would delay the trip if you can. I would be so depressed if I could not shop and we don't necessarily buy a lot of things. I just love to be able to.

 

[Susan Storm]

When we did the dining plan we did not spend any extra money on food. Last time we did NOT do the dining plan and I shared a lot with my 5 year old, so it wasn't too pricey at the QS locations.

Personally, I would delay the trip if you can. I would be so depressed if I could not shop and we don't necessarily buy a lot of things. I just love to be able to.

I appreciate your input! I can't delay the trip unfortunately - we've already bought airfare a while back for my mom and my step-son who is going to be with us. We've already paid off the room and dining plan and all that. I think we'll just have to not shop AT ALL and only get snacks if it's an emergency - peanut butter and jelly the last two days maybe? I don't know! Definitely was planning on having more money for the trip!

 

[serenitynow]

Check out your local thrift shops and garage sales for nice Disney souvenirs at dirt cheap prices. I have found many really nice things from Disney at the thrift shops. My theory is the kid really wanted it at Disney and once home it sits on a shelf until they outgrow it or mom/dad cleans the room. I've found tons of stuffed characters, water globes, mugs, toys, t-shirts and bags. Pack them up and pull them out as surprises at AoA. Plus DollarTree often has Disney items.

 

[Susan Storm]

That's tight. We bring 500 extra for two people but we do a lot of extra things. Can you delay your trip? Have you considered staying off site?

I can't delay it unfortunately. We have already bought airfare for some relatives coming with us - but we'll just have to live cheap while we're there I guess! I am going to see what can happen if I cancel the dining plan.

 

[msdaisy]

My kids can "I want, I want, I want!" with the best of em. But we just don't spend a ton of money on souvenirs. To be honest, the stuff we have bought over the years usually doesn't get a second look when we get home.

This is what we started doing - a shopping day on the last day. I would give my kids a budget. So, they would kind of browse throughout the trip knowing they could spend their money on that last day.

To be honest, your kids will appreciate your time and the memories way more than the stuff. My kids talk about our memories all of the time. Not once, have they ever said, remember that blanket baby!

You can make it work - enjoy your vacation!!!

 

[GillianP1301]

You don't mention how many are in your party, but regardless I think $100 is going to be really tight. You have to cover 2 days worth of food, plus any food your DDP won't cover in the first 5 days (although in this case, if you think you can get away w/2 meals a day, you can probably find ways to really stretch that to work for you and not have any additional OOP costs). So that leaves 2 days worth of food for your family, assuming you don't buy anything else at all. If you can either shop for our bring some breakfast type snack foods for your room, that will help a little bit. Sharing meals is another way to stretch the food budget.

Personally, I think I would rather postpone a bit and save a bit more money so I wasn't feeling so constrained while on vacation, to me that sounds stressful worrying about being able to stretch the funds enough to just be able to eat.

Others have suggested offsite, that is an excellent option (assuming you have transportation/car) - that may very well save you enough to not have to worry so much about the spending money.

 

[loves to dive]

I agree with others, it's going to be hard for those extra days you don't have the dining plan unless you take food with you to eat while you are there. Are you driving or flying? If you are driving you can pack a cooler with sandwich meats, milk, anything that can be cooked in a microwave. You didn't say where you were staying before AoA, all the resorts have microwaves in the food courts and all the rooms have little dorm fridges in them so storing your stuff shouldn't be a problem. You aren't going to want to eat sandwiches for both lunch and supper (or I wouldn't) but you could certainly split meals. I find the kid's meals are more than enough food for me but I don't eat heavy meals and don't snack between meals very often. Even on the dining plan you are still going to have to come up with breakfast. If you paid for the dining plan, I would suggest possibly dropping it and eating OOP. You could then take your breakfast food and possibly even sandwich makings for lunch and still have dinners on less than what the dining plan costs.

 

[TXAKDisneyFan]

Last trip, we also had the DDP. We did do a couple extra (OOP) meals. Otherwise, I think all the money we spent was on souvenirs, plus a bottle of sunblock (didn't take quite enough with us).

We try to take along any medications, bandages, toiletries, etc, we might need so we don't have to buy any there. We also pack extra clothes and shoes for everyone in case of emergencies (so we don't have to buy any). DH and I also tell the kids that they only get one or two souvenirs, and suggest they wait until the end of the trip to purchase anything (so they can see what's available). Luckily, I don't like knickknacks and never wear t-shirts, so souvenirs for DH and I are usually a shirt for him and maybe a mug for me (if anything).

We aren't big breakfast eaters, but we took along a couple boxes of cereal for the mornings. You can get free ice water at the quick service locations. (Some people complain about the taste of the water in FL; it doesn't bother us at all, but if you're worried about it, maybe take along some of those liquid flavorings to mask it?) I also don't know if you're big eaters, but for your non-DDP days, maybe you could split quick service meals (I've heard Cosmic Rays and Flame Tree are good for splitting), or eat some snacks instead of full meals (like the fried rice from yak&yeti at AK).

 

[JBeaty0507]

I would just get a refund for the dining plan for the first days. You could use that money to actually pay for your food and probably come out with some extra cash in hand. We've only done the dining plan when it's free and end up really having to try to spend all of those credits! In addition, you could probably eat at the same places for less money as long as you're not planning on getting the steak every time. Then that should give you a little extra money for the last 2 days. We always come out better out of pocket than what we would have spent for the dining plan. Also, if you pack snacks (and maybe some breakfast foods) in your bags for the last 2 days, you might can make it. We usually buy some glow sticks at the dollar tree before we leave home. Very cheap and everyone loves to have glow sticks/bracelets/necklaces at night!

 

[loves to dive]

Oh, I'd also add AoA is the most expensive value resort, priced at what some of the deluxe resorts are. If you really want to stay on site, look into the other value resorts, is Mom paying for her own room? If so, I know you can get a room a lot less. Also, check some of the discount sites, Orbitz offers the Disney discount and a discount on top of it.

 

[Nancyg56]

Okay, my trip is coming up on the 22nd and we've had some unexpected financial issues (our house flooded). We have the regular dining plan for the first 5 days of our trip, and then we're staying at AoA for the last two days with no dining plan. My question is, we're looking at REALLY tight finances during the trip. Like maybe we'll have a hundred dollars to spend outside of money for gas while we're there. I see lots of other people have saved thousands of dollars for their Disney days, and I'm curious - can we spend a week at disney, 5 days on the regular dining plan without having to spend a lot of money? My mom is coming too and she's going to cover tips at the restaurants thankfully (very nice of her).

I'm already looking at avoiding gift shops with the kids and bringing snacks from home. Has anyone else done Disney without spending a lot? Any tips on how to save money in such a short amount of time? Lol. Thank you!!!

It's tight but you can stretch that ddp a little. The meals can be large, so try to split a little so you have one full day of credits left. Use them on the day you check out of your first resort. That covers that day. You will then have day two oop. Do some research now, and plan on CS that gives you larger portions. You can split and not be hungry.

Let the kids know upfront about the shopping. No reason to but much, I agree.

 

[tlmadden73]

Sure .. you can go without spending a lot of money. If you are on the dining plan, a lot is already paid for.
Besides souvenirs, the only extras I get on a Disney trip is souvenirs. Transportation, parking, tickets are all already paid for.

But if you want to save some money can you ditch the dining plan from your package?

I personally don't think the dining plan is economically efficient. Which Dining Plan are you getting?
When I look at the prices of the dining plan (per day/per person) I know that I wouldn't spend that much per day on food. Even if I eat at table service restaurants or do character buffet meals.

You could save a lot of money by NOT doing the dining plan. I have eaten breakfast in the room, had my big meal of the day at lunch (for a nice break) and just eaten lightly for dinner. Some (depending on our dining schedule) I would just bring a packed lunch into the park to tide us over until a big (yet early) dinner.

 

[msdaisy]

Also, the regular dining plan is a ton of food. I would bank some of those quick service meals for the day after you check out of the first resort. If your kids share their lunch (you can get them adult quick service lunches) and they get a huge dinner (for example, if you are doing buffets) then you would have those to use on that day until midnight. So, then you will really just have that second day to worry about food. Most Disney meals are really big - look for things that are big enough to share. I am a master at this with my own girls. The have shared a pizza at wolf gang puck express or a big platter a flame tree. They always get full. You get so many snacks and desserts.

 

[Oswin]

I would cancel the dining plan and most of your family's TS meals. You guys can split QS meals, or order pizza/delivery options while you are in the room and come in a lot cheaper than paying for the dining plan. That would free up some money for you guys to get some souvenirs. Or if you do TS meals, go to the cheaper options and split meals. The Plaza at MK, Rose & Crown and Epcot, Sci Fi dine in at HS, and Yak & Yeti at AK all have very reasonable prices for TS options!

 

[Susan Storm]

Thank you for all the suggestions! Definitely thinking about everything everyone has mentioned. I appreciate it!

 

[Mikie]

Oh, I'd also add AoA is the most expensive value resort, priced at what some of the deluxe resorts are. If you really want to stay on site, look into the other value resorts, is Mom paying for her own room? If so, I know you can get a room a lot less. Also, check some of the discount sites, Orbitz offers the Disney discount and a discount on top of it.

Good point. Even when favorite aunt comes along and we become a party of 6, it's far less to get 2 value rooms in Pop or one of the all stars than to get one suite at AofA. You still have a mini fridge, which we use sometimes for milk, yogurt, cream cheese so that we can do cereal or bagel breakfast and avoid the food court line.
We like the dining plan, but it only "saves" us in the sense that we do lots of character meals (much more expensive that other table service locations) and the dining plan is less than those meals out of pocket, but if we still ate 1 snack, 1 counter service, 1 table service *non character* per day, we'd spend less than dining plan.
I know you already paid for it, but perhaps it's possible to leave the credit in your account and remove the dining plan, just Charging meals to your account daily?
Water - I find it impossible to bring in enough drinks and you don't want to have to pay $3-4 per bottle. ( too cumbersome). Get free ice water at counter service and bring in a refillable water bottle (I like to bring a flavor like Mio to squirt in because I don't like the flavor of the drinking fountain water)

 

[Nancyg56]

Sure .. you can go without spending a lot of money. If you are on the dining plan, a lot is already paid for.
Besides souvenirs, the only extras I get on a Disney trip is souvenirs. Transportation, parking, tickets are all already paid for.

But if you want to save some money can you ditch the dining plan from your package?

I personally don't think the dining plan is economically efficient. Which Dining Plan are you getting?
When I look at the prices of the dining plan (per day/per person) I know that I wouldn't spend that much per day on food. Even if I eat at table service restaurants or do character buffet meals.

You could save a lot of money by NOT doing the dining plan. I have eaten breakfast in the room, had my big meal of the day at lunch (for a nice break) and just eaten lightly for dinner. Some (depending on our dining schedule) I would just bring a packed lunch into the park to tide us over until a big (yet early) dinner.

It depends if they have a discount or not. Also, wil they be penalized if they make changes at this point? Right now they are paid, so this alleviates some of the stress of telling the kids no to snacks, etc. If by the time their credits will expire there are a few left, they can use them for snacks to have on their last day. This plan can be maxed if need be, and I think this is a time to max it out.