How much extra money?

[DaystarPearl]

How much money do you take for souvenirs and extras? And how much do you allow the kids to take for spending? We have our entire vacation paid for hotel, tickets and food. I was just curious what more do I need to bring and how much I should be giving to the kids for their own personal spending. Or I should say the kids make their own money through chores but I still want to set a limit.

 

[worm761]

Only you can determine what your souvenir budget is/should be. I don't limit my kid on souvenir money. I don't even give DD her own money yet. She's 5. I just buy her what she wants. I think we normally aim for at least $1000 in the souvenir/other budget.

 

[Pesky]

As aggravating of a non-answer as this is, it depends/YMMV. Some folks take 100s of dollars to spend on souvenirs. Others buy 1 magnet and call it good. I think if you sit down and think of the usual fare of souvenirs and what you might like, you can then determine price points and budget. For my kids, they have their own money and I do not police its spending. From us, they get 1 tshirt, 1 hat (if desired), and 1 souvenir of choice which cannot be more than $40. All of that combined tells me I'm likely looking at $75-100 per kid. For us, we get 1 ornament, 1 magnet (if desired -- we already have WDW magnets so likely will pass), and 1 item of clothing if we see something we like. And I'll probably add a bracelet to that. That has worked well and kept us from getting too much stuff. Occasionally we might get another small item, like a matchbox type car, but usually that's it.

 

[tooh8ful]

I NEED a coffee mug, a calendar, a photograph album, and a couple of pins. I learned last year to give my children their "own" spending money, even if it comes from me originally. They make much better spending decisions when it's out of their own pockets.

 

[DaughteroftheKing]

We aren't real big "buy stuff" people but we do all like to get a little something. Here's what I bring cash for:

airport food (we'll eat 3 airport meals this year)
tipping at WDW (sit down meals, magical express, mousekeeping)
Christmas ornament for me
Around $50 for each child (this was plenty last year. They don't like to spend time in shops, they want to be out doing rides)

 

[MommytoaSweetie]

We're not big souvenir people, but we'll get our kids a shirt or a hat or so, and then we let them earn and save money to spend for them... generally it's maybe $20-30 total? We'd all rather not spend a bunch of money on stuff we don't need and would rather save it for our next trip, lol!

 

[ShayBells]

I usually think of what I want Before I go. Usually three or four things cause if not I'd go crazy lol than add a hundred just in case. My kid doesn't have his own money but I usually get him one thing per park and a shirt. His nana is coming with us this year for the first time.. On one had I'll save money on the other he's probably going to be overly spoiled with stuff this year.

It's really like everyone said there isn't a cookie cutter answer. If you are worried about budget look up some prices think of what you would want or what your kids might want and get an estimate and than set a limit.

 

[Happyinwonerland]

I'm just not crazy about souvenirs. I like photos, and I have to get my Christmas ornament, but that's it. I usually budget and extra $1000 just in case, but really only about $200-$300 is spent on souvenirs. I spend most of that getting things to bring back to friends/family members.

 

[Jess_S]

We're not big souvenir people. I'd rather spend my money on experiences (and cocktails). My son is too young to understand the concept of his own spending money, so we limit him to 1 or 2 items per trip. We've never spent more than $30 on his souvenirs. I think that $50 per child would be more than enough. Less might even be fine.

 

[dprincessmom]

I typically bring $500 for extras - that being said, I try to come home with most of that. Tips, an extra snack or so and maybe one little something that catches my eye.
DD gets her own money (because as others have said - they are more careful when they are spending their own money). She typically gets $25-50 from us and then can earn the rest.
In years past she has been on a mission to finish a collection so she has been pretty focused. This year - who know what she will spend.

 

[mandis77]

The last few years we have spent $750-$1000 on "others". Things like alcoholic bevs, extra snacks, pins, souvenirs for family, Bippidi Boppidi Boutique. We also let each kid pick one "toy" to bring home from the trip. My kids ares still pretty young so we haven't done the allowance yet. If you are on DDP remember tips aren't included so you will need to budget for that.

 

[scrapquitler]

We pretty much buy whatever the kids want, but they usually don't ask for very much. On our most recent trip, the only thing that DS12 wanted was a hat. I usually buy a mug and a Christmas ornament. DH buys a few things for himself -- he's the one who is hard to reign in. (he has a collection of stuffed mickeys that they used to carry with mickey dressed for each attraction....one trip he bought about 10 of those for himself).

On our recent trip, we spent about $800 for all the 'extras' which included souvenirs, tips, alcohol and all our food for the entire trip.

 

[BillyBoy1304]

I think a lot of it depends on if this will be your first visit. I think for people going to Disney for the first time, it's easy to get caught up in the whole "I have to buy everything I like because I may never come back" way of thinking. But for folks on their second, third or tenth trips, they've already been there and done that, and thus might only be looking for a few specific items. I could be way off base, but I think there's a huge difference between what a "first timer" will spend on souvenirs and what a "repeat visitor" will spend.

 

[emilayyx0]

How much money do you take for souvenirs and extras? And how much do you allow the kids to take for spending? We have our entire vacation paid for hotel, tickets and food. I was just curious what more do I need to bring and how much I should be giving to the kids for their own personal spending. Or I should say the kids make their own money through chores but I still want to set a limit.

My mom normally did $100 for each of us (there's 2 of us) when we were kids. However, prices have gone up drastically, and if you have a younger kid, let's say they want a play set from Lego Land in DTD, those could be about $60 each already. I say $200 each kid is an acceptable price.

 

[honeybunches]

We take about $300 cash for any extras we need, but usually come back with most of it. We spend about $300 on dining tips, and about $60 on tips for the hotel staff. We're not big on buying stuff, though. I give my kids $20 cash, or sometimes a $25 Disney gift card, for spending. They typically don't spend it all, and they rarely ask for anything extra --- although I'd probably buy it if they did! If there is a really fun ride that they love, I might get them a t-shirt or something.

 

[dfherrera]

WOW - I feel like I am really in the minority here, we typically bring about $1500 in spending money and another $500 for food and we are on the meal plan. We don't always spend all of it but I don't want to be on vacation counting each penny. My plan in Disney is to thoroughly enjoy myself so if that means a massage or my wife wants a facial, we do it. My son is 15 and has a job so he brings his own money but we do buy most of the items. This is our one time per year to relax and let go.

As they say, you can't take it with you so I plan to spend it before I die.

I do have to admit that I like having money left over at the end of vacation so maybe we could bring a little less but why sweat it.

 

[DaystarPearl]

I want to make sure we have more then we needed, last thing I want to do is worry about spending. We are taking 1400.00 I think. We have the dining plan so I'm thinking we not going to spend too much on food. Both kids are taking their own money 100.00 each and I bought them each a Disney gift card for 50.00 for their birthdays. My kids are only talking about the Mickey ears right now but I'm sure it will change when we arrive. I'm a planner need to make sure everything is in order.

 

[DaystarPearl]

To be honest I don't plan on buying much other then I need new Christmas ornaments for my Disney tree..

 

[katyjeka]

We give according to age, and yes, our girls earn extra money for the trip.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

We never really set a budget. We would stay a week, do the ddp and charge everything back to the room. We didn't set a limit for the kids and would buy them pretty much what they wanted within reason. They each got Mickey ears and autograph books. DS a shirt and shorts at AK after Kali ride. They would each get two toys they picked out. A couple plush toys and my frame and photo album.

We charged back $700 including extra food and whatever else we bought. Tips we paid cash at about $200.