How much will this thing cost?

[kurt10]

I have never been to Disneyworld before so I need some help with a cost estimate for 7-10 days. I have air miles so airfare will be free, but can anyone give me a guess of how much it will be for everything else (hotels, car rental, tickets,etc) for 2 adults and one child? Im looking for the cost of an average budget.

 

[beattyfamily]

It really depends on what kind of vacation you want/can afford. You can go to WDW for as little as $2000 or for much much more.

We average between $4000 and $5000 per trip including everything...like airfare, passes, hotels, spending money, and food.

Our trip next week will be about $5500; that is for 3 adults and 2 children and it includes $400 for the dog's kennel and the parking of our car at the airport etc...but no WDW resort because we are Disney Vacation Club members.

Food is the biggest expense once you've bought the airfare, hotel, and passes. For food alone I've budgeted about $1000. Then I usually budget $100 a day spending money for the 4 of us...this year it's 5 because we are bringing our niece. That would be for souvenirs, tips, gas for the rental etc...

The rental this year is costing me only $110 for a Full size at National. Last year it was $142, and the year before that it was $172.

The hotel can vary greatly from $67 at the All Star to $350 for a Deluxe. The moderates are probably the way to go...around $120? Then you could also stay offsite and save even more money.

I hope this helps you and doesn't confuse you even more!!

 

[blanq]

As beattyfamily said, it really depends on the kind of vacation you want/can afford.

We are a family of 3, 2 adults and 1 child (who at 10, is now an "adult" for park pass purposes). Our trips usually cost around $3500 for airfare, park passes, food, towncar transfers to/from airport, resort, and the extras. About $700 of that is usually airfare for us. We usually stay at a deluxe resort, and have had good luck in the past with getting resort-only codes (which seem to becoming more rare in the past year). In May we were able to snag a standard view room at AKL (we were upgraded to pool view at check in) for $129/night. We have stayed at WL on a similar rate, and at the Swan with the government rate. We will be staying at BCV, in a studio, in Jan for under $1000 for the week (we are renting points at $9/point, from a DVC member).

I, like many who frequent these boards, do like to get the most for my money, so I am always looking for discounts. Even a $5 discount coupon on a towncar transfer can help (note: a towncar transfer, with tip, can be close to the price of a shuttle, and is more convenient)! We never rent a car if we are just doing WDW, but if you feel you need one there are usually discounts to be found (check out the transportation board).

We tend to eat a lot of breakfasts in our room; we take advantage of the free grocery stops that many towncar services offer, and stock up on juice boxes, granola bars, bagels, etc. We pack snacks in our fanny packs. We find this helps with our food budget. We generally do one sit-down dinner, and one counter service dinner per day. You can view restaurant menus and prices at www.wdwig.com and that can help you plan your food budget.

If we were smart, we would have bought AP's for our last trip, as here we are heading back within the same year and plunking money down on hoppers all over again (kicking myself at this very moment!). There are discount ticket brokers, such as paramount, ticketmania, and hotwire savings club, and they can save you some on tickets. You'll have to decide what kind of ticket is best for your trip, and that will depend on how much time you will actually be spending in the parks. The more days you are there, well, the more it will cost!

We aren't souvenier people, but if you are, plan accordingly, because all of those disney trinkets can burn a hole in your wallet quicker than you can say "pixie dust".

My best suggestion is to read as much as you can on these boards...the budget board, restaurant board, resort board and transportation board will all provide you with a wealth of information. www.mousesavers.com is also a great planning resource.

Happy planning!

 

[Fooboy]

Hello there,
We are are going during the week after christmas so the prices will be much higher than during the low peak season (obviously). We've got 5 1/2 days for playtime. For the Dream Maker Package (includes Resort at POR, ult. park hopper passes, and some little gifts), airfare, transfers in town car, food, misellaneous *sp?, and Cirque Du Soleil show - we are estimating at around $3800 for the two of us. Now bear in mind that this is the Holiday season so the prices are a bit astronomical. unfortunately. but whatever! it's vacation time. i'm planning on splurging. g'luck!

foobs

 

[crisi]

kurt,

I suggest you start by investing in a guidebook (Passporter or Birnbaums would be my recommendation - but look for one with budget sheets - spend some time at the bookstore finding a style that works for you - I hate the Unofficial Guide, but its a popular choice so someone must like it).

Once you know all of the categories of expenses, and what you'd like to try to do for each of those categories....try www.allearsnet.com or www.wdwinfo.com will have a lot of information on different prices. (The guidebooks will also have some pricing information).

Park tickets will be a large expense. Plan on about $45 per day per adult for park tickets. If you spend all ten days in the park, an annual pass will lower your per day cost.

Dining has a lot of variation. Are you going to eat off site or on? Do you expect sit down meals? Do you drink alcohol? Are you going to eat breakfast in the room? How many meals per day? etc. etc. The sites listed above will have menus and pricing for Disney restuarants.

Hotel has a lot of varation: On site or off site? Cheapest room possible, or you have a minimum standard that includes concierge service? Christmas or September? I'm sure someone can point you to a room that rents for $39 a night - or point you to a room costing $450 a night.

Rental cars: We don't rent. In the past we've taken Mears or a shuttle or rented - but once we are on site we tend to be dependant on Disney's transportation system. This can save you some money, but you may lose the ability to move around easily. And its best if you are on-site - transportation provided by off-site hotels varies widely.

Then there are the incidentals.....stroller rental for a tired four and a half year old. T shirts for the family. A t shirt for the dog sitter. A stuffed Mickey. Arcade change for a thirteen year old. $8 bottles of sunscreen, because you forgot to pack yours.

 

[lentesta]

Hey kurt10,

Welcome to DISBoards. As others note, park tickets, food and hotel will be your big three costs. There's some, but not much, wiggle room with park tickets, depending on whether you want to see the water parks, too.

The 2004 edition of the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World estimates that one day in a Disney park for a family of four would cost $440.10. There's more detail in the book, but it's broken down roughly as:

Breakfast at Denny's (w/tax and tip): $26.00
Parking: $7
Park admission: $192.60 (this may have increased by a few dollars recently)
Morning break: $12.50
Counter-service lunch: $35
Afternoon break: $18
Sit-down dinner (no drinks): $110
Souvenirs: $39.

Let's say you skipped the sit-down dinner and ate counter-service again. That would save you $75. And you've only got one child, so let's deduct roughly 25% from the overall total.

($440 - $75) * .75 = $273.75. Say $275.

You won't be purchasing souvenirs every day.

This doesn't take in to account lodging or transportation, but you should be able to get close estimates for those on-line. Clean, modest rooms (e.g. Red Roof Inn) can be had for around $50 per night. A weekly car rental with tax is around $200, or $28 per day.

Doing the math.....$275 plus $50 plus $28....mmmm.....carry the one.....fifteen.....say it's around $353, minimum, for a family of three per day. Personally, I'd budget $400 per day, which is a contingency of around 12%.

So for 7 to 10 days, with each day in the park, I'd budget around $2800 to $4000, ballpark.

I'd suggest checking www.MouseSavers.com for information on hotel and rental car deals. Feel free to drop me a line if you have any questions.

Sincerely,

Len Testa

 

[disneefamily]

Disnee Dad Says..........................................Seven to ten days.
$2000 semi budget, up to $ 3300 semi budget for ten days.
Tip. Buying just one AP, gets you AP rates.
Dixie Landings is nice, and you should be able to grab a $90 rate as a AP holder.
Stay on site, at a moderate. Best value.
With no air,$400 a day gets you at least moderate accommodations, 3 or4 nice meals and a couple nice lunches.

 

[epcotfan]

Originally posted by disneefamily
Disnee Dad Says..........................................Seven to ten days.
$2000 semi budget, up to $ 3300 semi budget for ten days.
Tip. Buying just one AP, gets you AP rates.
Dixie Landings is nice, and you should be able to grab a $90 rate as a AP holder.

Annual pass rates are not guaranteed and are subject to availability.

 

[mmeb144]

To help on the gimmies from your child, if they are old enough, give them a souvenier allowance. When it's gone, it's gone. This worked great for my kids. I didn't have to tell them no all the time, they knew how much money they had for stuff.

Marie

 

[disneefamily]

Disnee Dad Says.......................................epcotfan is correct in what he/she says. I have done only one AP. But I got Dixie for $79 or $84, can't remember the exact price. Still less than I posted. But you must go at the right times.

 

[westjones]

There are lots of ways to help cut the costs of a Disney trip, but it really gets down to what you want to spend. There are so many options, so much to do! There are wonderful places to eat. But you can also save money by having breakfast at the hotel (if you are off site many places have breakfast, otherwise you can bring pop tarts, bagels, or other breakfast items and juice for in the room before you leave for the parks).

You need to just start doing some research and decide what you want to do, and then start figuring costs. Start with transportation, hotel, and park tickets. Then from there add in daily food cost, and 'extras'. The add in a 10% buffer (for things you didn't think about).

Planning your trip can be half of the fun! We love thinking through all the things we are going to do at each trip.
DJ

 

[HaleyB]

I have been working on the numbers for about 2 months now and have done a ton of research. To the point where my dear husband has said, "just book it already!" We go to DL every year, but I have not been to DW in awhile.

With the Visa offer you can stay for 6nights/7 days at the All Star "resorts" for $1522 incl. tax. That is about $255 a night and includes Ultimate Park Hopper Passes.

Since you only have one child you may be able to beat the Visa deal with AP rates on a room and just buying length of stay passes for the other 2 in your party. Also if you do not plan to visit the minor parks check carefully if you would not be better off buying two 5 day Hoppers (not plus) for each of you. I might as well give you the price I have found (at mousesavers site) :5-Day Park Hopper (advance purchase price) - $231.11 Adults (10 and older); $183.18 Children (3-9)
Length of stay passes for on site guests:
Here is the 9 night/10 day rate (from mousesavers Again)
9 nights/10 days (advance purchase price) - $418.55 Adults (10 and older); $334.41 Children (3-9)

Other costs will be Food, a Car rental, and lots of this and that. I track my spending and our last trip to DisneyLand we spent about $60 on food (for 5 people) and another $20 on trinkets (My daughter collects the charms (under $4 each), so we got off cheap!). That was for 4 people. We are Disney diehards and had season passes at DL for 5+ years when we lived in CA, so we know how to eat cheaply.

All that said I think about $350 a day is a good estimate. Also last time we went to DW we only used our car 2 times so we would have been better off catching a cab. I have heard the bus system is a bit slower these days though...

 

[lentesta]

I think HaleyB's is a reasonable estimate.

Len