If you can help, might be able to save trip!!

[chris1gill]

I'd also try Priceline for some of your nights... go over to www.biddingfortravel.com & see what the bids have been for 3* or 4* or resorts for your areas... I've gotten some *REALLY* nice resorts for little money!!

About the George Foreman, DO IT... we brought ours to Hawaii with us in February & it was AWESOME... it saved us SO much money.... you can cook so much on it, I was really surprised, as I got the idea here on the DIS. We cooked hot dogs & chicken (I didn't like red meat on the foreman) & we also cooked our veggies & grilled bread on it. You'll have a microwave & can request a toaster at the DVC resorts (you'll have a studio?) You wouldn't believe the amount of food you can cook with just a little bit of creativity.... you won't have to settle for Mac & Cheese!! Stop at the grocery store on your way to the resort & purchase what you'd normally eat... all but red meat will come out great between the foreman & the microwave...

About the park passes, you'll be going back next year right? You might want to get those AP's even though it is more expensive.. you won't have to buy park admission next year...

Go line by line on your budget & see what you can possibly get rid of or reduce...

 

[A1A1]

Thanks folks! I like you more than most of my family. They just keep telling me not to go. I really need this time this year. Lost a family member in Va Bch, so I'm finally ready to face some of the demons waiting for me there. It's time, and I have to do it.

I am looking at three areas that could be cut down:
1. Hotels before Disney
2. Park Passes
3. Food

Hotels before Disney
I am currently checking the web and some AAA travel books for other, more economical options. I am going to call the bases today to inquire about staying there. Has anyone stayed at a Windham Hotel? There are a few of these, they are about the same price as the Courtyard I reserved, but they have a 100% satisfaction guarantee. If you don't like it, you don't pay.

Park Tickets
I am pretty resolved to being unable to affored the AP's this year, eventhough I will have to pay for passes again next year. I just can't afford it this year. The part that makes it difficult, is that I like to go to the parks every day, just to walk around, not necessarily to ride the rides. It's so magical in the parks, I could walk around them forever. I will visit resorts and get a similar feel by trying to find some fun things about each resort. It should prove to be very relaxing.

Food
I think I can do a good job here if I don't get tired of cooking. I will visit the commissary on my way out of Virginia Beach. I think I can stock up on cheap water and other non-perishables. I would like to see exactly how much I can save. This will be my personal challenge. I have checked all the WDW menus that I could find, to see which would be the best deals for us for the times when we would eat out.

The taxi is $20+ each way plus tip. That $100 included all the gratuities for the trip as well. Is that reasonable?

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

We usually cook in the unit at DVC and have found you can save a LOT by just shopping at Win Dixie or Super WalMart. You can trim hundreds off your food budget this way, and we eat very very well. See if you can get a friend to drive you to the airport, that will save on parking/taxi and some of the tips.
I would stay on the couch, if your little one is tired enough, she will fall asleep. Heck, if push comes to shove and it does not work out, you can get a motel. But, at least you have tried.
I would not pass up the Horse World trip, but, then again, I have a soft spot for horses and the love little girls have for them. That is a promise I would keep as well as the Cruise. JMHO. I would find another way to budget money so I could do this.
Hopefully with all the advice you are receiving here you can trim that budget down to where you want it to be and have a wonderful time.

 

[A1A1]

Thanks Gail! I agree with you that the special experiences that we can have together, like Horse World, are what makes the memories for children. It definitely wouldn't be the food, unless it was a special meal like Cindy's. Thanks alot! I am thinking very hard about all of this.

I have made a shopping list. Since we will have commissary priviledges, I will pick up the non-perishables there along with a styrofoam cooler. Once we get to Hilton Head, or pretty close, I will probably pick up a pack of chicken or other meat to cook in the room. I am seriously considering the George Foreman grill in the suitcase idea. If it gets really stinky from use before we fly back, it was only $14.99, and I wouldn't feel very badly about leaving it there.
I can't imagine spending $1,000 on food if we cook most meals in the room, and maybe eat out about four or so character meals or special buffets like O'hana or Boma. I calculated that those should run about $30-40 each. If we did that, I guess I could plan on about $200-350 in eating out, and maybe, maybe, maybe another $150 in other groceries and the occassional popcorn tub for dd. There! I just cut my food bill in half! I refuse to buy bottled water there because it is so expensive. I will stock up on the drive.

 

[chris1gill]

I swear you can clean the Foreman really well, and it doesn't smell! We did wrap ours in two plastic grocery bags, but we flew all the way from Hawaii to Boston & our clean clothes didn't smell! It took very little room as well.

I know we go for 12 nights (2 adults, 2 kids) & we never spend more than 300.00 for dinner's out... I figure the groceries we buy would be groceries we'd buy at home, so I don't count that towards our trip costs...

Before we started cooking ourselves, we spent 150.00/day on food alone, can you imagine?

I just checked out biddingfortravel, and Norfolk Downtown - waterfront has two three * hotels, one's a Sheraton & one's a Marriott... it seems you could get one of these for less than 50.00/night, you might definitely want to try for it if it's close to where you'll be...

 

[A1A1]

Thank you Chris1Gill. You are great, too!

jgates seems to have gone out of his way to look up info for me. I thank you.

 

[2TxAgs]

Keep working on the hotels. You've mentioned the one for $111 because it has a buffet breakfast, but you've also stated a couple of times that you're light/fussy eaters, so why pay for something that you'll get little benefit from?

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Wal*Mart's bottled water is very inexpensive and really good.
I don't mind the water at WDW, but, everyone is different and will react in a different way. I used to react violently to the water in Springfield Ma, made the horse shows rather unpleasant that year. So, I guess it will depend on your body and the water, like I said, everyone is different.

 

[robinb]

I don't think you'll like my advise, but here it is ...

Your current plan is to spend 3-5 days at Virginia Beach, 4 days at Hilton Head, 7 days at BWV, 2-4 days at CR, plus a couple more for travel. You seem to be trying to stuff 2 vacations into 2-3 weeks. That was probably OK before whatever happened that necessitated you trim 1/3rd of your budget. I would recommend that instead of having 3 weeks of peanut butter and jelly you decide on either the beach vacation (Virginia Beach & Hilton Head) or the WDW vacation (BWV, CR). You'll still have your vacation, you'll still be able to relax and have fun with your DD but you'll spend less and you'll come back to "real life" in a better place to return to WDW around Easter as planned and "do it right".

 

[wdisneyaholic]

A1A1,

We chose our sit down meals pretty carefully. If we did a sit down breakfast then we would just do counter service for other meals. Columbia Harbour House in MK was one of our favorite places to eat. We also took advantage of the food court at the hotel. We were never really big on eating anything in our room. Personally now I could do one big meal a day and just little snacks the rest of the day. Stock up on nutra grain bars and bottled water at Wal MArt. They have great prices on snacks. Super Wal MArts have a lot of other food too.

 

[ceecee]

I agree with Robin...cut down on the days. If your daughter is really young, she'll be tried of all the running anyway. We did 1 6 day trip with a 4 day hopper and had a wonderful time, our daughter was 4 and that was just about right for her. Now that she's older we can do a little more.

 

[jgates]

OK, I'm back!

I don't know just how business oriented this area is, but have you also checked to see if any of the hotels offer a shuttle to and from the airport? If so, a few $ extra per night on one of those could offset the $100 you are estimating for taxi, etc. I believe in New Orleans the shuttle to the major hotels downtown was $12 per person. (We did tip thou - our bags were HEAVY). I'm doubting the Fairfield etc would have one but there may be one that services a group of hotels.

I do agree with the suggestion that if you are going to be visiting people or seeing people you know, see if you can get at least one way trip to cut those costs down. If you feel guilty about that, run to a gas station and buy them a $10 gas card for a thank you. Still saving $80 or so.

Or do you have enough points to add onto the car rental and pick it up early? Then the taxi could be avoided all together.

I'm afraid I'd be doing the whole vacation too......If I have my heart set on something I doubt I would cut it short.

I haven't re-read the entire thread here again today but when you stay at the Courtyard, remember breakfast is not included there. There is a Fairfield in Florence SC-that includes breakfast. I checked rates for 7/13 (Saturday) (Sorry-that's my birthday-that's why I keep focusing on that time frame!) AAA rates for a king room are $56.05 & up. Government rate is $59 for King, one double or two doubles. You often see them in the bargain motel magazines in the truck stops too. If you could change your Courtyard to a 6PM hold, you might be able to find a bargain with one of the coupons depending on location and save $25 or $30.

Also, I think DD would like the FW ponies too-bet she won't even miss Horseworld. Combine it with an evening with the S'mores by the campfires. You could pick up the stuff yourself at a WM stop.

I know you stated you can't afford the AP's, but if you definitely are going back next spring, the $$ you will be saving with your buddy George Foreman will more than make up for the cost difference and save you hundreds later on.

Since you are willing to drive off-site to eat, remember Ponderosa and ??Sizzler have buffets for bargain prices. Often there are coupon books right inside the doorway that have $1 off coupons in. (I know we stood in the entryway of Ponderosa tearing our coupons out and everyone else walked in and paid full price.)

Now, you know I have to take some of my own advice to heart. We are leaving in July & driving down from Wisconsin for 16 days vacation - spending a fortune and then I have to send my son off to college. But this is the present he wanted.....

Good luck from the cheeseheads!

Jenny

 

[jgates]

PS, Make sure you have a cellphone - Don't be travelling alone without one!

 

[dg39]

Everyone here posted great ideas for you for your trip. If you use some of them yu and yur dd can have a wonderful vacation. There is so much to do in wdw without going to the parks every day. We are going for 11 nights and are only getting a 5 day park hopper. We are driving down from NJ and plan on 2-3 character breakfasts, A few sit down dinners and some counter service. I would love to do everything on our upcoming vacation, but funds don't allow us to, so we do what we can afford to do and have just as much fun as the next person. Make a list of your Must do's that you can afford and stick to that. While dining at disney can be expensive, there are places to eat a good meal without going over your budget. The idea of bringing the Foreman grill is a good one. You can have lunch in your room using it. Have bagels and cereal for breakfast and then for dinner you can splurge alittle. Maybe staying off-site would be cheaper for you also. Mousesavers.com has great deals on there website for off-site hotels.

 

[A1A1]

Hi RobinB. Thank you for your post. I appreciate alternate views. I have thought about the possiblity of shortening the trip. One of the problems is that when you don't "bank" your DVC points within a certain time frame, you lose them. This would be financially awful, because I have already paid the dues on these points, etc, etc, etc. Also the penalty for changing the airline would be pretty big for the two tickets, I think. I will call to find out. So, essentially, I am trying to continue on with the trip, if possible. It is still not a sure thing. I have a lot of phone calls to make. Some of them will have to wait until Monday. Again, thanks!

Ceecee, thanks for advice on days in the parks. I am trying to figure out how many, how much, and when.

 

[robinb]

I know all about DVC . I own at OKW and BWV. You can always rent any points you can't use. You can even rent that entire week you already have booked. My in-laws canceled on my 30 days before our start date ... 1 day too late to cancel the reservation and bank. I was still able to find someone to rent my points. You may not be able to get the full $10 per point going rate for "distressed" points, although I did.

Your airline will probably charge you somewhere between $50 and $100 per ticket to cancel .

 

[tink2dw]

A1A1,near our airport there are hotels that advertise Airport Parking. You can Drive there, stay the night,and leave your car Parked at the hotel during your trip. We live close to our airport so several days before departure we went to the hotel and prepaid for our 16 day trip,it cost $40.!! Plus they had security guards watching the cars parked there. On the morning of our trip we arrived 3 hrs before our flight at the Hotel. They called a taxi to drive us to the airport and drop us off in front of our airline!!

Check aroud your airport to see if hotels are offering this service!! Oh and when we got home our battery was so low it couldn't start the car. The hotel had a battery thing to start our car! I was glad we weren't parked in short term parking when that happened!!

Your head must be spinning with all the info you have recieved!! I found this GREAT Disney Vacation Planner for your computer,you can schedule your days,it even has an area for PS,notes, and the pull down menus at the top have a ton of info. Then it will print your plans 1 day at a time.[I would use it for your whole vacation!]
Here is the link to download this small program.
http://www.intercot.com/planner/default.asp

 

[A1A1]

Thanks Tink2dw! Thanks all!

I did some new and revised calculations!!!! Here they are:

5 day PHP discounted - one adult/one child = $433
Groceries = $150
Dining out = $350
Auto rental taxes and fees = $175
Hotels before Disney and 2 nights CR = $685
Tips for entire trip and cab to/from airport = $100
Other tours = $100


Total -= $1,993 !!!!!!!!!

I'm not sure the amount for eating out is realistic. I am going to add to the food portion as follows:

Dining out for fifteen days at HHI and WDW - one meal per day/$30 per meal x 15 = $450
$15 per day at Va Bch and Florence stop = $75
Groceries for inroom cooking = $150
New food total = $675

New grand total = $2,168

I think this is okay, because I wanted to get closer to $2,000, and we did it! I may have over estimated on the eating out parts, but I'd rather overbudget for it than underbudget. I am still going to look into other accommodations in Va Bch.

 

[A1A1]

I forgot to mention, that I did call the airline to inquire about shortening the trip by changing the dates, and changing the places to fly in and out of. There were severl different scenarios. They all cost big bucks! The changes were all about $300. I would have had to pay the fee of $100 per ticket PLUS whatever the difference in fare would be.

 

[BedKnobbery2]

I would really VERY strongly recommend you consider priceline. I'm willing to bet you can cut your hotel expenses at least in half. Since you can designate the quality level of your hotel, you should really have no fear of getting a Red Roof Inn (a 1* hotel *=star). To give you an idea of quality, Priceline 3* hotels are generally marriotts, sheratons, hiltons, and wyndhams. 2.5* is usually a courtyard, sierra suites, candlewood suites. 2* is generally Holiday Inn, Homestead Suites, some Comfort Inns.

You may also want to consider staying off-property after your DVC stay ends; and again, I recommend priceline. It is VERY COMMON for people to get 3* hotels right in the WDW area (Rennaisance, Marriott, Hyatt) for less than $35 per night. Even with a great military rate, it will cost a lot less than the Contemporary.

Regarding food; I think you could even eat out most meals with your $50/day budget. Let's do a quick analysis here:

breakfast--easy to do in your room. fruit, yogurt, breakfast bars, cereal, poptarts--easily less than $5/day for both of you.

lunch--in the parks, at counter service: for DD, a kids meal (average, $6; for you, regular meal, average $10) OR another option is splitting a meal in a sit-down restaurant. For example, RFC, who usually has huge portions: 2 glasses of water, a Rasta Pasta, and your still at under $20, including tip.

dinner--out of the parks EXTREMELY easy to keep under $20 for the 2 of you. So that's a total per day of $45 (or less) for food, with only eating breakfast in your room.

Again, I want to reiterate utilizing priceline. I use it very often, and have stayed in hotels whose rates are $200+ for less than $50 a night. And we are talking some truly beautiful hotels. Read www.biddingfortravel.com thoroughly, and you can be an educated bidder.

Good luck to you.

BK