Is Disney the best bang for your buck?

[my3squeals]

I want to start out by saying all the threads about going vs. not going with or without a discount got me to thinking........


Let me start out by saying we are booked with a 40% off code for Sept. I am amongst those hoping for FD but if no FD we are still going and we will pay OOP for it. That said, I did last night drift over to US/IOA website and did some pricing. Not because I want to go there but because we had never been there nor had I even been to their website. I was shocked at the value of what I could get for about $1000 cheaper and comparable to my trip to Disney. Now I realize WDW is the creme de la creme of the theme park destinations. I go to Disney because I have been bitten by the bug. We love to go there. It is magical for my family. I still cry every trip when we first see the castle or my girls hug Mickey. I am hooked.....big time. That said, I guess I have had my "blinders" on so to speak when it comes to the value and $$ vs. what I could get elsewhere. When we vacation other places it is always much cheaper and usually more like 3 days, a mini trip of sorts, but we may do those 3 or 4 times a year when it's not a "disney" year. I am not made of money and we work very hard to "afford" our Disney vacation because that is where we want to go. But now I am wondering just a little, am I making the best choice on our hard earned $$$??? When we go to Disney we sometimes fly, sometimes drive. This year is a drive year, but either way we almost never venture offsite, other than to hit a outlet Disney store or make a neccessity run to Wal-mart. I guess I feel like I have put all my ducks into Disney's pond, and then we can't "afford" not to spend our time there. After you buy 4 days at WDW what's the other 3? Minimal, right? So therefore we don't just but 3 or 4 to Disney and 2 or 3 to US or Seaworld because cost wise it is not effective. We budget. The sky is not the limit at our house. But now I wonder am I missing out? It's not Harry Potter at US or seeing the animals at Seaworld which my kiddos would love.... it's about the best value for my familly and making memories. No, Disney owes me nothing, and they won't miss me if I go elsewhere, but I don't owe them either. SO is WDW the best bang for my buck??? Only I can answer that one, but I do know my Disney blinders may have been peeled back a little.........

 

[luvthatdisney]

OP I agree with you~ US being able to offer such deep discounts makes you wonder what Disney"s thought process is. If it is a good deal is really subjective and has to be measured individually (or by family). I love Disney and have been to both WDW and DL, but we have been to US as well and my kids (who are older teens) like US better. However, I just cannot bring myself to stay at US. Creature of habit - maybe?

This year the draw to US a little more as I also love HP and we will be going for at least one day as I have to see WWoHP. Big Crowds will be there as we are going opening week, but this was the date that worked with all of our schedules. We have not done SeaWorld in many many years.

However, after saying all of that...I still do not think the economy has recovered to a point where alot of people will run out and spend like they used to. Most people are using their tax returns to go and we are no exception.

 

[mom23guys2]

We took my three sons to WDW every Easter for over 20 years. Even when they were in college we took them for Easter weekend. They loved it and have great memories. One year we decided to do a cruise(not Disney). That was amazing and a whole lot cheaper. You get everything and there is so much to do for all ages.
That said we are doing five days in Disney in June with 2 of our sons and their financees. Neither fiancee has ever been to WDW We could have done a week on a cruise to Alaska for all of us in a balcony room with airfare and excursions for the same price as 5 days at a value resort in Disney. It is those darn ticket prices.

 

[justtobeme2]

Yup, we are booked for US and if no better discounts come out we are staying off property and only a few days at Disney.

We got 5 nites, 4 day park tickets each, staying at partner hotel (rated #1 out of 300 on trip advisor) for 499.00 and THAT includes tax. Yes I love disney and it's the creme BUT that extra 1000.00 we can spend on ourselves and all the dining we care to do (there are 2 of us).

BTW Clarion maingate is less than 200.00 for the remainder 4 nites.

 

[asmit4]

Yup, we are booked for US and if no better discounts come out we are staying off property and only a few days at Disney.

We got 5 nites, 4 day park tickets each, staying at partner hotel (rated #1 out of 300 on trip advisor) for 499.00 and THAT includes tax. Yes I love disney and it's the creme BUT that extra 1000.00 we can spend on ourselves and all the dining we care to do (there are 2 of us).

BTW Clarion maingate is less than 200.00 for the remainder 4 nites.

Your prices sound amazing! Can you explain this trip for 499 a bit better? You say you have 5 nights and 4 day park tickets for 499. Is that total for 2 people? I presume that's for US. What hotel is this at? I'm getting really intrigued about doing US. I am wondering if we can do a very short trip without renting a car. We are just looking for 3 nights, maybe 4 total. Who did you book through?

 

[beansmom]

i think it's more about Disney being the established/'ultimate' theme park and Universal is the relative new kid on the block.

We go to Disney fairly often but it's not the ONLY place we go or want to go. There's a whole big world to see/experience. In addition to a week at Disneyworld, this year's trips include my first time to California, trips to North Carolina, Texas, upstate NY, St Louis and a trip to Italy next winter/spring. Some of these are business, some to visit family, others pure pleasure. Each one offers something unique and wonderful.

So..for me, Disney is fun an all but not the only thing worth doing. Bang for the buck? Absolutely. The only bang my buck can get? No way.

 

[tiger4me2]

I want to start out by saying all the threads about going vs. not going with or without a discount got me to thinking........


Let me start out by saying we are booked with a 40% off code for Sept. I am amongst those hoping for FD but if no FD we are still going and we will pay OOP for it. That said, I did last night drift over to US/IOA website and did some pricing. Not because I want to go there but because we had never been there nor had I even been to their website. I was shocked at the value of what I could get for about $1000 cheaper and comparable to my trip to Disney. Now I realize WDW is the creme de la creme of the theme park destinations. I go to Disney because I have been bitten by the bug. We love to go there. It is magical for my family. I still cry every trip when we first see the castle or my girls hug Mickey. I am hooked.....big time. That said, I guess I have had my "blinders" on so to speak when it comes to the value and $$ vs. what I could get elsewhere. When we vacation other places it is always much cheaper and usually more like 3 days, a mini trip of sorts, but we may do those 3 or 4 times a year when it's not a "disney" year. I am not made of money and we work very hard to "afford" our Disney vacation because that is where we want to go. But now I am wondering just a little, am I making the best choice on our hard earned $$$??? When we go to Disney we sometimes fly, sometimes drive. This year is a drive year, but either way we almost never venture offsite, other than to hit a outlet Disney store or make a neccessity run to Wal-mart. I guess I feel like I have put all my ducks into Disney's pond, and then we can't "afford" not to spend our time there. After you buy 4 days at WDW what's the other 3? Minimal, right? So therefore we don't just but 3 or 4 to Disney and 2 or 3 to US or Seaworld because cost wise it is not effective. We budget. The sky is not the limit at our house. But now I wonder am I missing out? It's not Harry Potter at US or seeing the animals at Seaworld which my kiddos would love.... it's about the best value for my familly and making memories. No, Disney owes me nothing, and they won't miss me if I go elsewhere, but I don't owe them either. SO is WDW the best bang for my buck??? Only I can answer that one, but I do know my Disney blinders may have been peeled back a little.........

I assume you have your 40% off a value room? I gather it will be cheaper to get free dining if booked in a value. I been told by many on the boards & by some CM at Disney that if you have a good code like you do it better to stay at a Deluxe & do FD at a Value. Just curious. I understand where you are coming from. It is cheaper for us to go to St Thomas USVI for a week than to Disney but then we would have to pay for meals (breakfast is included) But that being said we are going in Sept with a 40% off instead of FD as we did the bounceback in this past December. We did a BB when we stayed last Sept for FD but it was a better deal to do the 40% than FD staying at the BWI ( I know a deluxe but we worked hard for our money & are emptying nesters so we like staying at the BWI) We have stayed at US & like it but not our kind of fun but the hotels onsite are great. WE went in Oct 2005 with our son & his wife & loved it. Mainly it was with them we went. Good luck. I do hope FD come out for those who want it. I am hoping for a good offer late Nov/Dec for my solo trip.

 

[my3squeals]

I assume you have your 40% off a value room? I gather it will be cheaper to get free dining if booked in a value. I been told by many on the boards & by some CM at Disney that if you have a good code like you do it better to stay at a Deluxe & do FD at a Value. Just curious. I understand where you are coming from. It is cheaper for us to go to St Thomas USVI for a week than to Disney but then we would have to pay for meals (breakfast is included) But that being said we are going in Sept with a 40% off instead of FD as we did the bounceback in this past December. We did a BB when we stayed last Sept for FD but it was a better deal to do the 40% than FD staying at the BWI ( I know a deluxe but we worked hard for our money & are emptying nesters so we like staying at the BWI) We have stayed at US & like it but not our kind of fun but the hotels onsite are great. WE went in Oct 2005 with our son & his wife & loved it. Mainly it was with them we went. Good luck. I do hope FD come out for those who want it. I am hoping for a good offer late Nov/Dec for my solo trip.

No, actually our 40% is off a deluxe, it actually prices out cheaper by a $100 or so to do FD for us, not a biggie but $100. But there are 5 of us. Just like for you St Thomas being cheaper, but then again you factor in other things. We too, do travel other places. I am just saying I never payed much attention cost wise the "price" we pay to vacation at WDW. I know it is not cheap to go to Disney. We spent 3 days last summer at Stone Mtn for a tenth, yes a tenth of what this trip will cost us and our girls still talk about that trip.. We had a blast. I know there are lots of other things to see and do and I feel like we do that, I'm just a little sticker shocked when you do some comparing. I would not even consider going to WDW and staying offsite, not until a few days ago. Offsite was not even in my vocab! LOL. I'm just saying in the future, who knows offsite and more or different places may be an option.

 

[tiger4me2]

No, actually our 40% is off a deluxe, it actually prices out cheaper by a $100 or so to do FD for us, not a biggie but $100. But there are 5 of us. Just like for you St Thomas being cheaper, but then again you factor in other things. We too, do travel other places. I am just saying I never payed much attention cost wise the "price" we pay to vacation at WDW. I know it is not cheap to go to Disney. We spent 3 days last summer at Stone Mtn for a tenth, yes a tenth of what this trip will cost us and our girls still talk about that trip.. We had a blast. I know there are lots of other things to see and do and I feel like we do that, I'm just a little sticker shocked when you do some comparing. I would not even consider going to WDW and staying offsite, not until a few days ago. Offsite was not even in my vocab! LOL. I'm just saying in the future, who knows offsite and more or different places may be an option.

I understand your feelings. I was just wondering about the 40% off. You have kids & that makes a difference in cost wise. Disney use to be affordable before should I say "greedy" . You can get nicer hotels outside of Disney( if you want to stay off site) for half the cost . Whatever you decide good luck & have fun !

 

[my3squeals]

I understand your feelings. I was just wondering about the 40% off. You have kids & that makes a difference in cost wise. Disney use to be affordable before should I say "greedy" . You can nicer hotels outside of Disney for half the cost . Whatever you decide good luck & have fun !

We will always go back to Disney, at least I believe we will. We love it there. Cost wise it really doesn't make as much sense to do so though....

 

[Alisha's mom Sarah]

I think cruising it totally the best bang for the buck but I love Disney. I like FD because then I KNOW what my OOP will be.. I don't have to guess on food. And I don't have to think about something being too expensive. I just order what I want..

 

[Gr8t Fan]

We have APs for Universal/IOA and always spend some time there on every trip to Orlando. In fact, some years we've only done 1 day at WDW and spent the rest of our trip at Universal. (US/IOA APs run about $750 for our family vs. $2,500 for WDW)

We only stay onsite at WDW when they offer FD. That's the only time we can justify the cost of the room, ticket prices, etc. Fortunately we booked a bounceback last year so we'll have FD this year, but if WDW did not offer it we would go back to staying offsite again. We would still go to WDW, but we'd spend less time and $$ there.

 

[CanadianGuy]

OP I agree with you~ US being able to offer such deep discounts makes you wonder what Disney"s thought process is. If it is a good deal is really subjective and has to be measured individually (or by family). I love Disney and have been to both WDW and DL, but we have been to US as well and my kids (who are older teens) like US better. However, I just cannot bring myself to stay at US. Creature of habit - maybe?

How about this.. Disney = Four parks and up to 21 resorts to pick from (depending on how you do the counting..

Universal = 2 parks and 3 hotels to choose from.

That's how Universal can offer what is sometimes perceived as deeper discounts.. when in reality -- their costs are lower and ultimately.. you have fewer things to do.

Add to that.. you need to pay for airport transportation.. and when you get bored on day 5 = a car rental.

I'm not a Disney apologist.. but I am a realist. Disney costs more because (in my mind) it offers more. That's measured by my standards.

For a roller coaster or thrill ride person .. who simply LOVES coasters.. that whole equation can be turned on its head.

But to compare 4 parks and the options you have within each ... directly to the 2 parks at UoS -- I don't think is a realistic comparison.

My 02c.

 

[Nayan]

For us, Disney is bang for the buck. A couple years ago US/IOA gave out free tickets to families in Florida. It was addressed to the head of the household (my DH) and included a coupon for other family members (up to 6 in the party) to get in at $25/pp. So for $50 plus tax, we said why not go? So we did and I have to tell you by late-afternoon we were bored. My DH hates roller-coaster rides and because of health issues I can't ride them. Our DS wasn't keen on riding them without us, so besides walking around and riding just a couple rides there wasn't much to do. And honestly there wasn't much to see either. At Disney, they offer enough rides that we can all go on and things to look at that we can spend the day and not get bored at any park. So my money always goes to Disney .

 

[tami82]

I want to start out by saying all the threads about going vs. not going with or without a discount got me to thinking........


Let me start out by saying we are booked with a 40% off code for Sept. I am amongst those hoping for FD but if no FD we are still going and we will pay OOP for it. That said, I did last night drift over to US/IOA website and did some pricing. Not because I want to go there but because we had never been there nor had I even been to their website. I was shocked at the value of what I could get for about $1000 cheaper and comparable to my trip to Disney. Now I realize WDW is the creme de la creme of the theme park destinations. I go to Disney because I have been bitten by the bug. We love to go there. It is magical for my family. I still cry every trip when we first see the castle or my girls hug Mickey. I am hooked.....big time. That said, I guess I have had my "blinders" on so to speak when it comes to the value and $$ vs. what I could get elsewhere. When we vacation other places it is always much cheaper and usually more like 3 days, a mini trip of sorts, but we may do those 3 or 4 times a year when it's not a "disney" year. I am not made of money and we work very hard to "afford" our Disney vacation because that is where we want to go. But now I am wondering just a little, am I making the best choice on our hard earned $$$??? When we go to Disney we sometimes fly, sometimes drive. This year is a drive year, but either way we almost never venture offsite, other than to hit a outlet Disney store or make a neccessity run to Wal-mart. I guess I feel like I have put all my ducks into Disney's pond, and then we can't "afford" not to spend our time there. After you buy 4 days at WDW what's the other 3? Minimal, right? So therefore we don't just but 3 or 4 to Disney and 2 or 3 to US or Seaworld because cost wise it is not effective. We budget. The sky is not the limit at our house. But now I wonder am I missing out? It's not Harry Potter at US or seeing the animals at Seaworld which my kiddos would love.... it's about the best value for my familly and making memories. No, Disney owes me nothing, and they won't miss me if I go elsewhere, but I don't owe them either. SO is WDW the best bang for my buck??? Only I can answer that one, but I do know my Disney blinders may have been peeled back a little.........

After spending $3000+ on prior vacations elsewhere (no theme parks daily) we wound up spending the same amount and it didnt include going to a park everyday or at all during our trip. So yes i think its a great bang for the buck during free dining. We know exactly what we are spending, what we are getting, and takes alot of the guess work out on what the whole trip will cost in the end.

 

[my3squeals]

How about this.. Disney = Four parks and up to 21 resorts to pick from (depending on how you do the counting..

Universal = 2 parks and 3 hotels to choose from.

That's how Universal can offer what is sometimes perceived as deeper discounts.. when in reality -- their costs are lower and ultimately.. you have fewer things to do.

Add to that.. you need to pay for airport transportation.. and when you get bored on day 5 = a car rental.

I'm not a Disney apologist.. but I am a realist. Disney costs more because (in my mind) it offers more. That's measured by my standards.

For a roller coaster or thrill ride person .. who simply LOVES coasters.. that whole equation can be turned on its head.

But to compare 4 parks and the options you have within each ... directly to the 2 parks at UoS -- I don't think is a realistic comparison.

My 02c.

I agree with you .... somewhat. If you had read as in my first post I'm not a WDW basher, I love it, we will most always travel there. Also keep in mind there is an orlando flex ticket that allows you access to 5 parks. (US, Seaworld, others....) that was what I was pricing out which was comparable to a 5 day PH actually.
My point being, I in my own sense I really paid no attention to US or anyother "themepark" as the same type of vacation as Disney. A trip to your local Six FLags isn't even on the radar with me. My point is I jsut had not realized how pricey WDW had become. It has been over years and adding kiddo after kiddo that this price and Disney's inflation of their prices has added up. I do believe that Disney may have somewhat "priced" themselves (at least maybe temporarily) into having or needing to offer discounts. For example, SWA tells me my bags fly free, yes but..... my ticket is anywhere from $40-$70 more expensive than it was 5 years ago when all airlines bags flew free. SO do I really think my luggage is really flying free? Nope, they just charge it differently. KWIM?

 

[my3squeals]

So yes i think its a great bang for the buck during free dining. We know exactly what we are spending, what we are getting, and takes alot of the guess work out on what the whole trip will cost in the end.

I agree totally and that's part of what makes it work. But it has to almost always come with an incentive like FD or room discount or 4/3.....

 

[Jill Schwartz]

3squeals,

Part of the equation for you might also be that you are a family of 5 (my family too). To stay on WDW property, at a minimum, you have to double a family of 4's lowest cost option (book two value rooms).
And you if happen to not find the Values a particularily "relaxing" venue for the adults in your family...well now you are talking big money. I know WDW has recently tried with the Family Suites at the Values, but still.....its close to double what we could pay to stay in a LARGE well appointed resort condo, and in the FS, my family would be sleeping on pullout couches, chairs and ottomans!

I do agree w a PP that Universal does not have enough for a full week's vacay. But, when you mix it with the SeaWorld/Aquatic/BGardens that you can come and go with for up to 14 days...pretty good deal!
Would we want to do this every year like we would like to go to WDW every year...no. But definitely something we could mix in every few years, especially as the kids get older.

 

[my3squeals]

3squeals,

Part of the equation for you might also be that you are a family of 5 (my family too). To stay on WDW property, at a minimum, you have to double a family of 4's lowest cost option (book two value rooms).
And you if happen to not find the Values a particularily "relaxing" venue for the adults in your family...well now you are talking big money. I know WDW has recently tried with the Family Suites at the Values, but still.....its close to double what we could pay to stay in a LARGE well appointed resort condo, and in the FS, my family would be sleeping on pullout couches, chairs and ottomans!

I do agree w a PP that Universal does not have enough for a full week's vacay. But, when you mix it with the SeaWorld/Aquatic/BGardens that you can come and go with for up to 14 days...pretty good deal!
Would we want to do this every year like we would like to go to WDW every year...no. But definitely something we could mix in every few years, especially as the kids get older.

Yep.....

 

[Beckypooh1972]

We are taking a beach vacation this year to Florida's gulf coast instead of going to Disney. My husband would love to drive over and do 1 day at Disney but the cost is so prohibitive for doing 1 park for a family of 4. We just can't justify the cost so I'm vetoing him. The beach vacation was something we haven't done as a family and the cost is affordable since we are going before the high season starts. We are spending 755.00 for a 2 bedroom, 8th floor condo with a balcony view of the gulf and that includes taxes and cleaning fees. We'll have a kitchen and plan to prepare most meals in the condo. I still think Disney can be a good value for many, but our kids are older now so a vacation package that used to cost us less than 1200.00 at Disney will run us nearly 2000.00 now just for the package - not including any spending money, rental car, air transportation, etc.