Kinda personal question

[Luv2trav]

Actually I'm getting away pretty cheap this vacation..

8 nights Westgate Lakes 2b 2b -430.00-Yes we are doing the timeshare presentation, I'm just going to tell them we already bought a DVC.

Tickets-400.00 (DS only 18months)
Driving-200.00 in gas
Food and merchandise-1200.00


HOWEVER, our next one we will definately be staying on site..

 

[Luv2trav]

You have all made me feel so much better and less frivolous...

 

[hockey mom 94]

all interesting points:We are fortunate to get the hotel and airfare free, my husband travels a lot. Actually he is gone almost every week Monday through Friday. We have 2 children 4 and 8 and I do a little bit of part time day care. With my husband gone so much we NEED this quality family time and I do not feel guilty. We can afford to pay for the trip we don't charge it and we still save for the future granted we could save more for the future but what is the point in saving for a future if you can't enjoy life now as well.

I have never looked at the percentage we spend of our salary for vacations but I guess its probably around 5% as well. We have been going to WDW every other year and we have a camper that we use to camp somewhat locally about 5 times a year during the spring/summer.

Can I ask what people spend on average for a 5 night stay off site at WDW, with food, souveniers, tickets etc.? I figure we spent about $2,000. For a family of 4 with no costs for air fare and hotel. Does ring similar to others?

 

[Gillian]

Hockey mom, for most people tickets & lodging are the biggest expenses. If you figure $1000 for tickets for 4, that's $200 per day for food & stuff. Sounds pretty normal or even generous. Most families do 1 sit down meal a day and counter service or in-room for the rest.

 

[merryweather's twin]

Well I know that we spent $8700. last year at WDW but for that we got 28 days and 5 trips! We only stayed on site for 4 of them and rented a home for 7 and skyauctioned 7 nights. The rest were priceline. We ate about half bkfasts in room and about 12 meals off prop. I wish we could do it this year...... We just got back and DH wants to put an ADD on the house..... Mabie I can talk him into a trip in May to use our AP one more time...... We may do something different next year.... The AP's at U and IOA and Sea World are so much less.... and we will have 5 kids in Aug! I love WDW but when all the kids are over 3 we will pay enuff for 7 nights with food and air and PAP and on prop hotel to buy an in ground pool!!!! We may have to break the habbit.

 

[susy]

Okay, last year we spent between 8-9% of our income on WDW.

It sounds like a lot. DH made about 57K last year and I made $0 (ha)

I will also be starting grad school in the fall- so he will continue to support us until I'm done. We manage to live very comfortably, with little debt and have a lot of $$$ in our poor little IRA's and DS has a very nice college fund (ED IRA and UTMA). Last year we spent about $4500 on WDW and that was with FL resident rates and Fl Resident season passes. We drive , so we have to figure on a tank of gas each way and tolls about $15 each way. We took six weekend trips, for a total of 14 nights. I think WDW is worth it.

People do think we are crazy.


We are going up Saturday for one night for our anniversary. I got a $109 rate at CSR. We won't visit the parks, but will have a great time relaxing and eating at Ohana's.

We will be going to WL for thanksgiving (4 nights). I can't wait!!!!! When I start working, watch out! I think it might be 100% of my income!

 

[kylara]

I am going to answer this in a different perspective. I can't quite give the answer to the actual $$ since I live near Disney and have no kids...so my travel money is just on me.

I want to answer it from my childhood. My mother was a single mom with two kids (me and Sis) getting no child support from my dad. She struggled and often worked two jobs when I was younger. However, every year she budgeted a family vacation together for us (sometime just us three, sometimes with other family or friends). She also budgeted a couple of long weekends with just one kid (me or sis) and at least one long weekend of her alone. People always told her she was wasting money and she should be using it for other things.

But I disagree with those people as did my mom. It wasn't like she wasn't putting food on the table so we could do these trips. Did she lessen the amount she has for retirement, yes, but she still has plenty as she increase significantly the amount she contributed after me and my sister were out of college. Did she short our college money...no, she managed to put us both through college (with our help..sis and I were both expected to contribute at least to living expenses and books).

The point is, I can remember every vacation we took. I remember the individual ones I had with my mom, the family ones, even the ones she went with my sister and I got to stay with family or friends getting to know them better. I don't need to pull out the old photographs (which we have galore) to remember...they are etched in my memory all these years later. I remember the trip to WDW...my aunt and cousins joined us, I remember DL...friend of my mother and her kids joined us, I remember Hawaii..went with grandparent..and oh so many more. To my mother, the money she spent on these vacations was money well spent. When people would get on her saying she was "wasting" money, she asked this question..."How is it wasteful to create family memories?" I agree with her to this day.

 

[punkin]

Kylara. I was in the same situation as you as a kid. My single mom and my sister and I took yearly vacations. People scoffed at my mother's frivolity, but she felt it was important. My sister and I have fantastic memories of our trips...My mother died 5 years ago, less than a month after her 60th birthday...my memories are all I have. Life is short...don't sweat the small sttuff. Do what is right for your family.

 

[cdpa4d]

Between my wife and I, we earn a decent wage. We travel to Disney every year around April/May timeframe. The best item I ever purchased was our one bedroom timeshare at Vistana Resort. We bought it in 1997 for $7,100. We stay there every year. Soon, it will have payed for itself. We have one daughter who is 2, soon to be 3.
Our Disney trip each year consists of the following:
3 plane tickets -- $125 each Indianapolis to Orlando, $375 Total.
1 Car Rental -- $125 for the week
3 5 Day Park Hopper Passes -- $600 (We usually have a day or two left over for the next year).
Food, Fun, Souveniers -- $1750 for the week
Total trip cost -- $2,850

Considering the total trip cost, we have an absolute great time. We usually come home with enough Disney cloths and souveniers to last us a while. I personally gain about 7 pounds due to the overdose of food at Disney.
The bottom line is, your budget for your trip depends on you and what you are comfortable spending. Some people feel $3,000 is a lot of money to spend on a weeks vacation. Some people feel they need to spend $6,000 to have a memorable trip. It's up to you!
Good Luckand have fun!
ADP

 

[pointandshoot]

Originally posted by kylara
The point is, I can remember every vacation we took.

That is so true, Kylara. I tell my family that the day to day seems to slip by but I always remember and cherish the family vacations from my childhood. It is funny how you recall the oddest little things in your life. We were taking our DD to WDW for the first time this November. We missed the I95 by-pass and ended up driving through Jacksonville. As we drove, we crossed a spot on the highway where I suddenly remembered my father driving through Jacksonville at rush hour during my first trip. A very small memory that made me think about the excitement of my first trip and my father.

My parents came from modest incomes but we always took some sort of vacation. The family experience and knowledge gained from travel was important and we have carried that on.

As for our trips, we are a family of three, drive to WDW with a hotel stay part way, stay on property at a deluxe, and have 2-3 PS meals per trip. This has been during non-peak times and the cost runs between 3k-4k. This is for about 10 days of travel with 7 days at Disney. Most of the cost is room and tix. We have gotten APs so our per trip costs will drop significantly.

 

[ZachnElli]

We spend about 5k on our trips to Disney. But dh travels alot and we fly there on frequent flier miles, so it doesn't include airfare. I don't know if anyone thinks we are crazy or not. My parents might have until they went to DW last Sept! LOL! They actually said, it's not for them, but they can see why we take the kids so much!

 

[kdibattista]

Right now it's just DH and I and make a little more than Luv2. DH also bartends twice a week so that's how we mainly pay for vacations (among other things). We are going on our 4th "together trip" since we have been married and each year it goes up a little (we have discoved AKL and won't stay anywhere else ). Anyway, I would guesstimate we spend about $5,000 total for everything for a one week stay. We normally only do our Disney trip and then a few little weekends here and there but this year we are heading to the outerbanks for a week and that adds another $1,500 or so. We are hoping to start a family sometime next year and we have already discussed how our Disney trips will work. We will probably cut back to every other year... maybe not. It all depends. But I do agree that you need to enjoy your hard earned money... as long as everyone's priorities are in order.

 

[TRAPPED-PARENT]

Both my DH and I work and so have come to count on vacation time together.

For a 12 day vacation (9 on-site Disney) we spend between $2,800 and $3,000 for the four of us (2 teens).

Add to that another $500 trip to an amusement park in the summer -- camping at a State Park for a week $300 (includes food and incidentals).

My kids friends think that we are rich because we go on vacation so much, but we still use the $60 bedroom suite that I bought when I was single, the funiture I bought before we were married (20 yrs ago), etc. Their families choose to spend their money on eating out more frequently and buying all the latest fashions in clothers and furniture.

It's all in the priorities and family vacations are a definite priority for us!!!

 

[blanq]

Since we are all visitors to the DIS Boards it figures that there is going to be lots of support when it comes to spending money on vacations. I am not surprised that the consensus here is that vacations are important, and I am no exception to that thinking!

We take between 3 and 4 trips each year (no more than one of those is to WDW), and spend about 10K-12K on those trips. This year we will vacation to Palm Springs in March, WDW in May, and will take a cruise in early Dec.

We do live a fairly frugal lifestyle, and I must admit I am very careful about making sure we get the best deal for our vacation dollars. We will not skimp on ensuring we send our DS to a private, Christian school; that we tithe to our church; that we put 10% of our income towards retirement savings; and that we make time as a family for vacations. We bought a fixer upper, older home and don't mind that we don't have huge, new homes like our friends do.

I am thankful that no one gives us flack about how we decide to spend our money, and I'm somewhat appalled to hear that some of you do experience that! Now if we Disney freaks were spending our money on illegal drugs or weren't feeding our children that would be a different story, but spending money to be with our families at the "happiest place on earth"? Well, give me a break!

 

[twinkletoes]

My very first trip to Walt Disney World was 28 years ago and I remember lots of small details that made that trip special to me. My grandmother paid for my family's trip because my dad was the only one who worked when my sisters and I were little.

I remember the butterflies I felt in my stomach walking up to Cindy's castle the very first time. I remember taking pictures with goofy, mickey & cindy. I remember that we packed snacks and lunches and we had a picnic. Beleive it or not I had the same butterflies in my stomach when i walked up the path to Cindy's castle hand in hand with my DD then 5. She was so excited.

The last 5 visits to WDW we stayed in Ocala with FIL. FIL passed away in November of 2002. We are heading off to WDW for the week of March 9- March 15. This year we are staying off-site. We are staying in a 1 bedroom suite w/kitchenette. I don't mind heating little things up. Breakfast is free every morn. We are taking in snacks as always. We will not go over our means but we are there to create memories. Our family consist of me-33, DH 46, DS 13, DD 11 and we are taking my nephew 20 (this is his first visit). My children are so excited that they get to show their cousin around.

So I guess what i am saying is we don't spend over $2500 to $3000 for tickets, souviners, hotel & food. If we need more then we will spend more. It doesn't matter how much you spend. It's all about making memories. So that is my plan. Don't worry about how much money i spend. For gosh sakes i'm going to be in WDW what is there to worry about, but getting in as many rides and shows as we can. Everyone have fun. I know we will.

 

[WDWorld2003]

We have taken some kind of vacation every year with our family.... even when we couldn't afford it. We did a few timeshare presentations just so we could get away with our 2 girls for a few days when they were little. We've camped, etc. - whatever it took to get away.

We went to WDW nine years ago as a gift from my FIL. He paid for the flight, hotel and passes. We stayed offsite at the Comfort Inn. We did not have any $ for Character Breakfasts or even a meal in the park, but we loved it!!! The memories of that trip are forever.

Times have changed for us and this year the four of us are going back!!! Onsite - yeah! Eating at some of the character dinners!! Yeah!!! We will be spending $4K+. We also plan on taking a trip to the mountains this summer.

We have been on many adventures together from Yellowstone to Hawaii to WDW. Our daughters are young teenagers now and we know there are few family vacations left with just the 4 of us. We talk and laugh about the fun we've had on trips all of the time - it has made us closer as a family. Those adventures we will remember all of our lives - we will not remember the money we spent.

 

[XStAnt]

Let me start by saying I think vacations every year are important. It doesn't matter how much or how little you make. They are wonderful memories and great stress relievers.

The amount of money you spend each year on a vacation depends on two things: your lifestyle and common sense.

By lifestyle I mean are you providing all the necessities for your family while living a comfortable life. Do you have money for the house and car(s) without too much debt. Do you have health insurance. Are you saving for retiremnet and college for your children. If you're doing all this and still have $5-6k each year to spend on vacation, by all means use it for a nice vacation. If you have less money, spend less for your vacation.

The quality of a vacation isn't the amount you spend but who you're with and what you do. Many of my best vacation memories come from a weekend at the shore or a trip to a nearby city. Maybe some years you do smaller things while saving for a bigger trip in another year.

By common sense I mean are you overpaying for your vacation. Are you getting all the discounts that are available. Are you staying at a 4 star hotel at $400/night when the 3 star hotel at $150/night fits your needs just as well. At Disney it is easy to spend $5-6k on a vacation. But don't pay rack rates on the hotels when there are many discounts available. With a little planning your Disney vacation will either be lees expensive or you'll be able to do more/go longer for the same money.

 

[PamNC]

that isn't ridiculous. You can't put a price on the memories you will take with you from a vacation, especially a WDW vacation. I hate it when other people try to tell me what I should and should not do.

Anyway, to answer your question. My husband and I have no kids. Our HHI is close to yours and we spend about $3,500 a year on vacations.

I say - have fun!

PamNC

 

[perdidobay]

We spend 6% of our pre-tax income a year on vacations. Last year we spent 4 weeks vacationing. Two were trips to WDW.
When we were first married and poor, we took cheap camping trips. With our kids we camped, going to Yellowstone, Rocky Mountain National Park, and Florida National seashores. As we became more well off, we started staying in Motels, and later, renting condos/cabins. Our DD's are 26 and 19 now. When I ask what they remember most about their childhoods, and what they enjoyed most, it's the vacations.
It's what I remember the most about my childhood. DH's family never took vacations!He has been trying to make up for it since our first one together
Some people we know think we travel too much, spend too much on that travel ,while they never go anywhere unless they can go for free.
What I want to know is, what buisness do they have to tell us what we spend OUR money on! These same people drive a new Lexus every year, send their kids to $$$ private schools, and spend $$$ on fine dining and expensive clothing. We don't do any of that, but I don't feel the need to tell them they shouldn't. It's their money!
Spend it any way you want and feel sorry for the folks who never feel free enough to do what they want in life.

 

[*Flower*]

First let me say that I haven't figured out the percentage of what we spend on vacations.
We are DINKs, we've learned the hard way about debt by thoroughly digging ourselves into debt AND digging our way out.

That being said, we do a weekend at WDW once a month, driving down and back- have APs and stay on property through SoG (DH is retired military). We don't go down in July or August (too icky). The weekends usually cost (including room) about $400.00- usually less. Then we've been doing a Christmas trip for about 8-10 days at AKL. I made the mistake of finding discounts for it in 2001, and was asked to be on the lookout for another discount for 2002. Luckily I found it. Keep in mind that I budget for these trips all through the year. This year will be a bit different.... we're celebrating a major anniversary, so DH has requested a redo of our last major anniversary trip to NYC. That has shot our budget up a bit this year, but the plane tix and show tix are already paid for. We'll only need to pay for hotel and meals when we get there.

THEN, we'll be footing part of my DB's trip (with SIL and 2 kids) to WDW for their very first time. They usually do DL when we're out that way. However, once again I'm saving for that (have been for a while). We've already got rooms set up, picked up 5 day PHs for them, and are looking for airfare as we speak. AND, we're doing the 401k thing, other retirement options and making triple payments on our mortgage.

We are a source of amusement at work (we both work at the same place), but they also say that we're a good example for living life to the fullest.

Do what feels right for you, and remember that you don't have to justify your actions to anyone except yourselves!!!

Happy planning.........