racechick8293
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 1, 2010
- Messages
- 273
Go now! A fun, budget trip is very possible!
I lost my job earlier this year, and am now working at a job I love, but one that pays a bit more than half of what I was making previously. My DD (4) desperately wanted to take her first trip to Disney, and saved for months in order to save enough to buy a ticket. She actually ended up saving enough for a FL resident season pass, so I decided to surprise her by buying the passes for both of us. One of the things I discussed with her was the fact that going to the parks and seeing the attractions and characters was the most fun part (versus buying things in the parks, as I knew how costly that part could get based on my husband and son's prior trips). At the suggestion of others, I also stocked up on some Disney t-shirts, stuffed characters, and small items prior to the trip (the local Walmarts in the Kissimmee area also have a section of Disney merchandise very reasonably priced). My plan was to pull the Disney items out of my backpack as a surprise in the parks if she really started wanting to start shopping, and every day I took 1-2 items with me to the parks. Before the trip, we looked at YouTube videos of some of the attractions and shows online and that really got her excited about what she would see, rather than what she would buy. The one exception I made to buying something in the parks was for us each to do the pick-a-pearl in Epcot. It was amazing- my daughter got twin pearls, I got a bit larger pearl, and was a very memorable experience.
I also used the unfortunate reality that we could not afford the over-the-top trip that I would have taken with her were it a year ago to help teach her the value of saving money. Ironically, her favorite "game" to play was the Great Piggy Bank Adventure in Epcot, so either the game is that much fun, or she's starting to see the value in saving already. Either way, I believe it will be a win for her in the long-term.
We stayed at a inexpensive, but clean motel on 192, for $42/night including taxes. The room had free wi-fi, a fridge, and a microwave. For breakfast, we had microwaveable breakfast bowls with ham, eggs, and potatoes. We took bottles of water and iced tea into the parks, along with a PB & Nutella sandwich each for lunch, jerky, Bagelfuls, fruit snacks, and apple slices. We never ate all the food we had taken with us. 2 of our 3 days in the parks we split an entree at Sunshine Seasons in Epcot (amazing quality of food and large portions for less than $11). For dinner, we usually heated up a frozen meal or two in the room and went to bed early in order to get to the parks early the next morning.
Overall, the trip was great and we can't wait to go back again next week! My goal was to make a 3-4 day trip affordable enough that we can go at least once/month, since we have the season passes. I plan on experimenting with other hotels and services such as Hotwire/Priceline to see exactly what the best hotel/motel is that we can find for under $50 total/night. Our entire trip for 4 days/3 nights cost less than $300, excluding the price of the season passes ($275 adult/$250 child). And perhaps more importantly, we had an incredible time while we were there!
I lost my job earlier this year, and am now working at a job I love, but one that pays a bit more than half of what I was making previously. My DD (4) desperately wanted to take her first trip to Disney, and saved for months in order to save enough to buy a ticket. She actually ended up saving enough for a FL resident season pass, so I decided to surprise her by buying the passes for both of us. One of the things I discussed with her was the fact that going to the parks and seeing the attractions and characters was the most fun part (versus buying things in the parks, as I knew how costly that part could get based on my husband and son's prior trips). At the suggestion of others, I also stocked up on some Disney t-shirts, stuffed characters, and small items prior to the trip (the local Walmarts in the Kissimmee area also have a section of Disney merchandise very reasonably priced). My plan was to pull the Disney items out of my backpack as a surprise in the parks if she really started wanting to start shopping, and every day I took 1-2 items with me to the parks. Before the trip, we looked at YouTube videos of some of the attractions and shows online and that really got her excited about what she would see, rather than what she would buy. The one exception I made to buying something in the parks was for us each to do the pick-a-pearl in Epcot. It was amazing- my daughter got twin pearls, I got a bit larger pearl, and was a very memorable experience.
I also used the unfortunate reality that we could not afford the over-the-top trip that I would have taken with her were it a year ago to help teach her the value of saving money. Ironically, her favorite "game" to play was the Great Piggy Bank Adventure in Epcot, so either the game is that much fun, or she's starting to see the value in saving already. Either way, I believe it will be a win for her in the long-term.
We stayed at a inexpensive, but clean motel on 192, for $42/night including taxes. The room had free wi-fi, a fridge, and a microwave. For breakfast, we had microwaveable breakfast bowls with ham, eggs, and potatoes. We took bottles of water and iced tea into the parks, along with a PB & Nutella sandwich each for lunch, jerky, Bagelfuls, fruit snacks, and apple slices. We never ate all the food we had taken with us. 2 of our 3 days in the parks we split an entree at Sunshine Seasons in Epcot (amazing quality of food and large portions for less than $11). For dinner, we usually heated up a frozen meal or two in the room and went to bed early in order to get to the parks early the next morning.
Overall, the trip was great and we can't wait to go back again next week! My goal was to make a 3-4 day trip affordable enough that we can go at least once/month, since we have the season passes. I plan on experimenting with other hotels and services such as Hotwire/Priceline to see exactly what the best hotel/motel is that we can find for under $50 total/night. Our entire trip for 4 days/3 nights cost less than $300, excluding the price of the season passes ($275 adult/$250 child). And perhaps more importantly, we had an incredible time while we were there!
