no idea how much money i will need

[Donald Ducks wife]

Right we are off to WDW this time next year. im not sure how much to save to take with us for spending money, We are staying at art of animation, with the dining plan, for 2 weeks, 1 adult and 1, 5 year old.
so what would I need money for, just spending money really? I thought $5000 but would that be too little or too much?

 

[Belle61513]

Are you planning on getting a dining plan? That will make a huuuuuge difference.

 

[Donald Ducks wife]

Are you planning on getting a dining plan? That will make a huuuuuge difference.

yes we have the quick service dining plan

 

[fizz13]

I honestly think it depends how much shopping you intend to do & extra costs such as tips for any table service you might choose to add, car costs if you're renting a car like petrol & tolls, etc. 1 adult, 1 child on quick service plan , I reckon I would spend $200 a day tops. I don't really shop anymore to be fair lol. so I wouldn't need $5000, but it's definitely nicer to have more than you need than be worrying with every purchase

 

[Vixster]

We had $100 dollars a day last year when we went as were on the dinning plan changed £1000 though for 5 of us and it worked well just bought breakfasts and souviners each day. Also we did use our can when we visited the mall for a iPad

 

[Elise79]

Even when paying for all our food I only budget $200 a day. If we are on the DDP that reduces to $75-$100. This is for 2 adults and 1 child.

We don't really shop any more apart from the occasional pair of trainers or some clothes for DD so don't need a huge budget for them.

 

[chmurf]

it's always better to budget more than you'll need (whatever money is left when you come back can be put towards the next booking )

but honestly, $5000 for 2 weeks, 1 adult 1 child on the dining plan ... sounds like a LOT of money.

It depends if you intend on shopping a lot, like raid the malls and outlets

Last year, 3 of us (2 adults 1 child) for 3 weeks, only spent $4000 paying all our meals OOP, and filling up 2 large suitcases with clothes we bought in Florida.
Take away $2000 for food from our spendings, and you're looking at $2000 for 3 weeks with heavy shopping.

 

[crabbie1]

I agree. We took $3700 for 3 of us but had TS nearly everyday paid for our food. We bought loads as DB had 3 kiddies back home. Its always better to hv more.some People on here go 2-3 times a year so they dont take much spending money but if like us you only go every 12-18 months then I buy more. I bought 2 pairs of UGGs as well and we still hv $358 left.

 

[flortlebap]

We only spent around $1500 for six of us for two weeks with QSDP. But that was when there were two snack credits per day and we never paid for a single drink!

It can be more expensive if you are paying OOP in restaurants as well but 5k would be far in excess of what you need IMO

 

[duffdo]

$5000?? If it is your first time and you can afford it, I would say go for it. There will be plenty you want to buy. Personally I would say $3000 is plenty for 14 nights with a dining plan. I am going for 21 nights and am taking $4500 for 2 people.

 

[disneyholic family]

sounds like way too much money..

we were just there in august...
4 adults on the dining plan...

i think i took $3,000 with us and i brought back $2000...

but we didn't buy any souvenirs this time..

and i did use plastic for many purchases...

but still, we were 4 adults and we had to pay tips out of the cash...

5,000 sounds like a lot to me if you're on the dining plan...

 

[2Tiggies]

It's so difficult to say. We spent a lot on our first trip and almost as much on our second (I'm talking cash/travel card spends not pre purchased or anything paid for in advance)

We spend very little now (except DD) by comparison. I think our trips cost more now in terms of extras but those have been less in the line of souvenirs and more things like experiences, La Nouba, photo sessions etc.

I think regardless of what any of us tell you, a first trip is much harder to figure out a budget for IMO because everything holds so much appeal. If you can afford to save up the $5k, I'd say do it. You don't have to spend it all and anything you bring home can be saved for the next one , which is something we did on our first two trips with over budgeting.

It doesn't matter if it's too much; but I think we all agree that you won't be short of cash taking your 5k so if it's doable, I say save it and enjoy

 

[MrRomance]

Right we are off to WDW this time next year. im not sure how much to save to take with us for spending money, We are staying at art of animation, with the dining plan, for 2 weeks, 1 adult and 1, 5 year old.
so what would I need money for, just spending money really? I thought $5000 but would that be too little or too much?

I have a theory with this... if you took $2000, you'd be fine, if you took $5000, you'd find a way to spend it The best way to approach spending money in my experience is to think about the kind of things you might want to buy.

We have been to WDW a LOT so we don't really buy much in the way of Disney trinkets anymore. For a first timer, they might want to buy everything from popcorn buckets to ear hats. If you are on the QSDP, you're not going to get any character meals in that, so with a 5 year old, you might want to take a couple of those which are going to run you around $60+ a pop for the 2 of you. It really will depend on what you're likely to want not what other people would take.

We are going in a couple of weeks, we are 2 adults and 1 child for this trip. We are on the regular dining plan and we have $2500 spending money which if I am honest, is too much and probably won't be spent. We are in a fortunate position in that we have a US bank account so I can just deposit anything we have left in there before we go. But a lot of people like to go to the mall and take advantage of the outlets and would easily spend that much.

I guess the best advice I can give you is that whatever you take, you'll spend, so think about what what you might want to do and buy and work it through from there.

 

[Vickyrowe]

DH and I are taking $1000 each (less £80 for my new passport) , we have the regular dining plan and plan on eating breakfast in the room to save buying breakfast.

But we will buy alcoholic drinks with our TS meals so about $20 each day for that, plus we want to hit Food and Wine too, It's our last trip for a while so will be treating ourselves.

Lots of presents to buy for Nieces and Nephew too.

Last time we took £50 a day for food for both of us , which was enough as we only ate Quick service and cooked at the condo , and £150 spending money each.

As some above have said you can really spend as little or as much as you can afford , there are ways of doing it on a budget , as you could easily both share meals etc,

But it is nice to be able to buy what you want and not worry , especially if it's a once in a lifetime type trip.

Vicky x