No more packages

[LisaNJ25]

I think it all depends on your family. We are hardy eaters, so the DDP is well suited to us. For that reason, and the convenience it affords, we go with the package, and the free dining. We stay at POR, so we get the regular dining plan instead of the quick service, and it allows us to have 5 people in our room instead of the 4 at the other mods, and values. I'm happy with what we get for the package price, but I can also see the potential to save money if you don't eat as much as we do.

Exactly.. we are a family of 6 but only 5 are going next month. so for us the best deal is FD and a package. If the room only reservation was a better deal for usI would do that and no package

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

We very rarely book a package - we can do better by booking room only with a discount, getting tickets from Undercover Tourist and paying OOP for food. But I run the numbers both ways each time. We always stay on-site. I also prefer the payment and cancellation policy for room-only - I pay a one night deposit then the rest of the cost when we arrive. Some people prefer to have everything paid 45 days in advance.

As far as driving from upstate NY, it would depend how many people you have and, if there are kids, how old they are. I'm not sure where in upstate NY you are, but it's probably 2500 miles round trip from Albany to WDW. That's about 100 gallons of gas, plus you would likely need two nights of hotel unless you plan to drive straight through. Add in two days of food and it's probably $600 just to drive. If you fly, you can use Disney's Magical Express and won't need to rent a car. Of course, if you are a group of adults and teens, the drive is probably no big deal and you can drive all day coming and going. I like road trips with my DH, but 8-10 hours is about the max for the kids (for all of us)!

 

[AJA]

No advice other than to price it out. We are doing the 40% off room discount this year too instead of a package. I do LOVE being able to cancel at any time instead of tied down to 45 days out.

 

[Melani]

As if there aren't enough good ideas here.

If you plan on going at least twice a year, then my suggestion is:

1) Buy a small DVC contract resale
(remember there is annual dues )

2) Buy tickets from UCT then upgrade them to APs w/ the DVC discount
(you can get 3 trips from one pass if your last trip ends the day your passes expire)

3) Buy a TIW card if you do at least $365 in TS meals a year

I can't get my spreadsheet online, but when I ran the #'s before we bought DVC after staying in a Value for a week w/kids - We came out ahead of any package (Free Dinning or 40%)

You could also look at renting a DVCers points .

 

[Pig Pen]

You beat me to the DVC suggestion! We have already broke even on our original investment (purchased in 2002), so now our only expense are the annual dues (about $800) which we pay in January. DVC membership allows us to stay in deluxe accomodations for about the cost of a value.

We also buy annual passes with the $100 DVC member discount. We rarely get the dining plan as it's way too much food for us, but if we do, DVC members do not have to pay the summer premium pricing. There are also various discounts available to both DVC members and annual passholders on food, entertainment, car rentals, etc.

 

[Mamu]

Back in the 80's we stayed off site, we have a family condo at Cocoa Beach and drove to Disney ( although it was only MK then ) then in the 90's we did packages through a travel agent.

Along came the internet and we discovered places like this that told of all kinds of deals you could find. We now puchases AP's and look for deals. When staying on site we book our trip through Dreams Unlimited (the travel agency on this web site) room only reservations. We do not book our flight until we know we've gotten a good deal. (made that mistake once) AP deals are usually the best when you book "room only" Our up coming trip with discounts we saved over $2100 in bookings. We did not choose free dining we chose CL instead. We figure the $2100 will pay for our food. Plus we purchased a TIW card and save 20% of our meals.

We also do a trip in March with friends and stay at Timeshares. They are very reasonable and Bonnet Creek in a great timeshare thats right near DTD. For 1/3 the price you can rent a 2-3 bedroom timeshare. Our friends have a timeshare at Westgate which is another great TS. Also because we have AP's parking is free. We spend a week at the TS and then a week at Cocoa Beach.

Yes there are lot of deals the more you do your research the more you'll find. This is a great place to start researching and the budget board is a great place to check out. Good Luck!

 

[~Tinkerella]

We're in Maryland and we have chosen to do our trip paying separately also. We are empty nesters and are going in November. We thought the drive would be a nice way to spend time together and see some of the East Coast. DH hates to purchase trip insurance and so the separate room with the discount is better for us. I you purchase packages without insurance your time to cancel is extremely limited and you could lose everything. Room only give you the option to cancel if you have to, up to a week out. No airfare will sure save $$$.

 

[Minne's Friend]

You will be in Disney at the same time we are - my only thing is the driving. We used to drive down from Harpers Ferry, WV and it is a 2 day drive no matter how you look at it - so that is 4 days of your vacation spent in the car. We stopped doing it because it took a day to recover from the drive. I am thrilled that you were able to get a deal on your rooms and tickets. Tickets to me are one of the biggest expenses. Like other we eat in out room a lot because the DDP is just to much food required and if I pay for it I feel obliged to eat it all (even if I gain weight) Hope you have a great trip.

 

[sscassel]

I really never sat down to price out all the ways and compare. But if you watch the airfare, you can get some great deals. In the past few yrs I flew out of Philly, I have gotten & seen $49, $59 & 79 flights. Seems to drop Tues-Thurs...But not every week. (this is Air Tran) This year I am going to Disney in December and have been watching the prices for awhile...Snagged myself $62 tix each way from Allentown to Orlando! Then the Free Meal Plan popped up. My vaca was planned for Dec3-12 which ends up in the blackout time for the free meal plan. Well if I arrive on Dec 2, I can get the FMP. Get this, I have changed my flight to Dec 3 which cost me an extra $350 for 4 of us. Added a night in CB, added 1 day park tix w/hopper (yes I know that didn't cost much). Did all that and I am LOWERING my vacation price by $650. Go figure??? We have also added all of our receipts from the free dining from our past 3 vacations and the cheapest amout was a touch over $1500 for a 10 day vaca. The other 2 for 10 days was over $1600. Most sit down meals cost us over $100 and tray meals came to about $55. So I am a fan of the deals.

 

[newdeal]

Here is the problem with this you budgeted 600 a week for food because you will be eating as little and as cheaply as possible. I like the dining plan because I don't have to t about the cost of each meal. For two adults on the dining plan our meals were $120 a day. You are figuring less than 90 a day and you have two kids we didn't have

This is how our original plan worked, I did not include my entire budget of tips, etc. b/c that is the same no matter what option we chose. I only included stuff that changed.

2 adults 2 children
6nights 7days
$2538 Wilderness Lodge & 6day base tickets + FREE DINING
$1100 Airfare + 4 checked bags each way
$50 rent a car for a day to go to Cocoa Beach
$50 for food while off site
$3738 Total

We considered driving & staying off-site also:

2 adults 2 children
7nights 8days
$600 off-site hotel + 1 day stop on the way
$1050 6day base tickets
$600 Food
$350 Gas (driving from PA)
$2600 Total

We ran into a good friend of ours with a time share & husband in the military, so here's how we really ended up:

2 adults 2 children
8nights 9days
$279 for our share of a 2bedroom, 1400sqft vila Time Share Rental
$600 Military Salute 4day park hoppers with water parks options
$600 Food
$350 Gas (driving from PA)
$200 MNSSHP
$2029

While we are definitely in a unique situation, our option #2 is definitely a viable option! You can most definitely save money by driving & staying off site.

Also, this is all during value/off season pricing in September.

 

[Melani]

Here is the problem with this you budgeted 600 a week for food because you will be eating as little and as cheaply as possible. I like the dining plan because I don't have to t about the cost of each meal. For two adults on the dining plan our meals were $120 a day. You are figuring less than 90 a day and you have two kids we didn't have

You're right, if your are flyimg and it's just the two of you.

But if you have kids & you are driving.
Staying in a villa w/ a kitchen allows you to pack your own food.
Less standing in line, less whining "I don't like that", less rushing to make ADRs, less money.

Being able to go back to our resort for a mid day break, eat, swim & walk back to the park has transformed our Disney vacation.

 

[twokids0204]

I think you can definitely save some $$$ staying of site, and eating counter serves. That's how I've done it in the past, but with the DDP it affords you the luxury of trying restaurants you normally may not, and ordering anything on the menu instead of always looking at the price.

But with the price of DDP going up, and the gratuites, and apps being removed, it starts to make you question whether the price is still a "deal". The convenience of knowing what it's going to cost before you arrive may be a benefit for budgeting purposes, but besides that

Last year we drove down from Toronto, and stayed off site for 1 night before checking into POP. We stayed at a Ramada 5 mins from Disney on HWY 192. We payed $50 (CDN) for the room only that night, and we got a bigger room then POP, with a fridge, coffee maker, and 2 Queen Size beds. Granted if you do that every night of your trip you can automatically add $14.00 to the room because you have to pay for parking at the parks, but if $$$ is the bottom line, it will be cheaper to pay as you play, instead of getting a package.