Poll: do you stick to a budget?

[fanofdisney]

I'm wondering about everyone! We plan on it, but when the cash gets low, we break out the debit and credit cards. We figure we've spent so much already, what's another few hundred dollars?

 

[jann1033]

we always pay cash cause to us it's so easy to over spend ( for some reason easier there, other vacations not so much..they must have marketing genius' working for them ) so we budget since the alternative is not eating on the trip home. i do however pad the budget pretty generously so i don't actually think we go all that"cheap"


and we spend enough to have a good time.. i just can't do it if i have to eat burgers everyday, i'd rather wait and save a little more so we can not feel like we have to totally skrimp.

i've paid off vacations enough that i hate doing it so if we don't have it on hand we don't spend. that extra mickey bar just doesn't taste good when i am paying for it 6 months after i ate it

 

[dizagain]

Hi! We've taken two trips in the last three years. One off-site, one on-site. Both times my budget was pretty accurate and we didn't break out a CC - good thing cuz' we didn't have one at the time! Anyway, we made lots of sit-down meal plans and ate counter service the rest of the time...snacks when we wanted. My family doesn't really get into the extras like photos, big souvenirs, etc...the girls get a set amount of $$ and I get one shirt and two Christmas ornaments. We always did what we wanted and had a blast...didn't feel we over-did at all!

 

[boomhauer]

I can't vote, because none of those REALLY apply to us.

Yes, we do make a budget. Yes, we do stick to it. However, it's a very leniant one. We allot ourselves more per day than we know we'll need. We've never spent all the money we take down. On the other hand, we never deny ourselves from having a good time.

 

[Lorelai]

I'm sorry, a what?
just kidding....

We try, we try very hard. Often we fail.

 

[imadisneyholic]

We go down with a budget but we always spend a little extra.

 

[ely3857]

Yes;

We have a set amount of $ each day but any major purchases will go on our cc to be repaid when we get home



Jodie

 

[Kenswing]

We usually have our room, dining plan, and park tickets paid for before we go. We take cash for any souvinears. Unless we find something we can't absolutely live without, we never break out the credit cards.

Ken

 

[diannaneglia]

10 days @ Pop Century
10 day Magic Your Way Park Hopper + Water Parks and more
Hoop Dee Doo Review
Two Character dinnings (One dinner & one breakfast)
Cirque Du Soleil
Two nights outside Disney
One day each-Universal & Adventures
One night each way-too and from Disney(on the road)
All meals
Gas
T-shirt or Hoodie for each of us

Ok the above are the things I have budgeted for our trip. My question is this...I have a 15 year old daughter and 11 year old son...how much spending money should I give them for souvenirs. (they don't need) I was thinking $100 but thought maybe this was low...what do you think? This is the first time for us going to Disney and probally the last time I will take kids, so I want it to be very memorable without busting my budget too badly. I was hoping grandparents might give the kids some money to spend while they are there too but I can rely on that...so if you have any input??

Just a quick note...my mom and (single older) sister will be there with us for five of the days...so I am sure they will indulge in a few 'gifts' for the kids too...but again...we can't rely on that.

Thanks for you help and input.

 

[helens042266]

We pay for hotel and tickets before we go and have a set amount for food and souveniers. I am budgeting $100 a day for food for a family of 5 (not including TS meals - that is a different buget). I'm worried that $100 a day isn't enough for food....but when it is gone......we starve!! Well, I guess we get out the old CC.....

For our 2 week trip I am keeping an extra $1300 for souveniers and surprise expenses. We will see how it goes.

 

[Lisa AF]

Can't vote because none apply. We adhere to a strict budget, but don't go cheap. We make sure that there is cash to cover the entire vacation.

 

[cristbaby]

When it is just my DH and I we stay within our budget. We were quite surprised a couple of times when we came home with money left over. Now when the grandchildren are with us that is a whole nuther story. there just doesn't seem to be a budget then.

 

[BraveMom3]

I give each of my children (ages 13, 9, and 8) $100. This is their money for any souvenirs or "junk food" they want (candy,....) I feed them meals, drinks, and snacks like popcorn or ice cream. They have come home with money left over the last couple of trips. I budget about $150 per day for the four of us for food, snacks, and the occasional adult beverage ! It usually comes out pretty close. I like to pay cash on my account at the front desk when I register ($100 x days we're staying), so I don't have to carry as much cash with me, and when I use my room key to charge things, it is convenient but not adding up a bill that will get charged to my CC if I don't get by the desk to pay it with cash.

 

[diannaneglia]

Looks like we might be in WDW about the same time...Is your 13 year old a boy or girl? How about the 9 year old? Wow you are going on your own with the three...that is great...I thought I was being brave doing it with my two. Thanks for your input...oh and by the way...where are you staying? Are your kids excited yet?

 

[jann1033]

10 days @ Pop Century
10 day Magic Your Way Park Hopper + Water Parks and more
Hoop Dee Doo Review
Two Character dinnings (One dinner & one breakfast)
Cirque Du Soleil
Two nights outside Disney
One day each-Universal & Adventures
One night each way-too and from Disney(on the road)
All meals
Gas
T-shirt or Hoodie for each of us

Ok the above are the things I have budgeted for our trip. My question is this...I have a 15 year old daughter and 11 year old son...how much spending money should I give them for souvenirs. (they don't need) I was thinking $100 but thought maybe this was low...what do you think? This is the first time for us going to Disney and probally the last time I will take kids, so I want it to be very memorable without busting my budget too badly. I was hoping grandparents might give the kids some money to spend while they are there too but I can rely on that...so if you have any input??

Just a quick note...my mom and (single older) sister will be there with us for five of the days...so I am sure they will indulge in a few 'gifts' for the kids too...but again...we can't rely on that.

Thanks for you help and input.

i think that $100 is plenty for souvenirs but would be a little skimpy if they had to buy snacks with it also. imo snacks are the" budget killers" at wdw. we eat 2 meals a day and so snacks are something we get once a day usually but put us over our food budget by about $100( i had allowed for some but we used more than i thought we would). I've always allowed $100 each for sou vies. and usually we buy lots of things for those at home and something for us. now we don't get much cause we really don't use that crystal mickey diamond studded knickknack we just had to buy on our earlier trips.

 

[jann1033]

When it is just my DH and I we stay within our budget. We were quite surprised a couple of times when we came home with money left over. Now when the grandchildren are with us that is a whole nuther story. there just doesn't seem to be a budget then.[/QUOTE

this is what i am anticipating this next trip since i had to drag husband out of the "baby clothes" dept. our last trip pre grand baby's birth and she already has him pretty well wrapped around that baby sized finger better start adding more more more to the souvenir fund

 

[fanofdisney]

Ok the above are the things I have budgeted for our trip. My question is this...I have a 15 year old daughter and 11 year old son...how much spending money should I give them for souvenirs. (they don't need) I was thinking $100 but thought maybe this was low...what do you think? This is the first time for us going to Disney and probally the last time I will take kids, so I want it to be very memorable without busting my budget too badly. I was hoping grandparents might give the kids some money to spend while they are there too but I can rely on that...so if you have any input??

I think $100 is fine, and then I would offer them chores around the house to earn more money. Or maybe earn Disney dollars? That would make it fun, and your house will look great, until you leave LOL.

 

[IMGONNABE40!]

This is for my neighbor in Florence (y'all) Kentucky

I give my DS $10 each day we are there. I also plan on buying him a shirt and a toy on our souvenier shopping day. We don't buy souveniers until near the end of the trip, so we have narrowed down our selections and have not spent a lot of $$ on impulse purchases. Now, this works for us over at Universal because it is very easy to go from park to park each day, so going back for a souvenier is not difficult. I understand that the Disney parks are not as accessible and this plan may be more difficult to implement.

 

[MouseWorshipin]

If you want to stay on a budget, stay out of the shops. This gets harder when they force you to walk through a shop to exit something. Just walk out - don't look around!

One thing Disney has not stopped doing extremely well is shopping. The stores are temperature controlled, they play cute music, and everything is so cute and attractively displayed.

I've gotten better by looking around the house before I leave and asking myself if I need some Mickey stuff. Of course I don't. I try very hard to remember this in WDW when the Cinderella castle throw blanket is saying, "Won't I look pretty on the couch? Don't you want to take me home? I know you have blankets, but...I'm so cute! Buy me!"

 

[BillSears]

I voted the sky's the limit even though I do have a budget. Basically I use cash for almost everything so I am limited by the amount of cash on hand or in my account(checks and ATMs). But I make sure I have lots saved up for my trips and I do what I want. I refuse to worry about the costs of meals or entertainment while I'm vacationing and I rarely buy souveneirs. So I do anything I want while at WDW and always end up with left over money at the end.