So, we just blew the bank on our trip

[SpringSprite]

Because it was supposed to be a "once in a lifetime" (which it was, regarding the fun we had!!!!) but now I'm totally HOOKED...

Who has tips on the best ways to go on the cheap next year? I'll stay offsite, onsite, whatever, I just want to go back!!!!

My husband is really easy going, so he'll go for whatever, but I'd like to try for a week for like 2,000 - $3,000...family of four.

Tell me how it can be done!!!!

 

[elaine amj]

Wait for a good deal like free dining, stay in a value and stick to the basics. Think of it, just being in WDW is FUN! You can have a great time without the signature dining, the extra balloons, the photopackage (I participate in Memory Maker shares so I split the cost with other families), the parkhopper, the BBB, and all those extras.

I don't usually buy parkhoppers. Yes they are not that expensive - but $50 x 4 = $200 more than I really need to spend for the small handful of times I would find them useful.

I stay longer. Adding park days over 5 days is super cheap. If I have free dining, I'm paying about $100/night for a room and tons of food for the 4 of us. That's great value to me. So my trips are 10-12 days. That said, I tend to ONLY buy the days I need. Sure an extra $10 for another day is cheap, but I can save $40 not adding the extra day I know I won't use.

One trip, we decided we wanted to do waterparks. So to wring out the maximum value, I booked a 12 night trip with free dining and got 6 day tickets with the WPF&M add on. Saved $20-30 per ticket not getting hoppers. Then saved another $20-30 per ticket keeping it to 6 park days. I was super tempted to get 10 park days but ended up deciding to save the money since we would have tons of fun at the waterparks anyway. We did 4 FULL waterpark days and 2 full DisneyQuest days that trip.

Sure it didn't cost much extra to add more park days and run into a park for 1-2 hours at the end of the day, but we had so much fun (and filled the extra time dining in resort hotels) that it was UNNECESSARY for us to spend that extra money.

If you want a budget trip, it helps to get into the budget mindset of paying for what gives you value (and what you value could be different from what I value) and not just mindless splurging.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I guess it depends how cheap you can stand. I know my dh would rather be at work than stay in an uber cheap hotel like a Quality Inn or Motel 6.
The biggest expenses are flights, tickets, food & accommodations. All else you can skimp on and still have a good time.
Driving is usually cheaper than flying and offsite is generally cheaper than onsite. To do a fair comparison you would have to include the cost of rental car & parking fees at the parks in the offsite costs. Some offsite hotels offer park shuttles for free but they are typically not very frequent and severely limits your freedom. To stay offsite comfortably it's highly recommended to get a rental car.
If you stay offsite it's easier to do a grocery store stop and you could pack sandwiches for lunch at the parks.
For park tickets if you sign up for the monthly newsletter at mousesavers.com the newsletter contains links to Undercover Tourist which provides an extra discount for MS readers. It's not a huge discount, like $2-20 pp but x 4 it's something. Might cover your parking fees for a couple days.

If you must be onsite check out Disney's special offers page and make a mental note of prices. Then try Orbitz using one of their promo codes. The codes take an additional 15-20% off Disney's already discounted rates. For some reason Orbitz charges extra for more than 2 guests per room. So we book 2 adults then call to have kids added. They will have to call Disney to verify that >2 guests indeed has no additional fee then they'll add the kids at no additional charge.
The confirmation provides a link to enter ME info if flying and a different conf # to be able to link to MDE for FP+ etc.
hth. Good luck!

 

[Airship Ariadne]

Family of 4? $3,000? shouldn't be that hard ($2,000 is kind of pushing it). We are three, but had invited a niece along, and our total at a Moderate for 7 nights, six park days (no hoppers) was just a little over $3,000 with free dining. Just look for the Free dining or room discounts if you prefer out of pocket eating.

But that doesn't include the travel out there, we drive.

 

[Marionnette]

Because it was supposed to be a "once in a lifetime" (which it was, regarding the fun we had!!!!) but now I'm totally HOOKED...

Who has tips on the best ways to go on the cheap next year? I'll stay offsite, onsite, whatever, I just want to go back!!!!

My husband is really easy going, so he'll go for whatever, but I'd like to try for a week for like 2,000 - $3,000...family of four.

Tell me how it can be done!!!!

Yeah, those once-in-a-lifetime trips have a way of multiplying. BTDT, with more places than just Disney!

Cheap airfare: Look into a rewards credit card that has flexible rewards so that you can get ANY seat on ANY airline, or at least ANY seat on your favorite airline. Do a search for threads about the Southwest Airline Rapid Rewards CC to see how people are using them to earn free airfare and companion tickets.

Cheap tickets: Okay, there is no such thing as "cheap" Disney tickets but you can still save some money on them. You just have to get creative with how you do it. The least complicated way would be to buy them from an authorized ticket reseller like UndercoverTourist. A more roundabout way of getting a discount would be to buy your tickets from Disney but pay for them with Disney GCs that you purchased for less than face value. If done well, you can save 10% or more off of the cost of the GCs. Do a search for threads about Disney GC deals and Target GCs.

Cheap Accommodations: You will get more room for your money offsite, but there can be hidden fees. Don't forget to take costs such as resort fees (not included in the room rate, you get hit with these at check in), the cost of ground transportation to/from the airport and to/from the parks, parking, rental car, gasoline, etc. Also take your time and the aggravation of trying to navigate unknown streets and highways. There are some great deals out there, especially if you visit during the slower seasons.

Cheap Food: This can be done as cheaply as your family can tolerate. If you're offsite, making meals in your condo is a lot easier than running to the food court at a Disney resort so that you can make toast. You can pack lunches for in the parks and drink tap water. You can even pack some food in your luggage if you get free checked bags on your flight, or if you're driving from your home.

On top of that, you can impose a "no extras" rule which means no souvenirs, no hopping between parks, no Mickey Bars or snacks between meals, no ride photos, etc.

I think you could probably do it for $3K but $2K would probably not be possible (just 3-day base tickets alone will put you over $1K for a family of 4).

 

[mikehn]

$3000 for a family of 4 is very realistic in my opinion. I dine out whether Im at home or whether Im on vacation, so I dont count the cost of dining.

 

[MSSANDRA]

Decide what you are willing and not willing to do.....be realistic. After moderate or deluxe....its hard to go back to value, but it can be done. We did on a recent last minute trip and it was fine. Staying off site is not ok for us, but we know that and deal with it.
Would you be willing to drive? Willing to adjust dates and take kids out of school for off season rates and free dining? Willing to do all counter service meals. How many days are you willing to make the trip for? 5? 4? 7?

While lowering cost is one way to look at it, increasing the money you have available to use is another, more flexible plan. Think of ways you can increase the money you have available for the trip...again being reasonable on what you are and are not willing to do.
ideas:

Cut 20-30- or more dollars off your grocery bill each week. Eat meatless a couple meals, coupon more, eat the sales, avoid processed foods and snacks and soft drinks.
Brown Bag Lunches
Avoid all Restaurants
Get a part time job
Sell things you have no use for on Craigs list or E-bay
Don't exchange gifts for any occasion with your spouse.
Spend less on the kids for holidays
Buy only clothes you REALLY need. Consider co-sign stores.
Give up disposable whatever.....plates, napkins etc.

Now no one want to do all of these and maybe there are only one or two that would work for your family, but if its something you really want to make happen, you might be willing to do a few of these. Be sure that the whole family is on board for the things that effect everyone.
Travel is important to us and we are willing to make a lot of compromises in our life to be able to do that.

Good luck! We keep a picture of Micky on the Frig to remind us why there is no Soda in there

 

[MichiganKris]

I think if you go at a time when there is a discount like free dining, or similar you can easily do $3000 at a value, possibly at a moderate depending on the length. We spent 10 days at the Carribean Beach last year with 4 Disney adults (had to add on the $15 per night for an extra adult for one person) and it was just under $3900. This was during free dining, included park hoppers, and was not a preferred room.

If I had done quick service dining I could have been right around $3000 for 10 days with the 4 of us at a value, but I wanted a sit down meal each day.

 

[clambert1273]

Decide what you are willing and not willing to do.....be realistic. After moderate or deluxe....its hard to go back to value, but it can be done. We did on a recent last minute trip and it was fine. Staying off site is not ok for us, but we know that and deal with it.
Would you be willing to drive? Willing to adjust dates and take kids out of school for off season rates and free dining? Willing to do all counter service meals. How many days are you willing to make the trip for? 5? 4? 7?

While lowering cost is one way to look at it, increasing the money you have available to use is another, more flexible plan. Think of ways you can increase the money you have available for the trip...again being reasonable on what you are and are not willing to do.
ideas:

Cut 20-30- or more dollars off your grocery bill each week. Eat meatless a couple meals, coupon more, eat the sales, avoid processed foods and snacks and soft drinks.
Brown Bag Lunches
Avoid all Restaurants
Get a part time job
Sell things you have no use for on Craigs list or E-bay
Don't exchange gifts for any occasion with your spouse.
Spend less on the kids for holidays
Buy only clothes you REALLY need. Consider co-sign stores.
Give up disposable whatever.....plates, napkins etc.

Now no one want to do all of these and maybe there are only one or two that would work for your family, but if its something you really want to make happen, you might be willing to do a few of these. Be sure that the whole family is on board for the things that effect everyone.
Travel is important to us and we are willing to make a lot of compromises in our life to be able to do that.

Good luck! We keep a picture of Micky on the Frig to remind us why there is no Soda in there

This is what we did.... we weighed all the options... When I first started planning, I picked Spring Break and Art of Animation family suite (comfort reasons) ... then realized I was a moron

We already decided to drive down (12 hour trip one way) because I would rather have that money in my pocket instead of flying Then I looked at the offers page and saw the Stay, play and dine option. I took it and changed the dates drastically to Feb 28 - Mar 7. I will be pulling the kids out of school for the week. I am sure their teachers will hate me BUT they also know I will ensure that any work will be made up in a short time.

We made this part of Christmas and will surprising them with the trip (they have no clue) as one of their presents which meant major cutback on Christmas shopping this year

I put the $200 down and then calculated how much I would need per month. With the Stay, Play and Dine we saved so much over the original plan we upgraded to staying at Beach Club. I didn't take park hoppers but I did take memory maker - spares me from having to remember to snap a picture every moment lol

 

[ldo]

offsite condo, eat breakfast and dinner in condo--we get pizza, chicken, etc. and make easy dinners--grill out, etc. That saves a tons of $. We take a small soft sided cold bag with cheese sticks, PJB, etc. and everyone takes a water bottle. We get a few burgers/etc. and split them. WDW kids meals are a good value--sometimes I eat one. We do 1 special dinner/character meal per trip. Do not get park hoppers.

 

[worm761]

We are a family of 3 and I don't think we could do a trip for $3000. BUT, DH refuses to stay at anything less than Coronado Springs and prefers the deluxe resorts. I know this next trip I have planned is around $5000. I plan to rent DVC and I plan a few date nights just DH and I with DD in daycare so we can do the Food & Wine Festival.

If you are willing to stay offsite, Bonnet Creek gets great reviews. http://vacationupgrades.com/index.htm

I would scour menus at The Mouse For Less so you know prices. You can eat decently doing only counter service. If you need to save even more, there are several threads going for bringing lunch into the parks.

My suggestion would be to start reading the Swagbucks and Perk threads and learn how to make even more money for your trip.
Swagbucks: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3222525
Perk: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3303716

 

[kkmcan]

offsite condo, eat breakfast and dinner in condo--we get pizza, chicken, etc. and make easy dinners--grill out, etc. That saves a tons of $. We take a small soft sided cold bag with cheese sticks, PJB, etc. and everyone takes a water bottle. We get a few burgers/etc. and split them. WDW kids meals are a good value--sometimes I eat one. We do 1 special dinner/character meal per trip. Do not get park hoppers.

This is what we do. Stay at Wyndham Bonnet Creek and make a grocery run for breakfast, snacks, water bottles and dinners. We then take an afternoon break to return to the hotel to swim, nap and have dinner. That means all we pay for is lunches and one special snack per day per person.

We also do not get park hoppers. Never done BBB, pirate cruise or Illuminations cruise, or special seating for fireworks. If you want to try some of these pick one to do each trip and it will make it fun and exciting to get to do one new thing each trip.

We've done free quick service dining once and while that was a lot of fun we stayed at a value which dh hated. It didn't feel like we were on vacation staying there. We've since learned that hotel is a very important part of our vacation and tend to spend more on that than anything else.

So maybe some good advice would be to choose what is important in your trip and go for that and skip everything else. We don't care about sit down dining, hoppers, extras, souveniers or special parties.

 

[Feberin]

My family of four went for under $3,000 including driving however our daughter is under three and didn't require a ticket. We ended up staying onsite at All Star Sports since when we priced it out with parking it actually was cheaper unless we stayed in a really cheap hotel room that had a lot of negative reviews. That figure includes driving and two hotel stays (one on the way down and one on the way back). And all food and souvenirs are also included. We packed one meal a day (typically lunch) with food we bought before checking into our hotel. Breakfast was always in the hotel room (cereal, yogurt and fruit). We did splurge and do a Star Wars character meal that was like $200! And we got park hopper tickets, which we took full advantage of having.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Drive instead of fly
Offsite instead of on
No TS meals
Eat outside the parks as much as possible
Carry food & drink into the parks as much as possible
Stay only as many days as you have tickets

 

[tina.tina]

We are seriously considering camping (actually glamping) at Fort Wilderness on our next trip. One of the main reasons is the proximity/boat to Magic Kingdom. Another is that I think we would enjoy the campground. When we saw HDDR, we rode a bus around the campground and thought it looked really cool. We've been considering this for a while and I just saw a commercial on Disney Channel that made it look even cooler!

We would definitely save money on food since we could eat very well at our campsite for the same price as we eat at home.

When I say glamping, I'm talking about a 3 room tent plus a dining canopy, double high air mattresses, mini fridge, microwave, pressure cooker, etc!

 

[OrangeBirdGirl]

I'm in agreement with a couple of the others, decide what your family is willing to do to have to be in Disney and what you aren't willing to do.

Are you willing to stay offsite?

Some people suggest packing food or getting a condo and eating meals there. I'm sure that saves a lot of money, however will the kids accept that? Will they beg and beg to eat at certain restaurants each day?

Spending money, your kids are going to want souvenirs so you will have to figure in that.

It's one thing to go to Disney, it's another thing to have a vacation at Disney.

Not sure where you stayed before, that might help us.

But I think you should figure out what sort of vacation you'd be happy with. I know I wouldn't be happy vacationing the way some people do. And, when you see the amount of the trip, yes it might seem like a lot initially. But divide that out over how long you have until you go. That will make it seem more affordable to know you only have to save $X per paycheck.

Also I hear people talk about an auto train out east. Not sure if that is affordable or not.

 

[Marionnette]

I'm in agreement with a couple of the others, decide what your family is willing to do to have to be in Disney and what you aren't willing to do.

Are you willing to stay offsite?

Some people suggest packing food or getting a condo and eating meals there. I'm sure that saves a lot of money, however will the kids accept that? Will they beg and beg to eat at certain restaurants each day?

Spending money, your kids are going to want souvenirs so you will have to figure in that.

It's one thing to go to Disney, it's another thing to have a vacation at Disney.

Not sure where you stayed before, that might help us.

But I think you should figure out what sort of vacation you'd be happy with. I know I wouldn't be happy vacationing the way some people do. And, when you see the amount of the trip, yes it might seem like a lot initially. But divide that out over how long you have until you go. That will make it seem more affordable to know you only have to save $X per paycheck.

Also I hear people talk about an auto train out east. Not sure if that is affordable or not.

It really isn't very cheap to take the Autotrain. IMO, it's only worth doing the Autotrain if you are going to be there more than 2 weeks. The cost of transporting your own car on the train (down and back) can be more than the cost of a rental car.

And I agree with you about evaluating what kind of Disney trip you want. As much fun as "glamping" sounds to some people, there is no way that I would pitch a tent and camp for a week even if it was a 3-room tent with hi-rise air mattresses. There's only so much compromising that I'm willing to do in order to go to Disney!

 

[tina.tina]

It really isn't very cheap to take the Autotrain. IMO, it's only worth doing the Autotrain if you are going to be there more than 2 weeks. The cost of transporting your own car on the train (down and back) can be more than the cost of a rental car.

And I agree with you about evaluating what kind of Disney trip you want. As much fun as "glamping" sounds to some people, there is no way that I would pitch a tent and camp for a week even if it was a 3-room tent with hi-rise air mattresses. There's only so much compromising that I'm willing to do in order to go to Disney!

It's not really a compromise to go to WDW if you're interested in basic camping, too. I was seriously ill this summer and am still bummed that we missed out on camping at the beach this year.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

It really isn't very cheap to take the Autotrain. IMO, it's only worth doing the Autotrain if you are going to be there more than 2 weeks. The cost of transporting your own car on the train (down and back) can be more than the cost of a rental car.

And I agree with you about evaluating what kind of Disney trip you want. As much fun as "glamping" sounds to some people, there is no way that I would pitch a tent and camp for a week even if it was a 3-room tent with hi-rise air mattresses. There's only so much compromising that I'm willing to do in order to go to Disney!

I agree 100%! For us anyway.
When flights started creeping up over the past few years I'd look at the autotrain or even Amtrak from Philly and it just wasn't worth the savings to have to take 2 additional days off work.
I think trains are great for people with FoF or the autotrain for snowbirds. Otherwise we just find the best priced flights we can and suck it up as a tradeoff for being able to go 500 mph.

 

[Marionnette]

It's not really a compromise to go to WDW if you're interested in basic camping, too. I was seriously ill this summer and am still bummed that we missed out on camping at the beach this year.

I said that's there's only so much compromising that I am willing to do. Pitching a tent in Florida and sleeping on an air mattress would be a HUGE compromise for me.

YMMV, and I acknowledge that.