WDW family of 4 trip

[FrugalSpender]

Hello! I've been lurking around for a few days and pondering on planning our first family Disney World trip possibly this year/next year but I have some questions for those that are more experienced.

Some information to help with a few of the questions (feel free to ask anything I should have included to help you with your answers )

• We would be traveling from Michigan.
• Family of four (Me (30), DW (34), DD (7), DD (9) at time of travel).
• First WDW family trip.
• Trip would be for 10-14 days (I'm considering late August before the girls go back to school).
  • DW and I have settled on October (For WDW Halloween)
  • Trip will consist of 9-10 days at WDW on-site (probably Art of Animation) and hotel transfer to hard rock for a few days at Universal before flying back home.

Questions!

1. I'm "considering" if driving is worth the time (and possibly $$ savings) for some good scenic stops along the way down for the girls to enjoy. Should I just get us down there as fast as possible and enjoy WDW or can you recommend any good stops along the way if this is a good thought to consider?
   • Decided to for sure fly.
2. Staying at one of the resorts may be more magical (and more costly) but in your experience do you recommend staying somewhere nice off site (but still near WDW)?
   
   • If resort is the #1 answer, which one do you choose over the others and why?
   • On-site seems to be the way to go after discussion with DW. The family suite at Art of Animation looks nice and comfy.
3. I've read a bit about how Disney will take every single $ they can, on average what should I be looking at to put to the side for a 10-14 day trip for 2 adults and 2 kids? (It's a loaded question with many variables I know)
   • So far I've estimated around $12K for the two weeks with everything included except souvenirs.

 

[tink9702]

Hi!

1. If your girls travel well then driving sounds like a great option. I don't have advice of where to stop on the way since I'm on the east coast (NY) and the drive would be very different. I would do at least one fun thing on the way down & one fun thing on the way back though. My dad used to drive straight thru from Maine to Florida and it felt like forever!!! Breaking up the trip with one fun museum or outdoor adventure sounds like a great thing to do!

2. We've stayed both on & off site. I like both for different reasons. On Site: not driving, getting on an air conditioned bus, being a part of the magic, having a great pool at the hotel, not having to cook or clean up at all (felt like an actual vacation), met more people at the resort & waiting for buses which I find fun, 60 days for fastpasses so got what we wanted. Off Site: didn't have to wait for buses to leave, had space to ourselves & room to spread out, saved more money on food (breakfast at the condo & packed snacks & some lunch food). We stayed at a house rental.

We loved staying at Coronado Springs - queen beds, quiet resort, great themed pool. I've also stayed at the All Star Movies & Caribbean Beach. All Stars I find way too loud and busy & hate the double beds. I'm thinking of trying POP next trip since they are upgrading the beds to queens. I definitely preferred Coronado to Caribbean Beach. I've never stayed Deluxe, but since you are mentioning saving money by driving I'm guessing you wouldn't plan on deluxe either!

3. Best way to figure that out is price out the hotel, price out the tickets, add in travel costs & food. Then subtract any discounts you have (airfare points, travel agent discounts etc.). There are honestly too many variables to give you help with this without more information. How many days tickets? Do you plan on on/off site & level of hotel? If off site are you talking hotel room or house? Do you all eat 3 large meals a day or smaller than that? Your largest costs will be hotel & tickets.

We never get tickets for every day we are there because we want relaxation days - it cuts the cost quite a bit for us. Best guess for our last trip is around $5000. BUT we stayed at a moderate resort, attended a special event (Halloween party) & arrived via airplane. On the other hand, we had Free Dining, spent very little on souvenirs & didn't drink hardly any alcohol since it felt like we were on the surface of the sun - FL is hot in the summer/early fall for us Northern Folks!!!

Good luck planning!!!!

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Hello! I've been lurking around for a few days and pondering on planning our first family Disney World trip possibly this year/next year but I have some questions for those that are more experienced.

Some information to help with a few of the questions (feel free to ask anything I should have included to help you with your answers )

• We would be traveling from Michigan.
• Family of four (Me (30), DW (34), DD (6), DD (9)).
• First WDW family trip.
• Trip would be for 10-14 days (I'm considering late August before the girls go back to school).

Questions!

1. I'm "considering" if driving is worth the time (and possibly $$ savings) for some good scenic stops along the way down for the girls to enjoy. Should I just get us down there as fast as possible and enjoy WDW or can you recommend any good stops along the way if this is a good thought to consider?
2. Staying at one of the resorts may be more magical (and more costly) but in your experience do you recommend staying somewhere nice off site (but still near WDW)?
   • If resort is the #1 answer, which one do you choose over the others and why?
3. I've read a bit about how Disney will take every single $ they can, on average what should I be looking at to put to the side for a 10-14 day trip for 2 adults and 2 kids? (It's a loaded question with many variables I know)

I would think Michigan to WDW is about a 20 hour trip? I, personally, wouldn't do it. I would rather get on a plane and get to WDW!

We've stayed onsite and offsite and onsite has always been a better, more magical experience. In terms of resort selection, it really depends on budget. We prefer the deluxe resorts, but if that's not an option there are some nice mods (we like POR and POFQ) and values ( I would look at PoP).

In terms of pricing, I would go on the WDW site and price out a package to check costs. You can play around with resort and room category choice, types of tickets and even add (or not add) a dining plan to see what your overall resort costs would be.

Just an FYI, late August in Orlando is really (and I mean, really, really) hot, so just be prepared.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

If you wanna save money, go with driving, and stay off site. I can’t recommend any offsite hotels because I’ve never been to any, but I’ve seen plenty of advertisements for some nice looking ones half the price of a Disney “value”. We stayed at a family suite in All stars Music, a value hotel, which cost about $250 per nite. For 2 weeks there, and with park hoppers and free dining, our package was around $7500, not including incidentals and souvenirs. And we stayed at a value. My family is big though, but the point is, it ain’t cheap. I noticed the “frugal” in your name, so you could always stay offsite, skip park hoppers, pack your own food, and drive instead of fly to save money.

 

[unrequited23]

For us, our trip budget broke down the following way, 1/3 for park tickets, 1/3 for lodging, 1/6 for airfare, 1/6 for food. (We did luck out and get a round trip direct flight from Cleveland with 3 checked bags for $800.) So, if you are deciding on how much to save I would price out my park tickets first, remembering they go up about 5%/year.

Prices go up (for tickets and dining) once a child turns 10. Keep this in mind when budgeting, even if you don't do the dining plan, 10 yr olds are charged adult prices for buffets. We did breakfast in room and it seemed to save both time and money for our family.

 

[Klayfish]

First,

I love your screen name, I'm a "frugal" dad myself...OK, I'm cheap.

Drive vs. fly? That's up to you. When we lived in PA (I'm in GA now, so it's only a 7 hour drive), we considered driving, since I am cheap. But that was one area we decided to "splurge". We felt that long of a drive with the kids would be torture, not adventure. But we found cheap flights, for example sometimes we'd fly from Atlantic City to Ft. Lauderdale because flights were SO cheap...as in $80/person round trip.

Onsite vs. offsite? Again, personal decision and you'll find strong opinions on both sides here. I'm a hard core off site person. I think the whole "Disney bubble" argument is kind of nonsense. The "bubble" is what you make of it. For us, that includes WDW property and so many things just off property. There are a lot of gift shops, restaurants, etc...right off property that you can make part of your vacation and we thoroughly enjoy those. Plus, having our own car give us freedom that relying on a WDW bus would never allow. We can go where we want, when we want. It would be a deal breaker for us to have to rely on WDW transportation. Another benefit to off site is having all the space. If you're going for 2 weeks, do you really want to be crammed into a hotel room that long? No where to spread out and relax, one small bathroom to share, no privacy..., etc... No way, not for us (we're a family of 5, so we wouldn't fit in one hotel room anyway). For $100/night or less, we rent a 3 or 4 bedroom, 2.5 or 3.5 bedroom townhouse/condo, usually around 1000-1400 sq ft. We have a full kitchen, full family room, dining room, laundry, tons of privacy, multiple TVs, etc...all the comforts of home. Plus, we always stay in large, gated communities that have pool(s), slides, clubhouse, etc.. It's the only way to go for us. One last advantage for us is the kitchen. Being as cheap as I am, no way would we eat in WDW restaurants all the time. We pack 95%+ of our food and bring it into WDW with us. I literally spend 1/4 or less in food than most people. For example, our summer trips are 17 days long and we'll spend maybe $450 total at the grocery store for our family of 5. And no, we don't spend hours cooking while on vacation...far from it. We do very simple and easy things, such as putting something in a crock pot and let it cook while we're relaxing. Minimal work and minimal clean up. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't stay onsite. A ton of people do, and their reasons work for them, and I wouldn't disagree with them. Do what's most appealing to you...I'm just explaining what's appealing to us and why.

One more thing to consider. If you're going for 14 days, the longest ticket you can buy is 10 days. But not all is lost...I'd highly recommend buying a 10 day ticket with water park option. If you do that, it gives you 10 days in the 4 main theme parks AND 10 days in the water parks. So you can use all 10 days in the 4 main parks and you can use the other 4 days in the water parks. They are fantastic!!! So much fun, and lots to do. You could go to a water park in the morning, then if you're off site do gift shops in the evening. If you're onsite, go explore other hotels, go to Disney Springs, etc... (you can do these if you're off site too). Or go to Daytona Beach for a day trip, it's only a 1hr 15min minute drive.

 

[stace1214]

Planning a WDW vacation is so much fun. It can be overwhelming, but these boards will get you up to speed in no time!
1. As far as driving, if your family can handle it, go for it. I've priced it out for us, we wouldn't save enough money to make it worth it, I would much rather spend a little more and get there faster. Plus, my kids are a nightmare even after a four hour drive, a twenty hour drive would be just awful for us.
2. I've stayed at Bonnet Creek and loved it- we had a kitchen so breakfast and snacks were easy. The drawback for me with staying off site is that you can only make fast pass plans 30 days in advance. Newer rides like Flight of Passage would not be available at all. I did like driving everywhere staying off site. On our most recent trip the buses were just awful in the morning and we ended up using Uber most of the time. We typically stay at Moderates, Caribbean Beach is our favorite. Going at the end of August there would likely be decent discounts and possibly free dining available if you stay onsite.
3. To start to figure out a budget, go on the Disney website and plan out a potential trip, that'll give you a good idea of what you need. For my family with flights from NY, a moderate resort, tickets and dining plan we're usually at around $5500 for a week. That's not including ubers, souvenirs and other random extras like dessert parties, tours...

Hope this helps a little!

 

[goodeats]

We have daughters the same age as your girls and are planning a trip for the second half this August. It will be the first trip for DH and the kids, but I've been a few times. I booked a package with a travel agency and got a super good deal. I know the weather will be terrible, but the crowds should be fairly manageable plus the cheaper prices are appealing.

Fly/Drive - We're in California so we are obviously flying, but if we lived within a 8 hr drive I would consider driving. It gives you more flexibility with what you can bring, you have a car onsite with you, and it's cheaper. That being said we are not renting a car. Part of the fun/magic of a WDW on-site vacation is taking the Magical Express and being transported all week. Yes sometimes it's a pain, but I love the escapism of it.

Onsite/Offsite - I'm an onsite -er all the way! I know for the same price of a WL standard room we could have a 2 bedroom condo offsite, but I prefer the on-site magic. Although I don't think I could share a bathroom for over 8 nights or so. Of course you need a car if you stay off site and need to pay for parking.

As far as total budget I'm still not sure how much we'll spend on food. I like nice meals, but on the whole we don't eat a ton. I'm not a fan of the meal plan because sometimes I just want an appetizer and a dessert or sometimes I just want a liquid lunch . We may share some meals or eat a buffet for breakfast and then snack until dinner. We'll do Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique (without dresses) but will limit our character dining to just one meal. I can't see us buying a ton of souvenirs outside of a Christmas ornament and maybe some t-shirts. Overall I'm hoping to keep the whole trip under $6K not including flights. It seems outrageous, but I know we will have a blast.

 

[FrugalSpender]

Thanks for all the great replies, the options and complexity of planning is for sure overwhelming! While I do like to be Frugal I don't mind spending for us to have a great time but I like to know that I am getting the best price possible. DW's friend is a pilot that took her family to WDW what seemed like 5x last year and she wants to help book our trip to get us some good discounts (not sure how yet). That may be the deciding factor of whether or not I stay on-site but currently I would save around $3k over what the WDW trip recommendation shows for our ideal on-site stay.

If your girls travel well then driving sounds like a great option.

I would think Michigan to WDW is about a 20 hour trip? I, personally, wouldn't do it. I would rather get on a plane and get to WDW!

Google says 17h but with any traffic probably looking at the 20-23h mark which is even less appealing lol. The thought of the adventure sounds nice but with limited time and how much I value my time we will more than likely (for sure) be flying. We drove to Wisconsin (6hrs) and the DD girls were pretty good with the tablet time they had but we would probably feel more on the tortured end even with various stops along the way.

from Atlantic City to Ft. Lauderdale because flights were SO cheap...as in $80/person round trip.

Probably so cheap because you're much closer? I just took a one-way down to Oklahoma City in early January and that was $350 just for myself. (Purchased on short notice though)

FL is hot in the summer/early fall for us Northern Folks!!!

Just an FYI, late August in Orlando is really (and I mean, really, really) hot, so just be prepared.

You guys are not kidding. I just looked at YoY averages and highs are low-90s and lows are mid-70s for August, I will need to purchase some more shorts.

Another benefit to off site is having all the space. If you're going for 2 weeks, do you really want to be crammed into a hotel room that long? No where to spread out and relax, one small bathroom to share, no privacy..., etc...

Onsite/Offsite - I'm an onsite -er all the way! I know for the same price of a WL standard room we could have a 2 bedroom condo offsite, but I prefer the on-site magic. Although I don't think I could share a bathroom for over 8 nights or so. Of course you need a car if you stay off site and need to pay for parking.

You both make valid points and after reviewing the photos of the rooms, unless I shell out for a nice expensive Villa on-site all of the rooms are crammed and I know DW would probably lose her mind with no personal space lol. Klayfish what site did you use to book your off-site?

Going at the end of August there would likely be decent discounts and possibly free dining available if you stay onsite.

I see the current discount they have on the site that goes through the beginning of June (20% saving on rooms). Is there an optimal time I should book before the trip in August to see those discounts? Free dining is tempting since the current price I'm seeing for both adults would be around.

 

[MainMom]

It sounds great to drive down, everyone is all excited, see new sites, etc. Then you have to drive back.

 

[Klayfish]

We use VRBO to find our townhouses and condos. They are EVERYWHERE down there. WDW is surrounded by endless choices. I haven't found one place we didn't like yet, and we've made at least 12 offsite trips over the past 10 years.

Summer is hot, but it's really not as big of a deal as you may think. Most of the rides, and even the queues are air conditioned. So just hit the indoor shows and rides during the hottest part of the day...or do the water rides.

If you've never been before, I don't think you need to plan obsessively. We're very much wing-it type people, and always have been, even on our first visit. However, I do highly recommend making sure you do research before you go. Understand how FP+ works, how to use it, what rides are where, etc...then from there if you want to wing it, you can.

Oh, and as for driving vs. flying, I think Philly to WDW is about 20 hours or so, but we never tried. Just didn't want to do it.

 

[Macprincess]

I live in Florida but drive to Michigan every summer to visit family. We have done driving straight through and with stops. I'm not sure where in Michigan your traveling from but to give you an idea on time driving from Orlando, FL to Sterling Heights, MI it takes us about 19/20 hours give or take depending on traffic. (I live in the Sarasota, Fl area but typically pick up my college age son who live in Orlando when driving to MI) We have made this drive so many times that it really has become super easy for us. When returning (MI to FL) if were doing the drive over two days we typically stop for the night in Chattanooga, Tn which has us driving about 9/10 hours that day. We then don't leave Chattanooga until after 8:30a.m. because leaving earlier will get you stuck in the Atlanta area morning traffic which is brutal. The hardest part of the drive, in my opinion, is timing driving through the Atlanta area. Traffic here can be miserable! We make sure to try and drive through here either between 10am-3:00pm or after 7pm. Seriously, timing this wrong can add hours to your drive. Chattanooga to Orlando is about 8 1/2 -9 hours. We have also driven past Atlanta and stayed in Macon or Valdosta, Ga which makes the first day driving longer but allows the second day to go by quick.

Before I get into the whole onsite vs offsite I just wanted to give you a heads up that August in Orlando is extremely hot, extremely humid, it pretty much rains daily and it is also hurricane season. It's doable but just be prepared and drink lots of water!

The onsite vs. offsite thing is a personal choice. We have done both and like both for different reasons. We have stayed onsite in values-deluxe. When staying on site we prefer the moderate/deluxe resorts over the values because were not thrilled about the two double beds in the values and the mods and deluxe resorts offer queen size beds. Disney's service and resorts are truly lovely at every level. But do keep in mind you are paying more for this. In addition when you stay onsite you do get to book fastpass plus before offsite guest and there are extra magic hours which are not offered to offsite guest. Also, if you do end up traveling this August I would advise against either the Coronado Springs or Caribbean Beach which typically are lovely resorts but both are in the mist of construction and with the looks of things at the moment I would doubt it will be completed by August. Do keep in mind that staying on Disney Property does give you free parking at the parks which is currently $20 a day. If you don't end up driving down and are flying into the Orlando International Airport Disney offers it's resort guest the magical express bus which picks up and returns your family to and from the airport and your resort. They also deal with your luggage if you fly with a partner airline. You simply check your bags in at the airport and they show up in your resort room a few hours after your arrival. You don't need to rent a car as Disney has transportation via buses, monorails and boats all over property. Unless you plan on leaving Disney property you will not need a car. However, the down side to this is you will then be at the mercy of Disney for all your meals which can get pricey. Then there is the whole should you or shouldn't you do the dining plan and if so which one. There are a few local services that will deliver groceries for a fee to your resort. It's a nice service for quick breakfasts or snack in room which can save a bit of cash.

If doing the offsite thing we often book offsite condos. First and foremost, I do not suggest this if you do not have access to a car. No matter how much an offsite claims they have shuttles to the parks no one does it like Disney in this area and Disney world is huge! If you stay in a condo/home have a car. The biggest perks, in my opinion, to off site condos are space and cost. We love having a full kitchen and in room washer and dryer. The extra bedrooms and bathrooms are blissful. All of us crammed in a hotel room for more then few days starts to drive us nuts! Don't even get me started on all of us sharing one bathroom. We have done it but its not pretty. The major downside to this NO DAILY MAID SERVICE! I highly suggest if you decide to travel this way that you and your spouse discuss this before you book. Yes, we save a lot of money this way but there have been time when it was worth spending the extra to stay in a full service hotel because taking my full time Mom gig of cooking & cleaning on the road was sometimes no vacation! After some trial and error we have come up with a plan in our family that included everyone pitching in when we travel this way. Otherwise whats the point of having the kids in a separate bedroom if you get my drift. When our kids were younger my husband would take the kids to the pool the first few hours while I hit the market and unpacked us. Meals are easy stuff that anyone in our family could cook and they did help cook and clean or we went out. We also bring our crock pot to start meals in the morning before we leave for the parks. We do budget a few meals in sit down restaurants in the parks. (Make ADR way in advance.) Also, if you drive down and stay in a condo bring things like toilet paper, trash bags, laundry & dishwasher detergent, simple spices and condiments so you don't have to buy these when you get here. They have starter packs of some of that stuff but they are not replenished during your stay. Also, having a car will open up a whole new world outside Disney gates for restaurants which are almost always more cost efficient. You will have to pay the $20 per day to park but the saving will be significant especially if you have few meals off site. I recommend going over to the Orlando Hotels and Attraction section of Dis to get tips for off site stays and off site restaurants. There is tons of info here to help you out.

Since you asked about prices and what you should start putting aside I can give you what we have spent last year. Do keep in mind that we are a family of five and all three of my kids are consider Disney Adults. Also, as FL resident we get deal on park tickets. We also live with in less then a tank of gas so we don't have transportation cost. Our most expensive trip ever was March 18-25, 2017 and all in total was slightly over $7000. (Admittedly we went a bit crazy for this vacation because we were celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary, my 50th, and college & high school graduate.) On this trip we did a week in two rooms at AKL with the dining plan and originally was purchased with five Fl resident 4 day passes and the we upgraded two of those to annual passes. Then this summer I did a week in July for my daughters softball tournament at All Star Music with 2 adults and two 13 year-olds cost was approximately $2700 but this was hotel and mostly counter service meals we did not need park tickets. Finally, two weeks later we had yet another week long softball tournament so no need for park tickets again so factor that in. This time we stayed in an off site condo where we did all breakfast in condo, most lunches packed and all but one dinner out with two of those dinners on Disney property. We stayed in a three bedroom two bath condo in Windsor Hills through Vacation Central Florida all in with taxes and fees on the condo and meals for 5 it was $1550 for the week and I have two grown boys who EAT a ton and an athlete daughter who can keep up with them.

Over all both types of vacations can work. It all depends on your families needs, wants and budget. Either way if you plan well you will have a great trip creating memories with you family and really that's what this is all about. Do what works best for your family and enjoy this special time together.

 

[powellrj]

We live in central Indiana, so when we drive, we will take I75. Its not a bad drive. The last few times we have driven straight down, but we won't do that again, we are just too old!

If you want to make some stops along the way, there are many things to shop and see if you aren't in a hurry.

I think 2 weeks is a long time to spend in the parks. I would plan some down time. Depending on where you stay, there are lots of nice pools. If your kids haven't seen the ocean, thats another nice trip.

There are lots of choices for places to stay. We have done pool homes, condos, regular hotel rooms, hotels with suites, disney mods, disney value and universal club level. Each one has pros and cons. DH told me after our last trip that we stayed at an all-stars, he never wants to stay in a value again. He said it was too crowded and he wanted to go back to a place with more room.

I think our favorite is a pool home followed by a condo. We like our own space with lots of bathrooms and TVs. I think our next trip we will stay in Bonnet Creek. It is right next to disney property. Most people who stay there love it and bargains can be found if you look for them. I don't cook on vacation, but I love having a kitchen so we can keep grab and go drinks and snacks in the fridge and a toaster for my morning toast instead of going to the food court. I also like a washer and dryer when we fly budget airlines so we can get buy with a carry-on each.

Even when we fly and stay on-site we have a car. One of the reasons is because I use an ECV and travel with my own. DH also likes that when we stay off-site he can just pull up to the door without having to walk so far. We also like to venture off-site. I like to shop the outlet malls and we also like to save money by eating some of our meals off-site. They have a wonderful selection. Even many of the chains are ones we don't have at home.

 

[starry_solo]

1. I'm "considering" if driving is worth the time (and possibly $$ savings) for some good scenic stops along the way down for the girls to enjoy. Should I just get us down there as fast as possible and enjoy WDW or can you recommend any good stops along the way if this is a good thought to consider?

That would depend on how long you can actually take for the vacation with stops along the way. Stopping along the way would be extra money for additional hotel/motel stays and food.

Personally, unless the trip was specific for educational purposes (I remember summer trips to the national parks and we would stop at other national parks along the way to the main one), I would fly.

2. Staying at one of the resorts may be more magical (and more costly) but in your experience do you recommend staying somewhere nice off site (but still near WDW)?

• If resort is the #1 answer, which one do you choose over the others and why?

I've only stayed onsite, myself, in a deluxe room, with two other adults. We managed to fit just fine. You can choose to stay in the Disney bubble or get a townhome that's about 15-20 minutes away (remember to add in the cost of a rental car + parking at the parks [$20-25/car] if you choose to stay off site.

3. I've read a bit about how Disney will take every single $ they can, on average what should I be looking at to put to the side for a 10-14 day trip for 2 adults and 2 kids? (It's a loaded question with many variables I know).

You should look at about $2000 for tickets. Someone mentioned above that you can only get 10-day park tickets, but I did learn recently (it's in another post, something called "All about Ticketing" or something similar, that you can actually get a 10-day park ticket extended to 14 days at the resorts for a nominal fee. Will DD 9 turn 10 by August? If so, she's considered an "adult" for Disney ticket prices.

 

[pixiegoose]

Personally, the idea of driving that long with my kids sounds like hell to me! And exhausting before what is usually an exhausting/busy vacation (at least for us). If you can swing it, fly! Of course, if you fly and decide to not stay onsite, you’ll have to factor car rental/parking/resort fees/etc. into your overall budget.

Personally, we’ve only stayed onsite and don’t see us ever staying offsite (though at some point I’m sure we’ll spend a few days at a Universal resort once we feel our kids are old enough to get the most out of Universal). We love being “in the bubble” and particularly love not having to deal with driving/parking the entire trip. My husband does enough of that daily driving into Boston for work. Plus booking fast passes at 60 days out is a huge perk now. We’ve stayed value and moderate and are renting DVC points for the first time to stay at a DVC deluxe (for the price of a value!) for our December trip (otherwise deluxe is way above our budget). Renting DVC points might be something you look into, as well, if you decide you want to stay onsite but want a bigger room at a lower price.

For our 7 night December trip, we’re looking at about $5000, give or take, for 2 adults and 2 kids (5 and 8). We’re paying about $1000 for a studio at Old Key West (renting DVC points from a friend), $1850 for 7 day hoppers, about $1000 for quick service dining plan (we like the dining plan for convenience though it’s not necessarily a money saver), and guesstimating about $1000 for airfare but won’t know that for sure for a few months. The $5000 doesn’t include souvenirs or a few out of pocket sit down meals. We could save money not doing the dining plan or dropping the hopper option but these are things that we’ve decided work well for us and we’re willing to pay extra for.

 

[Klayfish]

Food for thought...again, the "Disney bubble" is certainly perspective, and only you (OP) can make that decision. But for FP+, if you do decide to stay off property, it's not a big deal at all that you'd only have a 30 day window. With the lone exception of FOP (Flight of Passage), I can get any ride in any park at 30 days out...and if you learn how to use the FP+ system, you can get any ride the same day, so the 60 day window becomes pretty irrelevant.

 

[FrugalSpender]

the "Disney bubble" is certainly perspective, and only you (OP) can make that decision.

For this first trip, DW has made the decision for on-site lol. The 2nd trip I will probably get my off-site wish so we could come back sooner.

I've updated the OP with some of the decisions that have been made.

 

[jacknsally19]

For this first trip, DW has made the decision for on-site lol. The 2nd trip I will probably get my off-site wish so we could come back sooner.

I've updated the OP with some of the decisions that have been made.

If you are going to stay on-site, you may want to consider using a travel agent. They will help ensure that any discounts that are released after you book are applied. In terms of saving $$$, you can buy tickets from a 3rd party vendor like Undercover Tourist.

Personally, I would not enjoy 10 days at a value resort. They aren't the most relaxing of resorts. I would stay off site or do a day or two less and stay at a Moderate. You could also look into renting points and staying at one of the DVCs to save money.

 

[stace1214]

I see the current discount they have on the site that goes through the beginning of June (20% saving on rooms). Is there an optimal time I should book before the trip in August to see those discounts? Free dining is tempting since the current price I'm seeing for both adults would be around.

Summer discounts usually come out in April. We typically book before that so we can get dining at 180 days, then modify our reservation once discounts come out. There's always the option of using a travel agent to take care of applying discounts for you.