what are your best money saving tips for WDW?

[DisneyEater]

I just did a blog post on this today and will be discussing this topic for the next two weeks, but since you have the tickets and hotel already, I will add a few more.

Souveniers:

• Pressed Pennies are cheap. You can get 20 of them for $10.20
• Pins - Buy some on ebay and give them a new one each day to trade
• Character Autographs - instead of buying the books, bring 1 big item to get all the characters to sign as a keep sake. I am considering a photomat so we can put a family photo in it when we get back and hang it up.

Food:

• There are a number of cheaper dishes in the parks. Mousesavers.com has some good ideas.
• If you have time, you can do surveys on qucik rewards for disney gift cards.
• If you have time, you can do surveys on mypoints for landry's gift cards good at Yak & Yeti, Rainforest Cafe, and T-Rex.
• If you birthday is the month you are going, you can sign up for the landry's select card. It costs $25 but you get an immediate $25 in rewards and another $25 in rewards to use the month of your birthday (or up to the 15th the following month)
• Rainforest Cafe has a program where you can get up to 2 kids meals for $0.99 for them reading or losing a tooth or other things like that.

That is all I can think of off the top of my head.

 

[AnjieNet]

I just did a blog post on this today and will be discussing this topic for the next two weeks, but since you have the tickets and hotel already, I will add a few more.

Souveniers:

• Pressed Pennies are cheap. You can get 20 of them for $10.20
• Pins - Buy some on ebay and give them a new one each day to trade
• Character Autographs - instead of buying the books, bring 1 big item to get all the characters to sign as a keep sake. I am considering a photomat so we can put a family photo in it when we get back and hang it up.

Food:

• There are a number of cheaper dishes in the parks. Mousesavers.com has some good ideas.
• If you have time, you can do surveys on qucik rewards for disney gift cards.
• If you have time, you can do surveys on mypoints for landry's gift cards good at Yak & Yeti, Rainforest Cafe, and T-Rex.
• If you birthday is the month you are going, you can sign up for the landry's select card. It costs $25 but you get an immediate $25 in rewards and another $25 in rewards to use the month of your birthday (or up to the 15th the following month)
• Rainforest Cafe has a program where you can get up to 2 kids meals for $0.99 for them reading or losing a tooth or other things like that.

That is all I can think of off the top of my head.

Has Rainforest Cafe continued this for 2012? We have a rewards pdf file for the $0.99 meals but the coupons expired 12/31/11.

 

[chimilady]

Has Rainforest Cafe continued this for 2012? We have a rewards pdf file for the $0.99 meals but the coupons expired 12/31/11.

The reading one expires 12/31/12. I just printed two out just in case they pull it later.

 

[ValpoCory]

The reading one expires 12/31/12. I just printed two out just in case they pull it later.

If anyone needs the link:

http://www.rainforestcafe.com/rewardsCalendars.asp

 

[fortwildernessishome]

there is no way I would buy souvenirs here and take them to florida and back home again LOL- I always let my daughter buy basically whatever she wanted when she was little (she never asked for a lot) but she is 12 now so really she has outgrown the whole souvenir thing and won't be buying much of anything when we are there this summer.
If your family really MUST have them then I would tell each kid to save their allowances and take their own money with them.

I agree with you, I wouldnt buy "souviners" at home, to bring to Disney and then lug back home again!!!!! Actually, to me the point of a true souviner it something that you purchase on vacation to remember your trip by. I get that you can get things at the the Disney store and dollar store and all and thats great, I just would never think of it as a souviner from my vacation!!!!

 

[fortwildernessishome]

Another way to save on food in the parks that non-disers don't really know about is that you can order just what you want at counter services. For example, if a meal is burger and fries, you can order the burger without the fries and save some money. Kids meals you can get without a toy for a little less.

You can also order just the sides. When my kids were younger, they loved the grapes and carrots that came with some kids meals. So many times, they would eat a string cheese I brought along with a side of grapes that only cost about a $1.00. We saved a ton on meals this way.

We always bring some snacks...even now with teenagers who will eat all day. But now I bring in "special snacks" that we never buy at home. Thay way they are still getting a treat, but I don't have to pay Disney prices and more important to me is that I don't have to wait in yet another line.

But we still all get our favorites....Dole Whips, funnel cakes, crepes, etc. This just helps stretch the budget a bit.

Your wrote that you can get kids meal without a toy for a little less.........where in Disney do kids meals come with a toy?????? I know at the water parks they put the kids meal in a pail, but I have never seen a meal with a toy. What restaurants offer this?? Just curious.

 

[seasheller]

The best place to eat at Downtown Disney is Earl of Sandwich. The sandwiches are so good; they are huge and can easily be split. Don't let the lines scare you! They move very fast. They also have a 20% AAA discount which helps a lot!

 

[hsmamato2]

2nd for earl of Sandwich at DTD for a cheap and yummy dinner!
don't know how big the kids are but they could get kids burgers,and split fries,drinks,etc.
Don't bother buying water or bringing it,it's free at EVERY counter service kiosk with ice.....just ask-(less junk to carry)
Your biggest money saver will be breakfast, have everyone eat a solid pb&j sandwich,or instant oatmeal (with hot water poured from coffeemaker) ,etc- you can bring along milk boxes that don't need refrigeration-
Carry SNACKS for your days,hand out fruit snacks,small candies,bags of chips,etc. The snack prices are killer!(think 4-5.00 per ice cream bar!)
You can also carry easy to eat items like smuckers uncrustables for the kids in a backpack,then just purchase some fries and you have lunch! I highly recommend easy to pack foods like granola bars,single serve nuts,cheese sticks,etc as quick lunches/light snacks
Eat one hefty meal per day, If you go to allears .net they have great menu listings, decide what looks best for your buck....
(Cosmic Rays in MK,has decent choices for counter service)
(Sunshine Seasons in Epcot is the best for a good cs meal ,my DH swears by the kids meals there)
Just know who offers what,that way when you do spend for a dinner or lunch,you'll get the most/best for your money-and it is possible to do in Disney!

 

[WendyLooHoo]

Another tip that I read about, and will do for our trip in 50 days, is to schedule a late breakfast, to take advantage of the cheaper pricing. My daughter wants to see princesses. So we've scheduled an 11:00 breakfast at Akershus. We'll have a light breakfast at the hotel, hit EPCOT early that day for its magic hours, then by 11 be ready for brunch with the princesses. It's certainly not inexpensive, but it is a way to save money on a character meal - which my kids (and, if I'm being honest, I) love!

Thanks to everyone for sharing their tips - my notebook is filling up!

 

[hanutedmansionmomma]

My kids weren't ever big into souvenir purchasing - they don't really like shopping, and we never really spend time in the retail shops. We almost had to force them to pick something the last trip. You may not need to budget too much $ for that, or like a pp said, let them earn/bring their own $.

I like to not worry about pinching every penny while I'm there, I try to work on saving as much $ as possible at home before I go. Think of ways to save $ now and put in a savings acct so you don't have to stress too much while you're there.

Don't forget...your grocery budget $ can go toward eating out since you won't be eating at home

 

[chimilady]

I agree with you, I wouldnt buy "souviners" at home, to bring to Disney and then lug back home again!!!!! Actually, to me the point of a true souviner it something that you purchase on vacation to remember your trip by. I get that you can get things at the the Disney store and dollar store and all and thats great, I just would never think of it as a souviner from my vacation!!!!

That may be your definition of what a souvenir is. My 4yos will think of their souvenirs as reminders of their trip to Disney. So if Mickey leaves on their pillow the 2ft stuffed Mickey I just got at yard sale last week for $1 with the tags still on, or the LED spinners for the parade I can get online for $2 instead of $20 at WDW. Or the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse digital cameras that I got online for $15, so they can take their own pictures. They will see those as reminders of their trip regardless of where they came from, and the good thing about bringing them down myself is that I know they will fit in the bag on the way back. Their gifts won't be any less magical because they didn't get bought in WDW, they will be magical because they will be able to have a tangible reminder of the magical memories.

Everyone has different ideas of what a vacation entails. I've seen people on here claim that cooking on vacation is not a vacation, and perhaps that's because they cook at home. But for those of us who don't, we don't mind if it allows the kids to have opportunities they otherwise wouldn't be able to have. All in all, for me, it's about the kids and seeing their faces light up, and if I can do more for them by bringing it from home, then I have no problem doing it.

 

[budafam]

There are a lot of ways to cut costs but some things are more important to others. For instance, on our next trip we're staying offsite at Bonnet Creek. We were able to get a 2 bedroom condo for $693 for an entire week with a full kitchen, living room & patio... if I wanted to be super budget friendly, I could cook ALL of our meals there and save us a TON but no, I am not there to cook. I LOVE to eat though... so we're eating almost all of our meals in WDW which is a budget buster for sure.

We will be bringing sodas & waters along each day to save money that way and I do bring little surprises for the kids each day. I know it sounds kinda stupid by lugging everything there and then lugging it back BUT we get so many free luggage pieces through Southwest that I won't even fill half of our suitcases (especially with the little clothing we have to pack for Florida's hot weather).

I signed up for a Southwest Visa a few months ago and got the free 50,000 points which bought us 4 out of 5 of our flights so total, it's costing us $190 to fly 5 people there and back (can't beat that!)

I also purchased an AP last time we were there (in November) since I knew we'd be back and the savings on parking alone was worth it. I'll be purchasing the TIW card to use while we're there as well to save a few bucks (not many) on our dining.

There are ways but it depends on what you want out of your vacation.

I also highly recommend getting a credit card that gives out good benefits such as Chase Freedom. I have earned $436 so far for our next vacation. I always pay it in full and that money is free for us to use any way we want. I save it all for our vacations

 

[AnjieNet]

If anyone needs the link:

http://www.rainforestcafe.com/rewardsCalendars.asp

Thanks! I had the sports one bookmarked and didn't know about the reading one. Just printed a couple out myself.

 

[disneyjunkie]

I say save as much as you can before going so that you can splurge on vacation.
Who wants to eat string cheese, gummies, and PB&J from home when you can have Mickey bars, funnel cakes, pop corn, candy apples, fudge...from the stores/carts in the parks?

 

[HunnyPots]

Disney shopping is a huge budget buster. The best way to save on souvineers is to stay out of the shops. Get off the ride and keep on walking! Give your kids a set amount of money to spend and plan to do some shopping on your last day. I've found that if I can manage to resist buying while there, I never miss not having it once I get home. Most of the things I have bought end up stored away after a couple of months and we never look at them again.

Take your own photos! The photo pass photographer will take pictures for you using your camera or there are always other guests that will take a picture for you so everyone can get in the shot. Those cute borders and add-ons that Disney uses are cute but come at a hefty price.

Drink only ice water with meals. This alone will save you quite a bit over the course of your stay. I guess this only applies if you are paying out of pocket. I've never used the dining plan but I assume drinks are included.

These are the main ways that my family saves at WDW. Hope this helps!

 

[JackSparrowGirl]

My last trip in 2008 I realized that the majority of my spending was on Pins and mostly just for some trading ones. I was able to utilize ebay for this next trip and get my trading ones for a fraction of what i probobly would have paid at the parks.

I also set aside my souvenier only amount on a gift card for this trip as well as holding on to the ones i got as gifts for special occasions since I booked the trip.

i am staying at POP and I plan on renting the fridge and getting some groceries to bring snacks and sandwiches for lunch and keep breakfast items in the room for the mornings.

I also made out using my disney movie reward points and got the lunch bag and reusable snack bags that look like they are gonna be perfect for the park.

Only a few more days...can't wait!!

 

[familyfirsttimer]

Not sure if it said you are driving, but we fly and do not rent a car so we utilize Gardern Grocer. We get a case of water, soda and beer along with some fruit, milk, yogurt and bags of snacks. It is not as cheap as you can get it on sale, but saves LOTS over the Disney prices. We will be doing it again in April for my DD surprise 10th bday trip.

 

[Bonniec]

Decide on one or two places to eat in the parks that you really want to try, and then eat outside the parks for everything else. Disney is very overpriced when it comes to food. But it's fun to try things that are different. Character meals are wonderful but very expensive. Look at the Sci-Fi theater at DHS. It's a bit cheaper for a sit down meal though just a burger and fries joint. Plus with a large group you will have to be split up. But it's a very cool experience the kids would love and not as expensive as a buffet.


Sharing meals will just depend on your group. For a lot of people, all that walking makes them hungry and it's not enough food. But then other people (like our family) have the opposite problem. Let me tell you, we can eat a lot of food in my family . But for some reason, all that walking at Disney and we are just never hungry. I don't know why, but we have a hard time eating much so have no problems sharing.



My best tips are to drink ice water from the vendors. It's free. And just snack in the parks. Disney has a ton of wonderful and different snacks for under $5. Giant cupcakes (they make the BEST cupcakes), stuffed pretzels, corn dog nuggets, egg rolls, mickey ice cream bars (!!!), cinnamon rolls, etc. And most bakeries sell sandwiches for around $6 that are huge.

 

[Marionnette]

I say save as much as you can before going so that you can splurge on vacation.
Who wants to eat string cheese, gummies, and PB&J from home when you can have Mickey bars, funnel cakes, pop corn, candy apples, fudge...from the stores/carts in the parks?

I totally agree! I do all of my saving before my vacation so that I can relax and spend when I'm there. Of course, it helps to research all the best deals before I leave the house!

Lately, it looks like using your Target card to get 5% off Disney GCs at their stores is a great way to cut those costs a bit. Or buy Disney GCs at a grocery store that has gas points and use a CC that gives you extra rewards points for grocery purchases.

 

[maxiesmom]

Do the Values offer microwaves? If so, bring microwave popcorn. My family loves popcorn and it's a great late night snack. You could also reheat any leftovers that have been kept in your mini fridge.

Only in the food court. And if you want a fridge in your room at a Value resort, it is an added cost.

I'm kind of curious as to what kind of dinners you can have in the room with no fridge, and nothing to cook with. Maybe I am just having a blonde moment, but can't come up with anything my family would eat and consider dinner.

I think a better choice would be to have breakfast in the room, pack your lunches along to eat in the parks, and then have dinner out. Easy enough to pack some sandwhiches or some of those tuna salad kits into a backpack or cooler and stash it in a locker. The quick service restaurants will give you free ice water if you ask, or just bring along your own drinks.