What is the secret

[tinkerbellandeyor]

what is the secret to being able to afford to go sailing with Disney every year

 

[jdb in AZ]

Win the lottery. Mortgage the farm. Sell your first born? jk

 

[kcashner]

Rebook while on board (even if a dummy date). THen move the dummy to the real dates as soon as they come out so you get day 1 rates (as low as they go). You'll keep all the benefits of the onboard booking.

 

[MartDM]

We don't cruise Disney every year, but we do visit WDW and take other trips during the year. I'm guessing there's no real secret. For us, it's hard work and careful choices throughout the year, combined with booking when they have the best rates and making use of bonuses like the Disney VISA.

 

[disneymagicgirl]

We don't cruise Disney every year, but we do visit WDW and take other trips during the year. I'm guessing there's no real secret. For us, it's hard work and careful choices throughout the year, combined with booking when they have the best rates and making use of bonuses like the Disney VISA.

exactly!

 

[mainegal]

All of the above, plus...

Need to prioritize - what kind of vacation do you really like? I like different places, so I only do Disney once every few years.

Even with the best saving and scrimping, you still (I think) need a job that earns a decent amount of money.

Also consider that some people do the Disney trips every year by coming home in debt and not setting aside money for retirement. A life choice.

 

[JackSparrowLive]

Unfortunately, if you can't afford to go every year, then you can't go. This is like asking how some people can afford to own a $5 million dollar home....because they make enough money and can afford it!

My wife and I have a great cost-saving measure: No kids!

 

[lbgraves]

Rebook while on board (even if a dummy date). THen move the dummy to the real dates as soon as they come out so you get day 1 rates (as low as they go). You'll keep all the benefits of the onboard booking.

 

[jetskigrl]

We have only recently been doing big trips. Previously we only did vacations to stay with family, etc.

For the cruise we are getting ready to go on, I made a spreadsheet of all the expected expenses and calculated out how much of each paycheck needed to be put into savings. Then every week I stuck a $20 bill into a "spending money" envelope and another dollar, five or ten into the "tip" envelope (whatever I had in my wallet at the time). If you do this for a year, the spending money adds up quickly and the money is already there when it comes time to pay for the cruise (so it isn't a big shock to the finances all at once).

I also charge everything I can on my Disney Visa and pay it off at the end of the month. The reward dollars also add up quickly that way.

This way everything is paid in advance and I don't come home from a trip with any debt.

I admit, we are planning on re-booking when we are on board (for 2012) and I already have the spreadsheet ready so that I can just plug in the numbers when I get back. My "spending money" and "tip" envelopes are also ready to start over again.

This is what works for us anyway.

 

[Lilbunnyk]

We bought DVC and use points to pay for our cruises. It was a great investment and allows us to go on a Disney cruise or Disney world every year. For the stuff we need cash for like tips, excursions, souvenirs, etc. We save by not spending money on anything fancy like the newest gadgets, TVs, cars and we keep are spending to just what we need like groceries and gas. For us an experience is worth the money and last a lifetime.

 

[tinkerbellandeyor]

I also looked into doing the cheapest one and realized that you are encouraged to do payments so it is not a big shock in the end because something is telling me I will be hooked by the end of my first Disney cruise

 

[mnrhannah07]

planning, saving and cutting out the stuff you really dont need..People ask us all the time how we can afford to go every year; I am a stay at home mom and my husband works so money is tight, but Disney is something we truly enjoy so we make sacrifices to make it happen!...

 

[lbgraves]

This year when it hasn't looked like we might be able to do our cruise due to the fact that we will have to fly to the west coast the kids asked what they could do to make a difference and save up the money for it. DD said she wanted to skip the two dance workshops that she had been planning to go to [$170 fees alone]. DS said that he would miss the engineering camp he had been looking forward to [$200]. They asked how much our family pizza night cost at their favorite place and said that they would be happy with the $6.00 one at Wal-Mart instead with the extra $14 being saved each week. DD even said that she didn't want a party this year for her birthday and both kids said that they wanted to cut back on Christmas gifts. Inspired by them I opted not to go out to celebrate my bday with the family for dinner like we usually do. It is amazing how much you can save if you ask yourself if you really want XXX or do you want to go on the cruise with your friends.

 

[SmilingGrump]

This year when it hasn't looked like we might be able to do our cruise due to the fact that we will have to fly to the west coast the kids asked what they could do to make a difference and save up the money for it. DD said she wanted to skip the two dance workshops that she had been planning to go to [$170 fees alone]. DS said that he would miss the engineering camp he had been looking forward to [$200]. They asked how much our family pizza night cost at their favorite place and said that they would be happy with the $6.00 one at Wal-Mart instead with the extra $14 being saved each week. DD even said that she didn't want a party this year for her birthday and both kids said that they wanted to cut back on Christmas gifts. Inspired by them I opted not to go out to celebrate my bday with the family for dinner like we usually do. It is amazing how much you can save if you ask yourself if you really want XXX or do you want to go on the cruise with your friends.

That's AWESOME! You've got great kids. Obviously, they're as addicted to Disney as most of us (which means they're smart!) and willing to make those sacrifices to make their priorities happen. It's amazing how much you can save by cutting out those little "perks" ... going with homebrewed coffee instead of storebought; cutting out fastfood and going with packed lunches; driving only when you have to and making it an efficient trip (ie hitting several destinations in an orderly fashion); shopping onsale items as much as possible.

I had a friend once who always complained they didn't have enough money for "fancy" vacations like Disney even though she worked 5.5 days a week, 50 weeks a year. I did some quick math on her habits for her:
2 x Starbucks Lattes/day x 5.5days/week x 50 weeks/year = $2475/year
1 movie theater ticket+popcorn&drink/week x 52 weeks/year = $1040/year
Bought lunch for work x 5days x 50 weeks = $3000/year
Total frivilous expenses = $6515/year which is more then we spend for a family of 4 for a Disney Cruise.

Those pennies add up really quickly!

 

[Silly Little Pixie]

Same as many posters... rebook onboard, name my TA at booking (she gives great OBC)...figure out how much we need to pay monthly to pay it off. We both work so that helps. I also drive an old car that's paid for. The choice was easy. Buy a new car, or keep the money we would have put toward a car payment towards our cruise?

I second lbgraves as well- choosing wisely when eating out, spending on gifts or parties. My family has also chosen to pay for our cruises this way.

 

[UK-Simon]

11C all the way! I'm always happy to be on the boat!!!

 

[sweetlovin']

My kids do this as well. If I ask them if they would rather a Bday party or a trip, they choose the trip every year. So, I bring a decorated cake to their school ($35 from Publix) and have everyone in their class sing Happy Birthday. So, they get to choose a theme with a cake and I keep a very low budget. They would also prefer not to get presents for their bday (and they are only allowed to ask Santa for 1 present).

This year, for Christmas, I gave them the family trip. I kept it a suprise, so it could be used in place of buying something for each of them.

My kids are now, 10, 8, and 6, but this has been going on since they were 6,4, and 2.

 

[degrapevine]

How are we able to pay for a Disney cruise for our family of 5 each year (plus one with just me & my Mom and another with just me & DH)?

Move to Florida so you don't have to pay for airfare! There's no way we could cruise each year if we had to add on airfare to Florida for a family of 5. We also get to take advantage of Florida Resident rates, although I don't think they will be offered as much with the Dream and Fantasy as they were with the older ships. It's great to be a Floridian!

(I know, it's not realistic for most, but being able to drive to the port is a HUGE factor in how we can afford it.)

 

[robin19871]

Income tax refund... We use our refund every year just for a Great vacation...

 

[lbuher]

Book as soon as the dates are released for the best rates (have to be able to plan up to 2 years in advance for this, but I'm a planner by nature anyway). Re-book on board as long as the rates have not increased by too much to cancel out the effect of the 10% discount and OBC. (Or make a totally separate booking using that discount!) Book cheapest cabin available that will comfortably accomodate us (for us, we LOVE the split bathroom, so we book cat 10). Use Disney Rewards Visa for EVERYTHING and pay it off every month. Use those points to help pay for the cruise - it's like FREE MONEY. Don't spend extra on-board on excursions, photos, etc..... (our only on-board expenses will be tips, a few smoothies/specialty drinks, and a couple of inexpensive souveniers).

We do NOT make a lot of money, and our next DCL cruise will only be our second, but it's definitely NOT going to be our last. We have found a way to be able to go and really not spend ANY more than we would spend going anywhere else for 4-5 days when you consider lodging, food, entertainment, etc....

Plus we live pretty frugally all year, and it's worth it to us to be able to put some in our "vacation savings" fund.