Whats cheaper than Disney?

[rawley2]

I really think I vacation different than most of the people saying many places are cheaper.

Camping? I would not enjoy sleeping in a tent. With the cost of a camper or RV and the amount we would use it a year. No way would that be cheaper.

My wife is a house wife and has been for over 22 years together. So when I take her on vacation she does not cook. Even if we have a cabin she does not cook. We eat all meals out. It is her vacation also.

I only go on full week vacations or longer.

I really am asking because of all he vacations this one is one of the cheapest. Last time I stayed on Disney property we did stay deluxe and no that was not a cheap vacation. This time with one less kid and staying at the CSR it is really surprisingly cheap.

For the person wanting to take your kids on a cruise. DO NOT TAKE KIDS ON A CARNIVAL CRUISE. They are drunken party boats. Stick with Royal. They are really better for kids. Also stick with one of the newer ships.

 

[LibrarianBecky]

For the person wanting to take your kids on a cruise. DO NOT TAKE KIDS ON A CARNIVAL CRUISE. They are drunken party boats. Stick with Royal. They are really better for kids. Also stick with one of the newer ships.

I would like to respectfully disagree with this statement. I've been on Carival several times, as well as RC and Celebrity. I think that once upon a time Carnival was the drunken party boat you describe, but they have worked hard to change that image. Of all my cruises, I actually saw the most partying on a Celebrity cruise during spring break. A few things that will cut down on how much partying you see:
Do not go during spring break
A longer cruise will have less young adults on it (4/5 day vs 7 day), simply because the longer cruise is more expensive and out of reach, financially, for many young people.

This isn't to say that even following that advice that you'll have a party-free ship....but I think the chances are much less. I've never had a problem with people who are drinking on any of the cruises I've been on.

 

[rawley2]

I would like to respectfully disagree with this statement. I've been on Carival several times, as well as RC and Celebrity. I think that once upon a time Carnival was the drunken party boat you describe, but they have worked hard to change that image. Of all my cruises, I actually saw the most partying on a Celebrity cruise during spring break. A few things that will cut down on how much partying you see:
Do not go during spring break
A longer cruise will have less young adults on it (4/5 day vs 7 day), simply because the longer cruise is more expensive and out of reach, financially, for many young people.

This isn't to say that even following that advice that you'll have a party-free ship....but I think the chances are much less. I've never had a problem with people who are drinking on any of the cruises I've been on.

Well I have not been on a Carnival boat in years so they may have changed.

 

[fizbobunny]

We eat all meals out. It is her vacation also.

You could do the cooking to save money. Or have cereal for breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, and then you cook for dinner. Use paper plates or you do the dishes.

 

[KorieDWnut]

I really think I vacation different than most of the people saying many places are cheaper.

Camping? I would not enjoy sleeping in a tent. With the cost of a camper or RV and the amount we would use it a year. No way would that be cheaper.

My wife is a house wife and has been for over 22 years together. So when I take her on vacation she does not cook. Even if we have a cabin she does not cook. We eat all meals out. It is her vacation also.

I only go on full week vacations or longer.

I really am asking because of all he vacations this one is one of the cheapest. Last time I stayed on Disney property we did stay deluxe and no that was not a cheap vacation. This time with one less kid and staying at the CSR it is really surprisingly cheap.

For the person wanting to take your kids on a cruise. DO NOT TAKE KIDS ON A CARNIVAL CRUISE. They are drunken party boats. Stick with Royal. They are really better for kids. Also stick with one of the newer ships.

We went camping once. Once. My sister was going and we thought it would be a nice trip to go on, nice and cheap. We had to buy so much equiptment, spent soo much money and then when we got to the campground, we find out we still didnt have everything we needed so had to go find a Walmart. We were not prepared, we went through a lot of food, some of it went bad, we had to buy firewood (we were at a campground). Then the kids were bored, so we had to go find things to do, ended up at an amusement park, spent a ton of money there.
My sister and her family always camp and they have always had equiptment, and they have 5 kids..so for them, its a great trip, easy and affordable. All members of the family are outdoorsy. Not us. My dh hated being outside, I hated cooking outside. The kids were tired of being bitten by bugs and then not having electricity. I guess we are just too much of city folk.
We spent A LOT of money that trip and it was WAY TOO MUCH work for a vacation.
Ill keep going to WDW.

 

[preschoolmom]

I'm always surprised when people say how affordable Disney is. I don't find it to be so affordable. We've done two trips: One to the Contemporary where we drove, and one to Pop Century (two rooms) where we flew. Even with some type of code/discount - our trips cost around $5,000.

We don't buy a lot of souvenirs, either.

How people do Disney for less than $3,000 blows my mind. I'm trying to do our next trip for around $4,000, and my preliminary pricing shows $5,000 (on-site, value suite or Contemporary Garden Wing, 4 days non-hopper tickets, dining plan - I'm willing to drop the dining plan or do QS instead of the full out plan). Still - I think our third child puts us over the edge for rooms, tickets and dining.

I realize we could save more staying off site and then not having the dining plan, but my DH likes the "on-site resort feel" of not needing to drive all week.

 

[KorieDWnut]

I'm always surprised when people say how affordable Disney is. I don't find it to be so affordable. We've done two trips: One to the Contemporary where we drove, and one to Pop Century (two rooms) where we flew. Even with some type of code/discount - our trips cost around $5,000.

We don't buy a lot of souvenirs, either.

How people do Disney for less than $3,000 blows my mind. I'm trying to do our next trip for around $4,000, and my preliminary pricing shows $5,000 (on-site, value suite or Contemporary Garden Wing, 4 days non-hopper tickets, dining plan - I'm willing to drop the dining plan or do QS instead of the full out plan). Still - I think our third child puts us over the edge for rooms, tickets and dining.

I realize we could save more staying off site and then not having the dining plan, but my DH likes the "on-site resort feel" of not needing to drive all week.

We are going Oct29-Nov3 this year
Staying 5 nights at POR, one room, 5 people. With free dining, non hoppers (we will add them later, maybe) with airfare, comes to like 3500.
We always stay at POR. To us, a room is just a room. We dont need 2 rooms, we dont need deluxe. We are just there to sleep...why do we need more space?

 

[d1gitman]

We went to Hershey Park this year, drove from MA, stayed in $115n hotel, mostly ate offsite, spent $300 on souveniers, etc..total trip was $2500 for 5n/6d. Cost pretty much what WDW costs us per day in total. I'd choose WDW or DL over Hershey and Hershey is pretty darn good.

 

[KorieDWnut]

We went to Hershey Park this year, drove from MA, stayed in $115n hotel, mostly ate offsite, spent $300 on souveniers, etc..total trip was $2500 for 5n/6d. Cost pretty much what WDW costs us per day in total. I'd choose WDW or DL over Hershey and Hershey is pretty darn good.

We live in MA too!
Before deciding to book our Oct trip, we thought we would try something different and more "local" by going to Hershey Park for a few days. After doing research, I realized it was nearly as expensive, or at least expensive enough to not justify doing that instead of WDW.

 

[smalltowngirl504]

I'm always surprised when people say how affordable Disney is. I don't find it to be so affordable. We've done two trips: One to the Contemporary where we drove, and one to Pop Century (two rooms) where we flew. Even with some type of code/discount - our trips cost around $5,000.

We don't buy a lot of souvenirs, either.

How people do Disney for less than $3,000 blows my mind. I'm trying to do our next trip for around $4,000, and my preliminary pricing shows $5,000 (on-site, value suite or Contemporary Garden Wing, 4 days non-hopper tickets, dining plan - I'm willing to drop the dining plan or do QS instead of the full out plan). Still - I think our third child puts us over the edge for rooms, tickets and dining.


ETA- All children will be at least 3 at the time of travel!!
I realize we could save more staying off site and then not having the dining plan, but my DH likes the "on-site resort feel" of not needing to drive all week.

We are going September 2012... There are 5 of us, 2 adults 3 children staying at POR, with free regular dining and a garden view room, is 2600*approx* not sure of the dollars and change...!!! Its for 6 nights .... I think thats more than affordable, with airfare, it will be around 3500...Depending on the deals I can find with airfare!

 

[RMulieri]

My universal trip is alot cheaper than some of my Disney trips..But it is still Florida and still a themepark

 

[bcrook]

We are going Oct29-Nov3 this year
Staying 5 nights at POR, one room, 5 people. With free dining, non hoppers (we will add them later, maybe) with airfare, comes to like 3500.
We always stay at POR. To us, a room is just a room. We dont need 2 rooms, we dont need deluxe. We are just there to sleep...why do we need more space?

I thought that too, until I took that DVC tour. Oh, those two bedroom rooms come in very handy for a week or more. Plus I like the three bathrooms. I have become very spoiled. I also like those oversized balconies and views. If you haven't visited the larger rooms - don't do it. Don't ever do it.

I can't really figure out my total cost of these rooms, but I think I am spending about $275.00 a night for the 2 bedroom unit through owning a DVC, so I like it.

 

[leebee]

I would say a week in Maine (Freeport, Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park) is more affordable.

Really? We live just outside of Bangor and cannot touch decent hotels (and I'm talking Comfort Inn, Hampton Inn, etc- not even top level, just decent) in Portland, Freeport, or Bar Harbor in the summer for under about $200 a night. Also, in BH and Freeport, a lot of the accommodations are old, mom-n-pop type motels with low ceilings, musty smells, poor ventilation, and dampness that seems built-in. If you want to go to Bar Harbor, you can stay in Ellsworth for a little less, but it's a 40 min. drive into BH. Southern seacoast is just as bad... $150 for a suite/cabin at a mom-n-pop across from the ocean with 1 double bed, minifridge and microwave. Right now I am looking for a hotel room in Ellsworth in early December (DD dances in Nutcracker, they have a Sat night show that will get out around 10 and have to be back in Ells at noon the next day for the matinee, and it's an hour's drive home, so we do a girls' overnight with another dance family) and am coming up with $129AAA rate... IN DECEMBER, when everything in BH is closed.

I find Disney a most affordable vacation, BUT... travelers are usually only myself and DD, DH rarely joins us, so staying at POP is fine. We aren't big pool people, we are there for the parks, so values serve us fine. DME means no rental car (although I HATE the Disney bus system, we do it to save the $$$) and we go during free dining, which I upgrade. On QSDP, we'd still want to do Boma and Kona... depending on the length of stay, that's the difference in the upgrade to DDP. We also suck it up and get base tickets. We like being in the parks after dark so pick the park that is open latest and don't EVER do rope drop!

Last August, DD and I went to Disney for 10 nights. We paid $920 for hotel and upgraded dining plan (Disney forgot to include the price of the upgrade when they quoted our vacation package price, but they honored their quote). Park tickets were an additional $500, approximately, but that works out basically to $75 a day, per person, including hotel, food, entertainment, local transportation (can't include airfare, not fair to compare this to a staycation where we don't fly). I don't see how we can beat that, especially when I had over $900 on my Disney Rewards VISA to offset the costs!

 

[Misty89]

We were just discussing a trip to HI at spring break instead of WDW
My estimate for WDW for a week is aprox. $2900(flight,room,tx,food $ spending - we are 2 adults and I child, during FD)
I just priced airfare, and just the flight to HI from WI is pretty close to $2500.
My choice is clear lol

Edit:
a local place for us is Wisconsin Dells - A week in the dells (summer tourist spot)
can total up to 2k Very quickly and easily.
My choice is still WDW

 

[KorieDWnut]

I thought that too, until I took that DVC tour. Oh, those two bedroom rooms come in very handy for a week or more. Plus I like the three bathrooms. I have become very spoiled. I also like those oversized balconies and views. If you haven't visited the larger rooms - don't do it. Don't ever do it.

I can't really figure out my total cost of these rooms, but I think I am spending about $275.00 a night for the 2 bedroom unit through owning a DVC, so I like it.

My kids are still little (well, 12, 10 and 8 but physically they are all teeny) maybe when they are older, I will care more about space.

 

[bumbershoot]

6K at Dollywood (for one day in actual Dollywood?), 10K in Vegas for two people? No wonder Disney is the cheapest vacation for you....

Hawaii is over $1,000/pp just for airfare, so that's out of the question.

You probably know this, but if you can get yourself to Seattle in a relatively inexpensive way (if you're in Vancouver, take Amtrak down, that sort of thing), Alaska Air has some *amazing* deals to Hawaii.

I don't have a credit card so I literally could not not go any other vacations unless by saving money months in advance. Disney is nice because i can book for $200 and then pay monthly installments, which is how Disney is affordable for me.

I've never seen a vacation package where you have to pay it all up front. I've only seen package deals that have x down then pay it off by a certain date. Or if you go a la carte, you can do the same thing...deposit on a hotel room (if they require one), buy admission to whatever you're doing bit by bit...

National parks, like Yosemite, Yellowstone and The Grand Canyon.

That depends on where you live and how you're getting there.

I really think I vacation different than most of the people saying many places are cheaper.


Even if we have a cabin she does not cook. We eat all meals out. It is her vacation also.

Yes I think you do vacation differently than some other people...

When we go camping, Dh cooks.

 

[Planogirl]

It's easy to spend very little on a vacation but it depends on what you expect. You can enjoy free or low cost national parks and museums, explore wilderness areas, visit small towns for festivals, go to large cities and explore lower cost tourist sites and so on. Many themeparks and zoos and so on offer specials at certain times. You can drive to many of these places or use priceline, expedia and so on to book lower cost flights. You can also priceline hotels or stay in less expensive places.

It's doable but you have to plan it out. And sometimes maybe expect less.

 

[joy13]

We were just discussing a trip to HI at spring break instead of WDW
My estimate for WDW for a week is aprox. $2900(flight,room,tx,food $ spending - we are 2 adults and I child, during FD)
I just priced airfare, and just the flight to HI from WI is pretty close to $2500.
My choice is clear lol

Edit:
a local place for us is Wisconsin Dells - A week in the dells (summer tourist spot)
can total up to 2k Very quickly and easily.
My choice is still WDW

I'm in WI too - the Dells are crazy expensive! We love the Kalahari though

 

[rawley2]

6K at Dollywood (for one day in actual Dollywood?), 10K in Vegas for two people? No wonder Disney is the cheapest vacation for you....


Yes I think you do vacation differently than some other people...

When we go camping, Dh cooks.

NO 6K for a week in Gatlinburg. That includes driving shows, food, attractions, cabin..... Dolly Wood is not the only thing there. It was also not the most costly day. If I remember right the most costly day we hit the ripply stuff and then the go carts for a few hours. The cheapest day was hiking in the park.

As far as Vegas. First class air from Tampa FL, stayed at the Wynn (could be the best hotel in the world) went to all the top shows with great tickets (no cheap seats) and ate at the best places to eat. Oh yea we also rented a town car for the week for our side trips to the damn and stuff like that. Like I said it was a special trip. BTW 10K for Vegas is really easy to do. Trust me I know. EDIT: My wife just showed me a $25.00 BOTTLE OF FINGERNAIL POLISH she bought at the spa on this vacation. LOL I had my hair cut there for $60.00. Yes 10k is real easy in Vegas.


I only cook on the grill. Thats a good thing. LOL And no I wont camp. Sorry it does not appeal to me even a little bit.

BTW I see many others saying the same thing I am. It is a cheap vacation.

 

[MouseEarsForAll]

I thought that too, until I took that DVC tour. Oh, those two bedroom rooms come in very handy for a week or more. Plus I like the three bathrooms. I have become very spoiled. I also like those oversized balconies and views.

Right?! You can't have fun at Disney when you just got out of a room where your brother was breathing down your neck and plastering his nose on the window, and your sister was hogging the bathroom, claiming she can't go out 'cause she's got bad hair, now could you?