What's the best way to give your kids $ for WDW????

[theostwalts]

We are going in Oct. and have 3 dds. We are thinking about giving them each $100 to spend however they want. I don't really think it is a good idea to give them that much cash to carry around. If we give them Disney Dollars they could loose them as well. I do not know if I could set a limit on their room keys or not. I could keep up with if for them, but I think if they can see how much they have left it would help them in choosing thing they really want rather than just grabbing the first things they see. Any suggestions?

Thanks

 

[Frankiesmom]

The disney dollars are a great idea-we held onto them for our kids and they made mental lists of things they wanted and at the end of the day we went and bought them. They also got to know the value of what they had left at that time too. It helped with the souvenier budget-to buy the dis dollars ahead of time. Hope this helps,Angel

 

[oogieboogie]

We give the kids (mine are only 7 and 4) $5/day for the entire trip. They can do anything they want with that. They can blow it all on video games, or buy candy, etc.
We give the $5 in either disney dollars or just straight up cash.

 

[ExPirateShopGirl]

I bought Disney Dollars for the kids in case they encountered snack carts or things where they weren't able to use their room cards. If they don't use all their dollars, I told them they could keep a souvenir $1, and the rest we'd give to the resort to settle our incidental charges. Knowing my daughters, I am guessing there will be about 40 cents left over

 

[EthansMom]

You could keep an envelope with money for each girl inside. Anytime one of your DDs wants something, you could show her how much money she has left -- and encourage her to think about it for a while, if you think that is appropriate.

For a recent purchase, my DS4 was gung-ho to purchase a video game right away. But I told him to think about it for a few days and we could always go back to the store. I took DS home and showed him how much money (from his piggybank) the purchase would take and how much money would be left and told him that the game would still be available if he changed his mind and wanted to buy it. A few days later, I found the same game for $5 less at another store and asked DS if he wanted to buy it for $5 less. He did.

At WDW, DS spent 3 or 4 days looking at different spaceships and comparing features and prices. When he finally found the right spaceship, we knew it WAS the right one because we'd looked at so many others.

 

[theostwalts]

That is one thing I want them to do, think about what they really want. This is our first family trip to Disney and I am sure that they will be overwhelmed with all of the things for sale. That is one reason we were going to set an amount and let them spend it however they want.

 

[EthansMom]

We tend to stay out of the stores at the parks -- too busy riding rides and seeing shows. We take the kids to the World of Disney store at Downtown Disney which is loaded with selection.

You might have a discussion with the girls before you leave and ask them what they think they want to buy with their money. It will get them started thinking about what they really want to own instead of being prepared to just spend money.

Also, if you see merchandise at one place at WDW, it will be the same price anywhere else that carries it. If you're like us and stay at WDW for a week, there is always time to go back to a particular store to pick up an item later. So, if it seems like one or more of the girls is just wanting to spend money because it is burning a hole in her pocket, encourage her to look around so that she goes home with exactly what she REALLY wants.

 

[luv2go2disney]

We decided right after my DD's 4th bday in june that we were going to WDW, so she missed out on getting Disney Dollars for presents, but her and my DS3 have been saving all the loose change and asking grandparents for change when they see them(They usually end up with Dollars ). Also they have been earning Disney $ by doing chores and my DS just had his bday party last week and he got alot of Disney $. So in the short amount of time that we have been planning this trip my kids both have close to $100 to take with them. They both LOVE the Disney $ and work very hard to earn them. We got them each their own wallet (DD, Cinderella, DS Buzz) They immediately stick their money in it. The wallets have hooks on them so I will keep them hooked with my camera bag. But they will be responsible for buying their own souveniers and will have the option to shop around and see what they really want to get. We are hoping to stay out of the stores for a few days and then go to Downtown Disney for some shopping and then if they have money left after Once Upon a Toy then hit some stores at the MK. Since we will be gone for 9days I don't want the kids to spend all of their money in one day. We will probably leave their wallets for the first couple of days and take them with us when we plan on shopping. We also have some things from the disney store that we plan on leaving as presents in the rooms for the kids. So hopefully they won't feel like we have to get something the first day there!

 

[Callalily6]

You could get them Visa Buxx Cards with $100 on it and buy them a wallet when you arrive. I gave my daughter a wallet when we arrived and some disney dollars and she still has them! I gave her $10 at a time in disney dollars. She seemed to take better care of the money when it was Disney Dollars. She knew it was worth something.

 

[Msslaydbug]

We have a Disney Visa rewards card and this lastt rip we had $50 on our rewards card Disney sent to us. We told my son that over the course of the trip this money was his to buy whatever he wanted. We just held onto the card and when he found something he wanted we would let him purchase it.

We also tried to make him think about what he was buying and if I new we could get it another day then I would ask him to make sure. I agree with the above poster that the best place to let kids make their decisions is at DTD.

Have fun on your trip

 

[Delilah Bleu]

I still have not figured out how much money to give my DD (8). She has recently started doing chores for $$ and I was thinking of giving her Disney dollars. I like the idea of $5 or $10 per day, we'll be there for 8 days.

 

[Miss_Will_Turner]

Hello daddio! You should totally give us $100! I likes that plan.heh heh

 

[NandP]

We gave our 8 year old son, a certain amount of money each day, Disney Dollars, that he kept in his fanny pack. It was great and really taught him how much things cost. We had no problems. He didn't lose any money and didn't keep asking "can I have that?" Plus whatever, he didn't spend in one day was carried over to the next day. He really liked that.

 

[PrncesKMW]

They now make traveler's checks in card form - completely replaceable if lost, and it will make the kids feel like they have their own credit card.

 

[NCombs]

On our last vacation, the kids earned money and we created a tally sheet on some notebook paper. They knew exactly how much they had and then when they started spending, we just deducted it from their balance and they knew how much they had left.

This was easy to do and meant we did not have to worry about them losing money. I have a son that loses everything so there was no way I was giving him that much cash.

 

[littleprissboutique]

Last year and this year we budget a certain amount for our DD3, so if we get in a store and she piches a fit----We just buy it so we dont cause a seen. We do make her mind, but there are so many people at DISNEY and from different places. We think that if we Spank her someone will turn us in, so we just buy it and get out of there.... So, for that week she is rotten!!!LOL

 

[RubyPatches]

On our last visit, for our DD's 6th birthday, I kept her money in a separate wallet, so I wouldn't "accidentally" spend it. She'd saved her money for a couple of years, plus received some money for graduating Kindergartern. Had about $150.00 to spend and boy did she. At each purchase, I told her how much it cost and what she would have left. We were surprised at her purchases and how she decided if it was a good purchase or not. She actually came home with money at the end of the week. It went right back in her bank for our next trip!!

 

[kangaroodle]

There are now food and gift cards available at WDW. They are like debit cards. You just have to wait to get there to purchase them. It would be easier to carry around than Disney $$$. I am going to buy one for my DD when we get there as part of her B-day gift.

 

[rcpae]

We have 3 daughters ages 11, 9 and 8. We have been planning this trip since about February. At that time the kids starting saving there money (birthdays and chores). We told them whatever they saved we would match for the Disney trip.

It made them really conscious of not blowing their money, and we saved some also by matching. We leave in 17 days. I hope they will give a little more thought to what they buy since they have worked so hard saving.

 

[4fireworks]

There are now food and gift cards available at WDW. They are like debit cards. You just have to wait to get there to purchase them. It would be easier to carry around than Disney $$$. I am going to buy one for my DD when we get there as part of her B-day gift.

I like this idea for me, but I'm concerned about my kids having what seems like a credit card! I certainly want to teach them good money habits, but then again with our $ and their $, that a lot of $$$ , I would throw up if any of it got lost!! I guess I'll have to be diligent, and just keep good care of it!!
12 days and counting