We want to go to Disney!!!!!?

Question

My nephew and I desperately want to go on a trip to Walt Disney World in Florida. He's 11 years old and never been out of the Country. We have been trying to plan a trip for the past two years, and are saving every penny we can. The problem is we only have a budget of about $2000 for everything, plane, hotel, car rental, food, tickets etc. Travelling from Toronto, Canada. Anyone got any really good budgeting ideas?

Thanks

Answer 1

First... We took our family of 4 to disney for a grand total of $1,124. and we had a great time. (We stayed for 7 days).

You can get an excellent pkg- including airfare from http://www.eleisurelink.com/vacation_packages.aspx

I used that site to get our plane tickets and hotel. We stayed in a gorgeous hotel for 7 days for $332. complete with themed waterpark inside.

Go to www.themouseforless.com They usually post specials promotions.

Some other Tips:

~Pack a suitcase with cereals, granola bars, oatmeal, tea bags, snack crackers, chips, cookies etc. and bagels - eat breakfast in your room in the morning

~Buy all your film and BATTERIES before you leave home I stored them in a ziplock baggies in the backpack

~Purchase inexpensive rubbermaid insulated drink holders with straps at the Dollar Store & fill each morning before leaving the hotel with iced tea and ice or Juice, or water

~Print off journal pages with disney themes for each of you to write about your day

~Print off an autograph book for your nephew to get signed by disney characters. Dont forget a big fat sharpie- the fatter the pen the easier for the character to sign with

~ Check out the Discussion List archives for Budget101 on yahoogroups- we have more than 200 posts on the subject
http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/Budget101_/

Answer 2

Have any junk around that house that someone else might see as valuable. Sell it on eBay. have a budget every week. Every week you must save a certain amount of money. Have a change jar in the house. Everyday when you come home you throw all your change in there. (I did that and got over $100 in 3 months) Do you have time for a second job? Wash neighbors cars, clean houses, babysit etc. If you don't you can always try an internet job.
Here's your budget plan:
If you have a change jar you can get another $400 a year. Save $10 a week and you have another $520 at the end fo the year. if you want to clean houses, if there is an affluent nieghborhood nearby you can make $50 to $100 a house. That can add up to an extra $1000. You just got $2000 a year. Do this for 2 years an you have the money.
Good Luck!

Answer 3

2000 dollars will make it tuff, but it's definately doable.. Let's do some budgeting.. We'll do a 3 day trip...

Friday Saturday Sunday..(leave monday)

Park passes are going to cost you around 45 each per day.. So let's just say you'll go Saturday and Sunday (friday for travel and monday for travel)

That's 180.00 That leaves 1820

You have to fly there and flying from canada isn't very cheap so let's say the plane costs you 400 dollars each.. That's over shotting it but will give you a good idea of where you'll be at..

You now have 1020 left to spend. Hotel.. Don't stay at one of the big resorts.. Try the Days Inn Convention Center on I-Drive.. It's under 20 minutes from disney, 5 minutes from sea world 10 minutes from universal.. and you can get in for around 50 dollars / night. That's only 150 dollars if you stay 3 nights!!

This leaves you 870.00 for food / gifts / etc.. If you want to be conservative only buy water @ the park and eat a big breakfast before you leave in the morning and a big dinner when you come back, the hotel I suggested has an Ihop attached great for breakfast , and there is a dennys right next door perfect for dinner.. You can eat really cheap there and you'll have money to spare and/or to throw at other things that might have cdst a bit more than I estimated..

Good luck and have a blast.. It's sooo worth it!!!

Answer 4

There are some really inexpensive hotels that you can get in the area (i live in the area)- they usually have a weekly rate and a wise idea would be to do a suite that has a kitchen so that way you don't have to eat out- you can also bring food from home so you don't have to buy food in the area. Also, you don't necessarily have to rent a car for your whole trip. Most of the hotels in the tourist area offer a bus to the parks. There is so much within walking distances of most of the hotels that you may not even need a vehicle. It also depends on how many people you have going also. Disney tickets are expensive- so make sure you check online for specials before you go to the park and buy tickets. I am not sure how much plane will cost you, but it sounds like you might want to save some additional cash before you go on this vacation- best of luck!

Answer 5

The BEST and EASIEST way to save money on a Disney trip, is to go during the slow times of the year. Dont even think about going in the summer, spring break, or Christmas/New Years. The slowest times are Mid-November until the week before Christmas, and January/February. Resort rates and ticket prices are VERY low during these times, and you can get some great deals on them if you book ahead of time.
This spring, Disney was actually advertizing a 1 week trip for a family of 4 for about $1500, provided you booked well ahead, stayed during October/November, and stayed at a Value resort. It did not inclued food or airfare, but you can see that a trip on your budget is possible.
Log onto the Disney web site and give a look at staying next February. You can probably get a great deal on a Value resort at that time.

Answer 6

Given your budget, I would advise you to call 1-407-W-DISNEY and see what they can do. You might be able to get a package deal that includes a hotel room at a Disney resort (which means you won't need a rental car -- Disney transportation can get you wherever you want to go on Disney property and it's free for Disney resort guests), transportation to and from the airport, park passes, and some or all of your meals. See if you can get a package that includes 5 day Park Hopper passes -- that way you'll be able to go to any theme park at any time and can even do more than one park per day. If you get a package that doesn't include all of your meals, you can save money by eating on the fly at the cafeteria-style places, as opposed to the places that do "sit-down" lunches and dinners. I would also advise you to invest in a copy of Birnbaum's Walt Disney World Official Guide. It tells you all about the parks, attractions, rides, restaurants, resorts, everything. It'll help you decide what you really want to see/do and what is no big deal if you miss it. Finally, if you go, DO NOT MISS Fantasmic at Disney-MGM Studios and IllumiNations at EPCOT. WARNING: They[re popular shows, so people start reserving their spots up to 2 hours before the main event, so keep that in mind. Good luck!

Answer 7

Pick a slower time of year and try to get a package that includes meals. Of course it will be a little more expensive, but dining there can be very costly. Also, if you fly to Orlando and stay at one of their hotels (they have value resorts), they have FREE shuttle service to and from the airport and all of the parks, so no need to rent a car! My huband and I took our son last September for like $1400 with everything included for a whole week. We dined with charaters every day and it didn't cost us any extra. You can totally do this with $2000 if you time it right. I even got a Disney Visa and they give you 6 months to pay for your vaca interest free. This may have been where I heard of the package. If you go in the summer, you will pay more and there will be longer lines. I would say try for late Sept or Oct. My friend pulled her daughter out of school for a few days to take advantage of the huge savings.

Good luck!

Answer 8

Well, you do know that to stay inside the park is pretty expensive.
However, there are the value resorts which are very nice and not quite as expensive. Then too, there are many many places outside of Disney that are quite resonable. You don't have to worry about car rental inside Disney either as they have the buses that get you every where. Again, that is if you stay inside Disney. Many Hotels outside also offer shuttle service to inside DW.
Food is very expensive inside Disney, and that is the bottom line.
I don't know how you can avoid it other than to pack a lunch as many people do.
No tips on tickets, as we have tried all sorts of ways.
By the way, we have been to Disney World 26 times so we are familiar with the in and out of it.
You failed to say how long you will be there. Time is of importance to the financial part of your stay.
I will tell you this. Keep saving until you go. Disney World is so worth ever effort you make.
Have a great time. And tell Mickey hi for me again.

Answer 9

You can go for 3 or 4 days and enjoy Disney on a Park Hopper pass. Check for flights out of Toronto and out of Buffalo, NY. If you can book and travel on short notice then you can hold out for good deals. I just found a flight/hotel combo from Travelocity for a Thursday departure from Buffalo and a return flight on a Tuesday for less than $600 for a hotel that offers a free shuttle service to the theme parks. Your Disney tickets will be your next most expensive item - check for deals online. I wouldn't rent a car as most of the hotels are really close to a variety of restaurants and you can get the free shuttle. You should also consider booking this through a travel agent as they can help you figure out the best times to go and it won't cost you any extra.

Answer 10

Just save more money or use a credit card to get there. You'll need about 5 or 6 grand to get a real vacation for about a week or so. You can save money by going off season, hotels are cheaper then too. You don't need a rental car to get around. If you plan on just going for a long weekend for 3 days you may be able to pull off a decent vacation for 2 G's but I would advise just going for broke spend the money and live it up. Have a great time and don't think about the money if you can do it.

Answer 11

If you find a motel/hotel that's close enough to Disney, you shouldn't have to worry about car rental. A lot of those places offer shuttles to most of the area attractions. Have you tried any of the travel sites? Travelocity, Hotels.com, Priceline you may be able to find a good deal there. As for food, as always, your best bet is to find a place with a fridge, possibly an efficiency and make your own meals. Disney food is pricey. Best of luck and have fun!