As I was on this vacation I kept thinking about the many ways I could help out other families wanting to go to Disney World. Sometimes planning trips can become overwhelming and one big hassle which might deter families from even trying to go on them.
First Set of Tips: Money Saving, Budge Friendly Tips
My family is small (2 adults and 2 children; one of which is under the age of 1) and NOT rich by any means but we wanted to make this trip memorable and less stressful on our little budget. So this is what we found to make the trip more affordable.
1. Search for deals. Like I said in a prior blog post, there is no way we would have gone on this trip if we hadn’t found such a great sounding deal. Now, our deal sort of blew up in our faces but there are good, legitimate travel sites out there that give great deals. I would even check Disney World’s website to see what kind of specials they are offering. But, as I have found out, check the legitamacy of the travel site first before you book. Read costumer reviews on websites like BBB.org, consumeraffairs.com, and tripadvisor.com.
2. Before you book your hotel, make sure they have transportation options for both the airport and the Disney World parks. If you plan on just visiting Disney parks during your stay in Orlando there is no need to rent a car. If you book with a Disney Resort (which just means that the hotel is on Disney property and doesn’t always mean it’s a Disney “themed” hotel) most of them have free transportation to the parks via busses. Some of them have airport shuttles but most you need to pay for transportation. We suggest the town car service we used, Prime Transportation. When we did our research it was actually cheaper than area airport shuttles. And nicer too. They even provided car seats for our kids at no extra charge as well as one free stop before we were dropped off at the hotel.
3. With the town car service we got a free stop at a local grocery store where we bought multiple snack and drink items to have with us at the parks. Park food prices are outrageous even at the “street vendors” so doing some grocery shopping ahead of time really saved us money. We even brought ziplock bags and would sneak extra donuts and breads from our breakfast buffet into the bags to have at the park. With all of this we never bought lunch. We only bought dinners and even then we only bought 2 entrees. There was always enough food on both entrees to feed the 4 of us.
4. Take a refillable water bottle. We took a Nalgene bottle as well as a Powerade bottle and filled them with water and ice before we left each morning. Once they were empty we just refilled them either in the bathrooms or the drinking fountains. Never had to pay for drinks. The water isn’t icy cold refreshing or the best tasting but it’s free!
5. If you didn’t get a deal on park hopper passes, then just buy regular daily tickets. There is enough in each park to keep you busy for a full day. There is no need to pay the extra money to park hop when they have enough for you to do each day. If you end early then either go to the hotel and play in the pool or head to Downtown Disney which is free and has fun shopping and food and some free street entertainment. Plus, to park hop between some of the parks is kind of a hassell and takes more time that it’s really worth.
6. I know that it might be a hassle but bring your own stroller. We brought a double umbrella stroller which was actually really annoying but it was the best thing we brought with us. It costs $15.00 a day for a single stroller and $31.00 per day for a double stroller to rent from Disney World. Plus, you have to give them a credit card number every time for a $100 refundable deposit. Save yourself a boat load of cash by bringing the stroller with you. It doesn’t cost a thing to put it on a plane with you it’s just an extra thing to hassle with.
7. Some families can afford to buy all the souvenirs they and their kids want, but not us. We told our daughter that we'd keep a list of all the things she wanted to buy and on our last day of our trip she could choose one thing off the list and we would buy it. So all week long when she saw something she wanted we'd just say, "we'll put it on the list!" She forgot most of the toys or trinkets she initially wanted which made the list short and the toy decision easy. She was so happy at the end of the week for the one toy, it didn't matter that she didn't get all of them.
I'm sure there are more tips I could give but these are the ones that immediately came to mind. If you have any helpful budget friendly tips that others could benefit from, please post a comment!
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