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I didn't have the time to page through all the comments, but it's absolutely affordable if you can take the kids at a time when other kids are in school. That's when you will find the best deals -- we used to get mailings from Disney after our first trip -- and you can stay at a value resort AND get a free meal plan for all in your family!
If you have frequent-flier miles you can use to get to and from (or maybe a relative might gift you some?) then it can cost very little indeed. I have never paid for food on a Disney trip and have been 3 times. Having free flights helped a lot since my husband traveled frequently on business.
We have year-round schools here, so we could always find a non-busy time to go. If your kids are on a traditonal calendar, Disney is the one thing I would say to pull them out of school for. The memories last a lifetime. I highly recommend mid to late October, followed closely by early to mid December. It's cooler, less crowded, less expensive and all around a more pleasant experiences. Their Halloween Party is the most fun I've had there.
I personally was not interested in not staying at a Disney resort. if I'm going to do something like that with wee ones, I want magic start to finish. Assuming you're just being cost-conscious and you're not broke, it's one of few times I'd say get the best you can afford, to a point. I was perfectly happy at value-level resorts considering how little time you spend in the rooms.
Also wanted to add quickly that IMO, having a car at Disney is not necessary if you're staying at a WDW Resort. Take the Magic Express to and from the airport. If you have any experience with public transport, you will find the buses, boats and monorails to be quick and efficient -- the only people who complain about getting around this way have either never used public transport before or they're just cranky or impatient overall. If you drive to the parks, you still have to walk to the end of your row in a massive parking lot, jump onto a tram and take it to the entrance and THEN sometimes you have a monorail ride too, just to reach the park itself! So I didn't think having a car necessarily saved any time or made anything more flexible.
It can make getting to the store easier if you wanted to get out for snacks or water, but they built a very shifty little toll both that you must pay to get on and off the exit for the nearest Walmart. Coincidence? I think not!
Please feel free to PM me if you have specific questions.
Couple of points I would like to make...in the off season (when school is in), a lot of NJ families go that 1st/2nd week of November...it seems our schools have a lot of "holidays" in those weeks, so much that WDW has been calling them "Jersey week"....
as for snacks and water...last time we went, we reached out over the internet to one of the local grocery stores that deliver...and they delivered water, snacks, etc (it's a regular grocery store) and the stuff was UNPACKED and in our room when we checked in. It was wonderful. We had water, milk, cereal, peanut butter, jelly, bread...stuff like that. And it was reasonable.
My dentist, who makes good money, just returned from Disneyworld and she was complaining about the prices. I've always thought a trip to something "real" like a national park would be better anyway. Maybe kids are brainwashed into thinking they need to go to Disney. Save the money and do something meaningful.
That was why we took our kids. All of their friends were going and they wanted to go too. I can't say that we didn't enjoy ourselves. We actually did.
However, a few years later, we took the kids to Ireland and England, Stayed a week and it cost far less.
They put on a "good show" and there is something magical about al of that excess. But the Cliffs of Mohr were equally magical.
I've always wanted to go to Disney. I've always considered our family middle class - but we honestly could not afford if when they were young. The kids are all grown up now, but I still would love to see Disney - I priced it with a moderate onsite hotel and airfare - it was over $3500 - sorry but that's way overpriced for a resort park for 2
I agree, that's much too expensive for me! But I've been 3+ times in the last decade (not counting one time because it was a gift.)
So just out of curiosity, I priced out a 2 person trip using the "free dining" special available now for some Fall dates. I'm not personally a big fan of free dining because if you get your dining free, you have to pay rack rate for the room. I don't like to pay rack rate, lol. But here's what I got.
9/29-10/6
Moderate 2 adults. Free dining plan covering 1 sit down meal, 1 quick service meal, and 1 snack daily. 7 day tickets.
$2081
FYI: Letting Disney add 2 seats airfare from Chicago as an example, made it $2738. Yes, glad I don't have to fly.
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I also priced the same dates at a value resort. Because I probably would do that. You might not want to though.
If you go with the dining plan that includes 2 quick service meals daily instead of the regular plan, the total
(not including air) was $1557. Much more affordable, but you are giving some things up.
Upgrading the dining so one of the meals each day is sit-down table service increased it to $1823. I did this just to compare the moderate resort trip more as apples to apples. (Again, no air>)
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I can see why these prices would be shocking. Personally, I'd probably just keep looking for cheaper dates or % off resort discounts instead of the free food if I were you. It can be done cheaper. Unless you want crowds and summertime heat, January & February can be good times to visit.
I realize that gets back into the issue of how people do it with school age kids, but that's already been covered some.
Last edited by fishoutofwaterinSC; 08-09-2013 at 03:58 PM..
Couple of points I would like to make...in the off season (when school is in), a lot of NJ families go that 1st/2nd week of November...it seems our schools have a lot of "holidays" in those weeks, so much that WDW has been calling them "Jersey week"....
as for snacks and water...last time we went, we reached out over the internet to one of the local grocery stores that deliver...and they delivered water, snacks, etc (it's a regular grocery store) and the stuff was UNPACKED and in our room when we checked in. It was wonderful. We had water, milk, cereal, peanut butter, jelly, bread...stuff like that. And it was reasonable.
Yes, we went this time 2 years ago - it's the NJ teacher's convention and we always have off. Although it wasn't as empty as we expected......
One year our start date was delayed due to construction on a few of the schools, we didn't start until 9/13 or so...we went the week of Labor Day (left a few days after). WOW - so nice. We must've seen 10 families from town, no exaggeration.
I agree, that's much too expensive for me! But I've been 3+ times in the last decade (not counting one time because it was a gift.)
So just out of curiosity, I priced out a 2 person trip using the "free dining" special available now for some Fall dates. I'm not personally a big fan of free dining because if you get your dining free, you have to pay rack rate for the room. I don't like to pay rack rate, lol. But here's what I got.
9/29-10/6
Moderate 2 adults. Free dining plan covering 1 sit down meal, 1 quick service meal, and 1 snack daily. 7 day tickets.
$2081
FYI: Letting Disney add 2 seats airfare from Chicago as an example, made it $2738. Yes, glad I don't have to fly.
=============
I also priced the same dates at a value resort. Because I probably would do that. You might not want to though.
If you go with the dining plan that includes 2 quick service meals daily instead of the regular plan, the total
(not including air) was $1557. Much more affordable, but you are giving some things up.
Upgrading the dining so one of the meals each day is sit-down table service increased it to $1823. I did this just to compare the moderate resort trip more as apples to apples. (Again, no air>)
=============
I can see why these prices would be shocking. Personally, I'd probably just keep looking for cheaper dates or % off resort discounts instead of the free food if I were you. It can be done cheaper. Unless you want crowds and summertime heat, January & February can be good times to visit.
I realize that gets back into the issue of how people do it with school age kids, but that's already been covered some.
Never, ever add airfare to your Disney package! It's cheaper to book it separately.
Best way to save money at Disney is to get a Disney credit card from Chase. Use it just like any other card but the 'points' go toward anything with the 'D' word on it. We use the card, paying it off in full every month, and when we go to D'World we buy our entrance passes (you save if you choose multi-day over single day), food, and whatever else with the points. We usually don't run out until the last day. We stay on property so we don't have to rent a car. We don't have fancy breakfasts and we do the less expensive options for lunch. There is almost always a relatively inexpensive flight to Orlando from almost every point on the globe, esp. if you plan in advance. The rooms on property start at about $99 bucks per night, but that's for 4 people.
We enjoy Disney for what it is, a well-designed system with lots of fun things to do. It is not a charity. If you go, don't complain about the prices. It's not like Disney keeps the rates a secret.
Yes. Last October, we had $960 saved up on our Disney Visa rewards card. Fee money... This year, I bought our tickets with our reward $.
Never, ever add airfare to your Disney package! It's cheaper to book it separately.
Yeah, as I mentioned above, I don't fly much, I drive there, so it's not really an issue for me. But a PP had mentioned she'd gotten a quote with air, so I picked a random city out of curiosity to see what airfares Disney would come up with. Hopefully people will search for the best pricing on it, too.
Once was more than enough for me..expensive, off season, usually meaning the summer hotter than hell.
Any school breaks like Christmas or Easter when the weather is nicer to walk around that blasted park and stand in endless lines it gets more $$$.
You're better off taking the kids out of school for a few days in like Oct or late March when the park isn't as crowded and you're not spending hours in line...
Summer is NOT the offseason. The offseason at WDW is January (after the 1st) until Presidents Day Weekend, early March, early May, September (too hot, but free dining), early November, early December.
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