Concerned about theme park pricing

[quandrea]

We've never "mortgaged our lives" to go to Disney multiple times a year. In fact, our home is paid off, we don't have a mortgage or a car payment.

We just got back from a week at Disney and spent a grand total of $480. We were trying to do it for $400, but we ended up eating some mid day meals in the park. Whether we go to Disney or not, we pay $13.65 a month for our Weekday annual passes. We stayed in our camper at Fort Wilderness and our resort total was $279. It costs under $20 in gas each way. We brought along all of our own food, intending to not on site at all.

This was the first trip we had ever tried to do that, just to see how cheap we could do a week at Disney. We arrived on Sunday and left Friday night about 6:00 pm, after a day in the parks. In this amount, I also bought 2 Christmas ornaments (we always buy one the first trip of the year, but found two we wanted,) and did 4 Figment's Scavenger Hunts because I wanted all four magnets.

I didn't count the groceries we bought for the week, as it was the same we would spend at home, no microwave meals or anything. I also didn't include the monthly payments on our park passes, since we pay that if we go or not.

A lot of people spend much more because they want to stay in luxury resorts - we don't care - been there done that, and spend minimal time at the room anyway. Also, food is a big expense if people want to eat at the pricey restaurants, or even quick serve at the parks every day. Once again, we couldn't care less about the food.

Disney is only as expensive as people want to make it be. There are plenty of ways to do it cheaper, depending on what your priorities are.

I wish dvc members could get those weekday passes. They would fit our needs perfectly and they are affordable. Annual passes for my family of five are $3000. That is more than we are willing to pay now. We have started doing non park trips. We go twice a year. This past January was no parks, October will be no parks and January 2018 will be the parks for a few days using Canadian discounted tickets. I do think it's gotten really pricey for tickets. Our AP days are done. We will still go but will enter the parks for only a few days per year.

 

[FortForever]

This is why I hesitate to post in threads as toxic as this one. There's always someone that will come out and say this....

It's great you have everything paid off and no payments... There's a lot of us here that would love to have your problem.

I don't see this as a toxic thread at all. If people come out and say that you can do Disney cheaper than many people think, it's because it's true. If you don't have to have the fanciest resort and food, it's very doable. I see this not as toxic, but putting out there in a helpful manner, ideas of what people can do to save money and still enjoy Disney.

I only pointed out that our home and cars are paid for to point out that we are not "mortgaging" anything for our vacations. Our kids are all grown, and done with college, so our expenses are lower. God willing, everyone here will get to this stage of life as well. In the meantime, I hope my post helps others see where they can cut corners.

ETA: We are nothing close to wealthy. In fact, as mentioned earlier, we live on a partial fixed income and small additional income. We are just frugal. We drive vehicles that are 2001 and 2002. Our camper is a 1999 that we purchased for $1800 and put a lot of work into.

 

[FortForever]

I wish dvc members could get those weekday passes. They would fit our needs perfectly and they are affordable.

I wish you could too, and it may be in the future. They are new for us as well. Since Disney has come out with so many different options in passes now, I see them expanding that in the future. The weekday passes are especially a win-win situation for both sides. Clears some of the weekend crowds and redistributes them to the weekdays.

 

[mousehockey37]

I don't see this as a toxic thread at all. If people come out and say that you can do Disney cheaper than many people think, it's because it's true. If you don't have to have the fanciest resort and food, it's very doable. I see this not as toxic, but putting out there in a helpful manner, ideas of what people can do to save money and still enjoy Disney.

I only pointed out that our home and cars are paid for to point out that we are not "mortgaging" anything for our vacations. Our kids are all grown, and done with college, so our expenses are lower. God willing, everyone here will get to this stage of life as well. In the meantime, I hope my post helps others see where they can cut corners.

That's the problem, not everyone will. Interjecting your personal financial status that everything is paid off, kids are grown and out, not necessary. Sounds like you are on a trip of some kind. If you choose to live out of a camper for a week, that's up to you. The meaning of vacation is different for everyone as well. If you're one to cook on your vacation, then that's up to you.

The toxicity of this thread still exists as different socioeconomic statuses interact.

 

[quandrea]

I wish you could too, and it may be in the future. They are new for us as well. Since Disney has come out with so many different options in passes now, I see them expanding that in the future. The weekday passes are especially a win-win situation for both sides. Clears some of the weekend crowds and redistributes them to the weekdays.

I think they are a perfect fit for dvc. We don't go into the parks on weekends much--avoiding crowds. I wouldn't mind the restrictions at all. I know a lot of my fellow dvc members are similar. I should write a letter....

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Yes, the bathrooms should be clean, but $100/day isn't that far off from what a Six Flags ticket costs - about $75/day, Hersheypark (which we go to every year) is $65/day. What you get at Disney is much, much more than what you get at either of those places.

That's roughly 33% and 54% more respectively for tickets. That's hardly close to the other parks.

MG

 

[FortForever]

That's the problem, not everyone will. Interjecting your personal financial status that everything is paid off, kids are grown and out, not necessary. Sounds like you are on a trip of some kind. If you choose to live out of a camper for a week, that's up to you. The meaning of vacation is different for everyone as well. If you're one to cook on your vacation, then that's up to you.

The toxicity of this thread still exists as different socioeconomic statuses interact.

It was necessary to defend against the statement that people were "mortgaging their lives" only. And, I don't cook during vacation, I pre-cook and freeze all of our meals prior to leaving home.

I won't respond to any further comments from you, have a great evening.

I honestly hope my post helps others who wish to do Disney on a small budget.

 

[GusGus77]

I wish dvc members could get those weekday passes. They would fit our needs perfectly and they are affordable. Annual passes for my family of five are $3000. That is more than we are willing to pay now. We have started doing non park trips. We go twice a year. This past January was no parks, October will be no parks and January 2018 will be the parks for a few days using Canadian discounted tickets. I do think it's gotten really pricey for tickets. Our AP days are done. We will still go but will enter the parks for only a few days per year.

I wish those passes were available to everyone! We would go more often even though we are from Illinois. I don't mind not being in the park on weekends and we never go during high demand times.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

A WDW trip can be done "less expensive", but never cheap. You would need to stay off site, eat counter service meals, get cheaper base tickets, and transportation is anyone's guess.

To do a truly first class Disney vaca can easily cost $15k for a week, including Poly club level, signature restaurants, pre dinner cocktails, first class transportation.

I suspect most do it somewhere in between.

So... compare apples to apples. Don't compare a low budget WDW trip to a high end trip somewhere else.

IMO, a WDW vaca is NOT cheap.

MG

 

[mousehockey37]

It was necessary to defend against the statement that people were "mortgaging their lives" only. And, I don't cook during vacation, I pre-cook and freeze all of our meals prior to leaving home.

I won't respond to any further comments from you, have a great evening.

I honestly hope my post helps others who wish to do Disney on a small budget.

Reply or not, I could care less. I put the bit out there about mortgaging because unlike you, there are people that do it. People who are DVC members, they take out mortgages on those, got a problem with them? They're some of the real investors in Disney.

Everyone will vacation different. Everyone will spend their money different. Everyone comes from a different background with an infinite amount of circumstances. There's a thread on another forum that someone is upset that their Platinum Plus AP doesn't give them special reserved parking... So yeah.

I've been through something similar to this on another board and hence why I defend the toxic remark. Some people think Disney is too much, some say they don't charge enough. This thread, unless closed, will see comments from all sides.

 

[quandrea]

I wish those passes were available to everyone! We would go more often even though we are from Illinois. I don't mind not being in the park on weekends and we never go during high demand times.

I just wrote to dvc regarding this. I can dream! Seriously though. I think saying Disney can be done inexpensively isn't true. Even a few years ago with dvc I could make two to four trips per year on a fairly affordable AP. I'd cook breakfast and dinner. We usually ate at less expensive restaurants (which we prefer). Our per trip costs were reasonable. Not anymore. Ticket prices killed that dream about a year and a half ago.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

We've never "mortgaged our lives" to go to Disney multiple times a year. In fact, our home is paid off, we don't have a mortgage or a car payment.

We just got back from a week at Disney and spent a grand total of $480. We were trying to do it for $400, but we ended up eating some mid day meals in the park. Whether we go to Disney or not, we pay $13.65 a month for our Weekday annual passes. We stayed in our camper at Fort Wilderness and our resort total was $279. It costs under $20 in gas each way. We brought along all of our own food, intending to not on site at all.

This was the first trip we had ever tried to do that, just to see how cheap we could do a week at Disney. We arrived on Sunday and left Friday night about 6:00 pm, after a day in the parks. In this amount, I also bought 2 Christmas ornaments (we always buy one the first trip of the year, but found two we wanted,) and did 4 Figment's Scavenger Hunts because I wanted all four magnets.

I didn't count the groceries we bought for the week, as it was the same we would spend at home, no microwave meals or anything. I also didn't include the monthly payments on our park passes, since we pay that if we go or not.

A lot of people spend much more because they want to stay in luxury resorts - we don't care - been there done that, and spend minimal time at the room anyway. Also, food is a big expense if people want to eat at the pricey restaurants, or even quick serve at the parks every day. Once again, we couldn't care less about the food.

Disney is only as expensive as people want to make it be. There are plenty of ways to do it cheaper, depending on what your priorities are.

I sorta get what the other poster means in a way.

You spent a week at Disney and spent $480. My plane tickets alone would cost around $400 RT for SWA PER PERSON. I bought 5-day hopper passes before the price increase last Feb. from UT as a 4-day hopper plus 5th day free and it cost $367 PER PERSON and that cost is a lot more if you were to buy them today.

So just on airplane tickets for ONE person I've spent nearly as much as you did for an entire week at Disney. Driving is really out of the question. It takes 18 hrs to drive from where I'm at. That's 2 days of travel there and 2 days of travel back...that would just not work at all.

I absolutely agree that you can adjust your trip and take off things here and there. For example when we're going in September we'll be eating breakfast in our resort room with minimal groceries bought from Walmart more than likely. But there are things that are unable to be trimmed.

I got the overall message you were trying to convey (and my pinterest boards get filled up with how to do Disney on a budget so I get it) but at the same time your experiences are what I would call atypical for the average "trying to save money" guest. Majority of guests are unlikely to own a camper. The tickets would be a heck of a lot more than you spent for a whole week at Disney. And while I think it's awesome to not have a mortgage or a car payment (I don't have a car payment either) in the grand scheme of explaining how Disney is only as expensive as you make it to be those details don't add much value. Not trying to be mean but more of understanding where the other poster is coming from.

Things that would be good to mention about trying to trim the fat perse is things like eating one meal in your resort room, being more selective about restaurants as far as costs go, set a firm souvenir budget and sticking with it. Even looking at reducing a day at the parks depending on the cost difference between days, bringing your own water versus buying bottled water at the parks, ordering water instead of pop or other drinks, etc.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

We've never "mortgaged our lives" to go to Disney multiple times a year. In fact, our home is paid off, we don't have a mortgage or a car payment.

We just got back from a week at Disney and spent a grand total of $480. We were trying to do it for $400, but we ended up eating some mid day meals in the park. Whether we go to Disney or not, we pay $13.65 a month for our Weekday annual passes. We stayed in our camper at Fort Wilderness and our resort total was $279. It costs under $20 in gas each way. We brought along all of our own food, intending to not on site at all.

This was the first trip we had ever tried to do that, just to see how cheap we could do a week at Disney. We arrived on Sunday and left Friday night about 6:00 pm, after a day in the parks. In this amount, I also bought 2 Christmas ornaments (we always buy one the first trip of the year, but found two we wanted,) and did 4 Figment's Scavenger Hunts because I wanted all four magnets.

I didn't count the groceries we bought for the week, as it was the same we would spend at home, no microwave meals or anything. I also didn't include the monthly payments on our park passes, since we pay that if we go or not.

A lot of people spend much more because they want to stay in luxury resorts - we don't care - been there done that, and spend minimal time at the room anyway. Also, food is a big expense if people want to eat at the pricey restaurants, or even quick serve at the parks every day. Once again, we couldn't care less about the food.

Disney is only as expensive as people want to make it be. There are plenty of ways to do it cheaper, depending on what your priorities are.

$480 doesn't really tell the whole story for your 5 day trip.
It's silly to say that.

MG

 

[NuttyDisneyDad]

This is why I hesitate to post in threads as toxic as this one. There's always someone that will come out and say this....

It's great you have everything paid off and no payments... There's a lot of us here that would love to have your problem.

Dont let someone get to ya friend!! I go a couple times a year and its a struggle sometimes to save the money but it is worth it in the end. My wife might disagree about eating ramen noodles for months on end. Nothing toxic here

 

[mousehockey37]

Dont let someone get to ya friend!! I go a couple times a year and its a struggle sometimes to save the money but it is worth it in the end. My wife might disagree about eating ramen noodles for months on end. Nothing toxic here

Thanks! It's tough when you get people like this.

It's always a subject you know will get every angle thrown at it. It's nice to see I'm not alone in my thoughts about $480 for the week not being the whole story.

 

[mousehockey37]

I sorta get what the other poster means in a way.

You spent a week at Disney and spent $480. My plane tickets alone would cost around $400 RT for SWA PER PERSON. I bought 5-day hopper passes before the price increase last Feb. from UT as a 4-day hopper plus 5th day free and it cost $367 PER PERSON and that cost is a lot more if you were to buy them today.

So just on airplane tickets for ONE person I've spent nearly as much as you did for an entire week at Disney. Driving is really out of the question. It takes 18 hrs to drive from where I'm at. That's 2 days of travel there and 2 days of travel back...that would just not work at all.

I absolutely agree that you can adjust your trip and take off things here and there. For example when we're going in September we'll be eating breakfast in our resort room with minimal groceries bought from Walmart more than likely. But there are things that are unable to be trimmed.

I got the overall message you were trying to convey (and my pinterest boards get filled up with how to do Disney on a budget so I get it) but at the same time your experiences are what I would call atypical for the average "trying to save money" guest. Majority of guests are unlikely to own a camper. The tickets would be a heck of a lot more than you spent for a whole week at Disney. And while I think it's awesome to not have a mortgage or a car payment (I don't have a car payment either) in the grand scheme of explaining how Disney is only as expensive as you make it to be those details don't add much value. Not trying to be mean but more of understanding where the other poster is coming from.

Things that would be good to mention about trying to trim the fat perse is things like eating one meal in your resort room, being more selective about restaurants as far as costs go, set a firm souvenir budget and sticking with it. Even looking at reducing a day at the parks depending on the cost difference between days, bringing your own water versus buying bottled water at the parks, ordering water instead of pop or other drinks, etc.

Bingo. Driving wise, I'm about the same distance away as you are.

Everyone is at a different point in their life and doing a Disney vacation is different for everyone. What Disney sets their price at is obviously subjective depending on what your situation is.

 

[Disneywishes2018]

I think its ridiculous that disney prices so many people out of being able to go. Ive never been to disneyworld. The cost has just been too outrageous. We do however, have a trip planned for September 2018. I'm in california, so the cost just to get there is a few thousand. There is no road trip option. We are a family of 5 so our options for hotels are limited. I'm 99.99999% sure this will be our one and only trip. We are going to try and cram as much as we can in.
Although I'm only about a 5hr drive from disneyland, I've only been twice. I would love to be able to take my kids all the time, but the cost is just too much. We have no debt other than a mortgage and car payment. We live a pretty boring g life. Everything here costs too damn much and makes things like fun disney vacations hard to impossible.

 

[perditax]

It was necessary to defend against the statement that people were "mortgaging their lives" only. And, I don't cook during vacation, I pre-cook and freeze all of our meals prior to leaving home.

I won't respond to any further comments from you, have a great evening.

I honestly hope my post helps others who wish to do Disney on a small budget.

It wasn't "necessary"--some people DO put themselves into massive debt to do Disney. It would be naive to think otherwise.

But no one said everyone does.

Pre-cooking frozen meals and living in a 20 year old camper isn't my idea of a vacation, for example. But does my sharing that personal data point actually add anything to the conversation?

I don't see the value in Disney at their current price points, massive crowd levels, and declining food/service/park upkeep quality. Jusf had a great three day trip to UO, though.

 

[wilkeliza]

Honestly I never really get threads like this. Disney is not a need. Some people think it is and treat it like it is but it is not. Children who never get to go to a Disney theme park grow up just fine.

Are you also upset that some don't get to ever see live theater, go to a live sporting event, or any amusement park ever? There are groups of kids that enter adult hood having never done that. Vacation is always what is a drive away and often free like a day at the beach or whatever.

I think the price is still right. We cut back from going 4-5 times a year to 1 or 2 but mostly because we wanted to start going other places and fell in love with Disney cruises so got to reallocate the vacation days some way.

 

[HopperFan]

I believe I had read/heard that Walt Disney wanted everyone to be able to afford going to his parks. If he were still alive today, I wonder if he would be ok with what his parks were charging folks these days.

He's been dead half a century, he never saw WDW or the non-US parks built and only saw MK designed .... in the end, he left his company to those he trusted to take it forward and they did. They are running a business and when compared to other entertainment businesses the park tickets are completely in line. I think he would be fine with what they are charging in order to maintain not just the parks but all the non-income providing aspects of WDW.

This is why I hesitate to post in threads as toxic as this one. There's always someone that will come out and say this....

It's great you have everything paid off and no payments... There's a lot of us here that would love to have your problem.

That's the problem, not everyone will. Interjecting your personal financial status that everything is paid off, kids are grown and out, not necessary. Sounds like you are on a trip of some kind. If you choose to live out of a camper for a week, that's up to you. The meaning of vacation is different for everyone as well. If you're one to cook on your vacation, then that's up to you.

The toxicity of this thread still exists as different socioeconomic statuses interact.

This thread is not toxic by any means. I could find nothing toxic at all. And this makes no sense.

I wish dvc members could get those weekday passes. They would fit our needs perfectly and they are affordable. Annual passes for my family of five are $3000. That is more than we are willing to pay now. We have started doing non park trips. We go twice a year. This past January was no parks, October will be no parks and January 2018 will be the parks for a few days using Canadian discounted tickets. I do think it's gotten really pricey for tickets. Our AP days are done. We will still go but will enter the parks for only a few days per year.

With all the money you have put in, it certainly would be a fair offering for Disney to allow you all your choice of tickets.

I don't see this as a toxic thread at all. If people come out and say that you can do Disney cheaper than many people think, it's because it's true. If you don't have to have the fanciest resort and food, it's very doable. I see this not as toxic, but putting out there in a helpful manner, ideas of what people can do to save money and still enjoy Disney.

I only pointed out that our home and cars are paid for to point out that we are not "mortgaging" anything for our vacations. Our kids are all grown, and done with college, so our expenses are lower. God willing, everyone here will get to this stage of life as well. In the meantime, I hope my post helps others see where they can cut corners.

ETA: We are nothing close to wealthy. In fact, as mentioned earlier, we live on a partial fixed income and small additional income. We are just frugal. We drive vehicles that are 2001 and 2002. Our camper is a 1999 that we purchased for $1800 and put a lot of work into.

Agree. You were pointing out how you, a fairly fixed income family, are still able to enjoy Disney by adjusting how you do Disney via lodging and food. I also was making the point on my post that there are plenty of ways to save money on lodging and food (ie: camping or offsite discounted rental, packing food, eating in lodging) but no one pounced on me. Not sure why you were??? But your post was an important contribution because it offered a counter view (and solution) of the cost of Disney ... and not needing a loan (as OP said their son would need) in order to go.

Honestly I never really get threads like this. Disney is not a need. Some people think it is and treat it like it is but it is not. Children who never get to go to a Disney theme park grow up just fine.

Are you also upset that some don't get to ever see live theater, go to a live sporting event, or any amusement park ever? There are groups of kids that enter adult hood having never done that. Vacation is always what is a drive away and often free like a day at the beach or whatever.

I think the price is still right. We cut back from going 4-5 times a year to 1 or 2 but mostly because we wanted to start going other places and fell in love with Disney cruises so got to reallocate the vacation days some way.

THIS. Disney is an optional luxury vacation, not a right of passage.

The complaining about the cost is (to me) is like complaining some people drive a Mercedes but you have to drive a Kia, or that some folks have a bedroom for each kid but yours have to share ............. it goes on and on. We all live different in every aspect of our lives, vacations included.