Summer is coming and it is time to plan vacations so it is a good time to discuss a trip to Walt Disney World. Recently, I was asked by a family with very limited means to see if there was a way they could bring their two children to the parks for a long wished for vacation. They were willing to do anything but their budget was extreme. It had been a dream for them for many years to surprise their two children.
After hearing their story I knew I had to do some deep research and figure out what they could do as I wanted to make magic and tell them this trip was indeed possible. So here is one way you can do a Walt Disney World trip on a VERY limited budget. Each day and month prices and deals do change so this is planned on the general prices. Always check to see what is being offered during the time you wish to vacation as you might be able to save even more.
One of the best times to come is September when the summer crowds have gone home. Prices at resorts are generally at their lowest during this time as well. For this limited budget for a family of four (2 children over age of 12) I chose this month and attempted to not exceed $2000. Impossible you say? Well not really but you have to be adventurous and willing to try something new perhaps. For this family I was helping they were willing to do almost anything to be able to bring their children.
Camping………this is a great way to enjoy family time together and save money versus paying for more expensive hotel rooms. With modern technology you are not longer sleeping on hard ground or fighting off flying friends at night. At Disney camping is almost called “glamping” which means glamorous camping. The sites at the Fort Wilderness campgrounds come complete with grills, picnic tables, water, electricity, and cable hookup right at your own site.
The comfort stations are pristine with wonderful restrooms, individual shower rooms, laundry facilities, telephones, and ice machines. There are multiple trash pickups each day so you don’t worry about critters coming to visit to see what you have left over. The pads are level and half of each one is concrete with the other half a dense sand making staking out tents very easy.
Disney has thought of everything you might require when it comes to camping so even if you have never done this it is a great place to start. Each site will have trees for some shade so you are not baking in the Florida sun. Bus transportation is within feet if you choose to leave your car at the site for the day. You can boat to the Magic Kingdom and take the Disney bus transportation to all of the other parks.
The beauty of camping at Disney is the simple fact that you can save money on your food. Driving will generally be the best option when traveling down to Walt Disney World so it allows you to bring coolers of food with you. Because you will not have a freezer it is recommended that you bring food staples for breakfast and a lunch that are not highly perishable and then find a nice spot in the parks or on property to have one bigger meal each day.
Character dining and shows will be more expensive but you can find great quick service locations offering good meals for the lowest prices. Fort Wilderness also has a wonderful restaurant, Trails End, which is open for breakfast and dinner buffets and menu lunch service. Breakfasts average $18-$20 per person, lunch around $25, and dinner about $26.
Fort Wilderness is almost a secret park in its own right. You will have two pools to choose from for swimming pleasure, fishing in the canals, hiking and walking trails, canoe and bike rentals, and a free Chip and Dale campfire Singalong each night followed by a Disney movie under the stars. You are likely to see many deer and turkey in the area and there is a peacefulness in the campgrounds that is a refreshing change from the hectic crowded atmosphere of the parks.
For a family of four (two children over the age of ten) staying at the Fort Wilderness Campgrounds in the tent sites for three nights and purchasing four day park tickets for each family member, they can enjoy a Disney vacation for $1473.64. This is the package price when booking and purchasing at the same time with Disney via phone or at www.disneyworld.com. If you opt to reserve your tent site only that cost is $168.75. To add four day park tickets for each comes to $1299.32 showing a difference of only about $5 from the package price. All of these prices include tax and can change at any time. If you budget about $30 a day per person for one meal in the parks or resorts for three days you will need to add $360 which still keeps you below the $2000 number. If that still is above what a family can afford you can drop one day of park tickets and save about $127.80 from the vacation price above.
You can find rental tents at many sports retail stores and if you want to simply rent one from Disney they will have it set up for you on your site at your arrival. Rental of a Disney tent will add to the cost as they are $30 a night. The convenience might be worth it so all you need to bring are coolers, air mattresses, and sleeping bags. During almost any month of the year I would also suggest you bring a fan.
If you are not adventurous then your next best budget bet is to head to the All Star resorts. Staying at the same time in September at All Star Sports will cost you almost an additional $300 and for those on an VERY limited budget this is a lot of money.
So can a family of four do Disney for four days and three nights with park tickets under $2000? Absolutely yes, with a dose of adventure and fun mixed in! A Disney vacation can come in all budgets and experiences but no matter how your family wishes or needs to travel I can guarantee it will be filled with pixie dust all along the way.
What are your ideas for spending time at Walt Disney World with your family while on a very limited budget?
I have usually done Disney on a budget. We live far away, so driving is not an option. If you’re patient and flexible, you can get good deals on airfare. Have always brought items along for breakfast in our room. Granola/protein bars, bananas/fruit work well and can easily be packed in a suitcase or carried on. Bring your own water bottle and refill it at one of the many water fountains in the parks. As far as accommodations, we have usually stayed at a “value” resort. If Disney is running a promotion, then it’s a good deal. Another option is to rent points (Disney timeshare) through Davids Vacation Club Rentals. We are going in December and paid $1204 for a studio at Old Key West for 8 nights. A room at Pop Century for the same time frame is $1021.50. Davids has a 2 night minimum. Also, we’ve found that eating at a table service restaurant is less expensive at lunch that it is at dinner.
Hi Kay,
I’ve always done my Disney World trips on a budget. I drive, so that saves me money in airfare. I also stay at Pop Century, since we’re only there to sleep and shower. I try to go when free dining is offered, so I don’t have to worry about a food budget. I almost always pay to upgrade to the regular dining plan because my 4 yr old loves the characters, and that frees up time in the parks. We don’t have to hunt down the ones she wants to see. I also save our change to cash in for a gift card to use for souvenirs.
Hi Kay –
We’ve done “budget trips” a number of different ways. One constant is that we try to maximize the value of our airfare by staying 7-10 nights. Another is that we buy a ticket for the length of stay – currently, after day 4, each additional day is only $10 more per day per person. We always add the Park Hopper, which gives us variety and flexibility and when averaged over the number of days we go for, comes out to around $7 per day. If you plan on going to a Water Park even once, and you already have the Park Hopper option, adding the Water Park Fun & More option is $26, less than 1/2 the cost of a single day ticket to a water park. Add a 2nd Water Park or a Disney Quest visit and you’ve really maximized your value.
We’ve also taken advantage of the Teacher/Government Employee discounts at the Swan/Dolphin. Our cost at the time was around 1/3 the rack rate and we had a room with 2 balconies – the diving platform on the side and a massive balcony in the round, dark green end of a side wing of the Dolphin with a view of the Studios, Blizzard Beach and if I leaned out, Epcot. You also get the EMH perks!
We’ve also taken advantage of a “Stay 3 Nights, Get 2 More Nights Free” discount, PIN Code discounts and the “Free” Dining discount to save money over the years.
Even after buying DVC from Disney, at the lowest possible cost at the time, we’ve stretched our dollars by eating 1 or 2 meals a day in our room and limiting table service meals to 1 or 2 for the trip. NOTE: Except for emergencies, don’t buy at Disney’s grocery stores – we’ve used Garden Grocer a few times and even with the delivery charge, it will save you quite a chunk of change.
Another option is to stay off-site. You can find Deluxe rooms and suites for less than the cost of a Disney Resort (if you go a rating star or two lower you can get an even better per night cost) and use the money saved for car rental (if you shop around you can get great deals) and parking.
Sorry I’ve gone on so long, but these are things I’ve done over the years to get to Disney World when the money is tight.
– Jeff
Magic can be made without staying at a Disney resort. We found a 3 star hotel outside of Downtown Disney for $35/night the week before and including July 4th. Even with daily parking costs it’s way less than the Fort at that same time of year.
Love this plan and I hope the family gets to go! My family of four (2 adults and 2 kids under 10) visits Disney every other year and we definitely go the value route (which is easier if we know we’re coming back!). We drive and do four nights at a value resort, two-day park tickets, and one “off day” when we swim and play at the resort. We pick just one table-service meal for the trip (usually on our off-day), pack breakfast to eat in the room and bring snacks and water with us. Already planning our 2016 trip!
I agree there are many ways to visit Disney World on a budget. For our family of 4 we are staying at Pop Century for six nights with a 5 day park ticket for just over $2000 in June of this year. If we were to stay one less night it would be right about $2000. We are taking advantage of the discount that is being offered currently on the resort hotel rooms. To save on food we plan on bringing items for breakfast, some lunches and snacks since we are driving. I know credit cards aren’t for everyone but a great way to save money is to get a Disney Visa. By putting items that we normally would buy anyway throughout the year on the card we usually earn about $400 Disney reward dollars per year. We use this to pay for meals in the parks on our trips. There are so many things to do in the parks that appeal to a wide variety of ages that are included with your park ticket.
Already cooked bacon and bagels is always a must to save $ on breakfast! Heat and toast bagels at foodcourt. Pack sandwiches and Snacks/ whole fruit for lunch in parks and save food expense for dinner. Souvenirs for kids can be purchased ahead of time and hidden to give children during stay. Even small Disney pez are enjoyed by kids. We’ve done Disney on extremely low budgets!
Two years ago we set a budget of $2500 for out Disney trip, 2 adults and 1 child (3-9) and that included flights. We went the week after Thanksgiving, took advantage of free dining and stayed at Pop Century. We even had enough for souvenirs! We did 5-day park hoppers and spent one day at Downtown Disney. I always tell people DisneyWorld is not out of reach, just do your homework and travel mid-week when flights are less expensive. We can’t wait to do it again soon!
Funny enough this is 3rd version of this topic I have seen in a week and once again I have shook my head. Disney is all about discounts. Every season has at least one offer. I did a quick back of the envelope quote for a family of 4 and could have them stay at Pop for 5 nights with tickets for under $2k and have $300 for food. The trick is maximizing your trip. I suggest a 2 day Park Hopper with Fun and More. You will actually get 4 days worth of Disney. 2 days will be parks. One day will be EMH at Hollywood Studios leaving there by 3pm and then boating over to Epcot for the rest of the evening. 2nd day will be EMH at Animal Kingdom, again leave around 3pm and bus over to the Magic Kingdom for the rest of the day. Will you get to see and do everything? No but you will get a good taste of each park. Other 2 days – use the and more and visit each waterpark all day. One more day could playing around Downtown Disney or do the monorail crawl visiting the Grand, Poly, and Contemporary resorts or simply hang out at Pop enjoying a lazy day at the pool. $300 not enough for food – breakfast bars, instant oatmeal make for no Disney breakfast costs. Portions are huge – share a meal with another family member. The list goes on and on. So many ways to make magic happen.
Our family of four has done WDW for well under $2000 several times. It should also be mentioned that September through December (select dates not included) is typically when they offer free dining. We stay at Pop Century to keep our cost down as much as possible (we have stayed at the moderate resorts in the past – to us, it’s not worth the extra cost since we aren’t in our rooms all that much). It can be done! I suggest making a “Disney Jar” and throw all of your extra change each day in the jar. It adds up quickly!
Definitely all star resorts the last week of August or Sept. Try to get the free dining plan that will save you money as well.
Family of 4 1 senior,2 adults 1 child age 9 at all stars resorts
It’s refreshing to see an article about doing Disney on a budget! So much at WDW seems to be geared towards people who can spend a fortune there without a care in the world, and it seems to be going more upscale all the time. Have you seen the articles about the new BOATHOUSE restaurant? $100 steaks? $125 for a 20 minute attraction? Yikes.
So thank you for an article that appeals to the rest of us! I know we’re not Disney’s main profit source, but we love taking our families to Orlando, too.
You let out Disney’s real best-kept secret – Ft. Wilderness campground – but I would have advised them to stay a couple of extra days without park tickets. The extra days in the campground can be very cheap and having non-park days there is so relaxing and really makes it a vacation. After all the preparation to get there, you a great chance to truly enjoy the place (beyond just sleeping there), and the memories are precious.
Great column!