Less than 4 weeks - but very little spending money :( advice

[zippy99]

We have a had a whirlwind month - having been given a 2month eviction notice from our home of 15 years at the beginning of June (the Church who own it want to sell it) we have found ourselves with the stress of moving home and the associated costs.

Moving home has cost us around £2000 in unexpected costs and as such our Disney spending has taken a bit of hit.

We are Flying to Miami direct on 18th August
Staying at the Comfort Suites by the airport for 1 night (as flight lands 6pm and I don't fancy long drive)
Driving up to Fort Pierce and have 1 night there

On to Universal for 3 nights at RPR
Over to Disney for 7 nights at POR

We then have 2 more nights to plan - we were going to do Cocoa Beach, but will be limited on funds to do activities - so thought perhaps stay another couple of nights by Disney - after all we have the entertainment sorted.

We have also cancelled our Busch & Seaward tickets (as that saved us around £500).


Pretty much our costs will be food & petrol (we are not big shoppers) There will be myself, DH DS15 DD17 & DD'sFriend 17 - the girls only eat small portions and I am happy eating offsite - better value.

Just wondered if people had any tips or advice for budgeting..

I really should feel blessed - we have moved to the most wonderful house and are going to Florida next month - but the lack of spending money is getting me down.

 

[MarkE83]

Well option 1 would be to obtain a credit card, and pay for it when you get back!

Alternatively, stocking up on snacks and eating off site or counter service meals will obviously save some pennies. Drinking water is free and often reduces hunger.

Hanging out in free places like DTD or resort hopping is good fun and doesnt cost anything.

 

[chmurf]

sign up on major restaurant chains (do dummy sign ups before to see when they send their welcome offers/discounts/freebies and how long they're valid for, and sign up for real in order to get them just before going.
That will shave a few bucks off your offsite meals.

that's a little step, but little amounts quickly add up

 

[Tony Toon]

I'm sure you've signed up for all the usual clubs associated to the offsite restaurants to get their coupons. Dinner for two including beverages currently $19.99 + tax at Sweet Tomatoes just now for example, 20% off at Logans. Also make sure your birthday is at the correct time to get your birthday gifts when signing up. You'll have a blast. You don't have to spend a fortune to have fun

Mrs TT

 

[zippy99]

Thanks - we have the Disney & Universal tickets so have the 'entertainment' sorted -

I think we will get my DD to go through and sign up to some vouchers - also am I right in thinking most chains are happy for sharing too? We often find we have way too much food when we eat off site

 

[MsHook]

Look up menus at both disney and universal and meal plan for meals you need to eat in the park. I've always gone on a budget sticking to CS meals and for food spend $30 per day per person. Find the bigger meals that can easily be split between two people. Myself and my bf's sister shared a lot of meals last time - we got a $9 meal between us at the Japan pavilion in Epcot and even shared a turkey leg at animal kingdom. I cut off all the meat I wanted onto a plate then handed her the leg back. Planning ahead with menus and finding coupons for the outside restaurants should help. Also, we save loads by just drinking water while we're there. We bring in bottles and keep filling them up at the water fountains. Good luck!

 

[MissDisneyDora]

When getting to your resort, I would ask where the closest Walmart/grocery store is and stock up on food that you can bring to the parks. Even when I stay onsite at WDW, I always bring food so that we can have a quick breakfast in the room, and then bring my own beverages, fruit, sandwiches and snacks to munch on during the day. Visit pound shops in the UK before you go where you can get things like rain ponchos and toiletries at a fraction of the cost. Also as an American who lived in the UK for 8 years and has recently moved back to the States, I can tell you I'm still in awe at how ridiculously large the portions are here. If eating out, have a look at the tables around you and how big their portion sizes are..it may be that you can share an entree or even just order an appetizer or a side dish and will feel like you've eaten your fill.

Good luck!

x
Dora

 

[LoodlesNoodles]

Don't forget you can ask for a doggie bag and bring leftovers back with you! At Olive Garden they even gave us a refill soda 'for the road'.

 

[canadiankim]

Lots of restaurants have email sign-ups where you will get a free appetizer but most of them the voucher is only good for 2 weeks so leave this till just before you are going. Longhorns, Chili's, Shoney's, Texas Roadhouse for sure do this plus I also think Outback and Carrabba's have the same sort of sign-up deal.

 

[Portugal1000]

We always have atleast one nice meal a day in a restaurant but I could easily live without that if I had to. We really dont like the counter service meals in the parks so we tend to take bagels and cream cheese, or bagels with cold meats (my son will always get a hot dog or something). We put them in a smaller cooler bag with frozen bottles of water so they keep cold. Sometimes we book a meal in the park but to be honest we prefer off site now. You'll be surprised how delicious those bagels are. We usually go and grab a coffee and share a cake for dessert. Universal and Disney have never stopped us taking in food (SeaWorld and Aquatica do). Also take in crisps and fruit and bottled water which you can refill. I make a conscious effort not to drink soda during the day and water is free. I also stock up on thinks like hot dogs (definitely buy the best ones you can, the cheap ones are awful) which can be used for snacks. We have breakfast in our room, try to start the day off healthy before it all goes to pot. We are lucky as Bonnet Creek has a full kitchen. Never cooked a proper meal really but loads of people do. Have use the BBQ grills, dont know if they have them at POR.
If you have 4 different email addresses then you can sign up four time to Earl of Sandwich and get a free Sandwich and brownie (just say its your birthday while you are there).
Sweet Tomatoes is a great budget restaurant. I actually think its the best value.
We share meals too sometimes at Toojays which is a great deli. Also we like the Monday night deal at Carrabba's, three courses for $12, $15 or $18.
Publix have a great deli too and you can get fantastic subs for about $8 but they are huge so will feed two. Their fried chicken is great too and we usually buy it with some sides.We found a great little place called Steak and Shake. All their meals are $4 (well I think there are some other meals but majority $4) Great burgers, really fresh and Milkskakes to die for. Also $4 but happy hour between 2 and 4 when they are half price.
I could quite easily never visit a shopping mall when I am there so I dont really spend much on shopping. I love Mall of Millenia though because of the Cheesecake Factory (can definitely share a meal there as portions huge).
So I would say set yourself a budget for each day and then at the end of the day whatever you have left over, out it aside then hopefully near the end of the holiday you will have extra cash which can be spent on extra stuff like a nice meal somewhere. We usually do this and have a budget of $200 a day for the three of us for food and drinks etc but never spend that much.
Good luck, you will have a fantastic time.

 

[DisneyPayne]

We have never done self catering in Disney, always opting for Dining Plan and OOP. However, last year we did fancy popping to the closest Walmart just to see if they really do have better deals than us. The place was huge & lots of offers on, so worth a visit to stock up. You could get soft drinks, fruit, biscuits & snacks which could keep you going during the day if you have a decent breakfast. Check out where do the all you can eat breakfasts to get yourself a good meal first thing in the morning, fruit & snacks for around the parks in the day & then find places to eat again in the evenings. We have often tried to work out how much would be the absolute bare minimum of spending money we would need, but I can never work it out properly because we don't spend enough time off Disney. Even in the evenings we eat at Downtown Disney almost every night, apart from 2 days at Citywalk (Universal).

 

[DisneyPayne]

Oh and another thing, don't forget that most of the starters are huge so you could probably get away with having one as your main meal or even sharing one between you for a light dinner.

 

[Elise79]

Have a look at @dixonsontour dining report - she did one where they ate for $100 a day.

I would be looking to eat offsite as much as possible Disney prices are silly when you are on a budget.

I will split meals and share drinks with DH at CS meals too as we don't need a whole meal each in the heat.

Free cups of iced water from any location that sells fountain drinks too - soon adds up buying bottles.

 

[cheryl.UK]

If you sign up to restaurants like Sweet Tomatoes, make sure more than one of you signs up, that way if the deal is for 2, you can all eat cheaply

 

[dixonsontour]

Link to my newest dining on a budget review

http://www.disboards.com/threads/100-a-day-returns-all-new-for-2014.3345229/

My older ones are in my signature.

It is well worth signing up for coupons. I tend to like a first sign up and note what deals come. This gets you on the mailing list for seasonal coupons eg August there will be a lot of back to school type promotions. Then literally 1 or 2 days before sign up again - some of the best coupons are for joining clubs. If any of you have a birthday or anniversary put that for decent offers.

I'd do a shop for the room, you will have a fridge at disney so can have cereal for breakfast and make some lunches.

We enjoy the diners. I'd definitely recommend steak and shake and perkins at crossroads (free pie Monday). Giordanos is cheap and massive pizza is always popular.

We've done several cheap and cheerful food trips and they have been some of our best hols. TBH I enjoy the challenge of looking for deals.

 

[dixonsontour]

Restaurant.com is worth a look. Use a discount code and you can get a $50 coupon for $8ish. Crossroads at house of blues at DTD is on.

 

[ToonTagTrolleyDollie]

When we go out there, if we're not on the dining plan we generally eat off property. Breakfast is the best for it though if you do fancy going out for that (we don't cook at all when we're on holiday) if you go to places like IHOP or Denny's you can get such good deals on amazing meals.
Hope you enjoy your trip

 

[scoobydooby]

Can you clear your loft/garage/cupboards and do a car boot sale?

 

[zippy99]

I literally have not had time to stop! On the 3rd of June were told we needed to vacate our family home of 15 years by 8th August - 10 days before our holiday!

Somehow - we managed to find a new home, pack, and move in 4weeks with no planning and not taking any annual leave!

I chucked so much away! That could have been sold

Still, the tips so far have been great and I look forward to reading the dining report.

I have two teenagers 17 & 15 both on holidays who can get voucher hunting!

We are looking to now spend last 2 nights in Disney area as our flight home from Miami is not until 9pm


I think with some of the support and ideas on here I am starting to feel excited at last

26 days ......

And have noticed this is my 1000th post

 

[BagOLaughs]

hello I just want to chime in... this is a blog that I've followed for years now. He did a good post on some "free" stuff you can do in Disney

http://www.disneytouristblog.com/free-things-disney-world/

Not every thing has to cost money

Well option 1 would be to obtain a credit card, and pay for it when you get back!

I use a credit card because it is one of the best ways to get a good exchange rate and not loose money on fees/poor exchange rates.

And you don't have to pay it off straight away, bonus! I have a Halfords Clarity card which is designed for use abroad. its really really good and I'd recommend it to anyone.