Tips about Saving

We save all of our change for the entire time leading up to our trip. We are actually able to save hundreds of dollars doing this -- your pennies add up quickly! Another thing we do takes some discipline, but we can save some major moolah. When we make a purchase using our debit card or checking account, I round up when I enter it. For example, if I have spent $13.50 somewhere, I enter $15 in my check book. Every couple of months I will figure out how much extra is in the checking account and transfer it to savings. It doesn't even feel like we are saving money! - Heather from Ohio

To save up for the trip:

-- If you live in a state where you can get deposits on bottles, do it! Take garbage bags to parks or your kids' soccer games or wherever there are crowds and drinks. Collect the bottles and turn them in. We did this when we lived in NY, and made over $600 for our first trip! As long as they wear gloves, it's also a great way to involve the kids, since they can help.
-- If you use coupons and/or grocery saver cards, take the money you saved and put it away after each trip to the store.
-- If you get "found" money, set it aside for your trip. For example, if we find money in a coat pocket, or in a purse or even on the street, we save it for Disney. My husband collects metal (aluminum, brass, copper, whatever) and turns it in to a local junkyard for cash. My son and I save change when we use cash to buy something. If we save unexpectedly on something we would have paid full price for (I recently got 20% off of something because it had minor damage I didn't really care about), we take the savings and use it for Disney. Wherever you can, even just a few cents, set it aside for your trip. Little bits at a time can add up much more quickly than you'd think. - Eileen Miller

My "Dear Hubby" and I each take $50 allowance each week. I started to put whatever was left from the previous week's $50 in an envelope. Knowing that I was going to hide this money away in seven days helped me to be more aware of my spending throughout the week. Between November and April, I was able to stash away $600 cash for the trip we took last month. I've already started a new envelope for future vacations because this was such an easy way to save money. - Debbie Ragno

My money-saving tip: Throughout the year make all your purchases on an airlines credit card, rewards card, or no-hassle miles card. I'm talking about your food shopping, gas, everything. This year we're traveling from the Northeast to Orlando by air (four of us) for $20 total because we were able to cash in the miles we accrued. Depending on your card's program you can get rewards certificates for dining, etc., also. Just remember to set aside the money you would have used at the supermarket or wherever to pay the bill at the end of the month. - Laura Fox

To save "free" money before going to Disney, I use my Disney Rewards Visa instead of my debit card. I charge everything I possibly can, write the charges in my checkbook just like I would my debit card, and pay the bill off each month. For our upcoming trip, I have $700 in free money that I can use for meals, room charges, etc. It's a little bit of work but it sure pays off in the end! - Amy Woodward

In this economy with tight money and budgets, my wife has come up with a solution to get us back to the MAGIC sooner than we expected. Her tip is simple. She clips coupons, seeks out special sales, and other discounts. She keeps up with how much she has saved by using the coupons or the sale discounts and the money she has saved goes into the Eeyore cookie jar in the kitchen, which is set aside for Disney only. I thought she had completely lost it until she showed me how much she had saved and we were back to WDW in only six months. Our local grocery store helps immensely with the process as your savings from coupons and the club membership discounts are printed at the bottom of the receipt. We don't have children, but I could see how you could get the kids involved -- clipping the coupons, organizing them, and searching for them on the internet could be like a scavenger hunt and a lot of fun for the whole family. This could also teach them the value of saving for something they really, really want. - DISNEYDEAN

I save all my change and some dollar bills, but instead of holding them for expenses, I periodically cash them in and deposit them to an online-only savings account, which is now up to 4.35 percent interest. Being online only, I have very little access to my money, but it grows at an incredible rate! I transfer most of it back to my regular checking account a week before I leave. The last thing I do is to use my Disney Visa from Chase if I HAVE TO charge purchases. The Disney Dream Reward Dollars it pays are good toward a lot of things. - Jon Pat

On the last day of our WDW trip, I found I had overbudgeted on some things and had money to spare. Instead of taking the money home, I took the excess money along with all of the change I had accumulated throughout the trip and traded it in for Disney Giftcard. That way I didn't spend the money on other things, and I had a head start on saving for next year's trip. Throughout the year, I also throw all of my change and one-dollar bills into a pickle jar and use the money to pay for gas, food, souvenirs, etc. Literally, every penny counts! I've also started saving money in a Christmas Club account through my bank so I have no access to the money and won't be tempted to spend it. - Dayshel Harwood

I bought one of those coupon holders that has the different sections and have used it to budget dollars in each section for food, souvenirs, kids' spending money, tips, etc. It works great and I add to each section as I'm saving up. I also leave any leftover money inside for the next trip. - Robin D.

I have made the trip to WDW several times and have always used this system to organize our money. Before we leave, I label an envelope for each day that we are there and divide our money between the days. At the hotel we leave all of the envelopes except the one for that day. This way we don't take the chance of losing all of our money and, in addition, it enables us to easily budget our money. We know how much money we have to spend each day, and we never need to worry about running out of money before the trip is over. - Christine McLellan

I shop at a grocery store that has a store discount card. Each week, in addition to my loose change, I "deposit" the amount saved at the grocery store. Boy, has THAT added up fast. My trip next month is paid for. Now I can Christmas shop. - Ann

I'd like to expand on Joanie's idea of saving change. I, too, am a change saver. But let's carry it one step further -- I never spend change! I pay for all my purchases with bills, even if I have the change in my pocket to cover it. At the end of the day, all my change (sometimes as much as $3-$4) goes into a water cooler bottle in our bedroom. Last year, we cashed in over $600 in change and it made the trip to WDW. Eventually, the jug may contain enough to cover Annual Passes so we can get to the World more often! - JPATTI1

Every year, from vacation to vacation, I save change. I have ended up with anywhere from $75 to $210 at the end of the year. I reserve this money for tips. It's money I never missed and money I won't miss giving out as a tip to our driver, to the bellman, to the taxi driver and so on. Joanie

A few years ago, I went to one of those "paint your own pottery" places in our home town. I selected a jar with a lid, and painted it with Walt Disney World themes, Cinderella Castle, etc. On the lid, I painted the words "Disney Fund." I gave this to my wife as an anniversary gift. All year long we throw our spare change in the jar and then use that change for a special romantic dinner for the two of us on our next WDW trip. This also worked very well as a Christmas gift for my parents this year; although, inside the jar was a reservation confirmation. We bought the entire family a trip to WDW for Christmas to join us for six days in October 2006. I visited Mom's and Dad's house just a few weeks after Christmas and they already had the jar nearly filled with change! I guess dinner will be on them! - Kevin-John Jobczynski

I've found a great way to save for our trip. Every time I go to our local mall, we stop by the Disney Store. I purchase Disney Gift cards, as many as I can afford that day. The main reason I do this is I know if I had the cash around the house, it would be spent on something else. This way, it can only be used at Disney. On our last trip, I didn't tell my husband I had done this. Right before our trip, I showed him my stash. On each envelope I had written the name of the restaurant, the time for priority seating and the confirmation number. The envelope contained the exact amount of money for that meal, including tax and tips if it was something like a character breakfast or dinner show. When we got to the restaurant, I just pulled out the envelope and everything was taken care of. With other meals, I just guessed what the meal would cost and marked that envelope Other Dinners. I had one envelope which had $200 worth of Disney gift cards for breakfasts for the eight days, one just for gifts to bring home and one for Tara's spending money. By having her own envelope, she knew she could buy whatever was in that envelope and when it was empty, that was it. By saving little by little over a period of time, we didn't have to charge anything. Alex was thrilled with the idea of no credit card bills and we've already begun saving for our next trip. Each time Tara gets cash or a check for her birthday, Christmas, etc., we go right to the mall. This is the best gift anyone could give her. I've told two friends who've begun to do the same. Hope it works for you! - Tara Gergar