Tips about Saving
Disney has such a large selection of coin banks. We bought one toward the end of our trip but next time we will buy it on the first day. THEN as we get back to our room or camper each night, all change will go into the bank to begin our savings fund for our next trip. I found that halfway thru this trip I was lugging around a huge change purse of coins that added a heavy load to my backpack. Buying a bank the first day will not only give us a fun sense of "when we come back again" but i won't be lugging all those nickels & dimes around trying to pawn them off on kiosk vendors paying for my stuff. - Amy Miles
I have 5 children, so going to Disney is a BIG expense for me. One thing I do to cut my expenses is have the children receive Disney Gift Cards for the WHOLE year before our trip. I tell all friends and family members to give them to my children for their birthdays. Also, the tooth fairy, Easter bunny and Santa has even been known to give Disney Gift Cards 🙂 This way, by the time they have received them for the whole year, they have a hefty stash, and Mom and Dad do not have to budget in spending money for them!! - Karen Revis
My husband and I start saving money early. When we write our check in the registry, we always round it up. So say the check was $12.16, we would write it [in our checkbook] for $13 dollars. Then when we are about to go to Disney, we go to the back and get a list of all the checks that cleared and a balance in our account. We have saved at least $1000 (in 1 year) by doing that and we take that on our trip. It makes it easy to save money that way. - Lynda P.
We all save the coins from our pockets and roll them when we have enough. In April 1999 I started collecting $1.00 bills as well as the coins. I pay for everything with $5's, 10's, 20's, etc. I don't touch my piles of 1's, which I bundle in $100 increments. By the end of 1999, I had saved in excess of $2000 which paid for all expenses at Disney for a week in Feb. This year I have been doing the same thing and have over $2000 saved so far. Make it a game and have fun with it - try to buy things that you will get back $4. at a time. Once at a pizza place, our bill was $21 and I gave the cashier a $100 bill. She gave me $79 in change. Cool huh? - Joe Marcus
When we returned from our February 2000 trip to WDW we immediately decided to return in February 2001. So we were back to saving for another trip, in addition to our regular vacation savings we decided to start a "Mickey Jar". We took a big plastic container, the type that held pretzels, decorated it with different Mickey characters and put all of our spare change in the jar. Every time we go to a store, instead of parting with our change we give them a bill and throw all the change in the jar. So far in 8 months we have accumulated $175.00. I know it isn't much, but it will be put towards our souvenir money, and it is money we do not even miss. - Debbi Morasch of Connecticut
My family, like most others, books it's trip more than a year ahead of time. We begin stashing away $10 a week in Disney Gift Cards as soon as we make our vacation ressies. This in addition to whatever other money we budget or save. The Gift Carfd go in an envelope and remain there until trip time. Based on a 52 week calender year that gives you $520, enough to cover most of your meals budget and it's money you hardly even missed from your weekly budget!! - Barry Richard from Massachusetts
We have our "Mickey Money Jug" like everyone else for saving change to convert to Disney Gift Cards. I've found that it has another use, too. About two months before we leave for our Disney trips, I start throwing in all the one dollar bills I get. This way, we have plenty of singles for the tips without having to worry about them at the last minute! Even though seeing all those dollars may be tempting, I've instituted a penalty for taking anything out of the jug -- pay double back (take a $1, pay back $2, take 2 quarters, pay a dollar, etc.)! We always come out ahead! - DznyLvrs
When we were planning for our WDW family vacation in 2002, we saved Disney Dollars. We realized the grandchildren would ask us for souvenirs if their Mom and Dad said "No," so we decided we better plan ahead! We wanted to give each grandchild the same amount of Disney spending money, and build anticipation for the trip as well. For a year in advance, each time there was a birthday, a lost tooth, a good report card or special event, we cashed in real dollars for Disney Gift Cards at our local Disney store and put them in a card. By the time we got to WDW, they had more money than we did! They all had a great time spending their Disney Dollars in the parks on snacks and souvenirs. It was nice to be able to say, "YES, you can spend your Disney Gift Cards," instead of "NO, we can't afford it, it's too expensive!" - GrandmaryB
