What does Disney cost?

[Anonymous]

I am wondering about a ballpark figure for the cost to go to Disney World tis time of year (maybe next Thanksgiving time) with 2 adults, a 5 year old, a 3 year old and a 6 month old. I was thinking 5 nights in a resort in the park.

We never travel so I have no idea what a trip like this might cost but we are thinking it might be time to go there with the kiddos.

[Anonymous]

Well, I think going at Thanksgiving will almost double your costs, plus it depends on how many days you go to a theme park and how much you tend to spend on food.

We paid about $120/night for our resort, which I got on discount on hotels.com or some similar site. Our airline tickets were $170 each. Add in $75/per person per day for park entrance for 4 of you (the 6 month old gets in free). Add another $100 if you want to do a character meal ($25 each when you include tax and tip). As for other meals, it totally depends on how much and where you eat, how many sit down meals you want, etc. Assuming $150/day for meals, that brings you to close to $3K if you want to spend 3 days in the parks. I would add another $2k if you want to do it Thanksgiving week.

[Anonymous]

Are you looking to do it on a budget? Or looking to make it easy?

We did it on a budget staying in the park. We got single park passes each day (with these you can only go to 1 park as opposed to the park - hopper).

I have no clue what the "best" airfare you can get is - but if you stay at Disney, transportation to and from the airport is free.

It is my understanding that AAA have some good deals - but that there may be a window to book it each year (?)

We usually schedule our trips around the "Value" season. During this period the hotels are cheaper and the parks less crowded. It is much more enjoyable - but it needs to work for you.

We stayed at the Fort Wilderness Cabins and these all have kitchens in them. There are a series of hotel options that have kitchens. This made it easy as we had breakfast in our room each morning and also had a simple dinner in our room 2 nights which made it easier for the kids and adults.

A good resource is the unofficial guide to Disney - DO NOT buy the Unofficial Guide for Kids.

[Anonymous]

it is hard to know since disney has deals regularly (7 nights for the price of 5, etc.) Somwtimes they have free dining.
But PP is right - Thanksgiving is a busy/crowded/expensive time.

Last time we went, we stayed off site (Windsor Hills) and had a 3br condo for less than $100/night. Of course we had to rent a car, but that was $150/week (rentals are so cheap in Orlando.) We saved money by buying quick breakfast foods and snacks to bring into the park with us. Look at buying tickets through Undercover Tourist for ticket price savings. Use Southwest Dings! for cheaper airfare.