10 Tips To Save Money For Your Disney Vacation!!

So you’ve been wanting to go to Disney, but you think that unless you get your own Fairy Godmother, that there’s no way you can afford to go? WRONG! Well, yes, Disney can be expensive, but with a few creative ways to save and some advance planning, you CAN make this dream vacation into a reality! Check out these 10 money-saving tips below:

#1 – Use coupons for EVERYTHING you can! One way to challenge yourself to save money is to start using coupons for everything possible. Then, however much you save in coupons, add that to your Disney savings right away.  Buy your local Sunday paper for traditional paper coupons and go to your grocery store’s website to download digital coupons. Then shop as you normally would. Many stores show you your savings at the bottom of the receipt. This can significantly add to your vacation budget as long as you stick to the things that you need. Don’t let using coupons add unnecessary items to your list, however, sometimes trying out different brands that there are coupons for, can really add up.  Combine this with tip #8 for even more savings!

#2 – Save all change in a Disney jar! Make it fun and decorate any old jar or container with your family. When everyone knows the goal and can contribute putting in all change that they have each night, the money really adds up. Kids love doing this because they know the more saved, the more quickly they will get to Disney, and who wouldn’t love that? 

Each year, I save up all of my change and at the end of the year, I sit on my bedroom floor, sort out the change, and roll it up…yes, I do it the old school way because I actually love seeing how much I was able to save this way. Believe it or not, I usually end up with at least $200. Not bad for pocket change, and this means some extra souvenirs (and maybe a few Dole Whips, too!) on my trip. Combine this with tip #6 for extra savings, too!

#3 – Use a Disney specialized vacation planner, like me! By using a travel agent who specializes in Disney, she will be on top of everything Disney, including the upcoming promotions that may be available for your trip. My clients can rest assured, that if a new promotion comes out that can be applied to their trip, even after they have booked with me, I will work to get that for them, whether that means getting them a lower rate or other perks, like upgrades. Always plan for what you will be able to afford in case one does not come out and then if a new promotion does comes out, it will be a bonus for you!

Besides saving money, your specialized Disney vacation planner, can also save you time by helping plan dining reservations, scheduling Fastpasses for you, and by giving you tons of knowledge that may otherwise take you endless hours of research. We know our stuff!

#4 – Book in advance. Simply put, booking well in advance at least 6-9 months can save you money because although there may not be a discounted rate available at the time of your booking, when/if one does come out, you can get the discounted rate applied, as long as it is available and it fits with what you have booked. Often times when discounts come out, the rooms book up quickly and you may lose out on an amazing deal. Booking in advance, especially with a specialized Disney travel agent, will allow your agent to be on the phone as soon as the promotion is available to get that applied to your account. 

Another way booking in advance is super helpful is that you can make payments to your vacation. You simply put $200 down per room booked for a vacation package or the cost of one night of hotel for a room-only reservation and then you have until 30 days prior to your vacation (90 days if a Disney Cruise – Disney Cruise Line deposits vary) to pay your balance. Making smaller payments along the way helps in two ways: 

1.) It ensures that you don’t spend that money on anything else 

2.) It really helps cut your balance down, even by just paying a little each month.

Booking early, also ensures that you will be ready at the 180 day mark for dining reservations and the 60 day mark (if staying on property or 30 day mark if staying off property) to make your Fastpass reservations and all of those things save time. And we all know time is money, especially in Disney!

#5 – Buy souvenirs ahead of time. For those with little ones and even some older kids, one great way to save money is to buy souvenirs ahead of time. You can get great items from the Disney Store online when they have sales or coupons, Walmart, Target, and even the dollar store. Surprise your children with little gifts along the way or each day in the hotel. Hopefully this helps cut down on all of the “wants” while in the park. Buying the Disney shirts and toys ahead of time is SO much cheaper than buying in the park. 

#6 – Get a Target Redcard.  Target offers a traditional Target Redcard credit card and also a debit card! Either one of these saves you 5% on all of your purchases, including Disney gift cards! This is a great savings. You can use Disney gift cards to pay for your vacation and throughout the Disney properties! 

Personally, I have the debit card which I use to buy Disney gift cards, and then I use these gift cards to for my vacation as well as items from the Disney Store before my trip. I also make sure to bring some spending money on Disney gift cards for the parks too, but only enough for what I know I will spend. If you have any leftover money on them, you can save them as they do not expire or start planning your 

#7 – Disney Gift Cards for Birthdays and Holidays.  For those of you with children, a great thing to do is to ask people to give your child a Disney gift card for birthdays and holidays. This will allow your children to have their own spending money once you arrive. I always did this when my daughter was young – this made her think about what she really wanted since she was spending her own money. Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny were known to leave these in stockings and baskets in my house. This is another great reason to plan early as well. 

#8 – Use Ebates, Ibotta, and Saving Star.  Shopping combined with traditional paper coupons and digital coupons is a great way to save but if you really want to amp up your savings from shopping, there are a few more FREE apps that you can download to do so. There are tons out there but these 3 are my top faves!

a. Ebates – seriously, if you are not using this and you shop online ever, you need to download this one. It’s simple. Follow my link below and sign up in about a minute. It’s free and does not require a credit card.  Once you sign up, when you are going do online shop, simply go to Ebates first, type in the name of the store you want to shop at first, and then shop as you normally do (using coupons if you can) and you earn cashback, which you get every 3 months in the form of a check or directly deposited to your PayPal account. I have earned $884.35 so far (look at my Lifetime cashback below)!  Using this link, will get you $10 to get you started  https://www.ebates.com/r/KELLY5216?eeid=28187 

b. Ibotta – Download the app and start saving. Again, this is FREE and allows you to earn money for things you already buy. You just upload your receipts or link your loyalty cards. You can even earn for shopping online, although, I like Ebates better for shopping online. Once you reach $20 in your account, you can cash out to your PayPal account. Once you cash out, you can then use whatever money you earned towards your vacation.  https://ibotta.com/r/onskrnc 

c. Saving Star – Download the app and link your loyalty cards from the grocery store, CVS, etc. You then click on what coupons you want and after shopping Saving Star automatically will put your earnings into your account a few days after shopping. Once you hit $20, you can cash out to your PayPal. Again, it is FREE and no credit cards are needed.

#9 – Cut out 1-2 Unnecessary things per month. Sounds simple enough and it is! Find 1 or 2 things (more if you think you can do it) and eliminate them. Here’s a bunch of easy ones that you won’t miss. Do you buy coffee every morning? Try making that at home and bringing it with you each day. Buy lunch everyday? Try packing your lunch a few times per week. Order pizza every Friday night? Why not do it every other Friday and make something at home as a family on the off weeks? Cancel memberships that you don’t use. Watch a movie on Netflix instead of going to the theater. Have a home phone that you never use but it comes with your cable package. Call the cable provider and negotiate…it may take a little haggling but it will be worth it. Paying too much for car insurance…shop around (I saved $2000 per year last year doing this!) You get the idea. The more you feel comfortable doing, the more you can save. 

#10 – Have a garage sale or sell your stuff online. Such a simple idea that helps you declutter and bring in some extra money. Have everyone in the family go through unneeded items and declutter all the things in your basement and garage that have been sitting there forever. Live in an apartment, condo, or townhouse? Take pictures of your stuff instead and list on Facebook Moms on a Budget groups (just search for your local area) or use online selling apps such as Let Go, Ebay, or Poshmark. You can make some serious cash having a garage sale or selling online. Then use that money and put it directly into your Disney fund. 

Most of all, make saving FUN! Do some or all of these tips, and you will get there…just keep saving, it really DOES add up! Just don’t give up!  I’d love to help you make your dream a reality. Contact me at [email protected] or at www.facebook.com/KellyAtRopeDropTravel.