Planning a Walt Disney World trip on a tight budget

My boyfriend and I love visiting Walt Disney World in Florida and we know we are not alone when it comes to planning a trip to visit Walt Disney World when you don't have a whole lot of money to dedicate to the trip. This hub is dedicated to sharing some of our tips for taking a trip to Disney World when you have a tight budget to work with.

Perhaps the most important tip I can give anybody looking to visit Walt Disney World is to always stay at a Disney resort. My boyfriend and I always stay at one of the resorts in the Value category at Walt Disney World (All Star Music, All Star Sports, All Star Movies, Pop Century, and Art of Animation Opening Later This Year). What we've found is that, even though you may pay a little more to stay at a Disney resort, the benefits of staying on property generally outweigh the price difference. Websites such as www.allears.net generally post seasonal calendars for each Disney resort so you can try and plan your vacation according to when the rates are lowest. My boyfriend and I actually went during a one week window between Thanksgiving and Christmas that was rated as a value week so we not only got an inexpensive room but we got to see the parks decorated for the holidays as an added bonus.

Here are some of the benefits of staying on property at a Disney resort:
-Guaranteed admission to the parks.
-Your resort ID can be used for charging meals and purchases if you so desire.
-You can have purchases delivered to your resort so you don't have to carry them around all day.
-Free parking at all of the theme parks.
-Free transportation throughout the property (granted everybody can take advantage of this, but being able to just hop a bus to visit the park of your choice is very nice when you don't want to fight for a good parking spot).
-Free wheelchair rentals.
-The ability to take advantage of Disney Dining.
-The ability to book dining reservations for the entire week of your trip 180 days in advance of the first night of your stay (this is a huge perk if you want to go to Le Cellier, Cinderella's Royal Table, or any other restaurant that is notoriously difficult to secure reservations).
-Extra magic hours for resort guests only.

You may not get much, if any discount during your first trip to Disney World if you haven't been there recently (or at all for many people) but that's not to say you can't take advantage of programs that will get you a discount on some of the perks offered at Disney or you won't get a discount on a return visit. My boyfriend and I stayed at Disney in 2009 and when it came to planning our trip in 2011, Disney sent us a coupon for 35% off our room rate which allowed us to upgrade our dining plan. Also, if you call to get reservations or go through a travel agent, the person you speak with may know of some unadvertised discounts you can take advantage of.

One part of staying at Disney resorts that my boyfriend and I absolutely love is the Disney Dining program. Currently Disney offers three dining plans based on what your personal preferences may be when visiting.

Quick Service Dining Plan - Includes 2 Quick Service Meals per person per night, 2 Snacks per person per night, and one refillable drink mug per person.

Plus Dining Plan - Includes one table service meal per person per night, one quick service meal per person per night, and two snacks per person per night.

Deluxe Dining Plan - Includes three meals per person per night (your choice of table or quick service meal) along with two snacks per person per night and a refillable drink mug for each person.

My boyfriend and I have tried both the plus dining plan as well as the deluxe dining plan and we've found that they each have their merits. If you plan on trying a lot of the signature or table service restaurants, especially at more pricey locations, deluxe dining is the way to go. If you aren't sure what you want to do, I suggest starting out with the plus dining package and upgrading to deluxe for future visits.

Some restaurants, such as Le Cellier or Cinderellas Royal Table, are very pricey (as in, a tab for 2 people could easily run more than $200) which is where Disney Dining can really help you save money. Essentially you pay with credits (or entitlements as they call them at Disney) on Disney Dining so all you really have to worry about at most restaurants when using a dining plan is how much to tip your server and how much you need to pay for alcoholic beverages if you so choose (soft drinks are included).

I don't like to fly, so much so that the past two trips I've taken to Walt Disney World in Florida have been road trips. If you have a car that gets decent fuel economy (we have a 2007 Saturn Vue with the 4 cylinder engine and a manual transmission that averages about 30mpg on the highway) then driving may be a much more economical option. Yes, driving from Vermont to Florida is a two day endeavor, but we have often found we miss out on so many sites and spend so much more money when we fly. Total transportation costs to and from Disney World only ran us about $300, which was much less than a plane ticket for one person. Plus we didn't have the hassle of having to go through airport security and we had a car if we needed it (although once we got to Florida it stayed parked for about 95% of our stay).

Perhaps my favorite benefit of staying at a Disney resort is the ability to make installment payments on your trip. When you first book you will need to put $200 down to hold your reservation, after that you have until 45 days prior to check in to pay. Knowing how much you can set aside to trip payments each month can really help you know what kind of vacation you can afford.

And start a change jar where you can save some of your small change for tips and souvenirs. Again, this is where taking a year to plan comes in handy as each time you go out to do normal shopping you can have a place where you can set your change aside in anticipation of your vacation.

Our grand total came to roughly $2,200. $1,800 of that was for 5 days and six nights at the Pop Century resort from December 12 - 17th 2011, Deluxe Dining for six nights, and theme park tickets with the park hopper option for five days. The rest of that was for fuel expenses as well as lodging to and from Florida. We also saved about $300 in our change jar for tips and other expenses incurred.