How do you save money for trips?

[SpongeScott]

My son was bored on Saturday, so he counted all of our loose change that we put into a jug between trips to Disney. When trip time comes, we roll it and cash it in. We got back in October 2002 and have saved $53 in loose change. This got me to thinking--how else do people save their money when they plan to go. Most people plan in advance and begin to save and make sacrifices, but how do you do it? Maybe there is something you are doing that can help me out and vice versa. Here are some things we do.

1. save loose change and roll before we go.
2. put part of every paycheck into a Disney fund. My wife does this and we'll have close to $1000 by the time we go.
3. Income tax refund.
4. I work for a church, so on occasion I will get something for weddings or funerals. I use that money and put into our Disney fund.

What works for you? Most of us are probably not independently wealthy and it takes some savings and budgeting to pull WDW trips off. We all know it's expensive--but worth it! Share your secrets and tips!

 

[Horizons38]

Besides all that you mentioned which are all great ideas, if any of you has things they want to get rid of the great way is to put them on eBay, you can make a lot of money on the things that are no longer treasures for you but might be for other people, i put some paper dolls i had from years ago and made about 300.00 in a week ! Just go to eBay.com and register and you can start selling

 

[wild01ride]

I started a "Holiday" account at my financial institution and it automatically deposits a set amount into that acocunt each time a paycheck is direct-deposited. It works out great and it's a lot easier to save money that never touches your hands!
This will be my first trip trying this tactic so I'll report on it's success!

 

[crazygirley]

I "save money" for my trips by eating popcorn and pickles for about three months before the trip. Not only have I then sucessfully saved money by not grocery shopping as much, but I have also lost about 5 pounds. I usually spend the money shopping, though.

 

[SpongeScott]

Originally posted by crazygirley
I "save money" for my trips by eating popcorn and pickles for about three months before the trip.

Sounds like you need to take a trip to the maternity ward, not to WDW.:lol:

 

[Main Street USA]

Originally posted by crazygirley
I "save money" for my trips by eating popcorn and pickles for about three months before the trip. Not only have I then sucessfully saved money by not grocery shopping as much, but I have also lost about 5 pounds. I usually spend the money shopping, though.

:lol: That's halarious!
That right there is the definition of a die hard Disney fan! I mean, I love Disney World, but I also love food! Whew, that's a tough one. I suppose I could go on PB & J for a while if it meant saving a couple hundred bucks, but my wife wouldn't ever allow it. She's not quite as enthusiastic about WDW as I am, and wouldn't really be into such extremes.

 

[Dwarful]

we do all the above..and of course the vacation club account at the credit union. also any little extras..like rebate checks or overtime my husband gets..a part of that goes in as well.

A friend of mine does a huge yard sale every other year and that is the family "spending money" for the non-essentials..souvineers, photos etc. (since when did those things become non-essential??) its alot of work but she makes quite abit.

 

[Pioneer Hall]

I put money in a place where I can't look at it.

This way I am not tempted to spend it.

 

[tigsmom]

my husband has some money from every paycheck put in the credit union...it usually take 2 years to save enough for a trip (Travel, room, passes, food, etc.) The kids and I save money from recycling and we also roll our spare pocket change. One year our "extra money" was $125!!!

 

[SirNim]

It seems most people here create a vacation account, either a virtual one or a tangible one, e.g. at a bank or in a big bucket of coins, respectively. We do the same thing. Additionally, when holidays roll around, we sorta buy "light" in order to use the remaining money on presents and souvenirs in the shopping Kingdom of the (Walt Disney) World!

 

[wild01ride]

What money you don't see now won't hurt- but it sure will pay off a year from now! ($25/paycheck, twice a month= $600 + interest in a year!!)

 

[meanmice]

normally we roll coins, my parents put in their bonus checks, and for my upcomming trip, I worked for two months.

 

[Blizz]

Well my parents put in most of their money through the IRS refund, part of their pay check and any loose change aroudn the house. I also save about half of my paycheck each month. It goes right into the bank. It takes about a year, but somehow we always get it together and go every year.

Already saving for this summers trip, I am about half way there!

 

[MinnieFan]

We do alot of the same things. We opened an account just for Disney Vacations. Every time we can, we put a paycheck in there. We also keep a coin jar for that extra spending money
Usually a month or two before we leave, we go on "spending probation". We don't spend any money unless we have to. We only have a little more than 6 weeks of waiting left until we leave so we are in "Spending Probation" mode right now.

 

[GenerationX]

Every January, I make up The Budget for the year with all income and expenses. The WDW trip becomes just another line item. Sometimes it takes a bit of work (read: cuts) to keep The Budget balanced, but that's the way it is with any budget. It forces you to prioritize. For our family, we finalize virtually all major financial decisions during the budgeting process (btw - my wife is nowhere near as boring as I am). When we go to WDW, we go guilt-free; the money was budgeted months before.

 

[rosie.ca]

well i had been cutting out things like pop,walk instead of driving (to save on gas) sell arts and crafts etc... oh and save a third of all my pay checks but .... here is something not to do when saving for a disney trip... Don't let your 17 year old brother set the house on fire *watches her disney dreams go up in flames *

 

[SpongeScott]

Originally posted by rosie.ca
well i had been cutting out things like pop,walk instead of driving (to save on gas) sell arts and crafts etc... oh and save a third of all my pay checks but .... here is something not to do when saving for a disney trip... Don't let your 17 year old brother set the house on fire *watches her disney dreams go up in flames *

OUCH!! Is there a story behind this?

 

[rosie.ca]

:brick: he lit a candle...then went to bed...bed go on fire ...fire bad... melty disney pins... melty left over park passes etc .
this was last friday
kitties and doggies and bunnies and peoples are ok tho
and house is mostly ok... i was gonna take my mum in may if she was well enough to travel ...we shall see what happens


maybe i can save up enough for a later date ...any suggestions lol?

 

[RU42]

I have a couple ideas:

On my last trip to WDW, I saved all the shiny pennies and as many quarters as I could possibly find. Then I was able to visit many of the pressed penny machines and walk away with quite a souvenir without any 'extra' cost.

My last trip was funded by my employer. I had close to 220 vacation hours on record. I asked the boss if he would cash in XXX hours and provide me the money for my second honeymoon. I have enough Frq Flyer miles to go to the moon, so I cash a few in and had round trip first class seats. The vacation fund paid for everything Disney (hotel, passes, meals, etc.) My only out of pocket expenses was for things like airport meals, towncar to/from the park, etc.

One other thought, dig for those discounts. I got a Polynesian garden room for $95 a night. That was $60 less then I was prepared to spend per night. Over 8 nights that was a huge chunk of change that I could spend on souvenirs. Disney got the money in the end, but the thought counts.

Not everything I suggested would apply to everyone but I think you get the idea. Maybe you don't fly as much as I do, but you can get a credit card that gives you Frq Flyer miles. Then pay for EVERYTHING through the credit card. Now your flight is free. I know Disney is about to come out with a credit card that will give you points (March if I recall correctly). I can't wait to get it.

RU

 

[rosie.ca]

wow that was an awesome discount!
i never seem to be able to use my points from my credit cards for anything usefull tho