Monthly payments?

[Britt]

I saw something that had talked about making monthly payments for your WDW trip?? I've noticed people talking about having their final payment in, but I always thought that was for their credit cards...HAHAHAHA

What are the benefits to paying monthly? Obviously payments are going to vary depending on what you book, but how long do payment plans go for? I checked out what it would be to pay over the course of 12 months, it was like...$200 a month lol

 

[sweetpee_1993]

It should be 20% for dcl. If you rebook onboard it's only 10%. Tho there were some changes here recently. I might be out of date

You're still correct, Flynn. DCL is still 20% deposit with balance due 75 days before sailing. Onboard bookings reduce the deposit to just 10%. I like DCL's deposits way better than RCI's. They're a flat $500 per stateroom. We have 2 rooms on the Allure for Thanksgiving 2013. That deposit really irritated me.

I also agree with holding off the final payment. Just taught this concept to my 16 yro. He has a deposit down on a special edition of the new Call of Duty game set to release in October or November (I forget which). He put his deposit down a few weeks ago then would ask to go back to the store to make payments every time he got paid. I sat him down, told him no, then explained. His first dividends payment into his account at the credit union was a huge help. I showed him that you put your money into your account and make a little note what you have coming up to pay & when. Draw your interest & make your money work for you. It all adds up. Why let your money work for someone else? He caught on quick!

 

[englanddg]

His first dividends payment into his account at the credit union was a huge help. I showed him that you put your money into your account and make a little note what you have coming up to pay & when. Draw your interest & make your money work for you. It all adds up. Why let your money work for someone else? He caught on quick!

My parents / grandparents / uncles all stressed this to me growing up...it makes sense as a teen, and as a teen, I followed their advice...because it makes sense.

When I hit my early to mid 20s, I saw a lot of financial success (not really that much, but to someone who thought that a few k a month was a lot of income, I was on top of the world!)

I burned through it all, and it wasn't until I got a bit older that I got wiser.

The only habit I kept in that period that I'm glad I did was annual IRA contributions.

Otherwise, if I could go back in time and meet a 23 year old version of myself, I'd smack him in the face...er...wallet.

 

[firecatgirl]

I booked for April 2013 paid the 200 deposit and just paId 1000 yesterday. My goal was to pay it off before January because I thought if the prices went up before I paid it off I was responsible for the extra. Am I wrong?

 

[Alison1975]

I saw something that had talked about making monthly payments for your WDW trip?? I've noticed people talking about having their final payment in, but I always thought that was for their credit cards...HAHAHAHA

What are the benefits to paying monthly? Obviously payments are going to vary depending on what you book, but how long do payment plans go for? I checked out what it would be to pay over the course of 12 months, it was like...$200 a month lol

I make weekly payments. I take our total.. divide it by how many weeks until 45 days then make that plus 10% every pay day. We have no credit cards and this way I have a reasonable way to budget the trip. Putting it in savings doesnt work for us because something would always come up the kids need and that would eat away at the money.

 

[Semantje]

Never had the option to a monthly payment. Booked on the UK site and we had to pay 200 pounds immediatly and the rest 45 days before due date. I wish we could to monthly payments because we are terrible savers.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

They only let you book 1 year out though, correct??

If free dining becomes available or something, can you add that to your reservations?

How far out you can book depends on when you want to go. i.e. if timed with when they release everything for the next year, it could be more than a year out. Example: I booked our December 2010 trip in September of 2009.

As for adding discounts- you can do that at any time. Just be aware that you may have a ticket price increase in the middle of all of it. i.e. I booked in February and had tickets at a certain price included in my pkg. When free dining came out in August, I called and had them rebook with that incentive however the ticket price increase had already gone into effect- so that also altered the price when rebooking.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

Never had the option to a monthly payment. Booked on the UK site and we had to pay 200 pounds immediatly and the rest 45 days before due date. I wish we could to monthly payments because we are terrible savers.

Sounds like the UK "payments" work same as the US. There's no set payment plan you choose when booking. It's always the same: deposit + balance 45 days prior to arrival. You can make payments daily, weekly, monthly, etc. as long as the balance is paid by the deadline. It's up to you what you pay & when.

 

[captainkidd]

This is the biggest advantage Disney has over Universal. Universal, or rather, Lowes, only allows you pay the 1 night's deposit when you make your reservation. You can't call and make payments over the phone. If you want to make extra payments, you have to fill out a form they send to you, make copies of your license and credit card, and fax it over to them. Plus, if you decide to switch resorts, you have to cancel your original reservation, wait for the refund, and rebook a whole new one. Disney makes it FAR easier.

 

[flynnibus]

I booked for April 2013 paid the 200 deposit and just paId 1000 yesterday. My goal was to pay it off before January because I thought if the prices went up before I paid it off I was responsible for the extra. Am I wrong?

What you reserve you should be protected in price. Where people get hit with price increases is when they book 'some' of their trip. Example: They book their room, but put off buying tickets until they get there. There, they are exposed to paying the ticket price at the time they arrive, instead of when they reserved. If you book a package that includes tickets, you should be insulated against price increases for anything INCLUDED in your package.

 

[flynnibus]

Oh Flynn, Im horrrrrible at saving. I get so caught up in "the moment" and before I know it, the trip is here and I haven't saved a dime! We went this past week to WDW with exactly 1200. That was for 5 people to eat, luggage, toll ways, and long term parking and Universal. That is not a lot of money when it comes down to it. LOL And I barely managed that by the skin of my teeth. LOL I try so hard, and I just.......UGH! lol

I love the idea of just paying it and being done with it! : )

Yes, it works as 'forced savings' - the same logic people use with buying Gift Cards (another bad idea unless you are manipulating rewards points). Neither are the best way to get the most of your money, but what they are good for is forcing people to save by taking the money out of their hands. Some people just need the extra help to keep themselves from raiding the piggy bank Pre-paying the vacation isn't really bad, especially with Disney since their refund policies are so good - but a free loan it is not. If it helps people structure their money, more power to them

I prefer the separate account method.. I move excess money out of my checking account I use for daily life into a secondary account so I don't taunt myself at the ATM when the balance line comes up