Travel

Disney World Cost

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Aug 3, 2014
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Toronto, ON

Disney World Cost

Me and my girlfriend are planning a trip to Disney world in September (that month was chosen as we assume its the cheapest time of the year) and I am curious if anyone has ideas or ways of saving even more on the cost. With the Canadian dollar being so bad, is it worth waiting to see if it goes up? Or to pay in advance? Should we book flights through disney or separate? Wait to book flights a few weeks before our date? We will be staying at a disney resort with the second dining plan and 6 day park pass.
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DO NOT WASTE TIME HERE...go to disboards.com and mousesavers.com

fly out of BUF.

i suspect you are already paying too much.
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shawneallison wrote: Me and my girlfriend are planning a trip to Disney world in September (that month was chosen as we assume its the cheapest time of the year) and I am curious if anyone has ideas or ways of saving even more on the cost. With the Canadian dollar being so bad, is it worth waiting to see if it goes up? Or to pay in advance? Should we book flights through disney or separate? Wait to book flights a few weeks before our date? We will be staying at a disney resort with the second dining plan and 6 day park pass.
Disney currently has a promotion for Canadians, 25% off park tickets.

If you can get flights for ~300.00 CAD, fly out of Toronto, otherwise Buffalo w/ Southwest Airlines is about $200 to $250USD a ticket. I would book flights separately - no need to go through Disney.

Hotels and cars, plenty of deals, just keep checking Costco Travel, Expedia, etc.

Also, I prefer to stay off resort, you can get a lot cheaper hotels.
Last edited by coolspot on Jan 31st, 2017 4:58 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Don't wait to book flights. They generally go up.
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Momof3cuties wrote: Don't wait to book flights. They generally go up.
That's not true - current flight prices to Florida are actually quite expensive at the moment. Flight price fluctuate and considering OP's trip is in September has plenty of time to shop for the best fare.
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coolspot wrote: That's not true - current flight prices to Florida are actually quite expensive at the moment. Flight price fluctuate and considering OP's trip is in September has plenty of time to shop for the best fare.
exactly. this advice is perhaps the most horrible advice. i mean you can not even book on Southwest out of BUF in sept. I am always amazed at the horrible advice given on RFD for travel. That is honestly why there are so many other places OP should go before coming here.
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shawneallison wrote: Me and my girlfriend are planning a trip to Disney world in September (that month was chosen as we assume its the cheapest time of the year) and I am curious if anyone has ideas or ways of saving even more on the cost. With the Canadian dollar being so bad, is it worth waiting to see if it goes up? Or to pay in advance? Should we book flights through disney or separate? Wait to book flights a few weeks before our date? We will be staying at a disney resort with the second dining plan and 6 day park pass.
It is cheaper but we're not talking crazy amounts. However, September is good because it is less busy.

I just booked a trip at the worst time, August (but I had to adhere to various schedules of my kids) so to make the most of it, I went through Ebates to go to Expedia and booked on Westjet. I am expecting to triple dip my rewards this way (EBates cash back, Expedia+ rewards and WestJet dollars). That said, if you are 100% going to Disney, buy your tickets to the parks now. There is an ongoing thread here and until February 28th, you save 25% off park tickets:
disney-canadians-save-25-walt-disney-wo ... s-2041358/

I also got myself an Amazon Visa card. Not the best one (but it's free), but I used it to buy my tickets as the site sells tickets in USD. The benefit with the Amazon card is there is no foreign transaction fee.

I am not aware of any deals for September staying on site, but watch mousesavers.com. I think around that time, you might get a deal with a free dining plan.

I should mention, the time I am going (August 5-10), Disney is offering a Dining Offer plan where you get one quick service per day. Not much but for my family of 4, it'll save me at least $60-$80 USD a day.

Anyhow, if you're looking to be frugal and who isn't, get a credit card with no foreign transaction fee and link it to your Disney account. Buy your park tickets now as this is the best deal at the moment. I believe for 4-days, WestJet was $367 and Air Canada was $370. Buying through Disney worked out to ~$350 CAD. As you probably noticed, it is "cheap" to buy tickets for longer so your 6-day tickets probably cost a few bucks more than what I paid. As for the Canadian dollar recovering, even if it does (I don't think it will), the 25% off is going to be better than any dollar recovery by the end of February.

As for flights, I never tested the price guarantees but it is definitely cheaper to buy earlier. Do NOT buy a few weeks before. Another reason you shouldn't do this is if you plan to stay on-site, I have noticed rooms getting sold out which I am guessing is because of the Avatar opening this summer. Now, I doubt it will be sold out in September, but I'd start shopping now and commit by April/May. This way also, you get your hotel confirmation and you can link it to your Disney account and start reserving Fast Passes.

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mkjr wrote: exactly. this advice is perhaps the most horrible advice. i mean you can not even book on Southwest out of BUF in sept. I am always amazed at the horrible advice given on RFD for travel. That is honestly why there are so many other places OP should go before coming here.
We go almost every year to Florida. With southwest (and often JetBlue) the prices tend to be lower shortly after the fares are released. Each time we have booked I continue to watch the fares closely (with southwest you can get credits for future flights if the cost goes down). I have never seen them drop below the price i have gotten and almost always they continue to go up.

OP if you are looking to fly out of Buffalo, if you see fares around $100 each way book it. Pay attention to when southwest will release fares and check the first day.

I have never had to pay more then $225 for a return trip to Orlando. And we always buy our flights months in advance.
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With the decrease in Canadian traffic out of buffalo and the dollar, I'd say it's more likely to have prices come down. The lowest I've paid out of buf was in 2008 for 147Us all in each.
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The USD recently went down to 1.3 from highs of 1.4+. You might want to lock in some of your USD 'cause the USD is gonna get stronger with the Fed raising interest rates. Just get a US dollar account at your bank, if you don't have one already.

You can really save a lot by using surrounding hotels if you are not too picky about where to stay. A few years ago, we went in April. At that time, 3-star hotels were $35/night and 4-star hotels were $60/night in nearby Kissimmee. They all seem to have free shuttle buses that bring you to the entrance.
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If you're staying onsite, we booked through dreams unlimited, and it was great. They alert you to sales, as well as book meals and give you a schedule that maximizes your time in the parks (i.e which parks stay open late on which day).
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coolspot wrote: That's not true - current flight prices to Florida are actually quite expensive at the moment. Flight price fluctuate and considering OP's trip is in September has plenty of time to shop for the best fare.
Flying on SW BUF-FLL this week for $160 return

Cost and Payment Summary
AIR - xxxxxx
Base Fare $ 123.50
Excise Taxes $ 9.26
Segment Fee $ 8.00
Passenger Facility Charge $ 9.00
September 11th Security Fee $ 11.20
Total Air Cost $ 160.96
Payment Information
Payment Type: Univ Air Travel XXXXXXXXXXX6866
Date: Jan 11, 2017
Payment Amount: $160.96
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Casper wrote: Flying on SW BUF-FLL this week for $160 return
OP is going in September, those fares have not been discounted yet; I don't even think you can book Southwest that far ahead.
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Seats on Southwest/Jetblue/ etc is all about supply and demand. If seats sell quickly, prices goes up as you get closer to departure date. eg. XMas/New year, March Break, etc.

Opposite is true too. On lower volume times, prices goes down the closer to the departure date gets, then goes way up on the last few weeks prior to departure, to catch all the last minute people who hasn't already bought yet.

I think the later will occur as Sept is one of the slowest times of the year for Orlando. Gotta watch for Hurricane season tho.
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mkjr wrote: With the decrease in Canadian traffic out of buffalo and the dollar, I'd say it's more likely to have prices come down. The lowest I've paid out of buf was in 2008 for 147Us all in each.
Those were the good ole days, CAD $ was worth more than the US Dollar too, back in the days before the financial melt down.
I think I was getting 1.20 US for every CAD $.
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Look out for the free dining plan for Sept.We had it when we went first week of September a few years ago and it was very convenient and saved lots of money for a family of four.Also,it can be really hot in Sept as it was 85 to 100 degrees everyday.The crowds were a little smaller compared to school breaks,but it was still really busy.I don't think there are any super slow times at Disney anymore . I've heard a good time to go is the time between American thanksgiving and Christmas week
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nicry1 wrote: I've heard a good time to go is the time between American thanksgiving and Christmas week
October to till US Thanksgiving and a week after US Thanksgiving until before Christmas holiday is a great time.

Avoid Christmas and End of March/Easter Weekend... I think these are the two busiest times at WDW.
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HDawg wrote: It is cheaper but we're not talking crazy amounts. However, September is good because it is less busy.

I just booked a trip at the worst time, August (but I had to adhere to various schedules of my kids) so to make the most of it, I went through Ebates to go to Expedia and booked on Westjet. I am expecting to triple dip my rewards this way (EBates cash back, Expedia+ rewards and WestJet dollars). That said, if you are 100% going to Disney, buy your tickets to the parks now. There is an ongoing thread here and until February 28th, you save 25% off park tickets:
disney-canadians-save-25-walt-disney-wo ... s-2041358/

I also got myself an Amazon Visa card. Not the best one (but it's free), but I used it to buy my tickets as the site sells tickets in USD. The benefit with the Amazon card is there is no foreign transaction fee.

I am not aware of any deals for September staying on site, but watch mousesavers.com. I think around that time, you might get a deal with a free dining plan.

I should mention, the time I am going (August 5-10), Disney is offering a Dining Offer plan where you get one quick service per day. Not much but for my family of 4, it'll save me at least $60-$80 USD a day.

Anyhow, if you're looking to be frugal and who isn't, get a credit card with no foreign transaction fee and link it to your Disney account. Buy your park tickets now as this is the best deal at the moment. I believe for 4-days, WestJet was $367 and Air Canada was $370. Buying through Disney worked out to ~$350 CAD. As you probably noticed, it is "cheap" to buy tickets for longer so your 6-day tickets probably cost a few bucks more than what I paid. As for the Canadian dollar recovering, even if it does (I don't think it will), the 25% off is going to be better than any dollar recovery by the end of February.

As for flights, I never tested the price guarantees but it is definitely cheaper to buy earlier. Do NOT buy a few weeks before. Another reason you shouldn't do this is if you plan to stay on-site, I have noticed rooms getting sold out which I am guessing is because of the Avatar opening this summer. Now, I doubt it will be sold out in September, but I'd start shopping now and commit by April/May. This way also, you get your hotel confirmation and you can link it to your Disney account and start reserving Fast Passes.
August isn't the worst time. It's tied with September for quietest month. Drink lots of water and you'll be fine!
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If you are young, I'd argue to wait until you have kids. There are many (more enjoyable) places in the world where dragging kids is a hassle.

Without kids, I'd recommend the winter months, as kids are in school and so at least you have the benefit of walking a place without snow. And also, if you have an existential crisis, you can drive down to Miami Beach.

Driving is an other option. DC, the Outer Banks, Charleston, Savanah & St. Augustine are great places, especially for a few hours en-route to a cheap motel on the Interstate.

Don't forget hurricane season ends December 1st.

The Republican Ryan's tax plan is thought to inflate the US dollar by 25 to 30%! I'd be surprised if it is implemented, but even Trump's plan to spend on infrastructure could lead to higher US interest rates in order to prevent inflation. So the US dollar would go up.
Toronto is a very small part of Canada
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MaxPower19 wrote: August isn't the worst time. It's tied with September for quietest month. Drink lots of water and you'll be fine!
Mid-to-Late-August when American kids start going back to school; but the first few weeks of August is very busy.

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