How much $ to save for trip with grandkids

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Sep 6, 2000
I am looking to start saving for a family vacation. I want to take my adult children and their kids to Disney in approximately 5 years. We haven't been to Disney as a family since 2004. My grandchildren will be 5 & 6 years old at that time. I want to be able to pay for hotels, airfare, and food plan for everyone when we go. I thought about buying Disney gift cards and just putting them away but I'm not sure if they expire after a certain amount of time or if they start charging a fee if you don't use them within a certain amount of time. I will be saving for 8 adults and 4 kiddos. I won't worry about saving for the airfare until we are closer to the actual time of the trip. My biggest concern is saving for the park fees and hotel and I would like to stay on site since we have never done that. I'm thinking a moderate price hotel, 3 rooms for 4 nights. I'm open to any suggestions on how much to save, best way to save or any other advice you can offer. I use to be so Disney savvy and now I feel like a newbie. Thanks in advance for any tips you have to offer.
 
You could start off by pricing the vacation out online now to get an idea of what the total costs will be (adding a small percentage increase for what will likely occur over 5 years). That will give you a general idea of the budget to plan for. Personally I would not buy gift cards. I don’t think they expire, but I wouldn’t want that much money tied up in gift cards for that long. A lot can happen in 5 years....what if the trip doesn’t happen for some unforeseen reason? I would open a separate bank account and deposit the money there. Another thought is looking at offsite options. With a large group it will be significantly cheaper to stay offsite and maybe even allow for a longer trip.
 
I am looking to start saving for a family vacation. I want to take my adult children and their kids to Disney in approximately 5 years. We haven't been to Disney as a family since 2004. My grandchildren will be 5 & 6 years old at that time. I want to be able to pay for hotels, airfare, and food plan for everyone when we go. I thought about buying Disney gift cards and just putting them away but I'm not sure if they expire after a certain amount of time or if they start charging a fee if you don't use them within a certain amount of time. I will be saving for 8 adults and 4 kiddos. I won't worry about saving for the airfare until we are closer to the actual time of the trip. My biggest concern is saving for the park fees and hotel and I would like to stay on site since we have never done that. I'm thinking a moderate price hotel, 3 rooms for 4 nights. I'm open to any suggestions on how much to save, best way to save or any other advice you can offer. I use to be so Disney savvy and now I feel like a newbie. Thanks in advance for any tips you have to offer.
So much can, and will, change over a 5-year period. The only guarantee is that prices will go up. I suggest going to the Disney website and pricing out that dream vacation as if you were taking it in 2019. Then set that as a jumping off point for your savings.

DO NOT INVEST IN DISNEY GIFT CARDS AS A WAY TO SAVE FOR YOUR TRIP. If something happens and you end up not going or you need quick access to cash, you will have to sell them at a loss.

SET UP A SAVINGS ACCOUNT JUST FOR THE TRIP. An online account that you don't have easy access to works the best. Then make regular deposits to it.

GET THE GRANDKIDS INVOLVED. Have them save change in a Disney jar. Set goals. I know that they are young now but in a couple of years they will be able to understand a little bit about saving.

CONSIDER TRAVEL HACKING CREDIT CARDS AND DOING REWARDS PROGRAMS FOR EXTRA CASH AND PERKS. Take a look at the Swagbucks thread and the I Love Credit Cards thread for inspiration.
 
Thank you! Those are great ideas. I love to plan trips so I will start by planning a trip now and then start saving according to that plan. An online savings account is a great idea so I'm not tempted to touch it for spur of the moment things. Thanks again!
 


I am looking to start saving for a family vacation. I want to take my adult children and their kids to Disney in approximately 5 years. We haven't been to Disney as a family since 2004. My grandchildren will be 5 & 6 years old at that time. I want to be able to pay for hotels, airfare, and food plan for everyone when we go. I thought about buying Disney gift cards and just putting them away but I'm not sure if they expire after a certain amount of time or if they start charging a fee if you don't use them within a certain amount of time. I will be saving for 8 adults and 4 kiddos. I won't worry about saving for the airfare until we are closer to the actual time of the trip. My biggest concern is saving for the park fees and hotel and I would like to stay on site since we have never done that. I'm thinking a moderate price hotel, 3 rooms for 4 nights. I'm open to any suggestions on how much to save, best way to save or any other advice you can offer. I use to be so Disney savvy and now I feel like a newbie. Thanks in advance for any tips you have to offer.

Rough guess in 5 years...

4 day tickets $500/each * 12 = $6000
Moderate room $400/night * 12 nights (3 rooms * 4 nights) = $4800
Disney Table Service plan (1TS, 1 CS) $100/day (adult) / $50/day (kid) (tips included) - $800/night + $200/night * 4 nights = $4000
Disney miscellaneous ($250/night) = $1000
Total without airfare = $15800
Airfare for 12 = $4200 (round rough guess)
Total budget for 12 onsite with dining plan for 4 nights = $20K

Will it probably be cheaper - yes...but then again, with Star Wars opening and the race to raise every price possible, it might not be, so it's good to have a guesstimate...
 
I agree on skipping the gift cards at this time. As others have said, a lot can happen in 5 years--you might need the money for an emergency, you might get more grandkids--who knows? I think TwoMisfits rough estimate is a good place to start, as far as amount to shoot for. But I also figure that you can never save too much--if you find yourself with extra vacation money, you could consider adding upgrades--park-hopping, water parks, a dessert party, etc.
 
Offsite sounds like a good suggestion, except for the fact that with a party your size you would need 2 rental cars and would have to pay parking. Since you are flying anyway DME would get you to the hotel for free, assuming they don't start charging for it by then.
 


Offsite sounds like a good suggestion, except for the fact that with a party your size you would need 2 rental cars and would have to pay parking. Since you are flying anyway DME would get you to the hotel for free, assuming they don't start charging for it by then.
Even with parking fees and rental cars, staying off-site is still way cheaper. You can get a 6 bedroom house for less than $150 per night. That's around $600 for 4 nights, which is significantly less than the $4800 it would cost to stay onsite at a moderate resort.
 
We have been going every year since 2000(yes did before that but not so much)...on site....don't you have to rent most homes off site for a week?? anyway..
5 grandkids...at the time babies and the others 1 4 and 7....now all adults...with their parents....and now one is married...we mostly pay for everything..except air fare...I dont know where you are flying from but think about staying at least 4 days..5 nites....if you can rent DVC timeshare from Davids or someone...you would be able to eat breakfast in the room and even a dinner or sandwiches...kids can rest a bit or swim in the pools..then back to the park or enjoy resort...
good for you thinking and planning to do this...in May 2017 there were 14 of us at Boardwalk....sometimes we had dinner together other times no...just know that people need space at times....we are never demanding of our family if they chose to do a different ride or park....be flexible.....
 
With that size party, I would stay off site. The "Orlando Hotels and Attraction" board is a great place for ideas. You can rent up to 15 passenger vans, or may want to do as a pp suggested and rent several vans so you have options about going/coming to the park.

If you do not want to stay a full week, look into something like Wyndham Bonnet Creek Resort. You can get up to a four bedroom unit. There is free parking and no resort fee, so you would just have to pay for Disney parking, which is currently $22/day. I am not sure if there is an additional charge for larger vans.
 
I'm thinking of taking our adult children (no grandchildren yet) in a couple years to celebrate our retirement. Here are the numbers I'm thinking of at this point -- they're certainly not firm since we're two years out:

Rent 3-4 bedroom off-site house with private pool x 7 nights: About $700/week ... might be some fees on top of that.
5-day hopper tickets for 6 people ... will purchase through time share offer, which we've done before: $1,773.66
Throw-away campsite to cover parking and Magic Bands ... we all know this may change: About $250
$125 VISA gift card (not Disney cards so no fear of waste) X 6 people ... for purchasing lunch and snacks in the parks: $750
Groceries for the house: $300

So this is looking like about $3800-4000 for "the big stuff", and -- happily -- that's just about the amount I expect to receive for my unused sick days when I retire.

We're about six hours away, and we'll ask ask the children to drive; since we're going to stay off site, we'll need the cars. Aside from these transportation expenses and their own personal items, they won't NEED to pay for much else. I know my kids, and they'll each insist upon taking the group out to dinner one night. None of us have any interest in souvenirs.

One of our retirement goals is to take "the kids" on a nice vacation every third year (not Disney every time), and this will be the first of many.
 
I'm thinking of taking our adult children (no grandchildren yet) in a couple years to celebrate our retirement. Here are the numbers I'm thinking of at this point -- they're certainly not firm since we're two years out:

Rent 3-4 bedroom off-site house with private pool x 7 nights: About $700/week ... might be some fees on top of that.
5-day hopper tickets for 6 people ... will purchase through time share offer, which we've done before: $1,773.66
Throw-away campsite to cover parking and Magic Bands ... we all know this may change: About $250
$125 VISA gift card (not Disney cards so no fear of waste) X 6 people ... for purchasing lunch and snacks in the parks: $750
Groceries for the house: $300

So this is looking like about $3800-4000 for "the big stuff", and -- happily -- that's just about the amount I expect to receive for my unused sick days when I retire.

We're about six hours away, and we'll ask ask the children to drive; since we're going to stay off site, we'll need the cars. Aside from these transportation expenses and their own personal items, they won't NEED to pay for much else. I know my kids, and they'll each insist upon taking the group out to dinner one night. None of us have any interest in souvenirs.

One of our retirement goals is to take "the kids" on a nice vacation every third year (not Disney every time), and this will be the first of many.

Your retirement celebration/family vacation sounds wonderful!
About those throwaway campsites...keep an eye on prices. Even the tent sites go for about $100 bucks a night depending on time of year. Ya might be better off just paying for parking & magic bands.
 
As others have said, stay off site. The Disney price point on tickets drops significantly after 4 days, so extend it to 8 days/7 nights and buy 7 day park tickets. I’d also skip the dining plan and pay out of pocket. The dining plan is not meant to save money. After all this, even with 2 car rentals, you can do a longer trip and for less money.
 
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Your retirement celebration/family vacation sounds wonderful!
About those throwaway campsites...keep an eye on prices. Even the tent sites go for about $100 bucks a night depending on time of year. Ya might be better off just paying for parking & magic bands.
Agree. We're looking at a slow time of year (if such a thing still exists), so prices are relatively low. Still, we will "do the math" when the time draws nearer.

As others have said, stay off site. The Disney price point on tickets drops significantly after 4 days, so extend it to 8 days/7nights its 7 day park tickets. I’d also skip the dining plan and pay out of pocket. The dining plan is not meant to save money. After all this, even with 2 car rentals, you can do a longer trip and for less money.
Agree. the dining plan is a very expensive option, and if you're spending all your time in the restaurants, you're not out in the parks. If your goal is to be sure that the kids' meals are paid, I'd vote for estimating what they're likely to spend ... and give each person a VISA gift card for that amount. I say VISA gift card instead of Disney gift card because they aren't obligated to "use it up" while you're at Disney.

Speaking only for my own family, we always visit Disney in warm months, and we tend to eat less than we do at home. We tend to eat two meals a day and snack heavily in between. I'm not saying we eat this way to save money (though it does save); rather in the heat, we just don't want as much.

Since we're talking about food, one last thought: One of our family traditions is that we always have our first meal at Beaches and Cream ... and we always have The Kitchen Sink. (Your group is large, so you might need two of them. Wow.) My girls sooooo look forward to this every time. I remember the first time we ordered it. They had no idea it existed, so as I excused myself to the restroom, I went to the counter and quietly ordered that gigantic ice cream sundae at the counter -- my husband and I'd agreed upon it ahead of time. The waitress flipped the lights a couple times and carried the monster-sized confection around the room, holding it high in the air. As she did, she loudly announced all the goodies it contained. My girls stared in awe, mouths wide open, and the look on their faces as the waitress stopped at OUR TABLE and plopped the delicious thing RIGHT IN FRONT OF THEM. People were taking pictures of it, and several other tables immediately ordered the same thing. It's genuinely one of our best Disney memories ... so now it's a first-night tradition for us. We often share burgers or sandwiches at that first meal so we're able to do justice to The Sink. I think it'd be a great way for you to begin your family trip too!
 
5 years is a long time. While you are a party of 12 right now, in 5 years that number might grow...

I agree with the advice PP gave about opening a saving account and use it for your Disney vacation dollars saving.

Start a notebook, so that you can keep up with suggestions, or things that you might want to consider along the way.

Depending on nights have you thought about AP's? this is another factor that you might want to consider.

How many nights is important? the more nights the less. Peak times or around holidays, or a new land or attraction opening can add to the cost.

On-site or Off-site resorts there are many perks to both, Price or amount of space or a combo of these two. I think is normally where most people start when planning. While being together is wonderful, each family will want and need some private time. So this will also go into planning and budgeting.

Family suites might be a good fit, this way everyone can spread out some. You know when the kids get to a certain age personal space starts to play into things. Our friends ( party of 20 for a family gathering) decided on Family suites at AOA, the original plan was POFQ but after realizing that everyone would be together for 2 weeks ( 8 nights at WDW) her DH thought it would work out better for everyone. Another reason they went with family suite at AOA, was 2 bathrooms, plus there is a door that can be shut so mom and dad have some privacy. As well as room for the strollers, pack in play, luggage.

Getting into dinning here is where a lot of people disagree on the best way to go. With a big group, I personally would use the dinning plan, DH and I used the DDXDP when we took the kids and grandkids, this way we did not worry about who got what, less stress for us. Before committing I would take into consideration how does your family normally eat? big eaters, picky eater, dietary issues, 3 meals a day, grazers, whatever. Also the age of everyone going should be considered. All of a sudden that kids who barely would finish his or her chicken nuggets, is now all of a sudden eating a 2 double cheeseburger, large fry, and drink, and looking around the table to see what everyone else might not be eating.

Once things get closer like within a year of going you could start giving Disney gift card as part of Birthdays gifts, tuck some in a Easter basket, or Christmas gifts so that everyone has some spending money of their own.

Have fun with the planning..
 
We did this last year. We paid for our adult daughter and grandson daughter (2) to come with us. We are DVC. We spend 4 nights at Disney Hilton Head 3 nights at Disney's Vero Beach 10 days at Saratoga Springs and 1 week on Disney cruise line over Thanksgiving. We purchased annual passes for ourselves and daughter (grandbaby free) paid for dining plan for all of us and cruise for everyone including grand daughter.
This past April I took my daughter and grandson daughter to Animal Kingdom Villas and it was dirt cheap because of DVC and our Annual passes. We didn't get the dining plan in April because I thought it would have been a waste of money. I would say you would need at least 10k. Over our Nov trip last year once everything was paid for I still brought $6500 spending over the 3 weeks in Disney gift cards
 
For that many people, I would try to save at least $20,000.

If you go off-site, it would be much cheaper. Depending on how long you stay, one or two of you may want to get APs for "free" theme-park parking (rather than the $20-25/car it currently is). If you stay on-site, than Magical Express (DME) is included to get you transported to the hotel.

Things to consider.
On-site or off-site
Dining - how many table service vs. quick service do you want to do.
Dining Plan - only available if staying on-site
Tickets - wait until your plans are set that year before buying them.
Time of trip (winter, spring, summer, fall)

I'll come back later with ideas on costs
 

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