Six Jellybeans: Disney on the Cheap

Our adoption and fall break fell perfectly, and made for a great excuse to take Sadie to Disney for her first adventure. We love Disney, but it can really add up! Here are some of our ideas on saving $$$ but still having a great time! I prefer to go to Disney during low season, to minimize the wait times and maximize the fun. We plan our trips to avoid the summer and holidays. Often traveling on Monday and going to the parks, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. After our arrival on Monday, we typically eat in the hotel room and walk over to explore Downtown Disney, followed by time to relax in the hot tub.

Planning a head is a must. For fun I pack our own glow sticks, fairy dust to sprinkle the girls with as they sleep and we make sure to bring our own Mickey or Princess shirts. I recently made phone number bracelett's incase the little ones got separated from me. The kids all save and take their own spending money.

The practical side: I've found we've saved $$$ by booking a http://www.getawaytoday.com/ trip vs planning a trip independently or even with AAA. We typically stay at the Holiday Inn on Walnut. It is close enough to walk to Down Town Disney, clean and the parking is free. Its one of the cheaper hotels, has a pool, hot tub and fitness room. With our package we also got a hot breakfast free, a perfect way to start our day.

Here is where planning ahead pays off. We pack in our snacks and drink water at the park, I often take the disposable plastic cups the hotel provides or an empty water bottle or two. I plan our dinner meal to be made in our hotel room. My best advice is to pick up a hot pot.

It heats up more then just water if you use your imagination. This trip, we made soup, mac and cheese, spaghettios and even nacho cheese sauce. It only takes a few minutes to heat up a meal.

So when we are getting ready to leave the house...the counters start to look like this:

If I can I also pack in lunch, but usually we budget for a late lunch at the park.

How do we get all of us, luggage and the kitchen sink in the Tahoe? I love having this little extra hauling space. Easy enough for me to load and attach.