DISNEY

I mentioned that we are heading back to Disneyland this winter, so we can see the resort all decorated for the holidays.   We have never been at Christmastime, so we are very excited.   We have had this trip planned for several months now, and I think planning in advance is one of the biggest ways you can save money.

Here are a few things we have done to save money on our Disney vacation this time around:

Airline Tickets – We flew JetBlue for the first time in April and we loved it!  It was such an enjoyable flight.  We knew we wanted to take JetBlue for our trip to Disneyland, so we applied for the JetBlue American Express and earned 2 FREE round-trip tickets, just for applying and using the card.  Not too bad!  We are also really close to another FREE ticket that we can use on a future trip, because we used the card to buy our airline tickets.  We watched the airline rates every week until the price dropped to what we were hoping to pay and then we purchased them.

Airport Parking -  The biggest way to save money is to have somebody drop you off at the airport.  We have family close by, but we have 7 people in our family, and a 7 seat van, so that doesn’t really leave any room for an extra person, which means we have to park our car at the airport.  I was so excited to see this deal pop up on Groupon for airport parking.  Yes, I seriously got excited – you can ask my husband, because I am pretty sure I woke him up at midnight to tell him about the deal!  Since I had Groupon credits I was able to get our airport parking for FREE.

Paying for the Hotel & Admission – I have said several times that one of the major ways to save money on a Disney vacation is to stay at a non-Disney hotel.  This is very easy at Disneyland, because there are so many hotels that are within walking distance of the Park.  However, we received a “Pin Code” for 40% off the regular rate of a room at a Disney hotel, so we are staying at the Grand Californian Hotel this time around!!  This will be the first time we are within walking distance of the parks, we normally have to drive in and park our car or ride the transit.   Our family is giddy!   I am hoping my family doesn’t get too attached to the Disney hotel, because I am pretty sure I will go back to my non-Disney hotel ways the next time we visit.

I took advantage of the Albertsons gift card promo they had awhile back, and the one they had recently and I purchased several gift cards that we could use to pay for our hotel and admission into the park.  I used money I already had saved for the trip and was able to get a couple of hundred of dollars worth of Catalinas  and gift cards that I used at Albertsons for groceries.  I took the money I would have normally spend on groceries and added it to our Disney vacation fund.

Money for Meals – I have a Disney Visa that I use to earn Disney Rewards.  We currently have $300 in Disney Rewards that we can use for meals.  This is FREE money that we earned, since we pay off the bill every month and never pay interest.   The credit cards wouldn’t make much sense if we were paying interest.  We make the card work for us, not the other way around.  I also have plans to bring some cereal and granola bars from home for a quick and easy breakfast a couple of mornings.    We also will bring our own snacks into the park like we usually do.  This is a shorter trip than our other ones, so we will probably be eating out more than usual, that way we won’t have to worry about running to the store and heading back to the hotel to eat.  I am OK with that!

Extras – They have an AMC theater in Downtown Disney, so I took advantage of the movie deal HERE, so we can see a movie on the last day.  We have several hours before we have to catch our flight home, but it’s now enough time to warrant an extra day at the parks.    I was able to purchase the tickets with credits I had, so the movie will be FREE for all 7 of us.   Love that!

I do my best to save money in the planning stages of the vacation, so when I get there I don’t have to worry about pinching pennies on the trip. I can just go, and enjoy!  I save money where and when I can beforehand, so we can spend our money on the things that matter most to us, like Dole Whips, Mickey ice cream bars and some fun Disney souveniers!!

We are getting closer, and I can’t wait!   Anybody else have a Disney trip planned soon?   I would love to hear what you are doing to save money on your trip!

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Before you purchase your Disneyland Theme Park tickets you will have to decide on a couple of things:

• How many days you want to spend at the Parks?
• Do you want to use the Park Hopper feature?

The cost per day goes down with each additional day you spend at the park.   Here is a break down for 1-Park tickets with a 1-day, 3-day or a 5-day pass.  These prices are for ages 10 and up.  (ages 3-9 will be cheaper). They also include a discount for purchasing your tickets online (prices at the gate will be higher).   These prices were valid as of June 2011.

• 1-Day Ticket = $80 (cost per day is $80)
• 3-Day Ticket = $199 (cost per day is $66)
• 5-Day Ticket = $231 (cost per day is $46)

If you decide to add the Park Hopper feature to your tickets, the cost will be a little more.  The Park Hopper allows you to visit both Disneyland and California Adventure on the same day, so you can alternate between the 2 parks.  Since the 2 parks are so close to each other we enjoy this feature.   If you are trying to save money on your trip, you can easily just go with the one park a day ticket.  The price of a 3-Day Park Hopper ticket is $214, which is $14 more than the one-day park ticket.

If you plan on making more than one trip to Disneyland in a year, than you may want to go for an annual passport.  You can view the different yearly passport options and their prices on the Disney website.

Here are several options for picking up discount tickets to Disneyland:

California Residents:

• If you live in Southern California, you can buy discount tickets to Disneyland. Head on over to the tickets page and enter your zip code in the box on the right hand side of the page.
• California residents can also pick up a 4-Day Park Hopper pass with a $50 Disney gift card for only $199 at Costco
• Proof of residency is required when you redeem these type of tickets.  There are also some black-out dates with these tickets.

Military Discount:

• Disney Military Promotional Tickets can be purchased by active and retired U.S. military personnel for themselves and up to five additional family members or friends.
• Disney Military Promotional 3-Day Park Hopper Tickets cost $99 each
• You can find all the details on this promotion HERE. They have extended the dates of this promotion until September 2012, you can find out more about the extension HERE.

Buy Ahead of time online:

• If you are buying a 3-Day or longer Park Hopper ticket, you can get a discount for purchasing them online before you head to the parks.
• Not only is it cheaper, but it’s also more convenient. If you choose the print at home option (which is FREE), you will just take the print out of your ticket to the gate and they will exchange it for a real park ticket. No waiting in the ticket line!
• You can also choose to have your tickets mailed to you or picked up at will call, both of which have a $5 fee.

Buy Discount Tickets Online at GetawayToday.com:

GetawayToday.com offers discounted tickets for Disneyland.   You have the option of buying a package deal or individual tickets.

Buy a Package Deal:

• You can do some research ahead of time and see if buying a package deal will save you money. I would price everything individually and then get a quote on a package price.  Don’t assume that just because it’s a package you are getting a good deal.
• I recommend both Costco Travel and Getaway Today for Disneyland packages. The Costco package includes some extras like a character breakfast, so you will need to take that into account when you are pricing the package.
• If you use Getaway Today, you may also want to check for discount codes at RetailMeNot.com.

Buy your tickets though City Pass:

• When you buy through City Pass your are not only getting a discount on your Disneyland ticket, but you will also get other attractions at a discount too. (Sea World, Universal Studios, etc.)
• You can check out the rates and other attractions available at City Pass to see if this would be a good option for you.

Get a Disney Visa Rewards Card:

• I can only recommend this option if you pay the card off in full each month.   The amount you would pay in interest each month would not outweigh the benefits you receive.
• I received a special offer that gave me a $200 Disney Gift Card for opening a Disney Visa Rewards account (HELLO! $200 in FREE Disney money!! I was all over this one)  They are currently offering a $100 statement credit.
• You will earn 1% cash back for all the purchases you make with your card. The money is given to you in the form of a Disney Rewards card that can be redeemed at the on tickets, lodging, food or merchandise.   You could use the cash back to purchase your Disney Park tickets. It doesn’t sound like much, but it can really add up. I use the Visa to pay all of my monthly bills and then pay it off at the end of each month.
• The card also give you other perks and discounts.

Take Advantage of the Albertsons Gift Card Promo (though 6/21/11):

• Albertsons is currently running a gift card promo where you will earn a FREE $20 Albertsons Catalina for every $100 in gift cards you purchase. The great news is they sell Disney gift cards!
• Learn more about the promo HERE, and also check THIS POST for some important updates.

Check Your Grocery Stores for the Park Hoppers with the old pricing:

• Several grocery stores sell the Park Hopper passes, you can find them in with the gift cards.
• Since Disney has recently had a price increase on admission prices (on 6/12/11), if you find some of the Park Hoppers with the old pricing, you an pick those up and pay a lower cost than current ticket prices.

Do you know of a way to get Disneyland Park tickets at a discount that I haven’t mentioned here?   Please leave a comment and let us know your special tips or tricks for scoring Disneyland tickets for less.

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