As you begin to plan your trip, it's important to establish a basic travel budget for yourself and to stick to that budget. Once you reach your destination, you'll no doubt be tempted to dine at fancy restaurants, buy extravagant souvenirs, and participate in costly activities. When creating your budget, you'll want to make allowances for these unplanned splurges, but you'll want to maintain control over your spending at all times. Otherwise, you could easily end up with massive credit card bills after your vacation.

The first step in planning a budget is to figure out how much money you have to spend on your upcoming vacation. Next, determine how many people you'll be traveling with (and paying for), how many days you'll be away, and what you want your travel itinerary to be.

Based on this information, start pricing out airfares, hotel/motel accommodations, rental cars, and the cost of various activities (such as admission to the theme parks and dining). The checklist in this chapter will help you predict some of the costs.

Saving Money

Hopefully, once you've priced out everything, the total price of your planned vacation will be within your proposed budget. Before making your reservations, however, invest some time in shopping around for money-saving deals and/or packages. Finding a coupon or utilizing a deal that'll save you $50 on a hotel, for example, is money that can be used for souvenirs or kept in your bank account.

Also, you can save money by eating outside of the theme parks. Instead of having the fancy (and sometimes costly) breakfast at your resort every morning during your trip, consider experiencing that breakfast once, then eating off-property on the rest of the mornings to save some money. Obviously, there's something very special (especially for kids) about eating Mickey Mouse — shaped waffles with the Disney characters roaming the dining room and meeting guests. However, this is something that doesn't need to be experienced every morning.

If this isn't your first trip to Orlando, you can save a lot of money by staying at a non-Disney or Universal-owned hotel/motel that's close to the theme parks. While you won't experience the legendary service, ambiance, or perks associated with staying at a Disney or Universal-owned hotel, the financial savings will add up quickly.

Budget Checklist

Use this form to help you approximate the cost of your trip to the WDW Resort/Greater Orlando area in advance. Planning your schedule/itinerary before you leave and setting budgetary spending limits will help you enjoy your vacation without going into unexpected debt or spending outside of your budget.

BUDGET CHECKLIST

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