The Affordable Mouse Blog

The Affordable Mouse has a New Home!

2009-11-23T10:51:00.001-05:00

I am so excited!

The Affordable Mouse has a brand new home! Easier to navigate and find what you are looking for, it also has given me a chance to incorporate The Affordable Mouse Blog with The Affordable Mouse all in one site.My goal is to keep all the great information for planning an affordable Disney family vacation in one place. I am so excited about the new look as well as the options this new format provides for you...and for me as I share information with you. I truly hope you like it! =)

While this blog will continue to exist for the next few months, you will find all previous posts on the new blog site now, and all posts from this point on will be on the new blog as well.

Please visit our new home and be sure to bookmark it. You can also sign up an RSS feed of my blog posts so you don't miss a thing. Thanks for visiting and have a magical day!

Visit The Affordable Mouse website and blog.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year at Disney World: Creating Dining Magic

2009-11-16T10:00:00.001-05:00

Continuing our series on visiting Walt Disney World during the Holidays, my plan today is to talk about meals. Presumably, if you are visiting during the 2009 Christmas holiday season, you already have made travel and hotel arrangements. =)

When making your dining plans....and you MUST make dining plans....you need to realize that, if you are visiting during the week between Christmas and New Years, you will be at Walt Disney World during the busiest time of the year. Period. Lots more people than you have ever, ever seen.

Now if your plans to visit Disney are to go before Dec. 24, there will be less people. In fact, historically from the week after Thanksgiving until the week or so before Christmas, crowds are usually lighter, and so it can be a delightful way to experience all that the holidays have to offer at Disney World. But you should realize that many, many Disney veterans travel during these weeks, and these folks typically know better than to not have dining plans in advance.

So either way, make your dining plans in advance, and if they include any table service meals, make those Advanced Dining Reservations (ADRs) before you get to Disney World. And if you are going during Christmas week....Make. Them. Now.

I can't stress this enough. People have been making Advanced Dining Reservations for Christmas week since the end of September (90 days in advance). The popular times and restaurants fill quickly, especially on the big days of Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Years Eve, and New Years Day. So if table service is something you want to do, don't delay on this.

What if you can't get ADRs for any of the restaurants you want? Consider some of the lovely, and lesser-known restaurants at the hotels: many are wonderful, and it is a great way to see some of the fantastic Holiday decorations at the resorts. They are a little off-the-beaten path, but it can be nice sometimes, during all the hustle and bustle, to have a little peace and quiet. :)

Also consider eating meals...all meals outside of your room...at "off" times. Try having your main, table service meal for lunch instead of dinner. Eat early...lunch at 11, dinner at 5...or late...lunch at 2, dinner at 8. You may find crowds, especially for counter meals, to be a little lighter during these times.

Of course, typical advice about eating some meals in, especially if you have access to a kitchen, can be helpful. Many folks with these types of amenities in their accommodations actually do the entire turkey and fixings, which can be very nice and a great way to create some special memories.

Affordable Disney family vacations can occur during the Christmas holidays too, and if you plan well, your trip can have an extra dose of holiday magic. Stay tuned for more Affordable Mouse Holiday Tips in the near future!

Have a magical day!

Visiting Disney World at Christmas? Be Prepared!

2009-11-10T20:04:00.000-05:00

I saw my first Christmas commercial the other day. And "pre-Black Friday" sales are out as well, lol, which means that the holiday season is right around the corner.....

Thoughts of Christmas cheer naturally lead me to think of Disney World, as we have visited there several times over the Christmas/New Years holidays, and while it is crazy...it is very, very fun. It is just not for the faint-hearted ;)

But, as I know that this is a popular time to visit Walt Disney World (in fact, it is the busiest week of the year!), I thought that I would devote several blog posts to some strategies for how to handle a Disney vacation with crowds that you never thought were possible.

Because while it IS The Affordable Mouse, and I do write about saving money...well time is money, isn't it? And to me at least, one of the keys to a successful Disney vacation, is getting the most for your money.

And probably, at no other time of the year, is careful planning as important, as it is during the Holiday Season.

It is certainly one of the loveliest times of year to visit. The holiday decorations are beautiful, and so festive. One of the things that I love is that every resort is decorated to the hilt as well, which then becomes Affordable Mouse Holiday tip #1: Visit the resorts to see the decorations! It's FREE! :) On your list should be the Grand Floridian for the Gingerbread House, the Boardwalk for the Carousel, and the Wilderness Lodge and Animal Kingdom Lodge for the enormous trees. These are absolutely not-to-be-missed, and great ways to get away from the crowds for a bit.

If you are planning a Holiday vacation to Walt Disney World, then be sure to follow my blog posts for more Affordable Mouse Holiday tips, so that you know what to expect and can plan accordingly. =)

And if you know someone who has a Christmas/New Years trip planned, please send them this way!

Have a magical day!

Florida Residents: Here is Your Chance to Save Money at Disney

2009-10-30T10:15:00.002-04:00

For those of you who are residents of Florida, news last week that Walt Disney World is offering a new version of the Florida annual pass may be of interest to you. Available only to use on weekdays...and with some blackout dates involved....while restricting when you can visit, if you are typically free on weekdays, this could be a huge cost-saver for you!

Learn all the details here.

Have a magical day!

Some New Ideas for Eating Cheap at Disney World

2009-10-28T12:42:00.001-04:00

On our recent trip to Walt Disney World, one thing I was especially aware of was our efforts to keep food costs down. In a previous post, I discussed how we integrated the Disney Dining Plan with the Epcot Food and Wine Festival. Food can easily be one of the most expensive items in a Disney vacation budget, so it is always nice to discover ways to keep that cost manageable, and not have to give up the magic of a Disney vacation.

With that in mind, I came across an interesting article this past week from Fox News.com: How to Eat Cheaply on a Trip. Following are some of my favorite highlights:

Many of us grab our kids’ hands and race to the rides. Or, if you’re Melissa d’Arabian, who visited the parks last year with her husband and four kids, you grab the coupons you packed and race to the grocery store.

“I had planned out easy meals to make,” says d’Arabian, season five winner of “The Next Food Network Star” and host of the network’s “Ten Dollar Dinners with Melissa d’Arabian.”

Her money-saving vacation strategy had several parts. Aside from basing her family in a condo where she could prepare at least some of their food - “I never leave a place where I have access to inexpensive food without feeding everyone,” she says - her vacation groceries yielded meals denser in calories than what she’d ordinarily serve back home.

“At home I try to get the most water-filled ingredients possible [like] fresh vegetables,” she says, but when traveling, food needs to be dense, portable, and high on long-term energy, and it’s easy enough to hydrate inexpensively with water throughout the day.

High on d’Arabian’s list of vacation snacks is trail mix she mixes herself, almond butter “dense with protein and calories,” and her favorite go-to snack, whole-grain, high-protein pasta with fiber and flax seeds rich in beneficial Omega 3 fatty acids.

She notes that while whole-grain pasta is often twice the price of white-flour pasta, “you’re getting a lot of value” on the nutrition side as well as a snack that fills you up. As for when to deploy the snacks, that also differs from her home game.

“The whole trick to [your family] enjoying the vacation is making sure that you’re in preventative mode all the time, d’Arabian says,” which may mean that prior to heading out to a restaurant “you step outside your normal mode of ‘no snacks an hour before dinner.’” Bending your usual rules not only helps to avoid public meltdowns, but it can be a lot cheaper than the alternative. “It’s not a money-saving strategy to order everything [on the menu] and see if something hits,” she says.

You can read the rest of the article for more great affordable disney family vacation ideas.

Have a magical day!

Four Days of Eating Around the World

2009-10-21T22:29:00.001-04:00

Well we are back from Walt Disney World and Epcot's International Food and Wine Festival, and boy did we have a blast! I will say that, experienced Disney vacationers that we are, as Food and Wine newbies, we found the Festival awesome....and just a little overwhelming! But it was all good, and we are looking forward to returning again!

With only 4 days, we had to plan our strategy carefully...or rather I did, lol! My main thing, before we got to Disney World, was to be able to take advantage, as much as possible, of the many offerings of the Festival...and still have time to visit our favorite attractions too. We were successful for the most part, despite having a little monkey-wrench thrown into things....the monkey-wrench being central Florida experiencing record heat (think mid-August).

Once I realized that we were going to be doing the parks in "summer mode"...well it did kind of put a different spin on things.

"Summer mode" at Disney World, for us, means being at the parks first thing, eat an early (11-11:30) lunch, hit maybe a couple of the cooler attractions after lunch...when the heat really starts to build...and be on our way back to the resort for an afternoon at the pool. Back to the parks then in the evening.

But since we were on the Disney Dining Plan, we had already made dinner reservations for each night, and so our plan was to experience the Food and Wine Festival primarily for lunch on a couple of days. Now, being in "summer mode", the challenge was how to do this and actually enjoy ourselves.

The solution meant that at 11 a.m. on the dot, we were at World Showcase, waiting for our chosen food kiosks to open. Why? Well, do you know how HOT World Showcase can get when the heat index is close to 100? Yeah. That's why. =)

So our Food and Wine strategy then became: how to sample from each kiosk, while staying as cool as possible. And...how to also do it somewhat affordably, and not completely stuff ourselves in the process.

Here is how we did it.

For our first luncheon excursion, DH, college-age DD, and yours truly decided to each visit a different kiosk. DD was to use the snack credits from our Dining Plan, while I and DH each used a Food and Wine card that we pre-loaded with $25 each. We figured that was plenty to start. We split up and hit 3 different food vendors, each of us choosing one item from the menu, and then we met (in the nearest shady spot), sampled from each other, "rated" our favorites, and then moved on to do another 3. In about 30-40 minutes we were half way around World Showcase, full (but not too much), and pretty much done for that day. We hopped on the boat to go across World Showcase lagoon (seriously NOT walking the rest of the way around at this point), and headed back to the resort.

On our second day of Festival lunches, we repeated the process going in the other direction, and within another 30 minutes we had succeeded in completing our circuit around the world, having truly sampled something from every food kiosk. It was so much fun, and we had a wonderful time sampling things we probably would have never tried otherwise.

Best of all, we completed day 2 with the remainder of our snack credits and 2 original Festival cards, without having added additional dollars to either card. So we did truly eat our way around the World and managed to not break the bank in the process.

What did we NOT do? We did not do any of the additional paid programs, and I have to say that it was just too overwhelming to have even considered anything beyond the basics this year. We did attend a great free program outside Italy, about making pasta and a simple Italian meal. It was fascinating, and we learned alot.

We also truthfully did not do alot of drinking. It was just too hot to even think about it during the day...we just wanted water...and the two evenings that we were there, the lines were very long, and we were frankly quite full from dinner. I will say that the beer and wine tastings looked pretty awesome, and I would love to explore those more another time.

What would I do differently? Well our strategy actually worked well, and I am pleased that we did not eat ourselves sick, nor did we spend as much money as one probably could spend. I think the main thing I would do next time, would be to either not do the Dining Plan, or plan one evening where we did not have a table service dinner, and do some samplings in the evening as well.

And of course, hope for cooler weather. :)

With that in mind, I am, of course, already dreaming of our next visit!

Have a magical day!

Four Days of Food, Family, Fun....and a Little Pixie Dust: I am off to Disney World!

2009-10-09T13:29:00.000-04:00

The Affordable Mouse is heading to Walt Disney World this afternoon, for a few days of Disney fun!. I am especially excited to be visiting for the first time during the Food and Wine Festival at Epcot, so expect to be doing more than my fair share of eating my way around the World! =D

One of the things I will be looking carefully at on this trip, will be additional ways to save money, and will of course be passing on any new ideas or strategies to you. As I have studied the Food and Wine Festival offerings, I can see that this is potentially a budget-buster if one is not careful: each of the food samplings comes with a corresponding cost, so it is definitely possible to spend many American dollars on this!

Here is the strategy we plan to use going into it, and I will let you know how well it works. We are on the Disney Dining Plan, so have dinner ADRs (Advanced Dining Reservations) already planned for our 3 nights there. We love having table service meals at Disney so were unwilling to give up on this, despite the many food offerings at Food and Wine Fest. Instead, we plan to "lunch" our way around World Showcase a couple of days, and will be using snack credits to do so....at least at the start. We will use our counter service credits on these days for a more substantial breakfast.

It is evident that our snack credits will only be a start, so we plan to get one of the Food and Wine reloadable cards, and use it to swipe at the various kiosks where we eat. Gonna try really hard not to reload it though, for the sake of my wallet as well as my jean size lol.

One thing I also suspect will play a role, is the fact that central Florida is currently experiencing record-setting heat, so we will definitely be heading to the parks early, having an early lunch, and returning to the hotel for a pool break. When we get too hot, we will stop eating...and that is probably a good thing!

In any event, I will share our experiences, and hopefully some new ways to plan affordable Disney family vacations when we return. =)

Have a magical day!

New for 2010: Get a Free Day at the Disney Theme Parks

2009-09-29T17:18:00.000-04:00

The Disney Company has announced in the past several days some great new ways to take an affordable Disney family vacation!

First, there is a new Walt Disney World vacation package offer valid for stays November 1 - December 24, 2009 and January 3 - March 27, 2010.

Buy a 4-night/4 day vacation package at a MODERATE, DELUXE or DELUXE VILLA resort, get a 7-night/7-day package.
Buy a 5-night/5 day vacation package at a VALUE resort, get a 7-night/7-day package.

This package must be booked by December 20, 2009. If you have your eye on a Disney vacation, this great package deal, which includes hotel and tickets, is a great opportunity to save some serious Disney dollars!

And in other news, Disney announced today, their promotion for 2010: Give a Day, Get a Day. You can read all about it on the Disney Parks blog.

I just love this promotion that encourages community service and rewards those who volunteer, with a free day at any of the Disney parks. In today's society, where the most obnoxious behavior and the loudest voices seem to get noticed, it is nice to see a program put into place to acknowledge the quiet selflessness of so many.

Bravo Disney!

More Good News if You Want an Affordable Disney Family Vacation

2009-09-17T12:07:00.000-04:00

Great news for those looking to plan an affordable Disney family vacation....right from the Mouse himself......or at least his designated spokesman. Disney went on record last week to acknowledge that there are no plans to curtail the many discount programs that have been offered this year. You can read more of what they had to say here, courtesy of Jeff Titelius at Examiner.com.

This is great news for anyone with a dream for a Disney vacation but is not sure if they can afford it! More great sources, suggestions, and ideas for ways to save money on a visit to Walt Disney World can be found at The Affordable Mouse.

Have a magical day!

Three Tips for Saving Money on Food at Walt Disney World

2009-09-03T16:54:00.000-04:00

One of the best strategies I have found to plan an affordable Disney family vacation has been to try to save money on food, as that can be a big budget-buster if you are not careful.

Now having said that, I will admit to the fact that I find eating at Disney World to be one of the best attractions there. =) Still, there are definitely ways to save money on food in a variety of ways and still partake of lots of deliciousness too!

Tip #1 involves having a frig or mini-kitchen in your room. Many hotels near Walt Disney World offer mini-suites with a small kitchen in them, and in addition to having more space, the frig and microwave can be extremely useful. If you are staying on Disney property, even in the basic hotel rooms, you can request an in-room refrigerator. The few dollars per day that you will pay will be more than offset by your savings on food. We always use the frig to store milk, juice, water, and some easy breakfast basics. Bring or buy some cereal or bagels, and you have a healthy, inexpensive breakfast each morning. Plus it is a time-saver too, when trying to get to the parks bright and early each day. If you make it a habit to return to your room each afternoon, take the in-room meals a step further and get some easy lunch fixings too: you have now provided two meals per day for substantially less than what you would pay in the parks. Splurge on a nice dinner and you won't feel deprived at all, and will in fact feel quite proud of how economical you are!

Tip #2 is to bring snacks with you. Simple trail mix, crackers, some fruit, all help provide a healthy, and cheaper alternative to lots of expensive snacks in the parks. Bring your own water as well: you will save a boat-load of money here too, plus you will always have water when you need it, which is important on those hot summer days in Florida! Refill when passing water fountains and you will be fine!

Tip #3: consider sharing meals, especially if you have young children. Disney does not have a problem if you want to split a table service meal, and many folks often divide a counter service meal between multiple kids, or parent/child. In our experience, Disney is extremely generous with food proportions, so much so that if we ate everything on our plates, we would be absolutely stuffed! Splitting meals saves dollars and also creates less waste, and that's a good thing. Another option is to take the leftovers with you if portable, and put them in your...you guessed it!...in-room frig for lunch (or even breakfast lol!) the next day.

So there you have it! Three very easy ways to save a lot of money on food while at Disney World. If you are trying to plan an affordable Disney family vacation, consider any or all of these tips to help you eat healthfully...and inexpensively too!

Have a magical day!

More Affordable Disney Vacation News: Save at Epcot Food and Wine Seminars

2009-08-27T10:35:00.000-04:00

Just a quick blog post today to share some interesting news I came across, regarding a great way to save some money if you have a Disney vacation planned during the Epcot Food and Wine Festival. IF you are an Annual Passholder, Disney Vacation Club member, or member of Tables in Wonderland, this is a great deal for you!

DVC, Passholders, Tables in Wonderland guests save on Epcot Food and Wine seminars

I always have my eye out for additional ways to save money on your next Disney vacation, so stay tuned for more ways to plan an affordable Disney family vacation!

Have a magical day!

Affordable Disney Family Vacations: Fancy McDonald's Adds Atmosphere to Cheap Meals

2009-08-21T15:24:00.000-04:00

Always looking for great ways to save some money on a Disney vacation, I was fascinated to come across this article today describing renovations to the McDonald's near the All-Star Resorts. Very nice decor indeed! Who knew that a McDonald's could provide ambiance along with a Big Mac?

Remodeled McDonald's near Disney World's All-Star Resort hotels resembles Contemporary Resort cafe

There are so many ideas like this that can help you achieve an affordable Disney family vacation! If you have plans to stay in one of the All-Star resorts (or even if you are not), why not make a visit to this McDonald's: cheap meals with a 5-star atmosphere!

How to Plan a Magical Disney World Vacation Without Really Trying.

2009-08-12T10:39:00.000-04:00

A recurring theme of mine, especially on this blog is:

If you are going to visit Walt Disney World, especially if it is your first trip, you have got to have a PLAN.

Yes.......... if you are planning a Disney World vacation, you Really Have To Plan.

"But I am not a planner!" I know you are saying this. =)"How am I supposed to know what everyone will want to do when we get there?"

Well that little plan can be the difference between magic and misery for your group. So to help you out, here are a few very basic (and often VERY overlooked) tips to get you started in your Plan:

·         Before you leave, have the kids make a list for each park about what they absolutely, positively, can't-go-back-home-without-seeing attractions. Make sure you make those rides and shows a priority each day. When going to a park, make sure you get to those first thing, and make full use of Disney's FastPass for those with longer lines.

·         Look at a map before you arrive. The Disney website has maps that you can download for free. Do it. Look at them and become familiar with the various sections of each park and where your "must do's" are located before you walk through the gates.

·         Know the park hours and take good advantage of them. Go early before the crowds arrive. You'll be glad you did! Don't expect to have lots of happy campers in the middle of the afternoon in July in Florida.

·         Know the weather forecast before you leave home and pack accordingly. Believe it or not, it is not always sunny in Florida and yes it can get cold enough in January to need a winter coat. Really!

·         Check to see if any rides will be closed while you are there. It happens. If one of your child's must-sees will be out of commission, tell them ahead of time, to avoid a Magic Kingdom meltdown.

·         Take a mid-day break and go back to your hotel for a swim and/or nap. If you have little ones it is critical. It is critical for big ones too!

Planning a Disney World vacation takes time and effort. But the results will be worth it!

New Prices, New Resort Hotel, and New Ticket Promotion (sort of): A Big News Week at Walt Disney World for Vacation Planning

2009-08-06T21:38:00.001-04:00

This was a big week, news-wise, at Walt Disney World. Good news, not-so-good news, and a couple of ways to possibly save some money on your next Disney vacation.

Let's start with the "bad" news: as expected, Disney World ticket prices went up on Sunday, August 3. The Magic Your Way one-day, one-park base ticket now costs $79 for adults and $68 for children 3-9, which raised park passes by $4 adult and $5 child. The price for Annual Passes and Annual Pass renewals also went up as well......however, and this brings me to some "good" news: Disney has made the Annual Pass good for 15 months, which is a definite way to get more for your money if you are a frequent Disney visitor, and somewhat balances that price increase for Annual Passholders. You can read more information about the increase here: Walt Disney World rolls out Passholder renewal offer -- 15 months for price of 12. Of course, you can still get discounted Disney tickets by visiting a reputable online ticket broker.

In other Disney news, not necessarily Disney World related, Disney Cruise Line has a super promotion for some of their Disney Mediterranean cruises next April and May. Kids 17 and under sail free on most 10- and 11-night Mediterranean cruises, April 24 - May 26, 2010: they must be with two full-fare guests in the same stateroom, and this offer is only for certain stateroom categories.While a Disney Cruise is not cheap, it is a truly magical experience, and if you have been thinking about doing something like this...especially to take advantage of the chance for your children to see another part of the world...then don't miss out on this great promotion. Contact your travel agent for details!

Lastly, the "good news" (if you are interested in really neat architecture and design) is that the newest property in the Disney Vacation Club, Bay Lake Tower, officially opened on Tuesday, August 4. Adjacent to the Contemporary Resort, it shares the same contemporary theming, along with a fabulous location right outside of the Magic Kingdom. You can see some photos here and here as well. Pretty cool, isn't it? It may not be the best way to have an affordable Disney family vacation...but if you can ever splurge, well being right next door to Cinderella's Castle is the way to go! =)

Have a magical day!!

The Best Way to Plan a Disney Vacation - Start with Deciding When You're Visiting!

2009-08-03T11:40:00.002-04:00

I am in the midst of planning our next visit to "the World" in October, and boy am I having FUN! I am especially excited about our first-ever visit during the Food and Wine Festival...and after looking at the list of food kiosks...well it looks like there is much dieting to be done before then. Thank heavens a Disney vacation includes LOTS of walking so I can work off some of that great food!

Planning this trip reminded me of another article I wrote recently, regarding how to decide when to visit...probably the most important decision you will make for your vacation:

Thinking about a trip to Walt Disney World, but wondering what is the best way to plan a Disney vacation? Want some basic information but don't know where to start? For most people planning their first visit to Disney World, it can be an overwhelming and confusing process, with so much information available that it can be hard to even know where to begin. As a Disney "veteran", I believe that the first, and most important, place to start is: "When do we want to go?"

Deciding on the time of year for your visit affects everything else about your Disney vacation, including cost. Certain seasons are just more expensive than others. And if you have school-age children, like the majority of families that visit Walt Disney World, then traveling during school vacations is often a necessity. Not surprisingly, summer, Thanksgiving, Christmas/New Years, and spring/Easter breaks are the busiest times to visit, and accordingly the most expensive. If you simply must travel during those peak times, then you must be prepared for resort accommodations to be more expensive than they would during other non-peak times of the year. And while there are always lots of options for affordable lodging in the Orlando area, you may find that your choices may be limited if you do not plan ahead.

Crowd levels are important to consider as well, as they can dramatically affect the enjoyment of a Disney World vacation. If you hate crowds, and don't like standing in line, do not plan a visit during peak times! It is a surefire recipe for a miserable, rather than magical vacation!

Don't overlook the weather factor. Most people are well aware of how hot and humid Florida can be in the summer: if you are visiting Disney World during this time of year, be prepared to go early, take mid-day breaks, and relax in the pool in the afternoon. And if you just can't handle heat and humidity at all, choose another season to go. Winter months, on the other hand, can be very unpredictable: a glorious and sunny day in the 70s one day, and 30s at night the next. Visiting during the winter requires a different kind of pre-planning, with special attention paid to packing wisely before you leave home!

The very best way to plan a Disney vacation starts with a realistic appraisal of your family's schedule, considering what everyone likes, doesn't like, and can handle, and then scheduling your vacation accordingly.

If you enjoyed this article, be sure to sign up for my FREE Guide: 10 Affordable MouseTips for a Magical Vacation. When you enroll, you will also receive monthly tips, ideas, and suggestions to help plan an affordable Disney family vacation. Looking forward to welcoming you to the Affordable Mouse family =)

Enjoy and have a magical day!

Saving Money on Food at Disney World and Still Eating Like Royalty

2009-07-27T12:48:00.002-04:00

More great news about planning affordable Disney family vacations!! Disney has just announced the extension of the FREE DINING package, available most nights between Sept. 29 and Dec. 17. This is an unheard-of great deal for the fall season: Disney has traditionally never offered this package during the fall, but evidently the continued economic problems are the Disney vacationers' gain! If you have any thoughts at all about planning a Disney vacation in the fall, don't miss out!

And speaking of dining at Walt Disney World, I recently had the chance to book our advanced dining reservations for our upcoming October trip. October is a great time of year to visit Florida, and it will be our first during the Food and Wine Festival, so I am super excited! Hope to see you there! =)

All this talk of dining reminded me of an article that I wrote for Ezine Articles recently, talking about ways to save money on food while at Disney World. Following is an excerpt:

Let me say that we find visiting Disney World to be a great excuse to eat! Lots of great choices, good quality in most cases, and the fun of trying new things, all entice us to truly enjoy eating while at Disney. Still, it can be very expensive, so we have found some ways to save money while still fully enjoying all the delicious options that Walt Disney World has to offer.

First of all, we signed up for the Disney Visa card, and we use the rewards dollars for our meals. Since we visit about once a year, by the time we go each year we accumulate a pretty sizable amount of Disney dollars to spend on food. Now, I am not advocating blindly running up a credit card (especially not in this current economic climate) but since we use one card for all of our basic purchases (and pay it off in full each month), it is a strategy that works extremely well for us. In fact, it works so well that in many years, I have paid hardly anything for our food on our Disney vacation at all!

Secondly, we absolutely love the Disney Dining Plan. For those not familiar with how this works, IF you are staying on Disney property, you have the option to choose from several levels of the Disney Dining Plan, and basically pre-pay for most, if not all of your meals. Since there are several choices, each providing a certain number of snacks, counter meals, or table service meals, there are options for just about any budget. As our family enjoys table service meals each night, we choose the Plus Disney Dining Plan, and receive one snack credit, one counter meal (entrée, drink, and dessert), and one table meal (entrée, drink, and dessert) per person, per day. We have found that the snacks generally work well most days for breakfast, and the others are used for lunch and dinner each day. Honestly, it is more food per person than we can usually eat, and often we will get our dessert at dinner "to go" since we are so full! And for this level at least, the cost per day for our family of 3 is usually less than we would have paid for just the dinner itself, so it is a huge cost-saver for us. (Note: The Free Dining package option that Disney currently is offering for the Fall, offers the Plus Dining Plan if you book at a Moderate or Deluxe resort.)

Of course, with all that food we are eating, we are fortunately doing a LOT of walking at all the parks to exercise it off! Saving money on food has been a great way to help us plan a magical discount Disney family vacation each year!

Have a magical day!

News Flash: Disney Ticket Price Increase? Get Your Discounted Disney World Tickets Soon!

2009-07-24T13:00:00.003-04:00

Several websites are reporting the likelihood of a Disney park ticket increase on the first Sunday in August. While this is only a rumor, the sources are usually correct, and have history on their side: Disney has chosen the first Sunday in August to raise their prices for the past several years. So get ready: if you have plans to purchase your Disney World tickets before an upcoming vacation (and to save money, that is ALWAYS a good idea!), then purchasing them before August 2 will probably save you money.

What about using online ticket brokers, you may ask? Well if Disney raises prices, they will need to as well. To save the most money, visit a reputable ticket company like Undercover Tourist. If you need additional information, you are welcome to visit my page at The Affordable Mouse for discounted Disney World tickets.

In other, unrelated news, I have become initiated into the wonderful world of Facebook and Twitter this week, as I expand my "circle of friends" online, and research more great tips for planning affordable Disney family vacations. If you are on Facebook, please feel free to "friend request" me (please include a note indicating that you are from the Affordable Mouse Blog, so I will know who you are!), and I invite you to follow me on Twitter as well! (I have got to say: if you are not "tweeting" yet, get going! It is fun, informative, and highly addictive, lol!) Click the buttons to the left to find me =)

To conclude, I am including a link to a great article I found on Twitter today, regarding fun, inexpensive "fill-your-own" souvenirs at Walt Disney World. Great ideas, and my thanks to Amanda M. Rose for sharing!

Have a magical day!

Disney World Rental House: Why Not Have More Space and More Value?

2009-07-20T13:00:00.003-04:00

I have been talking on the past several posts about affordable options for where to stay on your Disney vacation. Today, I want to discuss an option that is familiar to many folks who have ever rented a beach house.....

Have you considered that a Disney World rental house just might be the best choice for your family?

If not, then I'm so glad you came to visit today!

If you are researching affordable Disney family vacations, it is hard to beat the value that a rental home will provide. For starters, you will have a LOT more space in a vacation home than a hotel room. More space will greatly increase family vacation harmony, I promise! =)

And if your family is one that typically needs multiple hotel rooms, then this will save you money as well. Vacation homes can sleep anywhere from 4 to 16 people comfortably, often for the same or less cost than you would have with one hotel room. No question where you are getting the most for your money.

With a rental house, you will have a kitchen. In fact you will likely have a well-stocked kitchen with everything you could possibly need including, dishes, pots and pans, glasses, coffee pot, can opener, bake wear, and other assorted kitchen items.

It is a great cost-saver to be able to make some of your own meals and snacks. By doing a little basic food preparation, and eating in at times, you will find that you have a greatly reduced meal budget. Just compare to what it would be if you ate all meals at the theme parks!

And no matter the size, your Disney World rental house will come fully furnished, with multiple bedrooms and bathrooms, in addition to the living/dining area(s) and kitchen.

One other thing: often overlooked is the fact that you may have in your rental property in-house home theaters, game rooms, private pools, video games as well as access to community centers with fitness and other recreation activities...at no additional cost. More savings!

I think it is easy to see why having a Disney World rental house is an increasingly popular choice for vacationers to the Orlando area. More space, more relaxing, saving money....there's a lot of magic there!!!

Have a magical day!

Walt Disney Swan and Dolphin Resort Hotels:Not Just Interesting Architecture

2009-07-16T14:30:00.001-04:00

In my last post, I discussed the benefits of staying in one of the hotels near Walt Disney World. Today I want to discuss a couple of the coolest resort hotels in Disney...the Walt Disney Swan and Dolphin resort .

OK, first of all, these properties are some of the neatest hotels around. If you have ever visited Disney World, you have surely seen these fantastic-looking landmarks, right next to Epcot's Spaceship Earth icon (the giant "golf ball").

They are definitely distinctive, to say the least. I have always thought that Michael Graves, the award-winning architect who designed the Swan and Dolphin, took his mission to design buildings that fit the "Disney magic" veerry seriously. =) Check out the pictures. These buildings are way cool. And pretty hard to miss!

I will admit that great design fascinates me, so I find the architecture of the Swan and Dolphin very appealing. And the interiors and grounds are lovely as well, in fact they rival any of the deluxe Disney properties with some of the nicest amenities available. BUT, how they look is, frankly, the least of the benefits of being a guest here.

Owned by Starwood (the parent company of the Sheraton and Westin hotels) the Walt Disney Swan and Dolphin resort is actually located on Disney property, and is a short walk or boat ride from Epcot and Hollywood Studios. It is a GREAT location! And as a guest, you also get access to Disney's bus service to the other theme parks as well.

One of the nicest benefits of staying at the Swan and Dolphin is that guests, while not officially Disney resort guests, still enjoy those great Disney resort perks: in addition to the transportation and location, guests of the Swan and Dolphin can participate in the Extra Magic Hours program, get free parking at the theme parks, and can get package delivery from the parks to the hotel.

And then there are the beds. Oh my gosh...........

If you have ever stayed at a Westin property, you may be familiar with their "Heavenly Beds": pillow top mattress, triple sheets, down blanket and comforter, and goose down/feather pillows....

Let me just say that after a long day at the Disney parks....the Heavenly Bed is an extremely accurate name!!

So why on earth, on a blog and website devoted to planning affordable Disney family vacations, am I talking about a couple of resort hotels that are obviously so luxurious??

Because, the Walt Disney Swan and Dolphin resort is a great value.

Although in the "deluxe" category, these two hotels are less expensive than similar Disney-owned properties. And even better, they are well known for the frequent discounts for AAA members, Florida residents, seniors, government employees, members of the military, nurses, and teachers.

The reason we stayed here, is because we got a great deal MORE for our money than staying at an official Disney resort. But got the benefits of staying on a Disney resort. What's not to love?

Have a magical day!

Where to Stay on Your Disney Vacation? Why You Should Consider One of the Hotels Near Walt Disney World

2009-07-13T10:30:00.009-04:00

There are a number of ways to save money on a Walt Disney World vacation, and one of the best is to forget staying on Disney property, and check out one of the many great hotels near Walt Disney World. You may very well be impressed by what you find. I know, as I researched, this, I certainly was! In fact, I found that there are a number of benefits to staying off-property.

To start with, you will likely find larger, and perhaps nicer accommodations. This surprised me, as I am a big fan of the Disney resorts. But the fact remains that, for the same or even less money, you will get a lot more value staying off-site. And for families that find one hotel room is too small...and so they need two rooms... having the potential for larger accommodations, may mean only one room. Saving money already!!

Another thing to consider: The Disney properties can be difficult to book at certain times of the year (holidays, summer, school vacations), and so if you are trying to reserve at the last minute, or really need a lower price range, you will find the most options off-property.

Now if you are trying to plan an affordable Disney family vacation, being able to save money on things like meals, shopping, and even other attractions is important. Here, the best option is often to stay in one of the hotels near Disney World. Many provide free breakfast. Many also provide discounts and coupons to other theme parks, restaurants, and shopping. (And to be frank, having non-Disney options for any of these will allow you to save money.)

Many properties have pool areas that are the envy of anything on Disney property, as well as offering suites with mini-kitchens, fitness and recreation opportunities and a boatload of family and children's activities.

Now what do you lose by staying in one of the hotels near Walt Disney World? Well, you will not have a 24/7 all-Disney-all-the-time experience...but you may be one who finds that to be a good thing! There are many who find they just need a break from all that pixie dust...and staying off Disney property can give you a much needed reality-check

However there is a compromise if you want to have your cake and eat it too!

Many folks do not realize that there are several "non-Disney" hotels that are actually on Disney property. There are a few in Downtown Disney, and then there is the fantastic Walt Disney Swan and Dolphin resort , located a short walk or boat ride of both Epcot and Hollywood Studios. Here you will get many Disney resort guest benefits, but without the corresponding price tag. If you want to save money, but still have your "Disney", these properties can be a good option.

Now I will say, that transportation can be an issue if you don't carefully look at the details.Some hotels use a shared shuttle system with other properties, which can add travel time. Some charge for their shuttle. If you are planning afternoon visits back to your hotel, you will want to consider all your alternatives. A rental car can be a good solution, but realize that you will have a parking fee at the parks, and on peak holidays, the parking lots may actually close to non-Disney guests. Still, do your research, and you will find many great properties where transportation will not be a problem.

If you need more information, as always, check out my resource site, The Affordable Mouse. =)

Have a magical day!

Great Free Tools for Planning Affordable Disney Family Vacations

2009-07-10T10:00:00.001-04:00

I have been talking about the need to do advance planning to help make your Disney vacation a successful and happy time for everyone in your family. I have typically used a number of resources that are my favorites for the best way to plan a Disney vacation, and I wanted to talk about a couple today that are absolutely FREE to use!

But first, let's talk about the anticipation factor. If there was ever a vacation that has HUGE expectations from a family...especially the children...it would be trip to Walt Disney World. Probably the best example of this is that wonderful commercial that Walt Disney World was running a couple of years ago, where the kids...and the parents...are talking the night before they leave for their Disney vacation...the "I'm too excited to sleep" commercial. If you have seen it, you know which one I am talking about: guaranteed to bring a smile every time! =)

My point in this is that, anticipating....knowing what to expect, and visualizing it all...is certainly half the fun of planning a trip! It makes the time spent waiting for the vacation to arrive, go a bit faster too! (You know: the "When to we go?" questions.)

This anticipation is helped then by learning about the destination...learning what things will be like, and what to expect. This "learning" part is kind of important, because it helps channel all that excitement into becoming aware and prepared. Which of course leads to happy vacations!

So, in addition to the reading you are doing =), I have a couple of really FUN suggestions. First, hop over to disneyworld.com and order your FREE Vacation Planning dvd. It will arrive in your mailbox in no time, and you and your family will have a blast watching and learning. Many of us, especially children, learn visually, so SEEING everything will help everyone get a great feel for what to expect. Plus, as the excitement builds, everyone gets to watch the darn thing over and over and over.....

Now in addition to this, just the other day, I received an email from Disney with another really cool FREE tool. You can now plan your own, personalized Disney vacation video. You can choose the events, activities, and locations that interest YOUR family the most. It's a blast to create, and even more fun to watch. Create your online video and then enjoy the anticipation and excitement of waiting for...and learning about...your Disney vacation!

And don't forget, I have more ideas, tips, suggestions, or resources for planning affordable Disney family vacations as well.

Have a magical day!

The Best Way to See Disney World...and Have Fun While Doing It!

2009-07-02T21:20:00.010-04:00

When friends and family have asked me about my advice for the best way to plan a Disney vacation, I usually start by asking them if they have discussed as a family, what exactly they want to see while in Disney World. In my opinion, this is absolutely where everyone needs to start!

Why? Because the success of a family trip to Walt Disney World, perhaps more than any other kind of vacation, is related to how much fun people are having, especially little ones! This is an on-the-go vacation, without a lot of rest or downtime (unless you specifically plan for it, but more on that later).

People get hot, people get tired, people get cranky. And by “people” I don’t just mean children, ‘cause adults get hot, tired, and cranky too!

And this is just not the way the “happiest place on Earth” was meant to be!

So if ya wanna have fun, you’re gonna have to work at it a bit before you go. Believe me when I say this: deciding to just "wing it" when you get there is more than likely to result in some crankiness along the way! And over our past 10 or so family trips to Disney, we have certainly witnessed many situations where folks could have used a little extra pixie dust to get them through the day!

We planned our first family trip when our daughter was seven. It was a great age for a first Disney World trip: she was old enough to deal with the rigors of touring 4 parks without needing a stroller, but young enough to still believe in the “magic” of it all. And she was also at a great age to help me plan! Which, I realized very quickly as I started to do my research into this trip, was going to be an important key to the overall success.

Why? Well because....

We were traveling in July, which is the hottest, most humid time of the year in Florida, and I knew it would be crowded. I could see that there was NO way that we would last at the parks every day, from early morning till close at night…. with a cold-weather-loving-husband and a seven-year-old… without a break…

And because of this, I realized that there would be rides or attractions that we might not get to see….and choices that we were going to have to make. And the person that would probably care most about those choices was….you guessed it….our daughter. Because nothing guarantees crankiness (or for that matter, a downright meltdown right in the middle of the Magic Kingdom) than a 7 year old who is heartbroken because we were not going to be able to see the ONE THING that she just HAD to see.

So rather than me trying to guess what I thought would be important to her, I got a great Walt Disney World vacation planner that was geared towards a kid’s point of view, and then we read it together. Again and again. In fact, it became one of her favorite books. She highlighted what she liked, read the other kids' points of view, and made her own lists. Then we got together as a family and went over everything. We prioritized: what was most important to each of us in each park, and what could we live without? With this list in hand, I was able to put together a touring plan of sorts, specifically geared towards what our family wanted to do. And then figure out how to do it all and still remain un-cranky.

Did it work? You bet it did. Lots of fun and magical moments, and we pretty much got to see everything on our "Must Do" list.

And nobody got cranky!

Having a Walt Disney World Vacation Planner: True Confessions of a Disney Addict

2009-06-30T21:14:00.000-04:00

I can so clearly remember planning our first vacation to Walt Disney World with my own family. Having been once, 25 years before as a girl, I only vaguely knew that Disney World was BIG. And it would be CROWDED. And we were going in July, so it was going to be HOT. And since we just knew that we were probably not ever going to visit again, it was important to SEE IT ALL.

This trip was A BIG DEAL.

Oh dear.

As I began to think it all through, I pretty quickly became overwhelmed. After all, having a successful vacation with all of that in mind, is a tall order. My Mommy reputation was clearly on the line. And so was my Planner-in-Chief reputation. So, like any good general, I prepared for battle. This was serious business!

I poured over the Walt Disney World website. I ordered the free vacation video that Disney World offered (which they still do by the way, only now it's a DVD). I read every newspaper and magazine article I saw, cut them out and put them in my expanding file, and then read them again. I went to the library, where I found, oh joy of joys, books on Disney World!! Checked out the ones that appeared to offer valuable information, and then went out and bought the ones that I liked the best. I actually bought one for our daughter as well, so that she could also get an idea of what to expect. Had to start training the next generation of vacation planners early. =)

(You might wonder why I didn't just surf the net. Well, this was 1998, and doing a Google search was just not an integral part of our life at that point, as it is now. I was still doing things the "old fashioned way", lol...I read books.)

In any event, two interesting things occurred from all of this research:

I realized that the more I knew, the more I needed to know.
And I also realized that we needed a PLAN.

It was evident from reading the advice of those wise souls who had been there before me, that a Disney World vacation was like no other. There was not going to be any relaxing on this trip! We could not just "go with the flow" (well we could, but were likely to end up frustrated, hot, and cranky if we did). I realized that truly the best way to plan a Disney vacation absolutely involved knowing waaaaayyy before we walked onto Main Street USA, what we wanted to see, when we wanted to see it, and how much we were going to pay for it.

So, I became Disney obsessed. I admit it. My family really thought I had taken leave of my senses. It was all I talked about for months. Looking back, I am amazed that they didn't say, "Hey, never mind, we don't really need to go to Disney World". I am sure that they thought I was over the edge.

Until we got there. And I whipped out the daily planner I had created for us, showing what rides and attractions everyone wanted to see. I knew when the parks opened, when we could go early or stay late, where to go for some peaceful, air-conditioned moments, where to eat, where NOT to eat, etc. etc. etc.

The trip was a success. We all had an absolute blast, and the Planner-in-Chief was thanked time and time again. And we began to think about going back again. Which we have done, more than 10 times since. Yup, we're all Disney fanatics now.

The moral of this story? Well, I would have to say, do your research, and have a plan. You will NOT regret having a plan.

Now some folks are like me and looove to do hours and hours of reading and researching. And the internet can be a big help to folks like me, since there is always something new to learn!

But not everyone has that kind of time, and I get that. Which is one reason why I started The Affordable Mouse, to help folks plan affordable Disney family vacations, by having the very best money-saving tips and ideas in one place. If you don't have the time to scour the internet, staying up until 3 a.m. reading message boards, and drilling down through Disney vacation planning websites that have hundreds of pages, that's ok. I am doing that part for you.

And don't worry, I love doing it. As my husband says, I am happiest planning a Disney trip. If not mine, then others. =)

One last thing: if you would like some suggestions for a few of my favorite Walt Disney World vacation planners, check out The Affordable Mouse.

The Best Way to Plan a Disney Vacation?

2009-06-11T21:51:00.001-04:00

Oh I get this question alllll the time! I am talking to friends or co-workers and they are planning their first vacation to Disney World: "What is the BEST way to plan a Disney vacation?" they ask me....

Well, it depends... After all, Walt Disney World is enormous, with 4 major theme parks, several "minor" theme park attractions, dozens of resort hotels, restaurants and various eateries, etc. etc. etc. You need to consider so many variables:

what time of year are you planning to visit?
age(s) of children?
first visit?
transportation plans(will you have a car with you?)
budget?

And so forth. As I said, lots to consider when discussing the best way to plan a Disney vacation. Because, as with so many things in life, there is just not one easy answer.

Or, then again, maybe there is =)

Because, really the best way to plan a Disney vacation is to have a plan!

Yes, that' right: PLAN to plan. Sounds crazy, but it actually makes a lot of sense. And that's because, with Disney World being sooo big, with soooo many people visiting at the same time you are, and with the costs involved, you are doing yourself...and your family...a major favor when you take the time to plan ahead where you want to go, how you want to visit, discuss where you want to eat, and a whole host of other things.

Of course, if you have never visited Walt Disney World before, then you need some help. The Affordable Mouse website and The Affordable Mouse Blog are great starters. But you also owe it to the success of your Disney vacation, and the sanity of you and your family, to invest in a good guidebook or two.

Now I know that, if you are like me, there is just not a lot of time left in the day for reading, but I do have several favorites that will be helpful for you. The great thing is that, while being filled with great information, they are not the size of a major city's phone book, and are simple, fun, and easy reads. I will share details about each one in the coming days, but if you want to check them out now, you can click here.

There's a lot of Disney planning information out there. My goal with The Affordable Mouse and The Affordable Mouse Blog, is to gather the best information in one place, to help as you discover the best way to plan a Disney vacation.

Have a magical day!

Discounted Disney World Tickets: Buyer Beware

2009-06-09T20:19:00.001-04:00

In my last post, I discussed some of the things that I looked for when deciding where to buy discounted Disney World tickets. One of the things I found out when I first started researching this topic, was that it was just as important, if not MORE important, to consider carefully where NOT to buy. What I learned is as follows:

First of all, never, ever, ever buy tickets from eBay or Craigslist. I know it is tempting, as the prices are usually reeaaaallly good. Well there is a reason for that! It is simply because you have no way of knowing....at all....what you are truly buying until you get to the park gate. Disney tickets do not identify in any way, how many days are available on them, so despite everything the seller tells you, you really can't be sure that there are as many days left as he/she says...if there are even any days left on the ticket at all, until that pass is scanned at the parks. Invalid ticket? Too bad for you, as Disney will certainly not help you at all.

This then brings me to the second thing that I learned: it is illegal in the state of Florida to resell partially used tickets. Again, for the reason stated above, there is no way for the buyer to be sure of how many days are on the ticket. And the thing is, there are sellers of used tickets all over the internet, and despite the law, even at locations in Florida. Disney does enforce this policy, through the use of a biometric finger scan: basically it "reads" the first person to use a ticket, and after that, no one is able to use the pass. Sooo, even if you were lucky enough to find an "honest" ticket reseller, who assured you that there were 7 days left on that Park Hopper pass, and there were indeed 7 days left on that Park Hopper pass...well, you still couldn't use it if someone had used it before you. So again, too bad for the unsuspecting buyer.

There is one other thing that I watch out for with sellers of discounted Disney World tickets, and that is, are they trying to get you to sit through a timeshare presentation? This is an extremely popular strategy in the Orlando area, to get folks interested in the many timeshares that are available. So to attract folks to these presentations, there are many sites and businesses that advertise "free" Disney tickets....but be sure to read that fine print! Because those free tickets will cost you several hours or more of your hard-earned vacation, for some pretty high pressure sales tactics. Now there are some folks that would not mind this in order to get free tickets and if you are one of them, then enjoy! Just make sure that you know, ahead of time, the situation, and then you can be prepared. My main complaint is with the companies that do not clearly spell this out, until you are there to pick up your free tickets. Too late then!

I think my philosophy about all this can be summed up in what everyone's grandparents used to say: "If it seems too good to be true, it probably is".

It is certainly possible to save money on a Disney vacation by purchasing discounted Disney World tickets, and I really recommend it! My favorite broker, Undercover Tourist is a reputable, authorized-by-Disney, ticket agency, with great service, excellent prices, and free shipping!

Hopefully you have found this information to be helpful. For additional Disney vacation planning ideas, and ways to save money on your next Disney World vacation, visit The Affordable Mouse.

Have a magical day!

Discount Tickets? Walt Disney World Lets You DO That?

2009-06-08T20:44:00.001-04:00

One of the questions I often get from friends for whom I am helping plan affordable Disney family vacations, is related to saving money on Disney World park tickets. They usually want to know:

Is it possible to purchase discounted Disney World tickets? ...and...

Where can you legitimately buy discounted Disney tickets?

So, let me share with you how I answer those questions! =)

First of all, YES, it is possible to buy Disney World park tickets at a discount. The trick, and this is the important part, is to find a broker, or ticket agency, who is authorized by the Disney Company to actually sell those tickets. With anyone other than an authorized ticket broker, you truly run the risk of buying invalid tickets. And no one wants to do that!!

So the second question really becomes the more important one then: how do you find an authorized ticket broker for discounted Disney World tickets?

I asked this very question myself, when I researched this topic for our family Disney vacations. While knowing that I was saving money was important, I also looked at things like:

Is this ticket broker an authorized ticket agent? Do they clearly identify themselves as being authorized by the Disney company to sell park tickets?
Has this ticket agency been in business for a length of time? I am certainly not opposed to new companies, but with something like buying discount tickets online, there are alot of scams out there....and a company that has been in business for a number of years has credibility.
Are they affiliated with organizations like the Better Business Bureau, or local Chambers of Commerce? Again, a reputable company will have these types of designations, and be proud to advertise the fact!
Does this ticket broker clearly note on their website how their pricing structure works? That is, do they note if tax and shipping are included in their prices? If not included, are those fees clearly stated somewhere on their website?

Those were, and are, my initial guidelines. There are some others, which I will get into on my next posting. Again, while cost is a consideration, that was not necessarily my first consideration: part of me still believes that "you get what you pay for" and when I see the dishonesty of some ticket sellers, who have the "cheapest" price........but are selling bogus tickets....well, I don't believe that cheapest is always best. Good prices, yes! But making sure that, when I arrive at the Magic Kingdom, my ticket works....well that is probably a bit more important! Don't you agree?

So after doing the research, I buy our discounted Disney World tickets from Undercover Tourist. They meet my criteria to a "tee"....and I can say that they have great customer service as well!

So there you have it! You can visit my website, The Affordable Mouse, for more information about Undercover Tourist, and discounted Disney tickets in general.

Have a magical day!

Discounted Disney Tickets 411

2009-06-05T20:13:00.000-04:00

One of the first pages I had to make on my new website, The Affordable Mouse, was one devoted to discounted Disney tickets. When planning a Walt Disney World vacation, the ticket purchase is one of the most expensive items in your budget (especially if staying for a number of days and/or you have several people in your family). It is also one of the most confusing, due to the Magic Your Way pricing structure. And unfortunately, that confusion sometimes leads people, in their quest to save a few dollars, to make unwise choices in their Disney World ticket purchases.

Is it possible to safely purchase discounted Disney World tickets? You bet! Is it also possible to get burned doing so? Yup, it sure is. Sadly.

So, that was my reason for devoting an entire page to information on buying discounted Disney tickets. I wanted to provide some general tips for how the Magic Your Way pricing structure works, choosing the right ticket, and perhaps most of all, where you CAN purchase your tickets and where you should NEVER buy your Disney World tickets...and why.

I hope that you find it to be helpful for you!

Have a magical day!

A New Website for Affordable Disney Family Vacations

2009-06-04T10:49:00.000-04:00

Ok, I admit it, I am sooo excited!

As someone who loves Disney vacations more than just about anything (well maybe not chocolate, but it is close), if I can't be traveling to Walt Disney World, I want to be able to talk about it to those who are going themselves. Living vicariously through the fun of others I guess. =)

In any event, what I am excited about is the debut of my new website, The Affordable Mouse. I made the decision to create this site out of my desire to share with others many of the resources that I have used over the years to plan our own affordable Disney family vacations.

Our family just loves visiting Disney World so much that we try to go at least once a year, and often more than that if we can. But since we are, sadly, not related to Bill Gates, going to Disney this often requires careful planning and bargain research. There is a lot of time that goes into this, as there are literally hundreds of books, travel guides, websites and message boards devoted to Disney planning. I can honestly say that I have spent many hours reading about discount Disney vacation planning well into the wee hours of the night. It's a tough job, but hey, someone's gotta do it!

However, as I have talked about planning affordable Disney family vacations to my friends over the years, I realized that most people don't have that kind of time. They want to go to Disney, their kids are dying to meet Mickey, but they think they can't afford it, and/or don't have the time to research all the information, ideas, tips, and discounts that are out there if you have hundreds of hours to devote to looking for them. Or if they do go, they end up paying way more than they needed to!!

So, that's how The Affordable Mouse was born. I am taking what I have learned over the years, and creating a resource center with the best tips that I know of, for planning a discount Disney family vacation. You will benefit from MY hard work, there is no doubt about it!

So hop on over to The Affordable Mouse, and take a look. I will be adding new information as I find it, and will keep you posted on the latest developments here on The Affordable Mouse blog.

Have a magical day!

Discount Disney Family Vacations? Yes You CAN!!

2009-04-17T10:25:00.000-04:00

One of the things that makes me so sad is when people tell me that they would love to visit Walt Disney World, but can't because it is too expensive. It just doesn't have to be that way! My family is living proof that it is possible to visit Disney World, and to do it affordably.

Think about it:

Is your family begging to visit Disney World this summer, but you figure it will cost too much, especially in this economy?

Would your little girl just love to have breakfast with Cinderella, and be a princess for a day?

Is your son wishing he could go to infinity and beyond with Buzz Lightyear?

Don't give up your family's dream of a Disney vacation because you think it's not affordable.

It is possible to save hundreds if not thousands of dollars on a Disney vacation for your family! You CAN plan a trip filled with magical memories for you and your children. And you won't have to spend weeks surfing the internet for the best Disney discounts, tips and strategies for saving money.

You can find all the savings information for planning your own discount Disney family vacation in one place, at The Affordable Mouse. Filled with helpful advice, you will find everything you need for planning a discount Disney family vacation that is truly magical.

You DON'T have to disappoint your kids this year! Learn how you can create a vacation of a lifetime for your family, and not go broke in the process.

Breaking News: Free Dining at Walt Disney World!

2009-03-31T12:06:00.000-04:00

Disney has just announced a great way to help you plan an affordable Disney family vacation: FREE dining!! When you book a full price Disney World vacation package, for mid-August through early October, you will get the Plus Dining Plan for FREE. This means 1 snack credit, 1 counter service meal (entree, dessert, and drink) and one table service meal (entree, dessert, and drink) per person/per night. In order to qualify for this great offer, you must purchase a regularly priced "Magic Your Way" package, for at least 3 nights, at an official Walt Disney World resort hotel, plus at least a 1-day Magic Your Way base ticket.

This is an offer that Disney has offered for the past several years during the "slow" late Summer/early Fall season. It has been hugely popular for the obvious opportunity to get a great discount Disney family vacation. If you decide to take advantage of this, be sure to BOOK EARLY for best hotel selections, and even more important, make Advance Dining Reservations as soon as possible (reservations typically open at 90 days prior). In previous years, all table service restaurants book solid during this promotion, so do NOT expect to get any table service meals on a walk up basis. A "word to the wise" if you want to be able to take full advantage of this great package deal!

For more great tips and ways to plan a Disney World vacation, visit The Affordable Mouse.

Staying Affordably on a Disney Family Vacation

2009-03-30T11:39:00.000-04:00

Every time we start planning a Disney World vacation, one of the first questions is always, "Where are we going to stay?" In fact, after deciding WHEN to go, WHERE to stay is usually the most important question. My advice to those who might be thinking about this for their first Disney visit, is "It's all about the research". Check out your options. Have an open mind. Consider EVERYTHING. Then, and only then, after you have done the math, see what is your most affordable option.

Most people know that Walt Disney World area offers a wide array of choices from hundreds of off-resort properties to many options on Disney property itself. The consensus is that it is always cheaper to stay off-property. Well, sometimes yes and sometimes no. It can actually vary, depending on a number of things: time of the year, size of your family, and need for transportation while there all factor in your decision.

The time of year that you travel makes a big difference. Looking to go when the kids are out of school, either over the summer or on Christmas break? Neither will be your most budget friendly, although with continued economic problems in tourist-hungry Orlando, there are a lot of great deals for the coming summer months, both on Disney property as well as in the hundreds of off-site hotels and motels. Research this carefully, preferably far enough in advance to have a number of choices.

The size of your family plays a part too: if you have a number of kids and one motel room won't do, you will need to look for a larger "suite" or multiple rooms. The Walt Disney resort has 3 "levels" of accommodations, and often offers excellent discounts and packages, especially on some of their larger, "deluxe" properties that can feature one and two bedroom suites. Be sure to look at their "value" properties as well: it is not unusual for some of these to be part of promotions for as little as $60/night. In a case like this, two rooms could end up being less expensive than one in a different location. In addition, there are many options off the Disney property. Besides traditional hotel/motel choices, consider renting a vacation home, condominium, or time-share. If you need the space, do the math: it can be a definite cost-saver and will go a long way in achieving an affordable Disney family vacation.

You will need some sort of transportation while there. You can stay with Disney and use their free resort transportation, consisting of buses, monorail, or boats. If you are off-site then you will need a way to get to the parks: find out if your hotel/motel has a free shuttle. If not, or if you are staying in a private property, then factor in the cost of renting a car or van.

Once you do the math for all of these, then compare to the other options to see what the most affordable option for your Disney family vacation will be. You may be surprised to find out that traveling to Walt Disney World can be in your budget after all!

Affordable Disney? All You Have to do is Plan to Plan!!

2009-03-29T16:02:00.000-04:00

Let me start by saying that my family and I looove Walt Disney World! Learning about Disney is one of my favorite hobbies. Traveling to the World is another. In fact, my husband teases me that I am always happiest when I am planning a Disney World vacation. True that!

BUT, and this is a biggie for us, and probably for most of you: a Disney World vacation is not cheap……..or can it be?? Turns out that, while yes, there are a lot of expenses associated with a Disney vacation, it IS possible to have an affordable Disney family vacation.

In over 10 years of Disney visits, I can honestly say that the best way to plan a Disney vacation….especially if you want to save money….is to PLAN to plan! Sounds crazy, but let me explain.

A vacation to Walt Disney World is truly like no other. Amazing, overwhelming, exhausting, exhilarating, you name it. But to enjoy it, and not be overwhelmed BY it, you need to do some research. Do some reading. Compare costs. PLAN to plan! Can you just throw it all together, show up at the parks and go? Sure you can! Is your family likely to get frustrated and cranky? And will you be likely to pay a lot more for your Disney vacation by just throwing it all together and hoping for the best? ABSOLUTELY! I have seen it time and again, and I have heard "trip reports" from people who visit Disney just like this. What do they say when they return? "Spent a fortune". "Not worth it". "Never again".

OK, so what do we do that they don't? We PLAN to plan! You see, we love visiting Disney World way too much to only go every 5 or 6 years! So, in order to "feed our habit", we have to plan a discount Disney family vacation. If it's too expensive, we don't go. We want to go. So I have learned a lot of amazing, cost-cutting tips, as well as some fabulous "insider" information that has gone a long way in helping us to save money on our Disney World trips. The Affordable Mouse is a resource that I have created to be a source of great information for planning a magical Disney World vacation...affordably. I have learned a lot over the years, and am so happy to be able to share what I have learned with others. Kind of spreading my own little version of "pixie dust" you might say! :)