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

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

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

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!


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

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

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!