Budget..... I'm in shock right now... (rant of an old person here)

[hsmamato2]

Ok I'm the first to admit I've been zoned out as to actual prices happening for a WDW vacation right now but since this is the budget board I need a little old fashioned budget themed vent right now..... this is going to be more in the style of the "old days" of the BB here- Back in "the day" we used to chat on here about budgets, going to Disney and making it more affordable.....
Pardon my ignorance but I just went and took a look at the price of a one day hopper ticket......(I haven't looked in about 3 years) $208 for ONE DAY??????? ONE DAY?????
Last time I stopped in for a quick day visit, I recall being somewhat horrified by the $100 price tag,but justifying it in my head was a LOT easier utilizing some discount methods etc for a FULL day of fun times. Now I can't do that anymore.... there is NOTHING in my life or budget that can justify that kind of a jump in prices.... our income is still completely livable and fine, (in the real world) but it has NOT kept up with such a precipitous rise as those ticket prices....
Sorry I just needed to vent for a minute. I know I was deeply saddened by the extra costs that are now a part of a day at the parks there (that much I paid attention to) and I KNOW that if I bought a multe day pass the price per day would drop (a little) but what.is.happening??? Now that I know clearly the cost of a random day ticket, then add the other new costs on to make that one day worth doing (got to get on those attractions) I'm doubly shocked and I just don't know how think about this anymore. It saddens me ,and it makes me all at once. Ok...rant over.

 

[Dakota731]

We don’t do park hoppers since they are too pricey, but Disney’s one day tickets are the same price as Universal’s or Busch Garden’s, so not sure why WDW would have lower prices then other theme parks.

 

[lanejudy]

It really depends on day of the week and time of year. You can still get a 1-day non-hopper for ~$109. The one-day hopper adds $65, which to me is ridiculous on a one-day ticket. Ticket prices are "front-loaded" making the short visits way more expensive for fewer days than for a full week or longer.

 

[wbleek]

I am not sure if you are able to use this tip but Disney UK offers an "Ultimate 7-day Pass" which includes park hopping for around 450 pounds.

 

[twincruisers]

It's pretty clear WDW is pushing 3+ days for tickets to do maximum income extraction. It's sad to see but if you do more days you'll see the food and housing bill hit as a secondary sticker shock.

 

[RamblingMad]

The prices are going up faster than wages. Eventually, most people will get priced out. Disney is now a better investment than vacation sadly.

 

[hsmamato2]

The prices are going up faster than wages. Eventually, most people will get priced out. Disney is now a better investment than vacation sadly.

this is what I mean..... whose wages have jumped this fast to keep up? Yes, if I wanted to plan a 5 day trip,I know the cost per day would drop. This huge jump in cost has just got me SMH... I think a lot of regulars got used to dated pricing (hello price hikes) and now this.... close to $250 for ONE.DAY. (taxes added y'all) in a THEME.PARK. In real life, does anyone else here appreciate what you can buy for $250? I'm not going to lie and say I *couldn't* buy this.....I'm saying I'm shocked,and I can't be the only person who thinks this way. I've gone to Uni,and always managed to find some decent discounts there in the past also, I will confess I haven't checked lately either for those.

 

[Dakota731]

The prices are going up faster than wages. Eventually, most people will get priced out. Disney is now a better investment than vacation sadly.

I think people have been saying this for years and it hasn’t happened. I remember my dad complaining about prices 30 years ago! We just go every few years since it’s pricey and see different parts of the country in between. Though I must say our trip out west this summer was expensive too. And beach homes in our area are creeping up over $3000 a week nowadays as well. I look at vacations as a luxury that I save up for.

 

[mrodgers]

I think people have been saying this for years and it hasn’t happened. I remember my dad complaining about prices 30 years ago! We just go every few years since it’s pricey and see different parts of the country in between. Though I must say our trip out west this summer was expensive too. And beach homes in our area are creeping up over $3000 a week nowadays as well. I look at vacations as a luxury that I save up for.

Debt is keeping it going. It has been this way for years, people counteract their non-ability to afford it by using debt. Same reason we have a $35k automobile average or high home cost average. Take on more debt and it's affordable again.

 

[GoingSince1990]

You can go to the Disney parks for $3.56 per day. You just need to buy an Incredi-Pass and make sure to visit a park every day of the year.

 

[Dakota731]

Debt is keeping it going. It has been this way for years, people counteract their non-ability to afford it by using debt. Same reason we have a $35k automobile average or high home cost average. Take on more debt and it's affordable again.

Hopefully not all people. I have never not paid off any credit card each month and taught my children the same. If you can’t afford something then get a second job or save until you can. I think our kids (and many adults!) could use more of a fiscal education in this country that’s for sure.

 

[mrodgers]

Hopefully not all people. I have never not paid off any credit card each month and taught my children the same. If you can’t afford something then get a second job or save until you can. I think our kids (and many adults!) could use more of a fiscal education in this country that’s for sure.

It's why you can get a 96 month car loan now. Because people are willing to do it not understanding that prices won't inflate off the charts if they just said "no".

 

[WDWorBUST]

I can totally relate to what you are saying. We have been to Disney many, many times over the past 23 years and I can remember the days of $49/night rates in early December at the All-Stars. This last round of changes - getting rid of Magical Express, Genie +, the base cost of tickets, having $99 "add-ons" to the $1300 annual pass that used to be included.....well those annual trips we used to enjoy so much are probably a thing of the past. We do have an early spring trip planned next year for our daughter who will be competing in Dance Nationals along with a graduation trip for her next summer. After that we will be playing it by ear and I really do believe the annual trips of the past (sometimes more than one a year) are over. I will at least be really crunching numbers to see if the value is still there and if not we will sadly no longer be visiting as regularly. I know it is a business and the purpose is to make money, but rolling out all these changes that result in added expenses definitely leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

 

[RamblingMad]

It's why you can get a 96 month car loan now. Because people are willing to do it not understanding that prices won't inflate off the charts if they just said "no".

Long car terms make zero sense. I have a four year note now, and that seems too long.

What will continue to happen is fewer and fewer people will be able to afford to go. They'll either take on debt and file for bankruptcy later or skip it altogether.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

It's why you can get a 96 month car loan now. Because people are willing to do it not understanding that prices won't inflate off the charts if they just said "no".

Exactly! I told my young adult sons that when I first started driving, car loans were 3-4 years. Then 5 years. Then I saw an ad for 7 years. I told them both if you need 7 years to pay off a car, it means you can't afford it. Period. If you want it bad enough, save up a much larger down payment and you won't need 7 years to pay for it.

Long car terms make zero sense. I have a four year note now, and that seems too long.

What will continue to happen is fewer and fewer people will be able to afford to go. They'll either take on debt and file for bankruptcy later or skip it altogether.

I bought my current car, a barely used 2016, in January 2019 and put down $15k. The shortest loan I could get was 5 years but I paid it off by that Halloween, 9 months later. I can't stand having a car loan.
I realize not everyone can do that but since we paid down all our old debt, it really freed up our $ to make better choices.

 

[RamblingMad]

I bought my current car, a barely used 2016, in January 2019 and put down $15k. The shortest loan I could get was 5 years but I paid it off by that Halloween, 9 months later. I can't stand having a car loan.
I realize not everyone can do that but since we paid down all our old debt, it really freed up our $ to make better choices.

I have a 1.9% note. With inflation hovering near 5%, I'd rather invest my money than rush to pay it off. I have about one year left. I can pay it off, but I'd rather risk it than take a guaranteed 1.9% return. I can make more risk free buying I Bonds right now, which is what I did this summer.

I'm not a fan of debt, but I'm not bothered by it when I have the cash available to pay it off.

 

[mrodgers]

I bought my current car, a barely used 2016, in January 2019 and put down $15k. The shortest loan I could get was 5 years but I paid it off by that Halloween, 9 months later. I can't stand having a car loan.
I realize not everyone can do that but since we paid down all our old debt, it really freed up our $ to make better choices.

Funny because I bought my 2016 new in 2016 and with my $2000 down, my loan was almost less than your $15k down payment, LOL. I paid it off right before the pandemic hit about a year and a half early.

 

[tinkerbelletreasure]

I know Disney and Universal are two different animals, but I feel the same way about Universal that you feel about Disney. We’ve priced out adding a day or two of Universal onto our Disney trip the last 2 times and for my family, with a 1 day park hopper ticket with their express pass, an offsite hotel, and QS park meals, we are looking at over $1000 just for 1 day. And I haven’t been able to justify it for myself. We spend roughly $700/ day for our Disney trips. I realize the price per day goes down the longer we stay.

 

[shawthorne44]

I know Disney and Universal are two different animals, but I feel the same way about Universal that you feel about Disney. We’ve priced out adding a day or two of Universal onto our Disney trip the last 2 times and for my family, with a 1 day park hopper ticket with their express pass, an offsite hotel, and QS park meals, we are looking at over $1000 just for 1 day. And I haven’t been able to justify it for myself. We spend roughly $700/ day for our Disney trips. I realize the price per day goes down the longer we stay.

You'd see a huge difference though is you reversed it doing a majority of the trip at USF. Annual passes are in the 300's. Whereas my 10-day WDW tickets are in the high-500's.

Also, I don't understand why anyone who isn't doing a solo one-day USF trip buys express passes. Stay in a USF Premier. Price of a Disney moderate and equal or better than a Disney Deluxe and Express Passes are included.

For budget purposes, doing a trip of just USF or WDW makes sense. All parks have expensive one-day tickets. So instead of doing a bit of both on each trip, alternate.

 

[pigletto]

this is what I mean..... whose wages have jumped this fast to keep up? Yes, if I wanted to plan a 5 day trip,I know the cost per day would drop. This huge jump in cost has just got me SMH... I think a lot of regulars got used to dated pricing (hello price hikes) and now this.... close to $250 for ONE.DAY. (taxes added y'all) in a THEME.PARK. In real life, does anyone else here appreciate what you can buy for $250? I'm not going to lie and say I *couldn't* buy this.....I'm saying I'm shocked,and I can't be the only person who thinks this way. I've gone to Uni,and always managed to find some decent discounts there in the past also, I will confess I haven't checked lately either for those.

I understand what you’re saying and I feel it too . We’ve been going since 2008 and the increases have been astronomical. Our priorities have shifted too. I’ve got a daughter with a wedding in less than two years that we will help with, a son entering university next year, and we are focused on retiring earlier if we can. Dinner at the new Space 220 would be over $300 once I included tax and tip and exchange and that is ONE meal. There are so many areas of my life where that money is better spent

Sometimes I really wonder if the majority of people on the boards just make more money than we do. And it’s ok if that is the case .. I just can’t fathom $200-$300 a day for table service on top of those ticket costs on top of the astronomical hotel prices.

We are employing every trick in the book to keep our costs down , and while it helps it’s still so expensive I can barely justify it, and certainly won’t be going every year like we used to.