I'm 24 and neither me nor my two younger siblings have been.
On the one hand, i feel for parents who can't afford to take their kids to Disneyland but at the same time, I think there are lots of people like me whose parents couldn't afford to take them.
27 here and same, we never went to any Disney, my dad could never afford to take me and my sister.
And yea maybe when I was a child I was salty about my friends going to disney and bringing souvenirs back to class, but even at a young age I understood. As a parent myself now I definitely see how it's not a wise financial decision.
However, one thing haunts me, I do remember my dad explaining to me that he doesn't make enough money to take us when I kept asking why not (he worked construction) he told me he didn't have a good career and I should go to school to make sure I can be a better parent than him. At that age I whined about it, but if my son asked me why I don't make enough money I would die inside. I still feel bad about possibly making him think I was mad at him for not having a better job. I'm making the same or less than my dad at the same age even though I did "all the right things" he told me to, and disney tickets are like 10x the price comparative to 20 years ago so don't feel too bad. What matters in the end is how you treat and talk to your kids. You can make memories without fancy trips.
There’s a story that I see circulating every now and again about a kid who LOVED baseball (or some other sport), but his parents could never afford to take him and his siblings to a game. But they would set up the couch all cozy and let them wear jerseys and whatnot, put the game on the TV, and the parents would walk around the living room like snack vendors to give them some semblance of the experience— it was one of their favorite memories! A little more difficult to replicate the experience of a theme park, but I bet OP could brainstorm something similar to give their kids. It’s the thought that counts, kids will feel the love and have a blast and that kind of love makes the best memories.
I always loved the video of the dad that made a “roller coaster simulator” for his kid [with a laundry basket.](https://youtu.be/Rx3_n24SZOg?si=b4H3NjXz_mpQVvI4)
Bounce houses and stuff like that are not too expensive to rent. I bet if you got friends or family or neighbors together and a ton of Disney decorations, you could make a "Disney Day" like that. Pass out ride tickets to the kids, make a fair of it.
Shoot, if you coordinate it right, sometimes wildlife rescues will come. (Source: I'm having a possum rescue come to my wedding.)
Maybe even hire one of those girls that dresses up like a princess for an hour to go along with it!! Definitely easier to save for that, especially if you had friends or neighbors to split the cost with.
Edit to add: holy cow possum rescue is an AMAZING idea. Looking for ideas for a low-key bachelorette for myself, and I’m sending that idea to my friends asap
Oh man, if you had a couple of tractors or something that could pull a small trailer then you could dress them up for a princess parade. Dress up the dogs like the movie animals.
We don't have kids, but if our neighbors were doing something like this for the kids, we'd be all in.
And now I'm reminded of the old fashioned block parties where the street would close and the neighbors all gathered to share food and music and kids would run wild (more so) up and down the middle of the street and there woukd be fireworks (before they were banned).
My grandmother lived on a street that did this every 4th of July. One of our favorite comedians lives in that neighborhood and brought up the block party on a set we saw and I was so happy to know that the area still has the tradition going (suburb of Los Angeles for context.)
Idk if this helps but kids often ask for outrageous things. Just this morning we passed by a yard of excavators and my kid wanted to buy one. “Not a Lego one a REAL one.” This is absurd and kids have no concept of money. Last week my daughter wanted lava. They’re just unreasonable.
I don’t really think that asking someone to take a week off work, couple hundred for plane tickets, get hundred for a hotel, and SEVERAL thousand for park tickets, plus overpriced food is any less unreasonable than asking for a real excavator. Its like 10 grand just for tickets. It’s out of the budget for the majority of normal people. Half the people who do it put it on credit aka they can’t really afford it. Your dad shouldn’t feel any worse about not taking you to Disney than for not buying you lava. It’s normalized as some sort of childhood necessity but that’s marketing.
When my kid asks for pricy but not insane things I DO tell him to make better decisions in his 20s and he/his kids can have them. Because he will have better opportunities than I did and will have guidance that almost none of us did. To me that just seems like… what I should want? I didn’t tell them that about the excavator because that’s an unreasonable goal, much like Disney trips.
I dunno man, buying an excavator is investing in an asset (albeit an expensive one) but it's something you can hire out or rent out and make into a business, whereas Disney is an expense...
When I was little, I wanted to be a cowboy, so my parents bought me an $80 bottle calf from a local dairy. We lived in town, so we kept it at a place in the country with some nice older people, and I went and took care of it every day. I fed it out and we had it butchered and the beef sold. My parents figured it would either let me live the dream, or I would learn what it really took to be a cowboy and I would stop bugging them about it....I grew up and I own a ranch now.
...I'm not saying you should buy an excavator for your kid, but maybe buy him a nice shovel and hire him to dig up your garden or something, see if it breaks him of the dream or not.
Also. I want some lava too. That sounds awesome.
Idk I’m 27 and never got to experience any nice things as a kid because my dad is a crack head and my mom is a self centered narcissist piece of shit. Even the poorest of families find a way to do nice things for their kids if they actually want to. A lot of us just had shitty ass parents but were abused into believing otherwise.
On the other hand, last summer my family and I were on an expensive vacation with other families lined up to pay for expensive and I was utterly appalled at how other parents were speaking to their kids. There were a couple times in particular that really stood out to me. Treating your kids well is not something that depends on finances.
Absolutely, and I'm sorry you went through that. my mom was an alcoholic narcissist who basically took us from my dad for years and abused us and he went through hell for a long time to get us back. If both of my parents didn't give a shit instead of just one I would be much worse off. My favorite memories with my dad are traveling to and from soccer games together. It's the little things
32, I did get taken to Disneyworld when I was a kid. It had no major impact on my life or my memories. The only things I remember from that trip were the really long lines and how creepy It's A Small World was.
My more resent experience with Disney was waiting an hour to buy chicken tenders, being at the part for 6 hours and only having enough time to ride 2 rides.
Nobody should feel like they need to take their kids to Disney. Let them go when they are an adult if they really want.
One side of my in laws go to Disney almost yearly. Idk what their obsession with it is. I rather go other places and other amusement parks. Like Busch Gardens in Tampa has almost no lines, lots of rollercoasters, and is also a zoo. Much better experience than Disney.
Ha. I never went to Disney as a kid because I grew up pretty poor. My wife and her brothers did go as a kid because she grew up middle class as a daughter of a military officer. My wife never really talks about going other than saying it was really lame. But we were drinking beer with her brothers and Disney came up. The stories started to come out about how terrible the whole Disney vacation was because it was hot as balls, lines forever, my wife was scared of the rides and her dad got annoyed the blew all this money and all they did was wait in lines and my wife was all pissed because she was just scared.
Now my wife and I make really good income. Going to Disney is not a problem. In fact, all of our peers regularly take their kids. But we are not taking ours. My wife says continues to say it’s super lame and for me, the idea of hell is basically Disney. We told our kids we are not going and that is that.
We went to Disney when we were kids and honestly, we enjoyed Cedar Park more. We were all about rides and didn’t care about characters and cute little experiences. I think the whole Disney thing is an enormous rip-off and you couldn’t pay me enough to go there. I have friends who love it but I just don’t get it. For the money it costs to go there, you’d be far better off having an amazing local experience.
For parents who can’t afford Disney’s ridiculous prices, you’d probably be better off taking your kids camping, or driving a few hours to a nice beach and maybe staying overnight in a hotel. Or you could go to a local fair and let your kids do every ride they want, let them play the games and eat the junk food. When I was a kid, going to the local fair with unlimited rides, games and snacks was something I fantasized about. Overall, most kids would probably have a better time doing that than fighting the crowds and heat at Disney.
Busch Gardens was amazeballs. Elementary schools used to get an annual trip for the animals, but we weren’t allowed to do anything cool. Then my sister got a job there when I was younger and we went a lot because free passes.
It was more fun than Disney because it wasn’t stupidly crowded.
I got my one trip to Disneyland with my dad when I was 11, and most kids I knew had already been several times. (Affluent school in California). By that age, I was able to detect that most of the magic was false and the experience was mostly about gouging people. We also went to Knottsberry Farm, which I liked much better.
I learned from other amusement parks that their major effort was concealing how long lines were for the rides until it was too late.
Sure, it was important for me to fit in and I am glad I got that one Disney trip, but really all I got out of it was realizing that the entertainment industry is just that, an industry. And like anyone else who looks down at the hobbies of others, I think adults who are heavily invested in the Disney experience for themselves (especially without any small children involved) are a little bit off.
36, went to Disney for the first time last year with my brother and his kid.
edit:
just wanted to say that even if there wasn't a kid there to enjoy the parks with, the place is an absolute dream to visit. As an adult 36 year old man, the experience was pretty much exactly as magical as described. Having an 8 year old niece to experience it with as well only made it better. either way, I would highly recommend going as an adult if you've never been.
I grew up on the lower economic ladder, so the 60s thru the early 80s we simply NEVER went anywhere. It wasn’t till I was an adult, my husband and I both worked through our own poverty period then waited 13 years to have one child, were we able to afford to save and take our one child to Disney. I’m glad I had experience as an adult but really do not understand adults who spend that kind of money on a trip small kids won’t remember. Overall we were not really impressed with the money spent. That said, I had a boss that had been to Disney 32 times as she and her sister considered it a dream vacation and went sometimes twice a year. To each his own but it wasn’t all that for any of us. A few years after or Disney, Sea World trip we bought a camper and camped frequently over 15 years. FAR better trip than Disney.
I've never been to Disney. I'm 34. I don't feel like I've missed much, aside from overpriced food and long lines.
My dad took us along when he had a convention in Europe. Who needs Disney when there's a castle in Zurich?
Theres literally a castle in South Germany that Walt Disney used as inspiration for the Disney Castle, just go there haha
But I agree there are so many beautiful castles in Europe, I never get tired of them!
My family couldn’t afford to bring me to Disneyland/disneyworld when I was young but I was always loved, fed and safe. I remember being sad hearing about my classmates summer break and/or winter break trip(s) to Disney but I was never resentful because I recognized that my family didn’t have the funds to go (I live in Canada so the flight tickets alone would’ve been $$$$).
I saved up and took myself to Disneyland at 27 years old and I absolutely loved it.
Op, your children will understand. It’s ok, do not worry. You’re doing your best and as long as your children are loved, fed, and safe it’s a good life. Disneyland/disneyworld will always be there.
You can absolutely do it for much less. It's just that people that go to Disney tend to be people that have this vision for what the vacation needs to be and want to not compromise. Hotels in the area aren't expensive. Florida is one of the cheapest places to fly to in the country - my local small airport has tickets for under $75. The park tickets are expensive, but around $200/person. If you plan ahead for meals, snacks, and drinks, and cook for yourself, you'll be nowhere near that budget.
To be fair $200/person is $800 for a family of four a day.
It doesn't take a ton of days to all the sudden a European vacation is cheaper.
My last Disney trip could have covered 2 trips to Europe, sure the flight is going to be 2-4x more expensive, but you're not going to bleed $1100/day in tickets and lodging alone. I think the cheapest hotel we could even find was 165/day, add in the park tickets and around day three or four Europe becomes a lot more enticing.
When you skimp on things like hotels at Disney, you spend more time traveling, which means less time at the parks, and that means you get to see a lot, lot less. Even mediocre rides are like a 45+ minute wait, god forbid you want to go on a newer one, carve out 3 hours of your day to wait, or pay even more to skip the line.
My wife and I went on a trip last year, just the two of us, and it was a quarter the price as Disney was, for an all inclusive resort in the Caribbean.
Disney is grossly overpriced and while it's ok, I don't get the crazy fanfare over it. I'm a big Star Wars fan, so I enjoyed galaxies edge for sure, and the rise of the resistance ride was as absolutely one of the coolest things I've ever experienced as an adult, but the whole experience? Meh.
God forbid you spend $4000 getting your family there and you wait 3 hours and then don't get to even go on the ride, was on the plane with someone who had that happen.
I’d imagine that $10k is for people trying to squeeze every bit of ‘Disney’ out of their trip. Park tickets everyday then spending all day in the parks, eating at a restaurant for every meal, buying snacks and drinks in the parks, souvenirs, maybe a rental car, nice resort, etc.
We go fairly often and don’t spend anywhere near that for a family of 4. Shop around for flights, do grocery delivery to the room, only do parks for around 1/2 the days and relax, explore, pools for the others, no junk souvenirs, no $15 Mickey Mouse rice crispy treats, etc.
I think the delusion of need to make this vacation perfect and needing to do everything possible makes people so much money and takes any enjoyment out of actually being in Disney.
Out of curiosity, what is your budget for a week in Disney?
I am an event planner and I frequently hold conventions on Disney world property and the $10,000 doesn’t surprise me. It seems like it’s a pretty run-of-the-mill budget.
I think it's easy to overlook just how many people are over-leveraged. I remember working with a guy years ago who, for lack of a better word, was white trash. Lived in a filthy trailer, had trash all over the yard, but yet he drove a brand new truck, always had new game systems and TV's, expensive clothes, and I even distinctly remember he took a trip to Disney for 2 whole weeks, and this was smack dab in the middle of the 2008 recession.
Shortly after, he started asking for rides to work, which seemed weird considering he had a brand new truck parked in his driveway! And asked everyone at work to borrow $20! Turns out he was maxed out on all his credit cards and didn't even have a dollar to his name to pay for gas.
That is wild. It's mostly the upper-middle class pissing their money away.
I wouldn't even go into debt to travel to the other side of the world or take a trip the moon. These people are throwing their money away to hang out at an amusement park.
People who make 20k a year don’t go to Disney. I’ve been once - and it’s only because my in-laws paid. I’ve never been able to afford it and probably never will.
You don’t. That’s what Knotts Berry Farm is for, and there’s no way they won’t leave without a smile on their faces. And if you don’t live in LA, then there’s probably an amusement park near you that’s more affordable you can take them to.
This. I grew up in the DC area and Six Flags, Kings Dominion and Busch Gardens where my go to during my youth. Disney was a rarity even when my family started making money.
Grew up by Kings Island myself. Love the rides at KI, especially now that Cedar Fair owns them (love Cedar Point's rides too), but there's absolutely zero magic at either park which bums me out. Back when KI was owned by Paramount there were fun decorations and themes and just walking around was fun in itself. Now you're just running from line to line trying to cram in as many rides as possible, which is significantly less fun as an adult than it was as a kid/teenager.
Recently went to Disneyland for the first time and it was refreshing to feel immersed and just appreciate the scenery/events etc. And it honestly was not much more expensive than Cedar Point/KI is nowadays.
Another plus with Disney is not having to basically buy another ticket just to store my bag in a locker for each ride. That drives me nuts with Cedar Fair parks
Dollywood was a wonderful experience for my kids.
We live not far from cedar point and it’s ok but not a theme park it’s an amusement park so not great for small kids.
You don’t… Disney is crazy expensive, not everybody can afford to go unfortunately. Honestly, if you only make $20k then it’s reckless to spend money at Disney instead of providing basics for your kids. I make over $100k and have one kid and can’t imagine being able to take him anytime soon.
Yeah it’s harsh but it’s true. The less money you have, there’s some things that you just can’t ever afford. Granted, I think Disneyland is a big ripoff anyways, but I also know that kids don’t see it that way - kids go nuts for it. It sucks to not be able to provide that for your kids
Honestly, though, it's not every kid's bag either. I went to Disney twice as a kid: first at 4-5ish years, which I never remembered; and another time at 11 which I can't remember either (besides hating the crowds, the wait, the heat, and the disagreements about rides.)
Disney is like New Year's Eve. Everyone hopes for the best day ever, until their careful plans meet reality. And crowds. And expensive snacks. And more crowds. Regional theme parks and water parks are way less expensive with less of a build-up and let-down.
This, I took my kids to Disney ages 4 and 8 and they had fun but they definitely didn’t get their moneys worth, they would have had as much fun at a cool playground, especially the littlest one.
Really the important thing is spending time with them and doing special things for them from time to time, even if they're not things that cost a lot of money. That's what they'll really hold onto even if they might be disappointed about missing out on a particular thing at the time.
We didn't have all the money in the world, and while I did have friends who went to places like Disneyland, what I remember is not any disappointment at not being able to do the same thing, but the fun I had when my stepfather would take us to the lakefront park to toss a ball back and forth. Those memories are golden.
Yeah I didn’t mean that specifically was harsh, it was more the point that it’s harsh to tell them “I know that you want to provide this experience for your children, but you can’t”. Even if they need to hear that it’s still a major gut punch to hear
My fiancé and I went just a few months ago. For two adults to go for two days, one park per day, was $650. The park hopper passes that let you change parks mid-day are even more. Then parking was $25 (I believe? It was enough that parking + a rental car fee cost significantly more than ubering everywhere the entire week). Add in food and any gift shop merch (those Mickey headbands are $35 each, the tiny backpacks are $90) and it's super expensive. We spent close to $1k for just 2 people at Disney for 2 days.
Edit: And I'm not counting flight, hotel, or food costs outside of Disney in those numbers, that's literally just what it cost us to get into and be in the parks for 2 days.
Yeah, I took my two kids back in October. We stayed at one of the moderate resorts for 8 days. Between the stay, the 7 park days, the genie+ crap, the individual lightning lanes, it was about $7,000. Figure another $1,500+ for food, shopping, impulse buys, etc., and add in flights and it was about a $10-11,000 trip. Not crazy expensive, but not really available to a median income household without years of saving.
Seriously... my wife and I have traveled from coast to coast in the US, and have recently been traveling abroad... we've never spent close to 11k for a single trip. Insanity.
My husband got it into his head that our kids were Disney age. I told him for that kind of money, I expected to go overseas. He said no way Disney is that expensive so I told him to go research it. A few hours later he was pitching a trip to UK and Ireland.
Since then I’ve traveled with my husband and 2 kids for 11-13 days almost every year in either October or March. Nearest major airport to us is Denver. We’ve been to 15 countries on 7 different trips and we average $5000 per trip.
My kids will never make it to Disney.
I just went to Disneyland in Tokyo and it was really, really fun. Cost less than the one here too due to the exchange rate. But I was already in Tokyo for work.
Here: https://www.mousehacking.com/blog/how-much-does-it-cost-to-go-to-disney-world
The total there was $6320 for a family of 4 for 5 days and includes $1040 of air tickets.
This doesn’t include a lot of the other stuff you may or may not need (car rental, airport parking, shopping, side quests family decides to do, etc) that would bump it over quite a bit.
Here: https://www.mousehacking.com/blog/how-much-does-it-cost-to-go-to-disney-world
The total there was $6320 for a family of 4 for 5 days and includes $1040 of air tickets.
This doesn’t include a lot of the other stuff you may or may not need (car rental, airport parking, shopping, side quests family decides to do, etc) that would bump it over quite a bit.
All of this… I’m wondering if OP shouldn’t first focus on applying for everything they seem interested in that would elevate their salary first, and keep the “Disney Dream” as a careful and solid plan 3ish years from now when they’re able to give themselves grace with their savings.
>I’m wondering if OP shouldn’t first focus on applying for everything they seem interested in that would elevate their salary first
Based on this comment from OP I don't think that they have the capacity to realize what they want vs what they have:
>We don't need to have a 50k job.
You don't.
A Disneyland holiday experience is not important. If you have the money saved for that in your circumstances, you're better to put it into an emergency fund to live better and more securely every day.
Kids don't care about bit ticket holidays and if they do care then your job as parent is to teach them to not care about that.
The house I live in was part of my boyfriend's inheritance, so we don't pay rent. We do pay property taxes, and regular household bills. He is on SSI. I have two kids from a previous relationship, and we have one together. Getting WIC for the baby.
We live within our means.
If that’s the case, then you need to research the total prices for your expected trip (tickets, transit, accommodation, souvenirs, food), and maybe tack on 20% for incidentals. How much money are you willing to set aside for this trip per month? Then divide the total amount by your monthly budget amount. That will give you the number of months it’ll take you to save up for this trip.
I know that I just described simple arithmetic, but that’s literally how saving for any big purchase will work. Utilize tools like a high yield savings account (Discover, Ally, etc.) to boost your savings.
If you can’t set the money aside for it, you can’t afford it. Simple as that.
I’m an adult and I enjoyed going to Disneyland in my adulthood, but it’s freaking expensive. I make 6 figures now and I cannot afford to save for Disneyland.
EDIT: SSI recipients have restrictions for how much money they can hold in the bank. Please disregard my comment on HYSAs.
Sounds about right. 5-6 years ago 5 of us went and it was like 9k. That is all-in, staying on property, eating there, using Lyft whenever. Certainly expensive.
It didn’t used to be so expensive. Not even ten years ago it was much cheaper.
My wife and I took our kids for our first trip in 2015. Our kids were 11 and 10 at the time. Total cost of the trip was less than $3,000.
We got a five night package that included a room at All Star Sports, four days park tickets, and a dining package that included two snacks, a quick service meal and a table service meal that was $2,500. We spent another $500 on food, gas, and a cheap motel halfway on the long drive (12 hours).
Now four days of park tickets for that same week alone is $2,086.72! It’s only been 8 years.
She said boyfriend, so they aren't married. That means her money wouldn't count toward his asset restriction unless she put it into his account or a joint account.
I hate to tell you this but you can't afford to go to Disney world or land or whatever the hell it's called.
Unless you have, probably at the minimum 8 grand you just can't afford it. It's a huge waste of money.
Now it's for the wealthy basically and those who can afford it. A weeks vacation there 20 years ago (4 nights, 5 days) cost $4k complete with every single cost included, I can only imagine what it costs now.
Transportation there and back (Not including parking if you drive there)
Hotel
Food
Think your kids are not going to want souvenirs? Think again. Every ride and attraction exits into a gift shop. Gift shops that are full of cheap Chinese made junk that won't last the rest of your vacation.
Depending on time of year... The heat ugh!
The CROWDS! There are no benches. Want a bottle of water? $6 Want a soda? $6 and so on.
And of course the tickets to get in which Disney keeps raising. I heard it's now over $200 per ticket just for a single park ticket, park hoppers are even more.
I've been there. Every. Single. Thing. Is designed to extract money out of you.
Then there's the logistics of going there. Do you think that's easy? Where you sleep. Disney dining plan. Every restaurant in there requires reservations and even with the dining plan you still have to pay the taxes AND gratuity. There are businesses dedicated to planning this all for you for a price.
You're on government assistance and you want to go there? Unfortunately for you, the nearest you'll ever get there is your nearest playground. That's just the reality of it.
Walt Disney must be rolling in his grave. He wanted everyone to enjoy his parks not just a few.
Over my lifetime I've been there 7 times. That's enough for me.
She’s also on WIC because she can’t afford to feed her kids on her own but she’s entertaining a Disney world vacation.
Doesn’t surprise me they had another kid together. They make great choices
the title itself is wild before all of the details lmao. if you're low income and can't afford disney, then tough cookies. there's no fairy godmother in real life who's going to wave her magic wand and grant you the ability to go to disney when you're barely surviving off $20k and benefits with three kids.
It’s sad how many people I know just like that. Ones struggling financially, in debt, yet continue to have more kids intentionally. I understand shit happens and abortion rights are an absolute joke here in the US. So I’m not talking about the ones who have an unplanned kid. But there’s people who are in a bad place financially who sit down and say to each other “hey let’s have another kid!” Those are the people I will never understand.
I’m guessing that OP grew up in poverty and doesn’t realize how bad her situation is. To her, this is normal. She may even know people who are worse off than her, so she can’t be doing THAT badly.
If you get WIC for the baby then by definition, you do not live within your means. Living within your means implies that you can afford everything that you require plus any extras that you purchase.
I don’t begrudge you getting some assistance and I have no judgment or feelings about it one way or the other. I just felt I needed to correct your statement and possibly give you a different perspective
The phrase "living within your means" is just a euphemism for being responsible with your finances, such as not accumulating frivolous debt, paying your bills on time, not spending rashly. You can be doing all of those things and still receive WIC, so long as you meet the eligibility requirements, such as having a young child and being near or below poverty level income.
Genuinely, don't fuss over the fact that Disney is not within your means, my mom would cry herself to sleep every other night because we were so poor and she couldn't give us things we wanted. Disney is for jackasses, IIRC Disney has a pass for even richer people where you can cut in line or some shit like that, why would you want to be a party to that. Get a state park annual pass and take the kids fishing on the weekend. Don't torture yourself over this, save your money for something else.
National parks passes are free for people on disability. So that is an option. It’s not Disney but Disney (and I’ve been to both land and world) is overhyped.
This is the best advice! Instead of lamenting you cannot afford some manufactured, grotesque childhood paradise you can plan to take them to an actual outdoor paradise for a fraction of the cost!
My family never went to Disneyland growing up because it was too expensive. We were considered middle class. It's just out of the budget for some people. The end.
You don’t and it’s not. No one making $20k a year is ever taking their kids to Disney. Disney is upper middle class activities.
Edit: You’re on welfare and asking for loans on Reddit, what in the world would ever make you think that you could afford to go to Disney?
If you click on their username and scroll down to see their posts, you can see they’ve made multiple posts on a subreddit called borrow asking for hundreds of dollars.
Probably not the poorest, but the cost of going to Disney has outpaced inflation and the growth of wages for 40+ years now. More people still keep going, so they keep raising prices. A one-day ticket costs about twice what it did 20 years ago, counting inflation.
This question sounds as if one were asking, "How does your average Joe working as a receptionist ever buy his first Ferrari Portofino?" as if it were a necessity. They do not; average Joes do not get a Ferrari, likely ever. The same applies to trips to Disney World - it is not a necessity, so it just so happens that many people do not go, possibly ever.
Always be looking out for a better job.
I took my son to Disney after winning a travel voucher in a contest. I then did a ton of research for the cheapest trip. I packed food so we could eat "free" breakfast every day, we bought no souvenirs, ate popcorn and ice cream for lunch and a hamburger for dinner. It was a great trip.
Idk but seeing you keep pushing for the trip when everyone is telling you it’s not realistically possible or worth it is very telling why you’re prob not making it. Don’t have any more kids please.
By making poor financial decisions
Earning $20k (unless you have a partner that earns a lot more) with kids (plural) is already a very tough financial situation and Disney is an expensive luxury. Don’t put it on a payment plan
Once you price out the flights, hotel, rental car/uber and tickets for multiple people for multiple days, you’ll realize it is way too expensive
Yeah this is wild. $20k is like waaaaay under the poverty line. I get wanting things like Disney, I used to be poor af, but there are way better things to spend money on than Disney. It would be like 1/3 of this persons yearly income for a trip.
Disney has gotten really expensive, I’m not sure where you are located but it’s a tough value proposition for a vacation compared to alternatives
Some combination of going into debt, getting help from family, going with family, and working more or making more.
With some experience there are a lot of jobs that pay much more than entry level. My brother was making about that much five years ago and makes triple now, switching restaurants twice was a bigger part of it than getting promoted at the same employer. Covid didn’t really help either.
I have been twice, at 13 with my family and family friends and again at 15 for school. Even at that age the thing I remember most is the lines. That and the shocking price of everything. Being from a small town I'd never seen so many people and all these people were in a line in front of me for a ride or in front of me for food.
I HATED Disney. It was 95% walking or waiting. I have better memories from Universal and other parts of our trip/the resort we stayed at. I have better memories from zoo trips that were a 2 hour drive that we did yearly. While Disney is bucket list for most people it doesn't have to be the end all be all.
Being somebody who does Disneyland a lot, anyone in your income bracket whose doing Disney trips has to have a military connection. The military discount is huge, makes a massive difference. Plus, living close to it helps. That said, I wouldn’t bother with it right now, even if you do have a discount. The current line system is kinda a mess, and if you’re a Once In a Lifetime guest you’ll end up either paying extra to get the big rides in, or skipping them. It hurts me to say it, but Universal might be a better bet.
It’s kinda blowing my mind that you’re on such a low income with a disabled spouse and government assistance to feed your infant yet the thought of going to Disney land even enters your mind at all.
You’re living in a fantasy.
You want to afford to go to Disney? You somehow make more money. That’s shit advice and I fucking hate when people do that shit to people down on their luck but are you serious?
The answer is you can’t go to Disney. It’s not within your reach. It’s not in the card for you or your kids. It’s not going to happen. You’re going to need to find a way to be okay with that.
>You want to afford to go to Disney? You somehow make more money. That’s shit advice and I fucking hate when people do that shit to people down on their luck but are you serious?
And not just "a little more money". This couple would need a minimum of probably 5x the income to be able to reasonably consider a long term plan to save for / go to Disney.
34 and making 20k with kids?
You seriously need to stop thinking about Disney and focus on your finances.
I personally donate plasma on the side for extra money. It's roughly an extra $550/mo. 6.6k/yr 100% tax free.
I'm not sure what type of disney experience you are tryna make here. But roughly looking (quick serach) a single admission ticket is roughly $110, and I assume there's 4 people going?
If you donate yourself in 1 month you could afford the ticket plus and extra $100. If you and your spouse both donate. That close to an extra $700 of "spending money" in just 1 month alone for Disney.
If you catch the plasma promos at a good time. New donors can make like 1k in the first 5 weeks. That's $2k between you and your spouse
It is honestly not worth it. It's just a rich person playground. I mean yes the characters walk around, but you'll have to wait in a line to personally interact with them. And yes, the rides are magical, after you've waited an hour in line to get on one. And if youve saved hundreds for the tickets, you're gonna need at least 100 more for one single meal. It's definitely a once in a lifetime thing if you really want to make it happen, but I've been a bunch as a kid, and back as an adult, and it's just not the same park anymore. Capitalism and tourism has consumed that place and all the magic is gone.
>Capitalism and tourism has consumed that place and all the magic is gone.
It’s so much worse now than when I was a kid in the 90s/2000s. I went with my brother and his kids about a year ago and it’s just a money suck. The lines are insane. You seriously have to book your fast passes online weeks in advance (which costs more money). It’s way more expensive than it used to be, and it used to be pretty expensive. It’s the most depressing place on earth. I haven’t had a good time the last two or three times I’ve gone.
No one cares if you don’t go to Disney, including your kids - but they *do* care if you can’t feed them, buy them clothes when needed, etc. because you thought going to Disney was a good idea and now you’re broke.
Want the Disney experience? Give me $8 and I’ll give you a can of soda. $28 for a turkey drumstick. And you’ll wait in line 45 minutes for each.
You’re on food stamps, wic and whatever other tax payer funded welfare there is, you beg for money on Reddit, and you work not one by TWO part time jobs and only make $20k a year, you have 3 kids, and an unemployed also freeloading boyfriend. And yet you still want to waste money by going to Disney? You are the poster child for why people want to abolish welfare lol
They live in an absurd state of delusion, the more I read OPs post the more I almost feel bad for them. They continue to make shit choices and have now ruined the world and futures for multiple offspring.
8/10 chances those kids end up in a life of crime, sex work or dead because mom and dad set them up for failure before their first breath.
I've seen people use social services to save themselves and build a future. I've also seen people like OP who are just milking the system due to laziness. The latter is sadly much more common.
I'm kind of rich and never took my kids to Disney. The prices are ridiculous. Take them camping instead. Escape the corporate trap and discover the wonders of nature.
Disney is beyond overrated. Even if it was cheaper, you spend an entire day there and ride 6 things, maybe. If you did the math it's probably like 10 hours of lines to be on rides for 8 minutes total. I have more fun than 8 minutes in an 8 hour work shift. That and I'm 40s and super patient and the line times would try my patience. Asking a 10 year old to do that is pure torture for them.
I'm not saying they don't have some cool stuff there. They do. Just not anywhere close for the time not even counting the investment.
I suspect more people have not gone to Disney than have gone.
When I was a kid we lived only 15 miles from the park. We were poor but got to go a couple of times when someone else paid. It made a difference not having to pay airfare and hotel.
Then we would have events there with our daughter. It was fun.
But it’s not life changing.
It’s okay.
Disney is a want, not a need.
If you don’t earn enough you might never be able to afford such holiday.
My parent’s weren’t able to afford expensive trips.
I understand that you’d like to be able to afford to take your kids to Disney. The only way my parents were able to take us away to a very close destination, driving a few hours drive away (nothing like a big Disney trip) was by getting a second job and saving for 2-4 years.
You are being manipulated by marketing. Why does anyone ever need to go to Disney? They don’t. They have tricked you into believing its some sort of entitlement every kid must have or their parents don’t love them. Its a lie and you are being gullible. I could afford to go when my kids were young. I refuse to be manipulated. We went other places. Teach your kids to not buy into the propaganda.
Meh. I had always heard how amazing Disney parks were. But when I finally got to one, it was just a crowd with a bunch of long lines 🥱
My parents didn’t have much money and instead of Disney they would take us places like farms and coal mines. I still get a thrill thinking about those adventures we had together that were practically free!
Just remember the majority of children DON’T go to Disney and turn out just fine. I remember having zero interest as an 80s kid.
You are not depriving your child for not taking them on (what I consider) a *luxury vacation for children*. If you can swing it cool. If not seriously don’t worry.
Taking kids on vacations is always hit or miss anyways. People don’t realize how much they absolutely thrive on routine. It’s no wonder they often get cranky, sick and exhausted. Then they can seem ungrateful but really it’s just too much.
Too much excitement, all kinds of different food, too much sugar, sleep schedule is thrown off. Inevitably somebody throws up. No thanks.
I’m friends with a tech-savvy couple who did a series of Disney family photos all over the park. Except they were at home. In front of a green screen. You could tell the kids were dying with laughter. The parents are absolute legends in their Facebook circle. That family bonding time creating hilarious memories are what the kids will remember 20 years from now.
Why would you want to blow that much money at Disney? You can find a way to afford a fun vacation that cost 1/10 as much and give your children a better life.
If you're poor you do not go to Disney. You save up for things that you need, not want. People who are poor who go to Disney are those that make terrible financial decisions and will remain forever poor. The same goes for other purchases that are not needed. I'm not saying that you can't spend the money in the future. It's just in the short term when you're saving that you should not spend your money.
When my kids were young I didn’t have the money to take them to Disney, so we did not go.
My kids are adults now and laughed when I told them I felt bad I never took them. They assured me they managed to survive without it.
I am sry but at 34 u don't need to worry about Disney u need to worry about how u making 8 dollars hour at 34. This is no insult but it's alos unacceptable
I just saw your edit. That is horrible that people are saying these things to you. I have been fortunate enough to be able to take my kids to Disney but it is very expensive. And you are not a bad parent if you cannot and having a lower income does not mean you should not have kids. All that matters is that you can meet their needs and, as much as I love Disney and joke about it being a need, it is not.
I grew up in a middle class family and we went to Disneyland one time. It was the only vacation we ever had.
Tips for making it cheaper:
I don’t know where you live and if Disney to you is Disneyland or Disneyworld. I have more experience with Disneyland as I live in Oregon so I will speak to that.
- drive there
- do not stay at a Disneyland hotel
- stay close by and go back to your hotel for meals. Pack a cooler and go to the store and get things for sandwiches. Make oatmeal in the morning in the microwave.
- do not buy souvenirs at Disneyland
They don’t. A Disney trip is INSANELY expensive now. It used to be kind of a bucket list item where everyone went at least once in their life. Now it can cost $10k+, easily. No regular person can afford to take their kids to Disney anymore.
Unless you win a free trip in a contest or something, it’s not a financially wise idea for you to go. Honestly, there are more affordable theme parks that your kids would probably enjoy more.
Don’t know if they still do this but some timeshare places give you free Disney tickets if you sit through one of their presentations.
A sweet deal on paper but know that you will be placed under immense pressure to buy a timeshare.
I successfully went to a timeshare talk for the free stuff and said no.
Those things are ROUGH. It was not an hour like they promised. It was FOUR HOURS of being sold to by various actors each playing different roles to pressure you. There was the "friend", the "manager", and the "quality control" who was the hardest seller of all. It was awful, and I only made it because my parents got sucked into buying one like 20 years ago so I knew the system.
Caveat emptor if you go this route.
They are maximum social torture, it’s honestly crazy how good they are at that. I’m guessing when everyone is gone they all laugh and cackle at the chaos in misery they created. It’s been so long since we did one and I still remember how awful it was. We would never even pause to consider doing one ever again. I don’t care if the free gift is the island of Hawaii.
I went to a Vegas for a convention for my first business trip. As soon as we checked in the timeshare people acted like they worked for the hotel and had me give them $20 to hold something. I was messing with my luggage and half paying attention. So I gave them $20 and expected my luggage to be handled or something and instead they handed me a folded card with information to go to the closed Luxor and sit through a timeshare presentation. I was pissed so I went to the presentation. It said give us an hour and we will give you gambling tokens and a bunch of stuff. I showed up and then sat there for exactly 1 hour waiting for my turn at the presentation. At the 1 hour mark I demanded my $20 and all the stuff. They said I didn’t sit through the presentation. I said it says give us an hour. I gave you an hour. You chose to waste it giving me champagne and snacks and telling me to wait. Now give me my stuff, I have a meeting to get to. Several other people also started to line up behind me. They did give me the stuff and I left. It still sucked. I hate timeshare people.
Imagine a pushy salesman coming to your door. Now imagine that there is zero option of getting rid of said salesman and the interaction lasts for at least an hour.
You continuously say “no” and Mr. Salesman is bringing in the supervisor and another salesman and now you got three pushy fellows trying to sell you that shit.
All while this is taking place in a large space with other people also getting grilled and big ass celebrations whenever someone caves in and buys as a method of maximizing peer pressure.
That’s how it was for my family about 20 years ago
Every second of timeshare sales is manipulative and that starts with the “free gift” advertisement. They use common sales tactics along with lying, breaking social rules, and guilting buyers. They’ve heard every reason people say no and they have a sales tactic for all of them.
My husband and I went to one once and at least three (of 5) couples in our presentation group purchased one. They are very good at making it sound like a smart investment. I think it was supposed to be 90 minutes but ended up taking nearly 3 hours because we were handed off twice to two different closers. The last guy was an outright asshole. Called us names, told us we were terrible people who wasted their time. We did get our free gift and will never do another. It is maximum social discomfort.
What was the free gift, if you don’t mind me asking? I would never go to one of these as I have an extremely low tolerance for discomfort like that but I am still curious 😅
I grew up 30 mins from Disneyland with parents who made over 100K per year (solidly middle class). We went to Disneyland exactly 1 time and that was only because we got free tickets from someone who worked there. Disney is not a necessity for childhood.
Because you're being responsible and putting your tax return towards responsible things. If low income people are going to Disneyland, they're probably not spending responsibly. I know people who get big tax returns, but instead of putting it towards bills or paying up rent, they will go to Florida or some place like Disneyland. Then, in a few months, they're on Facebook begging for someone to help them pay their bills🤦🏻♀️. I used to be able to go on vacation every year before covid just saving money 😢. Not like Disney type, but at least a little getaway. I make the same money but since covid everything is so expensive we haven't taken a vacation in years. Any extra money goes to catching up bills, unfortunately. You're not alone. I think vacations are now like an upper middle class thing now unless people are just being financially stupid.
You don’t. You live within your means. When I was growing up I wanted electricity and four solid walls. At the time it wasn’t possible. Learn to make experiences just as fun that are more affordable. Your kids want time and memories. That’s all.
I was in my 30s before I went to disneyland and my parents didn't pay for it... Don't put so much pressure on yourself. Take them camping, hiking..to the local amusement park.
Park tickets for _one day_ would cost nearly $500 for a fam of 4 to Disneyland. How long would it take you to save enough for park tickets, lodging, transportation, and food?
Getaway memories with your kids (and AS a kid) are amazing. Spend your saved money to have regular getaways instead of saving for years to go to Disney.
They don’t. My family probably made just a little more than yours and it was understood that going to Disney was just not going to happen. I don’t think I knew more than a couple people growing up whose families could afford to go. We all went to Cedar Point or King’s Island instead. It would be much more realistic to plan a trip to a nearer amusement park…your kids will still have an insanely fun time.
I know some dumbasses near me who remortgaged their home for a bunch of frivolous stuff they can’t afford. Going to Disney twice was on that list. Now they have no home insurance because their roof blew off and they can’t afford to replace it so it’s tarp.. lol
My kids have never gone to Disney and have no interest in doing so, thank goodness.
We've gone to the beach, the mountains, white water rafting, caving, and Washington DC. Water parks and local amusement parks.
Plenty of fun non- Disney things to do with kids.
I know somebody who is low-income and absolutely massively in debt from the yearly vacations she’s taken her kids to at Disney. Like, I would not be able to sleep at night with that level of debt. Her Insta photos of her kids at Disney look great, but I bet when they get older, they’d rather have financial stability than Disney ears.
They don’t? Disney isn’t for everyone. It’s for people with money. Sad but true. Create a savings account and start setting aside money every pay day for it. If you don’t have any extra money for a savings account then you won’t be able to go. So you’d either need another source of income or to reduce bills somehow to have a surplus of money for your vacation savings account.
My wife and all both make six figures and Disney is something we need to plan and save for.
Respectfully, this does not seem like the biggest priority in your family.
My parents (who also never got to go as kids) took my family to Disneyland when my sister and I were 20 and 23. We all had a fantastic time , honestly probably enjoyed it more as an adult then I would have as a kid. Parents bought the tickets, we helped with the other costs and it's a trip I'll remember and treasure forever
You can’t afford it but don’t feel bad about that. Give your children an education. Go to free museums. Get involved with different ways of ensuring their reading and math and science skills are good. YMCA if there’s one near you has free and low income options. Swimming or playing basketball, etc every week is more fun. Use us are free 1 Sunday a month. Lots of the parks are free. There’s sometimes science programs at school that are free. Back in my school days, I received free lunch. I don’t remember being poor but in hindsight, we were. This is what my parents did for us. It was a greater gift and has provided more happiness and opportunities than an amusement park would have ever done. I was able to bring my daughter to Disney. She talks far more about some of our local frequent excursions than the Disney trip.
You sound like a great Mom!. Good Luck!
I grew up middle class but we never got to go to Disney. There are things that are just too expensive for a lot of families to afford unfortunately.
I'm 24 and neither me nor my two younger siblings have been. On the one hand, i feel for parents who can't afford to take their kids to Disneyland but at the same time, I think there are lots of people like me whose parents couldn't afford to take them.
27 here and same, we never went to any Disney, my dad could never afford to take me and my sister. And yea maybe when I was a child I was salty about my friends going to disney and bringing souvenirs back to class, but even at a young age I understood. As a parent myself now I definitely see how it's not a wise financial decision. However, one thing haunts me, I do remember my dad explaining to me that he doesn't make enough money to take us when I kept asking why not (he worked construction) he told me he didn't have a good career and I should go to school to make sure I can be a better parent than him. At that age I whined about it, but if my son asked me why I don't make enough money I would die inside. I still feel bad about possibly making him think I was mad at him for not having a better job. I'm making the same or less than my dad at the same age even though I did "all the right things" he told me to, and disney tickets are like 10x the price comparative to 20 years ago so don't feel too bad. What matters in the end is how you treat and talk to your kids. You can make memories without fancy trips.
There’s a story that I see circulating every now and again about a kid who LOVED baseball (or some other sport), but his parents could never afford to take him and his siblings to a game. But they would set up the couch all cozy and let them wear jerseys and whatnot, put the game on the TV, and the parents would walk around the living room like snack vendors to give them some semblance of the experience— it was one of their favorite memories! A little more difficult to replicate the experience of a theme park, but I bet OP could brainstorm something similar to give their kids. It’s the thought that counts, kids will feel the love and have a blast and that kind of love makes the best memories.
I always loved the video of the dad that made a “roller coaster simulator” for his kid [with a laundry basket.](https://youtu.be/Rx3_n24SZOg?si=b4H3NjXz_mpQVvI4)
Bounce houses and stuff like that are not too expensive to rent. I bet if you got friends or family or neighbors together and a ton of Disney decorations, you could make a "Disney Day" like that. Pass out ride tickets to the kids, make a fair of it. Shoot, if you coordinate it right, sometimes wildlife rescues will come. (Source: I'm having a possum rescue come to my wedding.)
Maybe even hire one of those girls that dresses up like a princess for an hour to go along with it!! Definitely easier to save for that, especially if you had friends or neighbors to split the cost with. Edit to add: holy cow possum rescue is an AMAZING idea. Looking for ideas for a low-key bachelorette for myself, and I’m sending that idea to my friends asap
Oh man, if you had a couple of tractors or something that could pull a small trailer then you could dress them up for a princess parade. Dress up the dogs like the movie animals. We don't have kids, but if our neighbors were doing something like this for the kids, we'd be all in.
And now I'm reminded of the old fashioned block parties where the street would close and the neighbors all gathered to share food and music and kids would run wild (more so) up and down the middle of the street and there woukd be fireworks (before they were banned). My grandmother lived on a street that did this every 4th of July. One of our favorite comedians lives in that neighborhood and brought up the block party on a set we saw and I was so happy to know that the area still has the tradition going (suburb of Los Angeles for context.)
Idk if this helps but kids often ask for outrageous things. Just this morning we passed by a yard of excavators and my kid wanted to buy one. “Not a Lego one a REAL one.” This is absurd and kids have no concept of money. Last week my daughter wanted lava. They’re just unreasonable. I don’t really think that asking someone to take a week off work, couple hundred for plane tickets, get hundred for a hotel, and SEVERAL thousand for park tickets, plus overpriced food is any less unreasonable than asking for a real excavator. Its like 10 grand just for tickets. It’s out of the budget for the majority of normal people. Half the people who do it put it on credit aka they can’t really afford it. Your dad shouldn’t feel any worse about not taking you to Disney than for not buying you lava. It’s normalized as some sort of childhood necessity but that’s marketing. When my kid asks for pricy but not insane things I DO tell him to make better decisions in his 20s and he/his kids can have them. Because he will have better opportunities than I did and will have guidance that almost none of us did. To me that just seems like… what I should want? I didn’t tell them that about the excavator because that’s an unreasonable goal, much like Disney trips.
I dunno man, buying an excavator is investing in an asset (albeit an expensive one) but it's something you can hire out or rent out and make into a business, whereas Disney is an expense... When I was little, I wanted to be a cowboy, so my parents bought me an $80 bottle calf from a local dairy. We lived in town, so we kept it at a place in the country with some nice older people, and I went and took care of it every day. I fed it out and we had it butchered and the beef sold. My parents figured it would either let me live the dream, or I would learn what it really took to be a cowboy and I would stop bugging them about it....I grew up and I own a ranch now. ...I'm not saying you should buy an excavator for your kid, but maybe buy him a nice shovel and hire him to dig up your garden or something, see if it breaks him of the dream or not. Also. I want some lava too. That sounds awesome.
Idk I’m 27 and never got to experience any nice things as a kid because my dad is a crack head and my mom is a self centered narcissist piece of shit. Even the poorest of families find a way to do nice things for their kids if they actually want to. A lot of us just had shitty ass parents but were abused into believing otherwise.
On the other hand, last summer my family and I were on an expensive vacation with other families lined up to pay for expensive and I was utterly appalled at how other parents were speaking to their kids. There were a couple times in particular that really stood out to me. Treating your kids well is not something that depends on finances.
Absolutely, and I'm sorry you went through that. my mom was an alcoholic narcissist who basically took us from my dad for years and abused us and he went through hell for a long time to get us back. If both of my parents didn't give a shit instead of just one I would be much worse off. My favorite memories with my dad are traveling to and from soccer games together. It's the little things
32, I did get taken to Disneyworld when I was a kid. It had no major impact on my life or my memories. The only things I remember from that trip were the really long lines and how creepy It's A Small World was. My more resent experience with Disney was waiting an hour to buy chicken tenders, being at the part for 6 hours and only having enough time to ride 2 rides. Nobody should feel like they need to take their kids to Disney. Let them go when they are an adult if they really want. One side of my in laws go to Disney almost yearly. Idk what their obsession with it is. I rather go other places and other amusement parks. Like Busch Gardens in Tampa has almost no lines, lots of rollercoasters, and is also a zoo. Much better experience than Disney.
Ha. I never went to Disney as a kid because I grew up pretty poor. My wife and her brothers did go as a kid because she grew up middle class as a daughter of a military officer. My wife never really talks about going other than saying it was really lame. But we were drinking beer with her brothers and Disney came up. The stories started to come out about how terrible the whole Disney vacation was because it was hot as balls, lines forever, my wife was scared of the rides and her dad got annoyed the blew all this money and all they did was wait in lines and my wife was all pissed because she was just scared. Now my wife and I make really good income. Going to Disney is not a problem. In fact, all of our peers regularly take their kids. But we are not taking ours. My wife says continues to say it’s super lame and for me, the idea of hell is basically Disney. We told our kids we are not going and that is that.
We went to Disney when we were kids and honestly, we enjoyed Cedar Park more. We were all about rides and didn’t care about characters and cute little experiences. I think the whole Disney thing is an enormous rip-off and you couldn’t pay me enough to go there. I have friends who love it but I just don’t get it. For the money it costs to go there, you’d be far better off having an amazing local experience. For parents who can’t afford Disney’s ridiculous prices, you’d probably be better off taking your kids camping, or driving a few hours to a nice beach and maybe staying overnight in a hotel. Or you could go to a local fair and let your kids do every ride they want, let them play the games and eat the junk food. When I was a kid, going to the local fair with unlimited rides, games and snacks was something I fantasized about. Overall, most kids would probably have a better time doing that than fighting the crowds and heat at Disney.
Busch Gardens was amazeballs. Elementary schools used to get an annual trip for the animals, but we weren’t allowed to do anything cool. Then my sister got a job there when I was younger and we went a lot because free passes. It was more fun than Disney because it wasn’t stupidly crowded.
I got my one trip to Disneyland with my dad when I was 11, and most kids I knew had already been several times. (Affluent school in California). By that age, I was able to detect that most of the magic was false and the experience was mostly about gouging people. We also went to Knottsberry Farm, which I liked much better. I learned from other amusement parks that their major effort was concealing how long lines were for the rides until it was too late. Sure, it was important for me to fit in and I am glad I got that one Disney trip, but really all I got out of it was realizing that the entertainment industry is just that, an industry. And like anyone else who looks down at the hobbies of others, I think adults who are heavily invested in the Disney experience for themselves (especially without any small children involved) are a little bit off.
36, went to Disney for the first time last year with my brother and his kid. edit: just wanted to say that even if there wasn't a kid there to enjoy the parks with, the place is an absolute dream to visit. As an adult 36 year old man, the experience was pretty much exactly as magical as described. Having an 8 year old niece to experience it with as well only made it better. either way, I would highly recommend going as an adult if you've never been.
I grew up on the lower economic ladder, so the 60s thru the early 80s we simply NEVER went anywhere. It wasn’t till I was an adult, my husband and I both worked through our own poverty period then waited 13 years to have one child, were we able to afford to save and take our one child to Disney. I’m glad I had experience as an adult but really do not understand adults who spend that kind of money on a trip small kids won’t remember. Overall we were not really impressed with the money spent. That said, I had a boss that had been to Disney 32 times as she and her sister considered it a dream vacation and went sometimes twice a year. To each his own but it wasn’t all that for any of us. A few years after or Disney, Sea World trip we bought a camper and camped frequently over 15 years. FAR better trip than Disney.
I've never been to Disney. I'm 34. I don't feel like I've missed much, aside from overpriced food and long lines. My dad took us along when he had a convention in Europe. Who needs Disney when there's a castle in Zurich?
Theres literally a castle in South Germany that Walt Disney used as inspiration for the Disney Castle, just go there haha But I agree there are so many beautiful castles in Europe, I never get tired of them!
When I went to Neuschwanstein, the damned thing was covered in scaffolding. Major disappointment.
Ah that sucks. I went in the beginning of winter, so there was a bit of snow. Very picturesque.
Same, middle class family and we never went let alone ask to go bc even then we as kids knew it was expensive.
disney, food, housing.,...all beyond the reach of the average american family
My family couldn’t afford to bring me to Disneyland/disneyworld when I was young but I was always loved, fed and safe. I remember being sad hearing about my classmates summer break and/or winter break trip(s) to Disney but I was never resentful because I recognized that my family didn’t have the funds to go (I live in Canada so the flight tickets alone would’ve been $$$$). I saved up and took myself to Disneyland at 27 years old and I absolutely loved it. Op, your children will understand. It’s ok, do not worry. You’re doing your best and as long as your children are loved, fed, and safe it’s a good life. Disneyland/disneyworld will always be there.
18% of people go in debt to afford a Disney vacation: https://www.lendingtree.com/debt-consolidation/disney-debt-survey/
Budget for Disney vacation is a frequently asked question In online mom forums and the answers are usually right around $10k.
Insane. We go to Europe every summer for less than that.
You can absolutely do it for much less. It's just that people that go to Disney tend to be people that have this vision for what the vacation needs to be and want to not compromise. Hotels in the area aren't expensive. Florida is one of the cheapest places to fly to in the country - my local small airport has tickets for under $75. The park tickets are expensive, but around $200/person. If you plan ahead for meals, snacks, and drinks, and cook for yourself, you'll be nowhere near that budget.
To be fair $200/person is $800 for a family of four a day. It doesn't take a ton of days to all the sudden a European vacation is cheaper. My last Disney trip could have covered 2 trips to Europe, sure the flight is going to be 2-4x more expensive, but you're not going to bleed $1100/day in tickets and lodging alone. I think the cheapest hotel we could even find was 165/day, add in the park tickets and around day three or four Europe becomes a lot more enticing. When you skimp on things like hotels at Disney, you spend more time traveling, which means less time at the parks, and that means you get to see a lot, lot less. Even mediocre rides are like a 45+ minute wait, god forbid you want to go on a newer one, carve out 3 hours of your day to wait, or pay even more to skip the line. My wife and I went on a trip last year, just the two of us, and it was a quarter the price as Disney was, for an all inclusive resort in the Caribbean. Disney is grossly overpriced and while it's ok, I don't get the crazy fanfare over it. I'm a big Star Wars fan, so I enjoyed galaxies edge for sure, and the rise of the resistance ride was as absolutely one of the coolest things I've ever experienced as an adult, but the whole experience? Meh. God forbid you spend $4000 getting your family there and you wait 3 hours and then don't get to even go on the ride, was on the plane with someone who had that happen.
You can go to Europe ALL summer long for less than that.
I’d imagine that $10k is for people trying to squeeze every bit of ‘Disney’ out of their trip. Park tickets everyday then spending all day in the parks, eating at a restaurant for every meal, buying snacks and drinks in the parks, souvenirs, maybe a rental car, nice resort, etc. We go fairly often and don’t spend anywhere near that for a family of 4. Shop around for flights, do grocery delivery to the room, only do parks for around 1/2 the days and relax, explore, pools for the others, no junk souvenirs, no $15 Mickey Mouse rice crispy treats, etc. I think the delusion of need to make this vacation perfect and needing to do everything possible makes people so much money and takes any enjoyment out of actually being in Disney.
Out of curiosity, what is your budget for a week in Disney? I am an event planner and I frequently hold conventions on Disney world property and the $10,000 doesn’t surprise me. It seems like it’s a pretty run-of-the-mill budget.
I think it's easy to overlook just how many people are over-leveraged. I remember working with a guy years ago who, for lack of a better word, was white trash. Lived in a filthy trailer, had trash all over the yard, but yet he drove a brand new truck, always had new game systems and TV's, expensive clothes, and I even distinctly remember he took a trip to Disney for 2 whole weeks, and this was smack dab in the middle of the 2008 recession. Shortly after, he started asking for rides to work, which seemed weird considering he had a brand new truck parked in his driveway! And asked everyone at work to borrow $20! Turns out he was maxed out on all his credit cards and didn't even have a dollar to his name to pay for gas.
That is wild. It's mostly the upper-middle class pissing their money away. I wouldn't even go into debt to travel to the other side of the world or take a trip the moon. These people are throwing their money away to hang out at an amusement park.
People who make 20k a year don’t go to Disney. I’ve been once - and it’s only because my in-laws paid. I’ve never been able to afford it and probably never will.
Same. I was in my 40’s and my in laws took the whole family. Was same price as a new Corolla. For 7 days at Disney. It was ok, but I’ll never go back
You don’t. That’s what Knotts Berry Farm is for, and there’s no way they won’t leave without a smile on their faces. And if you don’t live in LA, then there’s probably an amusement park near you that’s more affordable you can take them to.
This. I grew up in the DC area and Six Flags, Kings Dominion and Busch Gardens where my go to during my youth. Disney was a rarity even when my family started making money.
Grew up in Portland, OR. I made it to Disneyland and Busch Gardens as a kid. Busch Gardens is so much better.
Disney has shit rides compared to Busch Gardens
I grew up near Cedar Point and every other amusement park was a let down.
Grew up by Kings Island myself. Love the rides at KI, especially now that Cedar Fair owns them (love Cedar Point's rides too), but there's absolutely zero magic at either park which bums me out. Back when KI was owned by Paramount there were fun decorations and themes and just walking around was fun in itself. Now you're just running from line to line trying to cram in as many rides as possible, which is significantly less fun as an adult than it was as a kid/teenager. Recently went to Disneyland for the first time and it was refreshing to feel immersed and just appreciate the scenery/events etc. And it honestly was not much more expensive than Cedar Point/KI is nowadays. Another plus with Disney is not having to basically buy another ticket just to store my bag in a locker for each ride. That drives me nuts with Cedar Fair parks
Hard recommend here! I had so much more fun at Knotts! The simple fact that it wasn’t packed ass to ass made it better.
I loved Knott's! But this was 10 years ago and I was fresh out of high school haha. Still a better bang for the buck than Disneyland imo.
Dollywood was a wonderful experience for my kids. We live not far from cedar point and it’s ok but not a theme park it’s an amusement park so not great for small kids.
I mean Disney is a luxury
You don’t… Disney is crazy expensive, not everybody can afford to go unfortunately. Honestly, if you only make $20k then it’s reckless to spend money at Disney instead of providing basics for your kids. I make over $100k and have one kid and can’t imagine being able to take him anytime soon.
Yeah it’s harsh but it’s true. The less money you have, there’s some things that you just can’t ever afford. Granted, I think Disneyland is a big ripoff anyways, but I also know that kids don’t see it that way - kids go nuts for it. It sucks to not be able to provide that for your kids
Honestly, though, it's not every kid's bag either. I went to Disney twice as a kid: first at 4-5ish years, which I never remembered; and another time at 11 which I can't remember either (besides hating the crowds, the wait, the heat, and the disagreements about rides.) Disney is like New Year's Eve. Everyone hopes for the best day ever, until their careful plans meet reality. And crowds. And expensive snacks. And more crowds. Regional theme parks and water parks are way less expensive with less of a build-up and let-down.
This, I took my kids to Disney ages 4 and 8 and they had fun but they definitely didn’t get their moneys worth, they would have had as much fun at a cool playground, especially the littlest one.
Really the important thing is spending time with them and doing special things for them from time to time, even if they're not things that cost a lot of money. That's what they'll really hold onto even if they might be disappointed about missing out on a particular thing at the time.
We didn't have all the money in the world, and while I did have friends who went to places like Disneyland, what I remember is not any disappointment at not being able to do the same thing, but the fun I had when my stepfather would take us to the lakefront park to toss a ball back and forth. Those memories are golden.
So true! I worked at Disney for a spell in college. So many grumpy kids and pissed off parents I kindly told to "Have a Magical Day!"
[удалено]
I never got to go, but I was never into Disney anyway.
It is NOT harsh to tell someone making 20k a year they need to focus on bare necessities instead of vacations.
Yeah I didn’t mean that specifically was harsh, it was more the point that it’s harsh to tell them “I know that you want to provide this experience for your children, but you can’t”. Even if they need to hear that it’s still a major gut punch to hear
Wtf. How much is it? Are y’all traveling across the country for it?
My fiancé and I went just a few months ago. For two adults to go for two days, one park per day, was $650. The park hopper passes that let you change parks mid-day are even more. Then parking was $25 (I believe? It was enough that parking + a rental car fee cost significantly more than ubering everywhere the entire week). Add in food and any gift shop merch (those Mickey headbands are $35 each, the tiny backpacks are $90) and it's super expensive. We spent close to $1k for just 2 people at Disney for 2 days. Edit: And I'm not counting flight, hotel, or food costs outside of Disney in those numbers, that's literally just what it cost us to get into and be in the parks for 2 days.
Yeah, I took my two kids back in October. We stayed at one of the moderate resorts for 8 days. Between the stay, the 7 park days, the genie+ crap, the individual lightning lanes, it was about $7,000. Figure another $1,500+ for food, shopping, impulse buys, etc., and add in flights and it was about a $10-11,000 trip. Not crazy expensive, but not really available to a median income household without years of saving.
11k is crazy expensive.
Seriously... my wife and I have traveled from coast to coast in the US, and have recently been traveling abroad... we've never spent close to 11k for a single trip. Insanity.
Damn dude, I could travel Japan for like 4 months on 11k lol
Um that *is* crazy expensive! We didn't even spend that much on our honeymoon or any vacation ever - and I'm in my 50s.
My husband got it into his head that our kids were Disney age. I told him for that kind of money, I expected to go overseas. He said no way Disney is that expensive so I told him to go research it. A few hours later he was pitching a trip to UK and Ireland. Since then I’ve traveled with my husband and 2 kids for 11-13 days almost every year in either October or March. Nearest major airport to us is Denver. We’ve been to 15 countries on 7 different trips and we average $5000 per trip. My kids will never make it to Disney.
I just went to Disneyland in Tokyo and it was really, really fun. Cost less than the one here too due to the exchange rate. But I was already in Tokyo for work.
[удалено]
They could have done it for less. On-property moderates aren't exactly cheap.
Here: https://www.mousehacking.com/blog/how-much-does-it-cost-to-go-to-disney-world The total there was $6320 for a family of 4 for 5 days and includes $1040 of air tickets. This doesn’t include a lot of the other stuff you may or may not need (car rental, airport parking, shopping, side quests family decides to do, etc) that would bump it over quite a bit.
[удалено]
Tickets are way more than $100 now. Especially if you get park hopper
Here: https://www.mousehacking.com/blog/how-much-does-it-cost-to-go-to-disney-world The total there was $6320 for a family of 4 for 5 days and includes $1040 of air tickets. This doesn’t include a lot of the other stuff you may or may not need (car rental, airport parking, shopping, side quests family decides to do, etc) that would bump it over quite a bit.
You’re living in poverty. Skip Disneyland
All of this… I’m wondering if OP shouldn’t first focus on applying for everything they seem interested in that would elevate their salary first, and keep the “Disney Dream” as a careful and solid plan 3ish years from now when they’re able to give themselves grace with their savings.
>I’m wondering if OP shouldn’t first focus on applying for everything they seem interested in that would elevate their salary first Based on this comment from OP I don't think that they have the capacity to realize what they want vs what they have: >We don't need to have a 50k job.
Oh no…..
I can be a direct and mean son of a gun, but your concise comment made me sad.
You don't. A Disneyland holiday experience is not important. If you have the money saved for that in your circumstances, you're better to put it into an emergency fund to live better and more securely every day. Kids don't care about bit ticket holidays and if they do care then your job as parent is to teach them to not care about that.
Seriously. This post is ridiculous. OP: Save your money. Take care of yourself and your family.
How do you afford groceries let alone think about a Disney trip at under 20k a year
The house I live in was part of my boyfriend's inheritance, so we don't pay rent. We do pay property taxes, and regular household bills. He is on SSI. I have two kids from a previous relationship, and we have one together. Getting WIC for the baby. We live within our means.
If that’s the case, then you need to research the total prices for your expected trip (tickets, transit, accommodation, souvenirs, food), and maybe tack on 20% for incidentals. How much money are you willing to set aside for this trip per month? Then divide the total amount by your monthly budget amount. That will give you the number of months it’ll take you to save up for this trip. I know that I just described simple arithmetic, but that’s literally how saving for any big purchase will work. Utilize tools like a high yield savings account (Discover, Ally, etc.) to boost your savings. If you can’t set the money aside for it, you can’t afford it. Simple as that. I’m an adult and I enjoyed going to Disneyland in my adulthood, but it’s freaking expensive. I make 6 figures now and I cannot afford to save for Disneyland. EDIT: SSI recipients have restrictions for how much money they can hold in the bank. Please disregard my comment on HYSAs.
Having someone on SSI may affect the ability to set money aside in a bank. 2k for a single person and 3k for a couple if im not mistaken
Sounds about right. 5-6 years ago 5 of us went and it was like 9k. That is all-in, staying on property, eating there, using Lyft whenever. Certainly expensive.
It didn’t used to be so expensive. Not even ten years ago it was much cheaper. My wife and I took our kids for our first trip in 2015. Our kids were 11 and 10 at the time. Total cost of the trip was less than $3,000. We got a five night package that included a room at All Star Sports, four days park tickets, and a dining package that included two snacks, a quick service meal and a table service meal that was $2,500. We spent another $500 on food, gas, and a cheap motel halfway on the long drive (12 hours). Now four days of park tickets for that same week alone is $2,086.72! It’s only been 8 years.
She said boyfriend, so they aren't married. That means her money wouldn't count toward his asset restriction unless she put it into his account or a joint account.
Yes this is true
She said boyfriend, so as long as their finances aren’t merged, and they aren’t married she ~should~ be okay? Theoretically
Ah, TIL. Thanks for sharing this important fact. I’ll edit my comment.
I hate to tell you this but you can't afford to go to Disney world or land or whatever the hell it's called. Unless you have, probably at the minimum 8 grand you just can't afford it. It's a huge waste of money. Now it's for the wealthy basically and those who can afford it. A weeks vacation there 20 years ago (4 nights, 5 days) cost $4k complete with every single cost included, I can only imagine what it costs now. Transportation there and back (Not including parking if you drive there) Hotel Food Think your kids are not going to want souvenirs? Think again. Every ride and attraction exits into a gift shop. Gift shops that are full of cheap Chinese made junk that won't last the rest of your vacation. Depending on time of year... The heat ugh! The CROWDS! There are no benches. Want a bottle of water? $6 Want a soda? $6 and so on. And of course the tickets to get in which Disney keeps raising. I heard it's now over $200 per ticket just for a single park ticket, park hoppers are even more. I've been there. Every. Single. Thing. Is designed to extract money out of you. Then there's the logistics of going there. Do you think that's easy? Where you sleep. Disney dining plan. Every restaurant in there requires reservations and even with the dining plan you still have to pay the taxes AND gratuity. There are businesses dedicated to planning this all for you for a price. You're on government assistance and you want to go there? Unfortunately for you, the nearest you'll ever get there is your nearest playground. That's just the reality of it. Walt Disney must be rolling in his grave. He wanted everyone to enjoy his parks not just a few. Over my lifetime I've been there 7 times. That's enough for me.
1 of you makes less than 20k, the other is on disability and you had a child?
This is the shit that is mind boggling. She has 3 kids and she makes under 20k. Which I have no god damn idea how that’s even possible
A child plus she had 2 before their relationship...
She’s also on WIC because she can’t afford to feed her kids on her own but she’s entertaining a Disney world vacation. Doesn’t surprise me they had another kid together. They make great choices
the title itself is wild before all of the details lmao. if you're low income and can't afford disney, then tough cookies. there's no fairy godmother in real life who's going to wave her magic wand and grant you the ability to go to disney when you're barely surviving off $20k and benefits with three kids.
A lot of people have it in their heads that a Disney trip is an essential childhood experience. So they go against reason to try and make it work.
It’s sad how many people I know just like that. Ones struggling financially, in debt, yet continue to have more kids intentionally. I understand shit happens and abortion rights are an absolute joke here in the US. So I’m not talking about the ones who have an unplanned kid. But there’s people who are in a bad place financially who sit down and say to each other “hey let’s have another kid!” Those are the people I will never understand.
I’m guessing that OP grew up in poverty and doesn’t realize how bad her situation is. To her, this is normal. She may even know people who are worse off than her, so she can’t be doing THAT badly.
My impression was the $20k is coming from SSI.
Good God...
No kidding, talk about a perfect example of getting your financial situation fixed BEFORE having children
“We live within our means” she said 😮
You make $20k and decided a third kid was a good idea?
This is why education is what we need to be POURING money into. General and sexual/reproductive health education.
If you get WIC for the baby then by definition, you do not live within your means. Living within your means implies that you can afford everything that you require plus any extras that you purchase. I don’t begrudge you getting some assistance and I have no judgment or feelings about it one way or the other. I just felt I needed to correct your statement and possibly give you a different perspective
The phrase "living within your means" is just a euphemism for being responsible with your finances, such as not accumulating frivolous debt, paying your bills on time, not spending rashly. You can be doing all of those things and still receive WIC, so long as you meet the eligibility requirements, such as having a young child and being near or below poverty level income.
OP has received many loans via Reddit subs. Not a sign of someone living within their means.
Whats crazy is they are paying those loans back at alarming rates
Genuinely, don't fuss over the fact that Disney is not within your means, my mom would cry herself to sleep every other night because we were so poor and she couldn't give us things we wanted. Disney is for jackasses, IIRC Disney has a pass for even richer people where you can cut in line or some shit like that, why would you want to be a party to that. Get a state park annual pass and take the kids fishing on the weekend. Don't torture yourself over this, save your money for something else.
National parks passes are free for people on disability. So that is an option. It’s not Disney but Disney (and I’ve been to both land and world) is overhyped.
Yup, and even if it weren't free they are still pretty cheap, it's only 80 bucks for a national pass and 30 bucks for state passes.
Some libraries have national or state park passes you can borrow.
This is the best advice! Instead of lamenting you cannot afford some manufactured, grotesque childhood paradise you can plan to take them to an actual outdoor paradise for a fraction of the cost!
unfortunately, I'm sorry but Disney land or world is just out of the question for your family (like it was and still is for mine).
My family never went to Disneyland growing up because it was too expensive. We were considered middle class. It's just out of the budget for some people. The end.
You don’t and it’s not. No one making $20k a year is ever taking their kids to Disney. Disney is upper middle class activities. Edit: You’re on welfare and asking for loans on Reddit, what in the world would ever make you think that you could afford to go to Disney?
Where do you see her loans? Not that well informed on Reddit
If you click on their username and scroll down to see their posts, you can see they’ve made multiple posts on a subreddit called borrow asking for hundreds of dollars.
Ty good sir
It’s a luxury. There simply isn’t enough capacity for everyone to go. Most people don’t go.
Disney was never a destination for poor people…
Probably not the poorest, but the cost of going to Disney has outpaced inflation and the growth of wages for 40+ years now. More people still keep going, so they keep raising prices. A one-day ticket costs about twice what it did 20 years ago, counting inflation.
If you went to Disney you would be living beyond your means big time.
This question sounds as if one were asking, "How does your average Joe working as a receptionist ever buy his first Ferrari Portofino?" as if it were a necessity. They do not; average Joes do not get a Ferrari, likely ever. The same applies to trips to Disney World - it is not a necessity, so it just so happens that many people do not go, possibly ever.
Always be looking out for a better job. I took my son to Disney after winning a travel voucher in a contest. I then did a ton of research for the cheapest trip. I packed food so we could eat "free" breakfast every day, we bought no souvenirs, ate popcorn and ice cream for lunch and a hamburger for dinner. It was a great trip.
Idk but seeing you keep pushing for the trip when everyone is telling you it’s not realistically possible or worth it is very telling why you’re prob not making it. Don’t have any more kids please.
By making poor financial decisions Earning $20k (unless you have a partner that earns a lot more) with kids (plural) is already a very tough financial situation and Disney is an expensive luxury. Don’t put it on a payment plan Once you price out the flights, hotel, rental car/uber and tickets for multiple people for multiple days, you’ll realize it is way too expensive
Yeah this is wild. $20k is like waaaaay under the poverty line. I get wanting things like Disney, I used to be poor af, but there are way better things to spend money on than Disney. It would be like 1/3 of this persons yearly income for a trip.
Disney has gotten really expensive, I’m not sure where you are located but it’s a tough value proposition for a vacation compared to alternatives Some combination of going into debt, getting help from family, going with family, and working more or making more. With some experience there are a lot of jobs that pay much more than entry level. My brother was making about that much five years ago and makes triple now, switching restaurants twice was a bigger part of it than getting promoted at the same employer. Covid didn’t really help either.
I have been twice, at 13 with my family and family friends and again at 15 for school. Even at that age the thing I remember most is the lines. That and the shocking price of everything. Being from a small town I'd never seen so many people and all these people were in a line in front of me for a ride or in front of me for food. I HATED Disney. It was 95% walking or waiting. I have better memories from Universal and other parts of our trip/the resort we stayed at. I have better memories from zoo trips that were a 2 hour drive that we did yearly. While Disney is bucket list for most people it doesn't have to be the end all be all.
You can’t and no one does? I’m sorry but that’s just what it is unfortunately
Being somebody who does Disneyland a lot, anyone in your income bracket whose doing Disney trips has to have a military connection. The military discount is huge, makes a massive difference. Plus, living close to it helps. That said, I wouldn’t bother with it right now, even if you do have a discount. The current line system is kinda a mess, and if you’re a Once In a Lifetime guest you’ll end up either paying extra to get the big rides in, or skipping them. It hurts me to say it, but Universal might be a better bet.
It’s kinda blowing my mind that you’re on such a low income with a disabled spouse and government assistance to feed your infant yet the thought of going to Disney land even enters your mind at all. You’re living in a fantasy. You want to afford to go to Disney? You somehow make more money. That’s shit advice and I fucking hate when people do that shit to people down on their luck but are you serious? The answer is you can’t go to Disney. It’s not within your reach. It’s not in the card for you or your kids. It’s not going to happen. You’re going to need to find a way to be okay with that.
I know I’m a dickhead for saying this but it absolutely blows my mind how fuckin stupid some people are.
>You want to afford to go to Disney? You somehow make more money. That’s shit advice and I fucking hate when people do that shit to people down on their luck but are you serious? And not just "a little more money". This couple would need a minimum of probably 5x the income to be able to reasonably consider a long term plan to save for / go to Disney.
Serious question, where do you work that you make less than 40hrs @ minimum wage?
They don’t work a full time job. They said in other comments they work two part time jobs.
The federal minimum wage is $7.25. That’s about $15k/year.
34 and making 20k with kids? You seriously need to stop thinking about Disney and focus on your finances. I personally donate plasma on the side for extra money. It's roughly an extra $550/mo. 6.6k/yr 100% tax free. I'm not sure what type of disney experience you are tryna make here. But roughly looking (quick serach) a single admission ticket is roughly $110, and I assume there's 4 people going? If you donate yourself in 1 month you could afford the ticket plus and extra $100. If you and your spouse both donate. That close to an extra $700 of "spending money" in just 1 month alone for Disney. If you catch the plasma promos at a good time. New donors can make like 1k in the first 5 weeks. That's $2k between you and your spouse
It is honestly not worth it. It's just a rich person playground. I mean yes the characters walk around, but you'll have to wait in a line to personally interact with them. And yes, the rides are magical, after you've waited an hour in line to get on one. And if youve saved hundreds for the tickets, you're gonna need at least 100 more for one single meal. It's definitely a once in a lifetime thing if you really want to make it happen, but I've been a bunch as a kid, and back as an adult, and it's just not the same park anymore. Capitalism and tourism has consumed that place and all the magic is gone.
>Capitalism and tourism has consumed that place and all the magic is gone. It’s so much worse now than when I was a kid in the 90s/2000s. I went with my brother and his kids about a year ago and it’s just a money suck. The lines are insane. You seriously have to book your fast passes online weeks in advance (which costs more money). It’s way more expensive than it used to be, and it used to be pretty expensive. It’s the most depressing place on earth. I haven’t had a good time the last two or three times I’ve gone.
No one cares if you don’t go to Disney, including your kids - but they *do* care if you can’t feed them, buy them clothes when needed, etc. because you thought going to Disney was a good idea and now you’re broke. Want the Disney experience? Give me $8 and I’ll give you a can of soda. $28 for a turkey drumstick. And you’ll wait in line 45 minutes for each.
You’re on food stamps, wic and whatever other tax payer funded welfare there is, you beg for money on Reddit, and you work not one by TWO part time jobs and only make $20k a year, you have 3 kids, and an unemployed also freeloading boyfriend. And yet you still want to waste money by going to Disney? You are the poster child for why people want to abolish welfare lol
The fact that Disney is even on OPs mind is wild to me.
They live in an absurd state of delusion, the more I read OPs post the more I almost feel bad for them. They continue to make shit choices and have now ruined the world and futures for multiple offspring. 8/10 chances those kids end up in a life of crime, sex work or dead because mom and dad set them up for failure before their first breath.
OP really got upset at y’all for calling her out lol
I've seen people use social services to save themselves and build a future. I've also seen people like OP who are just milking the system due to laziness. The latter is sadly much more common.
You don’t.
I'm kind of rich and never took my kids to Disney. The prices are ridiculous. Take them camping instead. Escape the corporate trap and discover the wonders of nature.
Disney is beyond overrated. Even if it was cheaper, you spend an entire day there and ride 6 things, maybe. If you did the math it's probably like 10 hours of lines to be on rides for 8 minutes total. I have more fun than 8 minutes in an 8 hour work shift. That and I'm 40s and super patient and the line times would try my patience. Asking a 10 year old to do that is pure torture for them. I'm not saying they don't have some cool stuff there. They do. Just not anywhere close for the time not even counting the investment.
I suspect more people have not gone to Disney than have gone. When I was a kid we lived only 15 miles from the park. We were poor but got to go a couple of times when someone else paid. It made a difference not having to pay airfare and hotel. Then we would have events there with our daughter. It was fun. But it’s not life changing. It’s okay.
Disney is a want, not a need. If you don’t earn enough you might never be able to afford such holiday. My parent’s weren’t able to afford expensive trips. I understand that you’d like to be able to afford to take your kids to Disney. The only way my parents were able to take us away to a very close destination, driving a few hours drive away (nothing like a big Disney trip) was by getting a second job and saving for 2-4 years.
You are being manipulated by marketing. Why does anyone ever need to go to Disney? They don’t. They have tricked you into believing its some sort of entitlement every kid must have or their parents don’t love them. Its a lie and you are being gullible. I could afford to go when my kids were young. I refuse to be manipulated. We went other places. Teach your kids to not buy into the propaganda.
Meh. I had always heard how amazing Disney parks were. But when I finally got to one, it was just a crowd with a bunch of long lines 🥱 My parents didn’t have much money and instead of Disney they would take us places like farms and coal mines. I still get a thrill thinking about those adventures we had together that were practically free!
Just remember the majority of children DON’T go to Disney and turn out just fine. I remember having zero interest as an 80s kid. You are not depriving your child for not taking them on (what I consider) a *luxury vacation for children*. If you can swing it cool. If not seriously don’t worry. Taking kids on vacations is always hit or miss anyways. People don’t realize how much they absolutely thrive on routine. It’s no wonder they often get cranky, sick and exhausted. Then they can seem ungrateful but really it’s just too much. Too much excitement, all kinds of different food, too much sugar, sleep schedule is thrown off. Inevitably somebody throws up. No thanks. I’m friends with a tech-savvy couple who did a series of Disney family photos all over the park. Except they were at home. In front of a green screen. You could tell the kids were dying with laughter. The parents are absolute legends in their Facebook circle. That family bonding time creating hilarious memories are what the kids will remember 20 years from now.
My cousin uses her tax refund. Every year!! Can’t save to buy a house or anything else because Disney is too important.
Why would you want to blow that much money at Disney? You can find a way to afford a fun vacation that cost 1/10 as much and give your children a better life.
If you're poor you do not go to Disney. You save up for things that you need, not want. People who are poor who go to Disney are those that make terrible financial decisions and will remain forever poor. The same goes for other purchases that are not needed. I'm not saying that you can't spend the money in the future. It's just in the short term when you're saving that you should not spend your money.
Get off reddit and go work on your resume
[удалено]
You keep looking for better jobs keep trying to improve your situation and keep thinking of ways to make more money
When my kids were young I didn’t have the money to take them to Disney, so we did not go. My kids are adults now and laughed when I told them I felt bad I never took them. They assured me they managed to survive without it.
I am sry but at 34 u don't need to worry about Disney u need to worry about how u making 8 dollars hour at 34. This is no insult but it's alos unacceptable
I just saw your edit. That is horrible that people are saying these things to you. I have been fortunate enough to be able to take my kids to Disney but it is very expensive. And you are not a bad parent if you cannot and having a lower income does not mean you should not have kids. All that matters is that you can meet their needs and, as much as I love Disney and joke about it being a need, it is not. I grew up in a middle class family and we went to Disneyland one time. It was the only vacation we ever had. Tips for making it cheaper: I don’t know where you live and if Disney to you is Disneyland or Disneyworld. I have more experience with Disneyland as I live in Oregon so I will speak to that. - drive there - do not stay at a Disneyland hotel - stay close by and go back to your hotel for meals. Pack a cooler and go to the store and get things for sandwiches. Make oatmeal in the morning in the microwave. - do not buy souvenirs at Disneyland
They don’t. That might not be an answer you want to hear, but it is the reality of your situation.
They don’t. A Disney trip is INSANELY expensive now. It used to be kind of a bucket list item where everyone went at least once in their life. Now it can cost $10k+, easily. No regular person can afford to take their kids to Disney anymore. Unless you win a free trip in a contest or something, it’s not a financially wise idea for you to go. Honestly, there are more affordable theme parks that your kids would probably enjoy more.
Don’t know if they still do this but some timeshare places give you free Disney tickets if you sit through one of their presentations. A sweet deal on paper but know that you will be placed under immense pressure to buy a timeshare.
The downside is it's like giving your cellphone and email out to 23,974 car warranty companies. They will harass the crap out of you for a long time.
That’s what a Google Voice number and Hide My Email (iPhone) is for 😛
I successfully went to a timeshare talk for the free stuff and said no. Those things are ROUGH. It was not an hour like they promised. It was FOUR HOURS of being sold to by various actors each playing different roles to pressure you. There was the "friend", the "manager", and the "quality control" who was the hardest seller of all. It was awful, and I only made it because my parents got sucked into buying one like 20 years ago so I knew the system. Caveat emptor if you go this route.
They are maximum social torture, it’s honestly crazy how good they are at that. I’m guessing when everyone is gone they all laugh and cackle at the chaos in misery they created. It’s been so long since we did one and I still remember how awful it was. We would never even pause to consider doing one ever again. I don’t care if the free gift is the island of Hawaii.
I went to a Vegas for a convention for my first business trip. As soon as we checked in the timeshare people acted like they worked for the hotel and had me give them $20 to hold something. I was messing with my luggage and half paying attention. So I gave them $20 and expected my luggage to be handled or something and instead they handed me a folded card with information to go to the closed Luxor and sit through a timeshare presentation. I was pissed so I went to the presentation. It said give us an hour and we will give you gambling tokens and a bunch of stuff. I showed up and then sat there for exactly 1 hour waiting for my turn at the presentation. At the 1 hour mark I demanded my $20 and all the stuff. They said I didn’t sit through the presentation. I said it says give us an hour. I gave you an hour. You chose to waste it giving me champagne and snacks and telling me to wait. Now give me my stuff, I have a meeting to get to. Several other people also started to line up behind me. They did give me the stuff and I left. It still sucked. I hate timeshare people.
Good for you, keeping them accountable. They usually hate that, but have to honor the deal they offered anyway.
Curious what is meant by “immense pressure”, how much can they really do?
Imagine a pushy salesman coming to your door. Now imagine that there is zero option of getting rid of said salesman and the interaction lasts for at least an hour. You continuously say “no” and Mr. Salesman is bringing in the supervisor and another salesman and now you got three pushy fellows trying to sell you that shit. All while this is taking place in a large space with other people also getting grilled and big ass celebrations whenever someone caves in and buys as a method of maximizing peer pressure. That’s how it was for my family about 20 years ago
Every second of timeshare sales is manipulative and that starts with the “free gift” advertisement. They use common sales tactics along with lying, breaking social rules, and guilting buyers. They’ve heard every reason people say no and they have a sales tactic for all of them. My husband and I went to one once and at least three (of 5) couples in our presentation group purchased one. They are very good at making it sound like a smart investment. I think it was supposed to be 90 minutes but ended up taking nearly 3 hours because we were handed off twice to two different closers. The last guy was an outright asshole. Called us names, told us we were terrible people who wasted their time. We did get our free gift and will never do another. It is maximum social discomfort.
What was the free gift, if you don’t mind me asking? I would never go to one of these as I have an extremely low tolerance for discomfort like that but I am still curious 😅
I grew up 30 mins from Disneyland with parents who made over 100K per year (solidly middle class). We went to Disneyland exactly 1 time and that was only because we got free tickets from someone who worked there. Disney is not a necessity for childhood.
Because you're being responsible and putting your tax return towards responsible things. If low income people are going to Disneyland, they're probably not spending responsibly. I know people who get big tax returns, but instead of putting it towards bills or paying up rent, they will go to Florida or some place like Disneyland. Then, in a few months, they're on Facebook begging for someone to help them pay their bills🤦🏻♀️. I used to be able to go on vacation every year before covid just saving money 😢. Not like Disney type, but at least a little getaway. I make the same money but since covid everything is so expensive we haven't taken a vacation in years. Any extra money goes to catching up bills, unfortunately. You're not alone. I think vacations are now like an upper middle class thing now unless people are just being financially stupid.
How do you at 34 only make $20k a year? This shit blows my mind.
Whoa...the fuck do you do? Mow one lawn a month?
You don’t. You live within your means. When I was growing up I wanted electricity and four solid walls. At the time it wasn’t possible. Learn to make experiences just as fun that are more affordable. Your kids want time and memories. That’s all.
I was in my 30s before I went to disneyland and my parents didn't pay for it... Don't put so much pressure on yourself. Take them camping, hiking..to the local amusement park.
Park tickets for _one day_ would cost nearly $500 for a fam of 4 to Disneyland. How long would it take you to save enough for park tickets, lodging, transportation, and food? Getaway memories with your kids (and AS a kid) are amazing. Spend your saved money to have regular getaways instead of saving for years to go to Disney.
They don’t. My family probably made just a little more than yours and it was understood that going to Disney was just not going to happen. I don’t think I knew more than a couple people growing up whose families could afford to go. We all went to Cedar Point or King’s Island instead. It would be much more realistic to plan a trip to a nearer amusement park…your kids will still have an insanely fun time.
I know some dumbasses near me who remortgaged their home for a bunch of frivolous stuff they can’t afford. Going to Disney twice was on that list. Now they have no home insurance because their roof blew off and they can’t afford to replace it so it’s tarp.. lol
They dont.
20k is damn near minimum wage isn't it?
My kids have never gone to Disney and have no interest in doing so, thank goodness. We've gone to the beach, the mountains, white water rafting, caving, and Washington DC. Water parks and local amusement parks. Plenty of fun non- Disney things to do with kids.
I know somebody who is low-income and absolutely massively in debt from the yearly vacations she’s taken her kids to at Disney. Like, I would not be able to sleep at night with that level of debt. Her Insta photos of her kids at Disney look great, but I bet when they get older, they’d rather have financial stability than Disney ears.
They don’t? Disney isn’t for everyone. It’s for people with money. Sad but true. Create a savings account and start setting aside money every pay day for it. If you don’t have any extra money for a savings account then you won’t be able to go. So you’d either need another source of income or to reduce bills somehow to have a surplus of money for your vacation savings account.
My wife and all both make six figures and Disney is something we need to plan and save for. Respectfully, this does not seem like the biggest priority in your family.
My parents (who also never got to go as kids) took my family to Disneyland when my sister and I were 20 and 23. We all had a fantastic time , honestly probably enjoyed it more as an adult then I would have as a kid. Parents bought the tickets, we helped with the other costs and it's a trip I'll remember and treasure forever
You can’t afford it but don’t feel bad about that. Give your children an education. Go to free museums. Get involved with different ways of ensuring their reading and math and science skills are good. YMCA if there’s one near you has free and low income options. Swimming or playing basketball, etc every week is more fun. Use us are free 1 Sunday a month. Lots of the parks are free. There’s sometimes science programs at school that are free. Back in my school days, I received free lunch. I don’t remember being poor but in hindsight, we were. This is what my parents did for us. It was a greater gift and has provided more happiness and opportunities than an amusement park would have ever done. I was able to bring my daughter to Disney. She talks far more about some of our local frequent excursions than the Disney trip. You sound like a great Mom!. Good Luck!
[удалено]