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DINING & ATTRACTIONS -
Seeing Attractions On A Budget (continued)
children. Many times, the admission is a “suggested donation” where you are free to decide what is both appropriate and affordable.
e. If there is a national park nearby, these are usually great to see and inexpensive. Admission is usually by the car load. Pack your lunch and you can have a great day at minimal cost. Passes are also available for extended periods, as well as for annual visitation rights to all national parks. If you are planning to visit often, or several different parks, these passes can lower the cost significantly.
f. Do not forget about factory tours. Many are free or low cost, and can be both informative and entertaining.
g. If the weather is not too good, you may want to catch a movie at the local cinema. Look for early bird specials that can decrease your cost significantly.
3. A big part of seeing the attractions is all of those great souvenirs available for purchase. Needless to say, there will not be a lot of bargains to be found. In order to control your cost, and still get that special remembrance, consider the following:
a. Unless that perfect souvenir is at an attraction that you will only be visiting once, try to avoid buying souvenirs until near the end of your trip. By that time, you and the kids will have a better idea of just what you want, and also an idea of where the better prices are. Everyone will leave with that special treasure, and not with a lot of items that were bought impulsively.
b. Consider giving each one of your kids a set budget for souvenirs. This will allow you to possibly save some money, and provide your children with a chance to learn about how to prioritize spending.
c. Generally, the same souvenir can be found at many local locations, and prices can vary significantly. Shop around before you make the purchase to ensure that you received a competitive price. And remember, usually the further the souvenir store is from the attraction the lower prices will be.
d. If you have many purchases, or very large purchases, consider having the store ship your purchases to your home. This can lessen the hassle of carrying your purchases around and carting them during your travel. And, since having purchases shipped will often avoid sales tax, the cost of shipping may be essentially offset.
Visiting Disney World & Theme Parks
Disney World, Disneyland and other theme parks are attractions unto themselves. While many of the tips regarding keeping lodging, food, entrance fees, and other expenses under control at attractions (as discussed above, and under the “Lodging” heading) also apply to theme parks, here are some tips that are more focused on Disney World and other theme parks.
1. Be sure to look for discounts on admission tickets before you travel to the park. Daily entrance fees can easily exceed $60 per person and put a significant dent in your budget. However, the majority of people visiting Disney World and other theme parks pay less than advertised admission prices at the gate. So make sure you get a discount.
a. Discounts are available from many sources, as discussed above under “Seeing Attractions On A Budget.”
b. Discounts are usually also available if you buy your entrance tickets ahead of
time from the Disney or other theme park web sites. Many different options are available,
and include, or do not include, admissions to various on-
c. Buying multi-
d. Discounts may also be available as part of a “stay and play” hotel package. The hotel business is so competitive at places like Disney World that many hotels will include significantly discounted admission tickets to get your business.
e. Check to see if in-
f. Sometimes during special events (or even year round) at the parks honoring certain groups, such as members of the military, discounted tickets are available for members of those groups and their families.
g. In any case, even if you do not get a large discount, having your tickets available ahead of time allows you to avoid potentially long lines at the park.
2. Hotel accommodations at and around the major theme parks can be quite expensive, or very inexpensive, depending on the quality of room you want, location of the room and the time of year.
a. The best way to get a nice room at your ideal location at a reasonable price, is to visit the theme park in off season. Since the number of rooms near the theme park does not change given the time of the year, but the number of people visiting does
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