MouseSavers Testimonials

– Debbie D from New Jersey

My family of 4 just returned Sunday from our week at Disney World and I wanted to say a huge thank you for all the tips.

Here are some we used:

• We ordered our discount tickets (Disney and Universal) through the newsletter link for Undercover Tourist – they were the cheapest I found and speedy!  Their site saved us lots of time as well – we used the calendar to plan our days and it worked great!
• I used a car rental coupon code or idea… and we rented a very nice, new, clean Chevy midsize car for 8 days for only $200 total through Enterprise, out of MCO.
• We purchased our SeaWorld tickets through AAA using advice from your site – AAA members were receiving 2 days plus free meal vouchers for $69.99 + tax.
• Used our AAA card for discounts at Universal Islands of Adventure & they were still offering the buy two, get one FREE deal on the soft drink mugs.
• We knew where to watch Wishes and to look for Tinkerbell!
• We brought in meals for lunches most days which was a savings (we stayed off site)
• Prepurchased the Photopass+ — we did not do a character meal but my kids saw all the characters they could at meet and greet locations, plus all the ride photos.  We usually don’t buy ride photos so this was fun to have.  I cannot imagine how many pictures are on there for us to have, plus the magic shots!

Gosh and I’m sure tons more.  It was a magical vacation all helped by a huge sprinkling of pixie dust from your site!  Thank you, thank you, thank you!

– Dawn W & family from Eden Prairie, MN

My wife, 8 year old son, 7 year old daughter, and I just got back from a week long trip to Disney World and Universal Orlando. For the Universal Orlando 2 day park tickets, we used undercovertourist.com after learning about them from MouseSavers. Well, it turned out to be a really good idea. Not only did we save a few bucks, the Undercover Tourist customer service saved the day.

On Tuesday, while standing in line for Soarin’ at Epcot no less, I remembered that I forgot the Universal Orlando tickets at home. Doh! Talk about a travelers worst nightmare… After we got off the ride, I looked up my Undercover Tourist order confirmation e-mail and called their 800 number. They assured me that there was a remedy and walked me through the steps. The next morning, I called Undercover Tourist customer service again from concierge desk at the Coronado Springs resort. Undercover Tourist promptly faxed me copies of my Universal tickets. With this fax, I was able to get my Universal tickets reissued at the Universal guest services. Disaster averted.

So, I offer this testimonial as a big thanks to undercovertourist.com and to MouseSavers for making me aware of this great company.

– Ryan S from Dublin, OH

My husband and I were in Orlando this past week with our twin 3 year olds and had a house rental lined up through a friend. Unfortunately, after traveling all day we arrived at the house unimpressed. In fact we were so disappointed we decided within minutes we weren’t staying there. I quickly got on the phone with Disney to try to book something last minute (and the week of Easter) that wouldn’t cost a fortune and had no luck. Then I remembered you! I quickly went to your trusted site and to your preferred hotels list. Not only did we find the Caribe Royale but thanks to MouseSavers we got a discount:). We stayed in one of the one bedroom suites and LOVED this resort. Super clean, great staff, awesome amenities and at a great price. We were able to save our vacation and have the best week with your help so thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!

– Christa G from NJ

My husband and I just got back from Disney World. We used Magic Strollers and rented the City Mini Single stroller. We were very impressed. The stroller was waiting at Bell Services on the day promised. The stroller came to us in a carrying case and was very clean. (Honestly, we loved the stroller so much we are thinking about getting one to use around home.) It turned on a dime, was plenty roomy enough for my 37 inch tall, 35 pound 3 year old and even laid all the way down so she could nap – which saved us trips back to the room. The stroller canopy covered our daughter very well – which was a blessing to us as the weather was in the 40’s and very windy. The stroller was tall enough that my 6’1″ tall husband didn’t have to bend over at all to push it.

The best thing of all about the stroller though was that it folded up with only one motion. Pull the center strap and the whole thing folded up. We had no trouble at all getting off the buses and monorail and would recommend it to anyone needing an easy-to-maneuver stroller for the parks. If we don’t buy one before our next trip, we will definitely rent one again from Magic Strollers. I have nothing but good things to say about the stroller – and the company.

Hope this helps a fellow traveler!

– Michelle W

We just returned from our trip to Walt Disney World. We are a family of 6 (2 adults and 4 teenagers) and have been 3 times in the past 5 years. We have always stayed on property in Disney owned hotels. Twice in 2 rooms at Value Resorts (POP and Music) and once in the Wilderness Cabins. All were nice and we liked  to use Disney transportation, we find it nice not to have to navigate the roads in Disney and never mind waiting 20 minutes for the buses or standing to return to the resort.

I had some vacation time come up unexpectedly and decided to travel to Disney for Christmas being we had never been at that time. When I tried to book no Disney Hotel was available, not even moderate or deluxe due to the Pop Warner event. I was so disappointed. Then, a miracle, I received a email about a Mousesavers special at a hotel on Disney property. I booked it right away, and then booked Happy Limo (as you recommended) for transport to the hotel and back from MCO. I was nervous about bus service and it being a non-Disney owned hotel, but trusted your judgment.

It was one of the BEST trips we have had to Disney! Once we step off the plane the Happy Limo driver was waiting at the bottom of the airport steps, with a sign and a smile. He helped us get our luggage and we were at our hotel in 20 minutes.

Check in was great. The hotel was beautiful. The room was huge and recently refurbished. It was much nicer and larger than the Disney hotels we have stayed at. We had 2 rooms right next to each other on the 8th floor with views of Downtown Disney. It was a quick walk to Downtown Disney and the Crossroads Shopping Center. I found the bus service from the hotel to the parks better than Disney. We never waited more than 20 minutes to or from the parks and we never stood on a single bus. They even had transportation to and from Mickeys Very Merry Christmas Party until 1:30 am.

We got a great ‘mousesavers rate’ that included one night free and breakfast for 4 of us (we had 2 rooms) and it was worth paying for the other 2 people. The breakfast had everything – waffles, eggs, omelettes, sausage, bacon, breads, fruits, french toast, grits, hot and cold cereal, biscuits and gravy, and the list goes on.

I would have no problem staying here again (and again, and again…). It was great! Thank you so much for your informative web site and wonderful choice of hotels. I tell everyone I know that is planing a trip to Disney about this site.

– Kimberlee B from New Castle, DE

I just have to thank you for all of the wonderful tips on your website. Although I am a former CM of Disneyland, so much has changed since I worked there that I needed all the help I could get to plan our family vacation.

First, I used your tips about checking airline tickets on various days and using the flexible dates flying option on Travelocity. I don’t know how much I saved, but at under $200 per person from Arkansas to California, we were already off to a great start.

Then I used the link to aRes Travel to get us discounts on our 3-day Park Hopper tickets. That saved us $75 as a family and was so easy.

Next, I used your tips for booking a rental car. Not only did I get a great rate with Enterprise (I do agree that they don’t have the cleanest cars) I kept checking back and lowered my rate by $20 from my initial reservation.

Finally, I used your recommendation for the Anaheim Howard Johnson Hotel. Again, I kept checking back as you recommending and lowered our rate by about $10 a day from our initial reservation using the MouseSavers code. I can’t remember how much I saved over the regular published rate, but I know the MouseSavers rate was a great deal. Our room was spacious and nice. Having the microwave and fridge in our room allowed us to eat some of our meals in the hotel which cut down our eating costs significantly. Being within a short walking distance to the parks was especially helpful for a 3-year old who benefited from afternoon naps.

All in all we had a GREAT trip and our costs were cut to a minimum because of the tips, links and codes on your site.

What I love most about your site is that everything is very easy to find and so succinct. I tried other sites but there was just too much going on to find what I needed. Thank you again for providing such a wonderful service. I hope you are around again when we go in another 5 years!

– Marvelyn T

I have traveled to Disney World with my husband and two children for the last 2 March breaks. Your site has been instrumental in our planning of our trips. Your advice and suggestions have saved our family several hundred dollars and is used by us as a constant reference during the vacation planning process. We have recommended MouseSavers.com to all of our friends, relatives and neighbours and each one of them, after viewing your site, have thanked us for suggesting such an amazing, informative and complete Disney vacation planning resource.

In March of this year, our family of 4 as well as my sister and her daughter attended Disney with us and with the purchase of 1 annual pass, we were able to save over $1,600.00 on our accommodations (14 nights at a Disney Moderate Resort). Not to mention what we saved on dining etc. The annual pass cost us an additional $222.00 over what the 10 days pass would be but resulted in a tremendous savings for us. Thank you so much.

Your links allowing extra savings for MouseSavers members are awesome as are your advice and suggestions. Your site is like our “Disney Bible”.

Thank you Mary for taking the time to offer people such a complete, dependable and accurate resource.

– Paula S from Perth, Ontario, Canada

I am out of mind with joy! Your site is a treasure trove of information and SAVINGS.

Yesterday I booked a 6 day trip to WDW, onsite resort (Port Orleans), with 6 day park passes, park hopper option with water parks & more, plus onsite dining for a family of 5. Total cost $3825.48, not bad and I thought it was reasonable considering the research and price shopping I had done.

Well, lo and behold, TODAY I found a code on your site that would upgrade park passes from basic to park hopper & water parks. So, I called the Disney reservations number, gave them the info and the code and BAM! I just saved $635.99 off my package price. That is INCREDIBLE! One phone call and $635.99 is back in my pocket (although I’m sure Disney will get it back 😉 … but I’m still happy about finding that code).

So, folks, if you find a code that could possibly save you some money, DO NOT hesitate to call Disney (or your travel agent) and try it. Their people are very helpful and you have no right to feel guilty about saving your own money. You can always spend the saved money on Disney stuff, etc. and actually feel better about it.

– Christopher K from Rochester, NY

Through Mouse Savers I found Undercover Tourist, and used the special MouseSaver newsletter link to purchase our Disney World passes. We had planned to buy 4 day passes, and spend one day at each Disney park. The remaining two days of our 6 day vacation were earmarked for Kennedy Space Center and Universal Islands of Adventure.

To my surprise, Undercover Tourist’s 4 day Disney World passes came with two free additional days. I bought the passes, thinking we wouldn’t use those extra days…… but they ended up saving the day! We used the first “extra” day on the day we flew into Orlando. We got there about 5 pm, but it was New Year’s Eve. Hey! We realized we could burn a day from our passes and celebrate New Year’s at Disney MGM Studios. Sweet. Yes, things were very crowded, but hey…. it was free! And, they were having special New Year’s celebrations going on that made everything fun. We even got to go on Rockin’ Roller coaster before it closed for renovations. And the New Year’s fireworks were awesome.

The second “freebie” day came in handy, too. We were disappointed in Islands of Adventure primarily because Universal no longer offers free fast passes. They wanted us to shell out another $20 per person for a pass letting us ride fast-pass once on each ride. That was just annoying and cheap. So, when we had ridden the main rides by 2 pm at Universal we bailed out of there and headed over to Magic Kingdom. We were very happy now to have another “free” day to burn. We got to enjoy so many attractions before the park closed that night at 9 that when we were there for a full day later in the week we got to be leisurely and ride our favorite rides more than once. It was great.

So, the net of it was this: that 6-day for the price of a 4-day pass really made things work out swell. And we found it because of MOUSESAVERS!!!

We love you MouseSavers!

– Val S

I wanted to send you a note of thanks, because my family just returned from 12 nights at the Downtown Disney Doubletree. We booked our vacation at the terrific $85/night rate available through your newsletter last winter. We had a fabulous stay! The rooms were spacious and clean, and the beds were really, really comfortable. The staff was very friendly, and the free continental breakfast included in the deal was a wonderful perk.

I really felt that the breakfast was a cut above many of the other continental breakfasts that I’ve seen — fresh, cut up melons and pineapple rather than just a bowl of apples and oranges. Lots of fresh pastries, bagels and donuts. And the option to upgrade to the hot buffet was nice, too, since after a week, it is actually possible to get tired of donuts! Who knew?! 🙂

The hotel had a few minor maintenance issues, but the staff was trying to stay on top of them (our a/c wasn’t as cool as it should have been, but they fixed it quickly). I also heard employees saying that a major renovation was on the horizon.

We wouldn’t have been able to stretch out our visit as long as we did without the MouseSavers rate — thank you so much!

Oh — we also took the autotrain (a real adventure for the kids!), and saved the cost of the rental car at Disney. It was actually cheaper than airfare and we saved the cost of the car rental.

Thanks for the wonderful site and the great rates in the newsletter!

– Stephanie E from Lancaster, PA

Your MouseSavers Newsletter has been invaluable resource to me whilst planning our Disneyworld and Disney cruise holiday, from Australia. I first learned about your website through The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World. It was a once in a lifetime holiday to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary, and our first time to WDW, and we now have some of the most wonderful memories (and souvenirs!)

By following your recommendations, we saved more than $1000 (on the price we could get in Australia through a travel agent here) on our Disney cruise thanks to Josephine at Small World Travel, several hundred dollars on Magic your way tickets… and saved money and received upgrades on limo transfers from Happy Limo.

We also followed your tips on Disney dining, and had some of the most wonderful character dining experiences in the world. Our 5 year old daughter was ecstatic. Dining at night at Cinderella’s Royal Table was not to be beaten, and we received special Crystal Champagne flutes as an anniversary gift, after I mentioned it to the Disney Dining booking agent, and then we were alone at the entrance to the castle for the nighttime fireworks and show.

Thanks again for the great service you provide, and we will certainly pass on your site to all our friends.

– Leanne D from Sydney, Australia

In June we had a family vacation to Walt Disney World that I had been planning for about 6 months. I found your link and have been following all the “news” about what is open, deals and such.

First off, I researched various hotels through Orbitz, directly with the hotels, Small World Vacations, our own travel agent and your link. We got the best price using MouseSavers and the discount code. The Buena Vista Suites were just wonderful.

Second, we read, research, graphed and agonized over what tickets we needed for what parks and we got the best price… through the newsletter … With some helpful hints we figured out what we needed in the way of days, using hoppers and whether we would need expire or no expire tickets.

I can’t thank you enough for all the hard work and diligent research that goes into your web site and newsletters that help people, like me, get the best bang for their buck. Also, for helping us weave our way through the many facets of Disney.

With the help from MouseSavers and The Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World, we had an outstanding and memorable vacation for our granddaughter, daughter and ourselves.

Keep up the great work! I have already given out your web site to others when they tell me they are planning their vacation or a trip to Disney. We will be returning to Disney in February for a convention and we plan to stay afterwards to enjoy more of the parks, using the 7 day/park hopper/no expiration tickets we purchased this trip since we knew we would be going back there.

– Patsy S

We have stayed on-property at nearly all the resorts at Walt Disney World for 14 visits over the past twenty years, but that trend will change after we took your tip for the Caribe Royale. What a wonderful hotel! The spacious suite was twice the room area we are used to on Disney property, and the location is terrific – only two stop lights to Disney property – and you don’t drive past any businesses except for the Marriott complex. Our trip time from Tower II to standing inside EPCOT was only 15 minutes!

We had cancelled reservations at the Animal Kingdom Lodge based on your review [of Caribe Royale], and we were thoroughly impressed. And we were probably closer to the parks anyway.

I would be suspicious of many of the hotels in the Disney area – but we were extremely pleased with our six day visit. And the $123/night was HALF of what we are used to paying for the Disney deluxe class resorts.

– Bryan C

I took your advice and, despite the extra cost of staying on site at Universal, we booked a room at the Hard Rock. Your comment about the advantage that resort guests have over everyone else at Universal is so true! All we had to do was show our resort keycard, and we walked right on to almost every ride. About 5 minutes was our longest wait ever! At times, we almost felt guilty when we passed every one else standing in line so that we could ride the Revenge of the Mummy for the 5th time! Same experience on the Hulk Coaster and Dueling Dragons!

We were very spoiled by the time we left to go to Disney! In fact, I told my family when we arrived at Disney, “Everything that you have learned about standing in line the last few days, forget it! We’re at Disney now!” Fastpass is o.k., but we found that we had the best results returning for the Extra Magic hours at night, and riding between 11 pm and 1 am. Most of the smaller kids were gone then, so we even rode Dumbo with just a short 10 minute wait. It feels funny to ride Dumbo, though, when everyone on the ride is at least a teenager!

I used the discount you mentioned and saved $700 dollars on our Disney resort stay! I had booked a “room only” at first, then changed it to a package when the great discount came out in October. I used Small World Vacations to help us with our Disney arrangements. We stayed at the French Quarter, with two rooms for 7 nights, 4 adults and 2 junior 7 day park hopper tickets for only $3000. A great deal, thanks to you! We also used our AAA card to get an additional discount at both places.

We used Happy Limo, thanks to your recommendation. Wow! Great service! Our flight was delayed by an hour and 45 minutes on the way to WDW. I called Happy Limo, and they just adjusted their schedule to meet us at the new time. We did not get our grocery stop (we made do with what snacks we had packed in our bags), but we got a great upgrade to a super stretch Navigator! Also had the same Navigator for our switch from Universal to WDW (we had reserved a van).

The drivers were wonderful and the limos were a fantasy touch for our two teenagers! Leaving WDW was made easier by the beautiful black super stretch (free upgrade again) that took us back to the airport. We also used the discount mentioned on your website – thanks!

You helpful hints and timely advice really made a difference on our trip! Thanks for the service that you provide, helping people stretch their hard saved vacation dollars to get the trip of their dreams! I recommend your site to everyone that mentions an interest in a Disney trip. Thanks again!

 – Lani S from San Angelo, TX

Thank you! Thank you! I’m doing the travel arrangements for 30 of us going to Disneyworld…. Thanks to your latest Hot Deals Announcement I saved $7,000 by getting our Dining Package for free! We can’t thank you enough! This is my 8th trip to WDW – I sure wish I would have found out about your website sooner!

Here’s an update – just saved another $450.00!! I had a few annual pass holders traveling with me so we just bought them a 1 day base ticket to get the 9 free days of dining. Total savings: $7,450.00!!!

AGAIN, THANK YOU!!!

Barbara W from Arlington Heights, IL

Thanks to your site, we used Anne at Small World to book out hotel. Because of her commitment to service and diligence in looking for reduced rates, we stayed at the Port Orleans Riverside for less than half the price I was being quoted on my own. And Anne was great! She answered all of my silly questions and made sure I was comfortable with all of the arrangements.

MouseSavers saved our family a bundle. Tips on shopping at the offsite clearance store (we found shirts that were still in the parks for full price, 50% off!), how and where to eat, and how to make reservations made our trip such a joy! Thank you for making our trip incredibly special. I don’t think we would have had the trip we did without you and Small World Travel!

Thank you,

Kimberly R from Phoenix, AZ

We’ve just returned from a fabulous vacation (despite Hurricane Charley!!) and I really wanted to let you how extremely pleased we were with the Caribe Royale …. It’s exactly like you say, the rooms were always cleaned, beds made nicely and towels changed daily if required, eating areas clean and pleasant, there always seemed to be someone maintaining the grounds and the staff were always helpful and accommodating on the few occasions we needed them, and or course, the fabulous pool area that our kids loved almost as much as Mickey Mouse!!

We were also extremely grateful to have the living area of the suite to escape to and shut the door on the Hurricane, this in itself would not have been possible in bedroom only accommodation and you may or may not know that the Caribe Royale lost some windows and the grounds looked utterly devastated the day after the storm and what wasn’t on the ground ended up in the pool. But again, the staff were quick in restoring everything back to normal, I was amazed how they managed to clear the pool so well and so quickly, I didn’t think we’d be using that again for the duration of the holiday but it was cleared within the day….

The only other endorsement I can add to your Caribe Royale profile is the convenience of having free towels always clean and available at the beach hut on poolside during pool opening hours. I’m not sure if this is usual with other U.S hotels but we certainly do not always have the benefit of free towels in UK hotels with pools – there is usually a charge. This is certainly something we found very convenient and you may like to add it into your Website as I needn’t have bought so many beach towels from home!

Kim S from the UK

Last year I had a business trip to Maitland (Orlando) and Tampa and went a day early because you provided a great rate at a hotel in Downtown Disney. Then, in a true September coup, you negotiated a $99 rate at the Swan which I used for a “first night off site” before starting a fantastic 7 day package which only cost me “4 days.”

…. Anyway, thanks again for all you do. You have saved us a ton of money and we greatly appreciate it. We simply would not have been able to go to WDW as many times as we have had you and MouseSavers not shown us how to save money on the trips.

I was at a business retreat last week… At dinner a couple from Charlotte, NC learned we like WDW a lot and said they are trying to plan a family trip there this year. They asked for any advice we may have. I took out one of my business cards, wrote “MouseSavers.com” on the back and gave it to them telling them that it would be all they ever needed or could possibly want to know.

Walt B from Florence, SC

After purchasing several printed guides on WDW, I read about your Web site in one of them and was astonished at the amount of useful information that you have pulled together. We visited WDW from December 19-27, 2003, and ended up relying heavily on your site. We even took printouts of information from your Web site with us, such as the tips on saving money on food.

But, for us, the most important tip offered on your Web site was about the money-saving value of the Disney Annual Pass. Since we were planning to be there seven days, we opted for the annual passes, which in turn got a ridiculously low price ($45 per night) on our room at All-Star Sports. We are planning to go back in June and thus take further advantage of our annual passes.

We also took your site’s advice about using a limo service to get from the airport to the resort and requesting a courtesy stop at a grocery store on the way. We also shipped boxes of non-perishable food, snacks, and other items to our resort about a week ahead of our arrival – as suggested on your Web site – rather than having to buy the high-priced stuff sold at Disney.

Until we found your Web site we were very reluctant to go to WDW during Christmastime (Dec. 19-27). We had always heard that all of December has nightmare crowds. Your Web site was the first source we found that suggested things aren’t so bad until after Dec. 25, and that’s exactly what we found. We had the greatest vacation of our lives with a minimum of fuss by getting to each park early, doing the most popular stuff right away, and leaving for a couple of hours when it became really crowded (at around noon). Even on Christmas day, the Magic Kingdom was superb from 8 a.m. until about noon when the crowds became really thick for the Christmas day parade. ….

I do have one recommendation for others on your Web site about “Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party,” and that is to skip it. We attended the final night of the event (Dec. 19), and although it was magical and lots of fun, we discovered during our subsequent seven days at WDW that most of the shows and happenings that took place during the [party] are repeated as part of the regular holiday schedule at the Magic Kingdom. The parade was basically the same, the fireworks show was the same, the snow machines blowing the artificial snow were still there on Main Street after the 19th, many of the featured shows were repeated on subsequent days, etc. …. We felt afterward that we should have skipped the Very Merry Christmas Party, thus saving ourselves over a hundred bucks (for the extra tickets) and a lot of frustration over the crowds.

Thank you so much for this wonderful service that you provide.

Noe T from Edinburg, TX

Thanks for all of the wonderful updates. I booked the Winter Dream Maker package for us and our best friends Jan. 31-Feb. 7. I thought you might get a kick out of the savings.

Rack Rates

Poly-Garden View (value season) 7 nights @ $299/night with 11.5% tax = $2333.73

8 Day Ultimate Park Hopper for 2 adults/2 children = $1330.00

Total = $3663.73

Winter Dream Maker

Poly-Garden View (value season) 7 nights & 8 day UPH = $2431.70

My best friends are going to save $1232.03!!!

My savings are slightly more since it’s just going to be me and my son (my husband will be in Iraq). Our savings for a Garden View Room with [a code] comes to $1284.32.

We are going to do the Silver Plan and use cost averaging to get each wish for the $30.75. We are planning Hoop-Dee-Doo, spa treatments, Fulton’s Crab House, and other things to take best advantage of the wishes.

Anyway, we couldn’t have done it without you! You’re the best!

Lynnette J from Little Rock, AR

After reading your article the other day I was sure that the Winter Dream Maker Package would end up being a huge disappointment, but I was wrong. I called Mouse reservations as soon as I saw they had a special for February, a lovely time of year in Florida…no lines, cool weather, no lines. Well I just booked the package and I think its a good deal. My family of 4 will pay only $2,396.86 (includes taxes) for 7 days, 6 nights at the Polynesian AND this includes the Ultimate Passes which include unlimited admission to every single park AND Disney Quest AND Pleasure Island.

Last year we used your fantastic codes and stayed at the Polynesian 6 nights for $1200, including taxes: Then we bought 5 day Park Hopper Passes at AAA for $824, including taxes, the visit totaled $2,024. We are only paying $372.86 more to get 2 more days parks admission AND Disney Quest AND Pleasure Island.

We will avoid paying for days we can’t use by spending the first 2 nights at Universal’s Portofino which will allow us to get to the front of the lines at Universal’s parks again. We did this last year too and I have to say I loved gliding by the poor folks in line to our special spot at the front… its all very A list.

Thanks for what you’re doing. All your hard work benefits those of us who LOVE doing WDW in style but don’t want to spend $400 a night for the room. I never thought I’d be able to afford being one of those families at the Polynesian, thanks for getting us there.

L.B. from Bethlehem, PA

I just want to say thank you, thank you, and THANK YOU again! Your site has saved me soooo much money, and is a priceless resource.

Last year, using your site, I was able to snag a room at the Polynesian for only $98 per night.

This year I was attempting to plan my trip all on my own, but when I read about the Fairytale Vacation Packages, I decided to take a leap of faith. I ended up reserving a week’s vacation at Old Key West for less money than I had budgeted for Coronado Springs!! A wonderful travel agent at Small World… gave me prompt, friendly responses to every email (including my many trivial questions), and was a complete joy to talk to on the phone. Not only that, but she was able to save me an additional $120 off of the already-rock-bottom package price!

Old Key West, here we come!

My birthday is going to be fabulous this year, thanks to Small World Travel and (most of all) you! I can’t thank you enough for the time and effort you put into this site. Keep up the great work!

Kimberly M from Keizer, OR

I just HAD to thank you for your wonderful site! I am a Florida resident, and live about 2 hours from Disney, yet I have never been able to find great bargains on the Disney resorts…until now.

As you know, there are very few housing options [on Disney property] for parties of 4 or more (we have 6 in our family), unless you resign yourself to getting 2 rooms and praying that your teenage daughters don’t take advantage of this fact! Last year, we went for THREE days/TWO nights, stayed at a resort in Kissimmee that could not live up to its promises, and left very dissatisfied with our experience. All of us cramped in a so-called Kids Suite (one regular size room with a divider), no Disney transportation as promised, etc.

Having camped at Fort Wilderness in the past, I knew it would be ideal for my family, yet I did not want to take a chance of camping and getting flooded and rained out with a 4 year old and a 2 year old (it has happened to me in the past – not a pretty sight.) I wanted to stay in the cabins, but could we afford it??? After finding your website, the answer was YES!

I followed your advice, and we were able to get an amazing Florida resident discount on our cabin……$159.00 a night versus $239.00 a night!! This is almost what we paid in Kissimmee! That alone saved us over $240.00!!

… we are taking advantage of the fact we have a FULL kitchen, and we are bringing almost all of our food and drink. Here are my calculations from our THREE day/TWO night stay last year…COMPARED TO OUR FOUR DAY/THREE NIGHT stay this year 🙂 for my family of six!

*One day admission for 5

**Play 4 Days Pass (going into 2 parks instead of 1 – and we have 2 more days to go!!!!!)

***WHAT A DIFFERENCE bringing your food makes! I could never have done this in a regular hotel! The actual provisions were closer to $150.00, and I budgeted a little extra to eat a few meals out, just in case. So it may end up being cheaper.

So we get TWO PARKS instead of one – THREE NIGHTS instead of two – and by our budget, about $200.00 extra for the hayride, golf cart rental, and horseback riding we wanted to do. Plus staying on the Disney property with all the associated perks, AND we have two more days admission ahead of us!!!

WOW!

Rochelle B from Venice, FL

We just got back from our WDW vacation and we had a GREAT time. Your valuable information saved us tons of money.

Our total trip only cost us around $2,750!! My husband was thrilled.

Our Savings:

1) We went through Priceline to bid on our trip, which for a family of 5, airfare and on property accommodations [WDW Hilton] was only $1200!!!

2) …we opted for the Ultimate Park Hopper tickets. We bought them at the WDW Hilton. [Note from MouseSavers: as of January 2005, the Ultimate Park Hopper passes have been discontinued.]

3) Our rental car was through Dollar and with your codes we got it for about $100 for 5 days. Thanks for the codes, they were great!

4) We loaded up at Wal-Mart, which was close by and got our breakfast, snack and beverage needs taken care of. This was a huge money saver! We just put what we needed for the day in our backpacks and headed for the parks!

5) Souvenirs weren’t bad either, we gave our kids (who are 8&9) a budget, and found some of the penny machines, they thought those were really cool. But t-shirts and knick knacks weren’t THAT pricey.

6)Coupons, Coupons, Coupons…saved us a lot when we ate at hotel and Downtown Disney restaurants!

This is a great site in helping plan your WDW trip, take full advantage of all of its frugal perks….it will save you tons of $$$.

Lisa M from Nebraska

We just came home from a 16 day stay near Disney… We own timeshares and …. had a two day overlap that we needed hotel reservations. I read your pages daily and booked the Dolphin at a teachers rate of $199 for concierge room. However, a few weeks later you mentioned in one of your reports that some people were getting the Swan and Dolphin on priceline.com for $72 a night. I figured what the heck, let me give it a try.

We didn’t get the Swan or Dolphin but we did get the Marriott World Resort for $80.00 per night. The Dolphin was going to run us about $450.00 for the two nights including tax and resort fee. The Marriott World ran us $200.00 for the two nights, which included parking passes for the garage. (I’m ahead $250.00)

I have to say I was a little bit nervous not knowing what I was going to get until we arrived. It was absolutely BEAUTIFUL!! They even upgraded us to a pool view room. I have no hesitations booking through priceline.com now that we see the advantages!!

Your tip on buying annual passes saved us hundreds of dollars and we are looking forward to squeezing in another trip before they expire. …. We would have needed to purchase 3 – 5 day park hopper passes per person. Grand total $2,051.22. The annual passes cost me $1,120.39. (I’m ahead $930.83 in tickets and $250.00 for two nights hotel = $1,180.83)

The thing we liked best about the annual passes is that we never felt guilty running to one of the parks for just a few hours for the day and then relaxing by the pool. I am also very pleased with your advice because my husband never would have gone for another big Disney trip, but now our park tickets are already paid for, which is a big expense, so even he thinks it is a good idea.

SeaWorld was also running a special. You could get a one day ticket for $51.95 or a ticket that expires December 31, 2003 for $51.95. This one was no brainer!! So we have our annual tickets plus our admission to SeaWorld. I didn’t save anything this trip but if I go back I certainly saved myself a one day admission. Animal Kingdom and SeaWorld were my son’s favorite parks.

We couldn’t get flights to Orlando because of the February School Vacation week. Well, we could get flights but they had us flying in four days earlier and they were charging us $398.00 per person round trip. Southwest was running a special $89.00 each way to Jacksonville. We didn’t have to come home four days early and the cost was a lot less. Flying into Orlando and leaving four days early was going to cost $1,592.00. Flying into Jacksonville, taxes, airport security, etc and staying the entire vacation cost $946.00. (I’m ahead again $930.83 in tickets, $250.00 for two nights hotel, $646.00 flying into Jacksonville = $1,826.83). Jacksonville airport is only 3 hours from Orlando. Very easy ride down 95 and 4. My husband and I said we would both do it again, if the price was right.

You also posted that Dollar rent a car was offering a minivan for $199 a week. I was able to book one at the Jacksonville airport, unlimited mileage (necessary because of 3 hour ride up and back) for two weeks plus two extra days, tax and all applicable charges (there are a lot of them) plus them filling gas tank for 1.50 per gallon (this turned out to be a good deal because by the time we left gas was 1.89 per gallon) – all charges combined for 16 days was $650.00. Now this does seem a little expensive but it was for 16 days, and it was for a minivan so I was happy. I spoke to a few of my teacher friends and they told me I was getting a very good deal on a minivan because many of them had spent between $400.00 – $500.00 for one week. So, there you have it!! I figured I saved at the very least $150. (I’m ahead again $930.83 in tickets, $250.00 for two nights hotel, $646.00 flying into Jacksonville and $150.00 on the rent a car = $1,976.83)!!

The money that I saved using your website became our spending money on the trip!! All and all our 16 day vacation to Disney cost us (not including spending money) $4,066.39!! I know people who spent $3,000.00 to stay for 4 nights!!

….I took a little folder with all the important information, park times, dinner confirmation numbers, attractions to see and when. My husband couldn’t believe how organized I was and the trip went off without a hitch. Many people have asked me what I would do different the next time and I tell them NOT A THING!!

Thanks for all of your help,

Kara C from Rhode Island

The past few years my husband & I have gone to Disney World on vacation and have stayed once at the Wilderness Lodge and once at Port Orleans. Port Orleans was just an OK resort but was more geared towards families with kids – not what we were looking for. Wilderness Lodge was pretty expensive yet very beautiful but we weren’t 100% pleased with the size of the accommodations for the price we paid: $1750+ for 9 nights (including passes).

So this time, in December 2002, we planned yet another trip and decided to stay at a hotel in the Downtown Disney area (partly because of your review of it) and were quoted around $1300 for a week’s stay in a premium king tower room… thought I’d try some of your discount codes. Back to the hotel’s website to book a room using your code and the rate dropped considerably… then I remembered that my husband is a member of the Operating Engineers Union when I saw their icon on the hotel’s site. Just by clicking on that and by him showing his ID at check-in, we received a huge, one bedroom suite with a whirlpool tub for 7 nights, all for the low price of $973 – tax included!

Our airfare from California was almost too inexpensive (using American Airlines) at $115/each, rt. Considerably lower than Southwest, which was going to be nearly $600 for the two of us. So far we’re ahead by around $800!

I ordered our park passes & Gatorland tickets thru [a ticket vendor you recommend] and saved a fair amount…

I noticed a code you had listed for Dollar Car Rentals – 50% off a Jeep Cherokee. What would have been a $400 rental turned out to be just $200 for the week including tax! The midsize car we had reserved at Budget was going to cost the same amount. We received a Dodge Durango when we picked up the vehicle, but that was totally fine – plenty of room for our bags and the TONS of shopping we did in Orlando.

Savings at this point: around $1000.

…. We also made a stop at the nearby Walgreens drug store to stock up on soda, mineral water, and snacks (since the soda machine at our hotel charged $1.75 per 20 oz bottle and you absolutely cannot find diet drinks without caffeine in the parks). More $$ savings!

Thanks to MouseSavers.com, our reservation process alone turned out to be a fun experience! I never knew we could save so much by doing so little. Thank you for a very, very special site!!

Laura & Archie W from Marina, CA

Just had to let you know that because of MouseSavers, I was able to apply the new discount code to my March trip to the Poly that I had reserved 2 months ago. I saved a whopping $930 on a 6 night stay! God bless you! Now I can enjoy the trip without the guilt of wanting to stay in my “fantasy” hotel! I hope everyone takes advantage of the codes. It doesn’t hurt to ask!

Thanks again,

Jennifer B from Oak Hill, WV

Thank you so much for you information on your site. My family just returned from Walt Disney World and your site saved us hundreds of dollars. We stayed at a hotel in Downtown Disney at $69 a night and your recommendation of this hotel was right on target. We also enjoyed three meals in the restaurant (with kids eating free) that we thought were wonderful.

I also saved money by ordering tickets thru [a ticket vendor] mentioned through MouseSavers and got two extra plus features. We totally enjoyed our Disney experience-thanks to you and your site. We have already booked my in-laws for a trip in early October and they too have saved money with your suggestions.

Jennifer B from Louisville, KY

My friend Cindy and myself are going to Disneyland this summer and Cindy (who’s 40!) has never been!! So I wanted her to have the full Disney experience and stay at a Disney Resort Hotel. Of course, this is the peak time so I was worried it would be way expensive.

Thanks to the suggestion on your site about calling Disneyland Resort Reservations directly, we saved over $400!! The package deal for the two of was quoted as $1050.00 through AAA. Calling the Paradise Pier directly, we got a room rate of $136/night. That’s with a AAA discount. Then we bought our 3 day park-hopper passes at the local Disney Store for $90 apiece (no shipping charges as opposed to ordering the tickets online!) Even with 15% tax, the total came to, $608.40!!! So we don’t get the $10 ESPN Zone Card, or the Magic Feature – I figure we can still buy those once we got down there and STILL have mega bucks!! Oh – and we don’t get the special AAA Disneyland pic ? BIG WHOOP!

Thanks for a great website and the info!

Jeff B from Spokane, WA

Thank you so much for your site!! My husband and I just returned from our first trip to WDW together. I was there as a young child and this was my husband’s first time. Needless to say we were WDW Rookies. Your website helped us plan a wonderful trip and save us soooo much money!!

We flew down from Philadelphia on US Airways where I got a great deal of $165 RT. I got this rate by doing a “flexible” search by price rather than a search by date which most people do on usairways.com. Doing a “flexible” search by price saved me over $100 for the exact same flight than doing it the other way.

When we arrived at MCO, we went straight to Avis to rent our car where I had an economy reserved for $110 for the week, thanks to the Florida Space Coast code you provided on the site, plus I signed up for a wizard number on the Avis website which gave me a coupon for an additional $25 off for the week long rental. We got a free upgrade to a compact car, no questions were asked about the code or the coupon, and when it was all said and done, it came to $85 for the week, $115 after all taxes and fees!!

We stayed at [one of your recommended hotels]… and had a wonderful time! Your glowing review is right on and for the price, this is really a top notch resort. We really loved the pools!!

We bought our 5 day Hoppers from AAA and saved a few bucks there too.

Your website is now permanently in my bookmarks and I will continue to check it often as I plan our next trip (we’ve been bitten by the Disney bug!!) I would like to try staying on-site next time we go to WDW and will look to MouseSavers for those wonderful resort codes. Thank you so much for providing a wonderful tool for us cheapskates out there. Thank you!! Thank you!! Thank you!!

Rachel B from Dillsburg, PA

I just wanted to thank you for the useful information your site provides.

I’m planning a trip to Disney with my parents, niece and nephews this June (probably our last big vacation as a family since my parents are now in their 70’s and my oldest nephew will be starting college shortly). It was important to me to make it a special one – even though I have a limited budget.

My plan was to stay in Disney at one of the “budget” hotels. We needed two rooms and wanted Ultimate Hopper passes for 7 days for all. I found it would cost just over $3,500 on Disneyworld.com. I was prepared to book it when I found your page doing a general search on Disney World.

I found, through your site, that specials were being run on travel between April and mid June. I used that information to book a vacation for 2 rooms for 6 nights/7days at the Caribbean Beach Resort (an upgrade from the budget hotel) with 7 day Ultimate Hopper passes for all for $2,500. A hotel upgrade for a thousand less! I can’t tell you how much this means to our vacation. We can use that savings to enhance the vacation in other ways.

I am so grateful to MouseSavers.com and have signed up for your monthly newsletter. I hope, before we leave, to find more ways to save on things like food and souvenirs.

I can’t thank you enough – you rock!

Regards,

Wil M

THANK YOU!! THANK YOU!!

With all of your great tips I have saved a huge amount on my vacation this year! I just discovered another cool thing today – I had made reservations at Disneyland Hotel with my stay starting on a Saturday thru a Tuesday. With the Annual Pass promo I was quoted $129 per nite.

[I found out that on weeknights] the rate drops to $99 nite. I called back to see if I could get that for my Sunday and Monday nite rates and the CM said it was against the rules but did help me pick a lovely room to request (Sierra tower, upper floor, quiet room, Downtown Disney view). Hung up and she called me (long distance) to say she had talked to her lead and decided to give me the $99 rate for Sunday and Monday nites ($129 for Saturday). They agreed that a person could call and make one reservation then call back getting a different CM for the other reservation for lower rates. So they saved me the trouble and split it into two – saving me $60 plus tax!

My other savings were:

– information on turning in 4 day pass for an Annual Pass (with all of the discounts available as well as to come back next year)

– Kids play free (2 kids $222 saved)

– Super Sunday promo, opportunity to stay on-site plus 50% or more off rack rate

– discount at Disney Store on DVD and other merchandise.

Sorry such a long email but I can not thank you enough!!

Bernice M-G from Fridley, MN

Just wanted you to know what a great site MouseSavers is! Thanks to this site I was able to take my family to WDW last summer. It was our first trip there. We went the last two weeks in August. (Wow! Was it hot!) Anyway, we were able to stay at Disney hotels instead of offsite. I used a code from MouseSavers to get a moderate resort for $89/day instead of $159/day which I was quoted from CRO. We were staying nine nights so it adds up fast. We saved $630 just on our hotels. We actually stayed at the Caribbean Beach and the French Quarter.  My son absolutely loved the Pools at the hotels!

I live in Oregon so we flew. I really shopped around for airfare. I found the best deal with Frontier on their website ($287/taxes included). All the other airlines were $400 and up at the time.

I rented a car from Alamo with a coupon from your site ($260, plus tank of gas for 2 weeks). It was a Pontiac Grand Am.

I also brought a small collapsible cooler with us that I purchased at Costco for about $30. It has rollers and a pull out handle just like a piece of luggage. This was a lifesaver and expense saver! As you know, food and drinks really add up. We went to a grocery store and bought all kinds of drinks, fruit, and snacks. We even took it in the car with us and made a trip or two back to the car to refuel.

I purchased our hopper passes from [a ticket vendor mentioned on MouseSavers.com]. It was less than purchasing from Disney. Plus, we got an extra day free and extra water parks free. All in all, it was a great trip! I can’t wait to do it again! I think we will go when it is a little cooler, though.

We are going to do Disneyland this year.  I keep checking for deals on your site, but there doesn’t seem to be nearly the amount of savings as WDW.  I just keep checking. Thanks for all the info!

Stephanie B from West Linn, OR

Thanks to your site I saved $1250 on my next trip to Disney. I originally booked the trip several months ago at full price (Fort Wilderness, Resort Magic Package, no air, no transfers) $4,354 for 4 adults and 2 children. I kept checking for discounts for next June, but it was too soon. Finally, I found one on your site on 1/27. I called WDW and was quoted a new price of $3145 by using a code. Although it doesn’t include the flex feature, we can buy a great many character breakfasts for $1250!

Debbie S from Stafford Springs, CT

We have two families going to WDW together this fall. As we were exploring our options on the web, we found your site. Thanks to you, we were able to book our two families of four into the Wilderness Lodge Villas, using a code advertised on your site, for $339 per night. That is cheaper than renting two regular rooms at Wilderness Lodge, and saved us $1,144 off the total for four nights (regular rate would have been $625). The kids are so excited to be guaranteed to stay together with their cousins, instead of worrying about whether we’d end up with adjoining or close rooms in the Lodge.

We’d called several times to Disney and always got quoted the $625 rate. And although they kept plugging their online deals, everytime we did that we had to buy a package with the park hopper passes included there -so it’s not a deal after all! But then we just mentioned the code rate and by golly the rate went right down!

And then, I bought the 4 day Park Hopper Plus passes through [a link] you showed on your site – which was perfect for the length of our trip! The only other place I found these was through a local charter vacation package place – and you could only get them through them if you bought their airfare. Saved another couple hundred $$s for the two families…..

And last but not least, followed your instructions to get a super combined discount at National Car Rental and a free Emerald Aisle membership … and rented us two cars at the Emerald Aisle – for less than I’d have paid at Alamo or Avis or the others!

So thanks again, and I will be making a contribution to support your website.  It was definitely worth it, our families saved probably about $1,500 total using your tips.

Kyle B from Chaska, MN

Just wanted to say thanks for your wonderful site!! In the past two weeks I have gotten AP [Annual Passholder] rates for November before [CRO] even knew they were in the system, I purchased a Talking Eeeyore for my niece’s birthday for 1/3 the price, and I found a source for the book Imagineering as a present for my graphic artist son’s birthday … and paid less including gift wrapping and shipping that I paid for my copy at WDW last month!!!

I’ll continue checking your site on a regular basis, especially toward Spring when I’ll be looking for discounted AP rates again. You’ve saved me literally hundreds of dollars!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Andi C from Atlanta, GA

Just wanted to let you know how much MouseSavers has helped us.  We originally had a package booked through an airline for 5 nights at Caribbean Beach Resort. Because of the great information on your site, I cancelled the package and rebooked the trip on my own. Had I kept all of the plans the same, I would have saved approx. $500.  However, the deals were too good to pass up. For only $400 more than what the airline was charging, we are now staying at the Polynesian Lagoon View Concierge! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

Colleen C

My motto is “Never pay full price for anything.” But, I had resolved that I would have to pay full price to get my first choice of resort and room view at the new Animal Kingdom Lodge. Wrong!!! I discovered a code on your site for a Savannah-view room at $175 per night, as opposed to $265 per night. I had already made a reservation for September, and I called to see if the code discount was available during the week I had planned on going, and it was! The cast member was very helpful and simply changed the price on my reservation. (I expected indignance, but I guess it’s not money out of their pockets:) I was able to get exactly what I had already reserved, but at a substantial discount, adding up to around $500 for all nights.

My fiancee’s family is also going, and staying at an All-Star Resort, which also has a code for the time period, so I passed the info to them.

Thanks so much!!!

Heather S from Lexington, KY

Just wanted to let you know that after reading your page, we were able to save nearly 1200.00 for our July 24-Aug 4 vacation  at WDW, for a family of five. We used a code to book a room at the Beach club for 169.00 (actual cost 187.00 tax and all) compared to the regular price of  272.00 per night. We will be passing on your web address to all our friend and family. Thanks so much for helping make our upcoming trip “magical”.

Buc and Martha C from Athens, AL

Thank you so much for your website! My husband, parents, and siblings just got back from WDW yesterday. We saved $600 (on two rooms) by using a code for the All Star resorts. When I first called I wasn’t sure if it would work, but it did. We originally had reservations at All Star Movies, but had to switch to the Sports resort to use the code. Apparently they only have so many rooms at each resort that they can rent at that price. The cast member that changed our reservation was very nice and friendly.

We were glad that we did switch to the All Star Sports because the Movies was sooo full. The lines for buses was much longer at Movies.

Other ways that we saved on our vacation were:  bringing our own snacks, breakfast, and water bottles with belt clips. We also ate at the food court a lot. The service was fast and friendly, and the choices were enough that we didn’t eat the same thing twice.

Thank you so much Mary! Your website made my vacation so much more affordable and enjoyable!!!!!

Andrea W from Bismarck, ND

I was referred to your site by a person on one of the other unofficial disney site. I used a discount code… and got the Poly @ $179 per nite. I was astounded given I had booked the same room at $279 just a week earlier before I began surfing. Thank you so much for your helpful hints. It saved me a bundle already (for a family of 5)!! Keep up the good work.

Lisa K from Belmont, MA

Your site is a wonder! By following your suggestions and booking each part separately and by using any code that would work on our accommodation we managed to shave over $1800 off our vacation – compared to the package quoted by Disney.

Thank you so much!

Our major savings came by using a code on accommodation, bringing our Polynesian Concierge Garden View room down to $229 for 7 nights, Sept 12 – 19. We were also able to save significantly on our airfares by booking online.

We usually use BestFares for flights, but in this case were able to even better their fares by over $100 each by finding an online deal with Frontier Airlines and booking direct with them. (Denver – Orlando $258 X 3) We’re using Tiffany Towncars for the airport transfers and saved $8 ($72) on that by using the Passporter coupon. Couldn’t find anything great on the Park tickets, so we have ordered the Park Hopper Plus, 7 Days ($325 X 2), we only needed two of those as our daughter has not yet turned 3.

Our total for the 7 nights is $3099, compared to Disney’s package of $4913, saving us $1814.

[It’s] a great saving and I thank you again, Mary for your wonderful site. We’ll be able to splurge on meals now without feeling guilty!

Bernadette H

I was all set to make a booking at rack rate for a value resort on the Disney web site when I came across a link to your site. After 5 minutes reading your page I phoned the reservation number and sheepishly mentioned that I had heard about this discount code … fully expecting to be shot down for one reason or another. I got a moderate resort (the Riverside) for $89 for the week of May 12th, that’s $10 less a night than I was going to pay for the value resort! I saved $300 on a 5 night stay!!! Thanks!!!

Keep up the great work!

Paul G from Ontario, Canada

Just a moment of you time to give a heart felt “Thank you”. Your time and the effort you have put into your website have saved me and my family $1,166.64. All I had to do was call up the reservation line, give them my reservation number and a code, and I had the room rate dropped from $149 to $89 for 3 rooms, for 6 nights.

The difference in price means that we can easily afford this trip, instead of scrimping for the next few months. It made all the difference in the world. So, for those who have benefitted from your work and haven’t acknowledged your help, as well as myself, Thank You.

Jeff and Lisa H from Olympia, WA

…thank you for having this information available on your site. I can’t tell you how amazing it is to have saved close to $1000 on my vacation because of this. I am now able to stay at the Polynesian, when, before, I would have never considered it.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

-Christine K from Queens, NY