So did you see it? The numbers just came out for WDW Marathon Weekend 2015. Here’s the link where you can find them but suffice it to say IT’S A WHOLE LOT OF MONEY and if you’re really nuts and want to go Dopey this year? Yeah, that’s gonna set you back $530. And that’s JUST for race registration! You’ll still want a place to sleep, food for your belly, and most likely some theme park time (because, after all, you’re at Disney;). It’s making some of us feel like you’ve got to be like these two to make it work!

For the young ones, this is Mr and Mrs Howell from Gilligan’s Island. They are very rich.

Awhile back I did a post about how much it really costs to run Disney and some of you got a little ticked with me because let’s face it: it’s hard to look those cold hard numbers in the face! But there are some ways to save money and still have an amazing time!

So let’s take it step by step. There’s one thing you can’t get around – race registration. It’s a fixed cost and there are no discounts (well, there’s a slight one for Annual Passholders and DVC members but not much). You CAN run for charity and some of them include your registration fees at certain fund raising amounts and this is an AWESOME way to do it but raising money is a lot of hard work so your heart has to be in it or you won’t succeed (in other words, don’t do it to save money;). But if you’re looking for a great charity with great support, you might consider connecting with our friends over at The Rally Foundation. We had a great experience with them and it’s a great cause!

So that leaves us with airfare, hotel, food and theme park tickets. I won’t go into the airfare thing because I am TERRIBLE at saving money here.

So what are the other big ticket items? LODGING. Here are some thoughts:

• consider renting a house – this came from my friend, Deb, who happens to own a home near Disney World that she rents out (you can find it here and I can attest to the fact that it’s lovely!).
  

  This is an actual pic of Deb’s house. Awesome, right? And just minutes from Disney!

  Especially if you’re going with a bunch of girlfriends, you can rent A WHOLE HOUSE with a pool and hot tub and full kitchen (so you can cook many of your own meals). Considering that an average hotel stay at Disney is AT LEAST $150/night (and Deluxes can be up to $600/night!) this can be a great option! You can rent a house that sleeps TEN for less than $200/night (just keep in mind that you’ll obviously have to rent a car. Disney isn’t gonna send their bus to get you at Deb’s house:)

• Rent Disney Vacation Club Points
  

  (thanks to Erin for this one!). We have used David’s Vacation Club Rentals multiple times and have been very happy with them. Be aware, however, that you have to know you’re going – you pay in full when you book and there are no refunds. But this can save you quite a lot (as much as 50%) especially if you’re wanting to stay in a deluxe resort.

• Do a night race. This may not be the best way to save money and may leave you COMPLETELY exhausted, BUT stay with me. If you’re doing Wine and Dine you could, in theory, only stay one night. Arrive early Saturday and go to the Expo, run the race, spend the night (sleep maybe?) and fly out the next day. Not ideal but IMPOSSIBLE for the morning races because there’s no race day pick up. Although I guess you could do this if you had a friend pick up your bib. Still sounds exhausting either way, but hey, this is about saving money not your sanity;). And of course that would never work for the multi-day races so you Dopey people are out of luck.

OK, what’s next? FOOD

• Buy groceries. Disney food is EXPENSIVE and as much as I love me a great sit-down fancy pants meal, when I need a bagel or a bowl of cereal I don’t want to pay $10! Buy your “ordinary” food at the Publix (or order it from Garden Grocer and have it delivered) and save your food dollars for the experience places! (or for caramel corn in Germany. Are you kidding? OK now I want some)
• Buy Disney Gift Cards at Target before you leave and use your Target credit card. You’ll get the 5% off and heck, 5% is 5%. Also if you use Target as your pharmacy you’ll get coupons for additional discounts that also apply to the Disney gift cards (thanks to Lynda for that info!)
• Use a discount. There are several ways to save on Dining including the Tables in Wonderland card (only available to Annual Passhoders and Florida residents) and (at some places) you can get up to a 10% discount if you are a DVC memeber or an annual passholder. Check your discounts before you go and make sure you don’t leave any money on the table (pun intended).
• Eat a meal or two off property. There are tons of cheaper than Disney places with decent food in the surrounding area. Sweet Tomatoes is one of my favorites. Obviously only possible with a vehicle but you’ll find many of the places you visit at home within close proximity to Disney property.

Finally, we have THEME PARK TICKETS. A 3 day park hopper (without discount) will run you $274 (before tax). That’s a chunk of change. So what can you do? Here’s some options:

• Do a race that includes some time in a park.

  A few of the races (Wine and Dine Half and Tower of Terror 10 miler) include after parties so although you’re not getting a full day in the park, you’ll get a taste of it included with your registration.

  Me finishing Wine and Dine Half last year!

• DON’T GO INTO THE PARKS I know, right? BUT, you’ll still be running through them and still get plenty of Disney magic. My friend, Heather, recently did marathon weekend this way with her husband and they still had a great time! Here’s what she posted on the FB page “We were there this year on pretty much a zero budget. Skipped parks…had fun at Downtown Disney and resorts. Brought snacks and breakfast foods with us. Used Disney Reward Visa points for food along with Disney Gift cards purchased for free with Disney Movie Reward points. Used free Disney transportation including Magic Express.” Lots of options for fun outside of the parks! This year for Wine and Dine, we chose to use our ticket admission money to upgrade our hotel instead. So instead of riding rides I will be sitting poolside at the Beach Club. Works for me!
• Buy an Annual Pass. OK, so in my experience, this doesn’t really save you money because you come up with random reasons to go since it’s “free” HOWEVER if you wanted to do several races in the same year this is for sure the way to go, especially since you can also get great discounts (sometimes as much as 40% off) as an AP holder. (thanks for that tip, Joy!)

There are TONS of websites out there dedicated to saving you money at Disney and one my cousin, Kimberly, really likes is Couponing to Disney! Great money saving ideas on there all with the goal towards getting you to Disney sooner rather than later. And who doesn’t love that! Another favorite of mine is Mousesavers. Lots of great stuff there!

I could say more but this post is getting crazy long. What about you? Do you have any tips or tricks that I’m missing? Hopefully if you’re dreaming of a Run Disney race (and you’re not a member of the Hilton family or the owner of a money tree) these ideas will help!

Happy Running! And Saving!

Jen