If you had $5000 for a week's family vacation, where would you go?

[AnnieW625]

$5,000 will includes airfare, hotel, and car or airfare and initial cruise ship costs. We live near major airports so that helps keep airfare costs down a lot. All other incidentals would be extra. We are a family of 4.

DH and I are in the baby stages of planning a family vacation for 2013 (minimum first potential year, but it will most likely be in late 2013 or early 2014) for our 10 yr. anniversary. We haven't been on a really nice "luxury" style trip since our honeymoon, which for two people air, car, and 4 star+ hotel (Fairmont, Maui) was $3800. We spent about another $1200 on food, helicopter trip (which at $300 was the most expensive thing we did), souvenirs, gas, and snorking (I think that was $150 or $200).

At WDW it could also include probably either at least the quick service dining plan and get a deluxe villa (Old Key West was the cheapest, I think), and regular park tickets. If we did a moderate or value we'd probably get a better dining plan as we'd have no where to cook.

To stay at the same hotel right now in Maui (or the neighboring Grand Wailea) it's about $6700 including air, hotel, and car.

A Western Carribean Disney cruise would be pretty inclusive too and I think we could do that for about the same price as a week at WDW or a week in Maui at a posh resort. I think the LA Disney Cruise is out because DH has no urge to go to Mexico at all, and with the Carribean you get more variety of stops.

Of course all of this isn't even a reality yet and I haven't contacted a travel agent about either option or doing a condo complex in Maui or renting points from a DVC member.

Am I totally off base with only wanting to budget $5K for the essential airfare, hotel, and car?

Also feel free to PM me if you don't want to discuss how much you have paid for vacations in the past on the board.

[khalloc]

Probably somewhere in the caribbean. Like Barbados or Turks & Caicos.

[crl]

We had a great time at WDW. We stayed at the Wilderness Lodge (the cheapest of the deluxe resorts), had the dining plus (or whatever it is called when it includes two sit down meals per day) and flew from San Francisco (so not cheap flights). Oh, and we went over Thanksgiving so no discounts or cheap flights. Cost us about $6000.

Catherine

[bubbaray]

I would choose WDW. DH would choose Hawaii (we prefer Kauai over Maui). However, we are never near the $5k mark. Its always at least $6K, usually significantly north of that. We are generally flying out of Seattle, which is likely not too much more than LAX for Hawaii.

We are likely taking the girls to WDW in 2013 or 2014.

[TwinFoxes]

I say WDW, but go before DD2 turns 3. You save a ton of money, because you don't have to pay for her tix, and she eats for free. My girls went at 2.5, and LOVED it. They still talk about it, although I doubt they actually remember much.

[eh613c]

Have you considered going to Costa Rica or one of the islands in the Carribean? The last time DH and I went on a luxurious vacation was our honeymoon. We went to Italy for 10 days. We spent $7K for air fare, hotel, tranportation (trains and subway), food and souvenir. This was about 4 years ago.

[fivi2]

What kind of vacation do you want? You've been talking about WDW for a while, so I think you guys would like that, but it is a very different kind of vacation than, say, Hawaii. I don't know airfare from LA, but I think $5000 is doable at WDW (depending on food, hotel, etc).

[AnnieW625]

I say WDW, but go before DD2 turns 3. You save a ton of money, because you don't have to pay for her tix, and she eats for free. My girls went at 2.5, and LOVED it. They still talk about it, although I doubt they actually remember much.

I've been debating about that too, but I really want DD2 to be able to remember, but really that's what pictures, and videos are for right? As long as we go before April 29, 2013 we'll be fine. I wonder if spring break (usually the week after Easter) is as bad as after Christmas? I kind of refuse to take DD1 out of school so we won't have many options then, unless we go late August next year and deal with the heat and that might be pushing it savings wise too.

[katydid1971]

I got an email a couple months back about a Disney Resort on Hawaii. I really don't know anything about it but I think it sounds like a nice option. You might want to check it out.
http://resorts.disney.go.com/aulani-...95-e-460999506

[Green_Tea]

If I lived in CA and could do a quick and dirty 3 or 4 day trip to Disneyland, there's no way on God's green earth I'd spend $5K to go to WDW, especially to celebrate my 10th wedding anniversary.

I vote Costa Rica. Or Belize. Or somewhere in the Carribean. Or I'd look for beautiful places with cheap airfare, and splurge on a great hotel, exceptional meals, awesome pampering.