Ask It: How Much Do You Spend on Souvenirs?

17 thoughts on “Ask It: How Much Do You Spend on Souvenirs?”

• This is not shocking at all, simply because like in poker, you could even get $10, 000 if you perform poker online. Do you know what you want from the game in the future, and are you using steps to meet any goals?

• Pandora beads add up!

• For us it is more subjective on the type of trip. But we normally have an idea of what items we’re looking for as souvenirs before we even leave for vacation.

• I’m lucky enough to be a frequent visitor, so my souvenirs are generally restricted to gifts for family back home. That said, my budget goes towards experiences – I love the Illuminations and Wishes (I guess, now Happily Ever After) dessert parties, tours, etc…

• I was dropping off the kids at AK before I would go and check in at the hotel by myself. I forgot that I needed the parking pass on the dashboard for free parking. When the CM stopped me instead of the usual waiving through, I pulled out a $100 bill and promised him that within 5 minutes of entering the park, my kids would be spending it on 4 pairs of sunglasses. I also promised that I would be back in about an hour with the parking pass and make sure to stop at his booth again.
  About an hour or so later, I brought back a receipt from the hotel showing that the kids were able to not only charge the sunglasses with their room keys but that they had also bought another $100 in souvenirs. We both had a great laugh but it just shows that no matter how much you budget for incidentals, it is VERY easy to be separated from your money.

  I believe the joke goes something like: “I was going to report my Chargeable Room Key as lost, but the person who found it was spending less money than my family.”
  (Updated version substitutes “Wrist Band” for “Room Key”)

• My husband never buys any souvenirs. My daughters aged 22 and 23 usually buy Disney Pandora charms (the ones I don’t believe you can get in the UK). I have had to put $51-$100 because of me!!! I just can’t resist getting something!!!!!

• We allow the kids either $50 or $75 for the week, depending on our budget and generosity at the time. We budget an additional $100 in “out-of-pocket” costs: mini-golf, souvenirs for my husband and myself, any meals not covered by the dining plan – including at the airport.

• We buy an animation cell every trip so yes we spend quite a lot – however excellent memento that will last longer than t-shirts (though we buy those too) we average one trip every 3-4 years so it isn’t so bad.

• I use my Disney Visa Reward dollars for souvenirs. I try to keep to things under $50 per person per trip even with the reward dollars

• We give each of our kids a $25 Disney gift card for the trip. They can spend it on whatever they like – but once it’s gone, it’s gone. Both times we’ve gone, they’ve really taken their time selecting things. We also buy a few pins for each child for pin trading.

• We started to get tired of the kids buying the same “junk” that lasts 2 days and then never touch or use once we get home. So we tried something different this time. We gave them a flexible budget. The budget was $100 for the trip (or maybe a little more), if they get things that have a real value such as shirts. But, if they select “junk”, they get capped at $50. Both kids selected good things that they have used/worn all year. They got things like a cell phone case, a sweatshirt, and pajama bottoms.

  I would rather spend more money on stuff that will be used.

  • I love this idea!

• I’ve been there solo 4 times in the past 3 years, and spent surprisingly little on souvenirs, like under $100 per trip. Most of the stuff has been from the countries (mainly Japan) at Epcot. The only Disney products I bought were because I needed them at the moment (a hoodie because it got colder than expected, and a visor hat because my sunglasses broke). I did also buy a Disney charm bracelet. I figured that was tiny, and I could just buy a new charm each year to be my souvenir. It hasn’t really been a money issue for me so much as I don’t really have the space for anything that isn’t going to be used.

• I’m from the UK so visiting is a rare occurrence for me , I spend ridiculous amounts when I’m there but can honestly say I regret nothing 🙂
  Favourite purchases include some Disney Artist Sketches , Enchanted Tiki Room inspired paraphernalia and my ever expanding Disney T-shirt collection . Nothing too heavy though , flight weights restrictions can catch me out too easily

• Having a Character Warehouse (Disney park outlet store) 15 minutes from home makes the prospect of paying full price for souvenirs a little harder to justify. This typically puts us under $50/weekend trip, with few exceptions.

  Now depending on how the new Disney Springs dress shop goes, the amount maaaaay be increasing.
  …
  Also having children.

  • I am sooooo excited about the dress shop – I do hope I am not going to be disappointed

• We budget $100/day for souvenirs and tips for our family of 4. We usually bring home alot of that money and put in the savings jar for our next trip….We have travelled several times and we fly so we have to limit items due to luggage fees; generally we buy a few shirts along with a few items as keepsakes to commemorate the trip (ornament, coffee mug, magnet, etc) but because we travel to WDW approx. once every 18 mos we don’t feel “compelled” to buy tons of souvenirs.

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