Here is what I would do. Get the hotel for free. That is the biggest expence. Get the tickets on line. If you can find some where to get a discount, the better. Eat breakfast out othe park, sandwiches for lunch and the best place for dinner is th Plaza Inn in Dland. Chicken dinner. You can change a brest for two thighs and the drinks are refillable all for $13.00 a plate. Coffee is free refill at the Market House Cafe - PinTrader  262.7 #910 11:19AM

the hotel deal is a big saver, that awesome!!! and theres really no difference buying tickets online or via grocery store if your planning to get the same park hopper deal, except the meal plan, just check and make sure your able to choose what places you'd like to eat there are so many great ones and a couple of new ones just opened up. (: - Gemflower  100.9 #3065 11:26AM

Do the hotel for free. Go to Cal Poly Pomona to get discounted tix (call ahead to see if they have any and if you need student id) and eat wherever it's cheap. Restaurants.com usually has deals like House of Blues. Or get tickets at local grocery - Elaine  406.2 #330 11:29AM

I like 2eyemike's idea. Hotel is the biggest expense. Snacks and maybe sandwiches and a dinner at plaza inn is the best deal! I'm sure one time on a budget won't hurt u and soon you'll have a chance to splurge again - MarshaMouse  2936.4 #16 11:33AM

Very good advice from 2eyedmike :o) - MomWithAJuiceBoxBuzz  923.0 #97 11:39AM

Thank You for the input, but my issue with the hotel, is not the fact it's free, but it's 1/2 mile from the park, near the freeway and Anahiem transport is yuck, and so I would prefer to stay somewhere close and walk. Also we wouldn't get the special offers Disney gives you when you book with them, like the hour in Fantasyland before the park opens and the early entry to Toontown. Also we may want to stay an extra day, instead of the beach, so if we get the ticket pass from the grocery store, can we upgrade @ the park and how much will it cost us? I know he's trying, free hotel and air, but I just feel like he's not listening to me. - ColoradoMickey  534.9 #217 11:48AM

The shuttle to Disneyland is a great option. I stayed at the holiday inn, the fee for the shuttle is a few bucks a day per person, (great since you'll be gettin a free hotel) and you're the first to be picked up and the first to be dropped off in that route. - lovesyou21  407.7 #329 11:56AM

From what I have heard you have to purchase the meal plan along with the hotel.. And if you eat somewhere where the meal cost more than your voucher you pay the diff. You may want to research it a little more before you buy. - Pintraderswife  458.5 #268 11:58AM

the hotel if it is the one on Walnut I think is the road it is literally right behind the parking structure...it isnt that bad of a walk unless you have little ones -we walked from Holiday Inn on Walnut to the parking structure and got on the tram to go to the parks...food wise...I dont care for the "meal plans" so I just would suggest taking that money you are going to spend on those plans and get a Disney gift card from your local Disney store and use that for your food because then if you wanted to snack all day you can or if you want meals you can...the choice is yours and you are not limited on whether you can have 4 snacks or 4 meals plus anything left on that card you can spend in the parks...and also I have found that the early entrance isnt that big of a deal for us since we usually stay until the park closes and October isnt usually that busy..another option you can try is Costco Travel (if you have a Costco card) and take lots of snacks and there is a Food4Less grocery store on Katella if you want to buy your snacks when you get there..it is just about a 5-10 minute drive from the Holiday Inn. Lots of ways to save money and still enjoy yourself! - yellowtonka  237.7 #1162 12:06PM

If you have a costco card the might have a reasonabe pachage. With what you are looking for, you will need to stay at Paradice Pier (coniers lvl about $275 a night. That will save you on the food). CA Disny Hotell ($350 a night) or the Grand Califorian ($400 a night) this is an average. All hotells come with a fridge ana microwave. I suggest to bring your food. Staying at any other hotel will not allow you early access. - PinTrader  262.7 #910 12:11PM

I say stay at the free suite and buy food to make it there since suites have a kitchen. I know that having the Disney meal is part of the Disney going experience but sometimes you do have to make sacrifices,especially if you have one of your kids heading to college. The important thing is that you will go to the park(s) so the other stuff can wait for the next trip. Of course, everyone can offer advice but ultimately it will be your choice and everything will be fine. Happy choosing =) - VivaHate88  154.0 #2282 12:26PM

I'd go with the free hotel because really, how much time will you be spending in your room? Then find your other deals elsewhere. Food is expensive in the parks, so buy food outside of the parks. The restaurants outside the parks honestly serve better food for a better price. - jazmin21  182.3 #1870 12:27PM

So, one more question. If we go, we will be spending 4 1/2 days in CA, Hubby wants to spend 3 days in the park, 1 day at the ocean and 1/2 day shopping @ Downtown Disney. We are planning to go to Disneyland, Wed & Thursday, but what day? Friday or Saturday is best to go to Disneyland? - ColoradoMickey  534.9 #217 2:37PM

in October go Friday. school is in session so very low wait times :) - SammyJo  348.7 #430 2:42PM

Remember, you give alittle, he gives alittle. Compromise! That way everyones happy :-) and enjoy that trip!! - DisneyDawn  417.4 #314 2:47PM

Try Discount Tickets online for a discount on Disney tickets. - queenovhearts  22.4 #4954 7:59PM

I would go with the free hotel. That is a big chunk of the vacation budget. Most of the hotels have a shuttle so you won't need to pay for parking. We did the Costco thing last august but it didn't save us much money and since we don't stay at the hotel much it seemed a bit over priced. We always drive so we don't have a rental car charge and we can hit the beach and other places like Hollywood on our down day. We also stock the hotel fridge and bring snacks and drinks to the park. The meal plan at DL is not as great as it is in WDW so I would skip that. Lots of rambling! Have a great trip! - minigirl1156  449.4 #278 8:13PM

Thank You Everyone who has responded to this post. If everything works out with DD college expenses. We are going with the plan of booking the free hotel, buying our park tickets @ the store and start buying Disney & Visa Gift cards for the next 2 months to cover food and shopping. We also plan to go to the park on Wed, Thur & Fri and the beach Sat. So we hope to meet a lot of Mouse Waiter while we are there. Wish us luck. :) - ColoradoMickey  534.9 #217 9:40AM

Glad to hear! Enjoy - MarshaMouse  2936.4 #16 9:42AM

Are you part of a credit union? I got my parents tickets through my credit union for over $15 cheaper than the store or park - pintsize  289.0 #690 9:50AM

For me it's a no brainer. Paying for college is way more important than a trip to dl. - ladylikesdisney  926.7 #96 10:01AM