At the time of writing, the Great British Pound has closed the week with the value vs the United States Dollar at 1.203.
We get many commenters saying they miss the days (and I do remember them fondly, as well) of getting almost $2 to the £1. I actually starting getting into Disney World around that time and was surprised how reasonable priced things were over there. How times change.
Not only is Disney World getting more and more expensive each year, adding in the declining Pound and the cost increase just snowballs. Us Brits tend to book our Disney World holidays in Spring for the following year, so this recent decline in the Pound is really going to limit our spending power until at least 2020. While Brexit is the main culprit (or should we say the markets reaction to the fear of a no-deal Brexit) for the decline of the Pound (there are other factors of course), it does likely rule out a rebound until at least the end of the year, depending on how things go in October.
This leaves Brits who have booked their holidays with less spending money than they'd hoped.
So, has the declining Pound changed our Disney plans for our trip in September? Yes, a little.
While most of the "extra" things we do like dessert parties, After Hour Events etc were all booked while the Pound was 1.30-1.40. And of course, being on the dining plan, all our food is already covered. The declining Pound just reduces the spending money while we are out there and also increases the cost of tips for our dining plan meals.
We do have a little side-savings account which covers tips/bar drinks/Minnie Vans. As we watch the Pound value fall, that becomes the tips/bar drinks saving account, and then it becomes just the tips savings account. laughs nervously
There are a few things that I intend to skip due to the increase cost. Like the lightsaber building at Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge. I really do want one of those lightsabers, and as this will be far from my last time at Disney World and they aren't going to go away any time soon, I'll get one when the exchange rate improves a bit. $200 is steep, but when $200 is £170 instead of £130, that just pushes it over the edge for me. That goes for the build your own Droid, too. Other things that we were on the edge about, like Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween party (as we didn't enjoy it last year), and buying too many pins, we're happy to skip.
While on vacation I don't tend to get hung up (much) on prices of experiences too much. If we want a couple drinks, we'll hit the bar and enjoy them and not gawk over the bill afterwards. However, when looking at a new $40 t-shirt range with the exchange rate being poor, it does make me stop and think. But, we're all different on what things we prioritise on our trips to Disney World and how much of the cost increases we can swallow.
Whatever you do, don't let the poor exchange rate ruin your holiday!
It's probably also a bad time to be planning a 2020 Disney World wedding, but who lets money get in the way of the most magical day of your life. Right?
