I’ve been chronicling my family’s journey as well plan our trip to Disney World:
When to Go
Where to Stay
How to Get there
Tickets
Today we’re looking at what/where to eat. We decided to stay off-site so Disney Dining isn’t an option for us.
A few things about Disney & Food:
You can bring outside food into the park! (Details here)
Your cooler, bag, etc cannot be larger than 24″ x 15 x 18″ so a big cooler isn’t an option. Plus the only wheeled items can be a stroller (and lucky us we’ll have a 10 month old so we’ll have a stroller!)
You may not have a stroller and want to bring a small cooler around with you all day so you could rent a locker. They have then at the entrances for rent. (Usually about $5 a day)
My Family’s Plan:
My research shows there is a Publix grocery store in the vicinity of our rental house. We will be making a meal plan (there are now a total of 8 of us going- my family of 6 + my parents) before we leave and will shop there for most of our needs.
Breakfast: We will eat this in the house we rented via VRBO.com before heading out for the day. We will most likely have cereals, granola bars, fruits, etc.
Lunch: We will bring lunch with us into the parks. Each person will have a small lunchbox (glad I got a few extras during back to school sales!) We will pack sandwiches, fruit, chips, granola bars, cookies, etc.
Snacks: We may purchase the occasional ice cream from vendors but we will bring extra fruit and granola bars with us.
Drinks: Since we have a freezer in the rental house we will be placing water bottles in the freezer and will allow them to thaw as the day goes on. Note: Ice Water is free at most counter service vendors in Disney World.
Dinner: We are utilizing a crock pot at the house! With 4 children (and 4 tired adults) we plan to have a late meal every evening. Knowing my children they will not be able to be on the go from 9 am until 9 pm every day without some sort of down town. So we plan to have a late evening meal (well 7 is late for us!) each evening. at the house. We plan to have meals that we can toss in the crockpot in the morning and come home to in the evening. We also plan to have dinner with my uncle who lives in Florida one evening as well as eat a few evenings.
Tips to saving money dining out: