Category — g. How to Eat at Walt Disney World

(This page is part of the series The Tightwad’s Guide to Walt Disney World)

EATING ON THE CHEAP AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

This site recommends here that families following one of its itineraries purchase the Disney Dining Plan, and has other suggestions here for those who can’t, or won’t.

This page addresses a different group: those trying to spend the least possible on food at Walt Disney World.

It’s part of the The Tightwad’s Guide to Walt Disney World, a series about the most inexpensive way  to visit Walt Disney World.

BASICS OF DISNEY WORLD DINING

The basic dining plan can be quite expensive unless you were going to buy the same number of sit down meals anyway.  The quick service dining plan is much less expensive, and, particularly if your kids are younger than 10 when they visit, can be hard to beat.

But even so, neither of these plans will cover everything you eat, and some may wish to spend even less than the cheaper dining plan costs.

The only way to do that is to gather and assemble meals and snacks in your room, taking some of them into the parks with you to eat there.  This works very well for breakfasts, sandwiches—which can be either lunch or dinner—and snacks.

Doing so will cost you time, both gathering your foodstuffs, and preparing them.

The rest of this page has some suggestions on how to gather your supplies. [Read more →]

REFILLABLE MUGS AT WALT DISNEY WORLD RESORT HOTELS

The To-Do Lists on this site have picking up refillable mugs, either as part of your Disney Dining Plan, or for cash, as one of their early steps.

A refillable mug entitles you to free refills of the drinks available at your resort’s beverage island—and sometimes from its pools as well—as well as at other Disney hotels, for the number of calendar days purchased.

Drinks typically available are soft drinks; other drinks usually found in soda fountains—lemonade, PowerAde, iced tea, etc; coffee, hot water and tea bags, and hot chocolate.  Other drinks may be available as well.

Drinks almost never available are milk and juices—you need to buy these anew each time you want some.

Even with milk and juices out, given the prices of buying the beverage island drinks over a trip of any length greater than 3 days, the refillable mugs are a good deal for almost all families. They are included free in the dining plans and if bought for cash, cost around $18, so you’ll break even after half a dozen or so refills.

MORE ON DISNEY WORLD REFILLABLE MUGS

[Read more →]

FREE DINING AT WALT DISNEY WORLD

Because Disney World has extended its free dining plan offer into some of the period when this site recommends first time family visitors go to Walt Disney World, this page addresses a couple of natural questions that emerge:

• Why do value resort visitors only get the quick service plan?
• If my hotel deal covers only the quick service plan, do I have to pay full price to get the recommended dining plan?
• If a period is excluded from the offer, does that mean it is going to be very crowded?
• Since the week you recommend doesn’t offer free dining, what’s the next best week?

WHY DO VALUE RESORTS GET ONLY THE QUICK-SERVICE DINING PLAN?

[Read more →]

How to Eat    Where to Eat    The Dining Plan    Guide to Disney Dining

OVERVIEW: THE DISNEY DINING PLAN(S)

(This page is one of a series explicating Walt Disney World lingo, abbreviations, and FAQ for first time family visitors to Walt Disney World.)

There are several Disney Dining Plans available to guests at Walt Disney World resort hotels. The basic premise of these plans is that by pre-paying many of your meals, your budgeting is simplified, and, quite possibly, you might save money.

(See this for the official Walt Disney World website material on all of these plans.)

Only one of Disney Dining Plans–the “Disney Dining Plan” itself—is worth considering.  This site recommends that those eating all the meals in one of its recommended itineraries purchase it.

The rationale is that those with younger children eating a number of character buffet meals will save some money by purchasing the dining plan.  Not a lot, though.

Buying this plan, however, raises a couple of complexities.

First, to get the maximum value out of it, you really should eat at some of Walt Disney World’s best loved dining settings.  These can sell out months in advance, so you should follow this site’s advice on when your plans should be firm.

Second, while you are actually at Walt Disney World, there can be confusion about which credits apply to which settings, and what items are included and not included.  The itineraries of this site take care of most of this for you.

MORE DETAIL ON THE DISNEY DINING PLAN(S)

[Read more →]

BOOK NOW TO SAVE HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS 

Those looking to take advantage of Disney’s current dining promotion should book soon, as it is currently available only to those who book by September 26th. 

The promotion, if booked by then, applies to most dates from September 27th through December 17th. (The days around Thanksgiving—Wednesday November 25th through Saturday November 28th —are excluded.)

TWO TYPES OF FREE DINING PLANS

The promotion provides one of two dining plan variants for free for those who book an otherwise undiscounted trip of at least 3 nights in a Disney World Resort.  (See Where to Stay.)

Those who stay in anything other than a value resort get the basic dining plan, which provides, per night of your reservation, and for every person three and older on your reservation, a snack, “counter service” meal (think cafeteria), and a “table service” meal.  (Think waiters.)

[Read more →]

OVERVIEW

The first section gives ways to reduce food spending on your Walt Disney World vacation; the second addresses those who can’t sign up for the Disney Magic Your Way Plus Dining plan.

To read the rest of this article, click here.