Whilst the food and drinks in the parks are quite varied and widely available, we do like a little more variety for our lunches. And, if we’re going to be in the parks for upwards of 10 days, then we do like to make some sensible cost savings by generally not spending money in the parks on food and drink.
That being said, we do like our cups of hot tea in any of the parks, the occasional warm cinnamon roll from Gaston’s Tavern in Magic Kingdom, and a Starbucks Frappuccino from Creature Comforts in Animal Kingdom!
However, with a little planning and popping into a grocery store (supermarket) before you visit the parks, you can pick up some lunch items, snacks and bottles of water.
We tend to visit one of the many Publix stores in and around the Orlando area. We find Publix stores to be clean, offer great choice, and be good value.
Most of the Disney resort hotels have fridges in the rooms, and, of course, all of the rental homes come with substantial fridge/freezer units in their kitchens.
So, if we’re staying in a rental house, we’ll stock up with supplies every couple of days from the local Publix store. We’ll generally have breakfast at the house, and then take a good selection of snacks and maybe even our own made-up subs, along with drinks into the parks each day.
We don’t find it too onerous carrying a couple of half-full, small rucksacks around with us. They can be easily stowed on the rides, get passed around the five of us (now that the kids are older), and they get lighter as the day progresses!
Most guests don’t realise that whilst you can buy a bottle of regular water across all of the parks for around $4, you can get a cup of water from any of the food and drink outlets for free – just ask for a cup of water and it will be provided!
We find this a great source of ice-cold liquid refreshment during the day, and a great means of saving money across the vacation.
