Bringing snacks/drinks in park?

[MickeyHereWeCome!]

We are planning a trip in June. I've never gone in the summer before, so I want to be proactive when it comes to dealing with the heat. Does Disney allow you to bring in a small cooler that has water and other snacks? We've been to so many theme parks over the past years, and they all have a no "outside food" policy. They have a picnic area outside the park, and you have to take your food there to eat it.

It would be so helpful (and cost effective) to be able to bring our own water bottles in, so we don't have to buy them constantly. I understand tap water is free, but several of us are kind of picky with tap water.

Is bringing our own stuff in a possibility? We've brought in snack baggies with pretzels, etc. in the past, but haven't tried bringing in an actual cooler filled with stuff.

TIA

 

[GaSleepingBeautyFan]

Yes as long as it small and doesn't have wheels. No glass bottles allowed.

I saw plenty of people with coolers in June. I talked to one family about what they packed and they had lunch and dinner in their cooler. It looked really good too. They had ham/cheese sandwiches, pickles, chips and choco chip cookies for lunch and for supper they had cold fried chicken, coleslaw (I don't think I'd have been brave enough to put that in a cooler), fresh cut up vegs and slices of choco cake for dinner. Yummo.

And yes, I really did ask them about what they had (instead of just peaking into their cooler) much to the embarrassment of my DD who was with me.

 

[santa's surpriz]

Cold Fried Chicken is our favorite picnic food.We are going back in October and I am planning to picnic lunch when we go to DHS. Some reason we also feel DHS has a poor selection when comes to counter service, so I am being a little proactive thise year.

 

[growinupdisney]

Last year we took a soft sided cooler....I wish now I had put sandwiches in it since my 2 year old would have eaten from it and we would have saved alittle extra $ we were at FW so we actually had the stuff to do it. Instead I just put 6 bottles of water juice boxes and snacks. Which still saved us alot doing that alone. We also carry a backpack where I would put a few bottles of water in it. We hardly ever buy drinks this is a huge $ saver. We do like to eat at the parks because when we are at home we do not eat fast food at all and only go out to eat about once maybe twice a month. So its a treat. My husband is a chef and runs the restaurant so we eat from there and we both love to cook so we enjoy cooking at home.
Since my little one will still be 2 on this next visit I think I will bring some sandwiches just to have especially if we order something we don't like this happened at DHS last time.

 

[here757]

i never thought about cold chicken... my kid eats it all the time out of my fridge..
my husband wears a camel back.. its always got ice water in it.
there is extra room in it for snacks too..
gronola bars. apples.
just make sure its not swishable

 

[billwendy]

Hi!

Unless we have some one with a stroller with us, we dont bring a cooler. I do usually have one of those little drawstring backpacks and we carry iced tea/ lemonaid mix. We just ask for cups of icewater and add the drink mix to drink. I also usually carry some packs of crackers, gum and maybe a can of nuts. These hold up pretty well. Please make sure everyone drinks and drinks and drinks water - you will be sweating a LOT!!!!! HAve FUN!!!

 

[MickeyHereWeCome!]

Thank you all so much. This is so good to hear! It has always been a "no no" in all of the other parks we've visited, so I probably wouldn't have even thought about it if I hadn't read about the idea here.

 

[starsweeper]

My understanding is that WDW isn't too strict about outside food, at least that's what seems to be the consensus from this board. My kids are lactose intolerant but LOVE milk, so I plan to bring our own milk into the parks for meals or snacks. I always travel with some of their favorite (and healthy) snacks, so we'll have those as well.

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

Be concious of packing things that won't melt easily!

I can't really help on main food items, but we packed fruit bowls and they held up well without being cooled. We also toted around the 100 calorie packs of snack mix, cheese its - again, they held up really well. Keep an eye out for coupons or when they go on sale - otherwise they cost too much!

 

[brymolmom]

We bring a soft sided cooler (and if no stroller you can throw it in a locker) stocked with sandwiches, fruit, drinks, and 'goodies' - candy or cookies. Don't worry about hiding anything - the security person usually says something about how 'lunch looks good' or similar. Saves times on standing in line, definitely saves money and is often healthier.

 

[Deb & Bill]

It is only supposed to be a smaller sized cooler, like a 6 pack/12 pack size.

And plan on finding a bench to eat. Tables and chairs at counter service areas are reserved for the guests who bought from the counter service. There are no picnic areas at the theme parks at WDW.

 

[SoExcitedForDisney]

I have a question. We have the Disney dining plan but one of my sons has food allergies. There doesn't seem to be much (if anything) for him to choose from on most counter service menus. If the rest of us are buying from the restaurant is it ok if he eats food that is brought in? We won't have a problem at our table service restaurants.

Thanks!

 

[jlearn]

I have a question. We have the Disney dining plan but one of my sons has food allergies. There doesn't seem to be much (if anything) for him to choose from on most counter service menus. If the rest of us are buying from the restaurant is it ok if he eats food that is brought in? We won't have a problem at our table service restaurants.

Thanks!

There is no problem with bringing food in, but dont just go off of what is listed on the menu. Call ahead and ask about alternative foods for the allergies. From what I understand, QS has alternative menus that you can choose from. You will need more time for food prep, but it can be done. At a TS, speak to the wait staff or the chef to accomodate your needs.

It's Disney! They will make it magical for you, but you just have to ask. Have a great time!

 

[stitch09]

my family finds ways to bring in drinks/food. we carry around a back pack that contains our video camera, ponchos, tickets, camera, and small bags of snacks. ""snack-sized" bags of mini oreos and chips ahoy, as well as rice krispie treats, fit easily in a bag. we also carry water jugs with straps on them. before we leave our hotel to head to the parks, we fill the jugs with lots of ice and then bottled water (we bring our own bottled water to the hotel). as a family of four, 2 water jugs is plenty. make sure you fill them with a lot of ice, that way the water will stay cold even in really hot temperatures! we've been to disney 14 times, and doing the above has worked for us every year!

 

[PrincessSteph]

We just returned from our Disney vacation. All week I packed water, juice boxes and tons of snacks. I never had any problems!

This was a huge money saver for my family!

 

[mom2att]

Tables and chairs at counter service areas are reserved for the guests who bought from the counter service.

Question along this line: if I buy only a soda at a cs place, am I entitled to find a seat there? I know this is a hot button topic here, but I am truly curious.

 

[2004champs]

last time we brought colapsable water bottles and one with a filter.

 

[disneygirlsanddrew]

We have a stroller but also carry around a backpack where we carry snacks for our daughters and drinks. We take trail mix, packs of crackers, gum, disney fruit snacks, etc.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Question along this line: if I buy only a soda at a cs place, am I entitled to find a seat there? I know this is a hot button topic here, but I am truly curious.

If you were the guest who bought a full meal at the counter service place and saw another guest with a home packed lunch sitting at a table and you who purchased the cs meal couldn't find a seat, how would you feel?

 

[mistymouse5001]

If you were the guest who bought a full meal at the counter service place and saw another guest with a home packed lunch sitting at a table and you who purchased the cs meal couldn't find a seat, how would you feel?

How on earth did you get 25,000 post ? You must know tons ! Have you been in July ? Do you have a trip report ?