$100 challenge

[a1tinkfans]

Never ceases to amaze me how INGENIOUS people are to know everything about EVERYTHING about Disney! What a great challenge and great options too!

I liked Earl of Sandwich in DTD, also Cosmic Rays rib platter was good to share too. Pecos Bills Fixings bar has so much you can practically make a salad and just get the Burgers/burger! YUMMY!!! ONE of our "must haves" each trip!

Good Luck and have an AWESOME trip! Aren't people on the DIS great!!!!

 

[FoundMyPrince]

I will be at disney for 6 nights in May. Working on limited funds for this birthday trip. Have disney rewards for my birthday dinner. Will be there for 5 other nights. Giving myself and hubby a $100 budget for those nights. Will make sandwiches for the parks and breakfast in room (oatmeal/fruit).
Can anyone suggest the cheapest good eats for dinner. One I am aware of is the burrito at Mexico (easily split for two). What other good cheap eats are available. Veteran disney traveler but never had to do it this way, kinda looking forward to the challenge

Very interesting thread. Please let us know how the trips ends up and how the dinners went! I'm curious!!

 

[tar heel]

The chicken wrap at Pecos Bill's is big and already arrives cut in two. Split it and the fries and take advantage of the topping bar, and I think you would have a pretty good meal.

The rib dinner at Flame Tree in AK is one of the largest counter service meals I know of at Disney.

The nacho plate at the value resort food courts are very large if you like a lot of toppings. I shared one with a teen, and we both got plenty to eat.

Don't forget to check the kids' menu. I always get the kids' meal at the Mexican cantina -- you'll need to add guacamole or cheese sauce for the chips -- and it even comes with a drink.

Try to save room for a few treats if you can. The Mara at AKL sells some of the same soups and treats that are available at Boma. Starring Rolls bakery can get you a couple of desserts that are normally served at Brown Derby.

 

[nelep]

I just want to correct the buffet price someone mentioned at Trails End is not $14, it may be that for lunch though. I believe dinner is $18 still a great price for a disney property buffet.

Oops. Sorry about that. I was looking at breakfast which is $14. The dinner buffet is $21 for adults.

 

[3dog2kidmom]

If you want something other than burgers or sandwiches, more like "real food," DH and I easily shared the following last week:

* Asian platter (2 entrees & 2 sides) at Sunshine Seasons ($10.49)
* Chicken & lamb Shwarma platter (comes with hummus & bread, and 2 sides) at Tangierine Cafe/Morocco ($13.95)
* 1/2 chicken and BBQ rib combo with mashed potatoes & green beans at Cosmic Rays ($13.99)
* large pizza at AKL (Mara) was ~$16

Finally, you could each get an order of fish & chips at the Yorkshire Co Fish Shop for $7.99 and be within your budget. This was one of the most enjoyable CS meals of our trip (of course we also shared a Bass Ale and watched British Invasion while we ate )

Hope this helps!

 

[KSG'sDisneyMem]

OP in a previous post you made mention of having to inculde the oatmeal and fruit for breakfast in your budget? Could you purchase, at home, the single serve packets of oatmeal, remove pkts. from box, place in ziplocs and reusable ziploc bowls, pack in your luggage, and make them at the food court from the hot water dispenser for tea? Then you could pack the raisins, dried fruit and maybe bring some fresh fruit, say apples/oranges/kiwi/pears, in your carryons? I have done this when staying at ASMo. Then you can keep that amount from your tight budget if possible and allow for some flexibility for dinner without going over your budget of $20.

 

[Cindy B]

Can I ask where you found out about the AAA discount at Earl of Sandwich? DH and I love their sandwiches and we have AAA but have never used our card. Trying to do a real budget trip for Dec. and this would help

It's all over my AAA literature. Just show your card and you get a discount. It is that easy.

 

[christinou]

How about not spending as much on your birthday dinner, and having more for the other days. There are some nice counter service dinner Flame Tree BBQ at AK, sunshine pavillion and the morocco pavillion at EPCOT. I also always order a big cup of ice and water, (I don't like soda), you can save a lot by not ordering drinks.

 

[Perditamarie]

I think you could do a really interesting food report after your trip! Don't forget to register your birthday and consider getting the gift card (is it $75??) that I believe you can also use for food/snacks.

Also, bagels make a hearty, quick breakfast or snack.

Happy travels and let us know how it goes!

 

[Vickie46]

we usally order Papa Johns a couple times while at disney.. just have the phone number with you and order while you are on the way back to your resort on the bus and then they will be there waiting on you when you get back! perfect under or around 20

 

[espana94]

If you can get to the Crossroads just down the road from DTD, there is a Fuddruckers. DD17 and I had dinner there last Wednesday. She had a cheeseburger with fries and a soda. I had a bacon cheeseburger with their fries/onion ring combo and an iced tea. Total bill was $20.85. The drinks are refillable, they have a huge topping bar and the sides of fries and rings were huge. You could easily share a side of fries/rings and save some money. Plus the burgers at Fudds are yummy!

 

[HayGan]

The shawarma platter at Tangerine Cafe in Epcot ($13.95) is always a must do for DH and I every trip!

Staying in a DVC room you can do so much more for your meals than others. Our first trip to a DVC studio, we took along a collapsable cooler with all kinds of stuff (frozen waffles, ready to heat bacon, instant oatmeal, fruit, etc.) to have in the room. It made the mornings so much easier and is a much more cost effective way to go

As long as you aren't huge eaters, you will be fine splitting stuff throughout the day. That is actually a better way to go as you both get to experience more great food throughout the day.

 

[IleneF]

Great suggestions everyone, keep'em coming

I think we will not spend as much on my birthday dinner as I have points for so I may have some residual from that but the cheaper I can keep the whole trip the better this time. It will be hard because we are so used to splurging when we go. It will be a different frame of mind this time but kind of a fun challenge. I think I will make envelopes with the days $ allotment and just go from there, perhaps if we are very frugal one day we will be able to be more indulgent the next day.

I did already register for my birthday gift card but my understanding is that it is not good on food and only good the one day of your birthday. Is it perhaps good on counter service but not full service? I was thinking of parasailing

With all the luggage restrictions I don't want to pay more to bring a suitcase full of food so I was thinking small but maybe 6 bagels could sneak in there pretty easy.

Thanks for the Papa Johns suggestion to keep the phone number handy, that's a good idea! DH says I should write a book using all the suggestions, weird that one doesn't already exist but perhaps the food offereings change to often to make a book that is current. Still a web page or something must exist somewhere, right!

 

[HayGan]

Your birthday card is not only good on your birthday. Originally, that was one of the restrictions but it was removed shortly after the promo started. We used the card for several days after we received it. The CM who gave it to us stressed that it would never expire.

As for food, I have heard of mny using it for snacks but a sit-down meal is definitely out.

 

[semo233]

As cglaura previously mentioned, don't forget that ice water is free! If you really don't like the taste of the water, you could bring along those single size mix ins for iced tea or lemonade to add. We don't drink soda and got free water all the time while at Disney. This alone could save you more than $20 for your entire trip! That means more to spend on other days or for keepsakes!

 

[Mouse House Mama]

Just a quick question. What if you have an emergency? What will you do?
I think you got some great ideas here but that is a long time to survive on that little money without any plan in case of an emergency. I hate to be a downer but sometimes stuff happens on vacation that you don't expect.
At any rate, have a great trip!

 

[jla_doc]

Let us know how it goes...sounds like it'll be touch

 

[IleneF]

Yeah, we might have to choke down the florida water this time instead of buying store bought. I have a brita to go so I'm good and DH doesn't really mind the taste. I'll bring some of the ice tea/lemonade powders too.

So many good ideas...thanks everyone I know we can make this work now. I'll try to check in while I'm there and when I get home to let you all know how it worked out. What a contrast it will be to my 50th celebration last year. We had family members down (6) and took a Wishes cruise! My DH and DD surprised me with a Bippity Boppity Makeover..THAT was soooo cool! I'll be wearing my "tiara" this year too! What a difference a year can make but I'm so lucky I can still feel the Magic

 

[kmvand1]

I hate to be a nay-sayer, but I just cannot imagine only having $100.00 for 5 days! I am not saying it can't be done, I am just having a hard time imagining how it can be done. Food at Disney is very expensive. Good luck to you and let us know how it turns out.

 

[Smile4Me]

Here are our favorite Counter Service Places that offer a lot of food for a decent price:

AK: Flame Tree Barbeque -meals easily splittable
1/2 Slab of St. Louis Ribs - served with baked beans and corn muffin $10.49
Smoked 1/2 Chicken - served with baked beans and corn muffin $9.49

Epcot: Sunshine Seasons-portions are great, can't really go wrong here if you split a meal

MK: Cosmic Ray's Cafe- All of these are easily splittable!

1/2 Chicken and BBQ Rib Combination served with Mashed Potatoes and a seasonal vegetable $13.99
BBQ Rib Meal - 1/2 rack served with mashed potatoes and a seasonal vegetable $10.49
1/2 Rotisserie Chicken - with Mashed Potatoes and a seasonal vegetable $9.49

Pinocchio's Village Haus
Pizza Combo Meals - Individual pizza with tossed salad: Vegetable $8.49, Cheese $7.99 or Pepperoni $8.29

Casey's
All Beef 1/4 lb. Hot Dog Meal - served with apple slaw or french fries $6.59
Hot Dog $4.79


DHS:
Pizza Planet
Cheese Pizza, with Mixed Greens Salad $7.79
Pepperoni Pizza with Mixed greens salad - $8.09
Vegetable Pizza (with mushrooms, peppers, onions, and tomatoes) with Mixed Greens Salad $8.29