Could You Eat at WDW for $200 per Person on a 6-day visit?

[Willow Ufgood]

I'm spending a lazy Sunday watching YouTube and this video came up on my feed. The woman who did the video was traveling solo and brought a $200 GC to cover her food for 6 days. She ate primarily from the kids menus and did some snacking.

But toward the end of the video, she admitted to "cheating a bit" (my words, not hers) by picking up food at a nearby Target for breakfasts and snacks and toting along her popcorn bucket from earlier this year so that she only paid for refills for $2.50. In the end, she spent $140 from the gift card during the trip in August.

Just for fun and for my own future planning, tell me what you would buy from the kids menus, and where you would make your purchase. Can you keep it under $200 for an adult over 6 days?

 

[_19disnA]

I seriously doubt you can go most places on vacation (much less Disney) and eat like a regular adult for only ~$35/day (or ~$25 if they only spent $140). That just doesn't seem possible. Skipping breakfast every day or eating junk food for lunch is not normally how most adults eat over a period of a week. Many people post videos to gather hits/followers by claiming something that seems unreasonable.

 

[fla4fun]

I'm spending a lazy Sunday watching YouTube and this video came up on my feed. The woman who did the video was traveling solo and brought a $200 GC to cover her food for 6 days. She ate primarily from the kids menus and did some snacking.

But toward the end of the video, she admitted to "cheating a bit" (my words, not hers) by picking up food at a nearby Target for breakfasts and snacks and toting along her popcorn bucket from earlier this year so that she only paid for refills for $2.50. In the end, she spent $140 from the gift card during the trip in August.

Just for fun and for my own future planning, tell me what you would buy from the kids menus, and where you would make your purchase. Can you keep it under $200 for an adult over 6 days?

Sure, I have done that before. I don’t consider it “cheating” if the money I use for snacks and drinks in the room is under what I would spend for the same days at the grocery store at home. I would be spending that anyway. Sometimes I just take things from home, like a loaf of bread and a jar of peanut butter. I need to have something to eat in the room for breakfast while I am getting ready. I rarely do table service restaurants when I am on a solo trip, preferring to do QS, a mix of adult and child orders. At some QS I order sides for my meal instead of regular entrees. On some really tight budget trips I have gone as low as $25 per day plus snacks from home I already had. $33 ($200 divided by 6) would definitely work for me.

As far as what I order off the kids menu, that depends entirely on the restaurant’s menu. I am okay with chicken strips (in fact, prefer the smaller child portion) but if you check out menus there is a much wider variety in kids meals than there used to be. I usually opt for the smaller child portion bottle of water for the included drink. At places where you can choose two sides, I often double up on the same side for a more adult size portion. If you go for an adult meal, ask for the free cup of water (QS beverages get expensive).

It’s all about compromise. You can make $200 work for six days, but you will have to plan ahead and be disciplined. If you are a foodie, you probably won’t enjoy it as much as someone who is more interested in the rides.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

You could, but it wouldn’t be much fun.

 

[Willow Ufgood]

You could, but it wouldn’t be much fun.

Actually, the food she ordered wasn't chicken fingers and hot dogs. She had grilled chicken and salmon, lots of rice and bean bowls beans with different seasonings and salads. Better than you would expect for kids meals. But I wouldn't want to limit my choices to just the kids menu. And I think it's disingenuous to start off saying that you're going to eat for 6 days on $200 but then buy fruit, yogurts and oatmeal to bring into the parks or eat in the room but not count that against your $200 budget. Heck, I could eat 2-3 meals each day in the room and stay under $200 if that were the case! Overall, she had 8 meals and 7 snacks that I counted. Not exactly what a normal adult might be eating unless they supplemented with food they bought elsewhere.

Having said that, I would love to do a challenge of 6 days, 3 meals a day plus 1 snack. It would be interesting to see what the total would be for a realistic diet for 1 adult eating only kids meals.

 

[RickNJane]

We stay in 1 or 2 bedroom DVC villas that have kitchens. We hit a local grocery store on the way to checkin and usually spend way less than $200. We usually only eat only 1 QS meal at lunch and the rest just eat in the room. We do make ADRs at our favorite places, Sci-Fi, Beaches and Cream, Rose and Crown, etc. We do at least one character breakfast as well. The grandkids would rather do rides and attractions than eat, so we get off pretty cheap! May change when they get older.

 

[Disney got all my$$$]

No, I couldn’t. One of the reasons I like to go to Disney is for the food. I wouldn’t go if that’s all I had to spend on food (as an adult). I also don’t think I could eat on $140 or $200 a week at home either.

 

[snowwite]

I'm spending a lazy Sunday watching YouTube and this video came up on my feed. The woman who did the video was traveling solo and brought a $200 GC to cover her food for 6 days. She ate primarily from the kids menus and did some snacking.

But toward the end of the video, she admitted to "cheating a bit" (my words, not hers) by picking up food at a nearby Target for breakfasts and snacks and toting along her popcorn bucket from earlier this year so that she only paid for refills for $2.50. In the end, she spent $140 from the gift card during the trip in August.

Just for fun and for my own future planning, tell me what you would buy from the kids menus, and where you would make your purchase. Can you keep it under $200 for an adult over 6 days?

200 per person per day?sure 200 for 6 days? Nope

 

[Disneylover99]

I would love to do a challenge of 6 days, 3 meals a day plus 1 snack. It would be interesting to see what the total would be for a realistic diet for 1 adult eating only kids meals.

You’re looking at spending about $33 per day with a $200 budget.
3 kids meals (including tax) will cost about $29 per day.
It’s going to be a challenge finding a $4 snack. Possible I guess, but very limiting.

 

[Travel60]

I could. DH could not.

I'm happy with cereal, milk, coffee in the room for breakfast. For lunch, I like a sliced apple and peanut butter. Then eat out for dinner but I often order only a salad and an appetizer. Entee portions are too much. I like good but simple food - the best meat, freshest vegetables but no sauces or fancy preps.

DH wants a "hungry man" full service breakfast, a burger or other sandwich with fries for lunch and either pasta or steak/potato for dinner. Exhausting to even think about! And expensive at Dis.

 

[fla4fun]

No, I couldn’t. One of the reasons I like to go to Disney is for the food. I wouldn’t go if that’s all I had to spend on food (as an adult). I also don’t think I could eat on $140 or $200 a week at home either.

My grocery budget for just me is $45 per week. I shop according to the sales, so one week I may be stocking up on meat, and the next week it’s frozen veggies, bread and eggs. I use my freezer to keep food from spoiling. Yeah, I am not eating ribeye steaks every week, but I eat a good mix of food groups and I don’t go hungry. It’s amazing what you can do if you have to.

I’m not saying there is anything wrong with spending more, either at Disney or at home, since everyone has a different economic situation. I am just saying it’s possible to be on a tight budget and still eat fairly well.