Disneyland on the cheap cheap

[jen541]

Does anyone have any suggestions on ways to spend the least amount of money on food during a 7 night trip to DLR. I'm thinking grocery shopping...

What would you bring for meals if you had a fridge but no microwave in your hotel. We will be one adult and three children. How do I keep it from being a junk food fest?

Any suggestions would be supper helpful!

 

[01spirit750]

Here is how I did it.
When my daughter and I flew down, we only had one medium suit case with clothes, so I used our smaller suitcase and loaded it with food and drinks (snack bars, pb and J, bread etc). Because of the drinks, I had to check our bags which I prefer anyway.
Each day before we went to the park I would make our snack pack for the day. I made pb and j sandwiches and drinks.

It was very convenient to stop and have lunch without having to wait in another line just to get food.

 

[starshine514]

I'd do sandwiches (lunch meat, cheese, peanut butter, etc), yogurt, cottage cheese, fruit, salad, milk, cereal, crackers, etc.

 

[disneegrl4eva]

I'd do sandwiches (lunch meat, cheese, peanut butter, etc), yogurt, cottage cheese, fruit, salad, milk, cereal, crackers, etc.

yep and oj and danishes/muffins/donuts for breakfast

oh and how about some of those mac and cheese packets you just add water to????

not sure where you are staying but...usually, even if rooms dont have microwaves, they do offer one in the lobby somewhere...have you checked to see if they have one??? if so that gives you even more choices of foods like canned or boxed that you can purchase at grocery store

 

[Stitch35]

Von's delivers groceries I always get milk, juice, pb&j, bread, salad, fruit, veggies, cheese, deli meats, condiments, cereal, snack crackers, yogurt, cookies, nuts, dried fruit, and bottles of water. Usually everyone is pretty happy with sandwiches for lunch and dinner. No one really wants to wait in food lines and it is nice to grab a snack or sandwich and hop in a line.

 

[deanimal]

Do you have access to a kettle? If so you can do noodle cups or even macaroni and cheese where you just add boiling water. We have a small kettle that can also be used for heating soups and stuff. It's small enough to easily fit in a suitcase. Even a small packet of instant soup in a mug can help turn a sandwich into a more satisfying meal.

 

[squirrel]

If your room has a coffeemaker run it through with water and use the hot water to make instant oatmeal in a cup or bowl.

I bring microwave popcorn to pop and refill one of the souviner buckets.

Ask for ice water at CS locations. Add Crystal Light, Nestea or Kool-Ade packs to it if you need/want.

For treats order one fries to share and eat it along with your sandwich. Share dole whip/floats.

 

[Huff]

When we fly to Disney World we pack 1 bowl per person along with a few boxes of cereal (removed from box to save space) and some plastic spoons. We buy milk from hotel market and have cereal for breakfast along with pop tarts or other items we may bring.

We stay at the parks all day so don't bother with any meals in the room other than breakfast.

When we visit Disneyland we usually are able to get a hotel that includes hot breakfast buffet for under $100/night. We have a car at Disneyland and will grab cereal, milk etc. if staying without breakfast.

 

[Eclectic Goddess]

Since you mentioned wanting to keep the junk food to a minimum, I'll chime in with my healthy hotel room food tip:

Get your groceries from someplace with a salad bar. I know Whole Foods has one, and New Seasons...not sure what's in/near DL. Buy some hummus, tortillas, and whatever fresh veggies you like with your hummus, out of the salad bar. (I go for carrots, red peppers, kale, and olives if there's an olive bar.) It's all fresh, already cleaned and sliced for convenience. When you're ready for a snack, spread the hummus on the tortilla, top with fresh veggies, then roll up...and eat!

Even kids will love this, and they're super easy to make. It travels well, so I sometimes also make one to take along on a plane trips.

 

[julieheyer]

Dd and dh are GF, and I am a low-carber. We're also on a tight budget, so the "stock the fridge" and backpack meals into the park is our plan too.
we'll be driving, so either a cooler from home, or grocery store would be necessary.

Pb&j is a good option (GF bread). If you're not GF, I'd buy those frozen uncrustables and take those into the parks.

I'll be bringing trail mix, Cliff bars, almonds and peanuts, cheese sticks, frozen yogurt tubes, greekyogurt or cottage cheese, and boars head buffalo chicken breast (dh's favorite). I usually have frozen Capri suns for ice packs. I also plan to buy the pouches of applesauce, or the pre-sliced apples to bring as well. Fruit can bruise or squish in the backpack, but those hold up well.

My #1 tip is to bring in a sealed water bottle for everyone in your fam. Then bring crystal light packs, or koolaid/lemonade packs. When you're thirsty refill your bottle at the water fountains, add your packet and off you go.

We also try to eat in line. Makes good use of our time. (and money!)

 

[jen541]

yep and oj and danishes/muffins/donuts for breakfast

oh and how about some of those mac and cheese packets you just add water to????

not sure where you are staying but...usually, even if rooms dont have microwaves, they do offer one in the lobby somewhere...have you checked to see if they have one??? if so that gives you even more choices of foods like canned or boxed that you can purchase at grocery store

Staying at DLH. I called and they said they didn't have microwaves but I didn't ask about one in the lobby? It would be nice to be able to have warm soup or something

 

[jen541]

Here is how I did it.
When my daughter and I flew down, we only had one medium suit case with clothes, so I used our smaller suitcase and loaded it with food and drinks (snack bars, pb and J, bread etc). Because of the drinks, I had to check our bags which I prefer anyway.
Each day before we went to the park I would make our snack pack for the day. I made pb and j sandwiches and drinks.

It was very convenient to stop and have lunch without having to wait in another line just to get food.

I REALLY like this idea, however, because this trip is so much on the cheap, we bought airline tickets through Allegiant and opted out of paying $ for checked or even carry ons (they charge for carry on now!). Each of us are only bringing a small backpack that will fit under the seat and I plan to do laundry there.

I do plan on stopping at a grocery store before we get to the DLH so your food suggestions are very helpful, thank you!

 

[DisneyMomof2inSLC]

It's been a couple of years once I stayed at DLH, but when we stayed, we were allowed to use the microwave in the coffee shop. I believe they are only open from about 6 am-6pm however.

 

[plb626]

Walmart is the exit before Disneyland. We stopped there and stocked up on cereal, soda, water, snacks.....

 

[nikkislaght]

Our lunch each day , was the tuna salad packs that came with crackers, and a little spoon.
Summer sausage, olives , cheese , fruit, nuts, carrot sticks and cucumber.

We went to Von's and got a cooked chicken for our dinner, mac and cheese packs. salad stuff.
We also got bread to make sandwiches the days we got sick of the tuna packs.
Breakfast was the mini cereal packs.. and fruit.

We took a couple of small soft sided coolers and had everything in ziplock bags..
We also got some kids juice boxes, froze them and used them as ice blocks for the lunch , and by midday they were thawed enough for drinking.


We froze water and took the crystal light packs ..

the kids had fanny packs with their own treats. fruit snacks, granola bars, gum, candy etc..


We took a lot of the non perishable foods with us, as we had cases ..

but you can get all these from Vons just up the road from the parks.

 

[sechelt]

Whitewater Snacks, in the Grand Californian, sells staples like bread, eggs, sliced meat, etc. They even sold me a container of lettuce when I asked for it. Convenient if you don't have a car. Don't know if DLH has something similar.

Coffeemaker can also be used for hard boiled eggs. Just takes a bit longer.

Fresh fruit is sold from carts in the parks if you're concerned about bruising/damage in the backpacks. Cost a bit more but those were our DL treats instead of sugary snacks.

 

[azdisneylover]

There are places online that sell discounted gift cards for Jamba Juice, Rainforest Cafe, etc. There are printable coupons for restaurants in DTD, and on Harbor Blvd. Vons delivers groceries so you can order some food if you can't go and get it. There are many places to get healthy food in the parks for a fair price. If you have time, get Disney Gift cards from Target with the discount to use to purchase food in the parks.

Gogurts, granola bars, fresh fruits, instant oatmeal, bagels, muffins, lunch meat, nuts, raisins, think what your family usually eats and go from there. They will probably eat less in the mornings because they may be too excited to get into the parks. Carrying something you can pull out that is easy to eat will help.

 

[jen541]

Wow, all of these suggestions are so helpful, and so clever ( coffee pot used for something OTHER than coffee!!!)

Thank you all so much, working on my list now. Good to know Von's delivers... I'm guessing there's a delivery charge?

Does anyone know if grocery stores like vons and Walmart sell kombucha? It's a drink.

 

[AmanduhAnn]

If you have time, get Disney Gift cards from Target with the discount to use to purchase food in the parks.

Ooo! Good idea!

 

[Gina]

Wow, I am taking notes on this thread! :yes:

Have a couple of questions, though... Are you really allowed to bring food & drink into the parks?? I guess I've never tried at WDW, other than something like fruit snacks, because we've always been on the dining plan. Those of you bringing small softside coolers and such, do you get a locker to keep them in?

This is a super budget trip for DS & I, and we'll have a microwave & mini fridge at the hotel, so like a bunch of you I'm trying to figure out what we can eat on the cheap. Then it's easier to say "Yes!" to a few yummy splurges.