Does anyone eat in their rooms instead of purchasing food in the parks? If so,...

[DisneyWalle]

If so, what do you bring for your families to eat? This is what I was thinking:
Breakfast: oatmeal packets, pop-tarts, cereal bars, bananas, orange juice
Lunch/Dinner: PB and Jelly sandwiches, chips, water, turkey and cheese sandwiches
Snacks: trail mix, cheese-its, yogurt

Anyone have any other suggestions? We have a refrigerator and a microwave available in our room.

 

[crazelion]

Just mainly keep snacks in the room. Okay junk food but on vacation. Chip, doughnuts and drinks what have on hand.

 

[edk35]

Do you really want to leave the parks to eat lunch at the resort? Then leave again to go back and have dinner?? I can see having breakfast and even having lunch if you always plan to go back to the resort for a rest, but not all three meals. That just seems like a LOT of work. I know some people go back to the resorts for a midday break and having lunch might be perfect in that situation. I am sure there are people that do this. You could buy some frozen type family meal to prepare and have if you have a microwave. You didn't give a lot of information about how many in your party. IS it just two adults?? Are there little ones involved? How long is your trip. If it is a short trip... you will waste a lot of park time running back and forth. If it is a long trip eating three meals out of a room might get old too. Maybe you can do a mix of both. Good luck.

 

[DisneyWalle]

It is 2 adults and one 10-year-old. We eat breakfast, usually take a snack into the park with us, or buy a pretzel in the park and then eat dinner around 7pm. Which in January is good because most of the parks will be closing around 8:00pm. So, for us eating in the hotel room for dinner is not unreasonable; just curious if anyone else does this and if so, what do you do for your family.

 

[kaytieeldr]

People do it - but unless you're in a DVC one-bedroom or larger unit, your freezer space is going to be minimal or non-existent. There are plenty of microwaveable entrees that don't even need to be refrigerated, never mind frozen. Supplement them with some fresh vegetables and you should be fine.

 

[beansmom]

we keep snacks and sandwich fixings in our room. We pack sandwiches for the park. I love Disney but I get tired of their counter service offerings QUICKLY. I even get tired of the sit down meals because they are too much food. We do save money. One counter service meal for the 5 of us was over $50--sandwiches are much cheaper.

 

[DisneyWalle]

My husband and son suffer from stomach aches and feeling overall bad after we eat out alot. Plus, we just get tired of the burger and fried food after awhile.

Therefore, we were hoping to try something different this time and hopefully. everyone will feel better throughout the trip. I think the only day we are even considering eating in the park is when we go to Epcot, our favorite park.

I was hoping that some families that had done this before and found it successful, could share their suggestions. I welcome all ideas and suggestions.

We are staying off-site and the hotel does offer a complimentary breakfast. Plus, they provide a refrigerator and microwave in the room, but no freezer. We aren't looking for anything fancy but just easy healthy options to help everyone feel good during our trip.

 

[Swimalie]

We brought a lot of breakfast foods. We were on the dining plan so it meant pretty much 1 meal on our own each day and we picked breakfast most days. We had Trader Joe's breakfast bars (This "fruit" Walked in to a Bar), bananas, Erin Baker's Breakfast Cookies (300 calories so they are a full meal in themselves). We would get milk from the resort for a drink. But other than that, we stayed in the parks all day so no snacking in the room, despite bringing snacks with us.

 

[indimom]

We did a two-week stay this summer and ate in the room once or twice a day using a cooler (our fridge swap fell through).
We had a lot of the same options as you: cereal bars, fresh fruit, juice, sandwich fixins and bread, trail mix, chips.
We also brought:
Single serve packets of veggie dip and cut carrots and celery.
String cheese sticks.
Pudding & Jello cups.
Single serve muffins
Single serve mixes for water (lemonaide, etc.)

We carried the crunchy granola bars, trail mix, apples, and drink mixes into the park most days also. They were a good filler snack that didn't get smashed in the backpacks.

Keep in mind that if you have access to ice, drinks wouldn't have to be refridgerated (giving you more room for other things in the fridge).

 

[Darcy03231]

We did breakfast/snacks in our room out of a cooler for our trip once. We had milk, juice, soda, water, cereal, fresh fruit, yogurt, cereal/granola bars, cheese, crackers, salad (my son loves salad), chips/dips, trail mix, peanut butter crackers, and fruit cups. It worked out great.

Another option for dinner would be a rotisserie chicken from a grocery store and salad. You could make chicken sandwiches for the next day with any leftovers.

 

[maxiesmom]

They do have healthier options in the parks, but you do have to look a bit to find them. All of the parks sell fresh fruit, and have salads as an option at some of their quick service places.

We have done breakfast in the room many times to save money. But I wouldn't waste time driving back to my resort in order to eat in the room. That is a huge time waster, and time is money at WDW.

Don't forget that you can pack a small cooler and bring it to the parks if you want. Disney has lockers for rent, so you could thow your cooler in one, and just go back and grab it when you want to eat. And things like granola bars or pbj crackers are small enough to put in your park bag and carry with you.

 

[pampam]

OP, the way I see it, you can make anything at all, as long as it can be cooked/heated in a microwave. We eat oatmeal, bacon and eggs, hot dogs, wieners and beans, chili, and soup. We always make a run to Publix or Walmart for things we need. Cereal of course is a given, but you might want to consider any frozen dinners. It sounds like you do not have a toaster in your room, but you might want to use a toaster in the food courts, if you are on site. The way I look at it, I'm on vacation, so although I do like to save money, I still keep the meals simple. I buy fresh fruit like apples and slice them with peanut butter. I make or buy veggie sticks instead of salads. Pastries and such are simple, but we try not to eat too much of those because it isn't healthy. Micro popcorn makes a nice snack. I always take a bag of trail mix or nuts too.

 

[scrapbookworm]

I get that same, general bad feeling when I eat out a lot. Sometimes I have to run for a bathroom. I think that I have an undiagnosed case of IBS.

For me, I have narrowed it down to an intolerance of msg or sulfate/sulfites, and also eating a big meal that has too much fat. I try to avoid meals with sauces (like alfredo or other cream based sauces) and go easy on the salad dressing. I do better if I actually eat the steamed vegetables that come with some meals.

At WDW I usually share with my DD. However she is getting older- she'll be 11 on our next trip, so it is about to the point that she is tired of splitting meals with mom. I like sandwiches, and I usually do alright if I order a sandwich and eat some fruit.

I've also found that I get nauseated feeling if I eat something like a Poptart or a bowl of sugary cereal for breakfast. Oatmeal is usually okay for me, or getting something in the food court that isn't terribly high in sugar.

Good luck!

 

[tarheel618]

My husband and son suffer from stomach aches and feeling overall bad after we eat out alot. Plus, we just get tired of the burger and fried food after awhile.

Therefore, we were hoping to try something different this time and hopefully. everyone will feel better throughout the trip. I think the only day we are even considering eating in the park is when we go to Epcot, our favorite park.

I was hoping that some families that had done this before and found it successful, could share their suggestions. I welcome all ideas and suggestions.

We are staying off-site and the hotel does offer a complimentary breakfast. Plus, they provide a refrigerator and microwave in the room, but no freezer. We aren't looking for anything fancy but just easy healthy options to help everyone feel good during our trip.

We usually eat breakfast in the room, pack lunch in a soft side cooler and then eat dinner either counter service or leave the park, eat an early dinner and go back to the park. Don't forget about Downtown Disney and their food. Earl of Sandwich is a favorite of ours.

 

[Vacation Lover]

One year I made spaghetti & sauce ahead of time and froze it. We kept it in the cooler on the drive down and in the fridge until we were ready to eat it. Just popped it in the microwave when we got back to the room and it was delicious. I remember, it was so nice to chill out in front of the TV after a long day at the park and enjoy a home-made meal.

 

[Marionnette]

My husband and son suffer from stomach aches and feeling overall bad after we eat out alot. Plus, we just get tired of the burger and fried food after awhile.

Therefore, we were hoping to try something different this time and hopefully. everyone will feel better throughout the trip. I think the only day we are even considering eating in the park is when we go to Epcot, our favorite park.

I was hoping that some families that had done this before and found it successful, could share their suggestions. I welcome all ideas and suggestions.

We are staying off-site and the hotel does offer a complimentary breakfast. Plus, they provide a refrigerator and microwave in the room, but no freezer. We aren't looking for anything fancy but just easy healthy options to help everyone feel good during our trip.

I wouldnt be able to live on sandwiches everyday for a week. If your going to eat your meals in the room you might want to look into getting a few of those prepackage microwaveable meals that dont require refrigeration. Hormel makes a few that arent too horrible. My son in college eats alot of them because they dont take up freezer space and he doesnt have to wash a dish after. Marie Callender makes some too. Turkey and stuffing, sesame beef, garlic herb chicken, lasagna and meatballs. Easy to microwave and better than pb&j. Add bagged salad with veggies and some bread or rolls to make the meal more filling.

 

[DawnM]

We got one of these:

http://www.target.com/s?keywords=igloo+backpack&searchNodeID=1038576|1287991011&ref=sr_bx_1_1

We take it into the parks with us and it holds enough snacks, lunch, water, and extras for all 5 of us.

I couldn't eat cold foods all day, 2 meals of sandwiches would be the end of me. That is why we stay off-site and get a condo with a full kitchen. We typically eat cereal or eggs for b-fast in the condo, take our cooler into the parks, have a heavy snack in the parks, and then eat a hot dinner late in the condo. We do have some planned eating out in there, but I too feel sick if I eat out too much.

Dawn

 

[DawnM]

Another idea:

Will you be driving? Do you have a decent sized cooler?

You might make some meals ahead of time and freeze them. If you put them in a cooler on your way down and stick them in the fridge when you get there, you can just heat them up in the evenings and eat that.

Some ideas:

http://busycooks.about.com/od/makeaheadrecipes/a/freezecasserole.htm

We personally really like lasagna and enchelada casserole and could eat each for 2 nights and then order a pizza and eat out once, and that would make up a week's worth of dinners.

 

[andycat]

We stay on property and find that breakfast is the only practical meal to have in the room. The time it takes to go back to the room mid-day for lunch is prohibitive, and both the travel time and being tired out from the day's activities nixes dinner.

We try to opt for a good sized breakfast, and then pack healthy snacks, like humus and pita bread, Skinny Cow cheese, celery/carrot sticks, and deli meat to eat at the parks. For just the two of us we can pack this is a soft-side cooler that we carry in our backpacks. We also carry things like single-serving Crystal Lite packets for drinks (you can get free water and ice at any counter service location).

This takes us through late afternoon, and we try to have a modest but healthy meal on property around 4pm. This avoids the lunch and dinner rush, and while food in the parks is expensive, our limited time in the parks makes it worth it.

Depending on fridge/freezer space, we'll keep some cookies, ice cream or pudding cups in the room for a little snack before bed.

We feel like this is the best compromise between economy, healthy eating, and maximizing our time in the parks.

 

[momof1princess]

we only eat breakfast in our room: apple and pb, toast and precooked bacon, pop tart and applesauce, muffins baked at home, etc. it just takes too much time out of the day to run back and forth to our room to eat, and carrying around a cooler is a hassle. DH has a very sensitive stomach, but does fine at wdw. we would usually have one TS meal per day, then eat at a CS for the other meal, if we were on the dining plan; if not, some days both meals would be CS (last year, we were at WDW 7 days with no dining plan, and did 3 TS meals). there's SO much more at wdw than just burgers and fried food-i'll admit, sometimes you have to search it out, but allearsnet.com is a great resource for menus, and really helps us pick interesting places to try.