First Family Trip Planners Thread for WDW Newbies!

[WishnDreamer]

Hi! I'm Karen and just joined.
I'm planning on hitting up WDW next March 2013 as a side trip from a family event in NC. We live in Oregon and neither of my kids have been to Disney or cross country for that matter. We aren't going to stay long, maybe 4 nights, so we won't do everything (obviously). I've probably been there about 7 times in my life, but not since 1993ish.
My kids will be 4 and 10.
I'm feeling overwhelmed because I'm a big bargain shopper and the prices are nuts. I don't even know where to start on a resort , etc.
I was thinking since it's only 4 days, it would be easier to be onsite and not rent a car. I've always had a car there, but I think that's just one less thing to worry about with the kids.
Where's a good place to start??

Thanks!!

Welcome Karen! Congrats on planning your first Disney vacation. It is exciting but overwhelming. I remember the feeling since I was going thru it myself not too long ago and still putting the finishing touches on now. I agree with andieb's advice.
I think you are spot on with starting with location. I went thru the same thing she did as far as starting cheap on a budget offsite, then on site at a value, then finally opted to rent points at a DVC resort (AKL). After that it all went down (or is it up?) hill as I decided if we were probably only going once then we might as well live it up.
I started with several books, borrowed from the library, and read all the reviews to see where we would like to stay (and what rides we'd like) and went from there. I also purused the Disney site to see pictures.
That would be your first step.
Welcome again! Glad you joined us!

 

[WishnDreamer]

1.Who are you going to Disney with? When are you going and how did you choose your dates?

My husband, 4-year old boy/girl twins, my mother-in-law, father-in-law, my own parents, and I are taking our first family vacation together AND our first Disney trip. We are going May 10th through the 17th and chose our dates from a window available on my in-laws time share at the Marriott Grande Vista.

2. Has anyone made ADR's yet? Did you get what you wanted? What did you pick?

We are having breakfast at Chef Mickeys the morning of our first day. We are also having dinner at the Norway Pavilion in Epcot. We thought the 2 would cover our bases with both kids.

3. What resort or hotel are you staying at? How did you decide on it & what are you most looking forward to there?
If you have not yet chosen, are you looking at offsite or on? What are your choices narrowed down to, if any?

We are staying at the Marriott Grande Vista because this was "free" since my in-laws offered their timeshare for the family vacation.

5. Are you keeping your trip a surprise?

Yes we are. My DD woke up every morning during the month of December and thought it was Christmas even though we went through the countdown every night before bed. She would be in tears each morning as we told her that it wasn't Christmas yet. We are tooooo nervous that telling them ahead of time would be a repeat nightmare of the Christmas experience.

6. How will you get to Walt Disney World and how do you plan to get around once you're there?

We will fly to WDW and will be renting a minivan after that.

8. Do you have any little extras planned for your trip? Bippity Boppity? Pirates? etc?

Not yet but we are really excited about the Potato Head boxes! LOL

Are you celebrating anything special while you are at Disney World?

Mother's Day.

Welcome! We are leaving as you are getting there! And we are eating at Chef Mickey's & Norway as well. I thought the story about your daughter at Christmas was too cute! Glad you joined us.

 

[HalloweenNut]

Is there a snack you've heard about that you are really excited to try?

Does a Lapu Lapu count as a snack?! If not then definitely a Dole Whip! Those Zebra Domes look tasty. I have to be careful - I've been on a special diet for the past year and have been really good and lost over 70lbs. so I don't want to ruin that in a week at Disney. That said I'll just HAVE to treat myself on occasion!

 

[KarenOR]

Thanks guys!

I can't imagine trying to plan such a tight schedule like I've seen. I just want to make sure we cover the best stuff, excluding roller coasters

But I also want the best prices, naturally. My husband is already freaking out about prices. Yeesh. I think I won't tell him

 

[Groomer Gal]

WHAAAAA!!!! You are all so much closer to your trips than us!

I did, as I already mentioned, preordered the photo pass CD and photo book before the price went up. I know that I cold make a book elsewhere for less $ BUT as usual, my DH wanted to just get the whole thing from Disney and be done with it. (like I said...he's the spender)

I have a list of places we want to go to eat...but don make any ADR's until June 11 th .

I'm waiting until mid May to seriously sit down with my DH and finalize the list with him.

 

[andieb0602]

Does a Lapu Lapu count as a snack?!

I'm also looking forward to the zebra domes. DH took a business trip to South Africa 2 years ago and he was given a bottle of Amarula - the liqueur used in the zebra domes. We loved it and drank the entire bottle in a little over a week. (It's really good in hot chocolate!)

I'm also looking forward to dole whips and school bread and pretzels and cinnamon rolls and...

When we first started planning there was some big time sticker shock. I think Disney deliberately makes the deposit small because, at least for us, once we became accustomed to having to pay $XXXX for the trip it wasn't that big a deal in the grand scheme of things to upgrade our resort and dining plan. We thought "Oh, it's only $350 more to upgrade and we'll have queen beds! It's worth it!"

Now when I check my reservations online (like I do every day) it tells me that in 30 days I can do online check in. The wait is killing me!!! We went and bought a new carry-on suitcase over the weekend so it's slowly gettting closer. I'm running to the mailbox every day to see if I have Mickey mail even though I know it's really too early. Just my luck - the kids and I are heading to the beach to camp with parents for a couple of days and it will come then!

Oh! I case any of you are Disney Movie Rewards members they added some new rewards today. One of them is a womens' white bucket hat. I think it will be perfect for the parks! Hopefully mine comes before we leave!

 

[WishnDreamer]

When we first started planning there was some big time sticker shock. I think Disney deliberately makes the deposit small because, at least for us, once we became accustomed to having to pay $XXXX for the trip it wasn't that big a deal in the grand scheme of things to upgrade our resort and dining plan. We thought "Oh, it's only $350 more to upgrade and we'll have queen beds! It's worth it!"

You feel like they do that too huh? I feel the same way! My $2500 trip turned into a I'm not even going to tell you how much trip, but it's easy to triple that I'd think.

 

[WishnDreamer]

When we first started planning there was some big time sticker shock. I think Disney deliberately makes the deposit small because, at least for us, once we became accustomed to having to pay $XXXX for the trip it wasn't that big a deal in the grand scheme of things to upgrade our resort and dining plan. We thought "Oh, it's only $350 more to upgrade and we'll have queen beds! It's worth it!"

You feel like they do that too huh? I feel the same way! My $2500 trip turned into a I'm not even going to tell you how much trip, but it's easy to triple that I'd think.

 

[WishnDreamer]

WHAAAAA!!!! You are all so much closer to your trips than us!

I did, as I already mentioned, preordered the photo pass CD and photo book before the price went up. I know that I cold make a book elsewhere for less $ BUT as usual, my DH wanted to just get the whole thing from Disney and be done with it. (like I said...he's the spender)

I have a list of places we want to go to eat...but don make any ADR's until June 11 th .

I'm waiting until mid May to seriously sit down with my DH and finalize the list with him.

Yes, but look at it this way YOU are going at Christmas. Storytellers, Osborne Lights, special parades, yay! PLUS, and I just thought of this, when you plan your dining you should pick 1 you are willing to give up in case they start taking ressies for Be Our Guest and it opens by then!! Wouldn't that be exciting?? You will have to post pictures and do a review if you decide to go. I am very interested to hear about it. I hope they do the animatronic Lumiere we keep hearing about but hasn't really been confirmed. I think that would be really cool.

Meanwhile, 14 more days til online checkin for me!! Yay!!!!!

 

[WishnDreamer]

Are you visiting all 4 theme parks? How many days each do you think? Which order of the parks are you most excited about?

We are visiting all 4. MK 2 1/2, Epcot 2, HS & AK 1 each.

I guess most people are most excited about MK and I am excited about seeing the castle and several rides there but Epcot is more up my alley. I love educational & cultural stuff so Innoventions & the rest of Future World along with World Showcase are right up my alley. So the order of my favorites are:

Epcot
Magic Kingdom
Hollywood Studios
Animal Kingdom

Animal Kingdom may surprise me because I think I am really going to like the shows, but I've heard it's so BIG & feels so much HOTTER than the other parks for some reason that I'm having a hard time getting excited about it. Plus my mom hates the zoo and I knows its notazoo but it's going to be hard getting her excited.

 

[WishnDreamer]

Realizing suddenly that I have a departure day dilemma. Wondering if you guys can give me any input.

We plan to checkout of AKL before our 10:30 ADR at Chef Mickey's which we are taking a taxi to for time's sake. Originally I had thought we could always add a day to our tickets the day before if we wanted to go to our favorite park 1 last time. I was thinking Epcot (or maybe Hollywood Studios). We will have been to MK 2 1/2 days so I think that will be unnecessary. But by the time we get out of Chef Mickey's it will be around noon.

Our flight leaves at 4:30. So if we take Magical Express, we would need to be back to AKL by 1:30, so probably just back there to hang out. Otherwise, I suppose we could just head to Downtown Disney and grab a few last souvenirs if we wanted and take a taxi to the airport. I don't mind spending the extra $ for a little more time...

Here's the dilemma I'm realizing. We are taking Southwest home. Flight 4:30-9:00. We land but don't have to change or get off the plane. Soooo, what do we do about eating again? Breakfast will end around noon. should we just head back to AKL to hang out and grab something from Mara in to go boxes to eat later for late lunch before we fly. As much as Disney cost a lot, the airport probably costs more with less choice I would think...

We can't not eat from noon to 9...my family will kill me! What to do?

 

[HalloweenNut]

Realizing suddenly that I have a departure day dilemma. Wondering if you guys can give me any input.

We plan to checkout of AKL before our 10:30 ADR at Chef Mickey's which we are taking a taxi to for time's sake. Originally I had thought we could always add a day to our tickets the day before if we wanted to go to our favorite park 1 last time. I was thinking Epcot (or maybe Hollywood Studios). We will have been to MK 2 1/2 days so I think that will be unnecessary. But by the time we get out of Chef Mickey's it will be around noon.

Our flight leaves at 4:30. So if we take Magical Express, we would need to be back to AKL by 1:30, so probably just back there to hang out. Otherwise, I suppose we could just head to Downtown Disney and grab a few last souvenirs if we wanted and take a taxi to the airport. I don't mind spending the extra $ for a little more time...

Here's the dilemma I'm realizing. We are taking Southwest home. Flight 4:30-9:00. We land but don't have to change or get off the plane. Soooo, what do we do about eating again? Breakfast will end around noon. should we just head back to AKL to hang out and grab something from Mara in to go boxes to eat later for late lunch before we fly. As much as Disney cost a lot, the airport probably costs more with less choice I would think...

We can't not eat from noon to 9...my family will kill me! What to do?

I would head back to the resort for that short amount of time. Maybe a last swim in the pool? For food I can't remember if you said whether you were on the dining plan or not but if so I've read that you always seem to have lots of snack credits left over and could use those to buy travel-friendly snacks for the trip.

 

[HalloweenNut]

Are you visiting all 4 theme parks? How many days each do you think? Which order of the parks are you most excited about?

We're doing all 4 parks and a bit of Downtown Disney but not any water parks. Here's how I've got it worked out along with the EasyWDW/TGM recommended days/touringplans crowd levels... (of course there are all sorts of contradictions between the various sites but I've planned it out as best I could - the only real snag was when Disney switched up the EMH days between HS and EP on the 27th & 28th but we're just going to deal with it at this point rather than change anything)

Sunday, April 22: Arrival & 1/2 Day Hollywood Studios
(Crowd Level: Green - 4.9)

Monday, April 23: Magic Kingdom (Crowd Level: Yellow - 6.5)

Tuesday, April 24: Magic Kingdom
(Crowd Level: Green - 3.8 - Best Park)

Wednesday, April 25: Hollywood Studios (Crowd Level: Green - 4.6)

Thursday, April 26: Animal Kingdom (Crowd Level: Green - 6.2)

Friday, April 27: Animal Kingdom
(Crowd Level: Green - 5.7 - Best Park)

Saturday, April 28: Epcot (Crowd Level: Yellow/Red - 3.5 - Best Park)

Sunday, April 29: Departure Day (10:25am)

In answer to your other question. I think my daughter is most excited about Magic Kingdom and Hollywood Studios and I'm really looking forward to Animal Kingdom and trying out my new superzoom camera.

 

[WishnDreamer]

HalloweenNut-
I just noticed your signature
DD 6 3/4
LOL
My DD put 8 1/2 in her Guide to the Magic book on the age line on the title page. I'm in my 30's and have to think to remember exactly how old I am anymore but every 1/4 matters to them!! Haha!

 

[Groomer Gal]

Wishn, about your food issue....I would purchase something and bring with you to eat on the plane. That's a long time to go without. It may be more $then you want to spend regardless if you buy it at Disney or the airport...but it will be totally worth it so no one has a meltdown due to hunger. ( and I'm talking about me here....hunger and I do not mix)

Also....as far as Be Our Guest goes....we of course would LOVE to eat there!!! has it been decided yet if it's a table service place or just QS???? I thought I had read it was just QS.

I know you are TOTALLY right and we are going to adore being at WDW at Christmas time.....but I cannot help but be envious of all of you going soon.
Don't get me wrong.....I am just over the moon thrilled for all of you!!!! I cannot wait to hear all about your trios when you return!!!!!!
And don't forget us when your done!

 

[Legendteri]

Ok lots of questions so here you go

Questions of the Day So Far

1.Who are you going to Disney with? When are you going and how did you choose your dates?
I am going with my DH, DD 4 and DD 18 months. We are also going with my sister, her husband, my DNphew and my mother. Another sister and her boyfriend are thinking of tagging along too. We are going to be there Oct 20th through the 25th. We chose those dates because they are one of the least crowded times to go. I know a few people that went during the busy and hot summer season and they vowed never again.

2. Has anyone made ADR's yet? Did you get what you wanted? What did you pick?
If you haven't made your ADRs yet, what are you planning & when is your 180 day mark?
We are hoping to do the Princess dining at Akershus. I think the 180 day mark is April 24th.

3. What resort or hotel are you staying at? How did you decide on it & what are you most looking forward to there?
If you have not yet chosen, are you looking at offsite or on? What are your choices narrowed down to, if any?
We decided to stay offsite at a place called Worldquest Resort. I heard about it on a parenting forum and decided to check it out. On trip advisor it is ranked 8th out of all the hotels in Orlando and has some wonderful reviews. Many people described it as a hidden gem, and that they won't stay anywhere else. We are sharing a 1500 sq ft villa with 3 beds, 3 baths and a full kitchen all for $150 a night including fees and taxes. So essentially $50 a night for each family. It is also supposed to be very close to Epcot. I realize it isn't on the resort but we are trying to save some money and I think we might need a break from the DIsney stuff. Who knows, maybe one year we will be able to stay at the resort.

4. If you are staying onsite, will you do online checkin?

5. Are you keeping your trip a surprise?
Yes, we are. We plan on telling the little ones the day before we leave by having them go on a scavenger hunt.

6. How will you get to Walt Disney World and how do you plan to get around once you're there?
We are driving

7. What is your favorite classic & new Disney movie?
IS Beauty and the BEast considered classic yet ? We also loved Princess and the Frog and Tangled.

Oh wait, Swiss Family Robinson. I loved that movie and watched it all the time as a child

8. Do you have any little extras planned for your trip? Bippity Boppity? Pirates? etc?

We might try BBB. Not sure. I am also planning on bringing a bunch of Disney stuff down with us and have the kids go on a scavenger hunt every morning in our hotel room.

Are you celebrating anything special while you are at Disney World?

9. Which character is each of your family members (including) yourself most excited to meet at Disney World? How long are willing to wait to meet them?
I would say Rapunzel. I hope to not have to wait more than 40 minutes to see her.

10. What websites or other resources have you found helpful during your planning?

DIsney planning Guide DVD
Birnbaum's 2012 guide to WAlt Disney World
easywdw.com ( great great website)


11. What are the top 3 tips you've learned during planning so far?

1. If you want to avoid crowds avoid the parks that have EMH
2. Get to the park as soon as it opens ( or earlier) if you want to get the most done
3.AAA members have their own special parking lot

12. Are you planning to see Main Street Electrical Parade, Wishes, Illuminations, Fantasmic? Which 1 are you most looking forward to?

Maybe WIshes

13. Are you planning to see Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade, Move it Shake it parade, Dream Along with Mickey castle show, Pixar Pal's Countdown to Fun, or Mickey's Jammin Jungle Parade?

14. Arrival day plans
We aren't going to the parks on our first day in Orlando. I say the plan is to unload the car, go to Costco to buy some food, if we are feeling up to it maybe go to DOwntown Disney and then get everything ready for out trip to MK the next day.

15. Which attractions are you looking most forward to at each park?
MK- the new Fantasy LAnd

Epcot- Taking DD to see the princesses at Akerhaus and Soarin'

Animal Kingdom- Kilamanjaro Safaris

HS- I don't know, maybe Fantastsmic. We might not even go ot HS and try MK on another day

16. What are your plans for souvenir money?

17. What kind of bag, if any, are you taking to the parks?
Dont' really know. I suppose our diaper bag and we are thinking of getting insulated backpacks for drinks and snacks.

18. What are you planning to take to the park each day?
SNacks, drinks, diapers, manybe ponchos and DD's princess dresses.


19. Are you purchasing any photopass products? How will you document your trip afterward?
We might buy the photpass stuff. HAven't decided yet. We also plan on making a photobook.

20. What counter service restaurant do you think you will eat at?

Columbia HArbor House and The Flametree BBQ


[/COLOR][/COLOR]

 

[Legendteri]

Ok lots of questions so here you go

Questions of the Day So Far

1.Who are you going to Disney with? When are you going and how did you choose your dates?
I am going with my DH, DD 4 and DD 18 months. We are also going with my sister, her husband, my DNphew and my mother. Another sister and her boyfriend are thinking of tagging along too. We are going to be there Oct 20th through the 25th. We chose those dates because they are one of the least crowded times to go. I know a few people that went during the busy and hot summer season and they vowed never again.

2. Has anyone made ADR's yet? Did you get what you wanted? What did you pick?
If you haven't made your ADRs yet, what are you planning & when is your 180 day mark?
We are hoping to do the Princess dining at Akershus. I think the 180 day mark is April 24th.

3. What resort or hotel are you staying at? How did you decide on it & what are you most looking forward to there?
If you have not yet chosen, are you looking at offsite or on? What are your choices narrowed down to, if any?
We decided to stay offsite at a place called Worldquest Resort. I heard about it on a parenting forum and decided to check it out. On trip advisor it is ranked 8th out of all the hotels in Orlando and has some wonderful reviews. Many people described it as a hidden gem, and that they won't stay anywhere else. We are sharing a 1500 sq ft villa with 3 beds, 3 baths and a full kitchen all for $150 a night including fees and taxes. So essentially $50 a night for each family. It is also supposed to be very close to Epcot. I realize it isn't on the resort but we are trying to save some money and I think we might need a break from the DIsney stuff. Who knows, maybe one year we will be able to stay at the resort.

4. If you are staying onsite, will you do online checkin?

5. Are you keeping your trip a surprise?
Yes, we are. We plan on telling the little ones the day before we leave by having them go on a scavenger hunt.

6. How will you get to Walt Disney World and how do you plan to get around once you're there?
We are driving

7. What is your favorite classic & new Disney movie?
IS Beauty and the BEast considered classic yet ? We also loved Princess and the Frog and Tangled.

Oh wait, Swiss Family Robinson. I loved that movie and watched it all the time as a child

8. Do you have any little extras planned for your trip? Bippity Boppity? Pirates? etc?

We might try BBB. Not sure. I am also planning on bringing a bunch of Disney stuff down with us and have the kids go on a scavenger hunt every morning in our hotel room.

Are you celebrating anything special while you are at Disney World?

9. Which character is each of your family members (including) yourself most excited to meet at Disney World? How long are willing to wait to meet them?
I would say Rapunzel. I hope to not have to wait more than 40 minutes to see her.

10. What websites or other resources have you found helpful during your planning?

DIsney planning Guide DVD
Birnbaum's 2012 guide to WAlt Disney World
easywdw.com ( great great website)


11. What are the top 3 tips you've learned during planning so far?

1. If you want to avoid crowds avoid the parks that have EMH
2. Get to the park as soon as it opens ( or earlier) if you want to get the most done
3.AAA members have their own special parking lot

12. Are you planning to see Main Street Electrical Parade, Wishes, Illuminations, Fantasmic? Which 1 are you most looking forward to?

Maybe WIshes

13. Are you planning to see Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade, Move it Shake it parade, Dream Along with Mickey castle show, Pixar Pal's Countdown to Fun, or Mickey's Jammin Jungle Parade?

14. Arrival day plans
We aren't going to the parks on our first day in Orlando. I say the plan is to unload the car, go to Costco to buy some food, if we are feeling up to it maybe go to DOwntown Disney and then get everything ready for out trip to MK the next day.

15. Which attractions are you looking most forward to at each park?
MK- the new Fantasy LAnd

Epcot- Taking DD to see the princesses at Akerhaus and Soarin'

Animal Kingdom- Kilamanjaro Safaris

HS- I don't know, maybe Fantastsmic. We might not even go ot HS and try MK on another day

16. What are your plans for souvenir money?

17. What kind of bag, if any, are you taking to the parks?
Dont' really know. I suppose our diaper bag and we are thinking of getting insulated backpacks for drinks and snacks.

18. What are you planning to take to the park each day?
SNacks, drinks, diapers, manybe ponchos and DD's princess dresses.


19. Are you purchasing any photopass products? How will you document your trip afterward?
We might buy the photpass stuff. HAven't decided yet. We also plan on making a photobook.

20. What counter service restaurant do you think you will eat at?

Columbia HArbor House and The Flametree BBQ


[/COLOR][/COLOR]

 

[andieb0602]

9. Which character is each of your family members (including) yourself most excited to meet at Disney World? How long are willing to wait to meet them?

10. What websites or other resources have you found helpful during your planning?

11. What are the top 3 tips you've learned during planning so far?

12. Are you planning to see Main Street Electrical Parade, Wishes, Illuminations, Fantasmic? Which 1 are you most looking forward to?

13. Are you planning to see Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade, Move it Shake it parade, Dream Along with Mickey castle show, Pixar Pal's Countdown to Fun, or Mickey's Jammin Jungle Parade?

14. Arrival day plans

15. Which attractions are you looking most forward to at each park?

Ack! I've apparently missed a bunch of the QOTDs. That's what I get on rely on my email for the updates vs. actually checking the thread. Here goes:

DD will probably be most excited to meet Ariel - I'm hoping that she'll be at Akershus the night we eat there so I don't have to worry about standing in line to meet her at MK. DS will be most excited about Mickey and Pluto - thank goodness for character meals! I don't really have a favorite but I'd like to be able to see Rapunzel although I'm disappointed that Flynn won't be with her. DH is just along for the ride.

I've used the DIS boards, easywdw and touringplans the most in planning our trip.

Top 3 tips:

- Take rain gear even if it doesn't look like rain.
- Remain flexible.
- Take a midday break if you have little ones.

We'll probably see Wishes, Illuminations, Fantasmic (have a dining package) and the Electrical Parade. I think I'm the most excited about the Electrical Parade because it's one of the few things I remember from my trip when I was 5.

At this point I'm really not planning on seeing any of the other parades. They're not really my thing and I think we'll be at the resort resting when they occur. If we come across one, though, I'm sure the kids will con me in to stopping.

Our flight should get in around 1:15 pm on Saturday. Our plans consist of check-in and then heading to DTD. We have dinner reservations at Rainforest Cafe and I want to go to World of Disney to get us personalized mouse ears to wear our first day in the MK. I plan on taking an 8X10 photo mat with me to Chef Mickey's to have the Fab 5 sign. I plan on having a photopass photog take the family's picture in front of the castle wearing our ears, framing it with the mat and put it on our living room wall.

The attractions I'm looking forward to the most is a tough one. I get motion sickness so I can't do coasters. I'm going to have to say Dumbo in the MK since both my kids are excited about riding it. In Epcot it's Spaceship Earth. In AK I'm looking forward to Kilimanjaro Safaris and either Toy Story Mania or The Voyage of the Little Mermaid in DHS.

 

[andieb0602]

You feel like they do that too huh? I feel the same way! My $2500 trip turned into a I'm not even going to tell you how much trip, but it's easy to triple that I'd think.

DH and I laugh about the cost of the trip. When we married in 2000 he was just out of college and I was going back to school so we had a very modest wedding and honeymoon because we were paying for it mostly ourselves. (Church wedding w/ reception in the fellowship hall and honeymoon in Tampa.) This trip, once spending money is factored in, is now costing more than the wedding AND honeymoon combined.

I'm going to agree with either picking up sandwiches to eat at the airport or simply getting something to eat there. If you go to the MCO website you can see what restaurants are available. I do recall there's a Chick Fil A which my kids would happily eat for 3 meals a day.

 

[nvsnot]

I'm currently planning my 2nd trip, but I have a little tip for you 1st timers...
Counter service restaurants give free cups of ice water! I'd still bring a bottle of water to start off, but instead of weighing your carrying bag down with several bottles of water, you can always get a free cup of ice water at any counter service restaurant in the theme parks.