For those "we eat 90 % of meals in room" people....How much do you spend on groceries?

[jo-jo]

Thank you for all the replies. I took the advise to heart and added some items.

Aside from cost, one of the reasons we want to bring food into the parks, is getting CS for 10 and then trying to find place to sit. If we have the food with us, we can stop almost anywhere at anytime. Or if one kid is reeeeaaaaaalllly hungry, we have it with us.

Thanks again

 

[Chuck S]

As a person who has taken a group of 16, and taking a group of 11 later this year, I strongly advise against trying to move through the parks en masse. Break into family groups for most of the day, and only meet at a specific time for a special attraction or meal. Otherwise it is like herding cats.

 

[jo-jo]

As a person who has taken a group of 16, and taking a group of 11 later this year, I strongly advise against trying to move through the parks en masse. Break into family groups for most of the day, and only meet at a specific time for a special attraction or meal. Otherwise it is like herding cats.

View attachment 562470

The reason for the trip is so the cousins can be together and for us (grandma and grandpa) see them together.
There maybe be times the old kids (8, 11,16) ahead to TT, while the moms take the younger to Nemo and we are just heading into the park and we meet at the land.

The two 5 year old act like twins. They are beyond thrilled to be staying in the same room at the resort. We are beyond thrilled to be staying in a separate room.

 

[Best Aunt]

Aside from cost, one of the reasons we want to bring food into the parks, is getting CS for 10 and then trying to find place to sit. If we have the food with us, we can stop almost anywhere at anytime.

Where are you going to find a place for 10 people to sit together to eat lunch that you brought with you? (Maybe there is an obvious answer and I'm just not awake enough to figure it out.)

 

[jo-jo]

Where are you going to find a place for 10 people to sit together to eat lunch that you brought with you? (Maybe there is an obvious answer and I'm just not awake enough to figure it out.)

Just off the side somewhere....sitting on a wall/ bench. Not planning to take tables from CS.

 

[quandrea]

We come in at about $600 for twelve nights, five people.

ETA: I also do meal planning so I buy exactly what we need and avoid all waste. It’s time consuming but worth it. That way I have all the spices, etc that may not come to mind immediately. My goal is always to have empty cupboards on our last night.

 

[delmar411]

What size villa did you have? Curious, because we will have a 2 bedroom and a studio. I'm a tad concern if there will be enough space in fridge/ freezer.

On my list so far I have.....

2 packs -24 count frozen waffles
2 packs - 10 count fish patties
1 pack - 40 count fish sticks
2 bags - broccoli
2 bags- french fries
1 bag- 24 count mini corn on the cob
1 box- 12 count breakfast sandwiches
2 bags- 10 count chicken patties

Think there will be enough freezer space for all that?

Fridge would be

2 gallons milk,
96 oz grape juice
64 oz apple juice
59 oz orange juice
3 doz eggs
2 packages precooked sausage
1 lb packages of ham/ turkey/ roast beef/ pepperoni - 4 pounds total
4 8oz packages of cheese slices - 2 lbs total
2 8 ozcream cheese
36 ct string cheese (actually I plan to freeze the string cheese and use them to keep the sandwiches slightly cooler when we head out to parks)
1 pack hot dogs
2 packs cooked bratwaurst
strawberries, grapes, oranges.
peppers, cucumbers, celery,carrots
2 bags salad
2 pounds butter.
2 pts half and half
Peanut butter
Jelly

And then 3-4 packages each of rolls, bread, wraps,bagels, cookies, chips, pretzels, cereal, Juice boxes , soda, a couple of cases of water plus a few gallons of water for use in room. Few packages of mac and cheese and noodles/rice and sauce packs.

First night with the family, we are getting domino pizza (don't judge LOL)

On Sat when we arrive we are getting a small order from prime now, some milk, some juice,case of soda, case of water. Just enough for Sunday when the rest of the family arrive. I hope to order the walmart order for maybe about 5 or 6 in the evening so to be sure we have the 2 bedroom.

I think you are pushing it/exceeding it on freezer space. I would do canned or fresh veggies instead of frozen in order to fit the rest in. If you unbox the waffles, those tend to be easier to push into the gaps.

The freezer is just the top portion of a basic fridge. The cold foods will fit just fine in the fridge and the rest will just clutter up the counters and space will ease up as you make the meals.

Also the 2bedroom has plateware for the number of guests it sleeps so you shouldn't need to bring disposable. You can ask for a few extra sets at check in so you have them for the whole stay. If you find you need a few extra plates/utensils, grab that from the QS.

 

[jo-jo]

We come in at about $600 for twelve nights, five people.

ETA: I also do meal planning so I buy exactly what we need and avoid all waste. It’s time consuming but worth it. That way I have all the spices, etc that may not come to mind immediately. My goal is always to have empty cupboards on our last night.

I would like that too, but soooo hard with kids. Two bites one meal, two tons the next.

 

[jo-jo]

I think you are pushing it/exceeding it on freezer space. I would do canned or fresh veggies instead of frozen in order to fit the rest in. If you unbox the waffles, those tend to be easier to push into the gaps.

The freezer is just the top portion of a basic fridge. The cold foods will fit just fine in the fridge and the rest will just clutter up the counters and space will ease up as you make the meals.

Also the 2bedroom has plateware for the number of guests it sleeps so you shouldn't need to bring disposable. You can ask for a few extra sets at check in so you have them for the whole stay. If you find you need a few extra plates/utensils, grab that from the QS.

I didn't even think of asking for extra plates, but mostly using paper to cut down on time on clean up time. Last trip we did paper and still ran the dish washer once a day.

 

[Evita_W]

As a person who has taken a group of 16, and taking a group of 11 later this year, I strongly advise against trying to move through the parks en masse. Break into family groups for most of the day, and only meet at a specific time for a special attraction or meal. Otherwise it is like herding cats.

View attachment 562470

Also, right now Disney is asking groups of 10 or more to split into smaller groups when dining, in queues, shows, etc.

 

[jo-jo]

Also, right now Disney is asking groups of 10 or more to split into smaller groups when dining, in queues, shows, etc.

I'm not sure what all this means. If it means, some of us stand on one marker and the rest stand on another 4 ft away, that's no big deal. If it means in a show, some of us sit in one row and the rest in a row 6 ft away, again no big deal.

That's a big difference from parting ways and meeting up for a couple of rides and a meal over the course of 8 -10 hours. Actually for we will probably only be together in the parks for a max of 4-5 hours a day. Half the time, it will be just the moms and kids.

 

[nordkin]

What size villa did you have? Curious, because we will have a 2 bedroom and a studio. I'm a tad concern if there will be enough space in fridge/ freezer.

On my list so far I have.....

2 packs -24 count frozen waffles
2 packs - 10 count fish patties
1 pack - 40 count fish sticks
2 bags - broccoli
2 bags- french fries
1 bag- 24 count mini corn on the cob
1 box- 12 count breakfast sandwiches
2 bags- 10 count chicken patties

Think there will be enough freezer space for all that?

Fridge would be

2 gallons milk,
96 oz grape juice
64 oz apple juice
59 oz orange juice
3 doz eggs
2 packages precooked sausage
1 lb packages of ham/ turkey/ roast beef/ pepperoni - 4 pounds total
4 8oz packages of cheese slices - 2 lbs total
2 8 ozcream cheese
36 ct string cheese (actually I plan to freeze the string cheese and use them to keep the sandwiches slightly cooler when we head out to parks)
1 pack hot dogs
2 packs cooked bratwaurst
strawberries, grapes, oranges.
peppers, cucumbers, celery,carrots
2 bags salad
2 pounds butter.
2 pts half and half
Peanut butter
Jelly

And then 3-4 packages each of rolls, bread, wraps,bagels, cookies, chips, pretzels, cereal, Juice boxes , soda, a couple of cases of water plus a few gallons of water for use in room. Few packages of mac and cheese and noodles/rice and sauce packs.

First night with the family, we are getting domino pizza (don't judge LOL)

On Sat when we arrive we are getting a small order from prime now, some milk, some juice,case of soda, case of water. Just enough for Sunday when the rest of the family arrive. I hope to order the walmart order for maybe about 5 or 6 in the evening so to be sure we have the 2 bedroom.

We also ordered Domino's Pizza the first night. We had a two bedroom and two studios at Beach Club. It may be a little tight with the refrigerator, but putting juices on the door helps a lot and we put water in the refrigerator in the studios. I had my Walmart delivery at 6 and they were right on time. Watch your email for items that are not available. We only had 3 and following the instructions in the email made the refund easy. I would definitely use Walmart again because it save us so much money.

 

[eandt]

Don't forget that when you are at home you have a lot of things like spices, flour, sugar, salt, pepper, etc. Already in your kitchen; however, you won't have that and those things add up fast. Honestly, we have tried easting in the room and find the price difference is so minimal, it isn't worth having more than a few things for a quick breakfast like some bagels and cream cheese in the room and then eat lunch and dinner in the parks.

Agree with this. We drive so we still bring things with us like water, adult beverages, and maybe some snacks but we eat at the resorts/parks almost exclusively, a lot of times sharing things for breakfast/lunch since portions can be large and then doing a sit down dinner.

One other way to save a few bucks and have less headaches with prep/clean up is to order food from outside the resort, we have done pizza and subs. Order directly from the restaurant to avoid all the fees of "Eats" and "Dash" type services. Restaurants will deliver right to the lobby, just have to meet them there. One other thing we learned is things like beer can be purchased by the 6 pack at the resort stores, its still pricey but a lot less (less than half) than paying the per drink prices at the pool bar.

 

[Shellybird]

We love ordering food for the room — mainly for breakfast and some dinners — easy stuff. Pasta with good brands of sauce. A few frozen family meals. Lunch meat, cheese, cut-up veggies. Microwave popcorn. Fresh fruit. We’ve done it many times now, so we have learned to get things we can pack home if at all possible. We don’t order a ton of frozen foods because of the size of the freezers, as you have already thought about. We typically spend around $300-350 for a week for 2 or 3 of us. That includes lots of snacks to carry with us in the parks and wine for the adults at night. We are a family that spends a decent amount of time at the resort, not just the parks. Have a great trip!

 

[Evita_W]

I'm not sure what all this means. If it means, some of us stand on one marker and the rest stand on another 4 ft away, that's no big deal. If it means in a show, some of us sit in one row and the rest in a row 6 ft away, again no big deal.

That's a big difference from parting ways and meeting up for a couple of rides and a meal over the course of 8 -10 hours. Actually for we will probably only be together in the parks for a max of 4-5 hours a day. Half the time, it will be just the moms and kids.

It means that you have to split up into smaller groups in the queues, at tables, etc. For example when getting in line, you will need to have separate groups and when asked how many in your party you would say the number in your group, for example if you did two groups of six, you would say six. Just know that if there are parties using an alternate entrance, there is a possibility that your groups will get split up, even in the queue area.

At restaurants, the maximum number of chairs at a table is usually six, you will usually find that there won't be many tables for six near each other either and they are pretty strict on not moving chairs. Just a heads up and honestly trying to keep that large of a party together for 4-5 hours a day is hard.

 

[jo-jo]

It means that you have to split up into smaller groups in the queues, at tables, etc. For example when getting in line, you will need to have separate groups and when asked how many in your party you would say the number in your group, for example if you did two groups of six, you would say six. Just know that if there are parties using an alternate entrance, there is a possibility that your groups will get split up, even in the queue area.

At restaurants, the maximum number of chairs at a table is usually six, you will usually find that there won't be many tables for six near each other either and they are pretty strict on not moving chairs. Just a heads up and honestly trying to keep that large of a party together for 4-5 hours a day is hard.

Thanks for the heads up about the queue. We don't plan on any restaurants. At most, we might do a CS, and in the past we had to split up most times, so that will be the same.

 

[Missingmypooh]

We are doing a trip in a month from now. DH, DD, DIL and 6 grandkids ages 4, 5, 5,8, 11, 16 and myself. So ten people in two rooms. No TS. One day we will eat counter service in Epcot. (more space to spread out.)
Plans are ....

breakfast in room, cereal, waffles, breakfast sandwich, bagels, juice, milk, fruit

Lunch in park, either ham/turkey/ cheese or PB&J sandwiches, cookies, chips/gold fish , water , juice box

Dinner in room, chicken nuggets, hot dogs/sausage, mac & cheese, frozen fish, salad, veggies , etc

No steak, lobster or cavier.

Adding it all up, pushing $400. actually it's more, but not counting paper plates, cups, etc and laundry detergent. , I know there are real plates in the 2 bedroom, but that's more work too. We will use some of them but there wouldn't be enough for all of us anyway.

Looking at list , it seems like ton of food. Anyone else get shocked at shopping list for disney?

But then again, I've never planned on feeding 10 people for days on end.

Month from now, park hours will be quite late.

you said parks are closing at 6... and they definitely aren’t. You should check the times for your trip!

 

[Marionnette]

Month from now, park hours will be quite late.

you said parks are closing at 6... and they definitely aren’t. You should check the times for your trip!

A month from today, AK closes at 5:00, MK closes at 6:00 and HS & Epcot close at 7:00.

Not exactly "quite late". The sun will not have even set when all parks are closed.

 

[jo-jo]

Month from now, park hours will be quite late.

you said parks are closing at 6... and they definitely aren’t. You should check the times for your trip!

I just did on the WDW site. MK closes at 6, Epcot 7 , HS 7 and AK 5.

Do you see some other times listed somewhere else?

I know Disney has been changing hours, but I don't see anything that is posted.

 

[Shellyred8]

I just did on the WDW site. MK closes at 6, Epcot 7 , HS 7 and AK 5.

Do you see some other times listed somewhere else?

I know Disney has been changing hours, but I don't see anything that is posted.

Disney has been changing hours even just a week in advance. So make sure to keep an eye on the hours, as they may change.

One other thing I wanted to share: one of the last times we were stayed at BWV in a 1br, the full sized fridge was a bit smaller than what we've seen in other 1br's at other resorts, and even at BWV. I'm thinking it was a replacement of a a regular full sized fridge. So, just a heads-up that you could run into this issue. We didn't have any issues with it because we just don't put that much in it. But for your trip, it could be an issue.

It sounds like a great trip!!! Have fun!!!