Free water?

[shaun&miranda]

I've been to WDW three times in recent years, but always in December. This year I am going at the end of May to get married

Clearly I am expecting the weather in mid-end of May to be different than it is in December, and I know it is going to be hot.

I've read some people's posts that "ice water is free". I've never seen this in December - we had to buy our $2 bottles of Dasani like everyone else.

Is it different in summer? Do they really give water away for free in the parks when it's hot? Or is there a particular place you go to get the free ice water? Or are we talking drinking fountains?

Thanks everyone - hints and tips most appreciated!

Miranda

 

[Experiment #626]

From my experience, it is tap water.

 

[hogue123]

You know when you go out to eat somewhere and you get your own fountain drinks? You can select from different pops, lemonade, fruit punch etc? Most of the time there is a button for water. This is where they get the water when you ask for the free water (at least that's been our experience). They do not give away bottles of water.

 

[dislovr]

you can go to any counter service place and ask for a glass of ice water and they will give it to you for free. yes it is tap water but IMO it is quite tasty...some places they even have lemon if you ask

 

[quiltymom]

If you want a large glass, ask for one. Otherwise you will get the small, kid's sized cup with ice water.

 

[AliciaS]

I'm sure they mean free tap water - ick! I can't even drink the fountain drinks there because it's made with that nasty Disney water.

We were given free bottles of water one trip, when it was over 95 degrees! Disney must have figured it was better to hand out water than have people passing out.

 

[shaun&miranda]

Thanks folks - I had this image in my head of Disney giving out free mineral water in the summer and thought is seemed too good to be true

Miranda

 

[ZoZo]

They will give you a free cup of ice water at any CS restaurant if you ask. But I think it tastes much better than the water that comes out of the drinking fountains (and I'm a former Florida resident, so I'm picky!). You can even refill a water bottle with their cup of water, if you want - plus, it's cold!

I pretty much stopped carrying around a heavy water bottle when I found out you can get a cup of ice water. I keep one of those mini-bottles in my backpack, but don't lug around a heavy one any more.

 

[MEM]

They will give you a free cup of ice water at any CS restaurant if you ask. But I think it tastes much better than the water that comes out of the drinking fountains (and I'm a former Florida resident, so I'm picky!).

That's true for me too - the ice water temporarily deadens my tastebuds and the sulphur-y taste isn't so bad.

 

[MarylandMommy]

You can ask for free water and bring individual serving sizes packets of crystal lite (or kool aid for the kids).

 

[quiltymom]

I've also seen these for sports drinks - either Gatorade or Powerade. I can't remember which.

 

[rlrx]

We just bought water bottles that have a filter in them. We spent so much on bottled water last year (even on DDP using snack credits for water sometimes) that we decided to invest in the bottles. They are around $30 a piece and are a brand called Purity. They come with 3 filters that last 60 days each. We even filter our water at home so I'm sure we wouldn't like the taste of the Disney water. We'll just fill them up at a drinking fountain.

 

[Ratpack]

I was going to suggest the same thing...get the free ice water and then we use the little packets of ice tea, lemonade, koolaid, etc. Most of these can be found in sugar free too. Wal Mart has their own brand of these too. Very inexpensive and deadens the "tap taste" of the water.
Another tip to save on drinks down there in the hot sun!

 

[smiller]

I love that you can just walk into any CS and get a cup of water - the nice CMs at Pecos Bill even gave me one when they were closed! I really don't mind the flavor - it's cold and refreshing, just what I'm looking for.

 

[NotUrsula]

It's not really "tap water" exactly, it is coming from the water supply through the soft-drink fountains, and the fountains all have filters on the water intakes.

Be aware that at CS restaurants, you still need to go through the register line and "order" the water at the cash register, so that you can present the ticket at the window to get the water. The receipt will ring up at $.00, but you still need to take the time to wait in line, which can sometimes be awhile if the parks are crowded. It's usually quicker to go to the larger "stand" type vendors, they will be able to do it if the stand has a soft-drink fountain, but will not be able to if it does not.

 

[Jen76b]

I was going to suggest the same thing...get the free ice water and then we use the little packets of ice tea, lemonade, koolaid, etc. Most of these can be found in sugar free too. Wal Mart has their own brand of these too. Very inexpensive and deadens the "tap taste" of the water.
Another tip to save on drinks down there in the hot sun!

That's what we do. I bring a 16oz sports bottle (the kind with the insulation around it) for each person and we just cups of water and everyone picks which kind of Crystal Light they want (I love the iced tea!). The sports bottles fit easily in my bag but also makes it easier to carry around than a cup.

 

[tadamom]

This is an awesome tip! We will be using this one when we go!!! Thanks!