Refillabe cups..are they worth it??

[bamamom]

I was wondering if you can only use the refillable mugs at your hotel are they really worth it since you will be at the parks all day(when you need the drink the most) Are the refill stations open all night? If you go to parks in a.m. & don't return to after the parks have closed will you be able to refill your mug or will it be closed? This is our first trip as a family and onsite so I'm trying to find out as much as I can We are a family of 4, Me, DH, DS9 and DD 7, that would be $48 for drinks that you can't take to the parks. Trying to decide if this is a good deal....TIA

 

[*Fantasia*]

Are you going to have breakfast first before you go to the park? Are you going to have dinner at the resort after the park? Some food court are open 24/7, some are only open untill 11pm or 12midnight. If you're going to find yourself eating at the resort more then I say it's worth it. But if you're skipping breakfast there and dinner there and out all day long, then it's not worth it.

It is always worth it to us because we sometimes have breakfast at the resort and we always snack and have lunch sometimes during mid-break. And we usually leave the park before the park closes and we sometimes have dinner at the resort. We use our refill mugs a lot... so it is worth it.

 

[Disney_1derland]

I was wondering if you can only use the refillable mugs at your hotel are they really worth it since you will be at the parks all day(when you need the drink the most) Are the refill stations open all night? If you go to parks in a.m. & don't return to after the parks have closed will you be able to refill your mug or will it be closed? This is our first trip as a family and onsite so I'm trying to find out as much as I can We are a family of 4, Me, DH, DS9 and DD 7, that would be $48 for drinks that you can't take to the parks. Trying to decide if this is a good deal....TIA

The food court at POP opens at 6:30 and closes at midnight but the drink machines were always in service when we were there because they are outside the actual food court area. NOt sure if this is true at other places.

The mugs are $11.50(I think!) and look at it this way....if it's $2 each time you want a drink at your resort will you get $11.50 out of it?

In May I was there for 5 nights/6 days and I filled up twice in the morning before leaving the resort, once at midday when coming back from the parks, once in early evening on way back to parks and at least once after we returned in the evenings. So, I would have spent $10 a day on drinks without the mug. Plus I didn't have to wait in line to pay each time which saved me time which I consider valuable.

I know it seems like a huge chunk, but look at the individual cost involved per person. Will the kids drink enough to justify it? My dd didn't so I didn't buy her one, she was okay with that.

Have a great time!

 

[Dreamer Kevin]

I agree it depends on how much you'll actually use them. They're great if you'll eat at your resort, as it's amazing how much a couple of drinks a day can cost. If not, the value you might get from them is as a souvenir.

 

[Aimeedyan]

They have not proven to be worth it for us, but are for many families.

When we stayed at Caribbean Beach, we were (what seemed to be) miles from the main building and it was a trek to get a refill. So we ended up not refilling hardly at all and would rather grab cokes at WalMart and ice them.

Our last two resort trips have been split-stays, so we didn't stay long enough at any one hotel to make it worth it.

We don't eat at the hotel if we can help it, and we always have our own transportation so we can easily get canned or 20 ouncers at the store. Since lots of the hotels have fridges that works out really well now.

BUt if you are going to dine at your hotel more than once or twice, or have a day off at the pool and to hang around the hotel, it might be worth it. But if you have access to bringing in drinks you can cool down in your room, or plan to not be in your hotel much, it's not worth it.

 

[ChrisAlli]

I still have a souvenier mug from my honeymoon 6 years ago and use it everyday for coffee. I was thinking of taking this October to use while there, same resort as honeymoon. Is that wierd???

Do they have juice at the stations or just soda?? I now have a three year old and will only get one if they have juice and water available.

 

[Disney_1derland]

I still have a souvenier mug from my honeymoon 6 years ago and use it everyday for coffee. I was thinking of taking this October to use while there, same resort as honeymoon. Is that wierd???

Do they have juice at the stations or just soda?? I now have a three year old and will only get one if they have juice and water available.

You'll find this to be a hot topic here. The official policy is that your mug is good ONLY on the visit it was purchased during.

 

[Carol1973]

Here's a tip I got about using the refillable mugs when you have the dining plan. You are allowed a beverage on the dining plan and also with your refillable mug. So choose bottled water for your beverage on the dining plan and take it with you to the parks. Use the refillable mug for your drink with your meal. I don't think I would have thought of that. Great idea.

 

[NYMomof4]

We were there last year with the mugs and it was great for my family-we took pool breaks and with the heat it was nice to get all the free refills. We made our money back in the first 2 days of 7 days. I also got morning coffee which I would have paid about $2/morning for normally. I'd say that any trip 3 or more days would be worth it.

 

[Atotty]

What do ya'll think? On our other trips, mugs were the first thing we bought as we walked into the Food Court and we used them extensively.....even when we were a **long** way from Mara at AKL.

Now, however, since POR has refrigerators I'm thinking about stopping at Walmart (Ok, Ok I confess...sending dh to Walmart while we swim ) and stocking up on drinks. Mugs for 5 = $60ish. If we only drink canned drinks, juice, and bottled water from Walmart....I don't think there's any way we'd come close to spending that much in a week...and we won't have to walk anywhere to get it. Plus if we eat at the Food Court, we're on the meal plan and a drink is included.

So what do ya'll think...buy the mugs or pick up drinks for the room? We're not looking for another souvenir...I already have 5 AKL mugs and 5 POR mugs and have run out of storage space.

 

[sugermouse]

Just using mine for coffee in the morning I come out ahead.

 

[*Fantasia*]

Here's a tip I got about using the refillable mugs when you have the dining plan. You are allowed a beverage on the dining plan and also with your refillable mug. So choose bottled water for your beverage on the dining plan and take it with you to the parks. Use the refillable mug for your drink with your meal. I don't think I would have thought of that. Great idea.

You mean bring your refillable mugs with you at a full service dining? Hmmm... I just can't imagine my family bringing the refill mugs at a nice restaurants at GF. It looks kind of tacky, doesn't it? Well.. at least I think so.

 

[goodferry]

I think what Carol meant was at the food courts to use your refillable mugs and then to get a bottle of water as your drink on the dining plan.
We didn't come out ahead the one time we got mugs. None of us drink soda, and DH just has the one cup of coffee each day, so for us, they are not a savings.

 

[PatsGirl]

I hadn't considered coffee. Do the mugs keep it relatively hot? We are doing a split stay and will have a coffee pot (I think, correct me if I"m wrong) at CSR but was going to bring one for POP for a 6-day stay. If I can get away with not packing it, all the better.

So, does the coffee stay hot? Are the cups hot/cold style?

Thanks. Brenda

 

[allshookup]

Yes they are hot/cold mugs & the coffee stays fairly hot. We are a family of 4 & we buy 2 everytime we go. When you figure out what one cup of coffee costs & multiply it by the number of days you are there, it ends up being a savings after I think 4 days? They do make a great souvenier & I continue to use all of mine when taking coffee to go at home.

 

[dyna]

In more than a dozen visits to WDW stayin on site never bought a refill mug. Always drive so we take our own drinks that we'd drink at the resort with us when we leave home. I can not imagine having to walk to the food court every time I wanted a drink then to only get a small drink. As far as using the mug once I was home I got others I've picked up for next to nothing that I sometimes use out at the pool or when working in yard. When I leave my house my drink in a can goes with me if I gonna be gone more than an hour I got a cooler that holds a dozen cans of pop and it goes.

 

[stemikger]

Definitely worth it.

We had coffee in the morning, soda throughout the day and those wonderful frozen cokes.

Plus it's a nice little gift to bring home.

 

[aubriee]

It wasn't worth it to us. We don't drink coffee and are seldom at the resort, except to sleep. I thought about buying one when I was solo at POP in May, just for a souvenier, but when I saw how small they were, decided against it. Saying that, my D-I-L has said she wants one for a souvenier when we go in Sept, so we may all wind up buying one. I just can't see using it just once in the morning to get a small soda, carrying it around all day, then maybe running in at night, if we get back to the resort in time. I guess it depends on how much time you'll be staying at your resort. I'd rather ice down some sodas and have them availabe in the room when I need them.

 

[hbg4]

I think it's very much worth the money.

I usually get a refill cup for my DD. I fill it with coffee during the early morning for myself. Later on the way out to the parks I fill it with soda for her and then empty this into an empty water bottle for safer transport. On our return back to the resort it is refilled and emptied alternatively for drinks between us including hot chocolate or milk for cereal.

Remember the mugs are refillable. No-one says they are not transferable between members of your family.

Is it really neccessary to get refillable cups for all 4 members of your family?

We stayed at Beach club. The drinks station closed with the shop at 11p.
When we went to the casual restaurants such as Beaches and Cream or Hurricane Hannahs, I would order the bottled water and my DD would have her refillable mug refilled for her meal and again on the way out.

 

[serenitynow]

If you switch resorts during your visit (resort hopping) do you have to buy a refillable mug for each resort or can you use the mug you just purchased at the other resort??