special trip to Walmart worth it?

[jubelee1872000]

Dh ds10 and ds5 will be at aoa in november and we are staying 5 nights and six days..we were not planning on getting a car to save money and using magical express and disney buses...so my question...do you think that it is worth it to pay for a cab and take it to walmart for snacks and souvenirs before going to our resort? Or do u think we should just skip it and save our money for disney parks and ship or bring our snacks?

 

[tasha99]

I would look into having stuff delivered. It will be more expensive than Walmart, but once you pay a cab and spend precious vacation time, I think you might come out ahead.

 

[MomToOne]

I personally wouldn't bother. I think the cost of a cab will negate any significant savings, and it will add frustration/stress when you really just want to be on vacation relaxing.

Instead, come up with some scheme to keep your kids under control on the souvenier front (give them a budget, tell them they only get one or two, etc). Then pack a few snacks that travel well in your suitcases, and call it good.

 

[deakam]

Pre shop. I do it every trip. I shop at the local Disney store or on line. You can get some really good deals if you do it a little here and a little there. On the last trip we took we forgot the little umbrella stroller we like to take so we took the cab to Wal mart. It cost forty dollars round trip. We got a $15.00 stroller but we also picked up a case of beer for my nephew and several bottles of wine. We did save money because drinks are really expensive.

I don't think I would do it again. The Walmart was crazy busy at 10pm. I can not even imagine what it would be like during the day.

 

[tzeitel]

What airline are you flying? I ask because we took an extra suitcase filled with toys, snacks and breakfast foods - flying Southwest you get 2 free bags per person, JetBlue is one per person.

You could also do a carry on filled with snacks, it is what I use to do before we flew SW. DH & DD had their own carry-ons so it was easy for me to have my purse and a big tote full of food

 

[DisneyTravelers2008]

There are several places that will deliver groceries for you. I think Garden Grocer is one. And prices are reasonable. I was pleasantly surprised. I would buy some "Disney Surprises" for the kids ahead of time and hide them in your suitcase. Or, sometimes we give them a set souvineer ...and that helps with the temptation to want to buy everything they see...

 

[sarah4770]

If it were a family of four, I might think otherwise, but get a 2l bottle of soda and milk and pack some granola bars, etc. I dont think you will save much by getting a cab.

 

[Jenny3]

I'd pack a bag with souvenirs and snacks. Last time we went, I got some fantastic deals and on clearance at the Disney store and consignment shops on stuffed animals, sweatshirts, tees, light-up Mickeys, mouse ears, etc. Your resort should have a convenience shop for milk and other small items you may need.

 

[Happyjen27]

Probably not worth it. Perishables you can buy on property, shelf stable snacks can be packed. We packed a suitcase full of food on our way down, and had it filled with souveniers on the way back. You can pre-shop for souveniers, or limit what you spend. My 5 year olds each had $25 cash and $25 on a gift card to buy souveniers, it was theirs to spend how they wished and kept me from saying "no" all trip.

 

[kaytieeldr]

I would look into having stuff delivered. It will be more expensive than Walmart, but once you pay a cab and spend precious vacation time, I think you might come out ahead.

We Go Shop will shop at the one store of the customer's choice, for a fee much lower than round trip cab fare (and no impulse purchases ).

Walgreen's and Walmart everywhere have some Disney souvenirs.

 

[tvguy]

I'd just bite the bullet and pay resort prices. I budget for that when we go to Disneyland. I don't think it's worth the time and effort to go to Walmart, and the last thing I want to lug with me on vacation is a suitcase full of food!

 

[ssawka]

Do you have Amazon Prime? That might be an option, although I know sometimes with Amazon it is difficult to order food in small quantities.

Other ideas are:

1. As PPs have said, fill up an empty suitcase with items you will need/want.
2. Ship a box to your resort, however be aware that some resorts charge a handling fee. Also, if you take this approach, ship via FedEx or UPS. Do not use USPS, it takes much longer because it will be processed through a mail handling facility.

 

[jubelee1872000]

We are flying Spirit Airlines and they charge $25 checked bag and $30 for carryons. : ) Right now I have marked that we will have 3 checked bags..we can also all bring a "personal" item, like a small backpack or purse. I don't know if I will have the room to bring the snacks with me..I will try..lol..

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

I usually rent a car for one day either from Avis which located at the Hilton across the street from DTD which is easy for us because we stay at SSR or Alamo location onsite.

Usually cost me $20-$25 dollars. We get to go where ever and when ever we want for a whole 24 hours. We eat our meals offsite while we have the car and the money we save by eating offsite more than pays for the rental car. So the car ends up be free and I got the chance to pick up some items at the store.


**oh wanted to mention with Avis rent the compact car because its cheaper and they have never had a compact car when I have gone to pick the car up so they have given me a midsize.

 

[hsmamato2]

nope you have 5 days for vacation, don't waste it on a trip to Walmart! You're spending a large chunk to be at WDW anyway(even with a discount) it is NOT worth the hassle and time to do it! Even if you pay a bit more for a few things,it's only 5 days! You can give your kids a set amount for spending ahead of time,which solves the souvenir issue..... I wouldn't bother ordering groceries for only 5 days either,it's pricey,and again, the time taken from your expensive trip to save $10 just isn't worth it....

 

[danceintherain]

I wouldn't bother with a cab. We did do a grocery stop on our last trip, but we had a rental car for Universal anyways. Now DH wants a car every time we go.
Cabs are expensive at Disney, and if you had to make the cab wait for you at Walmart, it probably would cost more.
We spent around $15 each way on cabs while we were there within the property, so I expect off property would probably be at least that...so you're looking at possibly spending $40 just to get there.
At that point, it almost makes sense to just check an extra bag with everything you want.

 

[CocaColaGuy]

When we went in December, we found a "Free Shipping on Orders Over $50" thing for walmart.com. We used it for cases of water, breakfast foods, and a few small other items. It was actually pretty easy to get to $50. We had it shipped to our resort, and the packages were delivered with our luggage from the Magical Express!

 

[topolino]

Maybe I'm missing something, but wouldn't a souvenir purchased at WalMart kind of defeat the purpose? When I think back to the souvenirs I bought or were bought for me as a kid on our family WDW trips, what makes them special is that they were bought *at* WDW.

 

[Granny square]

Maybe I'm missing something, but wouldn't a souvenir purchased at WalMart kind of defeat the purpose? When I think back to the souvenirs I bought or were bought for me as a kid on our family WDW trips, what makes them special is that they were bought *at* WDW.

I agree. We got one souvenir an I still have most!