There goes our food budget...any ideas?

[cooniez]

So we are at Target today picking up some necessities for our trip in a week, and I mentioned that maybe we should pick up some water and some paper products for when we eat breakfast at the hotel. DH looks at me and says we won't need that much water because we'll have drinks with our meal at the park and will be eating our meals there, too. I looked at him and asked him why would I want to pay $4 for a soda when that $ can go to something better and he just says "We're on vacation".

Okay, so now it looks like I'm going to need some tips on how to make the most of our $ while trying to eat in/around DL. I know there are some threads here, but having trouble pulling them up with the search engine/feature. Any tips on how I can have (possibly) most of my meals at the park w/out blowing the bank? I am subbed to the thread on coupons, but it looks like park coupons are pretty limited. TIA!

 

[momstable]

You will still probably want to bring water bottles to the park. Walking around in the sun can dehydrate you pretty quickly. And you won't want to stand in line for a soda at that point or find a drinking fountain.

I went at the end of February in the rain, and still drank quite a bit of the water that I brought to the parks that day.

 

[raftislander]

First, besides saving money, one of the reasons I like to eat at hotel -as opposed to the parks- is the time factor. You can get soooo much done at Disneyland if you are there at rope drop- fed- and ready for action. So you might try this tack with you husband.

As for saving money eating in the park.... bring Crystal Light an Lipton "TO GO" individual packets to add to the free cup of ice water that you can ask for at any restaurant. Buying sodas with each meal can add up quickly. We figured we saved between $4 to 7 at each meal doing this.

Split meals..most portions are large. We had three in our party- all with good appetites and would get two meals for the three of us with plenty to go around. THis also allowed for more room (and $$) for some treat in the afternoon. Also check out the kids meals. If you are not at a table service, you will have no problem ordering these - even if an adult is going to eat it.

Are you staying off property? If so and you are taking a daily midday break from the parks, pick up lunch at a nearby Subway or Quiznos

There is a Target on Harbor. So if you get down there and decide you need some food items...you can adjust.

 

[VallCopen]

Like the PP said, take drinks into the park that will help a lot. We share meals too, it has always been plenty of food for us. We always do breakfast in our room to save money and then eat out the rest of the day, sometimes just a snack for one of the other meals and then one bigger meal and sometimes we do 2 meals. We usually get fruit, yogurt, and cereal to keep in the room as well as the drinks and snacks to take into the park or have at night. Good luck and have fun.

 

[LavenderPeach]

Like PPs, we always eat breakfast in the hotel. For lunches and dinners we sometimes split meals or we get cheaper things (baked potatoes, corn dogs). We also like to have some nicer meals but we always order water with our meals, not sodas. And we definitely bring our own water bottles with us.

Hope that helps!

 

[dismom73]

My family has the same "vacation" mentality as your DH, we don't leave the parks once we are there, we get soda with our meals etc. However, we keep lots of bottled water in our hotel room because while we allow the kids to drink and eat "crap" at the parks, when we are in the room getting ready for bed or getting ready to leave its water water water, so they don't get dehydrated but they still get to drink what they want on "vacation". Also, if your entire family is getting ready in the morning it can take up to an hour or more to get ready, some kids get out of bed hungry, so it's wise to keep stuff in the room like cereal, pop tarts, granola bars or fruit. We also share meals and/or get kids meals. My DH always gets his own, but my oldest DD and I will share and my two youngest DD's will share(or get kids meals), we just get everyone thier own drink and it works out fine.

 

[specialks]

Check out this thread:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2476637&highlight=food+budget

 

[lisah0711]

We bring our stainless steel water bottle to the park with us. It is empty when we go through the bag check and the turnstiles. Then DH fills it as we need it. He attaches it to his "park warrior" vest (which is a photography vest) with a carbiner clip. Works great if you have someone willing to be the carrier of the family stuff.

 

[VivekB]

Are you sure you're married? You guys listen to each other a lot more than me/my wife do.

Do what my wife did last time; ignore him, bring those cool re-fillable water bottles that have a strap on them so you can sling them around your shoulder. (I think places like REI have them, no idea about target). You only need 1-2 of them if you're okay with sharing. That was a score, thank god she ignored my request.

But oho, I ignored her opinion too! Despite her protests, I brought protein bars & those little bags of nuts/raisins last time, mainly b/c I didn't want to stand in a food line and I *knew* the kids would whine about being hungry after being in a ride line for 45 mins, with another 15 mins to go. (cough NEMO cough). And sure enough, I didn't have a chance to eat any of the nuts/raisins because the kids *and* the wife scarfed them all down. I had my protein bars though, plus her water bottles, so I was content.

(and not to be crude, but a smaller mass of ingested material means less frequent bathroom trips, I swear my 6 year old takes 15 mins every time.)

 

[Funball]

ok don't know if this may help you OP, but i read that you could not find any threads on meal budgeting! soo i searched the threads for you! i don't know if this will help you,but these links may have suggestions that other members have tried.

and this is what i came up with:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2478588&highlight=meal+budgets

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2475374&highlight=meal+budgets

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2455531&highlight=meal+budgets

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2476637&highlight=meal+budgets

personally, i do a set number in my head for food, and try and not go over that-that icnludes using credit card! but that works for me, that does not work for other people and as i kinda agree with your DH, i also agree with you that you can save a few bucks toward something else, like a new t-shirt or something, also loading up on snacks at target is a good money saver! as you can have those in your hotel room an use them when ever needed, you can pack a snack or two in your backpack for the park etc....... anyhow happy food budgeting!!

 

[Gisele]

(and not to be crude, but a smaller mass of ingested material means less frequent bathroom trips, I swear my 6 year old takes 15 mins every time.)

I say pull ups! Conveniently available in both junior and adult sizes alike. And they come in different prints too. So not only will one be ready to go, well anywhere, but will be fashionable too! I hear there are Disney prints available too! Hey .... bonus! Also coupons are available almost always too!

 

[bumbershoot]

Well, not to state the obvious, but just because he wants to "vacation" that way doesn't mean you have to! So get the water and throw it in the car. You will almost surely use it, and it is very likely that your husband will really be happy about it, the third time he has go and buy another round of $3 waters for the family. In a day.

... and I *knew* the kids would whine about being hungry after being in a ride line for 45 mins, with another 15 mins to go. (cough NEMO cough).

You are a VERY smart person to acknowledge this. I tell you, when your kid starts whining about being hungry, and when you think back on how much energy they've expended and what their caloric intake was in comparison, and you realize that you've messed up and not fueled the kid in a bit too long....the feeling of having that bottle of CHEAP cold water AND a granola bar or protein bar ready to whip out is like you're a superhero.


The less you spend on $3 bottled water means the MORE you'll have for the next trip. I promise.

And you can, at the same time that you have the water in a soft cooler, order beverages with your meals...just means you are just paying for that meal's drink, and not the 8 bottles of water EACH that you probably should ALSO be drinking that day!

 

[disneygirlinphoenix]

GOOD LORD!!!! Sounds like my DH. He SEETHES when he sees me taking in a case of water to DLH, and groceries. (he thinks we look "white trash") boy, he changes his tune when we have snacks and water in the park, cause with 3 kids, all we hear all day is... Im hungry, Im thirsty, I need a treat, I want, I need, Please... Oh wait did I say 3 kids, I meant 4. Forgot to include the DH !!

So do what makes you comfortable. The way I see it, the $ I save doing that is $ that can be spent on something memorable, not something injestable. (sic)

 

[PHXscuba]

Even though we're on vacation, I have to limit our soda intake so we don't all get loopy from the sugar. Our rule is one soda per day, so if the kids have it with lunch, they don't get it with dinner. I'll get them a free cup of water with the non-soda meal.

My DDs are pretty good about splitting a big drink. It's more cost-effective than buying two regular drinks that they often don't finish. Or buy a bottled drink/water that can have the lid put back on and thrown in a pack. We also bring in refillable water bottles.

ITA about bringing some snacks in. I don't mind buying a Mickey bar, funnel cake, or churros, but the PP was right about kids getting hungry in line, and not wanting to waste time waiting in yet another line just for water every time. Bringing in snacks also can help balance out the "park food" diet of grease, sugar, and carbs.

PHXscuba

 

[Gisele]

Well said, Molly.

Here is a round of water for everyone!

 

[DizMe]

Well...I think it depends a lot on your family and eating/drinking habits! Our family doesn't drink soda and we don't need to lug around a bunch of water bottles. We're satisfied with the drinking fountains and free cups of water, but every family is different. I'm of the opinion that kids don't need non-stop snacks, so we limit that as well. We often fly down so bringing in a bunch of water and snacks isn't something we can easily do, especially since we don't have a rental car, either. We've found that for us, lighter = better, so we may bring one water bottle and refill it but that's about it. The kids love those giant dill pickles, the fruit carts, and all of the junky snacks as well but it doesn't cost that much since we limit it. We share meals and the kids are even happy with toddler meals sometimes! In fact, I ordered one myself and it was pretty good . We've been there enough to know where to order things we like that don't cost too much. *You can always go through the tortilla factory and bread bakery tours for a free tortilla/piece of sourdough

I tend to agree with your dh about being on vacation and not hassling with backpacks and groceries any more than you have to. I still do pretty well with our budget but we're not big eaters nor do we spend on expensive food items very often. I also use gift cards I've saved up to offset costs; mypoints.com is very convenient for that because it doesn't cost me anything to save up the points.

 

[Sara*s_Mommie]

When I go next week, we will be eating breakfast in the room, taking water and snacks into the parks. We are limiting ourselves to $20 per day adult/$15 kids - that's basically one snack and one meal. We are staying at HOJO and will be going back each day for a swim so we might as well eat a late lunch while we're there. If you check out the menus, you'll see that the kids meals are pretty good and even come with a drink. A few places even have toddler meals for $4 - my dd who's 2 doesn't eat it all so I can get by with 1 kids meal/1 toddler meal between us.

 

[Brancaneve]

When we were there last week, we ordered the largest soda size possible. My DH was told that if you show your receipt, you get a free refill. This was at the Pizza Port in Tomorrowland. If you don't mind sharing a straw, this is a cheap way to get some soda with your meal.

I know that sometimes with all good intentions, I aim to save, but end up spending way more! Good luck!

 

[Gisele]

DisneyGirl...

That is funny, your DH thinking bringing water and food into your room, is white trash.
Well let me tell ya! White trash at a motel, is when Big Bubba, who is wanted not by his wife, who is pregnant again, I might add, but instead in 3 different states for FTA's and for speeding tickets too. Then Mr. Bubba, comes yelling out of Motel Hades, with a 6 pack in one hand, and a bag of pork rinds in the other, complaining to his wife that his beer ain't cold enough. And the pork rinds are too fresh. He prefers older pork.Um.. okay he he!
Then he is yellin about junior Bubba, not getting out of his facial, and he is going to send him to the moon if she doesn't get him under control. Mind you, this all takes place before their first day at Disney. Now the mom is yellin at Bubba, because she told him she did not want to have an 11th baby.... but that now she is pregnant, and is currently undergoing terrible mood swings, swollen ankles and morning tossing of thy cookies, for him to shut the hades up, or else, then it goes from there, and not in a good direction either, believe you me, for I witnessed this first hand, when I was staying there in order to save money on accommodations. Well never ever again, next time HO JO man!.... so then Bubba starts yellin' again, you shut up you bleep and bleep bleep, then she says don't you tell me that you bleepin, bleepedy bleep, bleep bleep! OMG! World war 3 then ensued, because by now Bubba senior is a burpin, fartin, complainin' cussing away, and bubba junior 1 -6 (The others are back at the farm) are defended their very pregnant mama, then fists start flying. I realized that this guy was profiled on AMW two weeks ago, and so I call 911, to begin with to report a domestic dispute, and to let them know that this individual is also a wanted felon! Whooo hooo! I get that reward! Disney Hotel here I come!!

 

[amym2]

One thing I've learned to do is to bring in some small cups (like Dixie cups) and use them when we want/need to share drinks. Then we can get one drink (or smoothie or such) and everyone can share without arguing about who got more. The cups don't take up much space and don't weigh much. They're also handy for sharing snacks like nuts, dried fruit, etc so you don't get everyone's grimy, sweaty hands in the bag.