Those who take lunch

[margot31]

Considering making lunches for out next trip vs buying in the park. We will be driving in each day and have a double stroller with us. But how do you store your lunches to keep cool. I know a lunch box of some sort but any that really worked for you vs another?

 

[disneydreamer1980]

You can bring in a soft sided cooler into the parks, as long as it’s within certain dimensions.weve brought in drinks in one before, to keep them cool. Saved a lot of money on drinks

 

[randumb0]

ice pack in a soft cooler

 

[margot31]

You can bring in a soft sided cooler into the parks, as long as it’s within certain dimensions.weve brought in drinks in one before, to keep them cool. Saved a lot of money on drinks

How big was the cooler...any brand you found or look of the bag? We have plenty of different coolers but we also don't like the idea of those that don't fit in the stroller well or that we have to lug on our backs...just trying to get an idea.

 

[Klayfish]

We have a giant soft sided cooler. Dimensions are about 16"x14"x10". More than big enough to hold an entire dinner for 5, including sodas and dessert. We pack it with ice packs and it'll keep everything cold for many hours, even in the middle of summer. When our kids were in strollers, we hung it off the back of our double wide stroller. Now that they aren't, we put it right in the seat of a little umbrella stroller, it fits perfectly. And no, we don't push it around everywhere. We usually park it in stroller parking near wherever it is we're going to eat and come back for it later.

We pack all of our food, buy almost nothing in the parks except for the occasional treat for the kids.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

The one we used was like 12’ x 12’, soft sided. Got it free from the hospital I worked at, had their logo on it, so not really sure what brand it was, but it held about 10 bottles of water if I remember correctly and it fit under my stroller just fine. (But the storage area under my stroller is huge)

 

[kagmypts]

We bring a soft sided cooler. It is a Pleasure Chest by Scout (link below). We can fit 9-10 bottled waters as well as lunch plus snacks for 5 people. Depending on the season, we freeze a few of the bottled water to serve as ice packs. By early afternoon, they have melted into drinking water (if they are still frozen by lunch we taken them out of the cooler).

We leave our cooler in the seat of the stroller when we go on rides.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N4GQ1S...t=&hvlocphy=9010938&hvtargid=pla-305991930669

 

[jaceraden]

We used a Thirty-one cooler bag with ice packs for our family of 7 who went from Rope Drop til we dropped. It held lunch and afternoon snacks,etc. to keep us going. "perfect party set" was the name of the bag. It was awesome for our 16 day trip and now I use that bag for picnics and transporting casseroles, etc. to potlucks

Edit to add: This fit nicely in the under storage of a single stroller. And I liked that it had two different sections to separate foods with different temperature needs.

 

[mamaofsix]

We bring a backpack with our picnic lunch. I stock it with frozen water bottles. They double as ice-packs, and by the time we eat are mostly melted as a refreshing beverage We always rent a locker and stash the backpack in there until we're ready to eat. It's just too heavy to lug around. The kids and I find a nice picnic spot while my husband goes to get the bag from our locker.

 

[DisneyTravelers2008]

I just pack sandwiches in a soft sided cooler / lunch bag. I add two ice packs or even frozen water bottles. Often I try to pack things that are totally disposable so once lunch is over, we only have the cooler / lunch bag left. We usually arrive at the park when it opens and eat around 11:45 am. We never have any trouble with it staying cold. If you have a stroller this is a great way to save some money. The stroller can just hold the lunch bag for you. I miss "stroller days" just for this very reason. Recently we had a simple lunch at Backlot Express in HWS for 4 people with 2 cupcakes, 3 regular drinks and one beer and it was $70. That is just insane. We often pack lunch and put the money we save towards a nice dinner.

There are size restrictions on coolers....I found this info online :

"""Suitcases, coolers or backpacks with or without wheels larger than 24" (61 cm) long x 15" (38 cm) wide x 18" (46 cm) high are not permitted in the parks. (Coolers required for medication may be stored in a locker or at Guest Relations.)

So, as long as your cooler is smaller than 24" X 15" X 18", you'll be fine bringing it with you. Most soft-sided coolers that I've seen fit within those dimensions."""

 

[Bbbethei]

We bring a backpack with our picnic lunch. I stock it with frozen water bottles. They double as ice-packs, and by the time we eat are mostly melted as a refreshing beverage We always rent a locker and stash the backpack in there until we're ready to eat. It's just too heavy to lug around. The kids and I find a nice picnic spot while my husband goes to get the bag from our locker.

This is pretty much what we do. We freeze a couple water bottles and bring a couple that were refrigerated. The frozen bottles keep the sandwiches and fruit cold and we snack as we go. However, we don't rent a locker. If needed, we take turns carrying the backpack, but it's never been a problem.

 

[shocker]

I really played around a few months prior to park visit with what foods could successfully be frozen, thawed, then eaten (including sandwiches, various fruits, cups of fruit, yogurt, pudding, tubes of yogurt, squeezable applesauce, etc ). Also important to know if you're going to have a full size freezer to prepare frozen food, bottles, or packs available to you or if you'll only have a hotel mini fridge that could hold one or two ice packs only.

 

[YawningDodo]

We bring a backpack with our picnic lunch. I stock it with frozen water bottles. They double as ice-packs, and by the time we eat are mostly melted as a refreshing beverage We always rent a locker and stash the backpack in there until we're ready to eat. It's just too heavy to lug around. The kids and I find a nice picnic spot while my husband goes to get the bag from our locker.

Good point about the locker! I think it could get a little more cumbersome if you're planning to park-hop, but if you're going to be in the same park at least until lunchtime and don't have a stroller (or at least not a big enough stroller)....

We always used to do this at the local water park when I was growing up. Added disadvantage there was that the lockers were outdoors, in full sun, but even so a decent softsided cooler with a big ice pack on top of the food will keep everything chilly at least until lunch time. As far as I remember, I want to say Disney's lockers are typically in the shade, which will help.