You're on vacation. Why are you cooking in your room?

[davidhr]

It's kind of weird. For us going to Disney is not really "vacation". We go often, don't spend the entire day at the parks (some days we don't even go to them),and while we enjoy some restaurants, we don't find the food at Disney world that great. At least not a great value.

So we are enjoying our trips a lot and having lots of fun, but it doesn't feel like a "vacation". Sometimes we don't event take vacation days and work remotely during the day.

We take multiple trips per year to other places. When we go on vacation elsewhere, we don't even think about cooking lol

 

[jodifla]

Because it’s healthier and more cost efficient.

We do a mix of cooking, takeout and eating out.

Just like at home. DVC is our "home away from home," after all.

 

[bookbabe626]

I’ll add on a reason relative to this week…weather.

This is the second time we’ve been at WDW with Severe Weather approaching, and we got smart this time. Ran out today for some groceries so that if we get stuck in the room we can feed ourselves tomorrow night.

Sometimes if it’s even just regularly raining you don’t feel like venturing out to get food, it’s nice to have the option of a nice dinner and the BC Marketplace menu stinks.

 

[🍀TwinsMom]

Just to add to the weather comment, that’s a big reason we like the tower-style resorts — to be able to access food without being drenched or sweaty. And I totally agree, it’s a hassle venturing out in bad weather to eat. I would much rather cook in the room than brave the torrential rain.

As for crockpots and waffle irons, we don’t have one in our Owners Lockers, but I use them weekly at home in the winter. I love, love, love waking up/walking in to the smell of beef stew or soups in cold weather. Yummmm. It doesn’t get cold enough for it to hit the same way in Orlando, but I am traveling in January and February this year, so I may rethink it if it’s cold enough.

 

[MICKIMINI]

Because you spent your lifesavings on a DVC contract so you need to save money while there.

But seriously why buy DVC which is supposed to be like "a home away from home" that has a kitchen and not cook your meals?

I'm with you though which is one of the several reasons I would never buy into DVC.
With that said why are you purchasing?

Actually, you save a small fortune buying DVC. You now own the ability to use those points annually and stay in any size villa and even stay at a different resort. Each vacation is unique. Don't want to go this year, bank them and get a 2 or 3 BR villa next year. Choices! Even a small, inexpensive resale 5-10K can be a wonderful way to go to WDW for decades to come!

When we travel, we don't have to pay for accommodations for us or our son and DIL. We mostly use SWA points which we accumulate over each year. Our trip costs us meals, tickets and a rental car (that is optional). Much easier to plan.

Cooking to save money at home - maybe. On vacation - nope. The cook is also on vacation! Actually, it's the W/D that I love!

 

[🍀TwinsMom]

Yes, the W/D are awesome! We are COO, and throwing a load in at night is no big deal to me.

 

[jo-jo]

We only eat at one or two TS per trip. Several counter service. But Disney food is so salty, not good at all for DH. At home, I make soup with no added salt. The barley or egg noodles may have some, but not the meat, stock or veggies. A week of Disney food would have DH feet look like balloons from the thanksgiving parade.

Plus all good answers above. Timing, weather, cost, etc.

 

[Stargazer65]

Honest question. Why? You're on vacation, why are you making meals in your room?

When you want the family to make it to the park early for rope drop, nothing gets them out of the room quicker than preparing a good, hearty breakfast of microwaved sardines and limburger.

 

[jo-jo]

When you want the family to make it to the park early for rope drop, nothing gets them out of the room quicker than preparing a good, hearty breakfast of microwaved sardines and limburger.

Is that with or without eggs?

 

[jennypenny]

When the kids were young we ate out often but sometimes they just wanted spaghetti or something else familiar (and in a quiet setting). Pool days were good days for cooking dinner in the room. PB&J sandwiches were also always requested and I wasn't paying disney $5/each.

When my kids were teens, no matter how late we had dinner they were always hungry when we got back to the room. Sandwich fixings and snacks were a must. They also were less interested in restaurant meals because they took up too much park time.

Now that my 'kids' have launched they don't have a lot of extra money to throw around. I'll cook in the room to save them money on food while we're there. We'll also go to DS early in the trip to buy desserts from the various bakeries to eat in the room.

When it's just DH and I, we're at the age where we don't like eating out 24/7. It's not a treat like it once was and we're more conscious of healthy living, even on vacation (healthy meals, gym time, walking, rest). We choose a couple restaurants that we love or want to try and then eat in the room the rest of the time.

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ETA: It occurs to me though that we've also changed our approach to DVC over the years. We used to cram into the smallest room we could and spent $$ on meals, events, etc. Now we've put more money into DVC itself (and APs) so we can stay in nicer rooms and go more often, but while we're there we enjoy a much more low-key experience. I'd also rather put the money into an extra set of flights for an extra trip than pay to eat out every trip. To each their own...

 

[Skywalker3]

I wanted to have the options. I dont' cook at home at all, DH does all the shopping/cooking. I also don't cook big meals on vacation. BUT we do make great use of the kitchen for small, easy meals, like ramen, spaghetti (plain noodles/butter,) sandwiches, quick breakfasts (we're often rope dropping, so no time for big breakfast,) etc. and the fridge is often full of drinks, quick food, snacks, ice cream, milk for cereal. I always bring my coffee pods/fixings. We rarely go to any TS restaurants any more, but we do very much plan around, and eat at all the Epcot Festivals.
DH also bring his Tony's for spice. Disney food pricing in QS and TS is just crazy to me, and I've felt that way since 2000, it's not new. We just want options.

 

[Sondra Sunflowers]

I don't have an owner's locker. But, I get a grocery delivery when we are there more than 3 nights. A case of water is essential. We freeze the bottles and bring them into the parks every day. We like to get sandwich fixings & chips for a packed lunch on resort/pool days. It's mostly for budget relief and to control the calories, to be honest. It's girl math.... if I make myself a sandwich for lunch, I can have a signature dinner.

 

[mom2rtk]

No chance am I cooking on vacation. That's a big part of the vacation for me. But it's not hard to figure out why some people do.

 

[DisnEElove]

Cooking, and cleaning dishes afterwards are not on my list of fun things to do on vacay. There's so many dining options at WDW, you don't have to eat fried foods if you don't want, but it might take some planning. We do 2 full meals, and then snack in between. Snacks run the gambit from salads to treats/baked goods, fried foods, or a hotdog. Meals are an even larger variety, depending upon our tastes but never tedious: steak and veggies, seafood/veggies, chicken/veggies, veal, etc Asian, American, African, Caribbean, European, South American.. so many different styles of eating. The kids make lists of new food items they'd like to try each trip.
Sometimes we do throw yogurt and milk for cereal into the fridge for a few days out of the trip, so having the option for at least a kitchenette available is a plus. But our highlight is the feeling that everything is done for us for a change.

 

[MarkNC2Disney]

I'm new to DVC and buying a contract that is currently in ROFR. I was reading about owner lockers and so many people seem to be using them for things like rice cookers, crock pots, mixers, spices, etc. Honest question. Why? You're on vacation, why are you making meals in your room?

Because a lot of Disney food & dining isn’t close to worth it.

 

[MarkNC2Disney]

Other benefits:

Time - I can eat much faster, when I want, on my own terms than Disney’s.

Cost - for my family of 5, I peg QS breakfast at $60-$75, QS lunch at $75-$90, and dinner at a TS at $150+. That’s quite a lot over a week.

Intangible - I don’t have regrets about the $ I spent at a meal I didn’t really enjoy.

 

[byurick]

We try to make one meal per day to help save some $$, usually its breakfast since that is pretty easy. Scrambled eggs, toast and a few pieces of bacon are quick and you can do it all with just one pan.

 

[71 Truck]

Most of the time my wife and I will only stay one or two nights in a studio. We also will sometimes invite friends to stay with us and if we are in a one bedroom or above we will at least cook breakfast.

On this last one night trip we stayed in a the new DVC cabins at Fort Wilderness. The cabins come with a kitchen.
We will bring the usual snacks and beverages for during the day and on this trip we ate dinner at Trails end restaurant/Crockets Tavern. We also brought breakfast items for the next day.

It's coinvent because while I cook everyone takes showers' and starts packing. After we eat I will take a shower and they clean up and finish packing.
It works out because we are usually done and out of the room by 10:30ish and on our way to what ever we plan on doing for the rest of the day. For us in the morning, it is more of a time saver than anything else.

In the past we have also done dinner. On one trip to Bolder Ridge we cooked steaks on the grills near the DVC pool and ate back in the room.

Not only is it a way to save some money but for us it was a lot of fun. It was nice not having to get dressed up to go out. We could stay in the room wearing shorts and T shirts and eat a nice dinner.

 

[zackiedawg]

The cabins at Fort Wilderness are the one and only spot where I'll occasionally cook a luncn/dinner, and the only spot in Disney where I'll use the grill. The convenience of having a BBQ grill right off your deck does make cooking out some burgers or a steak a fun experience, and doesn't require the kitchen cleanup afterwards. I'll be in the cabins in January and intending to bring some burger meat and buns and a bag of charcoal - when staying there, I sometimes start my park days very late - 1-2pm - so I can start off with a lunch on the grill before heading out.

 

[tom1944]

I don't have an owner's locker. But, I get a grocery delivery when we are there more than 3 nights. A case of water is essential. We freeze the bottles and bring them into the parks every day. We like to get sandwich fixings & chips for a packed lunch on resort/pool days. It's mostly for budget relief and to control the calories, to be honest. It's girl math.... if I make myself a sandwich for lunch, I can have a signature dinner.

We also get groceries delivered and freeze water bottles.

Frozen fruit is also a staple of our order