How would you eat at Disney for about $25 a day.

[simonsayz]

I actually eat 5-6 small meals a day. My BF likes to say I'm like an infant that has to eat every 2-3 hours. lol I started doing that a few years ago to lose some weight and I've just kept it up. It actually makes me feel better and I'm not as tired and have more energy.

You're supposed to be eating that many small meals. You're doing a good job!

 

[RuGoingToWDW]

There's a McDonald's on property, and I've never checked but if they have $1.25 McDoubles....................

 

[ElsaColon]

I could eat the spicy chicken sandwich at Sleepy Hollow all day every day followed by the nutella waffle. That should hold me over all day loL!

 

[goofy4prez]

It sounds like they did have drinks with meals, but no extra drinks. And if they were on a strict eat plan for weight loss, they likely had to choose healthier options at the counter service places. The non fried foods tend to cost more. And if they weren't snacking, they were likely eating bigger meals.

I agree exactly. If I ate hamburgers, hotdogs, chicken nuggets, frozen pizza and french fries I would have no problem spending around $25. But I don't eat this way and it does cost me more.

 

[Tigger's ally]

it says eat. I might be able to eat for $25 a day for a few days, but I would spend upwards of $50 for drinks each day.

 

[njpyro]

I've done this on several occasions. I'm not a big eater, so it worked for me. We bring granola bars, oatmeal, etc. for the room for breakfast each day. I also bring fruit snacks, pretzels and almonds to snack on throughout the day while waiting in lines. We tend to do one large/fancy meal (usually Ohana), but we average out to about $25 per person per day not counting the one nice meal. That 25 is two, not three meals, and we almost always get tap water.
Next planned trip is November for food and wine and the race, and hubby (who usually likes to save money whenever possible on disney) has already budgeted 100 per person per day for our two epcot days. We don't drink, but he plans on eating in every country.
Disney Visa has a current promotion of new card holders getting a $200 gift card, plus the person referring gets $50 gc. We signed up for another card just for food and wine!

 

[CookiesNcream]

I don't know if I could do it or not but it sounds like a fun challenge!

 

[pooh2001]

Per person:
$30 is very minimal
$50 is reasonable
$80 is eating & drinking

 

[Ciandella915]

Kids meals all the way. My husband and I have done that for the majority of the trip (for QS meals) and have saved big bucks. Breakfasts and lunches have never been above $11.50 for both of us, including drinks. We've been totally satisfied every time. Full, but not in a food coma. For example, at Pepper Market at CSR, we got kids Mickey waffles (2), a slice of orange, a slice of ham, and a juice each for $11.70 total. The adult meal was about $8.00 without the drink. Can't beat it! We felt a lot better about the couple of TS meals we did splurge on, knowing we were spending about $60 a day total on meals, snacks, drinks etc. We also ordered a room service large pizza one night, which covered dinner that night and breakfast a couple of days later.

Also, if you sleep in one day, plan a late breakfast or early lunch! Turns three meals into two.

 

[mrzrich]

In this scenario I am staying at a Moderate with a coffee Maker and I am drinking water. The title says "around $25" all of my days come in under $25 before tax. After tax I would still be "around $25". Only one Hamburger and not one chicken nugget to be found.

MK day
Breakfast at Resort Food Court
Yogurt Parfait $5.79

Lunch at Sleepy Hollow
Sweet and Spicy Chicken Waffle Sandwich - Sweet and Spicy Chicken Waffle Sandwich - $7.49

Dinner at Cosmic Rays
Barbecued Pork Sandwich - with choice of Apple Slices, Green Beans, or French Fries - $10.29
Total $23.57


Epcot Day
Breakfast at Resort Food Court
Kids Breakfast Platter with scrambled Egg, Mickey Waffle, Breakfast Potatoes and Fruit $4.99

Lunch at Sunshine Seasons
Turkey and Monterey Jack on Ciabatta - with Chipotle Mayonnaise and Potato Salad - $9.99

Dinner at Les Halles Boulangerie Patisserie
Croissant Jambon Fromage - Ham, Cheese and Béchamel in a Croissant - $4.75
Napoleon - Puff Pastry layered with Cream - $4.25
Total $23.98


DHS Day

Breakfast at Resort Food Court
Biscuits and Gravy $3.79

Lunch at Brown Derby Lounge
"The Famous Hollywood Brown Derby Cobb Salad" - with Finely Chopped Greens, Turkey Breast, Bacon, Egg, Tomatoes, Crumbled Blue Cheese, Avocado, Chives, and Cobb Dressing - $9.00 plus 20% tip = $10.80

Dinner at Rosie's All American
1/3 lb Fresh Angus Cheeseburger - served with Coleslaw or French Fries - $9.29
Total $23.88

AK Day

Breakfast at Resort Food Court
Bagel and Cream cheese $2.99

Lunch at Yak and Yeti CS
Chicken Fried Rice - Chicken Fried Rice - $3.99
Pork Egg Rolls - 2 Rolls - Pork Egg Rolls - 2 Rolls - $4.49

Dinner at Flame Tree BBQ
1/2 Slab of St. Louis Ribs - Our delicious Ribs, smoked in-house, and topped with our Trademark Barbecue Sauce. Accompanied by our special-recipe slowly baked Beans and refreshing Coleslaw $12.99
Total $24.46

 

[minniemouseforever]

This is supposed to be a fun and creative challenge. Some like the previous poster have had fun with it. Unfortunatley others feel the need to make negative comments. To bad.

 

[Stefecatzz]

How about around World Showcase.

Breakfast - Norway - School Bread $2.99
Lunch - Katsura Grill - Teriyaki Chicken with veggies and rice $9.99
Dinner - Fish Shop (UK) - Fish & Chips $9.49

Total: $22.47 + $1.46 (tax) = $23.93

I would still need a snack though. If you are willing to eat a baked good or fruit for breakfast and stick to CS meals that are around $10, it is doable. But with all that walking a person will probably lose weight. And I got to have my Grey Goose Slushy!

This is exactly what I would suggest. I have definitely spent less than $25/day for myself & not gone hungry once. I always drink water so I get the ice waters for free with every meal.

I like to make meals out of some side items like the Nudel Gratin from Somerfest for under $4 (this was surprisingly filling for the cost!), soup from Les Halles & 1/2 Baguette for around $8, or I just choose two QS meals which w/the ice waters comes to about $25. I eat breakfast in the room or skip it & go for an early lunch if I decide to sleep in.

It's really not that hard to do. I'm an AP holder so I go often to the parks & almost always on a pretty tight budget. I never miss out on any fun b/c of it, either.

 

[Anniefrances]

I'm pretty frugal when it comes to eating at WDW. Like some of the above posters, I tend to order kids meals when going CS but to shake things up I also frequently order a couple of adult sides instead of an entree. This works well for me because I'm vegetarian. For example, in MK, I love the green beans and mashed potatoes at Cosmic Ray's and at the All Stars food courts, I like the black beans and rice. I don't know the exact price of a couple of sides but it's around $5. And when I do order an adult meal from CS, I usually ask for it without the side (e.g. fries) and definitely remind the cashier if I have an entree without the meat (like the pasta). Either way this knocks off a couple of dollars. Also, I only drink soda at the resort in the refillable mug and bring flavor enhancers for ice water while in the parks. Breakfast is always in the room (or technically poolside since we tend to sleep in and enter parks later in the day), and I bring a piece of fruit and some almonds for snacking in the parks. So on days that we don't have TS, I can easily get by at $25, and this includes a 2nd snack that I buy in the park (e.g. a Dole Whip or some other "splurge"). And if it's a day that we do have TS, I tend to skip the 2nd snack and still come in ~ $40 for the day (we don't do character meals or Signature).

 

[dgthree]

This post was meant as a creative outlet to see what kinds of combinations people might come up with. There is so much variety at all the different counter service places and kiosks. It was never meant to be I just can't do it and why would I try. But just something to get the creative juices in us going. Thought it would be fun.

I just came back from a couple of days down there this week. I had one expensive day at MK with BOG breakfast, a late lunch at CHH, the obligatory Dole Whip float & a salad from WPE, at almost $60. The next day, I had breakfast at Sunshine Seasons & a sandwich at POP and a Dole Whip during the day, and that day was $28. Yesterday, I had a sandwich in France as a late breakfast, a Dole Whip later to cool down, and a pastry from Sunshine Seasons, and it ran me $21 (not including the chicken bites and waffle fries from Chick Fil A at MCO before getting on the plane - that was $8). This includes the purchase of several bottles of water a day, as it was mighty hot this week! I also had a water bottle that I would refill at counter service places and add some powdered mix to make it taste better. Staying hydrated was key!

So... I'd say that $25 a day might be tough, but $30 a day is pretty doable. I also saved a couple of pennies by buying gift cards at Target with my Red card, and using them to pay for my meals. I think that using the gift cards helped me stay on track, as I really only wanted to use one a day for food, and I came home with a couple unused cards for my next trip.

 

[mrzrich]

DTD day
Breakfast at Resort Food Court
Oatmeal - $2.79

Lunch at Cook's of Dublin
The Original One & One (Fish & Chips) - The Original One & One (Fish & Chips) - $10.95

Dinner at Earl of Sandwich
Holiday Turkey - Turkey, Stuffing, Gravy, Cranberry and Seasoned Mayonnaise - $6.49
Artisan Soups - Small - Check for Daily Selections - $3.49

Total $23.72

 

[fla4fun]

It helps if you are in a room with a microwave. When I stayed at AoA solo in January, I would order a pizza and get four meals out of it. I probably only spent an average of $20 per day on that trip because I could take advantage of leftovers. I also typically only eat two meals per day when I am at WDW, with maybe a granola bar or something similar for breakfast that I bring from home. I don't like to eat heavy and be so active. But I think realistically you should probably consider $30 a minimum food budget per person per day. I usually budget $40 per day, but rarely spend more than $25-$30 unless I have a TS meal scheduled.

 

[mrzrich]

I got the kids breakfast this AM, at $4.99 it comes with a small beverage. It's more than I normally eat for breakfast and it works nicely into a low budget day. Scrambled eggs, biscuit, 2 slices of bacon, potatoes, oatmeal, grapes and a small water.

 

[Yumi696]

I got the kids breakfast this AM, at $4.99 it comes with a small beverage. It's more than I normally eat for breakfast and it works nicely into a low budget day. Scrambled eggs, biscuit, 2 slices of bacon, potatoes, oatmeal, grapes and a small water.View attachment 91932

Woah that's a lot for $4.99!