We’re experts at using points & miles to pay for Disney parks all over the world, but saving money on park purchases is an art all its own! Today we’re tackling ways you can save money on food and merchandise on your next magical vacation to Disneyland or Disney World (this post contains affiliate links that help us keep this blog running, thanks!).
In this post, we’ll cover:
1.Saving on Food
2.Saving on Merchandise
Saving Money on Food
If You’re Into Disney Sit-Down Dining Reservations
There are endless dining options in Disneyland and especially Disney World, and if you’re a foodie, you’ll probably want to make dining reservations 60 days before your trip. If you don’t snag the reservations you want, try paying a small fee to set MouseWatcher alerts–I did this for Oga’s Cantina before I realized how easy it was to get a walk-up table!
A great way to save money in sit-down Disney restaurants (and on any other park purchase!) is purchasing discounted Disney tickets beforehand, as we outline in this post:
If you’re not that interested in making dining reservation, and just want to have a few treats and save money on park food, the following tips are for you!
Pack a Carryon bag Full of Food
Begin your trip by packing a carry-on bag full of food, for both the hotel room and the parks. Focus on food you know your traveling party will eat, and dense items that are not crushable. Beef jerky, dried fruit, peanut butter and bagels are a few our of family favorites. Because the carry-on is empty by the end of the trip, it doubles as a way to haul souvenirs home.
Make Your own Coffee
Buying coffee in the parks is a fun treat, especially if you rope-dropped and you’re trying to stay up for fireworks. But you can also pack instant coffee or coffee-making ingredients in your bag, to save time and money:
Stay in Hotels with Free Breakfast
Save money by booking a hotel where your family can eat a big breakfast before heading to the parks. Most hotels don’t seem to mind if you each grab a couple items on your way out–bananas, apples, bagels. Throw those in the backpack for later in the day:
Lots of hotels around the parks offer free breakfast: eight of these 15 walking distance from Disneyland hotels offer free breakfast, and some of these Disney World hotels do too!
Backpack O’ Snacks
To save time and money, pack a backpack of lunch and snacks into Disney parks, and then enjoy a quick-service meal for dinner. You can bring just about any food items into Disney parks, except:
For lunch and snack items, pack non-crushable, non-perishable food your family likes, such as pretzels, granola bars, popcorn, sealed peanut or almond butter individual packets, fruit leather, jerky etc. For perishable lunch and snack items (assuming your room has a refrigerator), hit up a nearby convenience store or order in groceries. don’t bring things that will get easily crushed in a backpack, like chips (consider bento boxes like these!):
If you’ll be taking afternoon breaks in your room–and it has a microwave–bring cup o’noodles and individual mac n’ cheese, chips, PB&J supplies, or whatever is easy that you know you and your group will eat.
Besides food, the single most important item you’ll need in the park is water.
WATER
Having enough water in Disneyland is so important, we wrote a whole post about it. To keep your backpack lunch/snack foor cold, freeze or at least refrigerate plastic water bottles in the hotel room (Disney doesn’t allow coolers full of ice):
Here’s a cute Disney tumbler you can buy beforehand and refill at water stations all over the parks:
Besides food and water tips, we also specialize on ways to save money on Disneyland merchandise.
You might enjoy: Top Twenty Items to Bring to Disneyland
MERCHANDISE
Borrow Merch
We’ve often borrowed T-shirts, hats, Mickey ears–items that only get worn a few times, and/or kids outgrow them with lots of wear left. If you’re a park of a buy nothing Facebook, craft a post about your upcoming trip and ask if anyone wants to clean out their barely used merch!
Buy Merch Before you go
What you can’t borrow, consider purchasing before your trip. While it’s true that some items are only available in the parks, so much Disney gear can be purchased online before you go. You can buy Disney pajama pants, hats, t-shirts and sweatshirts and surprise your family with gifts the night before hitting the parks!
We can’t wear authentic Disney ears for very long because they hurt our heads, so we borrow ears or buy dupe ears online:
You might like: Ten Pairs Mickey Ears to buy Online Before Your Trip
And for even more info on how we save money on Disney Trips, check out The Disney Points Podcast:
TAKEAWAYS
As you can see, with a little effort, it’s easy to save money on Disney park food and merchandise–next time you’re headed to the parks, don’t forget your discounted Disney gift cards and your backpack of snacks & pre-bought or borrowed gear! Have a magical trip and we’ll see you real soon.
Learn more about how we travel for almost free on Instagram @almostfreetraveling and join the conversation on facebook.com/almostfreetraveling
Opinions expressed here are author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.
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