{"id":39725,"date":"2015-06-09T08:00:33","date_gmt":"2015-06-09T12:00:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/?p=39725"},"modified":"2022-05-04T23:57:49","modified_gmt":"2022-05-05T03:57:49","slug":"dining-without-disney-dining-plan-walt-disney-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/dining-without-disney-dining-plan-walt-disney-world\/","title":{"rendered":"Dining Without the Disney Dining Plan at Walt Disney World"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/No-DIsney-Dining-Plan.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-39728\" src=\"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/No-DIsney-Dining-Plan-400x271.jpg\" alt=\"No DIsney Dining Plan\" width=\"400\" height=\"271\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/No-DIsney-Dining-Plan-400x271.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/No-DIsney-Dining-Plan.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>We\u2019ve been spoiled by being able to book Walt Disney World trips with the free dining promotion for the past few years.\u00a0 On our upcoming trip, we are doing a split stay so booking with the free dining promotion was not possible.\u00a0 Of course, this means that we have to pay for every bite of food, something that almost feels new to us after using the dining plan many times!<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m frugal, but I also like to eat well.\u00a0 Who doesn\u2019t enjoy a character meal to meet Eeyore or a having a Mickey Bar on a hot day?\u00a0 I\u2019ve been planning on how to best pay for food that we will enjoy.\u00a0 This will be a combination doing small splurges and pinching pennies in order to strike a balance with dining experiences we appreciate while keeping a budget in mind.<\/p>\n<p>So far, we\u2019re allowing ourselves two table service meals.\u00a0 One is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/walt-disney-world\/dining\/menus\/ohana-menu#Dinner\">\u2018Ohana<\/a> with a group of 35 friends!\u00a0 That is an experience that cannot be missed, and we\u2019ll savor every bite.\u00a0 The other meal is a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/walt-disney-world\/dining\/menus\/crystal-palace-menu\/\">Crystal Palace<\/a> breakfast.\u00a0 Dining with Eeyore is priceless!\u00a0 As of now (the planning never ends, right?),\u00a0 the rest of the meals will be counter service. \u00a0Or, we may decide to pop into one of the quick bite lounge areas to dine&#8230;.more on that later!<\/p>\n<p>Here are some ways we will pay for our food without feeling too many punches to our wallet.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Disney Visa Reward Points<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I\u2019ve been using my Chase Disney Visa card for any time I need a credit card, and those reward points do add up quickly!\u00a0 Our reward points will pay in full for both \u2018Ohana and Crystal Palace.\u00a0 Sweet!\u00a0 I\u2019ll have enough reward points left for a few counter service meals and special snacks.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Having Breakfast and Snacks in our Resort Room<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>We plan to have some breakfast foods and snacks in our resort room, which will save time and money!\u00a0\u00a0 Muffins, fruit, energy bars, yogurt, and trail mix are quick and easy to eat.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Refillable Mugs<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If we buy the refillable mugs at our resort\u2019s food court and use those mugs a few times each day, they will pay for themselves and will be a nice souvenir of the trip.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Free Cups of Ice Water<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For those times we are not using the refillable mugs at the resort food court, we can ask for free cups of ice water at all counter service locations.\u00a0 With the lowest price of a beverage usually being $2.75, this is a savings of at least $5.50 for each meal for us!<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Kid\u2019s Meals <\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>My daughter often times prefers kid\u2019s meals, and that\u2019s a money saver!\u00a0 When I\u2019m not too hungry, a kid\u2019s meal may be just the right portion for me too.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Sharing Snacks<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Snacks are a fun part of the Disney dining experience, and even on a budget a few snacks are worth the splurge!\u00a0 Some of the snacks, such as huge cupcakes, pastries, or cookies, are easy to share.\u00a0 In the past, we\u2019ve asked for an extra plate and fork for sharing snacks and that has worked well.\u00a0 The portion sizes are better with sharing, and the cost and calories are halved too!<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Garden Grocer Delivery<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Having breakfast foods, water bottles, and snacks for the parks or resort room delivered to us is much less expensive than buying those items at Walt Disney World.\u00a0 Those with access to a car can plan a quick food shopping trip before vacation arrival.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\"><b>Disney Gift Cards<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This isn&#8217;t a money-saving tip, but it&#8217;s for my own peace of mind. \u00a0One of the things I like best about the Disney Dining Plan is knowing that our meals are paid for before our vacation. \u00a0I am buying Disney Gift Cards to use for the meals and snacks that are not covered by the Disney Chase Visa Rewards. \u00a0Having our food paid for ahead of time is nice! \u00a0Any money left over on the gift cards can be applied toward a future trip!<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>An advantage to not being on the Disney Dining Plan is flexibility.\u00a0 If we decide to add another table service meal to our trip and want to split two appetizers as a meal, we can do that without worrying about using dining credits.\u00a0 We are also more flexible to try places that do not accept dining credits, such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/walt-disney-world\/dining\/menus\/tutto-gusto-wine-cellar-menu\/\">Tutto Gusto Wine Cellar<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/walt-disney-world\/dining\/menus\/spice-road-table-menu\/\">Spice Road Table<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Using the above money saving tactics while enjoying good food and having flexibility of dining choices will make for our upcoming trip without the Disney Dining Plan both budget friendly and yummy!<\/p>\n<p><em>What are your tips for eating well at Walt Disney World without using the Disney Dining Plan?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<h4>Incoming search terms:<\/h4><ul><li>eating at disneyworld without dining plan<\/li><li>tips for eating at disney world with no dining plan<\/li><li>without disney meal plan how much spend in food<\/li><\/ul>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We\u2019ve been spoiled by being able to book Walt Disney World trips with the free dining promotion for the past few years.\u00a0 On our upcoming trip, we are doing a split stay so booking with the free dining promotion was not possible.\u00a0 Of course, this means that we have to pay for every bite of&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":59,"featured_media":39728,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wprm-recipe-roundup-name":"","wprm-recipe-roundup-description":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1688,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-39725","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-wdw-dining","category-walt-disney-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39725","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/59"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39725"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39725\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39903,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39725\/revisions\/39903"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39728"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39725"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39725"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.themouseforless.com\/blog_world\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39725"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}