Spending money onsite stays

[smp020]

Hi all, I know this gets asked a lot, however we are staying on site, no car so won't be going offside for meals etc, I haven't been since 2011 so prices will have risen lots I'm sure, any suggestions for a daily amount for 2 A and a 8 and 7 year old, staying at CB resort

[Shooby doo]

Sort of depends, sit down or counter service? Unfortunately Disney food is expensive & if you don't want to go offsite there is no way to avoid this. Even on 2x CS meals a day I'd guess you are still pushing £100/day then add in breakfast, snacks etc but I don't think that you would be much cheaper than £150/day & probably £200 if you want sit down meals.
I wouldn't rule out offsite, for instance get Disney bus to Disney Springs & you are only a short 5-10 min Uber/Lyft ride from a lot of offsite options & even with taxi fare still cheaper than a Disney Table service meal!
Sd

[Bondy007]

Somebody posted a good breakdown of a few variations on daily budgets recently, can't remember who or where though... sorry!
Anyway, we're 2 adults and a 9 year old going next year. I've looked at a few current menus and based purely around onsite - counter service breakfast at ASMo and then a mixture of CS and TS evening meals - i'm budgeting for $150 per day.
Some days I expect will be less, and some will be more.

[Kidd McFluff]

How long is a piece of string? budgeting for Disney days can be hard work with so much choice and those 'must have' dining experiences. $200 a day would give you lots of choice.

Breakfast can be expensive but a quick trip to Publix might be worth the Uber if you can pick up breakfast for the week) We mostly had breakfast in our room but you can get plenty of breakfast items in most resort hotels for between $6 and $12 each. If eating onsite - Budget between $30 and $40 for breakfast (up to £160 if you go TS)

For lunch and evening meals QS usually come in at between $12 and $18 each but there are plenty that you can share (Flame Tree BBQ in AK, Pecco Bills in MK, Blaze Pizza at DS) We often got 3 QS meals between our 4 and were always well fed.)
budget between $40 and $80 for QS and $160 - $200 TS

Evening meals are the same as lunch in terms of cost and there is loads of choice. Disney Springs has lots of QS and TS in the same location and is often a good place to grab food in the evenings.

We are spending a week onsite in August this year (hopefully) and we have budgeted $275 Dollars a day. We are doing a total of 16 nights (1 night at MCO Hyatt, 7 onsite at OWK, 2 at Hard Rock and then a week in a villa) The total food budget for the four of us is $4400 but we expect to actually spend about $3400. (we have planned for meals in Crusty Burger, Three Broomsticks, Margaritaville and CowFish in Universal as well as Chef Mickey, 50's Prime Time Diner, Nomad Lounge, Skipper Canteen, Polite Pig, Blaze Pizza and Mexican/Chinese/Moroccan iin EPCOT)

This leaves plenty of room for upgrading a few meals to TS if we fancy it. Also leaves plenty of budget for cocktails and snacks.

No need to spend this much (we tend to splash out a bit when we head to Florida) but our family is similar in size to yours so this might work for you too.

Good luck

[Kraken]

Kidd McFluff [above] has summarised things pretty well IMO. It really is a case of how long is a piece of string. No theme park / on-site food is cheap & Disney's certainly isn't as they know they can get away with it.

It's certainly good advice to get the bus to Disney Springs and get an Uber/Lyft to head off-site for breakfast supplies / the occasional evening meal. The saving even including the cab fare will be considerable. If there is a Wal-Mart within suitable distance for food supplies, then go there - it is notably cheaper than Publix. Alternatively if you are at Disney Springs, cross over the bridge to the Grapefruit parking garage & there is a Speedway gas station next to the garage - you'll get basic grocery / breakfast items there at reasonable prices. I'm amazed Disney allow this gas station to sell takeaway food at pretty normal prices on-property over the road from Disney Springs.

Similarly, when staying at HRH, do consider getting an Uber/Lyft to eat down I-Drive. From HRH to the Convention Center / Pointe Orlando area of I-Drive it should be around $10-$12 each was as long as surge pricing is not in effect. You'll get a way better pizza / Italian meal at Maggiano's Little Italy at Pointe Orlando than you would at CowFish at CityWalk.

One restaurant you've missed off the list at IoA is Mythos - this is always a must for us. Pretty amazing setting and very good food for saying it's within a theme park. Prices are not extortionate either considering it's full table service.

[Kidd McFluff]

Mythos is one I've never visited. Off to research! Thanks Kraken!

[Kraken]

Originally Posted by Kidd McFluff

Mythos is one I've never visited. Off to research! Thanks Kraken!

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It's within IoA, so only really an option for lunch / early dinner (unless the park is open late). But one of the best in-park dining experiences we've had.

It's normally a staple of our last day in Florida, Universal / IoA in the morning, 1pm-ish lunch at Mythos, then back to our resort on I-Drive to shower & change then make that sad drive down the 528 to the airport.

You can sort of reserve a table at Mythos. I say sort of as they stress it's not a guaranteed table time, but by "reserving" you jump the queue of walk-ins waiting for tables. We've always been seated within 5mins of our reserved time.