Tips about Food & Beverage, Health, Magic Kingdom and Planning

We have been going to WDW since our children were toddlers. Now they are all teenagers (and beyond), but this tip is still good. We have them bring plastic beverage holders that can clip onto a fanny belt. They start out with water, but if we ate a meal in the park, frequently there would still be some beverage left from the meal. The kids would fill the bottle with the leftover drink and take it with them. This has worked well over the years. - Anne Cioffi

Disney goes out of its way to accommodate people with mobility issues, but for those who opt against the motorized scooters, please remember: Although one doesn't think of the parks as having significant ups and downs, the truth is those walkways and lovely bits of landscaping often disguise some serious slopes and inclines. If your wheelchair rider has some weight, don't expect him or her to be able to propel that chair all day long at a fast clip. Feet, backs, and legs are going to get really tired. Before you get to the parks, consider whether renting a scooter would be more practical and/or fit into your budget. If you decide on the push chair for whatever reason, don't expect to cover as much ground as you might have, unless you have several adults who can swap off providing the extra boost (or ballast!) needed to get up and down those slanting pathways. I mention ballast because what goes up laboriously will come down the same slope at a frightening speed if someone doesn't act like a drag chute on a race car! - Joyce A. Deen

MAGIC KINGDOM - Here's a neat thing to do at the Magic Kingdom that only costs $.01 -- The movieolas in the upper floor of the train station at the Magic Kingdom are real; they really do work and they only cost a penny. I think the player piano is just a nickel. - Julie

If you go to the Winn-Dixie store, sign up for a free money saving card...you will save even more with each purchase! - Ricke Z

My wife and I have found a great way to save money on food if you have a car or the car service will make a grocery stop. We drive out to the Publix supermarket on Rte 192. The way we save on water is we buy several gallon jugs of Publix water and then a 50 oz bottle of the same water. We continue to refill the smaller bottle from the gallon jugs. Using the 50 oz bottle gives you a good supply of water for a good part of the day and saves a fortune by not having to pay the high theme park prices for a small bottle of water. The water may not be ice cold but it is very cheap. - Andy & Denise

We just returned from our trip to Disney World. The night we went to Fantasmic I knew we would be sitting for a while waiting for the show to begin. The best investment I made was buying one of those soft folding stadium seats. I carried it with me like a purse. Even used the side mesh pocket to carry drinks to our seats. We waited for over an hour and a half for the show to begin but I didn't mind - I was very comfortable with my seat padding and back support! - Marilyn Lewis

Be flexible with making your ADR dining arrangements. If the table you want is unavailable try different combinations -- 2 tables of 2 instead of one table of four; a 3-2 split rather than a table of 5, etc. Splitting up your group for just an hour or so may be the way to go, given that you're spending all day and all night together for several days on end. Splitting up may also allow you to gain more flexibility in changing ADR reservations without penalty if, after several days in the parks, someone in your party says "I don't need to see any more characters, I'll stay at the hotel, sleep late and meet you later, go and enjoy!" - Phylis

ALL PARKS - There is another show at WDW that most people miss; sit down and watch the other guests. You will never see so diverse an amount of tennis shoes, fashion statements or age groups. - CMarlan

If you are making your own drinks adding sugar or Kool-Aid powder to gallon water jugs, be sure to pack a funnel from home. I did this on the last trip and it made adding the powder and sugar to the containers a cinch! - Wendy Wilson

I carry corn pads and antibiotic ointment (Bacitracin) in my bag. If you get a blister, put the corn pad on so that the blister is in the hole in the center. Squirt the ointment in the hole and put a band aid over the whole thing. The corn pad, since it is cushiony, keeps pressure off the blister, and the ointment heals and cools it off. - Lynn LaMunyon

To prevent blisters (we did alot of walking and no one had an issue with their feet) use bandaid blister pads and put them on normally where you would blister. Prevention is better than reacting to a blister. If you don't remember, feel the feet for some hardened areas. The biggest tip that I did was buy Dr. Scholls foot powder. The key is to keep the feet dry at all times. I put the powder on our feet and in our shoe and always had a pair of clean socks. - Terry Ammirati

When we went to WDW on vacation last year, I packed one suitcase full of snacks and non-perishable food (i.e. mini cereal boxes, cereal bars, various pre-packaged snack packs, juice boxes). Our entire family was able to eat a quick breakfast before going to the parks, have mid-day park munchies, and late evening snacks. The suitcase was then used to bring home dirty laundry at the end of the trip. - Julie Duffy

ALL PARKS - What our tip is, is to tie a bright bandana on the luggage rack or one of the mirrors of your car/minivan/truck that face the tram pick up area. We tied a bright colorful bandana nearest the tram pick up side on our while rented minivan, each day of our 11 day trip to WDW. It didn't matter what park we were at or what row we parked at. All we had to remember was the section, (example, stage, donald, unicorn, etc) we always found our van many times from very far away. We also used the bandana's on our stroller and on our luggage. - Clemley

My wife and I like to do a "monorail meal" when we visit: We get a salad at the Polynesian, get on the monorail, then stop at Grand Floridian for the main course. Then we get back on the monorail, and stop at the Contemporary for dessert. This is for people who have visited often, want to spend time out of the parks, spend a little shopping time in each hotel and just take your time. Start early! - Ford Adam

ANIMAL KINGDOM - A lot of people just run right by Pizzafari on the way to the Safari. My friends had been there 3 times and never knew what Pizzafari even was. The building blends in with the tropical plants and trees. It is awesome inside. The most themed quick food restaurant I have seen in Disney World. When you finally take your eyes off the ceiling, floors and walls (I love the snails and frogs!) you will notice they have great food for sale. - Elaine Taddeo