How to Stick to Your Disney Food Budget at Epcot

Planning a Disney food budget is one of the smartest ways to keep your trip affordable, especially when traveling with a family. On a last-minute Disney World trip, I knew we needed to be intentional with our spending. Tickets and accommodations were already purchased, so food became the next area to save money, particularly with four growing boys.

With a little research, I created a dining plan that saved us hundreds of dollars. Finding the best restaurants and meals took some time, but it was completely worth it for our wallet and our family’s enjoyment.

Pro Planning Tip: We recommend using Jessica Lieb with ET Family Travel to book your Disney vacation!

Step 1: Set Your Disney Food Budget

Theme park food can be expensive, but Disney allows guests to bring outside food into the parks — a major advantage for families trying to save money. Packing snacks or light meals can save hundreds over the course of a trip.

For our family, we aimed to spend less than $200 per day, setting:

• $60 per meal for six people
• $30 per day for snacks

This gave us a $50 buffer for fluctuations in pricing at different dining locations. We went over budget at Hollywood Studios but came in under at Epcot and Animal Kingdom, keeping our overall Disney food budget on track.

Step 2: Create a Dining Plan

Planning ahead is the key to sticking to your Disney food budget. While we could have packed full meals, carrying food for six people takes up space, and renting a locker or trekking back to the entrance wasn’t practical.

Instead, we focused on:

• Quick-service restaurants
• Kids’ meals (available to everyone, not just kids)
• Using the My Disney Experience app for practice mobile orders to compare portions and prices

Kids’ meals come with drinks and sides, making them a cost-effective way to feed a family without sacrificing quality or convenience.

Our Plan for Dining at Epcot

Before arriving, we mapped out all meals and shared the plan with the kids. Teaching them about balance, having fun without overspending, prevented meltdowns and helped them appreciate the value of thoughtful spending.

Breakfast

For this trip, we stayed off-property and ate the complimentary breakfast served at our hotel. Even when we stay on-property, we find it’s quicker and cheaper to eat breakfast in our room. We usually place a grocery order to be delivered to our room on arrival. This way, we can have quick grab-and-go breakfast items like muffins, cereal bars, fruit, and even cereal available.

Lunch at Connections Eatery

Lunch was at Connections Eatery, where we set a budget of $12 per person. Most of us ordered the kid’s pizza meal (large cheese slice, 2 sides, and a refillable drink). Sides included french fries and mandarin oranges. One child chose two slices of pepperoni pizza, similar in cost to the kid’s meal but without sides or a drink.

Total lunch cost: $54.06

Maple Popcorn in Canada

We purchased the refillable popcorn bucket at Hollywood Studios and brought it to Epcot. For a small fee, the buckets can be refilled at all four Disney parks and Disney Springs.

While most specialty-flavored popcorn isn’t included in the popcorn refills, you can refill your bucket with maple popcorn at the Canada pavilion at Epcot.

It costs $2.25 for maple popcorn in Canada.

Beer in Germany

My husband enjoys trying new beers, so we sampled a Warsteiner Dunkel from Sommerfest in the Germany pavilion.

Total beer cost: $12.78

Dinner at Regal Eagle Smokehouse

Dinner was at Regal Eagle Smokehouse in the American Adventure pavilion. We again focused on the kids’ menu, which offers generous portions for a great value.

Our order:

• Kid’s salad with smoked chicken (sides included)
• Macaroni and cheese and baked beans
• Cheeseburgers, chicken fingers, and macaroni and cheese for the kids

Total dinner cost: $51.16

Additional Snacks

We also carried a backpack with us that contained plenty of snacks and water bottles, so we weren’t tempted to overspend. Our bag contained crackers, cookies, cereal bars, and fruit snacks.

Total Spent on Food at Disney’s Epcot

Family of 6 total: $120.25 — well under our $150 daily target. Combining this with savings at Animal Kingdom balanced out overspending at Hollywood Studios, keeping our three-day Disney food budget at $377.07 for six people.

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