Getting Groceries While Visiting Disney World

Morning routines are something that you don’t like to change even when you’re on vacation. Waking up and enjoying a cup of coffee with french vanilla Silk creamer is a staple for us. Since we have to fly to Orlando we can’t just pack up our favorite foods and fly down with them. We often find that the best meal to plan at the resort is breakfast, even though pretty much all restaurants now offer vegan breakfast options, they’re still pretty minimal. Plus you’re often in the park for lunch and dinner. We try to plan one or two actual breakfast reservations and the rest we just eat in the room.

There are several options to getting groceries to enjoy in your room. One of the easiest for more people is to bring your own from home. We do this too but only with dry items that pack well like nuts, ClifBars, dried fruit, instant coffee, and vegan jerky. The first year that we traveled to Disney together we decided to bring A LOT of ClifBars and eat them for breakfast each day, after day two I didn’t eat anymore.

Another way to get groceries is to buy the expensive items offered in your resort store. They often have loaves of bread, peanut butter and cereals. You will be paying the Disney price on these items, so I suggest only doing this if it is your only option.

Resort Store - IMG from AllEars
Resort Store – IMG from AllEars

Our favorite option is to rent a car from Alamo at either the Walt Disney World Dolphin Hotel or the Airport. On our last trip we picked up a rental car from the airport and drove to find groceries. We found a Whole Foods, Publix and Walmart all together off Route 4 near Universal Studios. You can then drop the car off at the Dolphin Hotel when you’re done and just take a boat or bus from there to a park. Renting a car through Alamo will be between $20-$50 a day depending on your vehicle choice. If you rent a car from the airport you can still take the Magical Express to the airport at the end of your trip, just make sure to tell your Travel Agent to select the option of taking it from resort to airport.

Distance to Whole Foods
Distance to Whole Foods

Similar to the previous option, you can rent a cab or take an Uber (Uber is similar to a cab but is a done via your mobile device). This might be more pricey then just renting a car but you don’t have to deal with driving yourself. There is also a Super Target near Disney in Kissimmee that may be closer if you are paying someone to take you. For reference of cab pricing in Disney – we took a cab from the BoardWalk Resort to Animal Kingdom Jamba House last trip and were stuck in traffic for a while and paid an $18 fare for a 5 and a half mile trip.

Distance to Super Target
Distance to Super Target

Last you can just order groceries online from Garden Grocer. This delivery service will drop groceries off to you at your resort. No need to deal with a car or a cab driver! The only downside to these services is that their prices are a bit higher then you would find at a grocery store and they have a minimum amount that you have to spend.

Any of these options are great. I like to get my own items because I might see something that I would have forgotten if I just wrote up a list. Our last trip we picked bagels, Tofutti cream cheese, Soy  & Co yogurt, Silk Creamer, juice, and lots of fresh fruit. An added benefit to getting a rental car is being able to stop and eat at either Ethos or Loving Hut which are both all vegan restaurants that are worth checking out when you’re in town!
Melissa & Corey

Author: Melissa Kramer

Back in 2014 I created Vegan Disney World after going to Walt Disney World several times and finding no resource for vegan options. Corey and I began this blog from our trips and have now moved closer to the mouse to eat around the parks on a weekly basis. Since the blog started we have cruised on Disney Cruise Line, gone to Tokyo Disneyland and to Disneyland in California!

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