Disney vacations are work: you are out all day, walking for miles, and navigating crowds. All of this is tougher on children, so be thoughtful and remember that sometimes just the mention of an interesting meal or snack will buy you enough time to get them through that particular meltdown. We are a mixed family, Jewish and Italian, and just about every issue we have can be solved with food! Below, are five tips for navigating Disney World with kids ... and food.
1. Keeping your kids well fed helps to prevent meltdowns -- this works at home and on vacation! I discovered that the kid's meal, even for my 12-year-old son who is the same height as me, is a great snack. The kid's meal can come with a small drink, apple slices, yogurt, a cookie, and small cup of macaroni and cheese all for about $6.50. That is a huge bargain and works for us as a snack to be shared. Especially if we are in Epcot, at The Land. We love their quick service restaurant downstairs, a perfect stop after visiting Soarin', and an inexpensive, quick recharge. Plus, my spouse cannot get over how delicious the apples are, he thinks they grow them upstairs in the greenhouse. It may just be that they taste much fresher than our NYC supermarket apples that may have been picked months earlier.
2. As I stated, my son is my height. He is a tall, yet slim tween. We have been known to share a turkey leg as a snack, just the two of us. This makes for a great bonding experience. We pass the leg back and forth and play fight over how much we are each eating! This may not be what others consider a snack, but when we are sharing, it is a snack for my son and I. And let me tell you, it is far from a boring snack with his boring dad! Together we get to fight off the birds who are trying to be cannibals by eating scraps from our turkey leg.
3. Travel with snacks. I pack a few boxes of snack cakes, power bars, and anything else that won't melt. We throw one of each in our bag for the day so we can be prepared for a hunger meltdown, which may not necessarily be coming from the kid!
4. Make your meal interesting! We enjoy eating as a family. We were excited to find out that they have a lobster roll at the Harbour House (a favorite food of my son's)! We were equally excited to find out that, in addition to receiving free refills at Disney's table service sit-down lunches, we could also get that last refill in a to-go cup. That's an extra soda for free, and extra hydration for free. The Liberty Tree Tavern is where we first discovered this steal and we love to return for some down-home cooking as well as all the liquids we can drink!
5. Try something new each trip. It took us seven trips to go inside The Harbour House I mentioned above. We dads always try to find something new to keep our sons interested, you never know when your kids are going to need a distraction. And food is a great distraction for us -- all I have to do is mention that one of our trips will include the "kitchen sink" ice cream and my son is my best friend for several hours!
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