Hi Melia,
Welcome to planDisney! It's always good to hear from a fellow Floridian, especially on one of my favorite topics: food and drink at Walt Disney World.
I'm happy to tell you that you are more than welcome to bring snacks, non-alcoholic drinks or even a picnic lunch with you when you enter one of the theme parks. The
park rules prohibit glass containers, except for small baby food jars, and outside alcoholic beverages. Coolers are allowed, but they must be no larger than 24x15x18. Reusable ice packs are recommended since loose ice and dry ice are prohibited.
How many snacks, non-alcoholic drinks and other food items you bring is up to you.
When we are traveling with younger children, we'll often tuck a small cooler into the stroller basket with juice boxes, water, squeeze containers of applesauce or yogurt or other quick snacks to keep hunger at bay. We may also fill a bag with crackers, granola bars or other crunchy snacks.
If we're visiting with only adults in our party, I don't like to weigh down my bag. So I will usually stow only a granola bar or small bag of trail mix for a protein boost and a refillable water bottle in my backpack or crossbody bag.
I've never packed a full meal inside the parks, but I've seen a mom pull a loaf of bread and a plastic jar of peanut butter from her bag to make sandwiches for her whole crew. And once, a family sitting next to us on a bench produced a lavish spread of warm vegetarian dishes from an insulated bag in their stroller.
One tip: Every quick service dining location will give you a free cup of ice water, even if you aren't purchasing food. That's a great way to stay hydrated, save money and lighten your load.
And another note about overpacking: If you have a stroller and are using the complimentary
Disney bus transportation between the parks and resorts, you will need to fold the stroller to board the bus. Limiting the number of bags you have stored in your stroller will make that so much easier.
Thanks for your question, Melia. Please let us know if you need more information about dining, resorts, attractions or other planning tips as your vacation nears.
Enjoy,
Wilma