I Run at Disney to Eat at Disney: Magic Kingdom Edition

Hi all,

So I’ve been having a major case of Disney day dreams lately. I may or may not have already made and adjusted all my dining reservations for WDW Marathon Weekend… twice. So I thought I would have some fun and day dream a little more “purposely”.

Occassionally, Disney podcasts (most notably the Mighty Men of Mouse) will do a dining episode where they see how they can plan a day of dining on a fixed budget. Most recently they set their challenge at $40/day so that’s what I’m going to do.

Here are the rules:

I can only spend $40 a day while staying at Pop Century
I need to eat a balanced diet to fuel my runDisney adventure
I am assuming this is after the 10k with the half marathon the next day so I will follow my usual Dopey weekend rules (limited alcohol, sweets, ice cream, and other potential stomach up-setters)
I have a water bottle that I bring to the parks and will refill with water or get free water from quick service locations throughout the day (aka I will not budget for water or drinks)

Okay with that…

Let’s Go To the Magic Kingdom!

Since I’m going to need to pick something up the night before, I’m grabbing a bagel and cream cheese to snack on as I head to the bus. I’ll also have some coffee or tea in the room too!

Bagel and Cream Cheese: $2.99

I just ran some miles so it’s time to refuel! What better way to do that than with a tasty breakfast sandwich (egg, bacon and cheese on a bagel) from Everything Pop!

Breakfast Sandwich: $6.79

After a nap and some stretching it’s time to head to the Magic Kingdom for some fun!

I’m a big snacker so I’m going to bring the banana and the mini-Clif Bar that I got at the end of the race as a mid-morning snack while touring Magic Kingdom! Nothing works up an appetite like Space Mountain and a spin on the Tea Cups!

Banana: Free!
Mini-Clif Bar: Free!

So after 2 breakfasts, it’s time for lunch! The best place at the Magic Kingdom to get the best bang for the buck is Sleepy Hollow. I’m going to chow down on a Waffle Chicken Sandwich!

Sweet & Spicy Chicken Waffle: $10.49

After that we’ll go hit some more rides, definitely Haunted Mansion, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and Pirates of the Caribbean. All those rides will call for another snack so I’m going to grab a citrus swirl because we all no Citrus Swirl > Dole Whip.

Citrus Swirl: $4.29

A few more rides and maybe some down time at the Country Bear Jamboree before grabbing an early dinner at Gaston’s Tavern, specifically a Ham and Brie sandwich!

Ham, Brie and Grain Mustard: $9.99

After dinner maybe one last ride on the Little Mermaid ride as I stroll out of the park, maybe one more ride on the People Mover too! Hop on the bus and on the way back to the room a swing through Everything Pop to grab a final evening snack, some Chip & Dale pretzels and fill up my refillable mug.

Chip & Dale Pretzels: $3.49

So that’s my day, a full day of running and fun at the Magic Kingdom and my total comes to…

$38.04 ($40.32 with 6% sales tax)