Do you want to know what the best snacks to bring to Disneyland are? In this guide we will cover what we think are the best snacks to take to Disneyland, the reasons why you should be bringing your own snacks into the park and how best to store them.
But before we get to that
Can you bring snacks to Disneyland?
Can you take snacks to Disneyland
Before we go into what snacks your should take to Disneyland, it is first important to know if in fact you can bring snacks into Disneyland or if this is against the Disney rules (of which there are many).
The good news is that you are indeed allowed to bring both food and drink into the parks with you. However there are some rules you need to follow if you do want to bring things into the park with you.
Firstly, although you can buy alcohol in some Disney parks you are absolutely not allowed to bring alcohol with you into the park. If you try to do this it will be confiscated by security and you can be refused entry.
Secondly, the food you bring in must not be stored in glass containers. The only notable exception to this rule is regarding baby food and medicines.
And finally you will need to consider in what container you are bringing your food into Disneyland in. If you want to bring some kind of bag or container then it must be smaller than:
- 24″ long x 15″ wide x 18″ high (61 cm x 38 cm x 46 cm)
Also you will not be permitted to bring loose or dry ice into the parks.
Why should I bring my own food into Disneyland
Now you know some of the rules about bringing your own food into Disneyland, it is worth thinking about why you should bring your own food into Disneyland.
Budget
If you are traveling to Disneyland on a budget then bringing your own snacks can really help you save money.
Snacks in the park are usually priced at around on average 5USD or more. For instance, on our last visit a Mickey ice lolly cost around 6.95USD while churros cost 5USD. Soda also costs around 5USD in they parks.
These costs can soon add up and therefore bringing in your own snacks will really help stretch your budget.
Timing
As well as saving you money, bringing in your own snacks can also save you a lot of time. The queues at many of the popular snack carts can get very long and can into precious time in the parks. Having snacks with you will save you the queue time.
Also if you are traveling to Disneyland with toddlers or kids, like I do you may find they suddenly get hungry at the most inconvenient of times i.e. in the middle of a long queue. Therefore we like to have snacks always on hand to prevent anyone from getting hangry.
For a full Disneyland itinerary for toddlers be sure to check out this dedicated post.
Health
Now there are some healthy snacks available at Disneyland. There are several fruit carts that are selling precept fruit that we found. However these can be expensive.
Also most of the snacks at Disneyland while really tasty can be full of sugar. Therefore if you want to have some healthier options with you, you might be better bringing them into the park with you rather than looking around all of the snack kiosks.
Dietary Requirements
And finally while Disneyland does cater well to dietary requirements, particularly at the table service restaurants, if you have a specific dietary requirements you may want to bring your own snacks in with you to be sure you have what you need when you need them.
Where to buy snacks for Disneyland
Supermarkets Near Disneyland
Now you know the reason you should bring your own snacks you may have questions about where to by snacks for Disneyland.
Now if you are driving to Disneyland from home you may be able to bring the snacks with you from home if you are traveling with a cool box etc.
However if you are flying coming from LAX to Disneyland you may want to know the nearest places to buy snacks.
CVS
There is a CVS a very short walk away from Disneyland which is great to grab snacks at even if you are traveling to Disneyland without a car. Although not a full blown grocery store we have always found that we are able to get the snacks we want here.
It’s address is: 1803 S. Harbor Boulevard
Quick Marts
There are also several Quick Marts within walking distance of Disneyland and you can usually grab snacks , milks and soda here.
Hotel Shops
Many of the hotels around Disneyland will also have a small selection of beverages and snacks available to purchase. Although these won’t have the largest selection or indeed be the cheapest place to buy snack, you will be at least able to get some things.
Walmart
Unfortunately there is no Walmart in walking distance to Disneyland however if you have a car at Disneyland or are able to Uber or Lyft there are Walmarts nearby.
How to pack food for Disneyland
Lunch Box or Tupperware
Although I usually like to pack items that are individually wrapped, for those that are not I like to have a lunch box or Tupperware to store snacks in as this can prevent the food getting crushed and soiling other items in your backpack.
Ice Pack
California (obviously season dependent) is a hot place and days at Disneyland are very long. You do not want to risk anything going bad or off. Therefore we recommend packing ice packs with you.
Click here to shop ice packs
Ziploc Bags
As well as tupperware and individually packed items I also like to have ziplock bags with me to portion out snacks for my kids.
Water Bottle
As I said above the price of water and soda in the parks is around 4-5USD. I therefore recommend bringing in your own water bottle to refill as this will save you lots of money.
Water bottles are available for purchase in the park but these come at a premium so we recommend bringing one from home. And if you want a Disney one there are lots of great and good value ones available on Amazon.
Click here to shop Disney water bottles.
Individually Packed Items
Individually packed items are great for snacks at Disneyland. This packs it easy to portion out especially if you are traveling in a big group.
Some examples of individually wrapped foods are:
- Fruit Puree Pouches
- Crisps
- Raisins
Packing cubes
If you want to monitor who has what snacks at Disneyland, you could use packing cubes. We like to use a different coloured packing cube for each person in our party and put their snacks in their so everyone has the same.
Shoe Organiser
I know this is strange but hear me out. One of our top Disneyland stroller hacks is to use an over door shoe organiser. This way you can store snacks and drinks on the back of the stroller so everyone doesn’t have to hold their items while in the queue.
For more Disney stroller hacks check out this post.
Snacks to Take to Disneyland that are best avoided
Before we get onto what snacks to bring to Disneyland, there are a few foods I would not recommend bringing. These are things that are likely to go off in the heat. Items should include:
- Dairy that needs refrigeration
- Fruit – unless eaten very early in the day
- Meat – that needs refrigeration
Best Snacks to Bring Disneyland
Best Snacks to Bring to Disneyland
Now you know what not to bring to Disneyland these are the snacks that we recommend bringing:
- Cereal and Cereal Bars – my kids enjoy eating cereal dry so we usually take some dry cheerios or fruit loops with us along with cereal bars.
- Granola Bars
- Crackers
- Fruit – if eaten early
- Fruit Snacks
- Fruit Puree Pouches – both of my kids since babies have enjoyed these and us adults too. It is a great ways to take a healthy snack without worrying about fruit going off
- Raisins – when I am packing for my toddler at Disneyland these are always top of my list.
- Dried Fruit – on top of raisins we take bags of dried fruit
- Crisps / Chips
- Pringles
- Popcorn – popcorn buckets cost around 15USD in the parks. If you want popcorn bringing your own will save a lot of money
- Jerky – my hubby’s top pick
- Nuts
- Rice Cakes
- Non refrigerated yoghurts (but do be sure to keep cool)
- Juice Cartons
- Milk cartons that don’t require refrigeration (but do be sure to keep cool)
- Cookies – non chocolate so you don’t have to deal with the melt i.e. oat and raisin.
- Animal crackers
- Donut holes
- Croissants for rope drop
- Fruit Winders / Fruit Leather / Fruit Ropes
- Peanut Butter Bites
- Babybel – but keep cold
Also if you are visiting Disney with a toddler be sure to check out our other Disney toddler and baby guides no matter the park we will have a guide do you: