CindyH in NC Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 We are planning our first (and probably only) trip to Disney World this fall or winter. I have been reading through the Disney threads on the board and trying to learn as much as possible. Our girls will be 11 and 15 at the time of the trip. We will be going during the time free dining is offered so we might stay on site rather than in a condo as we first planned. I am recently gluten free and I just wondered how hard it will be to eat gluten free on the Disney dining plan. Anyone btdt? Would this issue make it preferable to stay out of the park so I would have access to a kitchen and grocery stores? Also we really want to spend at least one day of our week at Universal ( for the Harry Potter experience:-). If we stay on site at Disney ( looking at Port Orleans FQ or a cabin near the camp grounds) would we need to rent a car for the week just to go to Universal? This may be obvious but I am not finding any info on how to get from one park to the other. :bigear: We will rent a car if we stay in a condo close by. As I said above, this will probably be a one time trip for our family. We have been saving and this will be their Christmas this year as well. I really want to stay on site if it will be more "magical", but seeing the Harry Potter park at Universal is something our whole family would love to do while we are there. I am getting quotes from the Magic for Less website. Has anyone used them for booking a Disney trip? Recommendations? Thanks for reading and for any advice. Cindy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disney Dreaming Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 (edited) We went to Disney in June and while it wasn't impossible to eat gluten free, it was difficult. I normally had bacon for breakfast(I didn't eat eggs since I have read somewhere that the eggs sometimes have gluten in them to make them fluffy), I would eat a burger or chicken sandwich without the bun for lunch or dinner, etc... I didn't see any gluten free foods(like pizza and such). We did stay on Disney property to eat even though we had a car. You would need a car to get to Universal. They are different parks and not really close to each other(about 15 minutes or so from each other). BTW, they have started remodeling PO Riverside-the remodeled rooms have queen beds in the princess rooms. We have stayed at quite a few resorts(from the value to the deluxe) and I think it makes all the difference to stay on site(if it is in your budget). I know many prefer to spread out and stay in condos, but the perks for staying on site is worth it to me to pay the extra money(extra park hours, transportation to and from all parks, etc..) We always book through Disney. I do research on allears.net and touringplans.com. Edited August 2, 2012 by ugamom11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DianeW88 Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 You can note that you need a gluten free meal when you make your dining reservation for any sit-down restaurant, and they are happy to accommodate you. At a CS restaurant, you will need to ask. I'd head over to the disboards and ask about it there. I know they'll be able to give you lots of info. And yes, you'll need a car to get to Universal, but I'd only rent it for one day if that's all you'll need it for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kokotg Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 Disney is about the easiest place in the world to be gluten free. When you make your dining reservations, you can note it on the reservation, and the chef will come out to talk to you at every restaurant. For counter service places, you just tell them you're gluten free and the manager will come out to talk to you, usually bearing a giant book with all the allergy information. It helps to do some research in advance so you have an idea of what you can eat in each place. Every place has something, but the selection's better at some places than others. They do have gluten free pizza and they even have gluten free chicken fingers (which are way better than the regular chicken nuggets) at a lot of locations. They'll also do baked fries for you if they don't have a dedicated fryer. Desserts get a little monotonous, as most all of the counter service places give you a french meadow brownie (or at least this was true a year ago when we were there). Kona has a flourless cake that's gluten free (they served it to us when we ate at 'Ohana, which is right next door), and it's awesome. And Babycakes is a bakery in Downtown Disney that's vegan and gluten free. We picked stuff up there a lot to bring back to the room for breakfasts the next day (you can use your snack credits there). Here's a link to my not quite finished trip report....it's very long, but there are links to the individual posts, so you can just read the restaurant stuff. If you google, there are quite a few gluten free at disney reviews out there, too: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2806318 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 Disney is *fabulous* for food allergies and special diets! Really, they handle it so well. For any table service meals, note on your reservation that one of the party is gluten-free. They will ask you at check-in (and if they don't, remind them -- but that's rare) and the waiter or waitress will make sure the chef comes to your table. The chef will confirm your restrictions, point out foods that are already naturally gluten free, and let you know of any special foods (rolls, pasta, desserts) that he can make just for you. He will make sure that anything you want comes from designated serving dishes, etc. Even buffets at Disney will work fine, 'cause the chef will ask what you want and they'll get it from the kitchen, so it doesn't have the cross-contamination concerns of shared serving utensils and such on the buffet. You can feel confident with any table service restaurant on disney property. They will bend over backwards to make you food that you are able to eat and enjoy. Counter service / quick service is a little more challenging. But you CAN eat at those places. Pretty much any place that serves pizza will also have Amy's gluten free pizza *if* you ask -- and they'll add any gf toppings that they have available. It takes longer because they'll make it from frozen for you right then. It also ends up being cheaper, since one quick service credit will get you a whole Amy's pizza and that's usually enough for a couple of people. There are other options like that -- generally not publicized! -- available throughout the parks (though not at every single quick service restaurant). It's possible to email Disney and get a complete list -- it's updated regularly -- though it's been a while and I'm not sure of the email for this offhand. If you Google "Disney gluten free", you will find all sorts of resources. Really, they will make as easy to eat well as any place you can imagine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 WDW was the easiest gluten free vacation our family has ever done. We stayed onsite (all star music). The chef at the hotel made sure there was plenty of gf options in the cafeteria for my kids. One morning the chef asked if she could make gf pancakes for us. Another day she surprised us with giant ice cream sandwiches made with gf cookies (and charged us the same price as the regular factory looking ice cream sandwiches). ds was 13. he went around parks in the afternoons on his own and purchase gf food at lots of places. WDW will give you a menu options list if you request. At sit down restaurants the chef will come out, speak to you directly about what he can do with each item on the menu (substitution, etc) and then oversee the production of your meal directly. While I find food at WDW expensive in general, I was pleased that I was not charged extra for getting gf versions of anything. Getting the menu option list ahead of time help us plan some of our days in the parks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Disney Dreaming Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 Disney is about the easiest place in the world to be gluten free. When you make your dining reservations, you can note it on the reservation, and the chef will come out to talk to you at every restaurant. For counter service places, you just tell them you're gluten free and the manager will come out to talk to you, usually bearing a giant book with all the allergy information. It helps to do some research in advance so you have an idea of what you can eat in each place. Every place has something, but the selection's better at some places than others. They do have gluten free pizza and they even have gluten free chicken fingers (which are way better than the regular chicken nuggets) at a lot of locations. They'll also do baked fries for you if they don't have a dedicated fryer. Desserts get a little monotonous, as most all of the counter service places give you a french meadow brownie (or at least this was true a year ago when we were there). Kona has a flourless cake that's gluten free (they served it to us when we ate at 'Ohana, which is right next door), and it's awesome. And Babycakes is a bakery in Downtown Disney that's vegan and gluten free. We picked stuff up there a lot to bring back to the room for breakfasts the next day (you can use your snack credits there). Here's a link to my not quite finished trip report....it's very long, but there are links to the individual posts, so you can just read the restaurant stuff. If you google, there are quite a few gluten free at disney reviews out there, too: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2806318 I guess I need to ask the hive next time and my trip will be easier finding gf foods!:tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 Just an FYI. I know you said this will probably be your only trip, but I have found the best deal on Universal at Costco. 3 days for $144 including tax. The great thing is that the tickets are good for 3 years, so if you wish to go one day this year, one next, etc.....you can. They are also park hoppers. I think one day at Universal is about $80 per person. That is why we haven't done it yet. We only want to go one day, but if we do it one day per trip, that might work. Are you flying? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 You can rent a car for one day to go to Universal. I believe the locations are at the AAA Car Care Center outside the Magic Kingdom parking area and either the Swan or the Dolphin between Epcot and Hollywood Studios. Mears transportation has buses that go between WDW and Universal but I'd bet a car rental would be less expensive, even paying to park at Universal ($12?$15?) We spent two and a half days at Universal last August, primarily for the Wizarding World :D It was so amazing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CindyH in NC Posted August 2, 2012 Author Share Posted August 2, 2012 Great ideas! We had no idea you could rent a car right at Disney. That will be great for Universal. Kokotg, I have saved your travel log and will read through it again when making reservations. This was so helpful. ( The pics of your kids were so cute. ) Abbey, So glad to hear that Disney has been accomodating. I didn't want my eating needs cutting into the girls' fun. We are definitely leaning toward staying on site now. Dawn, That is a great price for the Universal tickets at Costco, but we really doubt we will make it back, at least not in 3 years. So I guess we will just have to bite the bullet and pay for the one day passes. We plan to spend the entire day at the Wizarding World. Thanks again, Cindy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firestar Academy Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 i just finished reading this book: http://www.amazon.com/PassPorters-Disney-World-Special-Needs/dp/1587710188/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1343950428&sr=8-1&keywords=passporter%27s+walt+disney+world+for+your+special+needs I don't know how to make that link smaller. but it is passporter's walt disney world for your special needs. whole section on GF dining and what to do. BEST BOOK EVER!!! I got it from the library. I swear that when we went to disney and stayed on property that universal had a bus that would come there to get people. you might want to call universal. Robin in NJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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