Staying at a Disney World hotel is a bucket list experience for many people.
Old Key West
No matter if you’re staying at a value, moderate, or deluxe hotel, the Disney magic of staying on property is like no other. However, there always comes the dreaded time when you have to leave and head back home. But there’s one part of leaving the hotel that we ALWAYS find so awkward, and it may not be what you’re thinking!
When you’re staying in a Disney World hotel, you may choose to grab some groceries from a nearby grocery store yourself if you drove in, OR you may choose to order groceries from Kroger Grocery Delivery. This is a fantastic way to save money on your vacation, so you’re not spending money on the Disney prices associated with every snack or meal on property.
Delivery!
Kroger can bring all the snacks and drinks you’ll need on vacation straight to your hotel (but not to your hotel door, just to the lobby, who will hold it for you)! Plus, you can even order essentials you may have forgotten like medication, ziplock bags, water bottles, and more.
Kroger Groceries
As we said, the last day of your vacation is always hard because you’re going back to reality. You’re starting that drive or hopping on that plane back home, where all of life’s struggles and hardships (and your credit card statement) hit you that the Disney bubble seemed to make disappear. But there’s another reason we found checking out of our hotel to be EXTREMELY awkward recently.
Stormalong Bay
When one of our writers recently went on her Disney World vacation, she realized just how many unopened snacks and drinks she still had that she wouldn’t be able to bring on the plane back home. She really didn’t want to just throw them away since they were still perfectly good, but was afraid if she just left them in the room, they’d be tossed anyway. She had a plan, but she was afraid of how to go through with it: She wanted to find a family who appeared to be just starting their vacation and ask if they’d like the items.
Caribbean Beach
Now, this may not be a problem if you’re driving home or if it can all fit in your checked luggage, but if you’re traveling through regular security, any water bottles or other drinks won’t be allowed through in a carry-on. It may sound easy to just find a family to offer things to, but it’s NOT! It can be such an awkward exchange as you’re trying to assure them that it’s just normal food that hasn’t been opened and that you’re just trying to be nice, but hey, stranger danger!
Art of Animation
So the next time you run into this on vacation, you could do what we tried to do and offer the items to another family vacationing, or you could always call down to the front desk and see if they have any use for it. Perhaps unopened drinks and prepackaged food can be given to the Cast Members working, or they’ll know where to bring it. However, we suggest calling down using your hotel room phone about this first instead of just taking it all down — this way, if they say they can’t use it, you haven’t just dragged down a ton of food and drinks for no reason.
Disney’s BoardWalk Inn Lobby
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Check out our ultimate guide for grocery delivery in Disney World right here!
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What do you do with leftover unopened groceries you can’t take back home? Tell us in the comments!
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Serious question: how are you doing Kroger delivery when there is not a Kroger in the Orlando vicinity? We tried this for our trip in May 2024 and ended up making a run to Publix on our own.
Even though we drive, there can be things it just doesn’t make sense to try to take home like bread, eggs, milk, and other fresh foods that are just more of a hassle to try to keep or there just isn’t any way to keep, as well as unopened packaged foods. We gather the food together in the refrigerator and on the counter, and leave a note saying “please donate.” It probably doesn’t make any difference, it probably all has to be thrown out due to some rule, but we figure that’s probably as likely to work as anything else. I’d like to think that maybe at least the housekeeping staff can help themselves to what they’d like while they’re in the room (cabin actually).
1.you should leave anything unopened in the room. It will not be discarded. Cast members are able to take the items home.
2. Never leave food outside of your door at Moderate and Values. It attracts raccoons and other pests, you do not want.
Simple solutions: DON’T OVER ORDER. Didn’t you ever hear as a kid that your eyes are bigger than your stomach?
We just leave them in the laundry room, take a pic and post to the hotel FB group for whoever wants them!
Bell Services have always been happy to take our left over unopened water and snacks.
There are Disney groups on FB where people say what the have left and where to find it, or if anyone is already there if they want it.
I see comments in my Disney Facebook groups all the time where people will put a photo of the unopened items outside a room or in the laundry room and the resort and room number with the title “Pixie Dusting” and let everyone know they are up for grabs because their trip is over. Someone always posts a matching photo or comment saying thanks and that they got it.
Hi Amy! While there is not a brick and mortar Kroger that you can walk into and select your groceries in the Orlando area, there is an order fulfillment center so if you place your order online, a Kroger associate will pack the order and it will be given to a delivery driver to deliver to you.