2. Don’t get charged for fancy bottled water

Image: Disney

We have mentioned before that you can save big by skipping bottled water in the parks in favor of free filtered water from any Disney locations with a soda fountain. However, there is another area where guests can get zinged by surprise charges for water…

Fancy bottled water at table service restaurants.

We first encountered this phenomenon at Morimoto Asia in Disney Springs. One member of our party ordered sparkling water. The rest of us ordered regular water. The server interpreted this as a request for bottled spring water. While we were fine with this for one bottle, I quickly noticed as we finished our glasses that he had a second bottle ready to go. When pressed, he confirmed we would be getting charged by the bottle. He was very quick to stop when we said we were fine with tap water, but had we not been paying attention, this stealthy expense could have fattened the bill quickly.

Keep an eye on this at any Walt Disney World premium dining location. You’re not likely to run into an issue at most buffets and standard restaurants, but all bets are off at premium dining locations. The same goes with refills for fancy drinks. Always double check if refills are free. For iced tea and soda, they usually are, but don’t expect to get free refills on fancy juices. Especially keep an eye on this if you have kids who may have no idea that three glasses of Punch Line Punch will cost mom and dad a whopping $40.

Instead of spending on fancy bottled glacier water, double check to make sure your server is getting you the free stuff and spend that money elsewhere in your meal (like on a gooey, decadent dessert).

3. Always double check before signing up for the Disney Dining Plan

Image: Disney

Oh, the ever-controversial Disney Dining Plan. Whereas once upon a time, this deal was a no-brainer for many families, park visitors are having a harder and harder time working out the math to prove it's a favorable choice. Most of the time these days, it seems like more of a guarantee to widen the waistline and thin the wallet than a legitimate way to save money at Walt Disney World. Yet still, many families just automatically choose the dining plan without double checking if it is truly the best option for their family.

The confusion largely seems to come for families who had a good experience with the Disney Dining Plan in the past. We used it back in 2004 and loved it, but over ten years, the dining plan just lost its value for our family. Explaining this to friends who recalled our previous positive experience with the dining plan is never easy and generally involves a lot of spreadsheet calculations to show that it just isn’t worth it anymore.

If you are a committed loyalist to the Disney Dining Plan and have a system that makes it work well for your family, then go for it—but always double check to see if it really is the best deal. There are other ways to keep a dining budget, and often when the numbers are crunched, the Disney Dining Plan just no longer holds up. Take the extra time to look through some menus and calculate if the dining plan really is the best option for you or if you will save more money using other methods.