Why We Still Go to Disney World

I saw you.

You’ve been looking at my last couple of vacation posts about arriving at Disney & going to the parks. You’re rolling your eyes at me.

“That silly middle-aged woman keeps going to Disney World because she misses having little kids, or she’s weird or something.”

Not really.

There’s a big reason that I continue to go to Disney World for vacation and why I take my mostly-adult children.

It’s the food.

Yes, the food is over-priced. Yes, it can be hard to get reservations at some of the restaurants and the lines at quick service locations can get long. But there’s one teeny, tiny little thing about Disney and food that keeps me going back.

It’s safe.

The first time I took my kids to Disney World in Orlando, we’d been living with severe food allergies for several years. One of my daughters is allergic to tree nuts and sesame in all forms. She has the kind of food allergy where first you throw up and then your throat closes up and you can’t breathe and then you die. Traveling and dining out can be a struggle. Death really trashes a vacation, ya’ know?

On that trip to Disney World we ate in the parks and in Disney hotel restaurants for nearly a week and she never once had any kind of allergic reaction. Not once! It was marvelous.

Since then the list of food allergies has grown. The daughter with nut allergies is also allergic to avocado, green beans, and rice. (Rice?!? Whoever heard of a rice allergy?) I must eat gluten free or I get very sick. Another daughter is allergic to all berries and also must eat gluten free.

Disney World food is still safe.

Give them a list of your allergies* and the Disney staff can help you find delicious, safe food to eat.

Here’s an example of a meal from Kouzzina by Cat Cora. It’s a restaurant at Disney’s Boardwalk Resort which is near Epcot (our favorite park).

When we arrived they gave us bread, olives, and two kinds of olive oil for dipping.

Wheat eaters had separate dipping oil from the gluten free duo. My GF daughter and I were able to eat the gluten free pita bread.

Yummy!

The entree I wanted came with a side dish that included gluten. No problem, they substituted roasted potatoes.

After dining at Kouzzina, we were too full to have dessert, but on another night we weren’t. I was able to have gluten free cheesecake! I hadn’t had cheesecake since I stopped eating gluten. It was marvelous.

*Sadly, one of my daughters has developed a new allergy that is not yet diagnosed. She had some allergic reactions on our latest vacation. However, once we figure it out, I know that Disney World will be safe. Because that’s what they do.