Grocery Delivery Services and How to Get Your Groceries at the Walt Disney World Resorts

Grocery Delivery Services are still allowed at the Walt Disney World Resorts

While there are many amazing restaurants at Walt Disney World, often families want to just have a home-cooked meal while at Disney or are trying to save money. One way to do so is by having groceries delivered to your resort. This saves you from having to pack everything ahead of time and risk something spilling or getting squished and ensures you can take your time ordering so you don’t miss anything and have things delivered when you need them.

One particular group this is especially helpful for are DVC Members or those renting DVC points. If you are in a 1-, 2- or 3-bedroom room, you have a full kitchen with everything you need to story food and cook. Basics like salt and pepper are not provided, so you’ll want to be sure to pack those or just order them with your groceries. Grocery delivery allows you to have almost anything delivered, so you can cook your meals on resort days or eating breakfast before going to the parks. It’s also a great way to save money, make memories of trying new recipes with the family or just have extra snacks and drinks for the park.

We tried several of the different grocery delivery services in the Orlando area, and here are our thoughts about each of them. We know there are even more out there, but we had to draw a line somewhere, so we chose these. Hope you find this helpful!

Amazon Prime Now

Amazon Prime Now is a great option for those who shop Amazon a lot anyway because you’re already familiar with the platform. The ease of shopping on here was awesome for us, and the whole process was smooth and simple. The free shipping is a big draw too because who doesn’t love free shipping??? I’m a sucker for it.

Pros: The whole process was simple, fast, and easy. I placed my order around midnight, and my items were delivered between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. that morning. If you choose a one-hour window, there’s a $5 delivery charge, but if you choose a two-hour delivery window, shipping is free. Amazon has options all day from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., so there’s plenty of options for you to choose a time that works around your schedule. You can even place your order before you leave home so you don’t have to think about it when you’re on vacation. You get a text when your package is on its way, and another when it’s been delivered. You can also shop items from Whole Foods and order from both Whole Foods and Amazon; however, they both have their own shipping charges. If you order cold items that need to be refrigerated, they are put in a cooler bag to keep that colder longer. The last thing we liked which was a huge factor for me was that on almost every single item, there’s a picture of the ingredients list or it’s listed out. This allowed me to make sure everything I ordered didn’t have anything in it we don’t normally it and didn’t have food dyes.

Cons: While the pricing on the items we ordered was not ridiculous, it was a little more than you’d expect to pay at a grocery store (depending on the store). Amazon also did not have a huge variety of options for some items (we wanted a case of water and could only buy Dasani). Not having a lot of options can mean you pay more for something or may mean you don’t get the brand you want.

Conclusion: The ease of Amazon Prime Now was a big deal for us because we could sit down, order, and not have to think about it again until we got the text saying our order was on the way. This was great because we have a lot going on and having one more thing to think about can be stressful. While we may have paid slightly more for some items, the ease of everything, free shipping, and how well it was all packaged was worth the few extra dollars for us.

Instacart

Instacart offers some great options, but I found myself trying to figure out the ordering process and how to shop from multiple stores before I could even begin shopping. That being said, I did enjoy having the options from different stores.

Coupon Code: https://inst.cr/t/ou5jZNufF or ASIMMONS10C177 for $10 off your first order of $35 or more

Pros: One of the biggest differences between Instacart and other grocery delivery services is that it isn’t just one store you’re shopping from. Instacart partners with local stores and large chains so you can order your favorite items from each store (i.e. Costco, Aldi, Meijer, Publix). This gives them a much larger selection for customers to choose from which is a great draw. We opted to just order from Aldi as we know we like their products and their pricing is great. Each store sets the price for their own items, so if you notice a difference in some of them, this is why. We were given the option to choose a replacement item on a couple items we ordered that were running low at the store. I’m glad they did this as one item did need to be replaced. You receive a text when your shopper is at the store, and they can text you with any questions they have while they’re there. Once they’re on their way, you receive a text then, and one when your items are delivered.

Cons: A few of the things we didn’t like was I couldn’t see the ingredients for any of the products when I was ordering which was a huge letdown because I like to check ingredients lists. This is a problem if you order something you don’t normally order, aren’t sure about a specific brand or have any allergy concerns. UPDATE: You can now view ingredients from most items on Instacart but not all. They’ve made great progress on this though. Another con was even though I chose a replacement item for a couple of the items I ordered, I still got a text from my shopper asking what I wanted to replace it with. I also got a text from them asking my last name so they could get into the resort. This confused me as all of that information was taken care of when I ordered. I also am not a fan of paying shipping, but Instacart charges $8 for shipping on orders below $35 and $4 for orders over $35, unless you pay for their annual plan which is $99 (and even in that plan, your order has to be over $35 to receive free shipping). There was also a service charge of $2. The last con is that you do get charged per store you order from. I love the option of being able to order from multiple stores, but my shipping costs added up quickly when I tried doing that.

Conclusion: Instacart is a great option if you have a specific store you want to order from or even several because it’s all right there in one convenient shopping location. For me, it has too many fees and took more time than I like to spend on ordering online because I had to keep answering texts for different things. And again, I love free shipping. Being able to order cheaper items from Aldi was great, and if you’re looking for the cheapest option, Instacart with Aldi is probably the best even with the extra fees added on because their food prices are so low.

Walmart

Walmart has a huge variety of products from which to choose at decent pricing. The ordering part was simple as we could search for what we needed. Because it’s such a well-known store, most people have shopped here before and have a vague idea of what they want, so it wasn’t hard to quickly order everything I needed. The pricing is the same as in-store, so you aren’t paying more for ordering online.

Coupon Code: http://r.wmt.co/v/alyssa_234 for free delivery on your first grocery delivery order over $50

Pros: The biggest pro to me was the ease of ordering and the option for same-day delivery. This isn’t always available in every area, but they offer a one-hour delivery window even the next day, so you could place your order the night before or even a week before and get your groceries once you arrive. The prices for the items were fair, and Walmart has such a big variety of brands and food options, so you can get almost anything you want/need. You can even have non-food items delivered as well. I was also able to see the ingredients for items which is always a huge plus for those who like to watch what they eat or have any allergies.

Cons: The biggest con for using Walmart for grocery delivery is that they won’t leave your groceries at Bell Services. You have to meet them. This was super inconvenient for us because we were at the campgrounds, so we had to take our golf cart up to the front and meet the driver. There is also an $8-$10 delivery charge depending on how busy they are. This is only waived if you spend $50 or more and have a free delivery coupon code (see above).

Dizzy Dolphin

Dizzy Dolphin is a local, family-owned company that will go to any location to get specialty items for you. We did not order from them as the minimum order is $50 which is difficult for us to spend for just two of us in our short stays. There is also a $14 delivery fee unless you spend $250 or more. The other thing to note is that you must place your order at least seven days in advance. I honestly don’t plan that well with all the moving we do, so this just didn’t work for us, but I can see it being helpful for families coming for longer stays who need/want specific items delivered.

Garden Grocer

This was the other one we chose not to order from. The items available were limited and insanely overpriced. A gallon of milk was $6.29. I just couldn’t justify paying the prices they were charging. There is also a $14 delivery fee, so this was just not a company we wanted to order from with how much we would have ended up spending.

How to Get Your Groceries

When your items are delivered, they are given to Bell Services (except from Walmart) or the Valet (each resort is different based on where their storage area is). If you have cold items, the driver lets them know, and the cast members will store your items in a fridge or freezer for you. You can have your items brought to your room for a $6 charge, but you must be in the room for your groceries to be delivered. If you choose to pick up your items from Bell Services, there is no charge, so it’s free. This is the better option if you’re trying to save money, but be sure you have help to carry everything if you have a large order.

With all the recent changes in delivering to Bell Services, some have asked about the grocery delivery process. As of now, this has not changed at all. The process is still the same. Sometimes the driver fails to let Bell Services know there are cold items in some of the bags. If this happens, you’ll need to contact the company you ordered your groceries from to get a refund. This is not done through Bell Services as they were just holding the groceries after delivery.

Ordering Alcohol

All the information above is for ordering groceries, but if you are adding alcohol to your order, the process will change. To pick up your grocery delivery with alcohol in it, you’ll have to have an adult 21 or older with a valid ID or driver’s license meet the driver to get your groceries. They cannot leave it at Bell Services, so you’ll need to plan accordingly and make sure you’re there to meet them if you choose to do this.