Refillable Popcorn Buckets

Ohhhh what a bummer that there’s only flavored popcorn at 2 places! One of the highlights of my trip to Tokyo Disneyland was refilling our bucket over and over with all the different flavors! I love popcorn as a snack to nibble on especially when waiting in line.
 
I agree that nobody needs a bunch of buckets and am also an AP (just not local)-I only was interested in the mickey pumpkin one because it was a cute Halloween decoration. I don't think Disney is doing it to be environmentally friendly but rather to upsell the average guest. Instead of the typicallh family Spending $4-8 (1-2 boxes of popcorn) on a week long vacation perhaps they spend $15 buying the $10 bucket and a few refills. An AP who goes frequently or takes multiple week long trips per year isn't really the target and they want to get that $10 bucket "investment" more than once a year (or every couple years).

I suspect they may go back to the old designs after Christmas unless they decide to totally redesign them.

I was told on my August trip (after I bought another bucket even though I had one in the room and had just not brought it) that the bucket for an AP holder expires at the time of your AP expiration. That is your "length of stay." Which makes sense, but the problem is it definitely seems to be dependent on the opinion of each CM. For my next trip in a couple weeks I don't know whether or not to bring the bucket! It is a little frustrating.

Yes, with the tourists I think they will end up spending more. But as a local passholder, I bought popcorn just three times over a ten year period- and one of those times was when they had Halloween buckets for a few bucks in mid-November. It's priced so high I'm not often willing to pay for it. I can make my own popcorn that night at home for a fraction of the price. We pack lunches and snacks and buy as little food as possible since it is all so overpriced. But a bucket that I can refill for 1.50 for at least a year...that I'm willing to do. For people like me, allowing me to use the bucket for years actually gets me to spend more money on popcorn.

Those older buckets were better. You could fit more popcorn in the older style buckets.

When I got one of the newer ones I was like "what is this little thing?"

I thought the same thing at first. I have an older bucket and filled it with water to the top. I then transferred the water to the new bucket- and the same amount of water filled the new one to the top. The volume on both is the same.
 
I thought the same thing at first. I have an older bucket and filled it with water to the top. I then transferred the water to the new bucket- and the same amount of water filled the new one to the top. The volume on both is the same.

I have both at home and just comparing both with the normal size bag of Pop Secret, with the old buckets I could fill just barely the entire bag into those buckets. These newer ones I fill it and still have about 2 handfuls of popcorn that can't fit
 




Yes stay away from the cheddar, sour cream and buffalo

That's the problem with Disney corn...if it's not fresh, it's not good! Those three flavors come from who knows where and aren't popped fresh at the cart. The same can be re-said (as been mentioned before) for the popcorn at some of the shows like Fantasmic; it's pre-popped somewhere else and not good. On our last trip, on two separate days, I refilled our bucket to bring back to the Beach Club, thinking it would be a great snack to have by the pool later that night; the only thing it was good for, was for the birds! I wonder if the humidity during the Summer and early Fall have something to do with it?

I have to admit though as I was a little bit skeptical at first, but the maple corn (Canada in Epcot and the cart between Pecos Bill and splash in MK), when hot and fresh, is awesome!

Remember...

Fresh = Deeeelicious!
Not fresh = not Deeelicious!
 
Magic Kingdom no longer offers maple flavored popcorn in Frontierland. I was told that they had an issue with the oil so they discontinued it
 
We were just at the parks this past weekend. I bought the bucket for $10. Cast members told me it was refillable for 1.50 until the style of the bucket changes which she said usually happened every couple months. She said this applies to everyone, regular ticket holders and annual passholders.
 
We were just at the parks this past weekend. I bought the bucket for $10. Cast members told me it was refillable for 1.50 until the style of the bucket changes which she said usually happened every couple months. She said this applies to everyone, regular ticket holders and annual passholders.

Different cm’s are giving different answers. What if someone buys the bucket on the last day it’s being offered? Do they get no refills? I wish they’d just say they are refillable, period, no date ranges. That’s what every other park I’ve been to does. They’re still making a profit on the refills. Popcorn is cheap.
 
Honestly, I am an AP holder and I have a 3 year old bucket that I bring every trip and get it refilled with no issues. I have never seen any official rules on the buckets so until someone tells me no, Ill keep bringing my bucket.
 
When we were there over New Year's Eve and Marathon Week, I saw at least 4 different 'current' bucket designs. At every stand, they took the bucket and refilled it without even giving a second glance. I really don't think they are too concerned with it as long as it is the same size and not the older designs (the bigger buckets). The lines for popcorn were the longest I've ever seen them (holiday crowds) and the popcorn was always hot and fresh. We definitely got our money's worth of delicious popcorn! :)
 
When we were there over New Year's Eve and Marathon Week, I saw at least 4 different 'current' bucket designs. At every stand, they took the bucket and refilled it without even giving a second glance. I really don't think they are too concerned with it as long as it is the same size and not the older designs (the bigger buckets). The lines for popcorn were the longest I've ever seen them (holiday crowds) and the popcorn was always hot and fresh. We definitely got our money's worth of delicious popcorn! :)

Same time frame and experience for me.
 
I was planning to get a bucket the first day and use it for snacks each day, but my husband is worried about it being a hassle to carry. We have teens so no stroller and he thinks it’ll be awkward on rides. So what do you do with your bucket all day at the parks. Is it worth carrying around? Does it fit in an average backpack?
 
I was planning to get a bucket the first day and use it for snacks each day, but my husband is worried about it being a hassle to carry. We have teens so no stroller and he thinks it’ll be awkward on rides. So what do you do with your bucket all day at the parks. Is it worth carrying around? Does it fit in an average backpack?

We had a stroller at the park, but I did put the bucket in my backpack for the plane ride home. As long as you don't have an overstuffed backpack it should fit in there just fine.
 

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