I’ve been a fan of Disney’s refillable mugs since they were first introduced in the early 90s. The refillable mugs have gone through many changes over the years. Today, the refillable mugs — which Disney calls Rapid Fill mugs — are high-tech with embedded RFID chips in the bottom that controls where and when (and how much) you can use your mug.
Before we get into the nitty gritty of today’s mugs, allow me to wax nostalgic. Back in the ’90s, refillable mugs had very few restrictions on where you could refill or for how long — some resorts even advertised that mugs were good “for life” (like at the Meadow Trading Post at Fort Wilderness around ’98 or so). I’ve been collecting mugs over the years and use them for my morning coffee daily. The oldest mug in my collection (that I could locate — I have moved several times since then) was this yellow Port Orleans mug.
This 13-year-old mug looks pretty good for its age!
Note that it isn’t Port Orleans Riverside or Port Orleans French Quarter — it’s just plain old Port Orleans. I think this mug dates to 2000-2001, right around the time that Dixie Landings became Port Orleans Riverside. The mug has no writing on it other than the resort name, the Coca Cola logo, and the mug manufacturer (Whirley Warren). Back then, mugs were specific to resorts and had themed artwork. Cost was $8-$9 per mug.
Around 2004 or so, most of the resort mugs got a facelift and new words began appearing near the handle that said, “Free refills until the end of your stay. Refills only at location purchased.” Price was about $10-$11.
Old All Star Sports refillable mug
Then sometime around 2008 the resort-specific themed mugs were replaced with general Disney themed mugs. Signs were posted that more clearly stated that refills were only for the length of stay. The text on the mugs now read, “Refills available at no additional charge at Resort Beverage Islands located in the resort that this mug was purchased through the end of your resort stay.” Price was $12.49.
Refillable mugs have been a source of conversation (and debate) on the PassPorter Message Board Community since 2000 (the year we opened our forum doors). Because of the vague nature of the mugs in the early years, and lack of any real enforcement on re-using old mugs at drink stations, Disney fans have taken up sides on whether it’s acceptable or not to use old mugs on future visits. And with the introduction of the Rapid Fill mugs, there’s no longer a moral dilemma in whether or not to bring back old mugs … because those old mugs just won’t work anymore! Let’s find out why.
The new Rapid Fill mugs, which were introduced in summer 2013 and is rolling out to all Disney resorts now, have an embedded RFID (radio frequency ID) chip in the bottom that contains information about how long the mug can be refilled (utilizing the ValidFill system). You can purchase the mug for the length of your stay ($17.99) good for up to 14 days, 3 days ($14.99), 2 days ($11.99), or 1 day ($8.99). The mugs currently all have the same design, but have a choice of three different handle/lid colors (green, orange, and purple).
The way this works is you place your mug on the beverage station grate, being sure to center the bottom of the mug on the round plastic part below the drink you want, as shown here:
Once it’s centered properly, press fairly hard on the PUSH button to dispense your beverage. If nothing comes out of the beverage dispenser, it’s because:
- Your Rapid Fill mug isn’t centered over the round, plastic bit. Re-center and press PUSH again.
- You recently filled your Rapid Fill mug to full (16 oz. max). Wait 2-3 minutes and try again.
- You aren’t using a valid Rapid Fill mug or disposable cup (available for purchase). If you believe this is in error, speak to a Cast Member.
Let’s look closer at each of these points. Needing to have your Rapid Fill mug centered pretty exactly over that round section means that near contact is necessary for the RFID chip to be read properly. My son often put it on off center, or forgot and tried to just hold it above the sensor while pressing the PUSH button, and it just didn’t work.
Needing to wait to refill a mug is an interesting twist. My guess that it is to discourage abuse of the system (as in someone fills a Rapid Fill mug, pours it into a cup for another person, then immediately goes back to fill up again). Of course, if you take a sip, decide you don’t like it (or just change your mind), and dump it out, you’ll need to wait a few minutes before getting a new beverage. Thankfully the system is measuring how much soda is going into your mug, and this allows you to mix-up your drinks (as my son does frequently) without encountering issues. (Though other guests are reporting issues with stopping and starting.) My son’s favorite drink recipe is light lemonade, water, and a splash of Sprite. In the photo below, you can see my son filling his mug — he’s about to top it off with Sprite here, and you can see the LCD display above noting that his mug has been partially filled already.
Now, if you aren’t using a valid Rapid Fill mug, that’s a problem. Those old mugs just will not work. We witnessed a gentlemen at Wilderness Lodge attempting to use an old mug and becoming VERY frustrated at the machine. It seemed he thought the machine was broken and didn’t realize it was because of the new technology.
This also brings up the question of getting a drink without purchasing a Rapid Fill mug, and it is possible. You can purchase paper cups at the registers ($2.69/small or $3.19/large). The cups have an RFID sticker on the bottom, so they also work at the beverage stations. But they only work for two hours from the point you get your first drink, and you can only get three refills. We used these on our first morning without any issues.
As I noted earlier, there is an LCD display on the beverage station. The display shows how long you may continue to refill your mug (our mugs — which came with our Disney Dining Plan — were refillable 14 days from the day we received it) and shows how much you’ve filled your mug in this “session.”
What about coffee, tea, and water? The Rapid Fill mugs do not currently affect the dispensing of coffee, tea, or water. I imagine new machines could be introduced in the future that interact with the RFID chip — only time will tell.
The mention of coffee and tea had be wondering about microwaving the cups, especially with the RFID chip, and it turns out you’re not supposed to microwave them. The RFID chip will melt/fry in the microwave after about five seconds. For research purposes, I put my Rapid Fill mug in my microwave here at home to see what would happen. And as it turned out, nothing happened from my perspective. The bottom of the mug looked the same as it did before and nothing exploded. So, you CAN microwave them once you get home, so long as you don’t plan to take the same mug back and ask for more time on it.
Are the Rapid Fill mugs dishwasher safe? I don’t believe so, but I am not certain at this time. Guests have been told verbally by Cast Members not to put the Rapid Fill mugs in the dishwater. But the mugs do not say whether they are or are not. The ValidFill web site says that some CAN be, but only if it says Dishwasher Safe on the bottom of the mug (which Disney’s do not). Anyone want to test this out and let us know?
Can more than one guest use the Rapid Fill beverage station at a time? Yes, I witnessed two at once. The ValidFill web site states that up to 6 mugs could be refilled at the same time. I’d like to see the maneuvering it would take to make THAT happen at one of Disney’s beverage stations … ha ha ha!
So let’s recap…
What’s Good about the Rapid Fill Mug:
- If you don’t need the Rapid Fill mug for two days or less, it’s less expensive now than previously ($8.99/$11.99 vs. $15 before the change to Rapid Fill). This also makes it possible to buy the mug for just $8.99 if you just want it as a souvenir.
- You can refill your Rapid Fill mug at other Disney resort hotel’s beverage stations. This was expressly forbidden in the decade before based on the text on the mugs and the signage around the beverage stations.
What’s Not-So-Good about the Rapid Fill Mug:
- They are now more expensive for length-of-stay refill privileges ($18 vs. $15). Ouch.
- There’s more “user error” possible when refilling your mug, which translated to slower refills and longer lines for the beverage station on our trip.
- You can only get 16 oz. every 2-3 minutes, meaning mistakes will slow you down.
- You cannot microwave the Rapid Fill mugs IF you want your embedded RFID chip to remain functioning. (My understanding is that Disney will not reprogram Rapid Fill mugs purchased on previous trips; you will receive a new mug instead.)
- You can no longer use one of those “good for life” mugs purchased in the ’90s.
Regardless of any pros or cons, I think it’s clear that this new technology is here to stay. We enjoyed our beverage refills (we kept our mugs in our backpacks for refills in the morning and evening) and I’m thankful that a refill program exists, even with it’s limitations — which didn’t really effect us much at all.
What do YOU think? Like it? Hate it? Or ask a question and I’ll do my best to answer.
Wish they’d let the mugs work at the Parks!!
Me too!
I know from working in food service that soda is cheap. It seems like Disney has spent a lot of money to implement this new system. I wonder if it will pay for itself. I’m sure they have a building of accountants that have figured this out. We usually buy a mug, but I think they have become too expensive for us. We’ll just bring our own soda.
I hear you that fountain soda is cheap. But Disney is a perception based company as well. There is a vocal community of people that help “police” abuse. That crowd was getting louder. Not sure how big it is, but it is vocal.
Case in point. GACs – There likely has always been abuse. Perhaps it stayed the same over recent years, perhaps the abuse has grown. I don’t know for sure. What HAS grown is the PERCEPTION of abuse, as well as the awareness of the abuse. So Disney was forced to respond. It is a bad PR move to acknowledge and appear to “tolerate” the abuse, especially among the loud/vocal crowd, which I am sure is a high percentage of Disney’s best customers/guests.
I see the Refillable Mugs as a similar (though less serious) issue. (It is, after all, to quote Steve Jobs, just Sugar Water). However, the perception again is that there is rampant abuse. Sadly, all that attention to abuse does is to create resentment and more abuse, again, forcing Disney to respond. So they have.
While I understand the “lifetime” mugs point of view, let’s think about it. I don’t remember when they last offered them, but I want to say that it was already “Length of Stay” by 1999 when my (then girlfriend, now) wife and I went to Caribbean Beach Resort. I think we paid $9.95 a mug? Again, don’t think it was a lifetime mug.
Let’s assume 1999 was the first year of “Length of Stay” mugs. So 1998 was still “Lifetime” – Let’s also assume the mug price stayed the same and was $9.95.
2013 – 1998 = 15 years. Assume the average person goes for 7 days every other year. In that 15 years, that is 8 trips, or 56 days. Assume 5 refills a day. That is 280 refills. At 16 oz, that is 4,480 oz. That makes the average price per oz $0.002. Or, one penny for every 80 oz. (compared to a 99¢ 2 liter (64 oz) or a $1.59 20 oz bottle)
Again, I know soda is cheap, but can it really be THAT cheap?
Then, there will be people like my family. Once a year for 8 days. That more than doubles the use.
All that to say that anyone with a “lifetime” mug that is complaining, really needs to reevaluate their relationship with sugar water.
In addition, in recent years Disney has begun to include the mug in the DDP, so it really should not be a big issue, especially when Free Dining is factored in.
Please clarify…GAC? I cannot find this abbreviation and it does not seem to apply to the drink system. Sorry I’m such a wierdo, but the example falls flat when I don’t recognize the reference.
GAC stands for Guest Assistance Card, which is now phased out in favor of the Disabled Assistance System Card (DASC).
I wish they would implement a reprogramming program (with a cost of course). Buying a new cup every time seems so wasteful to me.
I thought I saw a place where you could buy just the RFID sticker–maybe at Blizzard Beach? Anyway, why wouldn’t they do something like that for those of us who want to reuse our old mugs? Cost-effective AND ecologically sound! Let’s email them and suggest it.
I’m wondering how it works for water?? We usually bring a camel pack with us and fill it up at the beverage stations in the morning prior to leaving for the parks.
The water tap does NOT need the RFID chip to function. You should be able to fill your camel pack without a problem. 🙂
My wife just showed me this. As DVC members, having annual passes and living only 2 hrs away, we’ve had the lifetime mugs and the others along the way. But we probably only fill ours at the most, 4 times with a 1 night stay since we can’t take them to the parks. Also, I like to microwave hot water for tea in the morning in my room. So I’m thinking we will no longer purchase the mugs and just bring a cooler with soda. I like the suggestion E-Ticket-Lizabeth made that Disney sell the sticker but I want to add another wrinkle that they sell a mug/sticker for us Annual Passholders good for the period of 1 year just like our pass.
I am with you. I live in Florida about 2 hours away and I’m seriously thinking about getting a annual pass this year. It would be nice if they offered this as a perk. There are not that many perks for annual pass members compared to other theme parks in the area in my opinion.
I absolutely agree! We are DVC members as well as annual pass holders as we’ll. There should be some kind of reset “for an extra” fee option. Besides being expensive for those of us who repeatedly visit, it just doesn’t see Eco-friendly.
As an FYI, we successfully dishwashered our two RFID mugs when we got home after our trip in September. They have now been through the dishwasher multiple times with no human-visible harm to the mug. HOWEVER, we have no way of testing if the RFID chip has survived dishwashing. Thus, we would only dishwasher once we were home and mug could not be used at Disney again.