Ten Things I’m Always Glad I Pack for Disney World

Packing for Walt Disney World is an ongoing event in our house.  About 6 weeks before we leave, I start “soft packing”.  I start picking up items at the store, make a rough list of items I don’t want to forget, and start setting it all aside in the designated corner of our bedroom.  And let’s face it, it allows me to make lists.  I don’t think I could survive without a list, and a packing list for Disney is one of my FAVORITE ones to make!  So let me share with you the Ten Things I’m Always Glad I Pack for Disney World.

1.  Ponchos.  Yes, it rains in Florida.  It rains a lot sometimes…so much so that one year, I cringed every time I felt a drop of water.  My poor 2 year old spent more time bundled in a poncho than in her cute Disney wear.    Btu that didn’t stop us!  No.  We ponchoed up and went for it. But I’m always glad I pack them.   They fit easily in our park bag, and are a must have in my opinion.

2.  Ziploc Bags, Grocery Bags, etc.  When we leave for Florida, I have a bag of bags.  I take a large gallon Ziploc, and fill it with various sizes of other ziploc bags, as well as a few grocery bags.  We’ve used these for wet shoes to pack for the trip home, snack size bags for taking dry snacks into the parks, quart size bags with park supplies in them, etc.  They are indispensable!

3.  An over the door shoe organizer.  I just grab a cheap one from Target or Amazon.  We hang it over our bathroom door at the resort. It holds all sorts of things!  Shoes, toiletries, swimsuits, and so much more.  It packs very compact in our suitcase.  Upon arriving home, I just fold it up nicely and put it right back in the suitcase for next year. Love it!

4.  First Aid Supplies.  Among these, the most important are BandAids and hand sanitizer.  My kids touch EVERYTHING at Disney.  And it grosses me out!  So, I always have hand sanitizer ready and waiting for them.  Bandaids are always in my luggage-and in my park bag.  It never fails-one of us always gets blisters.  So I make sure they are handy-in those small ziploc baggies I mentioned above.

5.  Crystal Light drink packets.  One of the “secrets” of Walt Disney World is they will give you free ice water at the quick service kiosks and dining locations.  What they don’t tell you, is that Florida tap water isn’t that tasty.  So, we take our resort mugs into the parks and ask for the free ice water.  We add a Crystal Light packet to the cup, pour the tap water in, and give it a stir. Voila.  Tasty tap water on a hot Florida day.

6.  Baby Wipes.  All our children are potty trained. Yay!  But, those baby wipes sure come in handy.  When they are chowing on Mickey Ice Cream Bars you can tell-because their faces are covered in chocolate after a few minutes.  That is when I whip out the baby wipes, and give everyone a nice little clean up.

7.  Autograph books and Lanyards.  Believe it or not, those classic blue Disney Autograph books hold a lot of autographs.  In fact, the boys have used theirs for at least 3 trips.  Granted, we don’t hit up every character.  If we see Mickey at Chef Mickey’s then we skip him at MK.  Or if we have a princess breakfast, that knocks out at least 4 or 5 princesses that we can skip in the parks.  So, we’ve used them from year to year.  And, the boys have two lanyards.  One they wear with pins they are willing to trade.  The other they wear when they aren’t pin trading with their favorite pins.  We are sure these are packed in our luggage every trip.

8.  Two 0utfits per person per day.  This is essential when it comes to packing for the kids.  It gets hot at Disney, and when we come back for a midday break, sometimes I like to change before heading out in the evening.  Plus, if you get wet or dirty, it’s nice to have extra clothes.

9.  Multiple cameras.  I pack my DSLr as well as my small digital point and shoot camera.  Plus I have the camera on my phone.  So I’m well covered!  Since there are so many photo ops at Disney, I want to make sure I capture every moment!  I use my DSLr for character meals, and maybe like half a day in a park.  I want it to get those iconic photos.  My small point and shoot is in my COACH crossbody bag that I carry, along with my phone.

10.  Fun Disney clothes.  Before we leave for Disney, we head to the Disney Store here in town and get a few fun things.  Target also has Disney t shirts as well.  Even the twins will wear Disney shirts that I either make for them, or that they pick out in the store.  Natalie always has some sort of Minnie or Princess themed outfit on while at Disney. I think it makes for great photos and adds a little extra fun!

What do you pack for Disney?  Do you have anything to add to this list?