Curious what items to pack for Disney Trip? Jaclyn offers us her tips in this guest post…
Like me, I am sure you are all couponing your way to Disney (Thanks to help from Kristin!). It’s quite exciting to see my Disney account grow, knowing we will be paying our vacation in cash (or at least the majority of it anyway). As the account grows, it’s very easy to see that a Disney vacation is not cheap, but it IS well worth the money. To keep costs down while AT The World here are a few things you should get before stepping foot on Disney property.
Snacks: Even though I am a firm believer in the DDP (and we usually do go in August when it is offered for free!) I think bringing snacks is a no brainer. If on the dining plan do you really want to waste a credit on a small bag of chips? Since we have been driving down from Jersey we usually pack a canvas grocery bag full of various snacks and keep them in the back seat. We munch on them on the way to/from Disney and once we get there we bring them to the room. We get things like the variety sack of the small chips (it has 4 bags of Doritos, 4 bags of sour cream and onion, 4 bags of Fritos, etc.), the snack sized Chips Ahoy cookies, fruit snacks, candies, and some of my daughter’s favorite can’t live without snacks, etc. We also bring 1 box of cereal and disposable bowls and spoons. There are some days when my daughter doesn’t want a Mickey Waffle (I know…CRAZY kid, how could you pass on a Mickey Waffle with some strawberry sauce?!?!) and why waste credits on cereal? If you are flying down and don’t want to have an extra luggage full of snacks see my gardengrocer note below.
Water/Juices: This is a must now for us!! We always buy a 24 pack of water, some juice boxes of Juicy Juice, and some Gatorade/Powerade as per my husband’s request. We put some in a cooler for our drive down and keep it in the back seat and put the rest in the trunk (you should really see us rolling up to the Caribbean Beach and unloading ALL of our stuff, it’s quite a site!) Once at The World we put 3-4 frozen ones in our back pack everyday so we stay hydrated and we aren’t wasting snack credits on water (yaaaay! This means more kringla pretzels for meee!). If you are driving and don’t want to haul this all the way from your home you could always stop in a Target or Wal-Mart once you get close to the Orlando area, or you could use Gardengrocer.com and have them deliver it to your resort. We have done this once when we flew down during the swine flu hysteria because I felt that I NEEDED to disinfect the room myself. With that, I ordered all disinfectants to scrub down every inch of our room as well as some waters and juices. It worked out well, but I do believe you need a minimum order of $40 and you have to place your order well in advance, as they only do so many deliveries a day.
Glow sticks/light up toys: Before our trip I run into the Dollar Tree and get TONS of light up necklaces and various wands and whatnot (I even saw them at Wal-mart this week for .97, but I am unsure if this is just a seasonal thing for Halloween). I have also had luck finding Disney spinning light up toys at our Disney Store outlet for $5! I think the ones at the parks are close to $20 now! When we unpack our stuff I throw a few of these bad boys into our park bag and distribute them to my daughter and cousins once it gets dark.
Souvenirs: It’s great to check out the Disney Store or their website to see if there are any deals that allow you to buy cheaply now and put it away until your trip and give it out as an instant souvenirs once at The World.
Activities for the kiddos: If you’re driving or flying a long distance, it’s good to hit up the Dollar Tree for some coloring books/activity books for your long journey. The Target dollar spot usually has some good things too. Throughout the year I keep my eyes out for dirt cheap DS games, DVDs, books, little toys, etc. and put them away for our trip. During our drive I will give my daughter these little “surprises” so she has something new to keep her entertained. Another life saver I recommend if driving is colored pencils…DO NOT BRING CRAYONS! If they fall in between a seat and melt in the hot car….you get my drift (I learned this the hard way). Crayola also makes a line of crayons and pencils that spins and retracts back. The pencils are well worth the money because the point is almost impossible to break. A broken pencil when doing a word search is never a good thing!
Gum: Gum is not sold on Disney property, so if you enjoy some Trident it is best to get a lot before you leave. But please dispose of your gum properly and do not stick it on a bench or spit it out on the ground on Main Street USA. It kinda ruins the magic.
Antibacterial hand sanitizer: How many times do you have to do finger scans to get into the park? And how many other people touch that finger scan in 1 hour? Yeah, it’s best to have tons of this stuff!
Diapers/wipes/formula: If you have one in diapers it is best to bring more than you will need. I have never purchased these at the parks when my daughter was younger, but I could imagine these would run you a pretty penny.
Dish Detergent/bottle brush: When my daughter was a baby and still drinking from her ba-ba I always filled a little travel sized bottle with some Dawn and brought along 2 bottle brushes and would clean them out at the sink in the hotel as needed.
Toiletries: Pick up travel sized shampoos, soaps, toothpastes, etc. and then you could toss them before you come home.
Medicine: I am guilty of packing my whole medicine cabinet and I don’t mind using a whole compartment in my luggage to do so, peace of mind is GOLDEN! Especially with small ones, you never know who is going to have an upset stomach or unexpected cold. And as always, remember to bring the prescription meds that you need!
Batteries: Make sure you have enough batteries for cameras; those are pretty expensive to buy at WDW too!
Ponchos: This is one thing I do buy on property, but I know a lot of people can find better deals at Wal-Mart. I do not recommend the Dollar Tree ones, my aunt got these one year and they all ripped after the first storm we encountered at Disney. But a good sturdy one may be cheaper to find elsewhere before entering The World.
These are just some essential items we have found useful to purchase before we settle into our room at Walt Disney World. What are some things you have found useful to purchase before stepping foot on Disney property?
Learn more about the perfect age for a Walt Disney World vacation.
Learn more about planning your Walt Disney World vacation. Plus overwhelmed with all the planning? Destinations in Florida can help you plan your perfect trip.
If you have little ones don’t forget to bring childproofing items for your hotel. If you take the time to secure your hotel room at the beginning of your vacation you can rest at ease and not have to worry about your children getting into things they shouldn’t. Bring what you can do such as door knob covers, cabinet locks, outlet and even toilet covers. If you can buy these things in advance of your trip for cheap consider giving them to a new mom after your trip when she travels or donate them to a worth cause like Women In Distress.
Don’t forget a couple of bandages! I needed one minutes after I walked into Hollywood Studios. It was expensive and didn’t even have a Mickey face on it.
We’re in California and have only been to Disneyland. I have never purchased the DDP since it is expensive, but I would love to try it for free to see if it is worth the price for future trips! We are about a 6 hour drive so I can bring a big cooler with gogurt, string cheese, and cream cheese. In the hotel room every morning I make mini bagels and cream cheese for a quick breakfast on the walk to the park. I also bring plastic knives, sandwich bags, a loaf of bread and a small jar of jelly for PB&Js as a mid-morning snack.
I always bring lysol and air fresheners.
Moleskin is a MUST for me! :) Helps my blister prone feet!
I always bring a super large black garbage bag with twist ties (to cover the stroller in rain storms while we seek shelter) and little baggies to hold wet clothes and electronic equipment in your purse/fanny pack.
We have found some great Disney ponchos (Winnie the pooh) at the Dollar Store, and always bring them with us to the parks.
For the resorts, I also love cutting up a sponge and soaking them in soap (let them dry of course) and using them to wash out my Resort Refillable Mug – especially if I have coffee!
Great tips!
Garden grocery.Com what is that and how do I find out about it.. We are flying for the first time so I’m concerned about not having snacks and drinks and breakfast stuff…
Hi Angela
Gardengrocer.com is a grocery delivery service based Out of central Florida. What you do is go on their website and basically do your food shopping on their site and they will deliver is to your resort on the day of your chosing. I can’t remember how much the delivery fee was but I don’t think it was too bad. I had them deliver it on our arrival date and when I checked in the front desk was holding it for me as it had arrived in the morning. I didn’t order anything perishable, but I remember people saying the front desk will refrigerate for you if you are not there, but i would def. Double check with that. Any other questions feel free to ask!
Clothespins for hanging up wet swimsuits and rain-soaked clothing
Personal feminine supplies….because sometimes things come earlier than expected. And they are VERY expensive in the resorts gift shop or the machines in the bathrooms.
I love the ideas. We do bring the Dollar Store ponchos with us. We have never had a problem with them. When we are done with them I throw them away (they are only ($.50 each). They are not worth carrying around wet and trying to refold. We do not buy bottles of water. At any amusement park we go to we always get free ice water from the stand and add Crystal Light lemonade mix – or drink the water straight. I am more selective of how we use our snack credits now since you only get one with the free dining.
we have never had problems with them either. We always by extras anyway (and there is a Dollar tree not far from WDW) Don’t forget if you have a stroller to get one to cover that while you are in an attraction and it looks like it’s gonna rain. Don’t wanna have to sit your kid in a wet seat!!
As a Disney Vacationer (too many to count times) I really love that this is all in one post I can print for my future trip. I am pretty good at getting most of these things but some where stuff I would have never thought to do. Great Post….
The Rainforest Cafe outside of Animal Kingdom has some pretty nice ponchos for kids…I can’t remember the price-but they were well worth it when it rained!