20 Helpful Things to Pack for Disney World 2021
I just got home from Disney World a couple days ago. A few things really helped my trip so I am posting about them now before I forget.
1. Brita Plastic Water Filter Bottle – There are plenty of water refill stations all around Disney World, but the water doesn’t taste good. Sure, you can go in to restaurants and ask for cups of water, but it’s not convenient. I bought 6 of these water bottles (one per family member) and wrote our names on them. What makes them great is they have a filter in the straw so the water tastes great when you drink it!
2. These bags. I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what purses or bags to take to all the parks at Disney world. I needed to cary my water bottle, snacks, wallet, and have easy access to my tickets, but I also needed it to be easy to take on rides and not hurt my shoulders. This checked all the boxes.
I loved the little pocket in the front strap. That’s where I kept my credit card, ID, and tickets. If you are going when fast passes are available or if you will be using a DAS pass (for people with disabilities) you will want easy access to your tickets. Even if you don’t use those it’s nice to have your credit cards in a safe place in front of you with easy access. I also carried my cute Mini Ears in it when I wasn’t taking pictures with them! Not the cutest look, but at one point I had my sweatshirt, my 12 year old’s sweatshirt, and my 12 year old’s joggers all tied to the strap of this next to my hip. It was super convenient. I suggest getting one per teen or adult. The only downside was the water bottles, mentioned above, were a tight fit. We got them in the side pocket, but it was easier just to have them in the bag.
3. My 22 year old carried around this backpack instead of the sling bag. He wanted to take a sweatshirt and joggers with him. We chose this one because it’s made for hiking so it’s super light weight and easy to pack in a suitcase. It’s water resistant so when you get a surprise Disney World shower your stuff inside won’t get soaked. It doesn’t make you hot and it holds two bottles of water. It also works as a personal item if you’ll be flying. I’m sure there are tons of other hiking bags that will work, but this one is priced right and arrived in two days.
4. This sunscreen for your face, neck and chest! I’m a California girl with olive skin so I don’t burn easily, but Florida sun is totally different. Even on overcast days I felt it! The first day I was lazy and skipped the sunscreen and got a light burn on my chest. I used this the rest of the time and it was great. I love that it is light. You can wear it under makeup and it doesn’t clog your pores. It easily absorbs into your skin without having to rub forever and it won’t leave you with that weird white sunscreen look.
5. The Disney World App!!!! YOU NEED THIS! It’s free and will tell you all the ride wait times and it’s the key to making food reservations or even just ordering food while you’re there! You can book your tickets on there and if you are going to Disney’s Hollywood Studios, you need it to get the Rise of the Resistance reservation! If you want to go on that ride you want to use a computer to see the world clock. A 10th of a second can make you miss getting that reservation! It took us three days to be able to get it so make sure you download the app and before your trip!
6. Comfy shoes!!!! Make sure you break them in BEFORE your trip!!! I took two pairs of sneakers and a pair of sandals. I did the best with these sneakers (shop the rest of the line here) in the parks. I wore my sandals around the hotel and at Disney Springs. I love these because they have lots of arch support and a good strap. We walked almost 40 miles over 4 days and I’m not an athletic person so good shoes is a must!!
7. I get motion sickness. I haven’t enjoyed a theme park in 18 years! My friend told me about prescription strength motion sickness patches. I got some from my doctor and it was life changing. My boys loved seeing me having fun with them instead of watching from off the rides or being miserably sick. I laughed and woo wooed the whole day. It was amazing. If you get motion sick call your doctor!!!!
8. Hydration packets for before the trip and at the hotel are great if you’re flying to rehydrate. They are also great if you drink around the world at Epcot. Nobody wants a hangover at Disney World. These are my favorite, but a lot of people like these as well.
9. TMI! I know sometimes when you travel it’s not as easy to use the restroom and things can get backed up. I used to take a whole bottle of MiraLAX when we would go anywhere with one of my kids. I just found out they have singles! It’s great. You only need to take a few packets on your trip. Give it when you get back to the hotel from the park of the day and it should work before bed. I know all of my links have been Amazon so far, but the price at Target is WAY better!
10. If you are not used to walking 7+ miles a day you need THIS! I read several blogs saying I need it but thought my thighs don’t run THAT much. I’ll be fine. Ummmm NO! I was not fine and neither was my husband. I wore cut off jean shorts and they rubbed my poor legs. My husband’s boxer briefs rubbed his and we were both chapped and miserable. We had to put on Neosporin and I went to Walmart to buy this glide stick. Do yourself a favor and just get it before your trip and put it anywhere you may have rubbing on your skin. My 22 year old even put it on his shoulder since he wore a tank top and a back pack.
11. If you ignore my advice above and your legs chafe, wear these shorts to help separate your thighs so they have time to heal, or be smart and wear them before the problem happens. These yoga shorts are comfortable, true to size, and have POCKETS!!!! I wore them the day after the chafing and they were a life saver!!!
12. Another TMI item!!!! You want to stay as dry “down there” as possible!!! Trust me. If it’s hot you can get sweaty, or if you have kids you may be in the stage of life where you dribble when you jump or get excited. Moisture down there is not a good thing and will also lead to the dreaded chafing! Solution, period panties!!!! They aren’t just for periods they are awesome for mommy dribble!!! Just make sure to wash them a couple times to soften them up! These are my favorite. They come in XS and go up to 6XL so there’s something for all of us!
13. Portable chargers! You probably already know to take portable chargers to Disney World, every blog says that, but I like these because I can charge them with my iPhone charger and it’s one less cord to get mixed up with all the rest!
14. Memory Maker Advance Purchase! (I got it from Micole, see #20 list) This may seem like a splurge, but after you spend all that money on Disney World you are going to want pictures of it all! You save money by ordering BEFORE your trip! When you get this package, you can have the photographers all over the Disney parks take your pictures and get all the ones from rides. They will all download into your app. From there you can download into your phone or computer. Only one person from your group needs the pass.
15. Super cute Minnie Ears!!!! I got two sets from my friend, Nancy, who custom makes them! I got one neutral glittery pair and a traditional Minnie Mouse sparkle pair. They were so cute! You can find her on Instagram here! Tell her I sent you!
16. This one I feel I have to put in because everyone says you need them, but I’ll be honest, we didn’t use them! It’s the rain ponchos! We ordered the 10 pack. It was nice because they are individually wrapped and fit in one of the pockets in my bag. It rained for about 15 minutes when were were at Epcot but my family didn’t care. Lots of other people were wearing the ponchos, but we just got food inside and Graceson jumped in rain puddles. If you are going to get them, these are the ones I bought!
17. SNACKS!!! Fill your backpack with yummy snacks. You can totally bring them in all the parks at Disney World. It can save you a lot of money, but know you can’t walk around snacking. You have to sit down somewhere to remove your mask and eat.
18. If you are flying in to visit Disney World, a suitcase scale is your friend! This is the one I have. It helped us plan how we packed before the trip and before we came home. We had to move things around because our suitcase weighed over 50 lbs and it was so much easier doing it at the hotel than at the airport!
19. Packing cubes are a MUST for anytime you have to pack your family! They are great because each person can pack their own cube and just grab their bag from your suitcase. They somehow fit a lot more clothes in your suitcase than if you don’t use them. My 12 year old loves them and says they make unpacking so much easier. We have these so everyone has their own color. I just bought these compression ones for me. I like them because they can really shrink down what I’m taking!!! This is all of my socks and underwear for the whole trip. It really compressed it.
20. My biggest help was booking my trip through a Disney Travel Agent! My friend Micole booked my trip. She was amazing. Since I booked all of our tickets from her she also helped me with flights. It didn’t cost me any extra to book with her, but she virtually held my hand while planning the trip. She is the one who walked me through getting Rise of the Resistance reservations. She told me about getting the photo pass ahead of time. She helped me with so much and even checked on me once we were there!!! I HIGHLY recommend her!!! She is still a really small business so she has the time to go the extra mile and make your trip right for YOU! I can’t recommend her enough!
To see our Disney World adventures check out my Disney World highlight on Instagram!
