23 Things Everyone Forgets to Pack for Disney
Working on your Disney World packing list? Here are 23+ things that people forget when packing. Don’t miss these Disney World essentials for your next trip!
I’m an annual passholder who goes regularly to Disney with a toddler and a preschooler. My parent was a cast member when I was young so I’ve grown up going to Disney many, many times a year.
From all this experience, we love sharing our Disney tips and tricks. It’s an easy day trip from our Tampa Bay area, and many tourists to Pinellas add a Disney stop to their itinerary.
Let’s get packing!
1. Stroller rain cover
Ask me how I know to include this on the list 🤦♀️. In a good summer storm, your stroller is going to get flooded without a rain cover. And strollers take a long time to dry. My toddlers were miserable when I made this mistake.
2. Poncho
No one wants to pay the ridiculous park price for them when you can get them at Dollar Tree before.
20 Dollar Store Must-Haves for a Disney Trip
3. Extra shoes & socks
Your shoes can get absolutely soaked in a Florida downpour. Having an extra pair of light shoes in your bag can be a day-saver. This is nice too if you develop blisters during the day.
If you’re doing a multi-day trip, extra shoes are also key because they may not dry overnight in the Florida humidity.
4. Dry clothes for kids
In addition to rain, there are water experiences throughout Disney where you kids may get soaked (looking at you, Moana area in Epcot). If your kids won’t stand for being wet, plan accordingly.
5. Cold weather gear
Just because its Florida doesn’t mean we don’t get chilly. And often, its a humid cold that cuts deep.
I’d recommend packing jackets that fold down small, because often we’ll have chilly mornings and evenings but it’ll be hot midday. So your left lugging around jackets the rest of the day.
6. Ziploc bags
There are so many uses for ziploc bags. I always want at least one for sudden rain to keep things like phones dry. They’re also great for saving extra snacks you might not finish or keeping bags more organized.
7. Bandaids & blister gear
The walking is relentless. If you do forget these, you can get free bandaids at the First Aid Centers but then you’re huffing it across the park to get there. That said, I went to First Aid recently for a bandaid and they were so nice.
8. Power plug extender
Phones, Magic Bands, kid iPads, various electronics — there’s a lot to charge for a Disney day. Power plug extenders where you can plug multiple things into one outlet really help at the hotel.
9. Snacks & food
Many people don’t realize you can bring any food into the park and its a huge cost saver. Food lines can get long so I also love bringing food as a time saver. Even with mobile ordering, we’ve waited 20+ minutes for food on multiple occasions.
You just can’t bring glass and alcohol containers into the parks.
25 Ways to Save Money at Disney
10. Water bottle
On the topic of saving money, don’t buy water bottles. There are water fountains, drink machines with water, and bottle fillers all over Disney. Fill ups are easy with your own water bottle.
TIP: pack a water bottle with a closed loop handle so you can carabiner it to a stroller or bag (see the next item on the list).
11. Carabiner clip
Carabiner clips are really handy for hooking things like popcorn bucket, hats and reusable mugs to your stroller or backpack.
12. Empty bag that folds down small
Attention stroller users! This tip is for you. You have to fold your stroller for a lot of Disney transportation. Throw all your stroller stuff into one of those grocery bags that fold down really small before collapsing your stroller.
TIP: Make sure to unpack the bag into your stroller before security so you don’t set off the detectors
I can’t tell you how many things have fallen out when I’ve tried to quickly fold our stroller and get on the Skyliner alone with toddlers. Spare yourself this experience.
13. Medications
You don’t want to have to go back to the hotel for any required medications. And having nice-to-have meds like Tylenol on hand can save the day if it’s needed.
If you do forget medications, you can buy standard meds like Tylenol at the First Aid Centers.
14. Airtags
Every trip I plan to airtag my kids and always forget. I like airtags for our stroller because even after years of going with a stroller, I still occasionally worry someone could easily walk off with it.
15. BYO-candy
when my kids are melting down in a store because of those huge lollipops that caught their eye, it’s so much easier to lure them out if I have my own candy on hand.
16. Little souvenirs
Pre-buying souvenirs can be a huge huge money saver, and save you a lot of kid hardship when all those rides dump you into a gift shop. This tip isn’t for everyone, but for some families it can be a game changer.
17. Battery pack
You burn through a lot of phone battery looking on the Disney app checking wait times and booking lightning lanes.
Disney has FuelRod battery pod kiosks throughout Disney World. These are battery packs that you can swap out for free once you’ve used it. If you go this route, they’re much cheaper to buy them online than getting them in the parks.
But, they’re really not the best battery packs and you can get a much better battery for cheaper that will hold more than enough charge for the day.
TIP: Don’t forget to put battery packs in your stroller or hold it out in front of you when walking through security machines.
18. Hand sanitizer
There are so many people touching all the things at Disney. Once you’ve seen enough little kids with their mouths on handrails, you really appreciate having hand sanitizer handy.
I forgot our hand sanitizer at Disney Springs once and the ones they had for sale were so expensive. Definitely pack some.
19. Sunscreen (don’t forget your feet!)
You need sunscreen. Full stop. And it’s more expensive if you have to buy it on property. That Florida sun is relentless.
You don’t want to get sunburned early in the trip because then it makes the rest of the days in the sun rough. And do not forget to apply sunscreen to your feet if you’re in open-toed shoes!
20. Chafe stick
While we’re doing body maintenance, some people swear by chafe sticks. You don’t want to realize you forgot yours when you realize you need it.
21. Non-metal reusable straw
If you have strong opinions on straws, you’ll want to BYO-straw. People complain about Disney’s paper straws.
Skip metal straws because they may set off the security machines and getting the extra bag check can lose you a lot of time. These are our favorite reusable straws.
22. Old popcorn bucket
so technically, a popcorn bucket is only good for your trip length, but this does not seem to be enforced in the slightest. Last time, I wasn’t thinking and straight up told the girl we were reusing our bucket as we got a refill and it was fine. So bring your old popcorn buckets!
TIP: Being in florida, I’ve seen old buckets for sale for cheap at thrift stores.
23. White noise machine
If you’re staying at a resort, white noise machines can be helpful if you end up with a noisy neighbor. We also use Youtube white noise videos in a pinch.
