Disney Packing and Food Tips

Packing for trips now that we have two kids honestly stresses me out! I wish it didn’t, but I tend to get really nervous before we leave. For Disney, I started planning well in advance, because I knew this would happen. I am sharing my Disney packing tips, along with some food advice, and I hope it will help some of you who have your fun Disney trips coming up!

We were in the parks for 4 days, and we had 2 travel days. It was still the middle of winter at home, but very warm in Orlando. I wanted to have a mix of themed outfits, but also practical ones, and clothes that were comfortable enough to walk around outside all day.

The Uashmama backpack I mention below. Todd used it too! 

HATS: Charlotte hat | Boys’ Patagonia hat | Toddler Carhartt hat

SUNGLASSES: Boys’ bendable sunglasses with strap (would make such a great addition to an Easter basket, too) | My Ray Bans that I have had for years. I rotated between Ray Bans and a black pair I have had from Target. Todd wore his Ray Bans Wayfarers each day. I did find a pair for Ridge (pictured below) for $2.99 from Marshall’s, but I need to get a strap for his.

TELETIES: My new favorite hair ties. I have a lot of hair, and these hold my hair in a ponytail, and add some extra volume, and my hair doesn’t crease. Bonus – it looks cute on your wrist for before you use it in your hair. I used them daily, and I gave one to my mom and she uses hers a lot now, too.

SPF: Elta MD is my everyday face sunscreen and has been for years. This bottle is a good travel size, but it will last awhile | stick face sunscreen for the boys | lotion sunscreen for the boys

BACKPACKS: Shown in different colors. We used the darker color for Disney, and I use the lighter one at home often. They both match everything!

AUTOGRAPH BOOKS: We gave one to each of our boys.

MICKEY TANK: I wore this with a gray sports bra, black shorts, and denim jacket.

MICKEY GEAR FOR THE BOYS: Target and H&M both have some great options. Here are the sweatshirts they’re wearing in the picture below, here are Ridge’s Mickey t-shirts, and here is another great option for t-shirts.

HEADPHONES: Such a steal, and they work great.

DISNEY BOOK: 101 Dalmatians early reader

TIE-BACK TANK: I have 2 of these from Gap, and wore the white one in Disney one day. It is great for working out, or looks nice enough on a hot day.

BLACK DISTRESSED DENIM SHORTS: To go with my Mickey tank. I bought a size 2, could’ve possibly done a 4

FAVE DENIM SHORTS!: I bought my Agolde shorts from Uniquities this year, and I am obsessed. The first pair of denim shorts that I truly feel good in, and I will wear them one thousand times this summer. Worth the investment for sure. You can call Uniquities in Birkdale to ask about ordering your size! Just tell them you saw them on my blog. I wear a 26, could’ve possibly done a 25.

SHOES FOR ME: The Nike Internationalist are some of my favorite shoes. I bought them a few years ago and have them in a light gray-blue color. This year there are a couple new colors. These aren’t as athletic-looking, but are comfortable enough to wear in the parks. I also wore Brooks Ghost 11s (the ones I work out in at Burn) and my old black Nike Pegasus.

DAVIS’ SHOES: Blue (affordable) Adidas. He wears these each day to school, and the laces are long enough for him to tie them himself. You can also find them at Rack Room and sometimes they are buy one, get one 50% off.

RIDGE’S SHOES: We had similar Sauconys for Davis when he was this age. Amazon Prime for the win!

Not pictured: Bring some of your tools for when your children are sick. We brought some of our supplements, including chewable elderberry that travels better, probiotics, essential oils, a forehead thermometer, and some other vitamins. We didn’t stress about giving the boys all of their supplements each day, but we wanted to at least have a few. And I am SO glad we had the thermometer with us.

Disney Packing Tips

• Pack by outfit, and put each child’s daily clothes into a gallon size Ziploc bag labeled with the name and date. That way you won’t have to think about it at all in the mornings when you’re rushing to get to the bus or monorail.
• If you fly, try to reduce the number of bags. I know that Todd wishes we had packed one less bag. It is just tough to carry a toddler plus suitcases around an airport. Our flights were not direct, so we were on and off the plain with carry-ons and kids multiple times.
• Bring layers. Each day started in the 50s or 60s, then ended in the 80s, and quite humid. I wore shorts and a sleeveless top each day with either a lightweight sweater, sweatshirt, or denim jacket.
• Ladies, get a spray tan before you go. I promise you’ll feel better in those shorts! It’s tough to go from being bundled up at home to wearing summer clothes, but my organic fake tan helped a lot! I also wore a bikini when I took Ridge to the hotel pool, so I was extra grateful for the tan.
• You need a great backpack. I reached out to my friend Sarah Tucker, aka always-stylish Florida resident and Disney expert, about which one she uses. She has had the same Uashmama backpack for years and it is her go-to Disney bag. Uashmama sent me two bags to use, and I love them! They are soft and washable, and not heavy to carry around. Plus they’re stylish, and look nothing like you’re about to walk into English class. Mine is the Memmo style and we used the Avana color to walk around the park, because it was great for both Todd and I. They also sent me one in the Ca-chemire color and I use it almost daily at home. The bags were a gift from Uashmama, but I would 100% buy one again. They have some new metallic items on their site, and I am real tempted to make another purchase! How fun would a metallic backpack be for Summer?! 
  • Inside the backpack, include a portable phone charger if your battery dies quickly, healthier snacks if you have any food intolerances, a couple activities for your kids (little coloring books), diapers, wipes, changing pad, sanitizing wipes, sunscreen, sunglasses for the family, hats, autograph books, a Sharpie, Tele ties.
  • Pack your backpack at night so that you’re ready to go the next morning. Getting to the bus or ferry by 7 or 8 am was a little hectic, especially with kids who are tired from the day before. It helped us to have everything laid out at night before we went to sleep.
• Bring a small, soft cooler. You are allowed to bring your own water (no glass bottles) and snacks into the park, so we packed a small cooler with water, apples, berries or carrots.
• Pack activities and headphones for the car or plane. Todd ordered headphones and some Disney books and coloring books from Amazon, and they were great!
• Plan to wear more than one pair of tennis shoes. Todd and I rotated between a few pairs of sneakers. I pulled out my Nike Internationalists from a few years ago and washed them. They are closer to a fashion sneaker, but still very comfortable. And now they come in a couple new colors! They’re shown below. I also wore my Brooks Ghost 11s and my Nike Air Zoom Pegasus that I’ve had for a few years. It was nice to rotate, and my feet never got sore.
• Everywhere we went for dinner was casual. The nicest places we went were Chef Mickey’s and Tusker House for dinners, and you can just walk straight in from the parks – no need to wear something dressier to those places.
• With the Magic Bands, the gray part tears off to help them fit smaller wrists better. Most of the time I clipped Ridge’s band around my own.
• Wear shorts with pockets. I considered wearing all athletic clothes while we were down there, but I’m glad I wore “real” shorts with pockets.
• Bring an autograph book for each child! And pack a Sharpie.
• Rent a double stroller. We don’t own one, because our boys are almost 4 years apart, but we rented one through Orlando Stroller Rental (recommended by our Disney planner), and it was crucial. Especially with Davis not feeling well, we used it constantly. We could have borrowed one from a friend, but since we flew, we didn’t want to worry about it on the plane. It was around $90 for the week, and they brought it to our hotel, and we just left it with the concierge before we left. It was a double Bob stroller and in great condition! Todd did have to lug it on and off the buses and monorail, but he was a trooper about it. 😉

Disney Food Tips: Gluten Free Dairy Free

• We did buy a meal plan, which ended up being nice to have, but we did not use many of the snacks.
• The snack options in the park seemed limited, but we did try a Dole Whip.
• We checked out the quick service options at each park, and tried to choose the ones with the most variety of food options. While in the parks, we checked the Disney World app to see menus. They had allergy options on each one, so that was super helpful. We ordered ahead when we could, because the quick services places were always very busy.
• We did go to the grocery store, and we had breakfast in our room some days. We had a room with a small kitchen, so we were able to make eggs, toast, and fruit.
• We packed gluten free and dairy free snacks for the boys to have while we waited for rides, and in between meals. We brought popcorn, Lara bars, nuts, veggie straws, apples, carrots, and plantain chips.
• If you do have an allergy, make sure you call ahead, and they will make a note on your account.
• At any sit-down restaurant, a chef will come out and speak to you if you mention you have an allergy. They are extremely friendly about it, and have options for those with allergies!
• When we went to Tusker House and Chef Mickey’s, we were given a menu that had very specific allergy information for each item on the buffet.
• At the Ohana breakfast, the chef brought out an entirely separate pan of gluten free breakfast items – the same meal as the rest of the table had – just made gluten free. It was so nice!

There are my packing and food tips! I hope these Disney posts have been helpful! Disney can be overwhelming, but it really is worth it. Even with sickness putting a little bit of a damper on our trip, we made some wonderful memories, and I’m so grateful that we were able to take our boys! Ridge is already asking when we can go back. 🙂