Drinking Water

[rigama]

Okay, here's a question from a first-timer...

What is the best way to get water into the parks? We are flying in and have no need for groceries other than just water so I don't want to get groceries delivered. Between the 3 of us we'll probably go through 2.5-3 gallons of water per day. We know we won't want to spend close to $300 on buying bottled water at the parks but we're not sure what our alternative is. We are using DME and park transportation so we won't have a rental, and I don't know if getting a cab to the store would be cost effective. Any ideas?

Thanks!

 

[Nemo14]

Actually I bring a Brita water bottle with me that filters the tap water too. I don't think Brita makes them anymore, but there are a couple of other companies that do.

 

[amejr999]

Go into any fast-food place and they'll give you as much cold water as you'd like for free.

 

[doop]

We usually just buy a water and then fill it back up throughout the day at water fountains. The tap water in Orlando doesn't really please me too much, but hey, when I'm thirsty, I'll drink it.

 

[tigsmom]

Filter bottles or refilling of bottles is the way to go if you don't want to keep buying new ones. If You can't deal with the taste of the water (I'm used to it) try some of those mix in sticks that come in all sorts of flavors.

 

[rigama]

Great, thank you!
We were looking at the filter bottles at REI and were wondering if that was a good direction to take. We are all very taste particular, as the water in our town really bites. I'm glad to hear that others have had success with the filter bottles. Can someone tell me if the water that comes out of the drinking fountains is cold or warm?
Thanks.

 

[Dwarful]

Your best bet for really cold water is to go to the counter service places and request a glass of free ice water. you can bend the cup enough to pour it into the bottle you have (for filtered bottles, etc). I am encouraging my girl scouts to do this and to bring along the little packets of flavoring as we are going in August and with nearly 40 people could go through quite a bit of $$$ on drinks alone (even with the dining plan).

 

[Raven66]

We would buy two large bottles of water and refill thru the day. You can buy the stir in singles as suggested or what I did is buy a box of snack bags and a big canister of iced tea and just separated it into the bags. It just happened to be a big cheaper that way. I just do not like the taste of the water there.

 

[hokielutz]

Your best bet for really cold water is to go to the counter service places and request a glass of free ice water. you can bend the cup enough to pour it into the bottle you have (for filtered bottles, etc). I am encouraging my girl scouts to do this and to bring along the little packets of flavoring as we are going in August and with nearly 40 people could go through quite a bit of $$$ on drinks alone (even with the dining plan).

This really is the best option.... and the least expensive. Get some large bottles before you go into the park, and as you use them up... refill them at lunch or dinner or snack time at the counter service places. Also, if you get in a bind.... a large bottle of Dasani water at the parks, (frigid cold) is only 2 dollars. A lot better than at 6 flags or the other parks up I-4.

I don't want to sound like a nanny nag... but make sure you are getting an appropriate salt intake during your days. I worry when someone says they drink a gallon of water a day. When you huff it through the parks, you will lose a lot of your body salt content through sweat.... and just adding a ton of water is not the most healthy thing to do.

 

[rigama]

This really is the best option.... and the least expensive. Get some large bottles before you go into the park, and as you use them up... refill them at lunch or dinner or snack time at the counter service places. Also, if you get in a bind.... a large bottle of Dasani water at the parks, (frigid cold) is only 2 dollars. A lot better than at 6 flags or the other parks up I-4.

I don't want to sound like a nanny nag... but make sure you are getting an appropriate salt intake during your days. I worry when someone says they drink a gallon of water a day. When you huff it through the parks, you will lose a lot of your body salt content through sweat.... and just adding a ton of water is not the most healthy thing to do.

Thank you for the reminder about salt, that is a very good point. All three of us are naturally water drinkers by nature (a 12pk of soda can last us 3 weeks) and we rarely ever drink anything else. What would you suggest as far as salt goes? I grew up in the hot, humid south and my dad was in construction. I remeber he used to take salt tablets, but I don't know if we should go that far. How about a couple of bottles of Gatoraid a day?

 

[tigsmom]

Thank you for the reminder about salt, that is a very good point. All three of us are naturally water drinkers by nature (a 12pk of soda can last us 3 weeks) and we rarely ever drink anything else. What would you suggest as far as salt goes? I grew up in the hot, humid south and my dad was in construction. I remeber he used to take salt tablets, but I don't know if we should go that far. How about a couple of bottles of Gatoraid a day?

Just to let you know, they do not recommend using salt tablets anymore (do they even still sell them?).

When you sweat the sodium in your system becomes more concentrated ...you are not losing salt, you are losing fluid. Water (cold is best) is the fluid of choice to replace what you sweat out as it is the quickest fluid to be absorbed by the body. If you want to throw in an occasional Gatorade (or similar drink) that is fine, but unless you are very sick you don't need to replace electrolytes.

This is from a hockey site, but it explains things very well.

http://www.masshockey.com/Safety/Fluid/index.html

 

[J_Krafty24]

Just to let you know, they do not recommend using salt tablets anymore (do they even still sell them?).

When you sweat the sodium in your system becomes more concentrated ...you are not losing salt, you are losing fluid. Water (cold is best) is the fluid of choice to replace what you sweat out as it is the quickest fluid to be absorbed by the body. If you want to throw in an occasional Gatorade (or similar drink) that is fine, but unless you are very sick you don't need to replace electrolytes.

This is from a hockey site, but it explains things very well.

http://www.masshockey.com/Safety/Fluid/index.html

Having been a distance runner in both high school (competitive on a national level) and in college (competitive on a regional level) I disagree with this information for very active athletes. Simply licking your arm (yes, I know gross) will tell you that you are sweating out more than just fluid. In fact the ammount of water the website you link to suggests a hockey player drink during a game is quite shocking to me. Drinking that much water without having something to eat or a sports drink to replace electrolytes would risk over-hydrating. It is a somewhat common occurance in distance runners and results in a being "drunk" on water.

For a day at a theme park I doubt this would be a problem as you will be eating regularly throughout the day and not exerting extreme ammounts of effort (example, the effort it takes to run a marathon).

 

[tigsmom]

Having been a distance runner in both high school (competitive on a national level) and in college (competitive on a regional level) I disagree with this information for very active athletes. Simply licking your arm (yes, I know gross) will tell you that you are sweating out more than just fluid. In fact the ammount of water the website you link to suggests a hockey player drink during a game is quite shocking to me. Drinking that much water without having something to eat or a sports drink to replace electrolytes would risk over-hydrating. It is a somewhat common occurance in distance runners and results in a being "drunk" on water.

For a day at a theme park I doubt this would be a problem as you will be eating regularly throughout the day and not exerting extreme ammounts of effort (example, the effort it takes to run a marathon).

Never having played hockey or run a marathon I can't comment on that. I linked it to illustrate the explanation of what happens when you sweat.

While walking around WDW may seem like a marathon to some, I'm sure it doesn't compare. I'll go back to my nursing and nutrition education and stick with what I was taught and what my doctors have told me... water is the best fluid to use for hydration. Unless you are very ill or engaged in long distance endurance sports, electrolyte replacement should not be necessary and can be dangerous when done without a doctor's supervision.

To each his own.

 

[SANDKRUSER]

We've had good luck with these filters - see link below - the smaller ones fit on any standard water bottle - we fill with water in room and at fountains around parks and ask for ice - any counter service is happy to give you a free cup of ice. We drink a lot during the day too but we just keep refilling - I personally think the water is terrible at Disney - but with these filters - it tastes great and MUCH cheaper than buying in the parks.

http://www.purewater2go.com/index-3_1new.html

 

[Deadmanwalking]

Having been a distance runner in both high school (competitive on a national level) and in college (competitive on a regional level) I disagree with this information for very active athletes. Simply licking your arm (yes, I know gross) will tell you that you are sweating out more than just fluid. In fact the ammount of water the website you link to suggests a hockey player drink during a game is quite shocking to me. Drinking that much water without having something to eat or a sports drink to replace electrolytes would risk over-hydrating. It is a somewhat common occurance in distance runners and results in a being "drunk" on water.

For a day at a theme park I doubt this would be a problem as you will be eating regularly throughout the day and not exerting extreme ammounts of effort (example, the effort it takes to run a marathon).

I would agree. Having worked several summers while in school in construction job in 100 degree heat I was told you don't just drink water.

I looked at the hockey sight because it just didn't make sense. Then I realized why Hockey was different, First this site is only talking about a 90 minute time period of excercise, nothing against hockey players but I'm willing to bet Anyone spending 12 hours in the Florida sun just walking about is going to sweat more than a hockey player in one game (not to mention the bathroom breaks will be more numerous for a person doing the parks and that will also allow you body to expell some salt). Second, hockey rinks are cold so your body isn't being forced to cool down as much from the heat its only cooling down from your activity.

I would expect you could make two mistakes here, not enough salt or too much... Now too much is unlikely unless your on a sodium restrictive diet, but too little with someone drinking lots of water could give you headache or in a worse case scenario kill you (unlikely but still a possibility).

 

[Princess Ariel]

Water is the best hydration, but also keep in mind salt intake. When I hiked in Big Bend and Grand Canyon I snacked on peanuts or granola bars. I also like to mix some of my water half and half with gatorade. People die every year of overhydration and not renourishing their mineral intake. My family and I love going to theme, particularly in Texas where it is extremely hot and humid and have never had problem finding ways to hydrate ourselves and keeping up our salt intake. Just keep in mind how much you are drinking and what you are eating.

We will be taking some flavor packets with us to help mitigate the problem our kids getting bored with just plain water. My family does not tend to be that picky on the taste of water. Hope my opinion helps.

 

[rigama]

:wave:
Of course your opinion helps, silly!

Honestly, I figure since we will have packed snacks, such as cashews, roasted almonds (ds's faves), or granola bars, I figure our salt will be replenished pretty well-so hydration is my real concern. I think we will get one of those PureWater2Go bottles and refill it as needed.

Thanks for all the input!

 

[j&bconnecticut]

In addition to the flavor singles that you can add to your water, they also sell Propel singles too. Or you can buy powdered gatoraide and split it up into little ziplock bags. Much cheaper than buying gatoraide in the parks. That should help with the replacement of electrolytes and minerals that you will sweat away during the hot summer months. Hope that helps.

 

[3fordisney]

You can get Dasani in the parks for $1.25 for the small bottles and $2 for the larger bottle and Powerade is also $2. You can get a cup of ice water for free. Just ask at the counter and they will give you ice or ice water for free. If the water there isn't to your liking (isn't for most), bring the Crystal Light individual pouches to mix in.

We found that $2 for a bottle of water wasn't too bad. We have been to other theme parks and events where bottled water was $3 to $4 a pop.