Driving to WDW- what to bring...

[Luvmydisney]

So, due to our changing budget, we (myself, DH, DS5, DD4 and DS 9 mo.) are now driving to the World instead of flying. What items should I bring along in the car that I might have left at home due to baggage restraints? Thanks for the tips!

 

[sweetpee_1993]

I know one thing my kids will be bringing with them - homework! But I'm not suggesting that for you - LOL.

An extra collapsible suitcase or an extra large reusable shopping bag for any souveniers you might buy.

Before we used the DDP we ate breakfast in the room while everyone was getting ready so I brought paper plates, napkins, small bottles of milk and my kids ate the cereal or oatmeal bars.

And finally, bring your own beach towels if you plan on going to the pools.

Hope you get a lot of inspiration! :wave:

I actually thought about bringing the boys' laptops for the drive. We homeschool and this year I've managed to make it so the majority of their work is done in the computers. At the very least, they could knock out several days of German, right?

I've also given thought to bringing beach towels. Between the pools & the cruise their bound to be useful. :animwink:

 

[minniemickeyfan]

Some things on my list that weren't already mentioned:

Flashlight, starbucks coffees in the glass containers for the cooler, cell phone chargers for the car, coats/gloves (only for when we leave and get near home:lol also be sure to have the spare checked and anything you might need there or if you're like me..just the # to AAA will do
Happy and safe travels

 

[LivFreeorDisney]

and your mug from the last trip.

That should get you there...:wave:

 

[Dwarful]

We drive down from Illinois. Takes us 16 -18 hours depending on the stops. Lots of great ideas already posted...but here are a few things we don't leave home without:
extra hangers from the dollar store..I can leave them behind if I don't have room...but no matter where we stay value to deluxe we never have enough drawer space. (I like everything to be put away nice and neat). I also bring a long a pop up hamper, laundry supplies and mini-hand sanitizers. A roll of quarters for tolls and laundry. Bottled water, other beverages and snacks. Have a safe trip.

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

we just did a drive to the world about a month ago and a neck pillow is great for sleeping in the passenger seat. Also we like playing Mad Libs, the stories always give us a good laugh.

 

[sweetpee_1993]

we just did a drive to the world about a month ago and a neck pillow is great for sleeping in the passenger seat. Also we like playing Mad Libs, the stories always give us a good laugh.

Mad Libs fans here! Don't tell the kids, but it's educational, too!

 

[HouCuseChickie]

I am currently on the road to WDW. After day 1 of driving- here are the things I'm thankful that I brought and a few I wish I'd brought...

1. Very thankful for the portable dvd player, the bungee cord I'm using to attach it to the center console, the aux cable so everything is in surround sound, and the 24 Disney movies we're brought along for the ride.
2. spare contacts and keeping my glasses handy- I had a contact float while we were driving in Louisiana. My spare lenses weren't handy, but my glasses thankfully were.
3. Capri Suns and Fruit Snacks- fairly mess free and it's keeping the girls happy
4. pull ups- my kids are 2 and 4 and fully potty trained, but I feared that they wouldn't be able to hold it every step of the way. DD4 has been fine, but DD2 had a minor accident - so I was very happy she was in a pull up even though she hated it.
5. tissues- I wish I had them on me. I had a massive nose bleed just outside of Biloxi. I swear- the bathroom looked like a crime scene.
6. trip tik- I forgot to print my AAA trip tik so we've been kindI of "fly by the seat of our pants" with some things.
7. lots of back up outfits- I think I have somewhere between 2 to 4 outfits per kid per day in case of messes + even big pouffy princess dresses and accessories.
8. extra toys, games, books, etc.- basically anything to entertain the kids in the car
9. meds- I have one heck of a tummy ache- so I'm happy to have a bag full of meds.

I'm sure there's more...but that's all I can come up with right now. :wave:

 

[Laura]

I didn't read through the thread, but the things I like to have packed when I drive are:

-Shoe organizer (I hate tripping over 20 pairs of shoes and there's never a good place to put shoes in a hotel room)

-Power strip (so I have a place to plug in the 83 cell phones, laptops, iPads, iPods, camera batteries, etc.)

-A cooler of soda. I love coming back to my room after a long day and having a cold soda waiting for me.

 

[britlightyear]

Some disposable plastic cups for the hotel room. I know the glasses in the room are supposed to be clean but for some reason I can't bring myself to drink out of them, even if it's just for rinsing while brushing your teeth, plastic cups have always come in handy!

 

[Luvmydisney]

Thank you so much everyone for the great tips! I love the Mad Libs and the magnet/cookie sheet ideas. We will definitely be watching our Disney movies. We just got Summer Magic and my daughter is already obsessed! Yea! I might have to go back there and watch it with her. We are staying at Pop for the second year in a row. I have no doubt that we will be taking with us much more than last year when we flew. Hope the room can contain all 5 of us and our "stuff"! Definitely will need those mesh laundry bags, etc to keep us organized. I was also thinking of bringing popcorn bags for popping at night. We are about 43 days away from "home away from home" and you all are getting me excited with planning ideas! :wave:

 

[ml123_9]

Well, you don't say how far you will be driving. But our family, including DS5 and DD11mos just drove to and from Daytona Beach from Indianapolis. For the 9mo, make sure you have plenty of bottles and formula at your ready. Also, extra diapers and wipes that are easy to get to. It might also be a good idea to keep a few changes of clothes within reach in case you have leaky diapers. Our daughter peed through her diaper 3 times in one day. Also, definately a DVD players for the kids to watch. Have fun and good luck.

 

[jlandis44]

We drive from MD about twice per year. With kids who are 7 and 11, the handheld video game players are a must, as it the portable DVD player and about 10 movies to choose from. But, having these things require that their batteries are charged, or the devices are plugged in. I went and spend $65 for a low-end power inverter. It plugs into the DC port in my middle console (what used to be the cigarette lighter), and gives me a DC port as well as a regular plug outlet. I can then use this to charge devices while driving, without having to buy mobile chargers for every new device as they come along. Simply plug in the normal charger and things keep moving along! Have fun!

 

[ob1thx1138]

Water, water, and more water. We took two bottles per person with us to the parks every day so we could use our snack credits on snacks and not on water.

On our next trip we plan to take down collapsible clothes hampers (wal mart). They are round and collapse down to about the size of a large Frisbee.

 

[olinecoach61]

Some great advice everyone! I learned a lot in this thread.

 

[CaptainShortty]

I'm not sure where you're driving from but here are some tips to keep the kids busy and happy!

My family drove to Florida when my sister and I were 8 and 10 and the best thing she brought was her "bag of tricks". It was literally a bag filled with all sorts of toys and things neither my sister nor I had ever seen before. It had games and coloring books and stickers and activity books, all sorts of stuff. As soon as one of us uttered, "Mom, I'm bored" into the bag she went and pulled out something new to keep us busy for a few hours. It worked great.

Bring lots of snacks and drinks for the trip down and also in the parks. It'll save you a lot of money not having to spend a ridiculous amount on water when you're in the world.

Also, the kids are a little little now but this may still be fun to play. Being frequent car trippers we travel with a game called "Are We There Yet". There are rules in the game but here is how we play. Since we have a three rowed car the farthest backseat plays against the middle seat and Mom and Dad in the front are neutral. Each player (so not Mom and Dad) gets 5 of the game cards which have items you have to look for out the window (a black car, a flea market, a stop sign, etc.). When they find the item they put that card in their pile and get a new one from Mom (Dad's driving). Mom and Dad are responsible for helping everyone look for their items. At the end of the trip or when the cards run out, each team counts the number of cards they have a declares a winner. It's really fun. I'm 21 and my sister is 18 and we still play it on long car trips (it's gotten quite competitive). Since your kids probably aren't reading yet then you could play a modified version where you read the cards and the kids look for them. Here's the website to buy it if you're interested. http://www.christianbook.com/there-the-auto-travel-card-game/pd/530076#curr