Must haves on your packing list?

[Alison1975]

So we are 3 months out now and I need to get cracking on buying/gathering what we need.
We have 8 people in our group ( 21 total in the whole group).. 3 are flying ( 68,16 and 16) and 5 driving ( 35,38,9,7,5). Those of us driving arrive in WDW a day before the flyers, we are having a quiet day/night at POR before the craziness that is 21 people at POP.

So with the ages of our group, 11 nights total..what are the must haves we need? I have:

lots of new Disney clothes for the youngest 2 kids
small refillable water bottles for the 3 youngest kids
first aid kit, sun screen etc...

what else??

 

[tiaragirl]

Dollar store ponchos, granola bars (and gum/other easy to carry snacks), at least one water bottle, and EXTRA hair elastics - mine always seem to disappear..

 

[bmarkelon]

Cameras, extra batteries, chargers, trip itineraries/confirmation numbers, mini medicine cabinet, at least 2 cozy broken in sneakers

 

[Bri1121]

Wow have fun!! I would say with your ages you really dont need much. I always suggest bringing your own water and having snacks for the kids so you are not spending a ton of money on crap throughout the park. My kids like to eat so we would go broke buying snacks!

 

[HouCuseChickie]

I agree with all of the other things people noted...plus there were some things people suggested for me for our last trip.

- drink mix packets for your water bottles- i.e. Koolaid for the kids and crystal light for me
- ziplock bags...I wasn't so sure about this one, but I had a handful of things come up where I needed ziplock bags...especially gallon size
- a back up camera and card- I messed up some of the settings on my DSLR on day 2 of our last trip and wasn't able to get the camera working for a while. I was thankful that my video camera takes snapshots
- door organizer - I didn't actually do this one last trip but I wish I did...since there were so many little things of my kids' that were all over the place
- moleskin- great for blisters and not in all first aid kits
- hats - it's amazing how much the sun beating down on your head can take it out of you...for the kids- the more they stand out, the better

The only thing I forgot last trip that I intended to bring or really really needed.... hairspray. Oh well. Have a great trip! :wave:

 

[RonAnnArbor]

Plastic bags -- you'd be surprised how often you will want to keep stuff in your pockets dry -- a rainy day, and that wallet, iPhone, or digital camera is useless in your pocket if it's not in a plastic baggy.

I won't leave for a WDW trip without a few with me.

 

[Kristamouse]

Odd but I pack hangers...we have four kids 6,5,2&1 so I also pack the kids size ones...a Ziplock full of dryer sheet for the suitcases, flying or driving the suitcase smell musty when unpacking...small pack of Clorox wipes from the travel area in Target for wiping down the phones, remote controls, really bad rest stops potty’s...a small amount of meds to hold you over to get you home or to the drugstore for more (Advil, Pepto, Benadryl with a dropper for kids)...and BABY WIPES! I am constantly using them and handing them out to adults in the park who are in need, to wipe up bbq sauce in AK, wipe off hands after sunscreen, wipe off a sweaty neck/head/etc, great at getting some stains out, wipe off sticky quick service tables...you get my point...all of these items together take up so little space and save me some headaches..
Oh and I 2nd the zip lock...great for left over desserts or food for kids how aren't hungry when you are eating but are hungry 15mins later:brick:

 

[rsoxguy]

I always take trash bags that have some type of odor suppressant for dirty clothing. (Laundry on vacation? I'd rather just throw the clothes away.)

 

[Pooh Lover]

A nightlight! Those bed posts can be deadly in that dark room in the middle of the night. I also pack a Bath & Body room spray to freshen the room (or someone's shoes.)

 

[britdaw]

If anyone in your party gets motion sickness I suggest some Dramamine... Definitely extra shoes for everyone.

 

[wdwmomof3]

I just went to the store today to pick up a few things for our trip that we have to have. Here are a few items that I always take.

Mole Skin
Lysol spray & wipes (I clean the room when I check in- OCD!):ROFLOL:
Power strip!! (this is GREAT for charging phones & cameras at night)
Laundry bags (got hanging ones at Dollar Tree)
Quarters
Laundry Detergent
extra contacts
meds for everything I can think of.:animwink:
band-aids
gum
scissors
batteries
zip lock bags Great for cell phones if it rains)
and much more...:ROFLOL:

 

[Susan Savia]

Gift card for each of the kids, zip loc bag(s) to protect your camera, etc on Splash and in case of rain. I prefer a mini umbrella to ponchos and it fits right in my purse. Bottled water, and you can get little packets at the dollar store to flavor them. Granola snacks. We like Lance cracker snacks.

 

[mickeysshoes]

I do laundry on vacation so its less to pack and we dont have to pay for extra bags since we fly. So i bring my own tide and downy. I save quaters at home and bring a few rolls with me. Then the rule is while at Disney any change we get when spending cash I get all the quaters for laundry. I am a early riser and tend to do laundry early am when the machines are free. So i will 3-4 loads at once to get it done. Has always worked well for me. and to save on $$ I hang dry shirts so the dryer goes faster.

 

[ddbowdoin]

Talc Powder (esp in the hot summers)

 

[Bri1121]

These are some great tips! I am writing them down!

Baby wipes!! I always have these but good to note!
I like the ziploc bags!
And the power strip! We both have cell phones, a lap top, camera and video camera!!
And a night light!! How could I forget we always bring a night light or two with us! And extra bulbs. One trip we pulled it out of my daughters wall and packed it and it didn't work when we got to our vacation home. DH had to run out and find bulbs! Luckily we had a car.

 

[WDW-LUVR]

our Family Brings

3-in-1 Laundry sheets $5 for 20

Lg. Bag of store brand fruit loops(quick breakfast for the kids if needed, a great snack in the park, and the birds and ducks love them) but dont forget the Zip-Locks

Disinfecting wipes

Dish Soap to wash mugs or anything else that may come up

Air Freshener


Bar Soap and a bottle of soft soap

we also bring swimmers ear just incase

High Pressure showerHead the water pressure really stinks

 

[ArtieJim]

Lots of sunscreen. I'm so pale I can't leave home without that. Or chapstick.

 

[Tink28]

I certainly don't travel light and coming from the UK bring 2 weeks worth of stuff!
Must haves include
Soap, shower gel, sun lotion, body lotion - all fragrance free as I have an allergy to perfume and cannot use the products in the room.
Plasters (band aids) and first aid kit
Coat hangers (6 hangers in the room are not enough for 2 weeks worth of clothes)
Various medical stuff like Panadol
Tea bags (My Mum likes a cup of tea first thing in the morning)
Plastic bags (usually use to pack leakable products in, don't want to arrive with sun lotion over everything!)
comfy shoes, a must
Adaptor, to use my UK hairdryer etc
Wet wipes and gel

I start collecting items as soon as I book my vacation and put them away in a WDW bag ready for my trip!

 

[Marion]

Handheld fans used for standing in lines. Those gel filled neck wraps that are activated with water. Oh! Cheap rain ponchos for wet rides. Don't forget ADR's and ticket packets. At Christmas we bring Disney hats.:xmas:

 

[moonchild925]

Not usually a problem but on last trip to all we were eaten alive by mosquitos at pool so a small container of repellent or skin so soft might be helpful. I always pack shout wipes and /or tide to go pens even without doing laundry on vacation keeps stains from setting. Also travel size downey wrinkle release.