What is your not so normal item to pack, which is helpful while at WDW ?

[khakismum]

I don't know if anyone has mentioned...but I freeze a couple bottle waters in the hotels minifridge/freezer. Put in backpack...they slowly melt, and you can hold them on your pulse points for intant heat relief. As they melt, you have cold water to drink.

Ditto this, but I wrap the bottles each in a hand towel so the bottle doesn't sweat in the bag and get everything wet. The bonus is the water the towels absorb is pretty cool and great for wiping hot faces and it insulates the bottles to help keep them cool.

 

[1stvisit0909]

1. foldable step stool for my daughter to wash her hands-It was nice not having to lft her up in the room after lifting her in the parks all day.

2. Take a picture of your photo pass card. We lost ours on our 1st day and did not have the number to register it. We did have the pictures taken on our camera also but would have liked to have seen the ones that they took.
I filled out the form for lost photopass cards and if it was found and turned in, I might have a chance of them being found.

I lost one. I went to the photo place in MK. They asked me a time and place of one, I told them, they found us.

 

[Leannea]

Great ideas!!

 

[epholdsteady]

FIRST - this (for the most part is a great thread) tons of great info that I've added to my 22 pages of Disney trip notes.

Though I took a lot of these down I think the best tip I got out of this was to keep a Disney box!! I've been collecting things but keeping them separated (travel potty seat with kid stuff, travel ready toiletries with the regular toiletries, etc etc). What a good idea to keep a box aside to fill with all these lovely little Disney things. Than if you're flying you can mail it, or dump it in your suitcase. If driving - its ready to go! LOVE it.

Its been a long few days reading all of this but I dont remember seeing:
- Swimmies aka water wings. Toddlers + pool = swimmies always for us. Plus they are totally flat and easy to pack.
- Crock pot. We're driving, staying off site and have a full kitchen. We're also on a budget so we're cooking a lot of our own meals. I love that we can throw in everything in the morning and come back to a yummy home cooked meal! Also makes it way easier to cook for a large group.
- slippers. small ballet like slippers. i hate walking barefoot on a strange floor.



There were a dozen times or so reading this that I just wanted to
If you're going to lecture and judge people - do it where the rest of us don't have to be annoyed by it. If you're going to hand out information - be sure that its at least the right information. (FYI: Wikipedia is hardly a credible source.)

If you want to know about bedbugs - INCLUDING A LIST OF CHEMICALS APPROVED BY THE EPA THAT CAN KILL THEM you can find it on the epa website http://www.epa.gov/bedbugs/. Do i recommend covering your hotel room with pesticide? no. But i do recommend being informed and using that information to keep your family safe and healthy.

Cant there be a rule that if a public post(er) makes people feel like instead of it should be removed from the thread? sheesh

now, please, back to the

 

[Swirly girls]

I'm totally trying the all in one Purex sheets.
I love the plastic lid tip and will be bringing some along.
I read to buy small boxes of laundry detergent from local laundromat -- I never thought if it, but I'm going to buy a couple boxes just in case the Purex sheets don't work so well.
Ziplock bags are a must! So many different uses and needs for them.
A mama hook for bags ect
Because we have an early morning flight when we fly to Florida ( 6:30am we will be taking a shuttle to the airport from our hotel at about 4am) I know the kids will be tired and hungry so, I'm packing along dry cereal,granola with fruit,and nutrition bars and water.
It's early, but I know we will all be do darn excited the night before that we will be more than ready to get going to the airport. In fact, we are leaving home the day before we fly out. Because we all know we won't be able to just be sitting around home. So, we are going to do the 2 hour drive the day before. We will check into our hotel, maybe do a little shopping/ browsing , get a bite to eat, maybe a quick swim or relax in the hot tub with a margarita ( oh you know, just enough to make you fall asleep, but not enough that you over sleep!
Coupons! For that Walmart trip close to timeshare to pick up some snacks and beverages and anything else that is just easier to buy once there than to fly with!

 

[Belle4311]

For those of you who have shipped boxes to WDW, can you tell me the process? I'm not shipping directly from any store/online, I was planning on packing a box at home and then sending it.

Would you advise USPS, UPS, or FedEx? How many days before the trip do you send it? Do you have to call your hotel and let them know to expect it?

Anyone who has the scoop on this, I'd be very grateful for the tips!

Thank you!!

 

[sixkristy6]

For those of you who have shipped boxes to WDW, can you tell me the process? I'm not shipping directly from any store/online, I was planning on packing a box at home and then sending it.

Would you advise USPS, UPS, or FedEx? How many days before the trip do you send it? Do you have to call your hotel and let them know to expect it?

Anyone who has the scoop on this, I'd be very grateful for the tips!

Thank you!!

There is a sticky about shipping to the resorts in the Resort forum.
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2437212

At one point I was going to have Wal-Mart ship water to the resort since it was $.99 shipping but I decided against it. Maybe that thread will help you.

 

[MrsMommaRN]

Great tips everyone! Stuff that never gets unpacked from my suitcase, since I travel for work frequently: Night lights (2 small round led ones with the turnable shield, since you never know which way the plugs are pointing in a room), scissors, binder clips, clothes pins, flashlight, travel-sized manicure set, lint roller, travel Lysol spray, travel Febreeze, travel Static Guard, small power strip, moleskin, small first aid kit, and a cell phone charger (my Nook and cellphone use the same type, so one stays at home and one in the suitcase!), every size of Ziploc bags, and plastic grocery bags.


But a couple of things I haven't seen mentioned:

I never travel without Monistat Soothing Care Chafing Relief Powder-Gel. Sometimes hard to find, but have had good luck finding it at Target. (It's stocked in the women's hygiene area near the Midol.) Both DH and I apply it at the start of the day, and again after our midday break. Use it anywhere you might chafe, like your upper thighs, and under my breasts. It goes on like a gel, but turns into a powder. Truly remarkable stuff!

Another must have is Gold Bond Pain Relieving Foot Cream. Quite a few of the drugstores in my area carry it. After a long day at the parks, nothing beats this! In the morning, your feet feel like doing another 10 miles, no problem! It's mentholated, so fair warning, it can be stinky, so I pack an older pair of socks to put on after the cream, and use them only for this purpose. When I pack for the trip home, I make sure to put these socks in their own special Ziploc so not to smell up the entire suitcase!

Awesome ideas!

 

[Jen12573]

Still reading through this thread, it's amazing! Didn't come across this yet but someone might have suggested it.

Post-it notes

Put them over the "automatic flusher" sensor in the restrooms to keep the toilet from flushing on you before you or your kids finish. Just remember to manually flush and toss the post-it in the trash (not down the toilet).

 

[Nitewarrior]

I use the over door shoe holders also not only in bathroom for toiitries but hang one near your bed for glass, room keys, kleenex , flash light things you night need after lights go out.. I use those 3 min sticky hooks that you can remove with out causing damage to walls... also potato chip clips to hild towels on to pool chairs when the wind is blowing you can get them that look like flamingos and palm trees..

 

[pkirkbri]

My DH suffers from bad headaches and only likes Excedrin. Now he is stuck taking Target's version of it since Excedrin seems to be off the market still (since the product mix up at the factory that caused the huge recall last year). I'm beginning to wonder if it is EVER coming back.

Anyway, I always bring a small spray bottle and fill it with tap water and use it to spritz my clothes and then shake out the wrinkles. It's (obviously) cheaper than Wrinkle Release and since there is no fragrance I don't have to worry about attracting bugs. Not that Wrinkle Release doesn't smell nice!

Just got an e-mail today from CVS that Exedrin will be back in stores on 10/19/12. I loved the Exedrin Migraine. Seemed to get rid of both migraines and tension headaches.

 

[cat_herder]

Thanks everyone for all the great tips. I've created a long list to sort through and organize this weekend, the last before our WDW trip next week.

My husband travels a lot for his job and stays in lots of hotels all over the USA. First thing he does is check the room for bedbug especial all around the bed. He has never found one but you can never be too careful.

 

[Poohs Wishing Star]

If you need a substitute for Excedrin Extra Strength until it is returned to store shelves, try Bayer Migraine Formula. It has the same ingredients and formula.

250 mg Acetaminophen, 250 mg Aspirin, 65 mg Caffeine





RJ

 

[disneylvr4vr]

Again, you are not allowed to take straws into the Animal Kingdom. And if you really care about the animals you are going to see, you won't either. A few hundred people bringing in their own straws, and a few are bound to get loose. Not good.

But you are allowed to take reusable straws are far as i know

 

[maxiesmom]

But you are allowed to take reusable straws are far as i know

Only if they are attached to whatever cup you plan on using.

 

[LuvIlluminations]

I'm totally trying the all in one Purex sheets.
I love the plastic lid tip and will be bringing some along.
I read to buy small boxes of laundry detergent from local laundromat -- I never thought if it, but I'm going to buy a couple boxes just in case the Purex sheets don't work so well.

We used the Purex all-in-one sheets last year and they worked great!

 

[gracer9977]

We brought a shower liner and just threw it in the bottom of the stroller, got caught in one of the quick, unexpected rain bursts so just took that out and threw it over the stroller and everyone dropped all the bags/purses/etc under the liner and everything stayed nice and dry. After the rain passed just rolled it up and put it in a large baggie and then when we got back to the resort hung it up to dry and it was ready to go the next day.

We also brought one of our soothing sounds clocks, the kids own pillows (with new Disney pillow cases of course) and their fleece blankets. When it was nap time (my son was only 3 on the last trip) I would just get him snuggled under his fleece and turn on one of the sounds on the clock and he would drop right off to sleep. Plus at night it was nice for the kids to both have their own comfy fleece blankets and pillows to sleep with and we all love the sound clock.

Brought my own tiny bottle of dawn dishwashing soap and a sponge - this worked out awesome to wash out sippy cups, the refillable mugs, etc. Also brought our own antibacterial bath and body works soap. The pump ones for easier hand washing. Not to mention the little antibacterial pocket pacs. This year they have the holders that you can attach to anything so they will be dangling from strollers and bags when we go back.

 

[Chicago Mo]

things i cannot live without at Disney:
bounce dryer sheets:for ALL their useful purposes.
the HUGE ziplock bags, water rides or rain holds camera or anything oyu don't want to get wet.
the all in one i believe (purex?) for laundry!!!
Colored rubber bands for the mugs everyone knows their colors!
binder clips to hold up wet clothes.
glow sticks!
i will think of the others..

 

[Solomani]

Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this thread! As a family of 6 traveling from HK to visit WDW for the first time next year (only 400 days to go, yes we prepare ahead of time we don't have a lot of leeway to learn as we go. So the shared wisdom of this thread (and others) is much appreciated.

After reading all 65 pages+ I have one contribution and one question.

Contribution: We do this when we visit HK Disneyland or any area where there are likely to be lots of crowds. We use a sharpie to write our mobile numbers on our kids arm. It will easily last a day or more. Its not as elegant as dog tags or ID tattoos but it does the job. Our older kids also know our mobile numbers off the top of their heads (9 and 7, 4 year old is still learning).

Question: Someone way back in the thread mentioned glow lights as opposed to glow sticks. Basically permanent glow stick bracelets. I cant find these anywhere in HK or on the web. My Google-fu has failed me (as has Amazon). Anyone know if glow light is the correct term for these? As I keep getting glow sticks instead.

Thanks in advance.

 

[candielips]

Brought my own tiny bottle of dawn dishwashing soap and a sponge - this worked out awesome to wash out sippy cups, the refillable mugs, etc.

Prior to going put some dish washing liquid on a sponge. Leave it to dry. Then cut into small squares and pack. These work AMAZING for washing cups and bottles out. No need to bring the actual dish washing liquid with you.