Packing for 10 days - advice

Grace W · Aug 18, 2015

Better to have more than not enough!

Arden01 · Aug 18, 2015

I tried the 5 day outfit advice for our upcoming trip, but didn't have the heart to veto all the Disney tee shirts my daughters packed. We might not be going back for awhile after this trip and I want them to wear Disney shirts every day to their hearts content! I let them pack for about 7 days worth - and I'll probably do the same since I like to change before dinner.

Rosebud123 · Aug 18, 2015

We are going for 10 nights and we're wearing one outfit (obviously!!!) and bringing 6. Maybe an extra T shirt or two. 2 sets of PJs, 2 bathing suits. We'll do laundry 2x. I think I'm one of the only people on here that likes to do laundry on vacation! I can't stand all the dirty clothes piling up.

Any day we take a break to swim, we'll change into clean clothes.

Rosebud123 · Aug 18, 2015

happymommy said:
I have never had enough clothes to last a week on vacation without doing wash, with the exception of my DH's and my trip (alone, no kids, first 5 night trip ever doing that 8 years ago) to Peter Island. There we wore our swim suits so rinsed out daily, and a basic attire in the evening, so I hung stuff up that I had rinsed out all over the room (housekeeping must have had a chuckle). !

I went to Peter Island for my honeymoon. Amazing!!!

englishteacha · Aug 22, 2015

I don't own enough summer clothes to go 10 days without doing laundry!

In past trips we stayed in a condo with a washer/dryer, which was AWESOME. We packed 4 of our favorite outfits and a few spare shirts, and did a small load of wash every other day. Packing was a breeze. Last year, we stayed on site and packed enough clothes for the whole time we were gone (6 nights), but I did end up washing out a few things in the sink. if I were going for 10 days, I'd pack for 3-5 days and do some laundry a few times. On our February 2011 trip, we were unsure of weather so we packed for anything. It was TOO much stuff. I vowed that I'd never pack that much again. I'd rather do laundry, even if I have to shlep it to a hotel laundry room to do so.

We volunteer at a summer camp for a week to a time and laundry facilities are only for emergencies. In order to have enough clothes (with a few extras for the inevitable times I'll need to change mid day) I have to pack the stuff I really don't like wearing. I won't do that on vacation!

ZoZo · Aug 24, 2015

minnie mum said:
I take enough clothes to last 4 or 5 days and do laundry during the trip. Easy to do a load or 2 while we take our afternoon break.

My advice exactly. I'm a notorious over-packer, so this works well for me. I know people say, "I hate doing laundry on vacation" but it's worth it to me to spend a couple of hours (by the pool!) to avoid over-packing! At the resorts where we stay, the laundry facilities are by the pool.

SM101 · Aug 24, 2015

If we're on a longer trip, we're usually in a one bedroom villa that has a washer/dryer; if not, I just use the resort ones. Agreed - pack Tide pods (the only time I ever buy them - I keep my eyes out for a good sale) and dryer sheets in your carry on, and you'll be fine.

We tend to go off-season, so I'm more generous with layer-able clothes because the weather varies so much. If it's a January or February trip, I will bring gloves and a hat. Typically, I bring enough leggings/t-shirts for 4 or 5 days (my Disney "uniform" of choice). I usually bring two cardigans, two long sleeve shirts I can wear over a t, and one sweatshirt. I always bring 3 pairs of slip-on sneakers so I can rotate them because keeping my feet happy is a necessity. We wear the bulkiest ones to travel in and then pack the lighter ones. I change shoes/socks during mid-day breaks, so lots of extra socks as well. 1-2 bathing suits (just the 1 if it's Jan/Feb since we will not be in the pool as much) and a cover-up. One pair of flip flops to bum around the resort in.

I usually bring 2 "nicer" outfits for dining out and then just go back and forth between the two (casual dress, cardigan or slacks/shirt/cardi), and wash as needed - nothing that needs ironing or dry cleaning obviously. One pair of flat slightly dressier but still comfortable sandals.

I can easily pack all this in a medium suitcase, with a bit of room to spare. So between my daughter and me, we just do a carry on each and two medium rolling suitcases - it works reasonably well.

jec6613 · Aug 30, 2015

The trick to all of this is to pack efficiently and don't bring items that don't pack well. Well folded clothing fits better, and you should fold your dirty clothes as well, otherwise they take up much more space on the return.

For my next 7 day trip to WDW, I'm packing into a single carry-on sized bag, including a suit for V&A, and carrying on nothing but my camera bag for the parks for that day, and anticipate no issues and no laundry

Not WDW, but for a 16 night/15 day trip to Africa with several social events, where laundry is only available on Day 11 and onwards:

Two pairs dress slacks
Three pairs non-iron travel UPF slacks
Four pairs utility/outdoor UPF pants
Two dress shirts
Six polos
5 T-shirts
Four button-down UPF hiking shirts
15 pair underwear
16 pair socks
14 undershirts
One pair boots
One pair casual shoes
One pair dress shoes
One pair trail shoes
Three belts (brown casual, black casual, brown dress)
Fleece pullover
Rain jacket
Rain/trail hat

All but what I'm wearing (which will be the trail shoes, not the boots) fits in a single 24" checked bag that would be allowed as carry-on on Southwest.

And that's not counting the laptop, binoculars, three cameras, five lenses, three cell phones, headphones, et cetera, which fill up my carry-on bag. My remaining checked baggage allowance is being filled with maple syrup.

leahgoogle · Aug 30, 2015

We stayed 10 days last October and I packed 6 short sleeved/shorts outfits with a couple pants for each person. I also brought jackets. We did laundry 1/2 way through. I brought flip-flops/sandles for each person in addition to gym shoes. I can't remember how many pajamas, but probably 5 since we were doing laundry. Oh, and swimsuit cover-ups for the water parks. I tend to overpack, as well....lol.

SplashMountainMom · Sep 2, 2015

As others have written, pack for 5 days and do laundry while there. Bring extra bathing suits and comfortable footwear.
We went for nine days last year and I found that the room did not have enough hangers for the three of us. Next time I will pack a few extra hangers.

ZoZo · Sep 7, 2015

SplashMountainMom said:
We went for nine days last year and I found that the room did not have enough hangers for the three of us. Next time I will pack a few extra hangers.

FYI, any of the WDW resorts will bring you extra hangers if you ask - as many as you want. No need to pack your own. Just call Mousekeeping!

suzimar57 · Sep 11, 2015

I always pack for however days we're there, plus 2 extra "in case" (not including the t-shirts i always buy...) - did laundry at wdw twice, nah, not for me - would rather just bring all the clothes i'll need and change fresh daily!

ALEXandFAB · Sep 11, 2015

Just going to echo what most have said. We'll be staying 10 nights as well. We plan to have enough clothing for half out stay and then do laundry at the mid-way point. But I'm gonna be honest. The idea of doing laundry while on vacation is not appealing. At all. But neither is paying more for extra checked baggage :thumbsup2

Jbausch · Sep 12, 2015

I wash every single day so when I go on vacation I refuse to do any laundry. :laundy:

I am a single mom of twins and I pack for the whole trip plus extras. We are going for 10 days this time on November and I will pack layers. I make T- shirts for the trip so something for the morning and then for the PM. I usually theme our clothes around what park we are at. (Yes I am one of those people! :rolleyes:

) I buy plain long sleeve shirts and leggins/sweat pants. If it is chilly in the morning we put on a long sleeve shirt and the t-shirt over it. If we get hot we take off the long sleeve shirt and tie it around our waist. I find this works better than jackets that get bulky. And you won't leave it on a ride or lose it. Trying to keep up with 2 small kids and 3 jackets is no easy task. :sail:

(As long as it's not too cold) Light weight sweats and leggins keep the legs warm and aren't as bulky as jeans. I am lucky in that my daughter only likes to wear skirts. So leggins under and if it gets too hot she just takes them off. I also pack one heavy jacket - just in case. I put all outfit in ziplock bags. So all we have to do is grab a bag and the entire outfit is there. While it seems like a lot it's not really. I manage wiith 1 large suitcase and 2 smaller ones.
I guess I am one of the few but I love my 10 days off with no washer and drying in sight! :dogdance:

SerenityValley · Sep 13, 2015

Our trip this fall will be for 21 days total with 14 at WDW. DH and I are both going carry-on only with plans to do laundry twice. The biggest thing is that all of the tops and bottoms are interchangeable with each other so we can create multiple different outfits depending on our mood and/or weather.

My List is below. DH's would eliminate the dresses, skirts, flats and heels, but would add in a pair of slacks and sneakers.

7 shirts (all sleeveless and can be worn with either skirt, jeans or shorts)
2 jeans (wearing one)
2 dresses (one dressy and one casual)
1 skirt
3 shorts
1 set of lounge-wear/PJs
1 hoodie
2 pairs of sandals
1 pair of flats
1 pair of dressy (high heel) shoes

We are both tech geeks, so our personal bags will be stuffed with gear including plug-in and portable chargers, cameras, iPads, laptops and various other items.

Shelly F - Ohio · Sep 16, 2015

I always wash 1/2 way through and one the last day. It takes about 1 1/2 hours to do two loads of laundry while we hang out at the pool. On our last night we hang out at the pool and do laundry since I can do more than one load at once with the availability of 4 washers at the SSR. I love coming home with all clean clothes that go straight to the closet. Better than doing one load at a time when I get home. Then I can come home and relax.

keepswimming76 · Sep 16, 2015

Thanks for this thread! I am a notorious over-packer so it's nice to see what everyone else does. We'll be doing 10 days on our next trip so I'm already nervous about the weight of our luggage. BUT I loathe the idea of doing laundry on vacation. It sounds like I need to squeeze in a load on one of our off days!

romitaz · Sep 18, 2015

We did laundry on one visit years ago and I vowed nevermore! We are going for 14 days and we will be packing for 15. I bring 8 pairs of shorts, two pairs of jeans, two pairs of slacks, 15 shirts, 18 underwear, 18 socks, plus various this and that. I hate to do laundry on vacation as I have to do it three times a week at home. Just my opinion, of course.

Oneanne · Sep 18, 2015

I figure two outfits per day (day and evening): each piece has to work in at least two combinations (unless it's a dress :flower1:

): minimum of two pair of shoes. I prefer not to do laundry while on vacation, but will if needed. For WDW I always use my largest suitcase and use travel space bags, so there's usually plenty of room for cosmetics/personal grooming stuff, which there always seems to be a lot of.

DisneyHardin · Sep 19, 2015

I definitely don't do laundry. I usually pack one more pair of capris than days about 3 more shirts than days. I usually buy at least one or two shirts while we are there, so I usually will wear those too. I wear my bulkier pair of shoes on the plane and pack my smaller pair. I do usually wear a jacket or hoodie on the plane and have that for cool evenings.

Packing for 10 days - advice

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