Cooling Towels for Summer Heat

[Frozen2014]

Anyone tried cooling towels to help deal with the summer heat? If so, which brand? Do they work?

There are a few brands that I'm looking at, but have no idea what is better and they are made of totally different materials. The one's I've noted are "Was 2 Cool" and "Ergodyne".

I don't want anything that is too bulky as we'll have 4 to carry around when we're not using them.

Any recommendations?

 

[SMD]

I have 2 Dr. Cool towels and a headband. I got them at a runDisney expo. They also make the ones that Disney now sells in the parks. My advice is spend a little more and buy it in a store instead of online. They come in many different textures and I have one that I don't like because of that.

 

[Frozen2014]

Thanks. I'm in Canada so they may be harder to find, but can check out local sport stores and see. Otherwise am planing on ordering from Amazon.com as we're making a short trip next month.

 

[ADLFAN]

I bought a few Frogg Togg brand towells, based on a recommendation on a Disney blog. They are shaped more like a scarf and keep you pretty cool. They feel like a very thin foam and the texture is not offensive to me... There is a side with a raised weave that keeps it from adhering to your skin so it can breath a little. They come in lots of colors and sizes and I got mine fairly cheaply on Amazon.

 

[TCRAIG]

I bought a few Frogg Togg brand towells, based on a recommendation on a Disney blog. They are shaped more like a scarf and keep you pretty cool. They feel like a very thin foam and the texture is not offensive to me... There is a side with a raised weave that keeps it from adhering to your skin so it can breath a little. They come in lots of colors and sizes and I got mine fairly cheaply on Amazon.

Frogg Toggs are what we use as well - lots of great colors and the really do work!

 

[22Tink]

I'm from Canada too and I ordered mine from Amazon.ca for our trip last August. We honestly barely used them and they ended up just being one more thing to have to pack around. They did work, but they were bulky and I had to keep rewetting them so after the first day we just left them at the hotel. Maybe a different brand might be better? The ones I got were Chill-its and I definitely don't recommend them.

 

[VandVsmama]

I live in Arizona and my kids are on a swim team in the summer. So that means that us adults get to spend long hours outside when it's 105+. Bleh! Survival for those long swim meets involves using a Frogg Toggs towel and some sort of device or tool to fan yourself with. Some people use the handheld spray bottle fans. I usually just use the swim meet program as a fan, but recently discovered that Cost Plus Imports sells cheap fold-out fans for about $3 a piece, so I'm bringing a couple of those with us.

Walmart also sells small versions of the Frogg Toggs cooling towels (they sell the regular sized ones, too) in the camping section.

 

[emmybee]

I ended up ordering Mission Athletecare Enduracool Instant Cooling Towel, X-Large, Blue from Amazon expressly for DL. It was lightweight, very refreshing, and easy to carry around. My husband poo poo'd the idea, but then tried to get my daughter and I to lend him our own towels! No way, you snooze, you lose!

 

[Frozen2014]

Thanks for the replies. Sounds like they are mostly useful. We're coming end of August soam a bit worried of the heat so hoping these will help. Froggy Toggs sounds like a popular one. Definitely want to get 4 and different colors so we can tell whose is whose. Will check out wallmart too. Thanks.

 

[pdarrah]

I occasionally use these at WDW when it is VERY hot. I don't think it's worth the hassle for just warm weather. I believe our's are Froggs Toggs, but we have cut them up from the original large square. We made ours into strips after our first trip because the big square just seemed too awkward to haul around and use in the park. Each strip is about 3-4" wide and is easy to just lay across the back of your neck. (I usually tuck the ends into my shirt under by bra straps - is that TMI?) Every few hours, we re-wet them -usually with ice water, but just regular faucet water in the bathroom works too. A folded strip easily fits into a sandwich bag which makes them easy to carry around when we aren't using them (early morning or evening after it cools down a bit). Just don't forget them in the sandwich bag for a few weeks after the trip! Totally mildewed mess that I just threw away. Fortunately, the 3 big squares, made lots of smaller strips, so we still have plenty for future trips.

 

[Winnowill]

We have two Frogg Toggs and one other brand I've forgotten. We haven't needed them, much, but we really thought we were going to hit triple digits our trip last June so we brought them. They are good to have, but definitely a bag to put them in is necessary. Our friend put his in his shirt pocket when he didn't need it, and it soaked his shirt.

 

[DLgal]

I second the Mission Enduracool towels. Frogg Toggs are SO heavy when they are wet and they just mostly make your shirt wet too. They are too bulky to carry around 4 of them. The Enduracool ones are thin and lightweight and when dry, can fold up really small.

 

[deetman]

Something to keep in mind--these work by evaporation, so hot and dry weather will get the best results.

If there is a lot of humidity, it just makes you wetter.

 

[Albort]

honestly, i would pick up a mister fan over a wet towel. you can pick one up at like walmart/target for $10.

 

[beachdreamr1229]

I like the Frog Togg brand. They work really well. I also recommend buying head bandanas that you can douse with water to cool your head on an exceptionally hot day. I frequently go to Disneyland when it's 90-100 degrees outside and those have been a life saver for the whole family.

I know someone mentioned they're best in dry heat. So here's the deal--most heat in southern California is dry, or at least compared to WDW type heat it is. So, more than likely, the towels will provide some relief. I think they're worth the investment. We have 2 towels and 4 bandanas for our family of 5.

 

[Frozen2014]

Something to keep in mind--these work by evaporation, so hot and dry weather will get the best results.

If there is a lot of humidity, it just makes you wetter.

So good for Disneyland in the summer. Not so good for Disney World in the summer.

 

[BarbieGal457]

I have a Frog Togg Chilly pad and let me tell you, I am upset I did not purchase sooner! In WDW (my usual Disney resort) I get so hot, but last OctoberI was truly struggling and it was making for a very hard trip. We overnighted one via Amazon Prime to our hotel and it was a lifesaver!! It is a very thin comfortable material and it really worked wonderfully for hours a day. It was very easy to re-wet and carry as well. We carried it in a gallon Ziploc bag in my boyfriend's backpack and it really was fantastic. He was super impressed too! I am buying a set for my twin nephews for their trip to WDW in August.

We did not find that it made our shirts wet at any point and we both tend to wear thinner material shirts. We did trade off during the day but I think I will get him his own for DL in June. I noticed in WDW they sold their own brand with the Fab 5 on it but it was about $18 if I recall and mine was $8 on Amazon! I also got the super obnoxious neon pink color so now my boyfriend can't lose me in a crowd hahaha!

The only reason I did not buy a mist fan was I was nervous I would spray people accidentally while using it and they would not appreciate it, semi-related to how I hate when bubbles are blown and need to avoid them. I do think though most people would appreciate an accidental misting in such heat but I thought the towel worked better for me overall and did not require stopping to refill, etc. and was really mindless/super light to wear/use. Another factor was it kept me cool indoors in a place I would feel inappropriate to mist, because I really have a hard time cooling down indoors easily too sometimes. Once in WDW I did have a little boy overhear in line I was very hot and he turned around and offered me his mist fan, it was adorable and I only borrowed it for a minute but it was too sweet! I told him to keep the water for himself as it was very hot but he insisted to share. His mama bear looked very proud of him as well!

 

[Frozen2014]

Thank you. So it sounds like Frog Togg is the most popular one. No one has tried "Was 2 Cool" or "Ergodyne"? One website rated these as the longest/coolest (with Frog Togg up there too).

BarbieGal457, I will be getting 4 different colors so we know whose is whose and my DD will probably want a bright one. Your comment made me laugh though. Funny about the mist spray, as my first thought is "but it'll ruin the hair"...lol. I do wonder though just how often you need to change the batteries for those. Can see going through a lot in a few days. Wow..that is so sweet of the little boy letting you borrow it. So nice to hear.

I am also considering a small umbrella to block off the sun if standing in line outside for awhile, but not sure the logistics of this as obviously I don't want to poke or annoy anyone behind or infront of us.