Fav tips so far

[Disny4girls]

What are your favorite tips that you have read that you would of never thought about it but glad you read it somewhere that no one else has mentioned.

I have two tips that I think are ingenious!
1. Sponge cut up into squares, soaked in dishwashing soap. Then dried and put into a zip-loc bags for washing out cups and such!! *FAVORITE
2. Travel size empty bottles to put your shampoos, soaps, lotion and liquid hand soap into them. I just filled mine up,(got a pack of 4 for $1) with all of my soaps. HUGE saving on space. With that I am going to add some water bottles for our resort. Saves money and space!!

 

[aubriee]

1. Jamstew here on the DIS turned me onto packing folders and packing cubes and I've been recommending them to everyone else ever since. I can't imagine packing without them now. So much better than the old rolling and ziplock bag system I was using.

2. Body Glide antichafing for blister and chafing prevention is another must have

3. Mineral makeup

4. white noise machine

5. If you write small (which I do), write all your ADR confirmation numbers onto a Home Depot lime green Mickey head. Cut them out, glue two together back to back, laminate, punch a hole in one ear, insert one of those rubber luggage tag thingys, and hang on the strap of your park bag. You will always have all your ADR numbers handy and other DISers may recognize you as a DISer by the lime green Mickey. Mine always fit onto two Mickey heads even if I'm on the DxDDP, because I write small and abbreviate, like:
7pm WGP 123456789
6:30 CR 234567890
8am CP 098765432
12N GFC 234234234

6. Peppermint foot lotion and Motrin for sore feet

7. Clothespins or duct tape to hold curtains closed if you want room to be darker. I just roll some duct tape onto a pen, so it takes up no room and I'll always have a pen handy too.

8. Always carry a small pair of child's scissors for cutting tags off souvenirs

9. If you do laundry carry a roll of quarters in a mini M&M container in a small zip lock with laundry detergent and fabric softener sheets. If you do the pressed pennies, alternate two quarters then a penny, then 2 quarters then a penny, etc in mini M&M containers so you'll always have the exact change you need.

10. If you like having your trip paid completely in full before you go, buy Disney gift cards and use them for souvenirs, tips, food, etc. Prefill envelopes with cash for housekeeping tips, DME driver tips, bell services tips, etc. Then have an envelope with a little extra cash in it, just in case. I love coming home to a zero balance on my credit card and even having a little left over for my next trip (thanks to the extra cash and what's left over on the gift cards).

 

[dsnyrn]

Where do you purchase folders and cubes for packing?
Great tips all!

 

[GymnastHannah]

Always bring a jacket! Even when it's 100 degrees outside, the restaraunts and shows can get pretty chilly. I definently learned my lesson on my last trip when I ended up shivering at every meal I ate...

 

[2mchwrk]

1. Use the Chase Disney Visa for everything, pay it off every month (most important), then use the free money for your trip.

2. When not using the Chase Disney Visa, use a credit card that earns miles, get as many flights free as possible.

3. A DVC membership pays for itself, if you have a big family and you go to Disney a lot. Otherwise, there are better ways to save money.

4. Take water bottles into the parks and fill at the water fountains.

5. Eat breakfast at your hotel, load tons of snacky things (that you brought from home) into your park bag for lunch, and make priority seating plans for an early supper (like around 3 or 4pm). Only pay for Disney food one time each day. Saves a lot of money. I usually have one piece of luggage filled with food. Also the hottest time of the day is around 3pm (not noon).

6. Bring moleskin and tiny scissors in case of blisters.

7. Microfiber travel towels (sold at travel stores) absorb a ton of water, dry quickly, and are very light. I recommend them if you are planning to go to water parks.

8. Sun blocking shirts and hats (plus sunglasses) make a summer trip to Disney about 1 million times more comfortable than lathering with sunscreen and sweating it off. You can get long sleeve "rash guard" swim shirts and board shorts ( a bit longer than regular swim shorts for girls and women) from Land's End. Excellent quality and NO sunburn. For Park days, I like the long sleeve sun blocking shirts from Tilly's (in Canada, but order online). Tilly's also makes the best quality hats with a life time guarantee.

9. Rent a car if you will be hitting the water parks every morning. It is much faster than negotiating the bus system there and back and especially if you plan to do water parks in the morning and parks in the evening. This is my summer recommendation--hit the parks as the sun is going down and water parks for morning and afternoon. The water parks seem 20 degrees cooler, drive back to hotel, change, eat.....then head to big parks as sun is setting. We always use Disney transportation to the big 4 parks, just leave the minivan parked.

10. Organizing the entire trip about 6 months (or more) prior will make every one happier. Get tickets, priority seating, plans set in advance. Have a day-to-day plan with priority seating numbers in your park backpack or fanny pack. Disney restaurants really are part of the experience, so don't miss them. A well organized Disney vacation is a HAPPY vacation :~)

p.s. I hope my tips are helpful for someone. So often I have friends who don't want to plan their "once in a lifetime" WDW vacation and come home extremely unhappy (and broke). I try to help them prior to the trip, but many people are very resistant to planning vacations. They just want to go and relax and have fun. Ugh :~( I try to explain the size of WDW and say things like, "Would you go to Manhattan without a plan, without tickets?" Many people just don't get it. I'm sure most of the people on this site have witnessed families at WDW in pure misery, hot, hungry, waiting in long lines (even for counter service food), the kids crying...... I feel so sorry for those people. I always think to myself, "I could have made the trip for them so much better", but alas....to each, his own.

 

[lisaisanurse]

ebags has "some" deals. go through ebates.com to get 6% cash back instead of just signing on to ebags directly..........

i got 8 packing cubes for $20 on ebay....

 

[AristocaticMarie]

A friend of mine (a fellow Disser ) made up an itinerary for each of our days at DW. This was our first trip and practically everything went as smooth as silk. I highly recommend writing down the "must dos" for everyone and lots of notes about where things are located, what time the parades/shows are, etc. Also, you have to understand FP if you plan to ride a lot of rides!

 

[Disny4girls]

Does anyone have a pic of their packing cubes in their suitcase? thanks!

 

[tinkerszs]

Bring Advil for adults and children's Advil and use it regularly during your visit. Made the sore feet 10x better.

Keens are expensive but worth every penny!

Buy moleskin with the padding. You will need it. We went through 3 packages.

Don't forget your ponchos in the hotel room. If you do you will have torrential downpours the day you are in Animal Kingdom with no shelters.

 

[KeepSwimming]

Kind of common sense, but the one thing I have used every single trip are those little travel size bottles of hand sanitizer.

I bought one that came on that with a little rubber holder tha clips to my bag. Lifesaver!

 

[aubriee]

Does anyone have a pic of their packing cubes in their suitcase? thanks!

I don't have any pictures but if you go to ebags.com, look them up, then click on one color, they'll show several pictures of that particular cube including some in a suitcase. You might also want to read the reviews while you're there. Personally I like the 18" or 20" packing folders for my clothes, the slim cubes for underclothes, and small or maybe medium cubes for miscellaneous stuff. I seldom use my large cubes or 15" packing folders anymore.
http://www.ebags.com/category/packing-folders-and-cubes/20014520

Wait a minute. I just copied this off another thread:

I don't go by Anal Annie for nuthin'!! I've done numerous test packs in preparation for our Europe / Med trip this summer. This is a standard 21" carry-on packed with a weeks worth of my DH's clothes using 2 large and 1 small cube. The cube on the bottom has 1 bathing suit, 1 pair of zipoff convertible cargo pants and 4 pair of shorts. The cube lying in front of the suitcase has 2 layers of shirts (a mix of T-shirts, polos & long sleeve T's for a total of about 12 shirts between the 2 layers). The smallest cube has ankle socks & boxer briefs for a week.)

They all fit neatly into the suitcase like a tetris puzzle (along with a spare pair of sandals).

This cube has a pair of my dressy capris folded in half on the bottom of the cube, under the rolled items. The rolled items on top include a casual pair of capris plus 7 pair of shorts.

This cube has 15 womens (summer) tops in it (mix of tanks, t-shirts & cap sleeve shirts)

Both will easily fit into a standard 21" carry-on that is accepted on most US domestic carriers. International airlines often limit carry-ons to more like 17" and I've found I can get 1 large (packed with only 1 layer) and 1 medium cube + a small toiletry bag & a spare pair of sandals in the smaller bags.

I typically use the packing folders for dressier clothes (slacks, button down shirts etc.) They will easily hold 12-15 items too. For our Med cruise I will bring 1 rolling garment bag for DH's suit, dress shirts & my dresses.

(Tip - wear your tennis shoes or heavier shoes & heaviest slacks or jeans).

 

[Disneylvr1971]

DH thought I was crazy for getting Body Glide after reading it here on the Dis...but he used it every day and he won't travel anymore without it

 

[MrsDe2008]

I love this tip and it's my favorite so far (got it from a fellow DISser). You can get a free cup of ice water at any restaurant/counter service place that sells fountain drinks! I'm a HUGE water drinker and it's a great, free way to stay hydrated and cool! =)

 

[StitchSpawn]

1. If you are having trouble at first deciding on ADR times, you can make multiple ones for around the same by using a different email address for each ADR, when you have a better idea of when your going to make it there (you know your plans better), you can cancel the ones you won't need. Some people keep two that are close together to give themselves time, but I know some ppl here will be like "that's not fair...", but if you don't show up, your never on the list or take a table from someone. Don't do this for Character or event dining...

2. Clear over the door shoe hanger for toiletries to organize and find everything easily.

3. Over the shower head hanger if you need more space there.

4. good compression bags for squishing clothes and pillows

5. buy fans before you leave; they are very expensive in the park and like $2-3 @ walmart where they sell all house fans (little ones in bins nearby)

6. Buying a kids meal for an adult, which is cheaper and pretty big, plus gives a fruit opton intsead of fries, some TC restaurants will let you order kids meal too, or just get an appetizer.

7. "Buying double cheeseburgers and an extra bun, to make 2 burgers. Prices are high and every little bit I save makes me feel better. Never would have thought of it on my own."

8. Put a Snuggle or Downy dryer sheet in your suitcase to make clothes smell fresh!

9. Spraying deodorant on your feet.

10. The Hall of Presidents is a great place to take a nap! The CM's will usually let you chill in the lobby if you don't want to watch the show and very cool in there.

Ones I found a while back...

"4.) Take updated pictures of your children and have all the info (height,weight,age,hair color) handy just in case.
5.) Write down all credit card info and 800 numbers - keep in place other than purse/wallet in case these items get lost.
6.) Make photocopies of your tickets in case of lose.
7.) Take photos of kids in a couple "same places" every trip to show how much they have grown since the last trippie.
9.) Do not leave chairs on balcony when you are not outdoors - so young children will not stand on them..
10.) Garden Grocers can deliver food to your hotel room"

"I bring a "utility" bag. Think of it as a junk drawer for vacation. In it I put a few zip ties, caribiner clips, rubberbands, a flat pack of duct tape, small (credit-card sized) ziplock bags, a little twine or rope, clothes pins and other clips, safety pins, velcro straps/sticky velcro, etc. It sounds like a lot but really all fits in a quart-sized ziplock bag. There have been some trips where I didn't use any of it and others where it saved the day."

I have an unorganized list of tips I find on Word, I'll organize it one day...

 

[dwonderz]

Also when your dining - you can often get an extra bun for cheap at counter-service restaurants. Get a double cheeseburger and an extra bun - split it up, and add condiments - and you've got two cheeseburgers for less then the price of 2 single cheeseburgers.

Also, you can get anything by itself at counter-service meals - a burger w/o the fries, etc.

 

[whamma]

Does anyone have a pic of their packing cubes in their suitcase? thanks!

This thread has pics of packing cubes in a suitcase.
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2745670

 

[bunkkinsmom]

Wow, there have been lots of good tips on this thread already!

Here are a couple of mine:

1. Always make your ADR's as close to the 180 mark as possible. AllEars.net has great menus to help you make your choices. Try not to rely solely on other people's reviews. For instance, Kouzzina has gotten a lot of negative reviews but we LOVED it! I read lots of good reviews of CRT and it was just not for us. We have been in the parks several times in the "off season" when there were no TS reservations available.

2. We pack a small duffle with all of our toiletries and one pair of clean undies for each of us as a carryon (train or plane) or to keep on top of the other luggage (driving). You never know when you will need a toothbrush, deodorant, or whatever.

3. Don't be afraid to change plans if things aren't working for you. Our first married trip was with my dad and his significant other. It was my DH's first trip ever (and my umteenth! ) I wanted to go commando, to show my DH all of the things he had been missing, and I wanted to do it all in 7 days! About 3 days in, we abandoned that! We would meet my dad for dinner everyday and go our own ways during the day. That meant no waking up at 7 am for breakfast and rope drop, no walking quickly past the elderly the get a better line spot for Kali River Rapids, and no trying to position ourselves correctly in front of doors to get the right seat at shows. I quickly learned that (for us at least) vacation meant sleeping until we wake up, deciding where to go based solely on which park was NOT having EMH, and going to DTD after dinner for a nightly visit to Goofy's Candy Company. To each their own!

4. Check into things that you may think are too expensive, they may not be! This past year we booked a private dessert buffet for 8 of us at UK Pubside during Illuminations for my MIL's birthday. Granted, it wasn't cheap, but it wasn't crazy talk either. It was worth what we paid, for sure! And the treatment by the CM's was pure Disney Magic. The CM that had been working with me for months even came down to the venue after our dessert to check on us!!! All I kept thinking to myself was "Wow, dreams really do come true!"

 

[ZoZo]

1) Eat breakfast in your room. Saves both time and money! I have a box of cereal, milk (in room fridge), fruit, etc.

2) Use Fast Pass intelligently, and single rider lines, too. Get another FP as soon as the next "window" opens up. You can save FPs to use later in the day, too -- you're not restricted to just the return window printed on the ticket. Single rider lines can save tons of time; I once rode EE three times in 30 minutes that way! Literally got off the ride, entered the SRL, waited about two minutes, and got right back on the ride. Amazing!

3) Prepare for your trip by doing lots of walking three or four months before your trip. It's easy to underestimate the amount of walking involved in a WDW vacation. I have a problem with shin splints, and notice it's much worse if I don't "train" before I go.

4) Take care of your feet! Use body glide and moleskin to prevent blisters. And bring a couple of extra pairs of shoes. I once took my regular workout shoes (that I had been using several times a week at home). With all the walking at WDW, they made a blister the second day. So glad I had other shoes to change into!

 

[janischa]

most of the tips i'd give, have already been mentionned here, except one i learned from these boards to take along some shout wipes (i actually had them included in the grocery list of stuff i had wegoshop buy for us). very very practical with a toddler or kids... it came in quite handy having her in pretty wear and then having some icecream or soup drip on her....

oh, another thing that i was really super happy with is the dresses i ordered from etsy (i even befriended one of the sewsters and we've been mailing till today)... with my girl really shy, it was a nice conversation opener with the characters... and above that, the dresses we bought weren't prickly, very comfy, more original and around the same price we would have bought for china made princess dresses...

 

[Tink575]

Take a picture of your park passes, in particular take a macro close up shot of all the info on the back, in case they are lost. Mark it on the camera card not to be erased.

Ditto your photopass card.

Rest when needed, rather than spend the whole vacation trudging around with all your muscles aching. Get a good pedicure before leaving to forestall blisters.

RELAX things may not go according to plan, you'll still have a wonderful time. Nothing is do or die.

Take a picture of where you park, not just the section but the relative area of the row.

If you rent a car, snap the license plate number JIC you need it and make sure you have the phone number of the car rental firm. We found to our surprise late one night at MK, that the tag/dongle they gave us did not open that car. The ignition key worked. The rental agency had rekeyed the car and gave us the wrong tag for the doors.