How do you keep your Resort Room organized?

[justsyd]

This is what we did when we stayed at POP century last year. We had 7 people with 2 connecting rooms.

I found these pop up bins at the dollar store. We used one per person and put them by the sink on the shelf. Everyone put their toiletries, shower stuff and pjs in them.

I found bigger pop up bins at the dollar store and they fit perfectly under the tv. I put their clothes for each day in them.

Walmart had a pack of these durable hangers that fit easily in the front of my suitcase...

I found this shoe holder at the dollar store. I liked it because you could hang it by the clothes. It was so nice not tripping over shoes!

These bins were pretty small. They sat on the table by the door. Everyone would toss their stuff in them at the end of the day. I did have to clean them out periodically but it was nice always knowing where you put your sunglasses, keys, snacks, etc.

We are going back in May and this time I think I will add a pop up hamper.

 

[MHTeacher]

Love those pop-up bins, labeled with everyone's name! Very good idea!

I have the pop-up hamper--You must get one!

 

[TwoAtDisney]

In addition to already mentioned - I turn all dirty clothing inside out. I learned this after my husband decided to "help" after we returned home & after he unpacked, I had to wash everything because I didn't know which was which!

We do & have traveled a lot. I have seen too many broken suitcases come down the baggage line. I always pack all small items in baggies - socks, undies, shoes, etc. If our bag busts, at least all of our items won't be spilled out all over the place! Just be sure the baggies are clear so if your bag is selected for a security check, all of the bags won't be opened.

 

[aussietravellers]

Our last trip to WDW was for 23 nights and the trip before was for 21 nights, so we know about being in a hotel room for a long time.

I always take this fold up shopping cart/bag on wheels and I keep that in the closet and put the dirty laundry in it. Then when it's time to go to the machines and do the laundry, I just pull the cart out of the closet and off we go and I have something to carry the clean clothes back in too.

My DS always has a drawer, usually in the dresser, usually the bottom drawer and that is his for his toys, souvenirs, it's kind of like a junk drawer, then the rest of the drawers are for clothing, and then the other clothing hangs. Room always looks neat and tidy.

 

[goodferry]

1. Shoe Organizer- labeled-holds our stuff, like hairbrushes, sunglasses, park tickets, lanyards, sunblock etc. (We usually have a DVC villa which has plenty of storage room for toiletries so we don't need it for that)

2. Divided Mesh Folding Laundry Basket- One side for lights, one side for darks, we do the laundry in the villa and go home with clean clothes

3. Packing Cubes- They keep our suitcases organized and keep things together should TSA feel the need to hand check and keeps everything dry if the bags are stuck in the rain. Plus we do tend to do split stays so I can pack one cube, for example, with all the stuff we need for our one night stay at Universal Studios. Instead of bringing in the luggage for all 5 of us, I can leave most of the bags in the trunk of the car and bring in only the cube we need plus the toiletries bag. Then when we get to our final destination, I can just put the cubes in the drawers.

 

[DisneyMomx7]

I have to have everything organized in the room or I would be nuts!
We usually take long trips - as long as 16 nights, and I think you have to be organized when you are there that long.

First I unpack everything as soon as possible. I bring extra hangers so I hang as much as possible. All the kids things are packed in the large ziploc baggies - whole outfit, clothes, underwear, socks, hair accessories. The ziploc bags go in the drawers. I put all the suitcases away except for one, I use that one for dirty laundry. I do laundry a few times while we're there so as soon as the suitcase start filling up I do the laundry.

I bring clear plastic boxes with lids for things like medicine, cosmetics, hair equipment etc. These go on the shelves under the sink.

I get everything for the parks ready early in the morning while DH is running.

We manage to stay very organized.

I always make a request for mousekeeping earliest possible. We are always out of the room by 8 AM.

 

[focusondisney]

It's been only DH & I traveling for several years now but here's my methods:

--If we are taking 2 suitcases, I make sure to put some of each of our things in each case. In case 1 suitcase is lost/ delayed, we'll each still have clothes.

--I put under garments, socks & PJs in travel, space saver bags I get at Target. You zip lock close the bags & then squeeze the air out of the bag by rolling it. Saves tons of room yet bags are still clear & easy to see what's in it. That way if the bag gets inspected, TSA doesn't have to paw thru my undies.

--All other clothes are layered in clear plastic garbage bags, again so TSA can easily check if needed, plus keeps clothes pretty wrinkle free. I'll put a few pairs of shorts and the shirts to wear with them. I can just take whole bag out & put in a drawer if I want. Or seperate into different drawers, 1 for me, one for DH, depends how long we're staying.

--Use clear plastic garbage bags for dirty laundry. Leave this bag in closet, just need to pull the tie to close & put the bag in suitcase when full.

--I use large (gallon size) zip lock freezer bags for things like sunscreen, hair products, deodorants, aftershave, body spray, hairbrushes. I group similar items in each bag. I used to unpack all these & put the products on the top of the dresser. Last trip I actually left everything right in their bags & just placed the bags themselves on the dresser. We would use the item, then place it back in the bag. Sure it didn't "look" pretty, but when we were ready to pack for home, all I had to do was zip the bag closed & pack into the suitcase.

We usually have 3 pairs of shoes each: sneakers, flip flops for the room & pool & shoes for wearing to signature restaurants. We usually just leave them lined up in the closet, but I think I'll look for the shoe hangers at the dollar store before our next trip. Great idea!

Edit to add:

--I keep all our travel/ hotel, ADR info organized in the large white envelope our Disney documents come in. I keep this in the safe.

--Also in the safe: an envelope with several $1 & $5 bills. Just pull out what I want to leave for housekeeping, what we need for bell services, etc each day.

 

[branv]

Lots of great tips! Our achilles heel is the bathroom counter. We try to always put things back in our toiletries bag, but it's still SO big. Add my hair doohickies, and it's like a salon bomb in there.

I just wanted to add that the Target dollar spot has been carrying pop up hampers for a few weeks. I want to say for about $2-$2.50. I swear I've seen the cubes too, but don't quote me

We are devotees to the packing cubes. Not only do they maximize space in our suitcases, they make unpacking a snap. We just pull them out and chunk them into the drawers at the resort. There, it also maximizes space b/c if you leave everything in the cubes, you can stack more items (and, with multiple people, they can share a drawer without getting stuff mixed up...DH and I have different colored cubes, but you can also just write names on them).

It's also great if you switch resorts. Just rezip what's left in the packing cubes, and put them in a suitcase (we usually put the dirty clothes in a trash bag). At the end of your trip, it also keeps your clean clothes seperate from the "need to wash."

The one caveat to leaving things in the cubes is needing to iron everyday. But we iron everyday anyway b/c a) DH can't stand divets in his clothes from hangers and b) even pre-ironed and folded nicely in drawers there are too many creases for us.

 

[goodferry]

I can't believe I forgot to add that last time I checked in (in late October, Beach Club club level) they asked me what time I would like my room cleaned daily, and that's when they came every day.

 

[focusondisney]

The one caveat to leaving things in the cubes is needing to iron everyday. But we iron everyday anyway b/c a) DH can't stand divets in his clothes from hangers and b) even pre-ironed and folded nicely in drawers there are too many creases for us.

Glad to know Im not the only one who hates to wear wrinkled clothes, even if it is just to a theme park. My DH thinks Im nuts coz I make sure to iron everything before I pack, even the jeans shorts get a quick touch up.

 

[minniebeth]

Great organizing tips, everyone! justsyd, I love your photos of your organizing bins!

We love, love the over the door shoe organizer when the 5 of us stay in one resort room, and it works brilliantly except on our last trip at the Contemporary. The door to the bathroom was a sliding pocket door and nowhere else to hang it conveniently. The closets were more narrow and filled with our clothes and suitcases. So, if anyone is going to stay at the CR, this option won't work, lol

 

[carrieshields]

What are packing cubes and where do you buy them? Any one have a photo they can post? Thank you! The mess makes me crazy!

 

[jacksg@l]

Okay, my OCD will be showing on this one. I put an outfit for every day in a two gallon baggie for each family member. We use these baggies in the backpack each day to keep things dry in case of a water ride, rain, need to change clothes due to the above, etc. We also use them to put maps, extra fp's receipts, etc. (This comes in handy for scrapping later and I even write the date on each bag)

I put the suitcase against the wall by the bed in the back corner. Then every night I roll up the dirties and prepare the suitcase for home. When one is full, I put it aside and stack the next.

I know I have a problem, but it works for me.

I am a fellow OCDer, however, I roll the individual outfits inside the shorts or jeans (i.e. shorts,shirt,undies,socks) for each day and everyone has their own suitcase which we never unpack, just leave around the room. We bring a plastic trastic trash bag from home and evey night put our dirty clothes in it. Then at the end of the trip I condense the leftover clean clothes in one suitcase and spread the dirty clothes among the other suitcases. Sounds odd, but has worked for us so far!!

 

[justsyd]

What are packing cubes and where do you buy them? Any one have a photo they can post? Thank you! The mess makes me crazy!

I did a search on amazon and this is what came up...

 

[CamoMama]

My kids are too old for me to pick out their outfits for each day. They'd freak out if I tried. I let them pack for themselves, and seriously, it makes me crazy to watch them. For myself, I don't plan what I'm going to wear either, so I pack mix and match stuff. Like just about everyone else, though, I hang up most things, put undies and socks in drawers (with a plastic liner) and organize pocket contents in the evenings according to owner. I'm definitely going to use some of the ideas from here next week. Gotta run out and get some suction cups for the bath poufs in the shower for sure. We don't use washcloths either, and trying to hang all 3 of them from the shower head can be annoying.

 

[lmillercrew]

I just got out my Disney notebook and made a list of things to take for room organization!!! So excited now!

 

[carrieshields]

I did a search on amazon and this is what came up...

Thank you! I will need to do some on-line shopping!

 

[MomtoBJSF]

This is great, thank you for all the info everyone. We are taking our first trip in March, this will be so useful, I think we are definitely going to do the ziplock bags idea, and also the shoe organizer, and the pop mesh hamper.

 

[luvdisney00]

Great ideas here! We have used any of them or variations of them over the years as I do like to try and stay really organized in the room. We use 2 popup hampers for dirty clothes and an extra one that I throw all shoes into. My teen DDs tend to kick off shoes and leave them all over the room, which makes me nuts, so I corral them all into a hamper. I use the hanging shoe organizer with the shelves for park stuff, one shelf for each person and it works out great. I love the collapsable boxes for the bathroom and will look for those DD 16 has soooo much junk which she usually leaves all over the BR, this will be perfect for her.

I also use a power strip and little boxes for the dresser for my jewelry, watch etc. I love packing cubes and find it so much easier to pack and unpack with them, plus we can fit so much more into a little suitcase. Last summer both of my teen DDs were able to pack in carryon luggage which was great.

Keep the great ideas coming!!!!

 

[LoriABil]

I am loving this thread. My DH is the one who is OCD and I - well, I'm learning not to leave piles everywhere. But on vacations, we reverse roles. I HAVE to have a tidy, organized room! DH says the only thing I organize for is Disney.

His stuff is the major problem. He starts with a corner of the desk for his wallet, sunglasses, receipts, and loose change. Loose change is the albatross around my neck!!! I have tried plastic cups, shallow plastic organizers. Nothing works. He ends up with the entire desk.

I am curios about the magnetic organizers on doors. Do all rooms have metal doors, or just the outside rooms (mods, values?) On our cruise, we had a metal door, and we did magnets. I never thought of an organizer! I am thinking about a locker organizer to try for DH. But I think we're staying at the BC. Ideas?

Also, last year was the first time I did the ziplocks for receipts and papers daily. It was great! Also, I had our backpack organized with ziplocks! One for snacks, one with an extra pair of socks (our wet socks got stowed in there after KRR) one for sunscreen/lip stuff, one for pressed penny money and DS's pins, and an empty big one for electronics on wet rides. It was so nice not having to dig to the bottom of the backpack for things! And they didn't take up more space.