Question about carrying water bottles???

[shelleyr25]

We will be in WDW for Labor Day weekend and I am sure it will be very hot. What is the best way to carry water around the park?? Should we bring a refillable bottle or plastic throwaways?? If a refillable, where will we refill with good drinking water??? I anticipate being in most of the parks for many hours and am just not sure how to carry all the water we will need for the day. TIA for any tips you may have!!

 

[DisneyFan06]

I strongly dislike carrying things around; however, a waterbottle is a must - especially during this time of the year. We usually buy water at the park and carry it on what appears to be a strap (we bought it for three dollars they have them at all parks, each strap is themed differently) this is useful because we dont have to worry about leaving it anywhere.

Also, I do not like the water out the fountain at Disney. Therefore, I usually have to go out my way and purchase a new water when needed - which can get costly, but water is a must.

 

[HRPro]

You can get ice (clean) and/or ice water from any CM at counter service or table service eateries for free. All you have to do is ask .

This past June, DD5 and I took refillable sport bottles, in the morning we filled them with ice at our resort and then asked for ice water from CMs whenever we needed a refill. They will give you a cup. You cannot give them your bottle. Then just pour it into you bottle and throw the cup away.

I also carried packets of crystal lite, pre-made packets of gatorade and cool aid to put in the water to mask the taste.

Hope this helps

 

[jeannief]

DH thought he'd be thrifty and refill our bottles. The kids called it the yucky water and we never did that again. We would buy one bottle and share it and when it was gone we'd get another. Good thing no one was sick.
Next time we'll get those straps for everone to carry their own. The only thing I might do is to get the smaller bottles for the kids and then refill them from my bigger bottle so it's less weight for them to carry.

 

[pumba]

I guess our city water tastes like Disney water. But I did get those little packets of 4c raspberry iced tea for myself because I am on a diabetic diet. SO water with one of these packets makes it a good source for me to keep hydrated. It is very important to drink even if you do not feel like you are thirsty.....a sure sign of dehydration...so drink drink drink....

 

[MichelleChell]

We found that the water from and CS or anywhere that sells foutain cokes tasted just fine. It is free to boot. We were going to carry around bottles too but once I figured out the water tasted fine we did that and it was a life saver and always COLD. I also took some tea, kool-ade and lemonade pouches to flavor it. I saved so much $ for other stuff.

 

[KimWDW]

We just buy a bottle of water at the parks whenever we get thirsty. Easy enough and tastes great. I love Dasani.

 

[mking624]

We first buy a bottled water...and then we have it refilled throughout the day. We drink a lot of water to stay hydrated and it's too costly to continue buying a new water bottle every time.

 

[Kimberly815]

I drink a LOT of water regularly anyway, so I usually bring a nalgene bottle with me. (We usually carry a light backpack with us to the parks anyhow). I fill it with ice from the ice machine in the morning, and bottled water that I keep in the room. Then I refill it throughout the day as much as I can. I get a couple of extra glasses of ice water every time we stop for a snack or to eat, and then buy a bottled whatever whenever I need to. I love my water!

 

[JulielovesDisney]

We usually either buy or bring a big case of water bottles with us. That way, each day as we head out into the park (especially in the summertime) we have plenty of water. Once we are done that water bottle, we will just buy another one. I've never tried the water from the water fountains (I've always been wary of public water fountains) but I've heard that it's not the best water.

 

[Twende]

We use the now discontinued Britta filter bottles. I must drink large quantities of water during the course of a day and there is no way I am buying that much water in the parks.

I find the tap water in the parks tastes "chalky" but it is just fine when filtered.

I tried adding ice to the bottle on the last trip and that was a disaster. It made the bottle sweat and get my clothes all wet.
I found if I wanted colder water, I could refill the bottle with cold water from a beverage stand or fountain and then drink to my heart's content.

 

[Simba22]

We buy bottled water at home because it's cheaper, bring a couple bottles with us to WDW and refill them during the day. Sometimes we mix in a pack of kool-aid mix. we probably saved $100 this year by doing that. And to answer your question, I bring my backpack with me to the parks and carry everything in that

 

[shelleyr25]

Thanks everyone!! I think we will bring in one or two bottles with us in the morning and just refill them. I do have some of those ice tea/lemonade flavor packs that I will bring along to just to give us some variety. Thanks for the tips!!

 

[QueenGoblin]

Does Disney frown on guests brining their own bottled water into the parks? For example, I know lots of people bring snacks into the parks but every once in a while I hear someone mention incidents where security didn't want a guest to bring in snacks. I always drink like a fish and I'll be 6 months pregnant on our next trip so I was hoping to carry water into the parks in my daughter's stroller. Have you ever seen security not let somone bring water in?

 

[KingdomHeartsFan]

I plan on bringing one bottle of water into the parks and when I empty it, I will just fill it at a water fountain... sure the water tastes nasty, but I hate to use all my ddp snack credits on bottled water. Oh, and I will make sure to bring some drink mixes to mask the nasty water taste!

 

[ReadingMama]

What is a nalgene bottle? and where do you get it?

 

[disneynewbeemom]

Would a 4 and 6 year old be able to use this strap with a smaller bottled water attached to it without major complaints. I figured it shouldn't be that heavy or would it be uncomfortable?

 

[Minnesota]

Would a 4 and 6 year old be able to use this strap with a smaller bottled water attached to it without major complaints. I figured it shouldn't be that heavy or would it be uncomfortable?

The straps at the parks are not adjustable so if they are too short the bottles will drag or bang them in their knees. My reccomendation is to go to Target and buy a small waterbottle holder. It is a case that has a pocket on the front and a zipper in the back with an adjustable strap. I put a cold bottle of water in when I leave for the parks and it stays colder a lot longer than the plain straps and when it's empty I unzip it, refill from a counter service, zip it back in and away I go.

I bought mine a few years ago but I remember seeing them in the camping sets earlier this summer and they were about $5-$10 for the smaller ones, which I recomend because full of water it's lighter.
Minnesota

Oh by the way I have never seen any guard take away water and I've carried a bottle or two every day of every trip as well as my best friend who always goes with me.

 

[Praying Colonel]

Last time we used the Brita filter bottles, but they've discontinued them and we couldn't find replacement filters.

This time we took the advice of someone on the budget board and bought filter bottles from a company called purewater2go.com.

 

[kcrew]

Maybe I'm showing my age but does anyone else remember when water only came from the faucet or a fountain? Oh yeah, there was Perrier, but that was strictly an upper, upper class sort of beverage....Anyway, growing up in that era I've never been able to wrap myself around paying for something that was always free! And, has anyone else noted the drastic increase in water's popularity since the mass introduction of bottled water? Strange! Maybe it is true that people only see value in something they pay for....

So, anyway we will be bringing in our own water bottles and refilling them wherever as needed. It's been a long time since my last trip to WDW and although I recall the water tasting just fine, I will have the drink packs just in case.

Also one of the clearest memories that I have of WDW oddly enough is of the availability of water (free type). Most other parks seem to have fountains few and far between, and forget about asking for water at CS! I assume to force you into buying beverages...so kudos to WDW on that one!