Staying Cool this summer

[05MM08MM]

Since the southern states are already dipping into the 90's in early May and it's only going to get hotter until probably late October, how about we start a thread to help those of us out who will be traveling to WDW during these hotter months.

- type of clothing (fabric, colors, etc)?
- keeping hydrated
- sunscreen
- footwear (sandals vs. sneakers)?
- mini fans or spray mist bottles
- wearing hats to keep the sun off face
- women; hair pieces to keep it off your neck
- taking breaks

 

[antree]

I will be going for the first time in July, I would love how to keep cool.

 

[lizard476]

my family is going in July also, need some tips...

 

[MarinaAndCharlie]

WATER WATER WATER!!

Its super easy to become dehydrated and it may take a while to realize it. Dehydration is usually the reason behind majority of cranky kids at disney world. CS places will give out free ice water and there are tons of cool water fountains all over the parks. Drink more than you think you need to and you'll keep truckin just fine. Don't underestimate the heat!

 

[alloyd1170]

For me (and Ive gone in Sept, but this time its July):

Light colors (mainly white), moisture wicking fabric (Target sells some in the womens workout section, Dick's Sporting also), Crocs (theyre so comfy for me, though I need the beach type and my feet get super hot in them. Going to try Keens this trip), hair up in a pony tail, lots of water, sunscreen is a must (waterproof-love Coppertone spray-not the lotion), pop into stores / indoor attractions for some ac, rootbeer floats and other cool treats, breaks in the shade, hit the parks first thing in the am with a pool break mid afternoon, then back to the parks at night, toss in a trip to TL...... thats my plan!

 

[ImaFunMom]

I keep a couple of wash clothes in my backpack in a zipper bag - and wet them with cold water and wipe off necks and faces. Also, I freeze bottles of water to carry along in my backpack. Cold water on your wrists helps, too.

 

[beccasmom]

We are visiting this year later in June than usual and I know it will be hotter than Hades (and I loathe the heat!)

- type of clothing (fabric, colors, etc)? light colors are always best, although I always seem to spill something on anything white! But they make a big difference in how you feel.-
keeping hydrated - lots of water; every once in a while I add a pack of Crystal Light to pep up the flavor a bit. Soft drinks are dehydrating, although they sure are popular! Dole Whips help too....really cooling. -
sunscreen - I am a very fair redhead with freckles. I use a high SPF block; Neutrogena is my favorite; they also make a cooling spray that is great.
- footwear (sandals vs. sneakers)? - sneakers for me. I have torn ligaments in my ankle and need better support than sandals can offer me. -
mini fans or spray mist bottles - I like these, but they are a pain to carry and/or wear. I will probably bring one though. - wearing hats to keep the sun off face - I think I look dumb in hats. How silly is that? I do wear really good sunglasses though....I wear contact lenses and am very sensitive to the sun, especially in Florida. They do the trick for me most of the time. -
women; hair pieces to keep it off your neck - thank heavens I have short hair. It is very thick and I have lot of it, but it is just to my neck. But I have used those bandana-type items for keeping cool and they do work very well. -
taking breaks - I'm a big believer in breaks. Sit in a cool spot and eat some ice cream or drink something cool; go back to the hotel if feasible and take a nap or a swim; go to a nearby hotel and eat something light for lunch; just sit on a bench and watch folks go by; go into a store and browse while cooling off. Eat lightly - salads, yogurt with fruit, sandwiches, etc. and take it easy on the alcohol since it usually makes you feel hotter! Pace yourself and don't run ragged. The sun is tough during the day, but remember that the humidity goes up at night, so dress cool then too, maybe bringing a light wrap for a chilly ride or restaurant. Wear as little as is decent...shorts and a tank top are more than fine and will keep you cooler than just about anything else. [/QUOTE]

 

[victorandbellasmom]

We're going in late Aug and am looking for any tips as well. Has anyone used a camelback going into the parks? We're thinking about this for ds. That we he can be drinking constantly.

 

[buggyfam4]

This will come in handy in June.

Renee

 

[IMDORY]

We will be at WDW in late August again this year. For us:

taking breaks -This is the #1 priority for WDW in the summer. I just go with the mindset that we need to be a bit more flexible because of the heat. If we are getting a bit warm we stop and find some ac. Sure, we're missing out on squeezing in X amount more rides, but we're also missing out being totally miserable and cranky from the heat and possibly heat exhaustion or heat stroke! We try to get to the parks as early as we can and try to leave anywhere from 11-12:30ish to go back and swim in the pool and then try to catch a little nap in the afternoon. We then head back to the parks after 5 or 6pm and stay late while the sun is down-yes, it is still hot and humid at 10pm-but you don't have the added bonus of the sun scorching you-and the temps. do come down some from the daylight hours.

- type of clothing (fabric, colors, etc)? I agree-white or light colors help a lot

keeping hydrated -
Take water breaks. I usually bring 1 bottle of water to start the day and then after that we just pop into CS restaurants and ask for a cup of ice water when needed-never had a problem doing this. DS drank the WDW water w/no complaints, I would add a crystal lite packet to mine. (DS didn't want a packet in his)
We make it a point to get a nice large cup of ice water as we head out of the park around noon to go back to our resort-it is a hot, humid, long walk to the bus stops and sipping on ice water as we go helps A LOT!

sunscreen - yup. Wear it. Not only is it not good to get a sunburn-but think about how HOT, sensitive, and uncomfortable your skin is in the first few days after a sunburn-now add the FL heat and humidity of the summer to that-ugh! That would be just awful!

- footwear (sandals vs. sneakers)? - sneakers for me. I need the support or my feet and legs will just kill me. I bought some Addidas that have mostly a mesh breathable fabric on the shoe for last August-they seemed great to me.

mini fans or spray mist bottles -
Many swear by these in the summer-but I tried it last trip-I'll skip them this trip-just another thing I don't want to have to carry around-not worth it to me. When we feel like were getting a bit too warm we just find some ac to cool down in for a while. I also don't do lines that are more than 20 minutes that aren't indoors.

- wearing hats to keep the sun off face - I thought I would wear a hat-but the day I tried it I felt so much warmer-I think I need my head open to let the heat escape-so I tend to skip the hat. Maybe I should try a visor...hmm.

women; hair pieces to keep it off your neck - YES!

It is hot and humid in late August when we go-BUT-the prices are pretty cheap compared to the more peak weeks and we go frequently (1-2 times a year, usually a trip in August and one in December) so we don't feel like we have to do everything-we know we'll be back again.

 

[toledo13]

GREAT THREAD!!!!

From someone who has worked many band camps in her day , here's some advice--

-Use UVA and UVB blocking sunblock (full spectrum)
-Wear big sunglasses that are 100% UVA protected
-Wear a hat
-Drink drink drink drink water or sports drinks (propel). Stay away from caffinated/carbonated drinks- they'll dehydrate you.
-Wear light colored, loose fitting tops AND bottoms. Your bottoms don't have to be light, but loose fitting will keep you cooler
-DEFINATELY take breaks or ride dark water rides , or things like COP or HOP during the hottest part of day. It will feel good to be out of the florida sun for a while. Even rides like TTA are good because you're out of the sun.
-Eat lighter than normal- things like fresh fruits (the jucier the better for hydration purposes), fresh veggis, etc. It's hard to feel your best out in the heat if you only eat fish and chips, or burgers, or steak.... etc.
-Go back to the resort for an afternoon swim, shower, or nap if you can. If you can't, duck inside the different shops for a while or sit at a CS restaurant to relax a bit.
-In the morning before you go to the parks, wet some washcloths with COLD water and keep them in a zip lock. Wipe your 'cool zones' with them every hour or so (backs of knees, crooks of elbows, back of neck, sides of stomach, small of back, insides of wrists) BUT DON'T FORGET TO REAPPLY SUNSCREEN!!
-Keep a light jacket with you to keep the sun off if it starts to get to be too much. This is also helpful to have on rides that are 'cooler' so you don't get too cold from being in the heat all day.
-Know your limits and listen to your body.

 

[airhead]

we will be there end of June into july. It IS HOT HOT HOT!!!!
I can't wait!!!!!!!

 

[justplaingoofy]

-We do the washcloths in a zip lock baggie...

-and the mini misting fans (they are real small on a clip) and can attach to a camera bag...or anything with a strap.

-oh..oh.. almost forgot.... frozen lemonades!

We usually go back to the hotel around noon for a break and the weather never seems to bother us much.

 

[worm761]

we are going the first week of june and i am making neck coolers for this trip. you can buy them but i was feeling all crafty. so i decided to make them. they are not hard to make. i cannot draw a straight line and i can make these.

here is a google. link on how to make them... http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=how+to+make+neck+coolers

 

[dizkidz2]

Talked to relatives that are at DW right now and they told me it was almost 90 today!!!! Humidity not bad just hot for May!
We will be there is 19 days and can't wait for the heat! We here in Chgo. have had one of the longest winters and coldest springs in a long time.

 

[jinia]

Watching this thread - will be there in Aug!!!!!!! That little smiley is prob going to be the same color as me when I get back!!!

 

[beccasmom]

One of my friends mentioned to me to try to put a few cotton balls of Sea Breeze in a baggie and stow it in my bag. I used Sea Breeze many moons ago and it was very cooling! I think I may give it a try along with my misting fan.

 

[Castle crazy]

We are going in August. (Don't know what I was thinking!)
Here are my three favorite summer tricks:

Drink or pour out about 1/2" of water from bottle of water. Put it in the freezer of your room refrigerator over night. Just before leaving for the park remove 1 water from fridge to drink in the morning and get the frozen for the afternoon. The Overland Donner bag holds 2 bottle of water on the side. I usually wrap each water in a strip of newspaper. You won't believe how much that helps. Anyway, we always have cold water way into the hot afternoon.

I keep my spray on Neutrogena sunscreen right next to the frozen water. Really feels great and keeps you adding sunscreen during the day.

I wear a No Headache Visor. I have pretty short hair and hats and regular visors look awful on me. This visor clips on with pretty thin clips and will not give you a headache.

Oh, we are also carrying mini mister fans that I ordered from Oriental Trading company: $19.95 a dozen!

Enjoy!

 

[GraysMom]

We're going in late Aug and am looking for any tips as well. Has anyone used a camelback going into the parks? We're thinking about this for ds. That we he can be drinking constantly.

YES! We've taken one of our Camelbaks (actually the EMS brand of backpacks w/water bladders) on our last several trips (May, May and end of June) and it works great. We stay at OKW so we pull out the bladder and partially fill it with water, then stick it in the freezer over night (make sure the intake end of the tubing isn't going to freeze into the ice or you won't be able to get any water out). Before we hit the parks we top it off with refrigerated water and we're good to go. It actually stays icy cold all day, even in the FL heat. An added bonus is that it usually provides a little extra cooling to the back of whoever is wearing it . DS3 drank and drank from it the last time we were there, even in line for things, so we didn't have to worry about juggling water bottles or slacking off on water intake while in a long line or watching a show.

The one we took had a pretty sizable bladder for our family (we never actually drank it empty in one day). It also had another good sized compartment for snacks, diapers, wipes, sunglasses, camera stuff, etc, along with two smaller outside pockets for pressed penny stuff, lip gloss, salt packets, etc. There was a bungee cord on the upper portion we used to lash hats/jackets/ponchos/mister bottle to, as well as attaching our misty fans with caribiners.

Our pack is an older model of this one http://www.ems.com/catalog/product_detail_vertical.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524442589121&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302885017&bmUID=1212034314018.

We also put the wipes and wet paper towels (in a baggie) in the compartment with the water bladder so they stayed nice and cool.

I've seen people standing under light colored folding umbrellas to stay out of the sun while there is no other shade available.

I agree with PP's about taking a midday break and heading back for a swim or nap. The AC in the room will do wonders to recharge you. I also like to change into a dry pair of socks and a different pair of sneakers if I have them, to keep my feet cool and dry.

Bug repellent for at night is a must!

All of our ADR's were for lunches so we could sit in the AC during the hottest part of the day and cool off. Le Cellier at Epcot is especially good for this.

I always take along aloe vera gel with lidocaine in case one of us (like fair skinned me ) gets sunburned. I also take along a couple of aspirin in case of a really bad burn-a dr recommended it one time when DH was physically sick from a sunburn he got.

 

[GIZZY06]

Is the weather terrible during the 1st week of June/