Typical Contents of Backpack for WDW Newbie?

[luv2shoe]

Hi Everyone:

DS and I leave in two days. Friday is Epcot with Grandma, Saturday - MK, Sunday - AK. DS is 6 y/o and I've printed out the recommended itinerary through tourplans website (thanks for the idea!). We're starting our packing today because we have a hockey game to go to the night before our departure.

I'd just like to know what you put in your backpack that you carry around the park with you. And we're on a tight budget (I know, who isn't), but I'll have to bring some snacks to decrease the eating budget while in the parks.

Also, I've seen some threads about the photopass. Wondering if I should leave the Canon Rebel behind and just take the Powershot to decrease weight in the pack. Thoughts?

Anyway, what would I find in your backpack if I ran into you ? Thanks again for all your advice. I'm glad I found the boards!

Julie

 

[QuickGold]

Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World
Sweater (if going during colder months)
bottle of water
camera (and whatever accessories that includes)

 

[MareQ]

We bring.. a small container of sunscreen, chap stick, a few bandaids and blister pads, rain ponchos, camera, hard candies(I tend to get a bit queesy on the rides but a nice sour candy always takes care of that afterwards for me - I would NEVER skip a ride - lol) sunglasses if we're not wearing them. (We also have diapers, wipes and disposable sippy cups for my little guy)

As for snacks you can buy PB&J and bread in your hotel if you're staying onsite. Bring a few ziploc baggies with you so you can carry the sandwiches around. Also you can pack cereal and disposable bowls, spoons, forks in your suitcase and buy milk when you get down there for a quickie breakfast. Granola bars are nice to have too etc.

 

[pezpam]

wallet
camera and extra battery
cellphone (turned off)
light jacket if cool or rainy
water-filter bottles (empty to fill with free ice water)
pennies and a few quarters for penny-smashing machines (cheap souvenir and can get more quarters in parks)
a few bandaids and some Advil
list of any reservations and confirmation numbers for that day
sunscreen

DD carries a small backpackwith:
water-filter bottle
her pins if she's trading
her autograph book and a pen
a tag INSIDE that has my contact info and a pic of the two of us together in case she gets lost

 

[mill4023]

diapers + wipes
camera (Canon S45)
video camera (MiniDV)
sweatshirt
poncho
bottled water
Advil
Bonine
sunscreen
4x6 softcover photo album filled with index card sized printouts with my touring plan, parade and show viewing tips, attraction best times, ADR number, etc.

 

[loriandmatt]

i am a minimalist when it comes to the backpack (i prefer a shoulder bag, but same difference.)

small wallet (not my normal daily life one) with passes, ID, insurance cards and some cash (the rest stays in the room safe.)

small mint tin that serves as a mini med kit. (bandaids, moleskin, tylenol, anti-diareal, chapstick and well - mints!)

cell phone, but only if i am traveling wiht someone i plan on meeting up with - otherwise it stays in the room safe.

camera, extra film for the day (most of the film stays in the room)

a few snacks and a few bottles of water (one or two at the most, don't want to be loaded down with them.

ponchos

- lori

 

[ZoZo]

Moleskin (cut it into pieces before you put it in your pack)
Sunscreen
Water Bottle
Light jacket/sweatshirt
Gallon Ziploc (to put things in while on water rides)
Battery operated fan (the small kind) if traveling when hot
Extra socks (to change after water rides, if necessary)
Disposable camera

Plus . . . any priority seating confirmation numbers!

 

[MareQ]

Ok... what the heck is moleskin?? Are they like blister pads?

 

[SaraMc]

I take a shoulder bag myself that is not very femine so that DH can carry it as well .
In our bag we have:

Camera
Mini Wallet with Credit card, monies and tickets,everything else in the room safe.
Sunblock
Chapstick
Tylenol
Latex free bandaids
Sunglasses
ADR confirmation #'s

DH will carry a waterbottle as well but he has one of the bottle lanyards for it.

Have fun!

Sara

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

Pretty much the same as everyone else!

Digital camera
Cell Phone
Small First Aid kit w/ ibuprofen
Disposable ponchos
Antibacterial hand wipes (like these better than the Purell gel)
Sunscreen
Lip balm
Kleenex
Pen and paper (to keep notes for the DIS!)
Pennies & Quarters in a tube from M&M minis
Battery powered mini fan
Brita water bottle
Touring plan, ADR list, park map, daily times guide
Glow sticks for DS to play with during Fantasmic or Spectro

We all have badge holders that we keep our passes, money, AAA card, etc. in along with the key to the room safe. If we rent a locker we put the locker key on the key clip in the backpack. Everybody has a strap for their sunglasses, but I tend to take mine off completely so I will probably toss the case in the backpack to keep them from getting scratched.

DH is responsible for the backpack. I will carry a 2nd Brita bottle in a holder with a carrying strap.

Have fun!

 

[slp87]

When our DD was younger and we took a backpack, in addition to the things others have mentioned, I always put an old, close to threadbare towel in the bottom of the backpack. This allowed us to dry off if we got a little wet on any rides and also gave us something soft to sit on while waiting for the parades.

 

[TSirgey]

Ok, this one is weird, but it really works! We made sure to carry a small tube of superglue. If you get a blister, you can put it on and walah, you have a liquid bandaid. I actually put the moleskin on over the blisters at times. We learned that from a friend in the army who swears by this. It really saved me some pain! I was extremely skeptical, but was willing to try anything on my toes that were rubbed raw.

 

[InstImpres]

I am a big backpacker I have all of the above plus some little games for DD (think dollar store party favors). This way I don't care if they break or get lost and we have been know to give away a bunch to cranky children behind us in line (so as not to have to listen to them whine )

 

[curiouser]

Fairly the same as everything else.. we try to keep it light though, so we're not weighed down the whole day!

ID Cards/Resort Key/APs/Money in a little carrying case
Meds (Tylenol/Excedrin, Immodium, Tums, Zantac)
Autograph book and pen
Two cameras (mine and SOs)
Cell phone
Ponchos
And in the rainy seasons: light weight flip flops we can change into when it rains

We also stick our waters in there after we buy them in the parks.

 

[ImarriedGrumpy]

One thing I learned about from the DIS and I now swear by is Body Glide (yes, this is a G rated item!) for preventing blisters. You can find it in some drug stores, sporting goods stores, and in outdoor equipment stores. It looks like a little tube of solid deoderant, and you put it on your feet (or other areas to prevent chafeing). I tried it for the first time on our last trip, and I could wear any pair of shoes or sandals all day without a single blister! Everyone in our group tried it, and we all were blister free the entire trip. I now use it any time I'm going to be walking a lot or breaking in a new pair of shoes.

To the OP - you asked about bringing the Canon Rebel or leaving it at home to save space/weight. I think that depends on how important the picture quality is to you and if you are happy with the kinds of pictures you can take with the smaller camera. My pictures are super important to me, so I have both film and digital Rebels, and my DH has a small, compact digital camera. I don't like the photo quality from DH's camera, so I do carry one of my Rebels (the digital one now) with me. I found a camera backpack with a padded section for the Rebel & accessories and a separate area for other things (Body Glide, small medicine pack, snacks, itinerary & ADR #'s for the day, super small wallet, cell phone, sunscreen, "line entertainment" (book/game), compact poncho). I was very glad I had my Rebel, as I got to take some wonderful photos I would have missed with DH's camera.

 

[ntengwall]

Imarriedgrumpy--what type of bag is it that you use? Sounds perfect for our needs!

 

[ImarriedGrumpy]

Imarriedgrumpy--what type of bag is it that you use? Sounds perfect for our needs!

Mine is a Lowepro Orion Trekker. I checked it out on Lowepro's website, then found a local camera store that stocked them so I could look at it in person. Then I went on eBay and found one for half the retail cost - bonus!

The bag has padded shoulder straps, a padded hip belt strap, and an upper chest stablizer strap. The back is padded as well, and there is a top handle for grabbing the bag that way. The camera compartment is a separate, super padded area at the bottom of the bag with separate zipper access and lots of little padded dividers that velcro in and can be moved around to accomodate all kinds of cameras and accessories.

The top part of the backback, which is the main compartment, has a small inner zipper pouch inside the main part and a little zipper pocket on the front outside. The main compartment isn't as big as it would be in a standard backpack, but Lowepro does have larger bags with a full-size main compartment. I like having the smaller space - it helps me stay in reason with what I bring with me to the parks and not get carried away!

My only issue with the bag is that it takes time to learn how to get the camera out of the padded compartment without making a huge production out of it. It felt very awkward at first, so I usually either had DH get it out for me (while I was wearing the backpack), or I just wore the camera around my neck most of the time and then packed it up when we were getting on a ride. Still, it was really handy for keeping all the camera equipment safe, and I never worried about anything getting banged up. I still love my bag, and I use it constantly!

 

[PaulaSue]

wallet
camera and extra battery
cellphone (turned off)
light jacket if cool or rainy
water-filter bottles (empty to fill with free ice water)
pennies and a few quarters for penny-smashing machines (cheap souvenir and can get more quarters in parks)
a few bandaids and some Advil
list of any reservations and confirmation numbers for that day
sunscreen

DD carries a small backpackwith:
water-filter bottle
her pins if she's trading
her autograph book and a pen
a tag INSIDE that has my contact info and a pic of the two of us together in case she gets lost

How did you make the tag? Is it lamaniated?(sorry if spelled wrong)

Thanks for the ideas! I never thought of that for the girls.

 

[pxlbarrel]

On our last trip I carried the following in my backpack (a light, cheap backpack)

- camera and monopod
- extra pair of socks (when it was raining)
- poncho (cheap $1 one)
- Advil
- water bottle
- anti-bacterial wipes
- lots of napkins
- facecloth
- scrunched up hat

The camera was the only real heavy thing in there. I still had room to put a jacket in there if it got hot while wearing it. I also carry a fanny pack that has my wallet in it and a small calculator to figure out how much I've just spent on pins.