Packing for the parks can be a little intimidating, but here’s my list and advice for packing for a day at any of the Walt Disney World parks. (Packing for Disneyland is a little different, check out my list here.)
First, bring *as little as possible* with you into the parks. The days are long and sweaty, and you don’t need to be dragging a fully packed back pack with you all the time! Trust me!
- Water Bottle
You can fill up at any of the water fountains throughout the parks, and staying hydrated in WDW is essential. This way you have water with you at all times, but if you forget your bottle, all quick service food stops will give you a cup of water for free! (pro-tip, as a tourist I think some of WDW’s water fountains taste SO sulfery. Avoid the Tommorrowland water fountains if at all possible! For some reason they’re so much worse than others!)
- Walt Disney World App
This is even more important than for Disneyland. In WDW you can only get your FastPasses through the app or through in-park digital kiosks. Long gone are the days of paper fast pass reminders like Disneyland. You can get FastPasses 30 days ahead of your visit, or 60 days if you are staying on property! In addition, you can mobile order food, make dining reservations, check out your PhotoPass photos, see your hotel reservations (and pre-check in) and more! Don’t enter the parks without this app!
- Magic Band
I. Love. Magic Bands. These are RFID wristbands you wear and that hold your park ticket, hotel room key (if you stay on-property), your credit card to charge purchases, your FastPasses… these little guys are awesome. They’re included in your hotel stay if you stay on property and are shipped to your home ahead of time, but even if you’re staying off property I’d suggest purchasing one (around $10) for the convenience of having your park ticket on your wrist on a waterproof band. You never have to dig through your wallet or bag to enter the park or hop into a FastPass!
- Water Resistant Shoes You Feel Cute In
My favorites are Teva classics or Birkenstocks newer plastic shoes. I am comfortable in both of these shoes, they stand up to the year-round rain storms of Orlando, and I like how they look with my outfits. Shoes are tough for theme parks, but I have a few specific recs:
- If you never wear tennis shoes, don’t wear them in the parks! Tennis Shoes are not magically comfortable, and in fact my feet absolutely die when I wear tennies in the parks because I never wear them around in real life.
- Don’t only prioritize fashion, but find some shoes you think are pretty cute! You could have the cutest outfit but trust me, you’ll dislike photos if you feel like you need to cut off your feet in all of the pics you take in the parks. It makes a huge difference in how your outfit comes across.
- Find some that aren’t going to be soaking wet and squishy after a quick downpour in the parks. In my opinion, there is *nothing* worse than wet socks. Plan expecting it to rain.
- Rain Jacket
On that last note about shoes… I have only spent maybe 1 or 2 days in the parks total where I haven’t been rained on. I found a pretty cute rain jacket at North Face’s outlet store that I can roll up really small and stuff in the bottom of my bag. I do. not. go into the parks without it, no matter what the weather says. I just expect it to rain all the time, and I have never been let down by having my rain jacket with me.
- Portable Charger
If you don’t have a portable charger you love already, I would absolutely recommend the Fuel Rod. You pay $30 once and can exchange the charger for a fully charged one at any of the machines throughout WDW (and the country!) for free, forever. Here’s a video of how it works.
- Sunscreen and Chapstick
This seems obvious, but if I had a dollar for every time I forgot these two things… I could buy one of the over priced Disney sunscreens.
- Disney Chase Credit Card (if you have one!)
Not only does using this credit card give you some park discounts, you also get secret access to special card-members only character meet and greets AND you earn double points on all purchases while in the parks! Win-win-win.
Alright, well, that’s all that is on my list! Did I forget something? Any questions about something I didn’t list? Leave it in the comments or message me about it! I’m always here to help you plan for your best trip ever!
Kaitlin at the Castle 
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