What do you need to bring to a Disney World theme park? The answer to that question will vary depending on the size of your group and the time of year, but some staples such as ponchos, a camera, snacks, sunscreen, and bottles of water are safe bets.
How should I carry all of my stuff in the parks? What kind of bag should I use?
We recommend a simple two-zipper book bag. We’ve used a few different bags during our adventures, but the bag we bought like the one below was by far the best. This is an Amazon Affiliate link, so you’re helping us if you click it and check it out. Note that we would never recommend something we haven’t or wouldn’t purchase.
Two-Zipper Book Bag
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Specifically, we bought a North Face Jester Laptop Backpack after trying out other bags unsuccessfully. Our bag looks like the one above but it’s mostly orange. Side note: it worked great in a Russell costume during Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party.
We love this bag because it’s simple, it’s comfortable and it still keeps your stuff protected.
One mistake we made in our earlier trips to Disney World was that we brought a bag with a ton of zippers. Disney Security sometimes has to go through each and every compartment in your bag when you go to a theme park, so the more zippers you have, the longer your time in security is going to be. That’s a real bummer when you’re dying to get into the Magic Kingdom or late for a breakfast reservation.
We’ve also tried different drawstring bags, but the issue we ran into there was everything got jumbled together and it was tough to stay organized. We also found drawstring bags to be uncomfortable and the straps would dig into our shoulders.
The bag above has two main compartments, with a protected laptop section and a small section with a zipper and Velcro pocket. There are enough “sections” to keep your things organized, but without so many that you’ll increase your time at security. We find we can carry around extra clothes or sweatshirts, sunscreen, camera, additional batteries, ponchos and much more without breaking our back. It also has two spots for water bottles, which is critical during those warm Florida days.
This bag, or one that’s similar, is easy to swing off your back when you’re boarding a ride. You can also swing it in front of you, grab something from it, and zip it back up all without breaking your stride.
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Of course, the best case scenario is visiting Disney’s theme parks without a bag. But, that’s not too realistic unless you’re local or if you’re doing a short trip with your hotel close by. There’s too many variable for a Disney World vacation to go in unprepared.
What do you use at the parks?
