Having a park bag with the essentials not only saves money, but precious park time. While the contents vary, based on the ages in your party, some things are always going to be handy to have in there. These are our must have's, in no particular order! 

1. Cash 

It happens more than you'd expect. Disney' payment system goes down on occasion and you can't buy something with your magic band or credit card. While you can always come back by later, of course, if it's an important purchase, like a snack for your hangry child, or a drink on a hot day, cash is important. I always keep $20 in my bag, just in case. Every trip, I've had to use it, and often more than once.  
​

2. Advil/Tylenol

Whether it's your tired feet, aching back or the migraine that's forming, a little pain reliever is important! While you can go visit the free first aid stations, sometimes you just don't feel like getting out of line to do that.


3. Poncho

Summer afternoon showers are as predictable as the song getting stuck in your head after you exist It's a Small World. Be ready to protect your clothes and gear from getting soggy. 


4. Disney Pins

My boys and I loooove our Disney pins! These are always a must have for some on the go trading. If you aren't sure what these are, and wont to know how to get started with this inexpensive hobby, you can click here! 


5. Hand Sanitizer / wipes

Look around next time you go. Besides the hundreds of people each hour riding the same rides as you, ever seen all of the kids licking the handrails, and everyone coughing, sneezing, rubbing at their noses, and then touching stuff? the same stuff that those in your party are going to touch? Enough said! 


6. Extra camera battery

We had done two trips before I made the best investment of all. A second camera battery. No longer did it drain and leave me with no battery after I filmed Jedi Training, or a parade. It was so, so worth it to have a spare. 


7. Portable battery pack for phone

You might be snapping photos, pulling up Disney games, making fastpass changes or browsing menus on your phone and that eventually can wear down your battery. A portable charger might do the trick, and then can be recharged that night, ready for the next day. These are especially helpful if you were so tired the night before, you forgot to charge your phone.


8. Sunscreen

Sunscreen is so important. Not only does it protect your skin from a burn and possibly cancer later, it helps you from being overheated. How? When you get a sunburn, you feel so much hotter! Later up, and reapply every few hours, so you aren't walking around looking like a lobster and feeling the burn. Save that for the gym!


​9. Ziploc bag

Wet rides or rain, your phone risks getting soaked! A quick tip is a ziploc bag. We've a bunch of other great ideas to use one of those, click here to see why it's our favorite thing to pack. 


10. Snacks

We bring snacks along not just to save money, but to always have one at the ready for a hungry child. In line, on a bench, waiting a really long time to get our lunch, it doesn't matter. Having a snack on hand is always important. One of our children also has a food allergy, so it's even more important that he has a few safe options to choose from if we can't find him something fairly quickly. As a bonus, here are our suggestions for snacks to bring in, that they already sell (for a lot more money!)


What do you think of our list? What's a must have in your park bag? 

 

A few years back, we tracked down a secret portal inside of a fire place. As soon as my youngest touched his magic key to it, a Disney villain appeared, and started casting magic spells at us. Other guests, who had been sitting at various tables with their lunch gasped, and started shouting in excitement. They had not learned what secrets were hidden thoughtout Disney's Magic Kingdom, when you know where to look! 

​Disney's Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom is a fun game, totally free because it's included in your park tickets. Here's how to play. 

​To start your adventure, you'll need to visit the fire station on Main Street. Each person who wishes to play will tap their magic band on a key shaped device, and a Cast member will give you a quick tutorial. Each person will be given 1 package of cards, for free. You can get a package of cards each, once per day at Magic Kingdom, at either the fire station, or near Liberty Square, there is a Cast Member there with the packages of cards. 

You'll also be given a map, and sent on your way to battle across all of the Magic Kingdom! You'll follow your map, looking for the seemingly ordinary places around the Magic Kingdom, but as soon as you spy one of these, the magic begins! 

​

​The only bad thing about this game, is sometimes you will have a few people in front of you wanting to play. In addition, it can be tough for siblings to take turns, because it's so much fun, they don't want to share.

​We usually just play as we go, and there are multiple adventures you can do, it's random, but all together they lead up to one big story if you want to do it. We've never done more than two parts, we just don't have the time to spend on it, but on a long trip, it's something that might be really fun to do. 

The artwork on the cards is beautiful, and they are a fun and free souvenir and keepsake! Accessories for the game used to be sold in Frontierland, but last time we were there, they didn't have anything but binders for the cards. 

Give this game a try next time you go! It's fun for all ages!! 

Disney bound or not, it takes a little planning before you leave to ensure that you've got the best trip possible! 

I always start planning a few months ahead, with lists! Packing lists, to do lists, before we go lists, if it can be on a list, I've got one! Luckily, I also have this blog, and all of the great resources that have been added over the years to help me plan. I've even got a FREE printable of one of my favorite packing lists! 

Today we are sharing some of those incredibly important posts with you so that you are ready, too! Click on any of the links below to go right to the article. 

Before you go on your road trip, make sure to do a car check!!

Don't forget about the house! Here's what you should do before you leave!

How to vacation plan when you have food allergies!

Why it's so important to have a mini first aid kit -- and what to stock it with!

Compression Socks: A total vacation game changer! (And how not to feel dorky in them!)

How to make awesome and almost FREE Roadtrip binders for your kids! 

And if you ARE headed towards Disney, here's one of our most important articles! How to train for a Disney trip! Because if ever there was a vacation you needed to be ready for, it's Disney! 

We hope some of these articles help you get started with you planning, because really, isn't planning a huge part of the fun?

A common misconception is that on a Disney vacation, it's not worth going unless you go all the way and spend through the roof. If a thing's worth doing, it's worth doing right, right? But, whew, that just causes stress and a desire NOT to return to Disney! 

Years ago, I'd mentioned a coworker who spent more than $10,000 for his family to visit for a week. They did everything, ate everything, and swore, as they paid off the last charge on their credit card, never again because it was too expensive. Sure it was! You don't need to spend $10,000 to have a great time! 

Disney might offer different levels of resorts or dining, it doesn't mean that the "Value Resort" or "Quick Service" are low class filled with poor people who scraped together their pennies for a mushy burger and cold fries before slumming to their roach filled motel room. Total opposite! 

Just because you don't do what everyone else does, doesn't mean you are less. It means you are SPENDING less. The amount of fun you're going to have doesn't change, just because of the dollar amount you spend. 

Let's talk about it! 

Resorts

Whether you stay big, at a $700 a night resort, or at a $150 a night resort, both places are going to have the same. Good food, friendly staff, pools, a bed, a shower and transportation to the parks. Sure, the Value resorts don't have pools with slides, but their pools have some fun theming still! In fact, the value resorts re so chock full of fun, classic Disney theming, you are going to miss out on that fun feel if you stay elsewhere! I'm pretty sure at the Polly they don't teach guests how to hula hoop or do the hustle, or how to draw classic Disney characters! That's fun stuff my family doesn't want to miss! 

Maybe you'd rather stay off site. That's not bad either! Many hotels offer a free breakfast, nice pools, and transportation to the parks too! 

Food

Sure, you're probably not going to get a steak at a quick service restaurant, but you are still going to be able to get a tasty meal. Half a chicken and two sides?Pulled pork or ribs? Wolfgang Puck's meatloaf? That's all there, at quick service places, IF you do your research ahead of time and plan where to go. 

Maybe you want to do some table service meals, great! Maybe you want to eat breakfast in the room, pack a lunch and just buy dinner. You can do that too! Food is just fuel for your body! You might not be eating out three meals a day and spending your kid's college fund to do it, but you ARE enjoying the parks just as much as everyone else, maybe even more, because you aren't spending as much time waiting in lines to order, waiting for your food to arrive, then waiting for the check. 

Everything Else

What about everything else? The park tickets? The souvenirs? That REALLY adds up. That's why maybe you need to be creative. Maybe on your week vacation, you spend a pool day, a resting day, a day going around and doing free things and enjoying Disney without a park ticket! 

On this blog, you will find dozens of resources to stretch your hard earned vacation money. You'll find suggestions on how to save you might not have thought of. You'll find encouragement that a simple vacation doesn't mean a small one. look over n the right under CATEGORIES and click tips and tricks, and vacation planning and start browsing. 

Remember. Just because you don't do what everyone else does, doesn't mean you are less. It means you are SPENDING less. The amount of fun you're going to have doesn't change, just because of the dollar amount you spend. And what you save on this trip? Get's to go into the Disney Jar for next time! 

I went to buy a few Disney gift cards for our upcoming trip. We enjoy having a few different cards, the kids each have a different design, then we have a different design for food, then one for souvenirs, etc. Well, those days might be gone. 

Disney no longer offers the huge collection of gift card designs. They have two to pick from now. Two. Standard Mickey, and Frozen 2. 

Disappointed, I wrote, asking what happened and "To improve efficiency and an overall better experience, we recently updated our gift card vendor, which did result in the decline in available designs. "

I'm not sure how it improves anyone's experience to no longer have dozens of card designs to pick from, but I suppose it does improve the efficiency, on their end. 

​RIP Gift card designs! And if you are lucky enough to still have some of your old cards, might want to save them!