15 Essential Items For Your Disney Park Bag in 2024
Someday, I aspire to be a minimalist. Until that day happens, however, I try to take as little as possible. Especially when visiting Disney. Who wants to be carrying a large bag around all day? Here are the only items I feel it’s necessary to pack in your Disney park bag.
As someone who spends a month at Disney World each year (no, not all at once), I’ve learned what’s definitely needed.
1. Phone and battery pack
Yes, this may seem obvious to most. Yet, my husband is returning from a multi-day business trip in which he forgot to take his cell phone. It happens.
After finding the best backpack for Disney, make sure you have a solid phone case because it will be jostled around quite a bit during the day. Ones like this case with strong rubber sides hold up nicely.
Plus, now that I finally upgraded my 4-year-old iPhone, I rely on it to take my pictures instead of bringing my bulky camera.
Don’t forget a battery pack. Charging stations are not easy to come by and besides, who wants to waste time waiting for a phone to charge? Throw a battery pack in your Disney park bag and charge it while you are on the rides.
Just to note, if you are constantly using My Disney Experience to check wait times or make Genie Plus/Lightning Lane reservations, your battery level will decrease fast.
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2. Hat
The sun can be relentless in Orlando, especially in the summer. Use a hat to shield your face and head from getting a sunburn.We picked up adorable (and cheap!) Mickey and Minnie baseball hats before we left. Much better than paying extravagant prices in the parks. Amazon has quite a few Disney hats for all ages and sizes.
- Adorable white Minnie Mouse ears hat for MOM
- Gray Mickey ears hat for DAD
3. Rain ponchos
If it’s summer, it’s going to rain on your Disney vacation. Just go with it. Bring along some of the best rain ponchos for Disney and make sure they are in your Disney park bag.
Get inexpensive ones for the whole family. Read Magic Kingdom in the Rain – 7 Ways to Take Cover so you know where to go if this happens to you.
NOTE: my daughter (8 years old) wore the adult-size poncho. It just was long on her.
- Ponchos Family Pack with Drawstring Hood — A set of 5-pack, each rain poncho is individually packaged. Set includes 3 adult ponchos from long-sleeve design in clear, yellow, blue (Length 45in, Width 33in, Sleeve Length 27in) and 2 childrens ponchos from short-sleeve design in blue, green (Length 35in, Width 43in)
4. Cooling towels
This is my number one way to beat the heat at Disney World. I didn’t find out about cooling towels until just last year, but now they are a staple in my Disney park bag.
Wet them, wring them and snap them to activate the cooling feature.
They cool you down a couple of hours, then you need to repeat the process. Quite easy for something that makes such a difference. It really made summer at Disney World tolerable.
- QUALITY AND PORTABLE – Cooling Towels for Neck and Face are constructed of breathable 100% cold yarn polyester fiber material and are Eco-friendly and lightweight. Each comes with its own waterproof bag and matching carabiner clip that can be attach to your golf bag or gym bag. Perfect travel accessories, beach accessories and more.
5. Minnie ears.
Wait – a hat and ears? Yep, for different parts of the day. We wear our ears first thing in the morning and then later in the day after the sun sets.
It’s not just a kid thing either. You will see plenty of adult women wearing Minnie ears.
Rose gold is the new ‘it’ color. These rose gold Minnie Ears are adorable (and there is a matching Minnie bag, too).
- ❤The headband size is suitable for all adults and children.
- ❤The headband is equipped with beautiful shiny mouse ears, shiny bows, and tight sequins on the front and back.
- ❤Each product undergoes 4 manual inspections before being sent to the Amazon warehouse. Each product is a boutique, and you will be pleasantly surprised when you receive the product.
6. Sunscreen
Make sure you have sunscreen in your Disney park bag. Even if you apply it first thing in the morning, it will wear off between riding Splash Mountain and the Florida humidity.
Don’t be caught sitting in the hot sun without it at the 3 pm Festival of Fantasy parade.
I find the sunscreen spray easier to use in the parks. Kids (and adults) are already hot and sticky. It’s easier to just spray it on.
Are you a carry-on packer only? Create an Amazon Fresh order and have it delivered to your hotel room. This allows you to have sunscreen, water and anything else you don’t want to pack delivered.
7. Re-usable straws
Disney has gone green. They did away with plastic straws early in 2019. For anyone who has used paper straws, you know why I recommend taking your own.
Paper straws get soggy and disgusting after they get wet.
Take either reusable silicone straws or stainless steel with various colored plastic tips.
I have the stainless steel but wish I bought the silicone instead. Nice sets come with brushes that help you clean your straws.
- PACK OF 8 ASSORTED COLORFUL SILICONE STRAWS - Approx 10 Inch Length + 2 Brushes. The colors are pretty, the silicone is soft-easy to bend, easy to cut to desired length. Able to clean easily with the brush.
- ENJOY THE QUALITY AND DURABILITY - Made of 100% food-grade silicone and BPA-free.
- GREAT SIZE & FLIEXBLITY - Perfect size for 30&20 Oz Yeti/Ozark/Rtic Tumblers. Great for water, lemonade, sodas or coffee.
- DISHWASHER SAFE but NOT for use in Microwave.
- ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY - Reusable silicone straws help to reduce the usage of plastic straws
- 【Premium Material】These drinking straws are made of GENUINE premium, silver-colored 18/8 stainless steel.Unlike other cheap straws that look a little yellow with thin wall thickness and low weight, the wall thickness of our straws is 0.5mm. They are very strong, not too heavy or too light.
- 【High Quality Polishing】With our polishing technique, the surface of our straws are well polished, very smooth for your lips and hands to touch and it is easier to get the silicone caps on/off than other metallic staws.
- 【Safe to Use and Environmentally Friendly】These sustainable straws and the covers are made of food grade stainless steel and silicone,no metal aftertaste, BPA free,lead free, non plastic,non toxic.
- 【Variety Pack and Shape】the various sizes give you many different cup options you could use them with.
8. Autograph book and Sharpie marker
Do you have little ones that are anxiously waiting to meet all the Disney characters? Take an autograph book with you and watch their faces light up when they get their favorite characters autograph and picture.
We found a Disney autograph book that has a special area for both pictures and autographs. Put it together when you return home and now you have a nice little memory keepsake.
Take a sharpie marker because fur characters such as Mickey, Minnie and Donald have very large hands and cannot grasp a regular pen easily.
9. Water bottle
Stay hydrated. Refill your water bottle at either drinking fountain stations throughout the parks or by asking for ice water at any counter service restaurant.
The benefit of taking a water bottle instead of just using a paper water cup is that you can put your water bottle back in your Disney park bag while on a ride. And it won’t spill or leak like a paper cup.
10. Pin trading stuff
As my daughter has gotten older, she is not interested in autographs, but rather enjoys pin trading.
Depending on your child’s age, take one or the other.
Initially, we bought a starter pin set on Amazon along with a lanyard to show them off. We did not receive any duplicates in our set and she freely traded at the parks and resorts to get different ones.
- DISNEY PINS TRADING - safety pins assorted for disney autograph book or pin bag, metal and stamped on the back comes with the rubber mickey back
- BEST CHOICE - Pin lots will contain only no dublicates pins, absolutely new, disney add on, Mikey pin, Mouse pin, pin bags trading disney brand new
- DISNEY CHARACTERS PINS - These trade from Disney Worlds, Parks and Resorts. Disney Films Pins, Disney Attractions Pins and Series Pins. FAST SHIPPING
- 30 ASSORTED LOT PIN - Disney cast tradable pins, back rubber provides convenience for you to wear on and take off, assorted bags also good for DIY wo
11. Hand sanitizer
No matter how many times I tell Little K to not touch handrails or fence posts, it seems I’m talking to a wall.
Since we can’t be running to the bathroom all the time to wash hands with soap, I carry a travel hand sanitizer with us.
Amazon even has a couple of cute Disney-themed travel hand sanitizers that kids can spray instead of pour on.
12. Wallet or cardholder
Another obvious choice? Maybe or maybe not. If you stay at a Disney resort, you really don’t need any cash since a credit card is linked to your Magic Band.
However, I feel I need to carry my ID with me, along with a credit card and a Disney gift card.
If you stay offsite and don’t purchase Magic Bands, you need to keep your RFID tickets safe and easily accessible as that is how you use your FastPasses.
I just use a little credit card holder to keep the few cards I take. No need to take a full wallet to the parks.
13. Snacks
Why pay exorbitant park prices? Take a few snacks with you into the park. They don’t take up much room and by afternoon they will be eaten anyway.
Usually, we take cheese crackers, goldfish bags or granola bars. It’s enough to tide us over until we eat a bigger meal.
Yes, I do pack snacks in our suitcase or my carry-on, but I don’t take the big box they come in. Also, be wary of anything that will melt, like chocolate-dipped granola bars.
14. Wipes
Not for diapers, but for those sticky, messy hands that come with snacking. Keep a travel pack of wipes with you for those times when you’re in line and can’t get to a restroom to wash them immediately.
15. First Aid supplies
While I don’t bring my whole medicine cabinet with me, I definitely bring band-aids and antibacterial ointment.
In fact, I have a small first aid boxed kit that I always keep with me. You never know when a kid will fall and scrape their knee.
Winter bonus item: Hoodie
Not a necessity in the summer, but definitely something you may want to have on hand in the winter months, November through February.
Both mornings and evenings can be quite cool in Orlando. In fact, winter is my favorite time to visit. Find Disney sweatshirts and hoodies at Walmart, Kohls and Amazon.
Putting it all in our Disney park bag
Most of these are quite small and should easily fit in your Disney park bag. Remember, you don’t want to be lugging a big backpack with you throughout the park.
Keep it minimal and stick to the basics. Sometimes that’s easier said than done. Of course, if you have babies still in diapers, that adds a different level of things to take. But, in that case, you also have a stroller in which you can store things.
What’s in your Disney park bag? Let me know in the comments!
For more Disney tips, check out the following posts:
- 15 Mistakes Not to Make at Disney World
- Disney World FastPass+ Ultimate Guide
- 10 Disney Refillable Mug Tips You Need to Know
Please PIN this and share with others – thank you!
