What’s in our bag? Must have items to bring for your Young Kids

Our kids love Disney World, but even the most magical place on earth can be overwhelming to little ones at times. We find that it helps to have a few tricks up your sleeve to help your kiddos get through the day. This is quick glimpse in to our backpack that goes with us everywhere when we are at Disney.

1. Snacks- There is no shortage of food available in the parks, but we have found that having something familiar can be a life saver. We carry fruit snacks, granola bars, suckers and applesauce pouches every day. They are easy to throw in our backpack and quick to grab if we are waiting for a ride or show. Plus no waiting in line to buy a snack when they start to meltdown.
2. Comfort- This is different for everyone, but having something familiar for each kid can be a life saver. On different trips each of our kids have chose different things, but some examples have been blankies, pacifiers, small stuffed animals or little toys.
3. Water Bottles- You need to stay hydrated when you are running hard through the park. We take cold water bottles with us in the morning. We can either toss them as we drink them or refill them when we need them. Disney does provide ice water at any quick service location which is great for refills but with no lid or straw. Our little kids do better with a bottle or sippy cup. Now that Disney is no longer providing straws and lids for cups, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to throw in some straws or cups to pour your kids drinks in.
4. Cooling- Florida is hot! Well at least most of the year. Everyone has more fun when they have a way to keep cool. We take misting fans and cool towels. Cool towels can pack down small and we take a carabiner clip and attach the fans to the stroller with that.
5. Extra Clothes- We bring an extra outfit for each kid just in case. Spills happen or they get wet on a ride or in the rain and it’s so nice to have an option to change instead of having to tough it out. We pack a full outfit in a gallon ziploc bag so they pack small and staff dry/clean.
6. Ziploc Bags- We use these for everything. Holding snacks and extra clothes or keeping electronics dry. We always throw a couple extra in just in case and have used them more than once. (Especially that one time, one of our kids threw up right in front of Cinderella’s castle after the fireworks. Yikes!)
7. Chargers- These are a must for us because we use our phones for everything in the park. We take tons of pictures and videos and use the Diseny parks apps to book fastpasses and check wait times and that can seriously drain your battery. We carry extra battery backups and charge when we sit down to eat or watch a show. That way we are ready to go when we start moving again. Don’t forget the cables too.  
8. Costumes- Now this isn’t essential at all but totally fun in my opinion. We love to grab pictures of our kids dressed up like their favorite characters so we carry at least one costume for each of our kids in the backpack. We flat back them in a ziploc bag with the air squeezed out so they don’t take up much room at all. We will change them into them before a special character meet and greet or dining experience or throw it on over their clothes. You would not believe how quickly it can change their mood to throw on a princess dress too. Makes for a great pick me up if they need it.
9. Baby wipes- These have a million uses and frankly at some point you are going to need them. Someone will spill a soda or eat a sticky snack like cotton candy and it’s so nice to have one of these handy to give them instead of making a mad dash to the nearest bathroom. Trust us you’ll be so happy you have them.
10. Clear Shower Curtain/Rain Gear- Rain happens. It’s a bummer but a reality. We know this sounds crazy but a clear shower curtain has saved us so many times. When it starts to rain, we can throw it over our stroller as a rain cover.

Now that sounds like a lot of stuff to some of you, but don’t worry because we don’t carry it all with us the whole time. Since we are a big family with little ones we always have a stroller with us. So we actually pack two bags, one that has all our valuables in it and stuff we want with us everywhere even in line for rides; that has our electronics (cameras/chargers), comfort items, and a few snacks. The other bag is stuff we need but don’t want to carry with us everywhere and would be ok with if it got lost; like diapers, snacks, water bottles, our shower curtain etc. We leave that bag in our stroller once we are in the park and only get it out when we need something from it and then it goes right back in the stroller. It’s good to know that strollers at Disney are constantly moved by cast members to condense space so your stroller might not be in the same spot when you come back to get it so we find it helps to have everything we leave with the stroller in a bag so it doesn’t fall out of in moving.

That’s our must haves. What are your go to items to take in the parks with you? Leave a comment and let us know. Maybe we will add it our bag.