The DFB team goes to Disney World every day, and here are the essentials that are worth the money!
We always come prepared!
Anyone who’s spent a full day in Disney World knows a great park day lives and dies by what’s in your bag. After years of testing gear on actual park days we have sweated through the heat, stood in line at Cosmic Ray’s, traded pins and tried snacks and these are the ten products we keep coming back to. Here’s what actually earned a permanent spot in our Disney bag.
Get this waist fan to stay cool!
Our AMKEN Waist Fan on our waist
If you’re someone who runs hot, especially through your torso, this AMKEN Waist Fan is a total game-changer. It clips to a belt, your shorts, or even props up on a quick-service tray to blast air at your face (it made a huge difference supplementing the A/C at Cosmic Ray’s). It also doubles as a phone cooler when your device starts overheating in the sun, and it comes with a built-in LED flashlight with a steady and flashing hazard mode, plus USB-C charging. I was skeptical of a no-name Amazon brand strapped to my waist, but it won me over completely.
AMKEN Waist Fan
The trade-off is noise — it runs like a mini vacuum cleaner on high, which is the only setting worth using since anything lower barely moves air for the weight you’re carrying. Battery life blew me away, though: it ran nearly two hours on high with all three battery lights still lit, and lasted about four hours total. Four out of five stars — the noise is the only thing keeping it from a perfect score.
This case is perfect for trading pins in the parks!
PinFolio Go Pin Display Bag
For anyone who trades pins, this pink Pinfolio book is the easiest system I’ve used. It holds 40 one-inch pins, comes with its own strap so you can wear it solo, and fits easily inside a Loungefly backpack. The real standout is the backing — it’s designed so pins snap on securely and don’t shift or fall out, even when you flip the whole thing upside down and shake it. Popping pins on and off for a trade takes seconds, with zero digging around. It’s also compact enough that if you collect pins bigger than the standard one-inch size, you’ll fill it up fast — Pinfolio does make larger sizes if that’s a concern.
We love these straps to keep on your popcorn bucket!
GRIFITI Band
If you’ve ever tried to juggle a popcorn bucket, a stroller, and a toddler’s hand at the same time, this simple strap solves that problem. It clips around the bucket so you can wear it hands-free or hook it to the outside of your bag, which is perfect if you want to save interior space for your other essentials. It comes in a multi-pack, so you can color-coordinate or share with your group. If you want to snack between attractions, you also have to hold the lid steady while you grab popcorn or the band can slip loose. None of that is a dealbreaker, though — it’s one of those things that becomes hard to go without once you’re used to having it.
You can grab our favorite reusable utensils!
Reusable Travel Utensils Set
These Reusable Travel Utensils are sturdier than the flimsy plastic ones handed out at Disney World’s quick-service spots, with enough weight to them that they actually function the way they look like they should. They come in their own slim carrying case, so they barely take up any room in a park bag.
We are always testing products!
They’re also easy to clean discreetly on the go, which matters more than you’d think when you’re eating on the move between attractions. It’s the kind of item you toss in your bag “just in case” and end up using more than expected — a small, easy addition that solves a problem you didn’t realize you had until you needed it.
Don’t forget these reusable straws too!
Silicone straw set
I’ve never been a reusable-straw person because of the cleaning and keeping track of them always felt like more hassle than it was worth, but these Reusable Flexible Straws changed my mind. Unlike stiffer or collapsible reusable straws, these hold their shape while you’re drinking instead of bending awkwardly, then fold flat for easy storage and cleanup. They come in a range of color combinations, which makes it simple to tell whose straw is whose in a bigger group.
Reusable straw
I put them through a real stress test with a thick frozen drink, and they held up perfectly. With Disney World rolling out its “skip the straw” initiative, having your own straw on hand is becoming more useful than ever, and these are an easy, no-downside way to do it.
Get this mini umbrella for your park bag!
BAODINI Travel Mini Umbrella
Sure, you’ve heard of umbrellas for rain, and they usually work pretty well. Maybe you’ve actually seen regular umbrellas used to keep the sun off of people as well! Again, a very smart idea, but sometimes it doesn’t work super well. We’ve tried the BAODINI Travel Essentials Mini Umbrella on some of the hottest days of the year and are NOT JOKING when we say it drops the temperature underneath it by 5-10 degrees instantly. I was in the park with one of my coworkers who was trying this out, and it was a RELIEF — I wanted to stay under it all day, and plan to grab myself one before summer comes around again (I very much regretted not having one this past year).
This is our favorite reusable poncho!
Our favorite poncho!
Florida’s afternoon storms are notoriously unpredictable, and this Frogg Toggs Poncho is the one I now automatically pack. It’s lightweight, made from decent-quality material, and comes with its own small pouch so it doesn’t soak or tangle with everything else in your bag once you’ve used it. I’ll admit ponchos aren’t usually my thing, but this one won me over — no complaints about the fit, feel, or function. If you’re headed to the parks during a rainy stretch, this is a no-question pack item, and the included pouch alone makes it worth grabbing over a bulkier alternative.
We love Fuelrods!
You can never have enough!
You will be on your phone a LOT while in Magic Kingdom. Between taking photos and videos and checking wait times, your phone battery will drain fast. You don’t want to be stuck with a dead phone at 1 PM with the rest of the day ahead of you.
FuelRod
Our favorite portable charger are FuelRods. There are kiosks throughout all of Disney World where you can swap out your dead FuelRod for a new one for FREE. So no need to stress every night about recharging it, you simply head to a kiosk and swap it out for a fully charged new one.
You can grab this Owala Disney Princess bottle!
We love Owalas!
This might be my new favorite water bottle, Disney-branded or not. It’s a 24oz Owala with a switch between straw and spout, done up in a subtle Ariel-inspired colorway with a shimmery seashell detail. It does not leak, a real point of difference from other bottles, and the insulation is genuinely impressive: I put ice in at 8 AM and still had ice in the bottle over 24 hours later, after a full day out in the sun.
Little Mermaid Owala
Staying hydrated at the parks is non-negotiable, and this bottle makes it painless. I refilled it three to five times on a full park day at the free refill stations, which saved both money and the hassle of buying $5 bottled water. The only real complaint is that the exterior seems to attract dirt and smudges more than I’d like. Everything else about it exceeded my expectations. Five out of five, easily (maybe a ten out of five if I’m being honest).
And finally, keep your Loungefly organized with this!
HOYOFO Mini Backpack Organizer
For around $15, this Mini Backpack Organizer insert solves one of my biggest Loungefly headaches: switching backpacks without forgetting something important. It’s got multiple compartments, a key ring clip, easy-grab pockets, and a few zippered pouches, all sized to lift out of one mini-backpack and drop straight into the next.
HOYOFO Mini Backpack Organizer
Everything I normally carry fits inside with plenty of room to spare, and moving it between bags takes almost no effort at all. If you like to coordinate your Loungefly bag to your outfit day to day, or you just hate digging through your bag to find things, this is one of those products that makes you wonder how you managed without it.
We’re always on the hunt for the latest and greatest Disney souvenirs and essentials, so don’t forget to stay tuned to the Disney Food Blog for more!
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Hi all,
I wanted to say thank you for the endless amount of information you all pump out to us poor souls who can only go to Disney every couple of years (yes, I realize to some even that is still a dream).
My husband and I decided to plan a trip this year for the Food and Wine Festival, and our 25th wedding anniversary was in early September, so why not combine both occasions. Typically, my husband is the planner, down to the minute sometimes, pee breaks included. But this year, since it was just the two of us, we both wanted a laid back, no planning involved trip. Well, Disney was not made for NO planning, so I used information that you all provide, along with past experiences, and the Food and Wine Guide to help us minimally plan.
We had originally thought 3 days-one in Magic Kingdom, one in EPCOT, and one in Hollywood Studios would be enough….. We added on a fourth day in EPCOT when I convinced him that there was WAY too much to do in EPCOT for it to be just one day there. I studied your F&W guide and made my master list ahead of time with the must-haves starred. Needless to say, we know Disney food can be hit or miss, but how often are we going to get the opportunity to try something, so there was a lot on the table, literally.
We ate a lot of food and drank a lot of drink; some recommended, some not. My absolute favorite was the Croquetas de Jamon in the Spain booth; I’m not sure that I had a least favorite, but I think the weirdest was the pickle milkshake; yes, we tried it! We found it was a little better once the milkshake melted a little and you could mix in the whipped cream on top to cut the dill and make it a little creamier.
Now, on to the main reason for me sending this. Thank you for the information you gather on what to take and how to carry it. We took several things that you all recommend, and I think there was only one thing we didn’t end up using out of all of it.
The AMKEN waist fan SAVED MY LIFE. I wasn’t sure about the weight of it when it showed up before we left, but I gave it a shot. Having the ability to clip it to my waist to blow air up my shirt was glorious in the 104 degree heat index weather that we survived.
The Sukeen cooling towels also fell in the saved our life category. We knew that they worked, but I didn’t realize how well until we were in that heat.
The silicone waterproof shoes saved me during the afternoon storms that kept others away from the food booths.
The Mini Travel Umbrella that I got to take the place of my larger, heavier one, worked great when there was a light rain.
When the rain was a little heavier or we needed our hands free, the Ponchos were used almost everyday.
I was pleasantly surprised by the anti-chafe stick. I didn’t think I would need it given the longer shorts I was wearing, but with the weather still being so stinkin’ hot when we were there, I was glad I made that impulse purchase on your recommendation.
And last, but not least, the square flat plug power strip was such a hit that we got two of them for each of us to have one on each side of the bed. We had more than enough plugs and I didn’t realize it had an indicator light that it was receiving power from the outlet. I know I’m not the only one that has used a plug in a hotel room that only works on the light switch, or doesn’t work at all.
The only item that we took, but didn’t need was a tray for each of us. I was pleasantly surprised to find that we could always find a table. bench, wall, rock, or other various sitting space when needed. There was never a time that we felt we were fumbling to carry things. But I will still take them back with us if we make it back to this festival in the future.
I know that was a lot of unneeded information, but it was my long-winded way of saying thank you! Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! You never know who is going to listen to your advice, and take it, but it definitely helped us this trip!
And please keep the information coming. I’ll definitely need it for my next trip!