Scorching! That is the only way to describe the Florida summers (and pretty much the month of May through October). If you want to avoid spending a fortune in the parks (and believe me there is no shortage of availability of gift shops to tempt and impulse purchase), there are a few items you can pack that will make your trip much more pleasant.
Sunscreen - I know, I know. You are probably saying "Duh!" right now. But believe me, you need way more than you expect. Between the sweating, water rides, and resort pool, bring extra. And please don't be that person that bring the aerosol spray can of sunscreen and douses your child so that everyone around you has to enjoy their Mickey pretzel with a side of sunscreen. I speak from experience.
Hand Fan - THIS IS A MUST! I bring these with us every trip and and every trip someone tries to buy one off of us. These are the ones we like. They are relatively cheap, especially when you compare them to the premium price of the ones they offer in the park, and pretty durable. Our set of four fans has lasted us the past five or six trips.
Lightweight Poncho - It can be sunny the one minute and raining the next in Florida. You will know that rain is on the radar when you see the Disney Cast Members start to roll out the carts stocked with WDW ponchos for the bargain price of $9 each. Do yourself a favor and either hit up the dollar tree before your trip and stock up on some disposable plastic ponchos or go the more environmentally route and invest in a reusable poncho that you can use more than once. (If you are planning to be in the parks for more than a couple days, there is a high probability you will experience rain on several occasions.) This is the one I use, this is the one Ryann likes and this is the one I ordered Jeremiah.
Extra Pair of Socks - Remember the rain I mentioned earlier? While the sun may dry your shoes after the showers have passed, good luck with those wet socks. I learned this the hard way! A few years back, the flood gates opened us while Jeremiah and I were on a adult trip for Food and Wine Festival. My body stayed dry from the poncho but my feet were soaked. Several hours later I looked down and noticed that both of my white converse were tined pink in several areas from my feet bleeding. My heels and sides of my feet had rubbed raw from the wet socks and I paid the price for it the rest of our trip. Now we always throw an extra pair of socks in the bottom of the backpack for each of us. There is nothing worse than a blister from wet socks!
Portable Phone Charger - The my Disney Experience App plus the heat will drain your phone battery fast! While you will see countless guests sitting in corners charging their phones in random outlets during the course of their vacations, you don't want this to be you! Pick up a rechargeable battery pack on Amazon. You can also elect to purchase a FuelRod in the park and then switch it out an unlimited amount of times for free at several locations throughout the park. You can read more about FuelRods here.
Wide Brim Hat - Again, the Florida sun. The Mickey Ears are cute but do nothing to shade your face. Invest in a big hat to protect yourself. This one from Madewell is my favorite!
Cooling Towels - These are not really my thing but I see a lot of guests who take advantage of calling towels and you better believe Disney pedals these, too. If you are a sweater/over-heater, you may give a cooling towel a try!
And last but not least, PATIENCE - Maybe it is just me but the heat makes me a little less tolerant. It will be hot, it will be crowded, you will have butt sweat, you will have to wait and it won't be perfect! But have fun and HAVE A PLAN! Know where you are eating, book Fastpasses for outdoor rides and stand in the standby lines for indoor ride (that AC, though), look at park hours, try to go early and head back to the resort during the hottest hours to enjoy the pool, etc.
Don't let the summer heat keep you from the magic that is Disney World!
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