Taking little kids to Disney is magical… but somehow little kids also come with SO. MUCH. STUFF.
Search Pinterest for a Disney packing list and you’ll find lists telling you to bring everything short of your kitchen sink. And while I am absolutely a mom who likes to be prepared, I also don’t want to carry a 30-pound backpack around Magic Kingdom for 12 hours.
After doing Disney with littles, I’ve found that packing smarter is so much better than packing more.
So this isn’t an everything you could possibly need at Disney packing list.
These are the things we actually use—the essentials that make our park days easier without completely overloading the stroller and backpack.
This post contains affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you purchase through one of my links, at no additional cost to you. I only share products I genuinely love, use, or would recommend for making Disney with littles a little easier. Thank you for supporting Heritage & Grace! 🤍
Start With a GOOD Stroller
If you’re doing Disney with young kids, your stroller is basically your home base for the day. And even if your child doesn’t use a stroller much at home anymore, Disney is a different ballgame. You’re walking miles and miles, often from early in the morning until after fireworks.
There are a few things I specifically look for in a Disney stroller:
- Good storage
- Lightweight
- Easy to push
- Quick to fold
- Compact when folded
That quick fold becomes especially important when you’re using Disney transportation. You don’t want to be wrestling with a complicated stroller while simultaneously trying to keep up with your kids and everything you’ve accumulated throughout the day.
Click the photos below for the links to our favorite double and single stroller!
The Reusable Bag Hack You NEED to Know
Okay, this one doesn’t require anything fancy. Take one LARGE reusable shopping bag. Think one of those giant plastic reusable bags from TJMaxx, HomeGoods or Marshalls.
During the day, your stroller basket inevitably becomes a catch-all. Water bottles. Souvenirs. Bubble wands. Jackets. Snack cups. Random things your kids suddenly don’t want to carry anymore.
Then it’s time to get on Disney transportation and you need to fold the stroller.
Instead of Mom and Dad suddenly trying to hold the kids plus 72 random things from underneath the stroller, pull out your giant reusable bag and toss EVERYTHING into it.
Now you’ve got: One bag. One stroller. Your kids. Done.
When you aren’t using it, fold the reusable bag flat and tuck it into the bottom of the stroller. It is such a simple little hack, but it makes getting on and off transportation with littles so much easier.
Stroller Accessories That Are Actually Worth Bringing
You don’t need to accessorize your stroller with every gadget Amazon has to offer, but there are a couple of things that make a huge difference.
Stroller Organizer
Your most-used items shouldn’t be buried at the bottom of your backpack.
A stroller organizer gives you an easy place for your phone, water bottle, hand sanitizer, snacks and anything else you’re reaching for constantly.
This is the best organizer I have found to go with our double stroller!
Single Stroller Organizer
If you’re taking a single stroller, this is another great option.
Stroller Clips
These take up almost no room and come in handy for attaching shopping bags, hats, water bottles or other lightweight items to the stroller.
Just be careful not to overload the handles and make your stroller tip backward—especially when your little one gets out!
Keep Your Park Bag Organized
If there is one thing I DON’T want to do in the middle of Disney, it’s dump my entire backpack out looking for one tiny thing.
Small zipper bags or organizer pouches are one of my favorite ways to keep everything separated. Instead of having sunscreen, chargers, wipes and snacks floating around loose in your backpack, give everything a home.
You can even make separate pouches for things like:
- Snacks
- Electronics/chargers
- First aid & personal care
- Kid essentials
Then when you need something, you know exactly which bag to grab.
My favorite bag organizers: linked here
Rechargeable Battery Pack
This one is a non-negotiable for me. You use your phone for EVERYTHING at Disney—the My Disney Experience app, checking wait times, Lightning Lane, mobile ordering, photos, videos, dining reservations, maps… Your battery can disappear fast. Start your morning with a fully charged phone and keep a rechargeable battery pack in your bag so you aren’t spending the afternoon trying to conserve your last 12%.
Snacks, Snacks & More Snacks
You can buy snacks all over Disney, but sometimes your toddler doesn’t want a Mickey pretzel. They want Goldfish. Right now.
Bringing a few familiar snacks can save you during long lines, transportation, parade waits and those we have a dining reservation in 30 minutes but my child is starving NOW moments.
Reusable snack containers keep everything from getting smashed in your backpack and help cut down on a million little packages floating around the stroller.
Reusable Water Bottles
Florida + Disney + miles of walking = bring water.
Reusable bottles are one of the easiest things to pack and refill throughout the day.
I especially like kid-friendly bottles that don’t leak everywhere when they’re inevitably tossed sideways underneath the stroller.
We love our Simple Modern cups, and there are so many cute options for kids.
Another great kid-friendly option!
The CUTEST Disney Autograph Book Idea
Instead of buying a traditional spiral autograph book, take a Disney Little Golden Book!
We did this on our last girls’ trip and took a Little Golden Book for the princesses to sign as we met them. It turned into the sweetest keepsake.
Instead of having a notebook filled with random signatures, the kids now have an actual storybook with the characters’ signatures throughout it. It’s something you can keep on their bookshelf and pull out years later.
There are SO many Disney Little Golden Books, too, so you can choose one based on the characters your child loves most.
Little Golden Books I’ve Found
You could even take more than one if meeting characters is a big part of your trip! Don’t forget to pack a pen or marker with it.
Pin Trading
Pin trading is such a fun little Disney tradition, especially as your kids get old enough to participate. Instead of having pins stuck all over a lanyard, I love keeping them together in a pin trading bag.
We love this crossbody for pin trading!
It’s easy to carry and gives the kids a designated place for their pins.
More Compact Pin Trading Option
This one is a little pricier, but it’s a great option if you’d rather have something more compact.
Bubble Wands
I am putting this in all caps because I need you to hear me:
BUY THE BUBBLE WAND BEFORE YOUR TRIP. 😂
Because when your child sees every other child in Disney walking around with a glowing bubble wand, guess who is going to want one? And I’d much rather order one ahead of time than spend park prices on something I could have packed in the stroller.
There are so many different character options, too, so you can choose one they’ll love before you ever leave home.
Put it underneath the stroller in the morning and pull it out while you’re waiting for a parade or fireworks. It’s also great entertainment when you’re waiting for someone else in your group to finish a ride.
Disney Ears for Little Girls
Disney ears are adorable. Disney ears that your child complains about wearing after 15 minutes? Less adorable.
For little girls, I LOVE clip-on Minnie ears instead of traditional headbands. They still get the cute Minnie-ear look for pictures, but they’re lightweight and you don’t have to constantly adjust a headband or hear that it’s hurting behind their ears.
My favorite clip-on Minnie ears here!
For little boys, a Mickey hat is an easy way to add a little Disney magic to their outfit while also giving them some sun protection. And unlike another accessory that you’ll eventually end up carrying, a hat is actually useful!
Favorite Mickey hat here!
The Tiny Essentials You’ll Be Glad You Packed
These aren’t exciting, but they’re some of the things you’ll probably reach for the most.
Chapstick & Spray Hand Sanitizer (Cute mickey option)
Hand sanitizer is obviously a must with little kids at a theme park, but I personally think the spray kind is the best—especially with littles.
It’s quick, easy and you can spray everyone’s hands without squeezing sticky gel everywhere.
Baby Wipes
Hear me out: Even if your toddlers are completely out of diapers, PACK. THE. WIPES.
Sticky Mickey ice cream hands.
Chocolate-covered faces.
Spilled drinks.
Dirty tables.
Mystery substances your child somehow touched.
You will use them.
I would much rather have one small pack of wipes in my bag than find myself trying to clean melted ice cream off a preschooler’s entire body with two napkins.
My Disney-With-Littles Essentials Checklist
Here’s the simplified version if you’re getting everything together before your trip:
- Lightweight, easy-fold stroller
- Stroller organizer
- Stroller clips
- LARGE reusable shopping bag
- Rechargeable battery pack
- Bag organizers
- Snack containers
- Snacks
- Reusable water bottles
- Little Golden Book for autographs
- Pen/marker for character signatures
- Pin trading bag/book
- Pins
- Bubble wand
- Clip-on Minnie ears
- Mickey hat
- Chapstick
- Spray hand sanitizer
- Baby wipes
Then, of course, add anything your specific child truly needs—diapers, medications, sunscreen, an extra outfit, etc.
Pack Smart, Not Everything.
The biggest thing I’ve learned about packing for Disney with littles is that being prepared doesn’t mean being prepared for every possible scenario. You don’t need to carry half your house through Magic Kingdom.
Bring the things you know you’ll use. Keep everything organized. Take advantage of your stroller storage. And leave yourself a little room for the inevitable souvenirs that somehow make their way into the stroller throughout the day.
The goal is to make your park day easier, not give yourself one more giant bag to manage. Because these trips aren’t really about having the perfectly packed backpack.
They’re about watching your little ones meet their favorite character for the first time. Seeing their faces light up when the castle comes into view. Letting them stay up way past bedtime to watch the fireworks.
They’re only this little at Disney for so long.
Pack less stuff. Make more memories. ✨
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