What I'm Packing and NOT packing for the next Disney Race

Since February arrived, all I can think about is packing for Princess Half Marathon weekend at Disney! I've been thinking a lot of what I was going to pack and even what I wasn't going to be wasting my precious luggage space on!


Now, Having a sister who is a flight attendant, I have learned to pack a weeks worth of stuff into a carry one. Yes, I ALWAYS carry on! Maybe I'm cheap, Maybe I don't want to end up like my friend Mar who's race gear got sent to San Diego when she landed in San Antonio, or maybe I don't want to wait at the luggage carousel.   Either way, I have never had a problem fitting all my stuff in a carry on.

You all know the personal stuff  and race gear you need to pack for yourself so I will not bore you with those details of what I will be packing. I will tell you some things I am packing that you might overlook.

1. Make sure you clear all your SD cards off a head of time so you have lots of room for all those pictures you'll be taking.

2. Have a gallon ziplock bag just for your cords for your electronics. Just myself alone I will have a cord for my Garmin, my ipod, my ipad, my camera, and my phone. I hate the feeling of searching to make sure I have all my cords/adapters when it is time to check out of  a hotel. This way I have one clear bag to look in and I know they should all be there.

3. Speaking of cords. Make sure you are bringing a power strip. I don't know about you, but I am sharing a room with three other lovely ladies and we will all have ipods, Garmins, and phones that will need to be charged and you know as well as I do that the hotel rooms usually have 2 ( maybe 3) sets of outlets. One in the bathroom/vanity area, one by the nightstand, and maybe one by the table/desk area. ( I was reminded about this item from my friend April. Thanks)

4. Smaller ziplock bags. For ice. With the problems I have been having with my knees,  I know I will need to be icing my legs after each of the races.


 Look at these cute Princess bags I found. I thought they were appropriate!

* Don't forget, if you are packing Bio Freeze in your carry on, it needs to be in a ziplock bag as well with the rest of your gels and liquids.

5. Breakfast Items:  We pack our own oatmeal and English muffins/bagels.  The food courts all have hot water available, as well as toasters and microwaves for use.  The food courts won't be open to sell food at this time though. In the past, I know you were able to purchase a boxed breakfast ( which I believed consisted of a bagel and a piece of fruit) but I don't know how much that was or where you had to go to get it.

6. I will definitely be packing my "Stick" and if I have enough room, possibly my foam roller. Since I have been having trouble with tightness in my leg, I will also be packing my heating pad.

7. My handheld water bottle so I can stay hydrated.

8. Also, remember to bring your own medicine cabinet items such as ibuprofen, Pepto, Tums, etc. We had to buy some of this at the resort gift shop one year and it was quite pricey!

Things I WONT be worried about packing:

1. I'm running the Glass Slipper Challenge plus the Royal family 5K. That gives me 4 shirts that I will be receiving and chances are if all goes well I 'll be purchasing a few more at the expo. With that being said, I'm going to "plan" on wearing these shirts as part of my outfits while at Disney. Therefore I will be saving space in my carry on by not packing shirts ( other than the ones I'll be running in) I know this is kind of a daring move!  ( Thank goodness I have a sister I can borrow clothes from if need be)


2. I'll be packing all my personal care items such as toothbrush/paste, deodorant, etc, but I won't be wasting space packing shampoo, conditioner and body wash.  I am not too good to use what Disney provides and I do not have "special" hair that requires "special" products. Besides, between all the racing, and the humidity down there, I  imagine my hair will be pulled back in a hair tie or clip for most of the vacation. ( must remember to pack hair clips)
 
Hopefully this post was helpful for any of you first timers.  Is there anything out of the ordinary you will be packing?
 
So, How many of you are already packed?

39 comments:

  1. Great tips, especially a power strip when sharing a room with friends! Love that we are both running all three races, hope we run into each other somewhere!! :D

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    1. I hope so too Karen! Will you be at the meet up on friday?

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  2. I'm also a carry on girl! Last year, I traveled to Europe for 2 weeks and did not check a bag....so much easier. You will see me around the parks wearing my race shirts too....After each Dopey race, I wore the shirt that matched the race with the medal....so much fun!

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    1. Wow, you are a good packer! I admit when I went to Europe I actually had an "oversized" piece of luggage! I guess I only carry on when I fly domestically!

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  3. Great tips! I like to pack something to eat for breakfast before the race, too, since it's sometimes a little time consuming to find just what you want to eat when you travel. Sometimes I'll pack small peanut butter packages, too, for protein.

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    1. Yes, that's a good idea Tina! I'm the one who always packs "snacks" too!

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  4. Luggage space definitely is precious! I still remember a time when it didn't cost anything to check bags. And I sometimes fly Southwest which still isn't charging for checked bags, yay Southwest :) But yeah, if it's a trip of less than a week I try to just do carry on. Good luck with everything for Princess weekend!

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  5. Thanks Chaitali! Yay for Southwest for not charging. More airlines should be like that!

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  6. Great post! I am just like you and will not ever check! I would freak out if my running stuff got lost when I was going to a race!

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  7. I also carryon as much as possible. I just don't like waiting in line to check luggage, then waiting for the luggage to get off the plane. I can grab my bag and go.

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    1. I know Disney will transfer your luggage right to your resort, but for some reason I feel better carrying my own bags to the Magical Express and having them with me when I check in!

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  8. I agree with working the race shirts into your wardrobe for the week! I didn't wear any shirts I packed for Wine & Dine, only my expo loot!

    Lauren

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    1. Disney will be polluted with people in race shirts that weekend!

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  9. I don't consider myself "too good" to use Disney toiletries, in fact I quite like them. I also don't consider my hair as "special" and would much rather not need to buy those costly "special" products. I would much prefer to run into a Walmart and buy whatever is on sale to wash my hair with . Unfortunately thanks to sodium lauryl sulfate, sodium laureth sulfate, Ammonium lauryl sulfate not to mention many fragrances and other chemicals, some people require those "special" products.

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    1. Than by all means those people should bring their own products that they know will work for them. We wouldn't want anyone to have a reaction to product while on vacation!

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  10. Very good tip about the power strip! I'll add that to the list. We have the entire back of an SUV, so we tend to OVERPACK since space isn't an issue. I would like to streamline the amount of clothes we bring though - so I will plan to wear our race shirts instead of bringing extra shirts for that purpose. Thanks!

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    1. Oh, when you drive to Disney/ or a race, then these tips are null and void! Pack away!!!!!!!

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  11. Great packing tips - I am also a carry on girl! I am far too paranoid of the airlines losing my luggage. That being said, for WDW races, usually my husband and I carry on the things we 100% need for race day in one suitcase, then pack another carry on with food and such to store under the plane (then carry it on when we come back). I also try not to over pack on shirts because I always end up wearing the race shirts/expo shirts we buy lol!

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  12. All I know is I gotta find those princess ziplock bags :)

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  13. Power strip is a genius idea! So smart when you are sharing a room with others! Love it :)

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    1. I Actually can't take credit for this idea as I saw it somewhere else!

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  14. Baggie for all the cords is a great idea! When I do tons of running I either pack my small travel roller or my Grid roller, which is hollow, so I can stuff extras in the space. I need to stop packing extra shirts when I know I'll get race shirts! Why have I never thought of that?? Good luck this weekend!

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    1. I'm hoping to be able to fit in everything I need and still have room for my foam roller too!

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  15. The power strip is a great idea! There are never enough outlets in hotel rooms.

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    1. Especially with all the things we have to plug in for running!

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  16. I too always carry on! The bonus to this, is that it prevents me from overpacking, which I tend to do.
    My big things is, I always wear the shoes I tend to run in, on the flight. This way, I know for a fact, that I will have them on race day. You never, if like Mar, they MAKE you check your bag. I know she usually carry ons, and they made her check it. Not cool at all.

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    1. I was wondering about the whole shoe situation. Should I be wearing the same shoes to run in that I had been walking around in at the airports all day?

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  17. I am totally doing the cords in a Ziploc bag thing! I will have to revisit this post when I pack for Boston in April!!!

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    1. That makes it so convenient for me because I am always panicking if I got all my cords when I am ready to pack up and leave the hotel.

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  18. Great tips! I'm adding power strip to my packing list. Luckily I'm in state (but still an 8 hour drive) so I can fill as many suitcases as I want.

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  19. I agree- most of the time I can get away with packing everything I need in a carryon and it feels awesome! and don't worry, I'll be wearing my race shirts as well (hopefully!).

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  20. So, the SD card comment cracked me up because I set aside ten minutes about a week before my trip to clear everything and get it ready for the week. It gets me really pumped because half the time, the remaining pictures on the cards are from the last trip. Haha!! Looking forward to reading more from you gals!

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    1. That is funny because I have pictures from my last three Disney trips on my card. I am always surprised at how many photos those little cards hold yet I don't ever want to take a chance of them being full!

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  21. I am so glad I read this!!! Power Strip-genius!!!!! i'm actually sharing a room with 2 other women, and I am definitely packing a power strip!!!!

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  22. I'm a carry on gal too. I also have a tradition to wear my race shirt home with a pair of jeans. It makes packing a little easier.

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