What to Bring to Disneyland with Kids

When heading to Disneyland with kids, you want to be prepared to meet their needs, but you also don't want to overpack. After all, you know that the adults will be carrying most of the load. What are the essential items you need to keep your tadpoles hopping and healthy? We visit Disneyland with kids of all ages, from babies to teens. We've narrowed down what to bring to Disneyland with kids based on hundreds of visits and many lessons learned.

Other hopful, related family posts include:

• Mom's Secrets for Going to Disneyland with a Baby (with a baby-specific packing list)
• Disneyland Park Plan for Toddlers and Preschoolers
• Taking Elementary-Aged Kids to Disneyland
• Top Kids Foods at Disneyland Even Your Pickiest Eater Will Love
• Top 10 Tips for Using a Stroller at Disneyland
• Complete Guide to Disneyland and Disney California Adventure Height Requirements
• Tips for Going to Disneyland with Teens and Tweens
• Bougie on a Budget — How to Save on Souvenirs at Disneyland

What to Bring to Disneyland with Kids

Here's what to bring to Disneyland with kids.

Sun Protection

Pack sunscreen, hats and sunglasses (but only if your kids will actually wear them). Keep long sleeves on them, as the weather allows, to avoid sunburns and sun exposure. But always dress in layers so you can remove them.

A Sweatshirt

The temperature fluctuates at Disneyland. Even sunny days can turn chilly at night. Hop over to our month-by-month guide to Disneyland weather to get a sense of what to pack for your trip. Layers are always in season. During warmer months, a long-sleeved T-shirt or Spirit Jersey will do the trick on chilly nights.

During the cooler months, hats, scarves and little gloves (added to the sweatshirt) really help your tadpoles stay warm while taking up less space than a big jacket.

For those rare rainy days, umbrellas, rain ponchos or raincoats, and stroller covers are going to be super hopful at keeping everyone dry. Rain boots or waterproof shoes keep feet dry and cozy. (An extra pair of socks wouldn't hurt either!) And that equates to fewer complaints.

Ponchos also prevent a toadal soaking on water rides such as Tiana's Bayou Adventure or Grizzly River Run during any weather. We recently discovered shoe ponchos, and they were a real game-changer for water rides.

Spare clothes

Depending on your child's age and clothing change needs or potty training status, you can condense spare shirts, bottoms and underwear into plastic bags so they take up little space in your backpack. If your little princess wears a fancy princess dress, have something more comfy to change into should that puffy dress begin to feel too itchy or impractical as the day wears on.

Water bottles 

Bring refillable water bottles to stay hydrated. You can refill them for free at restaurants or at water refill stations. This saves a lot of money compared to buying drinks in the park. Here's a hack: If you have kids around the same size, have them carry each other's water bottles in backpacks so they can easily access them whenever they want them.

Snacks

You'll save money and time when you bring your tadpole's favorite snacks. In fact, you can bring all the food or beverages you like. Some picky eaters do better with familiar foods.

Strollers

Bring (or rent) a stroller for ages 4 and under. Even for older kids who don't regularly use a stroller anymore, a stroller comes in handy for naps and getting more mileage in. Plus, it saves your back from carrying bags and tired kids.

With a stroller, bring large carabiner clips. You can use them to attach bags to the stroller.

Whether you bring your own stroller or rent one, bring something to personalize your stroller. We used bandanas to mark ours, and it helped us locate our stroller easily when it was moved to a new location while we were on a ride.

Other hopful stroller accessories may include pacifier clips, white noise machines and fans. For parents, cup holders really come in handy.

Ear Protection

You parents of kids with sensitive ears might want to bring along those noise-cancelling earphones for parades, toilet flushes or any time the volume gets to be too much.

Wipes

Even after your babies age out of diapers, wipes come in handy to wipe faces, hands, surfaces and anything else that needs cleaning.

Plastic Bags

Resealable plastic bags do not take up much space, but boy, do they come in handy. They are great for storing dirty clothes or for saving leftovers so your kids can snack on them later. They hold snacks, such as popcorn and sticky lollipops. On rainy days, they keep dry stuff dry and wet stuff from affecting the things you want to keep dry. Plastic baggies have come to our rescue many times.

Portable Phone Chargers

You'll be taking a lot of pictures, using the Disneyland app, booking Lightning Lanes and more. You need your phone battery to last all day. Have a charger to keep everyone's phone juiced up. If you have teens and tweens who will break off from you, make sure they have a fully charged device and a backup plan for meeting up with you.

Comfortable Walking Shoes

This is not the time to put on dress-up princess shoes or sandals. If you want your kids to walk several miles a day, they need proper sneakers or even Crocs. And don't froget the socks!

Autograph Books or Items to Sign

If your kids want to collect character signatures, bring an autograph book or other item and a writing instrument to the parks with you. You can also DIY it and bring photo frames or mattes, clothing items or ornaments to collect signatures. Choose something lightweight and non-breakable.

A Towel or Small Blanket

A beach towel or blanket makes a great ground covering for parade time, shows such as Fantasmic! (for dining packages, you are seated on the ground) or to have a picnic in Toontown. You can cover a napping child with a thin blanket or use it to block out the light.

You can rent a locker near the front of the park to store items until you need them.

Do you have any must-have items to bring to Disneyland with kids? Share them in the comments section below. Another thing we love to bring is Disney gift cards to stay on budget. One way to save on Disney gift cards is to buy discount Disneyland theme park tickets through Undercover Tourist. Each ticket comes with Dining Dollar promo codes. You can apply those promo codes to save 15% off Disney gift card purchases. You can use the gift cards for merchandise and food at Disneyland Resort and other Disney destinations. 

Related: What Are Dining Dollars? How to Redeem Promo Codes Provided by Undercover Tourist

Related: The Best Kid-Friendly Hotels Near Disneyland

Hoppy planning!