Disney in the Rain
Okay, so I'm not stupid. I knew that Florida is known for passing storms in June. I've been there for a few myself. It goes from a bright sunny day to a torrential downpour in a matter of minutes. But after about 20 minutes the storms pass and you're back in the sunshine. I thought I was prepared. We had ponchos and umbrellas...we were safe right? Ummn no. Sometimes you have huge thunderstorms that shut down everything and refuse to leave for hours at a time. But you're already in Disney? What you should do? Here's what I learned.
{one} Make sure everyone has their own poncho. I saw a few people in actual rain coats, but it is so hot and muggy that those looked like torture. Sure covering yourself in plastic is not the most pleasant {or attractive} thing in the world, but it helps keep you dry and they don't add any more heat to your body.
{two} Have a few umbrellas with you. Yes, the ponchos help, but sometimes the rain is so heavy that even those won't help you. Umbrella's made a big difference for all of us.
{three} Bring baseball hats for everyone. Firs off, the little hood on the ponchos rarely stays on. And if you manage to keep it up, the wind gusts will surely blow it off again. Baseball hats were always donned with the ponchos.
{four} Don't wear expensive shoes to the park. Little did I know that Disney can flood pretty quickly once it starts to rain. Thankfully I did not have us in expensive shoes the first day, and kept it that way for the rest of the trip. Skip wore an old pair of sneakers, the girls were in Crocs {which was the best for the rain since they dried off easily} and I rocked my flip flops. My shoe choice might not have been the best because I kept slipping and would end up walking around barefoot every time it rained. But the only other shoes I brought were my expensive running sneakers and I didn't want to ruin them!
{five} Get a water proof case for your phone. My bestie got me one for our trip for my birthday this year and I cannot tell you what a lifesaver this was! As soon as the clouds rolled in, Skip and I would pop our phones in there so they would be protected. Sure, my phone died for a bit on our trip, but not due to water damage!
{six} Pack a change of clothes for your kids, and put them in plastic bags. Skip and I were okay with sitting in wet clothes, but the girls sure weren't. I had at least one extra outfit packed for them every day and was able to change them if they got too soaked. I then put their wet clothes in the plastic bag to keep them from ruining everything else.
{seven} Make sure to pick up some extra napkins at lunch, snack places, etc. We kept those with us and used them to dry off ourselves and the stroller after each storm.
{eight} Pack all of these things in a sturdy book bag, waterproof bag of some sort. Skip and I each had a book bag that could withstand the rain. Now is the not the time to bring an expensive purse into the park. It will get ruined.
{nine} Be prepared to change up your plans/wait on a lot of long lines. Many times we would be heading off to a certain ride just as lighting would start. All the outdoor rides would immediately shut down until it was safe again, so we'd have to make a plan change pretty quickly. All of the indoor rides and restaurants immediately fill up with people trying to avoid the rain. My girls were not fans of waiting for a long time, so we avoided them. But find the closest indoor ride to where you are an hop on to wait!
{ten} The streets empty quite a bit when once it starts raining as everyone heads for an indoor ride, restaurant, or any sort of cover they can find. We actually found it more fun to don our ponchos, break out the umbrellas, and just start walking around. There is so much to do in Disney, that you rarely get the opportunity to just wander around and take it all in. We had so great moments just looking at everything, searching for ducks and birds, and stopping ton have a snack while the streets were a bit clearer.
{eleven} Leave the park. There were a few times the rain was really bad, and showed no signs of letting up. Instead of continuing to walk around waiting for rides to open up again, we just cut our losses and headed back to the hotel. That way we could relax, and head out to the pool as soon as they got the ok to open up again. You could either just stay at your hotel the rest of the day and take it easy, as we did, or head back to the parks later in the evening once it hopefully clears up.
{twelves} Take a deep breathe, relax, and try to enjoy regardless. Rain on a vacation is something that no one wants. And this much rain was certainly unexpected for us. Sure there were moments I was frustrated and disappointed that we had to change plans, but I learned to just roll with it. Sometimes we'd poncho up, wait out the rain, and then get back to our activities. And sometimes we just had to cut our losses and call it a day. Learning to adapt and let go of expectations made a huge difference in our whole trip. Try not to let the storms rain on your parade {hahaha} Plus, how often do you get to wear this fabulous outfit on vacation?
Have you dealt with rain while in Disney? How did you weather the storms?
{one} Make sure everyone has their own poncho. I saw a few people in actual rain coats, but it is so hot and muggy that those looked like torture. Sure covering yourself in plastic is not the most pleasant {or attractive} thing in the world, but it helps keep you dry and they don't add any more heat to your body.
{two} Have a few umbrellas with you. Yes, the ponchos help, but sometimes the rain is so heavy that even those won't help you. Umbrella's made a big difference for all of us.
{three} Bring baseball hats for everyone. Firs off, the little hood on the ponchos rarely stays on. And if you manage to keep it up, the wind gusts will surely blow it off again. Baseball hats were always donned with the ponchos.
{four} Don't wear expensive shoes to the park. Little did I know that Disney can flood pretty quickly once it starts to rain. Thankfully I did not have us in expensive shoes the first day, and kept it that way for the rest of the trip. Skip wore an old pair of sneakers, the girls were in Crocs {which was the best for the rain since they dried off easily} and I rocked my flip flops. My shoe choice might not have been the best because I kept slipping and would end up walking around barefoot every time it rained. But the only other shoes I brought were my expensive running sneakers and I didn't want to ruin them!
{five} Get a water proof case for your phone. My bestie got me one for our trip for my birthday this year and I cannot tell you what a lifesaver this was! As soon as the clouds rolled in, Skip and I would pop our phones in there so they would be protected. Sure, my phone died for a bit on our trip, but not due to water damage!
{six} Pack a change of clothes for your kids, and put them in plastic bags. Skip and I were okay with sitting in wet clothes, but the girls sure weren't. I had at least one extra outfit packed for them every day and was able to change them if they got too soaked. I then put their wet clothes in the plastic bag to keep them from ruining everything else.
{seven} Make sure to pick up some extra napkins at lunch, snack places, etc. We kept those with us and used them to dry off ourselves and the stroller after each storm.
{eight} Pack all of these things in a sturdy book bag, waterproof bag of some sort. Skip and I each had a book bag that could withstand the rain. Now is the not the time to bring an expensive purse into the park. It will get ruined.
{nine} Be prepared to change up your plans/wait on a lot of long lines. Many times we would be heading off to a certain ride just as lighting would start. All the outdoor rides would immediately shut down until it was safe again, so we'd have to make a plan change pretty quickly. All of the indoor rides and restaurants immediately fill up with people trying to avoid the rain. My girls were not fans of waiting for a long time, so we avoided them. But find the closest indoor ride to where you are an hop on to wait!
{ten} The streets empty quite a bit when once it starts raining as everyone heads for an indoor ride, restaurant, or any sort of cover they can find. We actually found it more fun to don our ponchos, break out the umbrellas, and just start walking around. There is so much to do in Disney, that you rarely get the opportunity to just wander around and take it all in. We had so great moments just looking at everything, searching for ducks and birds, and stopping ton have a snack while the streets were a bit clearer.
{eleven} Leave the park. There were a few times the rain was really bad, and showed no signs of letting up. Instead of continuing to walk around waiting for rides to open up again, we just cut our losses and headed back to the hotel. That way we could relax, and head out to the pool as soon as they got the ok to open up again. You could either just stay at your hotel the rest of the day and take it easy, as we did, or head back to the parks later in the evening once it hopefully clears up.
{twelves} Take a deep breathe, relax, and try to enjoy regardless. Rain on a vacation is something that no one wants. And this much rain was certainly unexpected for us. Sure there were moments I was frustrated and disappointed that we had to change plans, but I learned to just roll with it. Sometimes we'd poncho up, wait out the rain, and then get back to our activities. And sometimes we just had to cut our losses and call it a day. Learning to adapt and let go of expectations made a huge difference in our whole trip. Try not to let the storms rain on your parade {hahaha} Plus, how often do you get to wear this fabulous outfit on vacation?
Have you dealt with rain while in Disney? How did you weather the storms?
I remember doing so much of this as a kid when I went to Disney and even now as an adult. It's crazy how the weather there changes on a dime but you did an awesome job being totally covered!
ReplyDeleteGood advice!!
ReplyDelete