When you’ve taken the step to plan a magical vacation to Universal Orlando Resort, you’ve placed your deposit while using an agent through Marvelous Mouse Travels, flights are booked, and the countdown continues. What are the next steps? Creating your packing list! After traveling to the parks for quite a few years, I’ve narrowed it down to my “must have” packing items for enjoying the parks but not weighing down your bag. Let’s go!
Up first, a bag! If you’re anything like me, you have to have a few things with you. A small backpack, the Loungefly brand is very popular, is just perfect for your day in the park. Universal Studios Orlando and Universal Islands of Adventure both have attractions that require guests to place their items into a small locker, usually before entering the queue. The free lockers provided by the park are roughly 5.5” high by 14” wide. This means that your bag must be compact enough to utilize the locker unless you have a person not participating in the attraction. Another option is a crossbody or fanny pack. The space may be a little more limited for carrying, if it is just you, it could be a perfect choice.
But what to go in the bag? Up first is a credit card in the name of the lead guest on the reservation. To gain access and print your park tickets at the kiosk, the credit card will be needed. Nothing will be charged, it is just for security and identification purposes.
My family always has hand sanitizer attached to the outside of the bag for quick and easy access. The next item is a small reusable water bottle. Both Universal Studios and Universal Island of Adventure have Coca Cola Freestyle Machines which means they offer water for free. The Freestyle Machines do have sensors for cups for other products, but the water and ice dispensers work without the activated sensor. Staying hydrated in the parks is very important, especially during the hot summer months.
I also always carry a small amount of medicine with me. I have found that when I do not have a headache or pain reliever with me, we need it the most. Amazon has quite a few different options, but I found a plastic container with 12 different compartments to carry medicine in. The container even comes with labels to place on the lid of the individual compartments so we know quickly what is inside. Motion sickness medicine may also be something to consider if someone is prone to it with the movement from the attractions.
Also inside my bag are rain ponchos! I pack a few inside my luggage, but I always carry at least one poncho for each person to the parks. Especially during those summer months when afternoon rainstorms pop up out of nowhere! During the fall, as long as there is not any rain in the forecast for the day, I usually forgo carrying them with me but they are always in the hotel room.
Outside of the bag that I carry and the things inside, every member in my travel party has a lanyard with a zipper seal plastic sleeve. Why you may ask? Universal has paper tickets that are scanned for entry into each park along with for access to The Hogwarts Express. Please note that you must have Park to Park tickets to enjoy The Hogwarts Express as it does take you to the other park. The zipper seal sleeve keeps the paper tickets safe from being lost and/or destroyed from getting wet. If you purchase Express Pass or stay at a Signature Collection resort, where the Express Pass is included with your stay, they can go on the opposite side of your park ticket for easy and quick access. The Express Pass does get scanned at the entry to the attraction to gain access and sometimes again before you board the attraction. Keeping it readily available on the lanyard makes your visit more seamless.
One of the most important items on my list, especially for a few sunburn prone family members, is sunscreen! Apply and reapply some more, the Florida sun is no joke. I carry one bottle of sunscreen to the parks with us each day, and there is plenty more waiting for me back at the resort.
Even though we are enjoying the time in the parks, we end up using our cellphones for photos, mobile ordering, and using the Universal Orlando app for a variety of reasons. This means we may need to recharge our phones during the day. A portable charger is the perfect item to pack for this.
A few personal preference items would be chapstick and reusable drinking straws. Chapstick is great not only for dried lips, the Velocicoaster offers a great breeze, but there is also sunscreen protection in some chapsticks. The reusable drinking straws may not be something that everyone needs, but we prefer them over the paper ones at the parks. Another great Amazon find is the silicone straws with the plastic case that almost looks like a pair of earbuds. The case usually comes with a clip to attach to a backpack.
While this will not complete your packing list for your trip to Universal Orlando Resort, it's a good starting point for things you may not have considered or may have forgotten about. A bag to keep all of your items, a water bottle to refill (for free), and sunscreen are probably the most important. If you are ready to get the countdown started for your next Universal vacation, reach out to your Marvelous Mouse Travels agent to get started!
