My Editor Made Me Wear This Obnoxious Fan Hat in Disney World, and I Would Do It Again

I’ve tested some of the strangest things my Editor could think of to use at Disney World, but I’m fairly sure this one ranks at the top of the weirdest list!

Being an AllEars reporter means I’m in Disney World practically every day, and let’s face it — there’s no foolproof way to hide from Mother Nature all day long. So, my Editor got to thinking about ways to help me and my fellow reporters stay cool while we’re out in the sun all day, and that’s led to some wild rabbit holes of Amazon finds I didn’t think were even possible. We’ve tried everything from cooling towels to cooling patches, handheld fans, and even a few that mist. But this latest item she asked me to review really had me questioning her sanity — until I tried it.

Surviving a long, hot day in the summer at Disney World is practically impossible on your own. If the heat and humidity alone aren’t enough to catch up to you, we can almost guarantee the buckets you’ll sweat against a regular water intake will be enough to send you indoors and sitting down for a while. So, it’s extremely important to make sure you’re doing everything possible to stay cool so you can not only get through an entire day at Disney World during the summer, but actually enjoy it!

So naturally, since I’m out in the sun a lot, my Editor came to me with an idea for a new way to stay cool that we hadn’t tested before — and I quickly agreed to test a new product without giving it a second thought.

So when I received this new device, I just knew she’d made a mistake. I took one look at this thing and thought, “nope, no way that’s going to work,” but decided to give it a fair chance just in case. This solar-powered fan hat comes with a wide-rimmed bucket hat (think fisherman hat style) outfitted with breathable holes in areas around the headpiece and brim to allow for the air to flow in and out. But while that might not be so silly on its own, it’s also got two huge gaping holes in it, too!

These holes are outfitted to hold the solar-powered fans on each side of the hat and can swivel when attached to meet your face. Determined to give it a fighting chance, I packed it in my bag for the day and set out for a day of reporting in the parks — hopefully cooler than most.

The first thing you’ll need to know about this hat, though, is you’ve got options. Each fan can be set to multiple settings and can either work by solar power…

…or by plugging it in and being charged for a while. It also comes with a switch, so you don’t have to have them blasting at you the entire time.

To my surprise, they actually last a while on their own. Each of the fans has tiny arms on each side that snap into the holes on the hat, and you’ll need to use a little force behind it to make it snap it place — don’t worry, you’ll know you’ve got it secured in there when you hear it.

Then, it’s just a matter of turning the fans on when you need them and fitting them to your head with an adjustable chin strap. Admittedly, while it might not be the most stylish headwear I’ve ever sported around Disney World, I have to admit defeat in thinking this was a half-brained idea. The fans actually do work when snapped into place, and they’re made even better when you walk into some place cooler, like a store or indoor attraction.

The only place where I had issues with using this fan hat was when it was extremely hot. I found I needed to turn the fan setting up higher to keep them from just circulating warm air in my face constantly.

Is this something I’m willing to spend the money on again? That’s a toss-up. While I personally didn’t like the wide-brimmed hat from this style, I loved the fan idea. In a different style, I probably would have loved it even more, but this one wasn’t my favorite. Concept-wise? YES — just comes down to personal preference. Would I say that you need it for your next trip? Yes, and I say “and” because you DEFINITELY need a way to stay cool in this brutal Florida summer heat; however, we’ve tested and proved lots of products that are capable of achieving the same breeze or chill factor. Any of the ones we recommend would be a great option; we’re just tossing this one in along with that ranking.

I hope this was helpful to you as you’re making decisions about your preparations for your next Disney World trip. Be sure to check back in with me to see what my Editor has me try out next so I can give you my honest thoughts on it!

In the meantime, we’ll be keeping an eye out for the latest Disney deals, so make sure you stay tuned to AllEars for more!

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