Tips about Food & Beverage, Mousecellaneous, Planning and Sun & Heat Tips

We took in small snack-sized bags of Gatorade to put in our water bottles for the really hot days. The park charges a lot for Gatorade -- almost as much as the canister itself costs -- and you can just tear a tiny bit of the bag off and pour it right in. We also carried our water bottles with our own water bottle holders. Family Fun Magazine shows you how to make your own. We made some for our Girl Scout troop that were similar: Use two to three feet of webbing, which you can get at a fabric store, or get those cheaper dog leashes from a dollar store. Cut to your desired length, fold each end around a rubber O-ring (found in plumbing areas of hardware stores) and sew the ends to form your water bottle holder. You simply slip the O-ring over the mouth of the bottle and you have a hands-free bottle of water that you can refill and use to keep yourself hydrated. - Clemley

This summer, my family decided to give back a little to the Cast Members who make each stay even more magical. Before leaving home, we printed (using print programs that are out there on the Web) character thank you cards. Each card had a different princess or Tinker Bell on it, and said something nice like, "We put your service to the test, and you're the best!" or "Thank you for making our vacation magical!" We added our family name, hometown, and "Summer 2004." We printed them out, and each member of our family got a sheet of their own to color. After coloring, we laminated them. Once in the park, we handed them out to Cast Members who we felt had gone above and beyond the call of "normal magic." Most of the Cast Members we handed them out to were so surprised and thanked *us*! We really enjoyed doing this, and I feel sure that it will be a new tradition for our family. - Ashlee Farris

When we go down we ship down [to our resort] a variety of food etc via UPS. We send down coffee, bagels, peanut butter, jelly coffee filters, cereal (Disney themed of course), snacks, iced tea and kool aid mix to name a few things. It takes about 5 days from Vermont. We address it including our ressie number and arrival date. When we check in they tell us there's a package waiting. It sure beats hauling a lot down and beats the prices at Orlando stores. - Heidi Coughlin EDITOR'S NOTE: Resorts with convention services will issue a delivery charge for all packages shipped.

If you plan on visiting WDW during the winter months, buy several pairs of those "magic" stretch gloves before you leave for your trip. If a cold front comes through during your visit and you need gloves, you'll be happy you bought them before you left home. The parks sells them for $6.00 a pair. Quite a difference in price than what your local Wal-Mart sells them for. - Noreen Rachuba

From time to time people want to know the location of the closest church to WDW. Now you can search: http://masstimes.org. You can search for services in any state and town. They even have city maps, too. I thought this might be helpful to anyone wanting to go to services while on vacation. Tina

MAGIC KINGDOM - I've found that making a lunch reservation as early as possible at Crystal Palace is far better than the breakfast. You can get to the park early and get a lot of stuff done before the crowds pour in and then take a break in the air conditioning! - Julie Budd

We have been going to WDW since our children were toddlers. Now they are all teenagers (and beyond), but this tip is still good. We have them bring plastic beverage holders that can clip onto a fanny belt. They start out with water, but if we ate a meal in the park, frequently there would still be some beverage left from the meal. The kids would fill the bottle with the leftover drink and take it with them. This has worked well over the years. - Anne Cioffi

If you go to the Winn-Dixie store, sign up for a free money saving card...you will save even more with each purchase! - Ricke Z

My wife and I have found a great way to save money on food if you have a car or the car service will make a grocery stop. We drive out to the Publix supermarket on Rte 192. The way we save on water is we buy several gallon jugs of Publix water and then a 50 oz bottle of the same water. We continue to refill the smaller bottle from the gallon jugs. Using the 50 oz bottle gives you a good supply of water for a good part of the day and saves a fortune by not having to pay the high theme park prices for a small bottle of water. The water may not be ice cold but it is very cheap. - Andy & Denise

We just returned from our trip to Disney World. The night we went to Fantasmic I knew we would be sitting for a while waiting for the show to begin. The best investment I made was buying one of those soft folding stadium seats. I carried it with me like a purse. Even used the side mesh pocket to carry drinks to our seats. We waited for over an hour and a half for the show to begin but I didn't mind - I was very comfortable with my seat padding and back support! - Marilyn Lewis

Be flexible with making your ADR dining arrangements. If the table you want is unavailable try different combinations -- 2 tables of 2 instead of one table of four; a 3-2 split rather than a table of 5, etc. Splitting up your group for just an hour or so may be the way to go, given that you're spending all day and all night together for several days on end. Splitting up may also allow you to gain more flexibility in changing ADR reservations without penalty if, after several days in the parks, someone in your party says "I don't need to see any more characters, I'll stay at the hotel, sleep late and meet you later, go and enjoy!" - Phylis

A few years ago despite taking precautions, water, hat, spraying, I began to feel dizzy after standing in the sun waiting for and watching the afternoon parade. I went into the Emporium and sat down on the bottom of a clothing rack while my son ran to get my husband. A cast member came over and asked me if I felt okay. When I told him I thought I might faint he walked me over to the first aid station and stayed until a nurse took over. I was able to lie down until my body temperature regulated. I was given drinks and the nurse kept checking on me while I rested. She couldn't do enough for me and gave me some extra precautions to take so it would not happen again. The rest of the trip was fine but now I try to stay in the shade and I drink tons of water.WDW cast members are the best! - Susan Albert

There is a product by Banana Boat, called Hair and Scalp Protector SPF 15, that is a spray for your hair. It is light and not greasy at all. It keeps your scalp from burning, and also helps your hair color not fade. - Lynn LaMunyon

Eat light. Avoid hot, heavy meals and opt for foods high in water content: fruits, salads and soups. Unless you have a health reason for avoiding them, eat some salty snacks. The salt will help you retain extra fluids. Bananas are a great way to replace the potassium you lose through sweating. - Beth Foss

To keep cool while touring the parks we always carry a water bottle, we fill the bottle full of ice from our hotel room or at the food court of our WDW resort. Then we refill throughout the day with water from bubblers and any remaining ice from beverages that we've purchased. This keeps the water cool all day! Our other suggestion is to get up early and get to the parks for opening plus there are shorter lines. Around noontime we eat in a nice air conditioned restaurant then head back to our hotel for a dip in the pool, cool shower and a nap. Then we go out to eat and are back in the parks when the sun's going down until they close. This plan is great because you avoid the hottest part of the day in the park! J. Tutlis