You’ve been saving for years for this once-in-a-lifetime vacation to Walt Disney World. Your travel agent has booked your vacation, they’ve planned all your dining, and made all your FastPasses. You’ve bought the matching shirts, and you’ve planned your list of must sees and dos. Your trip is almost here, and you look at the weather forecast. It calls for RAIN! Rain is not magical. How can your vacation be sprinkled with pixie dust if it’s just going to be washed away by the rain???
Let me start off by saying that it rains in Florida. Sometimes a lot. As your travel agent, I would love to plan your trip to fit the schedule of perfect weather – sunny and beautiful with no humidity. Unfortunately, I don’t have that much control (otherwise, I’d be using my powers for different things than planning vacations).
Quite often when it does rain, it is short lived. Your rain shower might happen while you are riding It’s A Small World. The rest of the day is beautiful, and you’re singing a lovely little tune as you carry on with your time in the park. I, personally, don’t spend a lot of time watching the weather forecast before a trip. Weather can change, and if it doesn’t, there is nothing we can do about it. The best you can do is be prepared for a rainy day.
Rainy days can mean that there are not as many people in the park. If it does happen to be a day when the rain stays around for much of the day, locals stay home and tourists change their days up to escape the rain. This can be a great opportunity to see more with fewer crowds. To help make your days more enjoyable, I recommend packing a rain jacket, poncho, or umbrella. Which you use is personal preference. If you opt for a poncho, spend a few dollars on one. If you buy very inexpensive ponchos, they will easily rip and more than likely won’t last your entire trip. A waterproof jacket or umbrella will be something that can be used even when you aren’t on vacation, and these can be a good alternative to a poncho. If you want to live on the edge and not pack these items, Disney does sell ponchos and umbrellas. Ponchos are sold in both child and adult size and have a cute Mickey Mouse on them. You do pay a premium for them, though.
A must for any vacation are comfortable shoes. A good thing to keep in mind when packing is to have shoes that are OK getting wet and are going to be comfortable to walk around while they are wet. Sneakers are comfortable shoes, but once they are wet, they can be very uncomfortable to walk around in and can also take a long time to dry. If sneakers are your shoe of choice, make sure to have a back-up pair. Flip flops are great for getting wet, however they are not always a great option to walk in when wet as they will slip and slide around. A great option for shoes would be a sandal that straps on your foot like the style of Keens or Teva’s.
Make the most of your rainy day. Splash in a puddle. Dance in the rain. Have fun. These might just be some of the best memories you make with your family. We hope that before long, the rain is gone and our days are filled with sunshine and rainbows.