Your Disney Foot Care Kit
When traveling to Walt Disney World, it is absolutely ESSENTIAL to pack a foot care kit. You may walk 10 miles a day every day of your vacation. On our last vacation, we walked between 7 and 10 miles each day of 12 days in a row... that's between 84 and 120 miles! And we were even taking it easy!
Do not underestimate the importance of looking after your feet. I promise you, you will be much happier if you pack a few essentials and follow these other tips for foot care.
This my essential Disney foot care kit:
Contents:
Items I recommend for everyone:
Several blister bandaids - Get the blister bubble kind. At the first sign of a blister, slap one of these puppies on and wear it until the blister is gone. It works wonders.
Aleve - I like the 12 hour kind. Knowing it would last me half the day, I packed 12 in a contact lens case because those pack down so small. I hardly dug into them at all, but it was good to know they were there.
Tiger balm - This is a muscle ointment, like Icy Hot or Bengay or Gold Bond. I prefer tiger balm for trips because it is small and a little goes a long way. Use this on sore muscles.
Cooling foot spray - Want a little slice of heaven at the end of a long park day? Bring along some cooling foot spray. Not only does it feel amazing on your hot and tired feet, but this Body Shop peppermint foot spray also eliminates that "nasty feet" smell.
Additional items I recommend for those with foot troubles like me:
1 roll of kinetic tape - this heats up as you move, warming muscles and soothing them. I have plantar fasciitis, so this is essential.
1 roll of normal white athletic tape - in case of a flare up, I'm going to run out of kinetic tape really quickly. This is less expensive, contains more tape, and a good back up.
Plantar fasciitis socks - Ok, so this is very specific, but the point here is to have with you whatever inserts, arch support, whatever makes you comfortable on your bad feet days. I ended up not needing to wear these on my last trip because I also brought my shoe inserts which worked alone just fine.
This should all be able to be packed into a small cloth make-up bag. For this kit, I used one of those free bags you get when you get samples from L'Occitane because they are so pretty. Remember that your liquids (in this case, the tiger balm and cooling spray) need to be in their own clear bag if being carried on your carry on. I typically put this in my checked luggage because I don't need it until a couple of days in.
EPCOT stands for Every Person Comes Out Tired
Other things you can and should do for your Disney feet:
-WEAR COMFORTABLE SHOES! This is the NUMBER ONE thing you must do. And consider that the definition of comfortable might become a little more strict when you are walking up to 10 miles a day. For most people, this is going to mean even flip flops are a no go. We are talking straight-up cross training tennis shoes here with plenty of rubber sole and arch support. I love my New Balance shoes.
-Bring a back-up pair of shoes. Your feet might get tired of the way one pair feels after several days. Or you might notice that the toe or heel rubs or the arch isn't exactly perfect when your feet get hot and swollen from all the walking. So bring another pair. I usually go with a firm and supportive pair and a more comfortable more flexible pair. My secondary pair is a pair of Kuru tennis shoes. These are made specifically for people in need of arch support.
-Bring extra socks. Budget on two pairs a day. Socks don't take much space, but if you get rained on or ride Kali River Rapids, you are going to be glad to have a dry pair to change into. Some days it feels good to even double up on your socks and wear two pairs to prevent blisters.
-Make sure those socks are cotton. It's ok if there is some other fibers, but you are looking for socks that are mostly cotton. Cotton wicks your sweat away and keeps your feet smelling like normal feet and not like dead creatures.
Take my advice for taking care of your feet and you will be a much happier camper than those who go unprepared!
