So you’ve got your acceptance letter for the Disney College Program (DCP) and you’ve paid your program fees. Now comes all the planning! I’m sure you’re considering whether or not to find roommates to link up with or to go random. And then you start thinking about which apartment complex you want to live in. And pretty soon you’re thinking about the long list of things you couldn’t possibly live without when you’re at Disney!
Since you’ll be moving to Florida for at least 4 months, there are a lot of things you’ll need to bring for your apartment. But there are also a lot of things you don’t really need. Here I am going to share with you my list of what to bring, what not to bring, and recommendations on what to get once you’re in Florida.
Packing List
Bedroom
- Twin Size Bed Sheets
I used the Twin XL bedding that I used in my college dorm and it worked perfectly. I recommend bringing the sheets since you’ll want to use them that first night you arrive and they don’t take up a ton of space in your luggage.
- Pillow
I would suggest that you buy the pillow the first day you get to Florida if you are traveling by plane since pillows can take up a lot of space. However, you can bring it from home if you want to and if you have space. Bringing it would be helpful in case you don’t manage to get to the store on the first day you move into Disney Housing.
- Pillow Cases
I recommend bringing an extra so you can switch them out. It can get hot in Florida and you don’t want to deal with sweaty/dirty pillowcases clogging your pores & making you break out.
- Twin Size Comforter/Blanket
I brought mine from home, but you can always buy one in Florida when you get there if you don’t have enough space to bring it from home.
- Mattress Protector
I recommend getting one of these to protect yourself against bed bugs. I never heard of any bed bug issues during my programs, but in an apartment complex that constantly has people moving in and out, there’s an elevated chance of bed bug infestations.
- Clothing
Keep in mind that Florida is hot and humid, so the clothes you bring should fit that. It does get a little chilly in the winter months, especially early in the morning or late at night, so I would suggest bringing a couple long-sleeved shirts, 1-2 pairs of jeans/pants, and 1-2 sweaters. Most of what you’ll be wearing will probably be shorts/leggings, t-shirts, tank tops, etc. But you won’t need to bring as much as you think you need to! Disney sells some cute clothing and there is an Outlet Mall very close to housing, so you will likely buy new clothing while in Florida. However, most days you’ll just be wearing your costume, so you won’t need real clothes a majority of the time. And you’ll be able to do laundry whenever you want. I also recommend bringing a good rain jacket, as it rains in Florida almost daily. And don’t forget a swimsuit for the pool/beach/waterparks!
- Business Casual Clothing
Everyone says you should bring a few business casual outfits that you will wear to Traditions and training. And you should bring one outfit to wear to Traditions. For both of the roles I’ve had, I only had to wear a business casual outfit to one training session, and you can definitely wear the same outfit to that training session that you had worn to Traditions (there’s time to do laundry between when these happen!). If you bring too many business casual outfits, you’ll notice they just take up space and you don’t wear them much. I would recommend bringing 1-2 business casual outfits, possibly 3 if you are signed up to take the classes that Disney offers as you’ll want to look nice for those as well.
- Comfy Shoes
Make sure your shoes are comfortable because walking around the parks on your days off will hurt your feet if you don’t have good shoes! It also rains a lot and wearing wet shoes is no fun, so having a couple pairs of good shoes will be important.
- Laundry Basket/Bag
You’ll want something to put your laundry in so you can take it to the laundry facilities. I recommend buying this in Florida if you are flying to Florida. I also brought a bag of quarters to use for the laundry facilities at Disney Housing. You can typically use a credit card for the laundry machines, but then the company might put a hold on some of your money until it processes how much money you actually owe for each time you do laundry, and people have complained that they weren’t charged the correct amount when doing laundry sometimes also. I never had to deal with that annoyance because I just used quarters.
- A Lock
There will be a safe provided in your bedroom (often in the closet) but it doesn’t come with a lock on it. You can use this safe to store important things (like your passport, etc.), but you’ll want to bring a lock for it.
Kitchen
Most kitchen items are provided by Disney Housing. However if you want extras of something, you can get some on your own. For instance, in my 8-person apartment, we had an issue with running out of pots/pans to use for cooking because we all wanted to use pots/pans of similar sizes. Personally, I chose to buy an inexpensive set of pots from Walmart and I kept them in my closet because they were mine. Then whenever I would need a pot, I used my own. And I cleaned it and dried it by hand after using it so I could put it back in my closet. This guaranteed that I would have a pot available when I wanted to use one. However, things like this will only be found out by living with your roommates for a while, so I wouldn’t pack these things ahead of time. Just be aware that there may be items you want to purchase later on.
Bathroom
- Toilet Paper
On your first day living in the apartment, you & your roommates will want to go out and buy toilet paper.
- Plunger
You will want to coordinate getting this with whoever you end up sharing a bathroom with. You can buy this after moving into the apartment.
- Toiletries
You know what toiletries you generally need, and you will need these when you move to Florida.
Living Room
- TV
During both of my programs, one of my roommates has brought a TV for the living area, and it is nice to have one there. I would recommend coordinating this with your roommates if you are able to link up with roommates. And you can always buy a TV once you get to Florida. During my second DCP, my roommate and I got a TV for in our bedroom, which was really nice because we could stay up late watching Netflix quietly without bothering our other roommates by being in the main shared living area.
- Couch Cover
My apartment didn’t bring/use a couch cover for my first program, but my apartment did use one for my second program. Mostly it is just for aesthetics/decorating purposes. But if it grosses you out that other people have sat on your apartment’s couch before, then maybe you want a couch cover to help with that.
- Key Hooks
I have found that it is nice to have a row of key hooks near the door of your apartment. Firstly, it serves as a reminder to grab your keys before leaving the apartment so you don’t get locked out. Secondly, it helps you to not lose your keys. One of my roommates was constantly losing things, but she never lost her keys because they were always on the hook. If a roommate moves out or loses their key, the apartment gets re-keyed and everyone has to pick up a new key during business hours (which usually conflicts with work shifts) and it’s super annoying. Thirdly, it will let you know which people are home at any given time. This can be nice to know in case someone wants to spontaneously go grocery shopping or get food, then you know if there’s anyone around that you can invite to go with you.
- Whiteboard Calendar and Dry Erase Markers
Having a whiteboard in the shared living space has several uses. You can put your birthdays on it, or show when friends/relatives are planning to visit. Most importantly though, my roommates and I have always put our work schedules on it. This lets your roommates know when you’ll be at work. Then people can visit you at work if they want to, or they’ll know if you will need to wake up early for work and therefore will likely go to bed earlier so they can be more sensitive to that. It’s just helpful to have that information available for your roommates to know when you aren’t home to tell them directly. You can get an inexpensive whiteboard calendar when you arrive in Florida, and then I recommend getting a different white board marker color for each person so you can easily distinguish which events on the calendar relate to each person.
What Not To Bring
- Router
You’re not supposed to bring your own router. The complexes have their own wifi networks, and while the wifi might not always be the best, it will get you through.
- Work Shoes
You can buy your work shoes before moving to Florida, but I would recommend not doing that. I bought mine from Costuming for my first program (so they were definitely approved) and I bought them at a mall in Florida for my second program. You will have time to buy shoes after you are told what type of shoes you will specifically need. It would suck to bring new work shoes and then be told you need a different color or something.
- Mattress Pad
I got myself a mattress pad after living in Florida for a few weeks because I saw one for a really good price, but I personally don’t think it was necessary. The mattresses are the same as the mattresses in my college dorm, so they aren’t great but they’re also not terrible in my opinion.
- Coffee Maker
If you need one, coordinate this with your roommates or buy it once you get to Florida. Keep in mind that you’re moving to Florida temporarily, so you can probably live without this for your program.
- Tea Kettle
If you need one, coordinate this with your roommates or buy it once you get to Florida. Keep in mind that you’re moving to Florida temporarily, so you can probably live without this for your program.
- Blender
If you need one, coordinate this with your roommates or buy it once you get to Florida. Keep in mind that you’re moving to Florida temporarily, so you can probably live without this for your program.
- Toaster
If you need one, coordinate this with your roommates or buy it once you get to Florida. Keep in mind that you’re moving to Florida temporarily, so you can probably live without this for your program.
- Candles
These are not allowed.
- Mini-Fridge
It’s just not a good use of space. There will be enough space in the 1-2 full-sized fridges that are provided in the apartments. If you feel like you desperately need more fridge space, you can always buy a mini-fridge after arriving in Florida.
- Pocket Knives
These are not allowed.
- Anything that represents or looks like a weapon
These are not allowed.
- Drug Paraphernalia
This is not allowed.
I really hope this helped you out if you are preparing for your Disney College Program because (as someone who traveled to Florida via plane for both my programs) I understand that you don’t have much room to pack things. I personally used two large suitcases plus a carry-on for both my programs. I did try to have some room left over in those bags though because I knew I would acquire more belongings during the program. Anyway, I hope you have an amazing time at Disney World!