Table of Contents
By Asher Fergusson
Updated on
The Sunshine State is the perfect location for a long vacation or a weekend getaway! Known for its gorgeous white sand beaches, year-round warm weather, nightlife, theme parks, and of course Disney World, there is no shortage of entertainment in the great state of Florida.
Sometimes it can be hard to know what to pack for Florida, so we’ve created this complete checklist, including what to wear in Florida, what NOT to bring, and other important travel FAQs.
Be sure to bring your sense of adventure, then just relax and go with the flow!
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What to Pack for Florida – 27 Essentials
1. Waterproof Phone Pouch
You’ll obviously be around water in Florida, and you’re almost definitely going to be using your phone as well. Protecting your devices from water damage should be a top priority, and this waterproof phone case makes that easy! Your phone’s touchscreen and buttons are still accessible and usable while it’s sealed inside, and you can even use the front and back cameras! The price is hard to beat, so it fits into any budget. Don’t forget the flotation strap to ensure your lifeline is easy to retrieve!
2. Travel Towel
Sun, beach, and relaxation; that’s what I think of when Florida comes to mind. Use this travel towel to dry off after a dip in the ocean, or lay it down to enjoy a sand-free beach picnic. This is the perfect towel for people on the go as it is lightweight, super absorbent, and easily tucks away in any bag. When you bring a travel towel with you to Florida, it makes all things possible.
3. Swimsuit Cover-Up
A swimsuit cover-up is essential but often forgotten. When you’re lounging poolside or on the beach, you won’t feel like wearing clothes, but it’s nice to have a lightweight cover-up to wear for sun protection. It’s also handy to throw on over your suit when you’re running out for lunch or to grab a drink. This cover is adorable and so flattering!
4. Hanging Toiletry Bag
No matter where you’re staying, this hanging toiletries bag is the ideal solution to limited countertop space. Instead of having the whole family’s toiletries sprawled out sloppily across every inch of the hotel, use this hanging toiletry bag to consolidate everyone’s liquid products.
It has 4 giant pockets that unfold to vertically-optimize your life, this is especially useful when you’re camping or staying in a place with no bathroom storage. It also has 3 external pockets for smaller items like jewelry, q-tips, and medicine. Overall, it creates a shelf-like system that spares everyone’s sanity when living in close quarters on vacation. There’s even a variety of color options so everyone in the family can have their own design to keep things from getting confusing.
5. Virtual Private Network (VPN)
Florida has increasingly been a target for cybercrime and data breaches. Any time you connect to Wi-Fi on your phone or laptop in public places, such as in hotels, airports, or internet cafes – you leave yourself vulnerable to potential hackers. By using a VPN, you eliminate the risk of exposing your sensitive information, such as credit card numbers and passwords. You don’t want to come home after a day at the beach to an empty bank account or someone attempting to steal your identity. It’s a real buzz-kill, I can attest.
As an added perk, a VPN can also help you get around paywalls, which means you won’t be censored or virtually stolen from. We use a VPN every time we travel and also at home to block ads! Pro tip: It also makes it harder for websites to track you, which can mean discounted rates on location-influenced pricing. These brands already know too much about you, so get a VPN for some anonymity! It’s a small cost for a huge pay-off.
See Also5-Day Travel Capsule Wardrobe: What I Packed & Wore On Our Gulf Coast Vacation - Classy Yet Trendy10 Outfits To Wear On Your Florida Vacation This FallWhat To Wear In Florida In WinterThe Ultimate Packing List for Florida6. Rash Guard
I’m an active person, and I love water sports. I use a rash guard frequently to protect myself from the sun and from friction caused by sports gear like surfboards. These rash guards are family favorites. They’re both well-fitted and extremely comfortable, and they don’t make you feel overheated even when wearing them in direct sun. In fact, they keep you cooler while also adding SPF protection of 50+!
7. Windproof Travel Umbrella
Though you can expect a lot of warm, sunny days in Florida year-round, you will also likely encounter at least one rainy or partly rainy day during your trip. Be prepared for the weather by packing a reliable windproof travel umbrella like this one.
8. Travel Insurance for Florida
Travel insurance is critical to protect your travel investment and cover you in case of emergencies. We had a friend hurt themselves on a biking excursion on vacation – thankfully, they had insurance and didn’t have to pay out-of-pocket for the nearly $10K treatment.
If Florida is more than 100 miles away from home for you, it’s important that you’ve got solid trip protection! Check if your domestic provider will extend your coverage because if Florida is international for you, your coverage does not carry overseas. Plans from Faye are always our top pick because they offer affordable coverage for theft, baggage loss, flight cancellation, medical emergencies, and even the ability to “cancel your trip for ANY reason.” They make claims super easy through their mobile app and don’t make the process move at a dinosaur’s pace like most insurance providers. We can’t recommend them enough!
9. Packing Cubes
I can’t say enough good things about packing cubes. They make organizing our items much easier, plus they compress bulky items down to save space in our luggage. I also like that I can move the smaller cubes between my luggage and my daypack with ease. This is especially handy when traveling with children.
Available onHeroTravelSupply.comwith an exclusive 15% discount using the coupon code“HERO”.
10. Gorgeous Outfit
A great, flattering outfit can do wonders for your comfort and confidence while you’re out on the town. Bring a rockin’ outfit like this one to wear when you feel like getting dressed up a little – you’ll be glad you did!
11. Lipstick-Sized Portable Charger
During your time in Florida, you will likely be using your smartphone for all manner of things, including navigation, photos, communication, music, and more. Don’t get stuck with a dead phone or camera battery when you need it most! Instead, toss this lipstick-sized portable charger in your purse or daypack to charge your devices on the go.
12. Cooling Towel
Many people are surprised to learn that the water in Florida isn’t especially cool. Taking a dip in the ocean or in a pool isn’t going to cool you down much unless there’s a good breeze that day. That’s where this cooling towel comes in. It’s very easy to use and reusable, so that you can drape it over your neck, back, arms, or head if you need to cool down while out and about.
13. Beach Bag with Cooler
A beach bag is an obvious essential, but one with a cooler is next-level awesome. This one has plenty of beach item storage, plus enough room for drinks and snacks to keep you refreshed while you’re having fun in the sun!
14. Neck Wallet
It’s always a good idea to keep your valuables like passports, smartphones, wallet, keys, and credit cards securely organized whenever you are traveling. Use this handy neck wallet to house your valuable belongings and wear it tucked under your clothes for optimal protection.
15. Sandproof Beach Blanket
The white sands of Destin, Miami, Siesta City, and more are unmatched in most of the United States. For the most tropical paradise you’ll find in the country, bring your best beach blanket to enjoy it to the fullest. This one is huge and can hold an entire family or group. We love that it’s waterproof and sandproof for easily shaking it out at the end of the day. Bonus points for the included stakes! Which means the wind will be no match for this lightweight tarp.
16. Discounted Tickets on Florida Excursions
While in Florida – take a millionaire’s cruise through Miami, kayak at an emerald green sandbar in Key West, and explore the stunning Everglades National Park! We use Get Your Guide to book our global excursions because you can book local while working with a reliable platform. From transfers to amusem*nt park tickets, they offer discounted rates with flexible cancelation. We love being able to search by category to design the best itinerary for thrills, food, history, day trips, nature tours, and every other type of experience you could imagine.
17. Water Shoes
Water shoes are often overlooked, but they deserve a place in your Florida luggage. They’re comfortable both wet and dry, supportive, and self-draining so you don’t have to slosh around in soggy shoes after strolling along the shore or exploring tidal pools and reefs. I especially like these since they’re as comfortable as tennis shoes, but they have holes for sand and water to drain out. I regularly wear mine hiking, snorkeling, and swimming.
18. TSA-Approved Luggage Locks
We never travel without luggage locks to make our checked baggage experience more peaceful. We’ve actually had items stolen out of our checked bags, so now we always secure them. These locks are 10x harder to crack than a 3-digit lock, so only the TSA-approved rep will be able to access your items for a quick security check (should you be randomly selected). I use these for suitcases, lockers, purses, backpacks, and more!
19. Filtered Water Bottle
While the water in Florida is generally clean, you don’t want to be forced into buying plastic waste throughout your trip – it’s bad for the environment and can get radically expensive! We use this Brita to easily filter our water on-the-go, which is perfect for long excursion days out at sea or hiking through the mangroves when you don’t have access to clean water.
20. Deet-Free Mosquito Wristbands
Florida is notorious for mosquitos, so plan to protect yourself and those you’re traveling with from bites. I prefer these wristbands because I can slip one on and forget about it – it’ll protect me all day with fewer chemicals. However, I also like to layer on a deet-free insect-repellent spray when I’m in a particularly buggy area like the mangroves, just in case!
21. Deodorant Wipes
A combination of heat, humidity, and outdoor activities will leave you sweaty and grungy at times. I can’t stand feeling this way when I’m not able to shower, so I carry these wipes with me whenever I travel. They’re individually wrapped and safe for sensitive skin, so I can use one or two to freshen up whenever I need to.
22. Natural Hand Sanitizer
We’ve all become a bit obsessed with hand sanitizer these past few years, and rightly so. This bottle not only kills 99% of germs, but it smells great too and works like a charm. It sometimes can be hard to find a place to clean up quickly, but this hand sanitizer not only makes it doable but hassle-free. Feel fresh, clean, and safe on your trip to Florida when you have this in your bag.
23. Affordable Underwater Camera
It sucks to miss out on photos of water activities simply because you’re worried about your camera. I didn’t want to buy a really expensive underwater camera, but I also didn’t want to compromise image and video quality. This camera is a great balance of the two at an affordable price.
24. Dry Bag
The theme for Florida is water protection, and your activity bag should keep with that trend. A drybag is incredibly handy when at the beach, snorkeling, kayaking, surfing, or doing anything else that involves risking your belongings getting wet. Pop your items into the bag, roll it up tightly, clip it closed, and sling it over your shoulder like a regular backpack, and know that your items will stay dry the whole time. The bag will even float if dropped in the water.
Pro Tip: When choosing a size for your drybag, it’s better to get a larger bag than a smaller one. In order to work properly, the top of the bag must be rolled several times before being clipped in order to be truly waterproof, and a small bag can’t do that if it’s overstuffed. Extra pro tip – if you fold it with air inside, it will float!
25. Motion Sickness Patches
These motion sickness patches really work – I take them for windy car rides, boat rides to prevent sea sickness, and more. While the kids have iron-clad stomachs against the whirling roller coaster and looping rides at Disneyworld – adults may need a little stomach reinforcement. These patches are very gentle on the system and will curb your nausea for 1-3 days. Sometimes I use 2-3 patches if the sickness is severe!
26. Children Safety I.D. Bands
For the buzzing crowds of Disney, Epcot, and Universal Studios – keep track of your little ones with these safety identification bands. They offer sincere peace of mind because if you and a child are separated, an adult can easily help them find you again with the contact information on their wrist. You can never have too many precautions and this option is reusable, discrete, and waterproof.
27. Packable “Just in Case” Bag
Every traveler knows that feeling of regret – realizing you should’ve packed just ONE more bag! For the shopping you do for coastal gifts or Disney souvenirs, use this “just in case” bag as your backup plan for the overflow. It’s super lightweight and made of a duffle material, so it won’t take up space on the way there. But on the flight home, it can count as your personal item to effortlessly avoid carry-on fees, woo-hoo!
Other Florida Packing List Items
- Universal adapter
- Handheld fan
- Pocket blanket
- Backpack
- Rain gear
- Bug spray
- Stroller
- Stroller clips
- Toiletry bag
- Compression bags
- Packing cubes
- Neck pillow
- Reef-safe sunscreen
- Aloe vera
- Downy wrinkle releaser
- Car games
- Juice boxes
- Adult hat
- Children’s hat
- Children’s snorkel
- Children’s life vest
- Waterproof bags
- Water shoes
- SPF lip balm
- Portable speaker
- Flotation strap
- Umbrella
- Frisbee
What to wear in Florida
1) Depending on the activities you have lined up for your Florida trip, deciding what to wear can be simple. If you’re going to the beach inMiami, you don’t need to wear much – a swimsuit, flip flops and a cover up are ideal. A hat and sunglasses are also a good idea too. For days in a city or elsewhere, shorts and a tank top are good to beat the summer heat. If you’re going in the winter, dress in layers. Long sleeved shirts and jeans or leggings are perfect! No matter what, bring comfortable walking shoes.
2) If you’re planning on going to Disney World during your trip, wear comfortable shoes, breathable clothing, and nothing that will chafe. Bring a sun hat, and be ready for rain with a poncho.
3) Check local weather reports just in case.
What NOT to take to Florida:
1.Flammables
2.Firearms
3.Sharp objects
4.Liquids (unless you follow the liquids rule – see FAQ)
5.Household tools
6.Camping equipment
7.Medical tools
8.Various miscellaneous items
FAQs about taking a trip to Florida:
1. What’s the best time of year to go to Florida?
The best time to go to Florida is November through May, because there is a much lower chance of rain and more comfortable temperatures. The worst time to visit Florida is during the peak rainy season months of August through October.
2. Can I use a tent or umbrellas at the beach?
Definitely. A day at the beach doesn’t mean you need to be in the sun all day. Using a tent or umbrella will shade you from harmful sun rays.
3. What are some good beach reads?
We all have different taste in books, but if you’re in the mood for a juicy but light-hearted beach read, check out thislist.
4. Is there anything special I should bring when going to the beach with kids?
Extra snacks are always a good idea. As are water diapers, a playpen, water wings (floaties), pool noodles, and anything that will keep the kids entertained! Definitely bring an umbrella to avoid heat exhaustion, as well.
5. Can I bring my dog to the beach?
Some beaches are dog-friendly, while others are not. If the beach you are going to happens to allow dogs, there will most likely be a strict leash policy. Research your particular beach destination online to get specifics.
Asher has been traveling the world since he left Australia to study in the USA in 2004. He received a Master’s in Business Administration degree in 2013. He has lived all over the globe including India, Europe, Hawaii, and mainland US. He enjoys researching the travel industry, loves being a dad, cooking & eating delicious food, photography (took many of our photos), surfing big waves on Maui, camping trips and walking barefoot on the earth.
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