Travel Gear - The Fanny Pack

Yes, I'm about to recommend a fanny pack to you. If you don't like the term "fanny pack," we can call it a "lumbar pack." This is hands down my favorite piece of travel equipment. It looks sporty and it is extremely functional, especially when you are in the parks.

When I had my third kid, I realized quickly that I had run out of hands. Maybe that happened sooner but this is when I realized it. When I took my first trip to Disney with all 3 kids, I didn't have a good system for managing all of our things. We had a double stroller, a diaper bag, a camera, sunscreen, sweatshirts, changes of clothes and water bottles. Every time we went on a ride I would have to dig through the stroller and the diaper bag and figure out what I needed to carry on the ride and where I was going to put it. This didn't work.

Because we live in the age of social media, I asked my friends if anyone had a solution for my problem as I stood in line for Test Track with a camera around my neck, my money and phone in my pockets, and probably carrying at least one kid. One of my friends suggested... gasp... a fanny pack! She quickly followed up with a link to Mountainsmith Lumbar Pack. It was decidedly better looking than the image in my head of the neon pink and green fanny that I used to wear in the 80's with my side ponytail and parachute pants.

I bought it and I have used it for the last 6 years. I have taken it on all of our travels, Disney and otherwise. I even use it daily to go to the grocery store. You can wear it facing the front, the back, and utilize the strap to make it a purse. It works in every situation and especially when traveling and navigating airports. This pack is still in great shape and I think I can get another 6 years out of it. I suggest getting a dark color because I have been known to drip a melting Mickey bar on it. The material is pretty waterproof and you can just wipe away any mess with a standard bathroom paper towel.

When I go to Disney I have it on me at all times and keep the essentials in it: Cash, change, credit cards, gift cards, phone, lip balm, sunscreen, ear buds, baby wipes, gum, tic tacs, clif bars, and a bottle or two of water on each side. I also have had either a backpack or a stroller with me in these last 9 years that I have been traveling with kids. I typically store sweatshirts, jackets, reusable water bottles, and my camera in either the stroller or backpack. It is feasible to wear both the backpack and the lumbar pack if you face the lumbar pack toward the front. When I go on a ride I usually grab the camera out of the stroller or backpack and put it in the lumbar pack because I am leaving the stroller/backpack behind. I have a Nikon 5100 with an 18-200mm lens. I bought the body only and then bought the lens separately, but I can get into the camera specifics later. What I'm trying to say is that it's a good size camera body with a big lens and that I can easily stuff it in the fanny pack to go on a ride so that nobody steals it out of the stroller or my backpack that is waiting outside of the ride.

This pack could work for Moms or Dads. Once you go fanny pack, you are never going back! My kids have even started using their own packs at the park. Since they don't need to carry as much, their packs are much smaller. I ordered the Everest Signature Packs. I went with the color options that I could get PRIME and they each got their own color. Each kid had their own color and carried gift cards, money, lip balm, hand sanitizer, autograph book, pen,and a few snacks in their pack. They worked great and the kids loved them.