What Not to Bring to the theme parks

Everyone will tell you what to bring with you to a theme park. But what about what NOT TO BRING?

You certainly know enough not to enter a theme park’s turnstile with a 45. Caliber pistol or a 12-inch hunting knife, but recently there has been some confusion over water.

Yes, simple water bottles.

More on that later.

Park officials usually say these rules are for your own safety. But skeptical types might consider that they sometimes require guests to purchase items at inflated prices that they might otherwise bring into the park.

But when it comes to Disney rules, you can bring your own food if it is not re-heatable. And you can bring your medication for asthma or ailments.

No Budweiser six-packs, though.

Leave your skateboard home

Please leave your skateboard, your scooters or your inline skates at home, too.

Oh, and don’t bring shoes with build-in wheels, either.

Other items Disney says it does not want to see:

• Any weapons of any kind
• Folding chairs (No reasons why are given at the site)
• Pets, except for service animals
• Glass continuers of baby food or perfume
• Camera tripod stands too large to fit into a standard backpack
• Wagons (not specified as to size)
• Strollers larger than 36” by 52” (92×132 cm)
• Suitcases, coolers or backpacks with or without wheels larger than 24” by 15” wide and 18” high (for more details, see Disney’s site).

“Please use your best judgment and do not bring anything that may be potentially harmful or disruptive,” Disney suggests.

At the area’s other main theme park, Universal, there has been some confusion over water rules.

Water, water everywhere but here

Universal had a temporary ban on bottled water, which was recently clarified to say it was allowed.

At the same time, the news was that they have long allowed baby food, snack-sized food and food required for special diets.

What Universal does not allow are picnic lunches (whatever that is), alcohol and weapons (of course), and glass containers.

Other prohibited items there:

• Hard-sided coolers
• Soft-sided coolers larger than 8.5″ wide x 6″ high x 6″ deep
• Coolers, suitcases, and bags with wheels
• Clothing that represents someone as emergency personnel.
• Clothing with offensive language or content

The later (clothing) items may be judgmental, of course.

But the fact that Universal recently had to come out in the news clarifying their rules on bottled water, proved one thing…

…The recent drought in California is not the only place where water rules are becoming a national issue. ###