So as part of my little countdown, here are few few tips for everyone! I hope that some of these are less well known than others. I feel like there are a lot of the same DCP tip posts floating around. Anyway, enough rambling, here is a little list of advice tidbits I have picked up on my first two programs at Disneyland!
A few weeks before the DCP
~ Figure out how you will be getting there as early as you can! Flights tend to get more expensive the closer you get to the arrival date, and driving may take some planning. This is true especially if your program starts in January, as the weather isn’t as perfect as summer!
~ Consider buying apartment supplies online, or shipping stuff down to yourself. This can totally make it easier to travel, whether you fly or drive. Most FedEx and UPS stores will hold packages sent to them for around 5 business days. This way, you don’t have to ship it to the apartment complexes, as that isn’t an option until after you move in. You can pick it up at your convenience.
~ Coordinate what you are bringing with your roommates. There isn’t much space, so you don’t want to end up with multiple TVs, Kuerig’s , toasters, etc.
~ Bring travel toiletries with you. You may not have time right away to get big toiletries. This will allow you to take a shower the night you get there if you don’t make it to the store.
~ On that note, bring a role of toilet paper with you. There wont be any in your apartment until you buy it. This will allow you to actually use the bathroom once you get into your apartment. Pro tip…if you are staying in a hotel the night before, just take the spare one from your bathroom there!
~ Arrive the night before check in, really, even if you only live a few hours away. They are pretty strict about check in times, and many are early morning. You don’t want to deal with traffic, or flying into an airport, early morning of, delays, etc. its touristy, there are many economically priced hotels. Just pick a few friends off the Facebook page to stay with and share the cost of a night!
~Bring cash with you, at least a couple hundred dollars. The only sure form of payment is cash, don’t rely on your card completely. Your credit/debit card company will consider the start of your program as traveling, and that can cause complications, even if it traveling has never caused complications for you before. Also, you won’t be paid for a little while, cash can help you make it to your first paycheck.
~ On that note, make sure to call your credit card company before you leave, and let them know you will be interning in California/Florida. As both may be out of your normal geographical spending range, and a tourism location, it will set off red flags. It may even result in your card being shut off after a transaction. Trust me, that is not a fun discovery at a register in a Target with a cart full of apartment stuff.
~ Put passport/employment docs in purse/ backpack/ what ever you are bringing with you to check in the night before you leave. Check in day will be hectic. Your mind will be frazzled with anticipation, which can cause you to be a bit forgetful. You have to have your documentation for check in. If you put your stuff in the night before, you are less likely to forget it!
~ Bring an Ethernet with you…the Internet is Wi-Fi, but during certain times of day the traffic can cause it to be a bit slow! An Ethernet cord hooked from the modem into your game system, Blu-ray player, or computer can help it to work better during those times!
~ Get a flat rate postage box before you get to obsessed with buying souvenirs! This helps with limiting your spending! If you know that you only have a very limited space, you will be less tempted to overfill it! You also have a dedicated way to send things home at the end as well.
~ Buy lunch during the first week of training. Trust me on this one, training can be unorganized, you can’t carry a lunch box around with you, and it makes it easier on everyone if you bring money so the training group can just end up where they end up for lunch break.
~ But make sure you bring your lunch to work the rest of your program. Once you are done with training and settled in, it is really important to bring your own lunch. It is a lot healthier this way, and it is a lot cheaper than buying all the time from work. Your bank account will thank you!
~ Buy an external battery for phone! These are super handy, they allow you to charge your phone on the go from inside a backpack, purse, etc. You can get them really cheap at Amazon, and even most retail stores (I have seen them often under $15 online, and sometimes even cheaper in stores!) they do sell them in the park, but as there is a high demand, they are really expensive in the park.
~ Wear good walking shoes on park days and at work, your feet, back, knees, will thank you! Flats may be cute, but they have no support, and if you are putting out 20,000 steps in a day, you will definitely feel the lack of support!
~ Make sure you spring/winter clothes too! December, January, February, March, These months can have cold and rainy days. Once the sun goes down, it gets chilly too! You may be going to two of the sunny vacation spots of the US, but make sure you pack a pair or two of jeans, maybe capris, and definitely a rain jacket!
~ Cancel renters insurance as soon as you can. I always fail at this one. I think it was 3 months after my first program that I canceled, and almost 4 after my second one. But, by canceling as soon as your program is over, you save money, and don’t forget about it like I always do. This is especially important if you have automatic payments set up.
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