In addition to shirts, pjs, swim suits I also get my boys a drawstring bag with things like small bag LEGO sets or Disney mini figures, gift card, a fun water bottle. It’s not exactly stuff for the parks but for the trip and they enjoy it. My boys do also love to get sunglasses every trip. It’s like getting ears to them. If he likes flip flops that can be fun to pick out, too.
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My 8 yr old bought only goofy candy with his gift card one year 
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OMG. Why do they love it so much?!? Mine opted for Goofy Candy over Ample Hills last trip. 
If he is in to sword fighting…
Getting him a reservation to build his own light sabre at Savi’s workshop would be epic. Take a look at one of the youtube videos of the whole experience ( don’t show your DS, having him experience it for the first time at Galaxy’s Edge will be unforgettable).
The second option is to allow him to build his own droid at the Droid Depot. The experience there is epic as well.
You may want to think about getting him a jedi-like outfit to wear on the trip. I noticed many boys beaming with pleasure as they were fully immersed in the storyline at Black Sire Outpost with all the characters roaming around the land.
All the above assumes he likes Star Wars. If he has not caught up, maybe get him to watch some of the clone wars series or the last three movies to get immersed in the characters. Some of them show up in Galaxy’s Edge.
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We still have a spinning light toy from Disney probably bought in 2007 for my boys. It’s had several battery changes and keeps on going! Girls just had it out the other night.
Lots of Star Wars suggestions here. Trying to brainstorm an alternate option.
Does DS like pirates? You could plan a pirates/mermaids day and you could do a pirate shirt for him with mermaid attire for girls. They also sell “pieces of eight” on Etsy etc, and you could do a treasure hunt for that at home, or just give him the coins (maybe like a pouch on a string for a necklace?) for if he meets Jack Sparrow. Pirates League appt optional when you are in the park?
Would he be interested in the pressed pennies? I got my DD8 the Walt Disney World Four Parks Pressed Penny Book Coin Holder Collection Album on Amazon before our first trip last fall. We had fun randomly finding penny pressing stations and she still has room for lots of pennies, so we’re looking forward to focusing more effort on actually hunting them down next time.
We also got a Disney travel journal for kids. There are a few different ones on Amazon for under $10 and most of them include pre-trip pages to fill out that fuel the anticipation and excitement. They aren’t girly at all and could totally be a cool gift for a boy. 
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Is he too old for a haircut at the harmony barbershop?
My son loved it when he was 9. We got a hidden mickey in his hair.
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DH is a backpacking aficianado- i bet between he and DS21 we own 20 backpacks of varying sizes. So he is in charge of the day pack- he’s a Scout leader so that’s a natural fit.
For the boys, I would get little goodies bags for the plane ride that were Pirates based, and a Disney trivia book or something similar, but I don’t buy much for my daughter either, so buying less for both is another way to even things out- if you can resist! There sure are some cute things out there, but I am moving and selling a house and believe me, they aren’t so cute anymore!
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this is actually my MO
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Well, the other thing is- do the boys really care? Mine didn’t, so I didn’t feel that I had to even things up even though their sister got a Princess Aurora cap and they didn’t. They didn’t want a Princess Aurora cap, so we left it at that. If the boys don’t feel left out or slighted, maybe there’s nothing to worry about.
I did put one of them in charge of selecting the Disney music for the day, maybe something like that would also be fun.
Exactly. My boys were my oldest and the girls came after. They just didn’t care.
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Man, I wish this were true for mine. My boy is my second born so he’s got one older sister and two younger and he is quite fixated on everything being “fair”. When in reality he doesn’t really care all that much.
@Pod, less is definitely better. It’s just the resisting that’s hard!
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Yes. Birth order is a huge factor.
I’d ask them. If they want ears, get them ears. If they want something else, get them something else. Ditto if I had girls I’d let them pick what spoke to them.
Granted, I don’t subscribe to “gendered” things, so my thought process is very different than a lot of people’s. Clearly.
I’m also extremely cheap @DeepInTheHeartofTexas. My DD still jokes about finding a book she liked in World of Disney and me finding it on Amazon for $5 less and I told her I ordered it and she would find it when she got home.
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I agree there are so many fun cute girl things and hardly anything for boys. I just keep it on the down low or if we (dd and I got something) I would just give DS more game money. Since he is 8 there are certainly more options, stuffed animals, hats, Star Wars merch I think would be good. For souvenirs on our last trip we bought the kids one and they brought their money for anything else they wanted. DS (then 12) bought a Disney baseball hat and a soccer ball in Epcot in Italy. DD (then 9) bought minnie ears and a stuffed animal.
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I would just get your son a backpack He could use at the park, to keep it the same. Or if you do ears just get him a hat. You know they will want to do shopping there!!! Or at least mine would haha.
I am the same way! One year my daughter wanted a Chewbacca backpack that was something like $70 in the park. I tried to convince her to wait until we were home so we could shop around for a better price. She would have none of it and used her own money to get it. I found it on amazon for at least $20 less. Killed me! But she really wanted to wear it in the park.
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I have 3 boys (no girls) and don’t buy much before the trip - they usually have a couple sets of matching/coordinated t-shirts (Star Wars for HS day, Lion King for AK, “Big/Middle/Little Brother” shirts with Mickey ears on the text, etc).
We give them each a $50 gift card for souvenirs. They aren’t allowed to buy candy with it. If they make bad choices, eh, I’m not sure I really care (we have the same policy with allowances). That’s part of the point - learning to manage money and start thinking about value. They have to learn it the hard way, sometimes.
I think it’s much more fun for them to pick out stuff while on the trip than give it to them beforehand. That way it’s both a memory and an item. Them putting some thought and consideration I think helps them remember it better.
Plus, they get really “into” certain characters/rides while on the trip that I never would have guessed. YDS picked the cutest stuffed yeti from Expedition Everest that I never would have picked out.
I’m also not heartbroken about short lived souvenirs. They enjoy it while it lasts.
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