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Hello everyone,
Here at Character Central we always strive to have good, reliable and up-to-date information, which is why I don't tend to use the blog to make these kinds of posts usually. Character locations and information are usually updated via the individual location and character profile pages on this site, as it is easier to control. However, following on from the success of my previous Walt Disney World article on the same subject, I felt I needed to write a guide to characters at Disneyland Resort, too.
Please remember that these are the most frequently asked questions that we get for Disneyland Resort only.
Where can I find Mickey Mouse?
One of the top questions for guests to ask is, "Where can I find Mickey Mouse?" Well, Mickey has several permanent locations at the Disneyland Resort theme parks. The top place to meet Mickey Mouse is at his very own home, in Toontown. Here, you can meet Mickey Mouse while he films scenes from various cartoon shorts. Sometimes he might wear his "classic" outfit, and on other occasions you may be lucky enough to find him dressed in his Sorcerer's Apprentice, Steamboat Willie or Band Concert costumes!
Other great locations to find Mickey Mouse include in Town Square on Main Street USA, intermittently throughout the day, or on Buena Vista Street at Disney California Adventure, where he wears his cute Buena Vista Street outfit.
Who else appears besides Mickey Mouse? Can I meet the Disney Princesses, for example?
Across Disneyland Resort theme parks, you can nearly always meet Minnie Mouse, Goofy, Pluto, Donald, Chip and Dale. All six of those have regular locations across both parks, but times and availability may change depending on the day of your visit. The Disney Princesses appear at Disneyland Park at various locations, such as Royal Hall at Fantasy Faire, Pixie Hollow, and on Main Street USA. Royal Hall is home to a multitude of princesses who rotate throughout the day, including Cinderella, Rapunzel, Ariel, Merida, Belle and Snow White, although of course Disney could change this at any time. You can also meet Anna and Elsa at the Animation building in Hollywood Land, or Lightning McQueen and Tow Mater in Cars Land, all at Disney California Adventure. Other characters, such as Peter Pan, Mary Poppins, Winnie the Pooh and friends, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, and many more, all appear throughout the theme parks. You should check the schedules for the day of your visit (see further below for more information).
Do the Disney characters appear randomly at the Disney Parks?
Many of the character appearances at the Disney theme parks are on the published schedule, which can be picked up upon entering the theme parks. There are some that are not always listed though, depending on whether there are other events happening, and how much space is dedicated to the characters on that schedule. If a character does appear that is not on that day's schedule, chances are they nearly always out in the parks anyway. Disneyland Park especially, more than Disney California Adventure, will often feature characters on Main Street, near the Castle and around Fantasyland that are not on the published schedule. It is quite common (though never guaranteed) to see Peter Pan, The Queen, Mickey and friends, and even Disney Princesses on Main Street and around the Castle. Their locations can be changeable, and they may not even appear in the same place twice on the same day.
Do the Disney characters walk freely around the Disney Parks?
Many of the unpublished characters mentioned above do not have a host with them, which guests who frequent Walt Disney World often may find strange. There is a certain calm and laid back approach to character greetings at Disneyland Resort that Walt Disney World seems to lack. More often than not, when meeting characters such as Mary Poppins and Bert, Peter Pan, The Queen, Alice and the Mad Hatter and the Princesses on Main Street, there will be no host, but guests will form an orderly in anyway. Characters such as Peter Pan sometimes wander and run around having fun rather than stopping for photos. This is quite normal for Disneyland, and the local guests seem to get a lot out of it. If a character is roaming and doesn’t look as though they are stopping, you probably shouldn’t harass them by asking them for individual photos with your entire family.
Do the Disney characters visit the Disney Resort Hotels?
Unfortunately the Disney characters rarely make hotel appearances at Disneyland Resort. In the past, around Christmastime, Santa Claus has appeared at the three Disney hotels, but as with everything, this is subject to change.
Do rare characters appear at the Disney theme parks?
This one is a tricky one to answer, but overall the answer is, "no, not nearly as often as we'd like!" Of course, the definition of "rare" can change considerably from one year to the next, but generally speaking, if a character has not appeared in over a year, and show no signs of returning, then they are pretty "rare". Characters at Christmastime and during the Halloween parties, although not appearing daily, aren't so much rare as they are seasonal or event specific. For two years running Disneyland Park has held the popular Springtime Round-up event at Big Thunder Ranch in Frontierland, which starred Roger Rabbit, Br’er Rabbit and other more common bunnies. Although Roger Rabbit appeared (almost) daily at this event, it is never guaranteed that he, or even this event, will return again. Roger Rabbit hadn’t appeared for many years before his return for this spring happening, so you could say he’s pretty rare.
Do you have any tips for a better experience when meeting the characters? Do the characters sign autographs, for example?
This one is pretty open ended, but I would say that if you're going to meet a character, be sure to know who they are! Before your trip, if you think there is a chance you may meet one particular character, watch their movie before you visit. When you visit them, you can ask them about their adventures, their friends and families, etc. For example, if you are going to meet Aladdin, ask him how Abu is and if he has gotten into any more trouble lately. Characters also love seeing themselves on clothing and accessories, bags, pins and lanyards, etc. Be sure to have your cameras ready to capture any cute moments, and buy an autograph book and a pen that works, so they characters can sign their names. Something which we have taken to doing recently, which both us and the characters really enjoy, is taking along our Disney Tsum Tsums to meet the characters. If we know we are going to meet a specific character on any given day, we try to take with us the Tsum Tsum of them, or someone related to them. They’ll often (though not always) pose with the Tsum Tsums, making for super-cute photos!
Do the characters appear in shows and parades?
The Disney characters appear in many shows and parades across the theme parks. Disneyland is well known for the sheer amount of entertainment they offer, which can change frequently. Currently, and always subject to change, the most popular shows and parades include (but definitely not limited to): Mickey’s Soundsational Parade, Paint the Night parade, Mickey and the Magical Map, Aladdin - A Musical Spectacular, the Frozen Sing-Along and the PIXAR Play Parade.
Can I dine with the Disney characters?
Yes! You most certainly can! Character dining is a fun way to meet the Disney characters while enjoying a great meal at one of Disney's fabulous themed restaurants. Currently, you can dine with the Disney characters at five locations at Disneyland Resort. These are: Minnie’s Breakfast in the Park at the Plaza Inn, Ariel’s Grotto at Paradise Pier, Chip ’n’ Dale’s Critter Breakfast at Storyteller’s Cafe in the Grand Californian, Goofy’s Kitchen at the Disneyland Hotel and Surf’s Up with Mickey and Friends at the Paradise Pier hotel. What's fun about these meals is that at many of them, the characters wear special themed outfits for the occasion, for example at Storyteller’s Cafe, Chip ’n’ Dale wear cute scarves, at Goofy’s Kitchen Goofy and friends wear chef outfits, and at the Surf’s Up breakfast, Mickey and friends wear beachwear.
Where can I find more information?
Here are some of my suggestions for finding out more about how and where to meet the Disney characters. Words highlighted in blue take you to that specific link.
- The official Disneyland Resort website has some limited character greeting information, however, I personally have found this to sometimes not have all the information I want.
- Here at Character Central we have a vast guidebook for all the Disney parks, locations and characters. A good start for a good general overview would be what we call our "cheat sheet" for finding characters at the parks. On this cheat sheet we list the characters we have seen at Disneyland Resort, rate the chances of you finding them, and the general location you might spot them.
These links are of course only my recommendations, and should be used as a guide for planning only. Anything can change at any time, without notice from Disney.
If you have any further questions, you can join our friendly forum, and us or our members will happily help you out!
Have a great day everyone,
Dan. |
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Hello everyone,
Here at Character Central we always strive to have good, reliable and up-to-date information, which is why I don't tend to use the blog to make these kinds of posts usually. Character locations and information are usually updated via the individual location and character profile pages on this site, as it is easier to control. However, recently we have received a lot more requests for information about how to find characters at the Walt Disney World theme parks. The reason I don't like to make blog posts about this is because things can change frequently, and I don't want to mislead anyone, especially when our location and character pages are updated often.
With that said, and I realise that was quite a detailed reasoning, I thought that it wouldn't hurt to answer some of the questions we get asked. Please remember that these are the most frequently asked questions that we get for Walt Disney World only.
Where can I find Mickey Mouse?
Mickey Mouse appears at set locations at all four of the Walt Disney World theme parks. His appearances are daily, and usually hold long hours (often, though not guaranteed, from around opening to just before closing. Check on the day of your visit). At the Magic Kingdom, you can meet magician Mickey near the park entrance, where talks and interacts with guests at Town Square Theater (on Main Street USA). At Epcot, he wears his classic outfit at the Epcot Character Spot in Future World. At Disney's Hollywood Studios, Mickey dons his Sorcerer's Apprentice robes to greet budding sorcerers. At Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park, Mickey wears his safari outfit at the Adventurer's Outpost on Discovery Island. The Magic Kingdom, Epcot and Animal Kingdom locations all offer Disney's Fastpass+ service, which allow you to make your greeting reservation in advance of your visit.
Who else appears besides Mickey Mouse? Can I meet the Disney Princesses, for example?
Across all four Walt Disney World theme parks, you can nearly always meet Minnie Mouse, Goofy, Donald Duck, Chip, Dale and Pluto. All six of those have regular locations at all four parks, but times and availability may change depending on the day of your visit. The Disney Princesses appear at the Magic Kingdom at various locations, such as Princess Fairytale Hall, Ariel's Grotto, around the Fantasyland walls, the Fairytale Garden and, schedule depending, in the garden next to City Hall on Main Street USA. Princess Fairytale Hall is the current home of Cinderella, Rapunzel, Anna and Elsa, although of course Disney could change this at any time. Princess Fairytale Hall accepts Disney's FastPass+ reservations. You can either reserve Cinderella and Rapunzel OR Anna and Elsa. If you want to meet all four, you need to make separate reservations. Other characters, such as Peter Pan, Mary Poppins, Winnie the Pooh, and many more, all appear throughout the theme parks. You should check the schedules for the day of your visit (see further below for more information).
Do the Disney characters appear randomly at the Disney Parks?
Most of the character appearances at the Disney theme parks are on the published schedule, which can be picked up upon entering the theme parks. There are some that are not always listed though, depending on whether there are other events happening, and how much space is dedicated to the characters on that schedule. If a character does appear that is not on that day's schedule, chances are they nearly always out in the parks anyway. Infrequently, characters may appear at other locations around the parks, and these are not scheduled. For example, when we were a recent trip, Peter Pan, Merida and Ariel all appeared at the International Gateway at Epcot's World Showcase. These greetings are not scheduled, and are not repeated regularly.
Do the Disney characters walk freely around the Disney Parks?
The short answer to this, really, is no. The Disney characters at the Walt Disney World theme parks nearly always have set locations that have a queue line in order to meet them, even the randomly appearing ones that I described above. Sometimes, however, you may be walking around and suddenly a character will appear, and they may not form a line. This is fairly unusual, but it can happen. Experiences like this can actually be fun, as sometimes the characters will take the opportunity to roam and explore the park. Like I said though, for Walt Disney World, this is pretty unusual.
Do the Disney characters visit the Disney Resort Hotels?
The Disney characters do not regularly make appearances at the Disney Hotels. In the past, Easter Sunday has seen the Easter Bunnies and some other characters appear at the deluxe resorts (such as Mr Easter Bunny and Chip 'n' Dale at the Contemporary). Around the week of Halloween and the week of Christmas you may also find characters in themed outfits at any number of the resort hotels, deluxe or otherwise. None of these appearances are ever guaranteed and you should not expect to find them during your stay.
Do rare characters appear at the Disney theme parks?
This one is a tricky one to answer, but overall the answer is, "no, not nearly as often as we'd like!" Of course, the definition of "rare" can change considerably from one year to the next, but generally speaking, if a character has not appeared in over a year, and show no signs of returning, then they are pretty "rare". Characters at the Christmas and Halloween parties, although not appearing daily, aren't so much rare as they are seasonal or event specific. We would not consider Scrooge McDuck to be rare, since he appears almost nightly for two months at the Christmas parties, but he definitely is not a regular. Mr Walrus from Alice in Wonderland however, who hasn't appeared in around seven years, is considered rare.
Do you have any tips for a better experience when meeting the characters? Do the characters sign autographs, for example?
This one is pretty open ended, but I would say that if you're going to meet a character, be sure to know who they are! Before your trip, if you think there is a chance you may meet one particular character, watch their movie before you visit. When you visit them, you can ask them about their adventures, their friends and families, etc. For example, if you are going to meet Aladdin, ask him how Abu is and if he has gotten into any more trouble lately. You could ask Mickey - when he's feeling talkative at the Magic Kingdom's Town Square Theater - to perhaps send a special message to your friends back home; be sure to have your camera recording, because you never know what he might say! Characters also love seeing themselves on clothing and accessories, bags, pins and lanyards, etc. Be sure to have your cameras ready to capture any cute moments, and buy an autograph book and a pen that works, so they characters can sign their names. Something which we have taken to doing recently, which both us and the characters really enjoy, is taking along our Disney Tsum Tsums to meet the characters. If we know we are going to meet a specific character on any given day, we try to take with us the Tsum Tsum of them, or someone related to them. They’ll often (though not always) pose with the Tsum Tsums, making for super-cute photos!
Do the characters appear in shows and parades?
The Disney characters appear in many shows and parades across the Walt Disney World theme parks. Currently, and always subject to change, the most popular ones include: Disney Fantasy of Festival Parade, the Main Street Electrical Parade, and Dream Along with Mickey at the Magic Kingdom, Festival of the Lion King and Finding Nemo - The Musical at Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park, and Beauty and the Beast Live on Stage, Voyage of the Little Mermaid and For the First Time in Forever - A Frozen Sing-Along Celebration at Disney's Hollywood Studios.
Can I dine with the Disney characters?
Yes! You most certainly can! Character dining is a fun way to meet the Disney characters while enjoying a great meal at one of Disney's fabulous themed restaurants. Currently, and again, always subject to change, the most popular ones include: Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary (Mickey and friends), Ohana at the Polynesian Village (Stitch, Mickey and friends), 1900 Park Fare at the Grand Floridian (time of day depending, Cinderella and friends or Pooh, Alice and friends), Cape May Cafe at the Beach Club Resort (Minnie and friends), Cinderella's Royal Table at the Magic Kingdom (princesses), Garden Grill (Mickey and friends) and Akershus Royal Banquet Hall (princesses) at Epcot, Hollywood and Vine at Disney's Hollywood Studios (Disney Jr) and Donald’s Dining Safari at Breakfast and Lunch (Donald and friends) at Disney's Animal Kingdom Theme Park. What's fun about these meals is that at many of them, the characters wear special themed outfits for the occasion, for example Hawaiian shirts at Ohana, chef outfits at Chef Mickey's and safari gear at the Tusker House. Reservations are essential, and should be made well in advance of your visit (nearly all Walt Disney World Resort dining locations open their availability 180 days in advance).
Where can I find more information?
Here are some of my suggestions for finding out more about how and where to meet the Disney characters. Words highlighted in blue take you to that specific link.
- The official Walt Disney World Resort website has some limited character greeting information, however, I personally have found this to sometimes not have all the information I want.
- Here at Character Central we have a vast guidebook for all the Disney parks, locations and characters. A good start for a good general overview would be what we call our "cheat sheet" for finding characters at the parks. On this cheat sheet we list the characters we have seen at Walt Disney World, rate the chances of you finding them, and the general location you might spot them.
- I cannot endorse the accuracy of this next one, but it has not failed me yet, but take note I have no control over it. WDWEnt is a good source for all current Walt Disney World theme park schedules, and at the time of writing the person who runs it seems to update it frequently.
Those last two links are of course only my recommendations, and should be used as a guide for planning only. Anything can change at any time, without notice from Disney.
If you have any further questions, you can join our friendly forum, and us or our members will happily help you out!
Have a great day everyone,
Dan. |
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Welcome to this third edition in a special series of articles looking at the top 10 best places for meeting the Disney Characters at the Disney Parks and Resorts. Our first edition looked at Walt Disney World in Florida. In the second, we visited Disneyland Paris.
In this third edition we look at Disneyland California's top ten. Throughout the article you can click the links to the specific places mentioned to find more detailed information about meeting characters there. At the end of the top ten, be sure to check our links to other hints and tips pages on this site!
Ok, here we go! First up, Disneyland Park!
1. Main Street USA - We begin our character hunting on Main Street. In Town Square you can frequently find any number of the VIPs (Goofy, Pluto, Chip, Dale etc) greeting their fans. Alice, the Mad Hatter and Cruella de Vil also makes appearances regularly.
Further up the street at the Refreshment Corner you may find any combination of Peter Pan, Mary Poppins, Bert, Alice, the Mad Hatter or the Queen of Hearts.
At the Carnation Plaza area you can randomly find Princesses or Mary Poppins. This is a great place to meet them as there are rarely people even in this area, let alone lines!
It should be noted though that the Carnation Plaza area will soon be closed to become the new Fantasy Faire in Fantasyland.
2. Princess Fantasy Faire - Over in Fantasyland why not stop by Fantasy Faire to meet the Princesses? Although any three of the Big 5 are the usual suspects here, you may be lucky and get Pocahontas or Mulan (we have in the past!). If the line is long, instead of waiting in the heat for an hour, standing up, why not check back when the Royal Coronation Ceremony is taking place? You can have a nice seat, enjoy the show, AND get to meet the Princesses afterwards with relatively no line! (and I bet you're in and out before you would have even gotten to the front of the regular meet 'n' greet line!)
3. Fantasyland - Aside from Fantasy Faire, Fantasyland itself is worth a separate mention on our Top 10 list. Here you can often find Peter Pan, Alice, the Mad Hatter or the Queen of Hearts all roaming.
Fantasyland also hosts Pixie Hollow, home to Tinker Bell and her Fairy friends. As well as Tink herself you could meet any other one or two Fairies who may be visiting from Neverland, such as Terence, Vidia or Silvermist to name a few!
Over by the Wishing Well you can often find The Fairy Godmother, The Queen or Snow White.
In the Castle Courtyard, Rapunzel has her own private indoor meet 'n' greet area, and sometimes around the Castle you find some random Princesses too, such as Aurora or Cinderella.
4. Critter Country - Critter Country regularly features the Pooh friends. These are usually Pooh himself, Tigger and Eeyore, but Rabbit has been known to make appearances from time to time also.
Brer Fox and Brer Bear randomly roam about Critter Country, so watch out for that villainous pair while down by the bayou!
5. Minnie's Breakfast in the Park at the Plaza Inn - Back on Main Street you should get reservations for breakfast at Minnie's Breakfast in the Park at the Plaza Inn. The food is quite good, and is buffet style. There are always a bunch of random characters (as well as Minnie herself of course, donning her cooking apron!). In the past we have met Captain Hook, Max Goof, Eeyore, Rafiki and the Fairy Godmother here, to name but a few unusual ones!
6. Toontown - Toontown is a good place to meet all your favourite pals such as
Goofy, Pluto, Chip and Dale. They can often be found wandering about.
Minnie Mouse meets her fans at her house.
Mickey also meets his fans at his house, in the Movie Barn. The experience of waiting in line is interesting in itself, as you get to go through some neat areas. I won't spoil the surprise! When you finally get to Mickey himself, depending on which cartoon he is working on that day you could find him in his Steamboat Mickey outfit, his Sorcerer's Apprentice robes, Band Leader costume or just in his regular attire.
7. Holidays and Seasons - One of the best times to visit Disneyland is during some sort of holiday, festival or celebration. Christmas and Halloween seasons both see the VIPs greeting their fans on Main Street (or sometimes other areas of the park) in appropriate attire. You may find Count Mickey at Halloween for example, or Chip 'n' Dale in their winter knit wear.
As well as the VIPs in costumes, you can also meet some neat characters that aren't normally out. Halloween is a lot of fun, as the Villains come out to play regularly in Fantasyland. Last year Dr. Facilier, the Tremaines and Foulfellow all appeared, to name a few.
Also, at Halloween Time, be sure to attend the special Halloween Parties (ticketed events), where some really cool characters come out to play! Last year (2011) for example none other than Perry the Platypus was there!
At Christmas you can meet Santa and Mrs Claus in Frontierland.
Now let's hop over to Disney California Adventure...
8. Hollywood Pictures Backlot - Hollywood Pictures Backlot (soon to be renamed Hollywoodland - a nod to the original sign up on the hill!) features a number of good character opportunities. Sulley, Mr and Mrs Incredible, and Jake from the Neverland Pirates all meet here regularly. In the past Handy Manny, Goofy and Max have also hung out here, but I'm not sure of their fate more recently to be honest.
If you hang around after the Disney Dance Crew show at the Backlot Stage, you can have the chance to meet Mickey in his hip hop outfit! He only comes down for a brief set though, so be waiting near the front as soon as the show ends!
If you have a Disney Visa credit card, you can also take advantage of the free, private, meet 'n' greet which is open at select times only. You can meet Chip and Dale in cute, unique, Hollywood agent outfits. They do switch with Pluto (who doesn't have a special outfit sadly), so you may want to sneakily try to grab a glimpse around the corner if you really want the twins!
9. Paradise Pier - Although there aren't too many character appearances in Paradise Pier, there are a couple worth mentioning. You can meet Mickey and Duffy (separately) in their sailor outfits near Ariel's Grotto.
Woody, Jessie and Green Army Men sometimes appear down near the Midway Mania attraction, and Goofy has recently been greeting fans in his pilot's outfit or California vacation wear, near the Little Mermaid attraction.
I'll also give a passing mention to Ariel's Grotto Princess Dining where you can eat with Ariel and her Princess friends. To be honest, the food here is pretty dire, and I have utter contempt for the restaurant itself - it's a completely miserable looking place. So unless you are sure beyond doubt you want to meet the Princesses here, then my advice would be to try meet them at any of the other places I listed above!
Finally we travel to the Hotels of the Disneyland Resort...
10. Goofy's Kitchen at the Disneyland Hotel - Goofy's Kitchen is a great place to either start the day with a buffet breakfast, or end the day with a buffet meal! You will get the chance to meet Goofy, Pluto, Minnie, Chip and Dale in their special chef outfits, as well as a number of other random characters. In the past we have seen everyone from the Mad Hatter, Prince Phillip and Princesses such as Cinderella and Jasmine. It's a good restaurant, with a good number of random characters, so be sure to dine here!
I hope you all found that useful!
You might also want to check out our special Hints and Tips Blog Post here, and join our members discussion about hints and tips for meeting characters here on our Forum. Other users have posted some great tips, so be sure to check those out and maybe make your own contributions!
Stay tuned over the next few days for my next article in this series, which will be Tokyo Disney Resort and Hong Kong Disneyland's Top 10!
Dan. |
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Hi all,
Welcome to this second in a special series of articles looking at the top 10 best places for meeting the Disney Characters at the Disney Parks and Resorts. Our first edition looked at Walt Disney World in Florida.
In this second edition we look at Disneyland Paris's top ten. Throughout the article you can click the links to the specific places mentioned to find more detailed information about meeting characters there. At the end of the top ten, be sure to check our links to other hints and tips pages on this site!
Ok, here we go! First up, Disneyland Parc...
1. Main Street USA - Main Street USA has some fantastic character meeting opportunities, which are both structured and random.
There are regularly scheduled appearances by Mickey and Duffy in Town Square at the Boarding House, and also Pooh up at Casey's Corner. Although, Mickey will soon be leaving for his new home in Fantasyland come the spring - but Duffy will remain.
Throughout the day in Town Square you can quite often find a random selection of pretty much any character! These appearances aren't always announced, but if they are there once, there is a good chance they'll be out again later in the day - good to know if you miss one of your favourites!
In the past we have seen everyone from Stitch, Piglet, King Louie, the Wonderland characters (any or all of them), Peter Pan, any combination of the Big 8 and more!
At Christmas, Santa Goofy makes regular appearances at the gazebo, and you can sometimes find Elves wandering around too!
Early in the morning you may find Mickey riding around Main Street on his Mousemobile, which can be fun to see.
2. Fantasyland - Fantasyland in Disneyland Paris is probably one of the best places to meet random and cool characters at Disneyland Paris, if not anywhere.
Let's start with the scheduled appearances. The Princesses meet all day at the Princess Pavilion, and can include Aurora, Belle, Tiana and any number of the other main Princesses.
Soon, Mickey will start greeting his fans at his new home at the Fantasyland Theatre. This is expected to be somewhat similar to the Town Square Theater experience at the Magic Kingdom in Florida.
Throughout the day, and unannounced, you can nearly always find any number of random characters throughout Fantasyland, but namely near the "it's a small world" gates. Character do roam though, so be sure to keep an eye out. Fantasyland in Paris is probably one of the best places at any Disney Park, in our experience. We have met everyone from Maleficent, the Pooh friends, Big 8/VIPs, Alice friends, Peter Pan gang, Chicken Little, Abby Mallard, Princes and Princesses, other random classic characters and many, many more. The list is quite extensive to say the least!
3. Adventureland - Adventureland, like Fantasyland and Main Street offers it's own fair share of cool characters.
Making regularly scheduled appearances (listed on the times guide), are normally Aladdin and friends, Jungle friends and Jack Sparrow.
Throughout the day you are also likely to encounter other random pals, such as the Big 8/VIPs in safari outfits, other random critter or jungle characters, or classics such as Peter Pan or Hook and Smee.
We love to wander through Adventureland to see who we can find, and some of the backdrops of the land make for some excellent pictures!
Be sure to check near Colonel Hathi's Pizza Outpost or near Adventureland Bazaar for the best selection of random characters.
Next we step into the Disneyland Hotel...
4. Inventions - Despite being a very high end restaurant, Inventions does offer probably the most diverse character dining experiences of any Disney Park or Resort. Based in the Main Street Lounge area of the fabulous Disneyland Hotel, and with stunning views over Disneyland Park, you cannot beat the setting. The food is amazing, and consists of a fantastic hot and cold buffet. The theming is superb, and the service very good.
Of course, we're here to talk about characters though! On any given evening, characters join guests for dinner, and can vary wildly from the Pooh friends, Villains, Big 8/VIPs to Launchpad, Clopin and others!
Aside from the dinner mentioned above, Inventions offers Sunday Brunch, usually with a theme of the week. We know for sure they have French, Italian, British, Hawaiian, Princess and African to name but a few. It isn't just the food that is "themed", the characters are too, and you'll find the VIPs in their special costumes (African, safari, royal - you name it!) to mark which ever Brunch it is, as well as characters from that theme too - so for the Italian Brunch they had the Pinocchio characters, for example. We LOVE these Brunches, and definitely recommend them as the character variety is excellent and the dining experience fabulous.
5. Disneyland Hotel Main Lobby & Main Street Lounge - I had to mention the other areas of the hotel separately as the restaurant experience is quite different (and is a pay service of course), but for those who just want to meet characters, you can stop by the Main Street Lounge at the Rotunda every morning from early 'til just before lunch, and meet a whole manner of friends. We love to check out this area every morning before venturing into the park, as it can vary wildly from day to day. From the VIPs, Pooh friends, White Rabbit, Friar Tuck and even Hyacinth Hippo, you never quite know who you'll find at the Rotunda!
Later in the day (check location for exact times), usually after lunch, there are some rotating sets of characters in the main lobby. These are a little less random than the Rotunda, but can again vary a lot, and include Princesses.
In the late afternoon, during weekday peak times, and weekends, there is something called a "Magical Moment" down in the lobby. A random selection of characters will come and sing and dance to some music, before taking the time to meet their fans. It is a cute ceremony, and just adds a touch more Disney magic to your day! As with everything else at DLP, these can be fairly random, and the theme can also change from day to day. We have seen everything from Christmas, Halloween, Valentine's and Alice in Wonderland versions of these musical happenings, so they are well worth checking out!
So as you can see, a days' character hunting at the Disneyland Hotel alone can be quite exciting!
Now it's off to the Walt Disney Studios Parc...
6. Toon Studio - Toon Studio in Walt Disney Studios offers a random variety of characters throughout the day as well as some scheduled ones. In the past we have encountered Jafar, Abu, Big 8/VIPs, Rafiki, Sulley, Buzz Lightyear, Stitch and more. Check on the day of your visit to see who is about as it tends to change quite a lot!
7. Production Courtyard - Across the other side of the park from Toon Studio, in Production Courtyard, again you will often find a random selection of friends near the Stitch Live! attraction. In the past we have seen Stitch, Friar Tuck, Big 8/VIPs, Villains and more! Again, check on the day of your visit to see who is about as it tends to change quite a lot!
We leave the parks now, and head to Disney Village...
8. Café Mickey - I don't like to have two character dining options on here really, as I prefer to provide hints and tips for the Parks and other "free" areas (those already included in your vacation, not "extra"), but DLP is so diverse in it's character range - and that includes dining - that Café Mickey in Disney Village deserves a mention also.
In the past we have had some very interesting character meals at Café Mickey, and you should go there expecting the unexpected! The food is pretty good for the relatively cheap price as they offer a menu, so potentially you can choose the cheapest option and still sit there all night - unlike other character dining. The restaurant is very popular and busy, and can be very noisy also. There are always a multitude of birthdays going on, which causes mass eruptions of dancing and music from everybody - cast, guests and characters alike - as well as regular, lively, dance parties around the room, and on the furniture. It is not uncommon to see Goofy table dancing in Café Mickey - so be warned!
The variety of characters has admittedly become more static these days, but can still be quite varied (VIPs, Pooh pals, Stitch, Villains) as with the rest of DLP, and for the price and sheer experience of the crazy place, it is well worth it!
Finally, we take a look at some additional options for character hunting...
9. Seasonal Celebrations - Disneyland Paris loves to celebrate the various holidays throughout the year, even more so than the US Parks to be honest.
In February for the days surrounding Valentine's you can expect to find the VIPs in special outfits, and special Disney "couples" out and about, sometimes in special dress too.
In March, Disneyland Paris likes to celebrate both St David's Welsh Festival and St. Patrick's Day. The Big 8/VIPs can be found wearing special outfits, and special entertainment is offered.
Come October and Halloween Season again sees special outfits during the day, and special characters - namely the Disney Villains, including the hilarious Witch from Snow White (who in DLP is a face character. Trust me, she is amazing!).
Be sure to attend Disney's Halloween Party on the 31st of October. In recent years there have been some truly amazing characters including Hades, Philoctetes, Pain, and Panic, amongst other really rare ones!
From November through January Christmas Season brings a sprinkling of extra magic, and you can find the characters in special costumes, as well as seasonal characters such as elves, and Père Noël himself!
10. The other Disney Hotels - I tried to resist putting this in it's own category, as I had already mentioned the Disneyland Hotel, but I felt that the DL Hotel was in a league of it's own really, and so the other hotels also deserved a mention.
As with the Disneyland Hotel, you don't have to be a guest staying at any of the Hotels around Lake Disney to be able to experience some of the cool characters they have.
All of them offer the VIPs, but usually in themed outfits for that hotel (Hispanic/Mexican at the Santa Fe, Cowboy/Indian the Cheyenne etc), as well as a mix of other characters appropriate to that "destination" (maybe Jessie at the Santa Fe, or if you're VERY lucky Robin Hood at the Sequoia Lodge, etc).
Though the range may not be as diverse as elsewhere across the Resort, we do think that the morning hotel meet 'n' greets offer some nice interactions and different costumes - with relatively short lines - and so it is worth checking them out before park open.
I hope you all found that useful!
You might also want to check out our special Hints and Tips Blog Post here, and join our members discussion about hints and tips for meeting characters here on our Forum. Other users have posted some great tips, so be sure to check those out and maybe make your own contributions!
Stay tuned over the next few days for my next in this series which will be Disneyland Resort in California's Top 10!
Dan. |
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Hi all,
Welcome to this first in a special series of articles looking at the top 10 best places for meeting the Disney Characters at the Disney Parks and Resorts.
In this first edition we look at Walt Disney World Resort's top ten. Throughout the article you can click the links to the specific places mentioned to find more detailed information about meeting characters there. At the end of the top ten, be sure to check our links to other hints and tips pages on this site!
So, let us begin in the Magic Kingdom...
1. Town Square - Town Square has a number of different character meet 'n' greet oppportunities, namely the Town Square Theater. At Town Square Theater you can meet Mickey and Minnie Mouse at Mickey's backstage dressing room. In a separate room of the theatre you can also meet the Disney Princesses. There are usually three, and are usually from the main 5 (Belle, Aurora, Cinderella, Ariel or Snow White), although Tiana and Rapunzel are there from time to time also.
Outside in the street, by the flagpole you can normally meet Daisy Duck or Pluto. Sometimes Pinocchio makes appearances too. You may bump into the Citizens of Main Street from time to time, including Mayor Weaver, Victoria Trumpetto and Fire Chief Smokey Miller.
2. Adventureland - Adventureland is the new home of the Fairies of Pixie Hollow, who were evicted from their previous location last year to make way for the new Fantasyland expansion. Tinker Bell is almost a dead cert, and these days either Terence or Vidia with her, although you may find any one of the other 4 Fairies instead (Silvermist, Fawn, Rosetta or Iridessa).
Adventureland is also the home to Pirate Goofy, Aladdin and Jasmine. For a small area of the park you can meet a good number of characters in a short space of time!
3. Halloween or Christmas Parties - These are EXCELLENT opportunities for meeting some neat characters, and meeting characters in special outfits. They can vary from year to year, but most recently the two different seasonal events have seen the likes of the Seven Dwarfs, Gaston and the Princes, to name but a few. Mickey and Minnie are on hand to meet fans at the Town Square Theater, and will be in special themed costumes, and look out for other favourite characteres around the park wearing seasonal attire approriate for that party.
Now let's take the Monorail over to EPCOT...
4. Future World - Future World is home to the EPCOT Character Spot (opposite Innoventions West), where you can meet Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Goofy and Pluto all in one go. Opposite the Character Spot, Chip and Dale usually meet their fans. Inside Innoventions West, for those who hold a Disney VISA card you can have a special meet 'n' greet with two random characters (you'll need to show your card and ID, and will not know which characters are inside until you enter).
At the main entrance in Future World you will often find Stitch or Daisy Duck meeting near Spaceship Earth.
Sometimes, if you're lucky you can find random/rare characters inside the hallway behind the Character Spot.
5. World Showcase - World Showcase offers some fantastic character meeting opportunities. Here are some of our favourites:
Mexican Donald at Mexico
Mary Poppins, Alice and three random Pooh friends at the United Kingom
Marie, Aurora, Belle and Beast at France
There are more, but those are the more noteworthy ones!
At Christmas World Showcase offers the fantastic Holidays Around the World Celebration, which means you can meet a whole load more special seasonal characters, from the Monkey King in China, the Three Kings in Mexico, the Nutcracker in Germany and many more!
On occasion you may also find random characters appearing at International Gateway, World Showplace (near Canada and UK pavilions) or to the side of the American Adventure. Recently fans have met the likes of John Smith, Meg and Foulfellow to name but a few rare ones!
We exit through the International Gateway and make our way down the river to Hollywood Studios now...
6. Animation Building - The Animation Building is home to Sorcerer Mickey, the Incredibles (any combination of Mr, Mrs or Frozone), plus lots of random ones down on the floor later the day. These can vary widely from day to day but can include Goofy, Mulan, Aladdin, Pocahontas and more! We think this is a great place to cool off, and meet some random characters!
7. Star Wars Weekends - During the early summer (May/June), Hollywood Studios hosts the ridiculously popular Star Wars Weekends. A fantastic experience, but immensly busy, you can meet Stormtroopers, Anakin, Darth Vader, Ewoks, Leia, Luke and many, many more (there are far too many to list). On top of that, the Fab 5 friends get in on the act too, and you can find Jedi Mickey, Vader Goofy, Stormtrooper Donald and Leia Minnie! We highly recommend these weekends to anyone, especially Star Wars and Character fans, but be prepared for long waits!
Let us cool off now under the shade and trees of Animal Kingdom...
8. Discovery Island - At Discovery Island you can find Flik and any given three Pooh friends (nearly always Pooh, Tigger and Eeyore - but Piglet has been known to appear also).
9. Camp Minnie-Mickey - probably the best place in the park for characters, here you can meet Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Donald or Daisy all dressed in their Camp Councillor outfits at the Greetings Trails. Wandering around Camp Minnie-Mickey you can almost always find some other loveable pals to hang out with.
Thumper, Miss Bunny and Chip 'n' Dale are nearly always there. We have also seen Meeko, Pocahontas, Brer Bear and Brer Rabbit there recently. In the past Koda and Kenai would meet fairly often too, but not so much any more.
Finally for our top 10 WDW character hot spots is something special at the Grand Floridian...
10. 1900 Park Fare - Although 1900 Park Fare is a character meal which you have to pay extra for, there variety of characters is good, and can vary depending on the time of day/type of meal. You can meet the Tremaines, Cinderella, Prince Charming, Mary Poppins, Alice, Pooh, the Mad Hatter or others depending on the time of your visit, making it probably the most varied character meal on property (the others are very specific such as Princesses, Playhouse Disney or Fab 5, where as this one can vary).
I hope you all found that useful!
You might also want to check out our special Hints and Tips Blog Post here, and join our members discussion about hints and tips for meeting characters here on our Forum. Other users have posted some great tips, so be sure to check those out and maybe make your own contributions!
Stay tuned over the next few days for my next in this series which will be Disneyland Paris's Top 10!
Dan. |
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