This week’s episode was about meeting characters in the parks. We previously had polls about Character Meals but I have a few other angles I can approach this topic from.
What is your preferred way to meet characters in the parks?
(Choose 1)
Character dining (with Disney Dining Plan)
Character dining (pay with cash)
Meet & Greets (dedicated location)
Meet & Greets (roaming / impromptu)
Admire from afar (parades, shows)
I don’t care much for characters
Other
0voters
Which class of characters do you usually prioritize?
(Choose 1)
Classics (Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, etc.)
Disney Princesses
Other protagonists (Stitch, Aladdin)
Villains (Evil Queen, Maleficent)
Minions (Stepsisters)
Sidekicks
Other
0voters
What is the longest you would wait for your favorite character?
My “other” is rare characters.
Recently I’ve met Rabbit from WtP, and Jiminy and Gepetto.
Just one choice is hard, because I am happy to do character meals when they fit, and I do love impromptu meets. I love parades, but they aren’t “meets” by and large.
On our 2016 trip we met every princess, and Anna and Elsa. It took 5 park days from open to close, but it was one of our main goals of that trip.
Other: I like to be surprised by a character. I accidentally see them and am excited. I won’t wait in a line unless I’m w/ someone else that wants to do that. I have had a few lovely interactions w/ Mary Poppins in EC… walking w/ her and it’s been b/c of my umbrella.
I chose 2 hours but there’s a rest of the story. The character was more for my sister. We were at Crystal Palace and it took two hours for all the characters to get to us. They’re her favorite non-villain characters.
We’re still wondering if we’ll give Crystal Palace another try.
And with no Tremaines at 1900, we’ve not felt a compelling need to go there.
I am most interested in Kevin and Dug the dog from Up, because their costumes are so innovative. Also I love that Dug is not silent like most costumed characters because he has the talking collar. I’ll always find it odd that characters with masks are silent. I want an interaction with conversation.
I don’t believe I’ve ever deliberately waited in line to meet any character (even on our DCL cruise, we only did the prebooked Royal Gathering) - but I LOVE roaming characters. It brings that extra bit of spontaneous magic to a visit,
I also believe that no one is ever too old for a character meal and we rarely finish a trip without doing at least one.
It is possible to have communication. It takes practice so the more character meets the better communication. We can just speak as normal and leave it to the characters to get their points across. During that 2 hour meal at Crystal Palace I told Tigger “We’re so hoppy to see you!” This was his reaction
Recently I called Chip by name and my sister said how do you know that’s not Dale. Chip wanted to know too how I knew. I said Dale has the red nose. Then Chip indicated there was another way - his teeth.
Goofy and I have also commiserated about arthritis.
The way I look at it is by my interacting with them, I’m providing them some fun also. They don’t have to carry the whole load.
For myself, I wouldn’t wait for characters. We did wait with my 2-year-old grandson in February to see Mickey, Minnie, and Goofy, though. But it was really more about seeing my grandson than the characters (for us).
The only time I actually enjoy characters is more when they are playing a role and not part of any real meet and greet. For example, it is hilarious to watch Gaston rile up the little girls! Or the step sisters bickering with one another. But we would never go out of our way to see them. But if we happen to be near, we might watch the antics for a few minutes.
All of the above, depending on the character. We will do a mix of dining, meet and greets, and parades/see from afar. Characters are more of a nice surprise/filler activity than a must-do for us.
One time we got in a posted 20 min line to meet the 7 dwarfs…45 min in and realized we were about halfway as could see the whole internal line and we bailed. I do not understand waiting that long for a hug. I love how DLR just has more characters roaming and more less common ones. They 100% win characters over WDW. When I walk by and see three people in line to meet Rex I’m soooo down. ROAR
Now when I dressed like a character, I will wait longer than 30 minutes so we can be twinsies:
I answered “other” for every question. I don’t think of myself as a “character person” but I will do meets when there is an opportunity of little or no wait. I have waited in a line to meet characters once, but I think it was early in pre scheduled fast passes days ?
Now, I will go to Crystal Palace every so often just to see Eeyore and I will go to special meets such as a stop in the DVC lounge just to meet Mickey and Minnie.
Yes, that is the Mickey and Minnie meet for Membership Magic Beyond at the Epcot DVC lounge last month. I had never met Mickey and Minnie together. There was no line since there were not many people in the lounge.
My sister @lizzieboardman and her then littles met AK Minnie in the early aughts and said she reminded them of our Mom, friendly, and always stylish and put together in her khaki skirt and hat. In 2025, a year after Mom died, Liz and I took a big WDW vacation and stood in line in AK Adventurer’s Outpost several times a day during our AK visits to say hi to Minnie and try for a good photo with that darn photo machine—we’ve resigned ourselves to never looking as chic as Mom or Minnie!
Dad died in February, and Liz, his primary caregiver, went back to WDW last week, a solo trip with no family giving her flack about how she does things. She got a great photo with Minnie Mom!
Character meets are great ways to create traditions!
I saw Dug last week and he noticed my Magic Band was “his poppa.” I told him his poppa reminded me of my poppa and he gave me a hug. Character interactions are so sweet.
Other but mostly because I like the character dining, but it doesn’t matter if it is dining plan or not. Dining is our preferred way to meet with characters. As Chris put it, you have to eat anyway. We like doing these at lunch since it gives us a nice break during the day.
I need to pick more than one option. Dining is a great option but of course it’s expensive. Both the set lines and roaming are good options. I picked other because we live Pooh and Olaf.
We met them along with Captain Hook at the Plaza Gardens at DLP.
Mickey and Goofy also appeared. It’s marketed as “Mickey and classic characters” and they don’t specify who else, but usually it includes some less often seen characters .
She got a great photo with Minnie Mom!
