WDW Daily News

Living a good 2 days drive from Disney means our trip this December, is a one shot deal. Saving for a year for every single little detail: dining plan, hotel, tickets, gas money, and the last thing on our mind right now- souvenirs. Saving for them will always be in the back of your mind when planning to go somewhere like Disney World. The only thing is, you don’t know exactly what you’ll be saving for.

Of course there’s standard Disney novelties you have to have: ears, dole whips, pictures. But as much as merchandise changes, there is no predicting what can be there whenever you’re visiting. Therefore finding ways to stretch your money in the parks is a must for people like me. (I know I’m going to want to buy everything!)
First thing I’ve decided to do, is get some Disney items way before our trip. T-shirts I can wear, coloring books I can use to keep myself busy, books from second hand bookstores, figurines from garage sales; anything that will keep me from urges of buying those things that most likely will be over priced in the parks.

This is going to help me focus on buying souvenirs that are truly meant to help me remember my visit to the parks. And things that taste good. (I’m so looking forward to tasting a dole whip.) I cannot wait for my trip. And all the inexpensive Disney things I’ve gotten over the last few week make me even more excited!

When it comes to the rides at Disney World I am an A-class chicken! I do not care for the big rides…some of the small rides…rides just aren’t really float my boat. So my Disney Days are filled with…you guessed it CHARACTER STALKING! I love love LOVE meeting the characters when I’m in the parks. When I was younger I was terrified of all of them, but as I’ve grown up I’ve gotten a little less scared and a little less shy (with some help from my friends); and I’ve gone on many a character stalking adventure with great success! So today I’m writing and sharing a few tips for an amazing character stalking adventure!!

Tip #1- Make a List: There a million characters to meet at Disney parks, and while you can meet a ton, aiming to meet every single one in one day might not be the best idea. So make a plan on who you want to meet based on what park or parks you are in that day. This will help you make sure you don’t miss anybody you are really excited to see. If you are using the My Disney Experience App- often times they will list what characters are in the parks and what time they are supposed to meet, I also like to use kennythepirate.com for lists and times as well as the parks times guides.

Tip #2- Make a Plan: I don’t mean a down to the minute plan of your character day, but try to map out where each character is meeting and head to the nearest in the area. For example, Epcot has many characters meeting in the pavilions. When I’m character meeting there, I go to see the character nearest to me one after the other after the other. It helps a great deal with time and keeping you somewhat energized since you’re not constantly running back and forth across the parks 

Tip #3- Mind the time: The characters tend to meet in about 40 minute blocks. This is awesome! Getting to the character spot right as the character is leaving is at an advantage to you. You’ll be first in line for when they come back and that allows you to run over to the next character with time to spare. On my last trip to Epcot, I managed to be first in line for Aladdin and Jasmine because I arrived when they were leaving. When I left them and ran over to meet with Belle, she was just about to come out and I was 3rd in line. Minding my time helped me out LOADS that day!

Tip #4- Don’t be scared to use something other than an autograph book: This is a fun little trick I’ve recently learned. Be creative in what you have the characters sign! The books of course are awesome, but sometimes characters get excited about something different! A popular option is the create your own vinyalmation figureines. I’ve seen some pretty spectacular poses with those. I personally have a parasol I’m having signed. I got a white one from the shop in liberty square and had them sign with a sharpie. Watching Woody skip around with it while the character attendant sang Chim-Chim-Cheeree was priceless hehe.

Tip #5- TALK TO THEM!!: I know I know another simple sounding tip, but so often do people go up to a characters with their books already stretched out without even saying hello! Make conversation, ask them questions! Characters love to interact with you and if you don’t give them anything to go off of they can’t. I’ll give you an example. The first time I met Prince Naveen I was so excited I could hardly speak. I managed to tell him I’d been waiting a whole year to meet him and was so happy it finally happened! As a result…he fake proposed to me with Tiana standing right next to him! It was AMAZING!

These are just a few of my secrets to a fun day of character stalking! Don’t believe they work check out themainstreetfairy on instagram and see how my photos turned out hehe .

After coming home from a magical Disney vacation, you might be at a loss for what to do next. Even though you have returned to the “real” world, your mind is still in the land of princesses and pirates and mice. You may find yourself feeling depressed, angry, or in denial. Know that you are not alone, and that many of us experience Post-Disney Depression, or PDD, after leaving the parks. Here are some tricks that I have found to be helpful in easing the effects of PDD.

1. Listen to music from the parks. This one is a biggie for me, and I’ve found that if I just close my eyes and concentrate on the music, I can almost imagine that I’m on Main Street or walking through Adventureland, a Dole Whip in hand. Many of the park audios can be found on YouTube by simply searching for “Disney World music” or “Disney World loop.”

2. Listen to ride audios. Similar to the effects of area music, ride audios can put you right in the midst of an attraction. Some of my favorites are the Spaceship Earth narration and Pirates of the Caribbean full ride audio.

3. Look at photos from the trip. This way, you can relieve the memories and happiness of a glittering “Emerald City” holiday while living in a bleak “Kansas” world.

4. Find some way to document the memories. Whether you want to make a scrapbook, write a trip report, or find some other crafty way to remember the trip, it’s good to immerse yourself in the Disney mindset again. Ideally, the project should be time-consuming and something that you’re motivated to do.

5. Have a Disney movie marathon. Engage in singing the movie songs in an obnoxiously loud voice, cheering at the character’s triumphs, and crying at the sad parts.

6. Go Disney shopping! The Disney Store can be a very dangerous place for your wallet, but sometimes a little retail comfort is necessary.

7. If all else fails…. Plan your next trip! It doesn’t matter if it’s going to be in a month or a year; it’s always exciting to have your next trip to look forward to.

It may seem to some as something of a dream job – working alongside childhood heroes such as Mickey Mouse, Goofy and Donald Duck.

But in order to get, and keep, a job as a character at a Disney park or resort, employees must abide by a number of strict rules, ranging from the obvious to the bizarre.

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