By Before you meet characters at Disney World, either at meet and greets around the park or at character meals, you should consider a bit of preparation.
For adults, it’s not QUITE the same level of awe you might feel as meeting your favorite celebrity, but for kids, some of these characters ARE their favorite celebrities!
If you want that moment to be extra special, think about trying some of these tactics ahead of time.
Bring an Autograph Book and Pen
This is the big one, especially for children.
They will be absolutely delighted for their favorite Disney characters to sign their books with a Sharpie.
Some characters will make quite a show of the autograph session, too. We’ve seen Pluto balance the book on his nose to stabilize it while he signs.
Disney World shops have all kinds of autograph books in stock, but you can also buy one ahead of time off Etsy or another similar shop.
If you’re ambitious, you can even make your own. That’s a fun way to ramp up the excitement for your vacation!
One thing you should know is that at some character greeting meals and other meet and greets, the characters may pre-sign a card and give to you rather than signing autograph books individually.
That’s because they have a LOT of people to see, so they must be efficient with their time!
Don’t be disappointed, though. Those cards are a great addition to the book itself and make terrific souvenirs.
P.S. Some adults bring autograph books, too. That is PERFECTLY fine!
Consider DisneyBounding
We’ve mentioned DisneyBounding in various sections of this book. Character meetings make for a great opportunity for your wardrobe-building skills to REALLY shine!
Kim has some fabulous photos dressing in the perfect outfits while meeting Mickey Mouse, Stitch, Marie, and Chip and Dale.
Again, you’re not exactly dressing up AS the characters. Instead, you’re finding outfits that match their color scheme.
If you know that the characters you’ll be meeting will be wearing special attire, research it ahead of time and see if you can coordinate.
Photos are SUPER fun when you sneak in that extra bit of magic!
Play Along
The best thing about character meetings, though, is that they are so much FUN!
If you’re meeting Mickey Mouse and he does a little dance, dance with him!
When you’re talking to Tiana, ask her what she’s been cooking lately.
Keep in mind that fur characters won’t talk, but face characters (like Disney Princesses) will!
So, you may want to think about some questions to ask them to make the meeting more fun. The character usually enjoys this type of banter just as much as guests do!
Some of our best Disney memories involve super fun interactions with characters.
One year at the end of Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, we stopped in to visit Mickey at Town Square Theater.
He was asking all of the guests for candy, which he lined up on a table for his snack later.
The Cast Member who was helping to organize guests (jokingly) scolded Mickey for taking candy from guests, but everyone was delighted by this bit of silliness.
It was the end of the evening and Mickey was hungry! Of course we’ll share our candy with him!
The other amazing experience occurred at 1900 Park Fare, where we met Anastasia and Drisella, aka Cinderella’s Wicked Stepsisters.
Both sisters were hilarious as they visited the different tables, with Anastasia asking us to list all of the things we hated about Cinderella.
Meanwhile, Drisella loudly said, “I’m waiting, I’m waiting, I’m waiting!” while a guest fumbled to get their camera out to take a picture.
We know that you’ll make your own remarkable memories with Disney characters. If you think about the interaction beforehand, it can be that much more special.
One Final Note…
We do want to remind you that not all children love meeting characters.
To them, these characters are just big, horrifying monsters. It’s even worse for them if that character really IS scary, like the Evil Queen, Kylo Ren, or a Stormtrooper.
Don’t try to force the issue. If they don’t want to meet a character this time, maybe they’ll warm up to a different one in another location.
Alternatively, go ahead and get YOUR photo with the character, and maybe they’ll see that it’s not so frightening after all.
Remember that everyone has different thresholds for scary things. We all laugh at photos of kids crying in Santa’s lap, but we tell them not to talk to strangers.
Remember to think about it from the child’s point of view.