Character Meet and Greet 101

Hey guys! So I was working on an August post that I wasn’t thrilled about, and while trying to figure out what direction to take it in, I had a ‘Dana’s Mouse Tails fan’ message me requesting a post covering character meet-and-greets. I told her that I would incorporate it into my current August post, but last night as I thought about it more, I became more and more excited about creating a post dedicated solely to character meet-ups. So… ask and you shall receive!

(In France at Epcot meeting Sleeping Beauty, who was talking to Camden about being asleep)

As a child, I loved meeting the characters! I can still remember one of the most magical character meets of my life- my family was dining at Chef Mickey’s, which used to be located at what is now called Disney Springs. Chef Mickey’s was a special place for us, and this is where we’d usually eat our Christmas and Easter dinners if we were spending the holiday at Walt Disney World. Chef Mickey’s back in the 90’s was a little different than the present-day Chef Mickey’s- back then, it was a sit-down restaurant where you ordered from a menu, as opposed to the buffet that it now is. I believe it featured steaks, fish, and some gourmet entrees. So anyway, it is Christmas night, and my family of 5 (my parents, my 2 older brothers and myself) are ending our night, slowly making our way out of the restaurant after a great meal. My mom went in to use the bathroom, and my dad was still at the table, settling the bill. My 2 older brothers and I went out to the ‘lobby’ of the restaurant to wait for them, and I decided to look around at the Disney art on the wall. Suddenly, THE MAIN MOUSE HIMSELF comes over to me, takes my hand, and leads me over to a piece of art featuring him dressed in his chef gear, as he was dressed this evening. He starts pointing at the artwork, and then back to himself, and I say “Yes Mickey, that is YOU! Did you make my dinner? It was yummy!” and he nods yes and gives me a ‘thumbs up’. After another amazing Mickey hug, he leads me back over to where my parents were now standing, my mom undoubtedly with tears in her eyes after catching our interaction. There is true magic at Disney. This is a moment that I will never forget- a moment which made me feel like the most special kid in the world.

(A Character meet at Epcot)

(Camden loved meeting Mickey when he was 8 months old!)

As you can see, I’ve always enjoyed character meets. Personally, there has always been something special about the costumed characters as opposed to the face characters like the Princesses. When I hug Mickey and friends now as an adult, the same ‘warm and fuzzy feeling’ washes over me like it did when I was a child hugging Mickey Mouse. And while my husband and I did a character meet or two per trip before our son was born, we now find ourselves more interested in the character meets, as well as character dining. And for those of you with children, I would place character dining very high on my Disney to-do list. It is a great opportunity to meet characters without having to stand in line at the theme parks. There are many different character dining opportunities throughout Walt Disney World. I have taken the liberty of breaking down the list by the characters you can meet.

(Meeting the Green Army Men from Toy Story at the Princess Half Marathon)

Mickey & Pals:

Garden Grill, Epcot- What makes this family-style dining location unique is that the restaurant actually revolves as you eat. I am told that while Chip & Dale are the hosts and so are always here, Farmer Mickey and Pluto are USUALLY here, but it is not guaranteed.

Hollywood and Vine, Hollywood Studios- Minnie hosts this lunch and dinner buffet, in which she and her friends are dressed for the current season!

Tusker House, Animal Kingdom- This buffet, hosted by Donald Duck, is one I have not yet been to, but always hear great things about- typically several of Donald’s friends will also show up in their cute safari gear!

Chef Mickey’s, Contemporary Resort- The one meal that Mickey himself is guaranteed to show up to! The fabulous five are all here wearing their chef gear at this fun all-you-can-eat buffet.

(My 3-year old nephew meeting Donald Duck at Chef Mickey's)

(Meeting Minnie at Chef Mickey's)

‘Ohana, Polynesian Resort- At this festive all-you-care-to-eat family style breakfast, Lilo & Stitch appear along with (typically, but not guaranteed) Mickey and Pluto.

Cape May Café, Beach Club Resort- Minnie, Goofy and Donald typically are here, and they are all donning their cute beachwear at this enjoyable breakfast buffet.

(Two handsome dudes at Cape May Cafe)

Princesses & Friends:

Be Our Guest, Magic Kingdom- The Beast (not Belle!) greets guest out in the hall upon leaving the castle after a sit-down meal where you order off a menu. Please note that Beast is present AT DINNER ONLY.

Cinderella’s Royal Table, Magic Kingdom- There is a rotation of Princesses at this very difficult to score eatery inside Cinderella Castle.

(Not a character breakfast, but meeting with a Princess at the Disney Princess Half Marathon)

Akershus, Epcot- An eatery which features all-inclusive dining along with a rotation of Princesses, along with Scandinavian favorites at this restaurant located in the Norway Pavilion in World Showcase.

(Again, not a character meal, but my favorite Disney Princess, Jasmine with Abu at the Disney Princess Half Marathon)

1900 Park Fare, Grand Floridian Resort- This pretty spot features Cinderella and her Prince Charming, as well as her step-sisters and step-mother at this all-you-can eat dinner buffet.

(With Cinderella's Stepsisters and Stepmother- who were hilarious during the quick photo op at the Disney Princess Half Marathon)
 

Trattoria al Forno, Disney's Boardwalk Resort- This prix-fixe breakfast features Rapunzel and Flynn Rider, and Ariel and Prince Eric. (I have heard that at times, Disney has swapped one or two of these characters, so please take note!)

Winnie the Pooh and Friends:

Crystal Palace, Magic Kingdom- Pooh and Friends make the rounds inside this cute and airy buffet on Main Street USA.

1900 Park Fare, Grand Floridian Resort- At this breakfast buffet, Pooh and Tigger join Mary Poppins and Alice and the Mad Hatter at my favorite breakfast spot on property! (Note that these specific characters are not guaranteed)

(Without a doubt, one of the sweetest character interactions I have ever seen- Mary Poppins took a lot of time with this sweet girl!)

(Ms. Poppins, you truly melted my heart that morning seeing the way you interacted with our friend's sweet daughter)

Disney Junior Friends:

Hollywood & Vine, Hollywood Studios- Doc McStuffins, Sofia the First, Vampirina, and Goofy in his Roadster Racer gear greet guests for breakfast at this all-you-can-eat buffet.

I would also like to point out that there is a character meal at the Swan Resort, at Garden Grove Restaurant. Goofy is typically there, as well as a rotation of his pals. We have never eaten here, so I cannot speak for the quality of food or the character interactions!

There are also two other opportunities to meet characters. There is a Wonderland Tea Party located at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort for kids ages 4-12, and Mickey’s Backyard BBQ, which is located at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground. The BBQ is a seasonal event, but if you will be visiting Walt Disney World in the summertime, I am told by a coworker of mine that this is a MARVELOUS event that the kids really enjoy!

(Alice was fun and whimsical at character breakfast at 1900 Park Fare)

Of course, there are always going to be characters you wish to meet that simply aren’t at any character meal. One example is Anna and Elsa from ‘Frozen’. Back when my family met them, they were located at the Magic Kingdom- now, however, they have their own Royal Sommerhus at Epcot in the Norway Pavilion. As I sat and thought about which characters are available for meet-and-greets at each park, I became a bit overwhelmed, as there are so many characters to potentially meet. I am going to instead give a link to the character list on All Ears, which is a GREAT website to use to plan your trip.

Magic Kingdom: http://allears.net/tp/mk/mk_char.htm

Epcot: http://allears.net/tp/ep/ep_char.htm

Hollywood Studios: http://allears.net/tp/mgm/m_char.htm

Animal Kingdom: http://allears.net/tp/ak/ak_char.htm

(Queen Elsa meet-and-greet)

(Princess Anna is one of my favorite meet-and-greets to date- she was so lively and fun!)

I really like how All Ears character meet-and-greets are set up on the website, but as I look through it more, I am thinking of characters that aren’t listed, which means that they do not have the most updated list. This will, however, at least give you a start. I am also going to link Kenny The Pirate’s website- I am not a fan of how it is organized, but it seems much more updated. Between the two, you should be able to locate your favorite characters. If there is a specific character meet that you are wondering about, feel free to email me at dana_aimee@hotmail.com. I read a LOT of blogs and Facebook posts, and so there is a good chance I’ll know where the best place to find that character is. If not, I am going to the parks next month, and so I’d be happy to find the answer for you then! 

Magic Kingdom: http://www.kennythepirate.com/disney-world-character-schedules/disney-world-magic-kingdom-character-schedule-list/

Epcot: http://www.kennythepirate.com/disney-world-character-schedules/disney-world-epcot-characters-schedule-list/

Hollywood Studios: http://www.kennythepirate.com/disney-world-character-schedules/disney-world-hollywood-studios-characters-schedule-list/

Animal Kingdom: http://www.kennythepirate.com/disney-world-character-schedules/disney-world-animal-kingdom-characters-schedule-list/

When my family heads to Disney next month, we are planning to do two character meals. We have reservations for the Supercalifragilistic breakfast at 1900 Park Fare at the Grand Floridian, which my husband and I just love, as well as dinner one night at Chef Mickey’s. I would like to be honest and point out that the food at these meals is not gourmet- I think that sometimes visitors are disappointed because they pay $40-$50 per meal (if not on the dining plan), expecting amazing food, and it’s just not. It’s GOOD, and we always leave very full, but please be aware that you are paying for the experience and not the food. If you prefer to spend your money on amazing food, the Signature dining locations are going to be your best bet! I also wanted to mention that for those of us with children under 3 years of age, the buffets are a great value, as kids eat free! So my husband and I receive free dining under the promotion that we booked last year before we left Disney, and our child eats free at many of the meals we have selected- this can’t be beat!

(Donald Duck tickling baby Camden's belly at character breakfast)

(My son was 8-months old and loved meeting the characters on his first Disney trip!)

I’ve got one final tip before I go. I know a lot of my readers have young children, and please be aware- at the age of 8 months, my son was FASCINATED with the costumed characters. But from the age of 1 on, he has been very scared of them. He has always loved the princesses and other face characters, with one exception which I’d like to share. On our last day of our Princess Half Marathon trip in February, we went to breakfast at 1900 Park Fare with friends. My son, who had just turned 2 the month before, actually did better with Pooh Bear and Tigger than he’d done in the past, but he still didn’t want to meet them, which was fine. I thought he would be okay taking a photo with the Mad Hatter- even though he has a funny nose, he is a face character, which as I stated, my son has always enjoyed. So I scooped him up to come take a photo with the Mad Hatter, and as I was picking him up, my son grabbed a KNIFE off the table to bring to the encounter with the Mad Hatter! We did get a quick photo, but I realized that the Mad Hatter may not be my son’s favorite! I’m looking forward to seeing how my son does with the characters on this trip- he may or may not like the costumed characters, as he will now be 2-years-and-8-months old. My nephew LOVED meeting Mickey and friends on our trip last fall when he was just over 3 years old, so I am wondering when the time will come that my son enjoys the characters.

(It all went downhill right before this photo- Camden did NOT like Baloo and King Louis!)

I hope this post is helpful for those of you excited to meet the many characters who call Walt Disney World home. As always, please feel free to email me at dana_aimee@hotmail.com with any questions. Happy Travels!