Tips about Characters, Magic Kingdom, Planning and Resorts

My family has been going to WDW since 1971, so needless to say there are occasions when we are looking for things to do that are outside of the parks, but still in the World. After I read Jack Spence's article on thinking "outside the box," my family came up with this idea that we are going to do over the Labor Day weekend. Prior to our trip we will put the names of the three monorail resort hotels in a hat and each of us will draw a name. Then, on our first evening, after dinner, we will ride the monorail, stopping at each resort hotel, and the person with that hotel name will get to select a "dessert" at a quick stop location to share with the group back in our hotel room. No one knows what was selected and it continues the party well into the evening after leaving the parks. - Betsy Vancura

Wilderness Lodge - Select resorts now have a Resort Photo Session that can be booked up to 30 days in advance of your stay. I just called and spoke to Sheri at the Wilderness Lodge Photo Pass Desk (it's in the lobby by the Mercantile) and was quoted the following: 20 minute private photo session at your resort. 2 Packages available: $49.95 includes sitting fee and 7 - 5x7's $99.95 includes above PLUS all the photos they took on a CD/ROM and the rights to the photo's so you can print them up later. I was told that they take no less than 50 pictures, so if this is a special occassion it might just be worth it to get the $99.95 package! - Elizabeth Kozdron

Magic Kingdom - I recently found out a service that the Magic Kingdom watch store offers. My husband's pin fell out of his glasses. The nearest glasses store was 20 minutes away and we did not have a car. I asked the front desk if there was a watch store in one of the parks. They directed me to the one in the Magic Kingdom. I thought maybe a watch store would have the tools to put the pin back in. The store told me to bring the glasses over. The man had the tools and many pins to try. He fixed the glasses free of charge. We were so, so happy! - Teresa Norman

Just a tip: one year, instead of using autograph books, we used the park maps to have autographed at the locations we saw the characters. The four park maps ended up being one of our favorite memories, and they were free, too! - Kim Camp

My daughter took a poster of all the princesses to Epcot. We unrolled it for each princess and the ladies said it was a good idea. We rolled it back up and kept it in a locker for the day. In the hotel we kept it in a frame. We drove so it was not an issue to take home. We just kept it in the frame. One of my daughter's favorite souvenirs of all of our trips. - Kim Peacock

I've read some great tips about bringing items (other than autograph books) for the characters to sign. We have also found that the books get forgotten once the vacation is over, so we've tried several different items. Here are a couple of additional thoughts: If you are bringing a shirt, they will not sign it if the child (or adult) is wearing it. Also if you are enjoying a character dinner, you will already know which characters you'll meet. Try to find a shirt that has those characters on it so each character can sign next to their image. When bringing an item (such as a t-shirt, hat, photo frame or ball) for the characters to sign, get the large chisel-tip markers. They are BIG so it's easier for the characters to grip and the signature shows up much better on the item. Don't be afraid to get creative! If you sew, bring fabric squares and make a quilt. How about buying the kids Disney backpacks or totes for the characters to sign? It will encourage them to carry their own stuff. Whatever you bring, just make sure it's something you don't mind hauling around the parks. So that Disney comforter is probably out of the question -- the pillowcase however... - Anne Cline Peterson

If you want any characters to sign clothing/pillowcases, you might want to invest in an embroidery hoop set (those two plastic or wooden rings that hold fabric taut). They're relatively cheap and come in all sizes. That, paired with a thicker marker will make it much easier for Mickey or Minnie to sign with their gloves. - Rachel L. Fridkin

I wanted to pass along that characters may not sign the shirt if a child is wearing it. Back in 2005 I did the same thing for my older daughter. She was 7 at the time. She wore a princess t-shirt that we'd purchased at the Disney Store to our breakfast at Cinderella's Royal Table. When we asked Snow White to sign the shirt, she said she couldn't if my daughter was wearing the shirt at the time. She said it was a rule that Disney has, I guess to protect the kids from inappropriate touching. So if you want a signed shirt, make sure you take the shirt instead of wearing it. - Beth McMeekin

When visiting a princess breakfast, bring along a Princess T-shirt from the Disney Store back home. Using a Sharpie, we asked the princesses to sign the shirt instead of an autograph book. (Our daughter is 3 and cannot read anyway.) Emma wore her Cinderella dress from home with shorts under to the breakfast. When the meal was over, we changed into the newly signed shirt and sent the Cinderella dress plus some new magnets back to the resort. She got compliments on the shirt all day long. Using a permanent Sharpie keeps the signatures looking like new. - Tracy Boylan

EDITOR'S NOTE: What really helps is if you have the shirt against something hard to write on, like the table or a clipboard. Also be sure to stretch out the fabric while it's being signed. Remember, not all characters may be able to sign T-shirts due to their "hands."

Every time we go to Disney I buy an autograph book so the girls can get their "needed" autographs and this can get quite expensive. I have tried in the past to buy a random book (not Disney) and that just would not do. I am also a scrapbooker (just a beginner) and after each visit I make a wonderful (in my opinion) scrapbook. Well, this year we are going to Disney and my youngest daughter is going to want to get autographs, so I decided to make a scrapbook page that the characters can sign. I will also have a place for my daughter's picture with the character. This will save me some money, plus it is a wonderful project for her and I to work on together, not to mention I will have the "whole" trip in one book autographs and all. - Teena Galatas

We were looking for something new and creative for acquiring autographs. My daughter is 9 and son is 10 and really into baseball. I went out and bought a pink baseball and a blue baseball. They took the balls to the character dinners and had them signed. When we got home I bought a protective baseball case and placed the balls in there. It was a great way to add their personality to the autographs. - Eric Berdan

Everyone knows that when you arrive at Disney you want to see everything. It is extremely difficult to predict what the crowds will be like and how fast or slow lines will be moving, though. No one wants to be disappointed by missing out on the one thing they wanted to do the most. We traveled to Disney with my sister's family (at the time they had a 2-year-old) and my family (three children ages 5, 7 and 9). Each night we would sit down and look at the map for the park we were going to the next day. Everyone got to pick one thing that was tops on their list to see (usually there would be duplication) and then everyone got to make two other suggestions. We then ranked them, so everyone's top priority was on the list and then other suggestions, depending on their number of votes, got put on the list after that. Therefore, everyone got to do at least the one thing they were looking forward to doing the most and usually one or two more things that were high on their list. It did take some advanced planning but was well worth it. It also made the kids feel like they were making a significant contribution to the vacation planning. - Heidi Koll-Pio

This tip is a culmination of several great tips I have read on this site that worked out so perfectly for us last week at Disney. Before we left I bought each of my three kids a fanny pack. In it they carried a small plastic photo album filled with 4x6 index cards and a large Sharpie marker for autographs. The photo album ($1 each at Walmart) was a great alternative, as it allows you to put the photo in alongside of the autograph; a small zipper-top sandwich baggie filled with the appropriate ratio of coins to do pressed pennies (they cost 51 cents each); their Passports from Epcot; and a Visa gift card with dollars loaded on it for their own souvenirs -- that way if it got lost all we had to do would be to call and stop the card. They wore the packs every single day and barely complained once. This was a HUGE load off of my shoulders as usually I would be carrying all of these things around. I didn't even have to worry about them setting them down and losing them since they were snugly attached to their bodies at all times. It was an awesome solution to many different challenges -- thanks for sharing all the great ideas! - Marsha of Canton, Ohio

My tip is to take a deep breath, relax, and let the magic come to YOU. So many people go to Disney World frantically searching for it and hunting it down, meanwhile they're missing it! It's passing them right by. The most magical moments happen when you least expect them. Experiencing the magic that happens shouldn't be stressful. It shouldn't be work or effort. People who have never been, hear so much about other people's experiences and memories. My tip for them is don't go looking for those particular things that you've heard about. So much can happen there -- let your OWN memories happen. Forget about what other people experience. You'll have your own stories to tell when you get back. And for people who have been a million times, they might go back trying to recapture the fond memories they've had from past trips. So my tip to them is keep those experiences as fond memories and every time you go back, create NEW memories. Just let the magic happen. Don't force it and don't rush it, because believe me, it WILL happen. - Twincess

Just wanted to mention that readers of this newsletter in the UK can use MouseFanTravel.com to get quotes or book trips to WDW (as well as those readers in the US). The prices are very competitive and often better offers or packages are available than here in the UK. It seems that some of the deals that Disney offers are not recognised by UK travel agents. - Mark Burden, Dorset, UK