Ahh, meet & greets at Disney World! Certainly one of the most charming things you can do in the Happiest Place on Earth. Seriously, adults and children alike love it, since we are talking about saying hi and taking pictures with some of the most charming characters ever! Yes, Mickey Mouse, Donald, Goofy, Minnie and Pluto are what we can call the mascots that you can probably find in every Disney park, but it’s also cool that you can find niche characters that were part of your childhood. I’m talking about Scrooge McDuck, Mulan, Woody, Darth Vader and dozens of other examples scattered across the Walt Disney World resort.
Wait, did I say dozens? I meant hundreds. There are *a lot* of characters in Disney, way more than what you’d find at Universal. We are talking about the traditional Disney characters, Disney princesses, Pixar characters, Star Wars characters and more. Funny enough, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Marvel character in Disney World. This makes sense, since Universal has a deal with Marvel when it comes to Marvel in theme parks (which maybe only applies to Florida? I am not sure), so if you want to see Captain America and the X-Men, you need to head to Islands of Adventure.
There are three different ways for character greet & meets at Disney World:
- Character Dining: the easiest way to take pictures and meet some of your favorite characters. There are several restaurants in Disney World with fixed prices (usually around $70) which offer a buffet and the chance to meet Disney icons. Examples are the Hollywood & Vine in Hollywood Studios which brings Mickey, Donald & more to your dining table and the Crystal Palace in Magic Kingdom where you can meet Pooh, Tigger and the rest of the gang.
- Attractions & Disney Genie+: Yes, did you know that a lot of meet & greets in Disney World are basically rides? When you arrive at the theme park, it's smart to pick up a map and see what meet-and-greets are available. They're scheduled at specific times each day, so planning ahead and arriving early is key. Plus, with Disney Genie+, you can use it to skip lines, which is handy, especially if you're with young kids who don't like waiting.
- Walking around: yes, one of the most fun ways to meet new characters is just coming across them out of nowhere! You can come across some very fun characters like Woody, the Green Army Men from Toy Story, Gastón, Alice, Asha and many, many more. It’s always a treat to just be walking around and coming face to face with characters that are part of your childhood.
Also, here are a few tips when it comes to meet & greets:
- Always check your My Disney Experience app for characters that might be popping up during the day of your visit. The app conveniently displays character names, timestamps, and their locations, making it easy to plan your day.
- Some characters may only appear during special events, even during Disney After Hours.
- Magic Kingdom is the best park to meet classic Disney characters like Mickey & friends.
- Epcot is the best theme park to meet Disney Princesses.
- Hollywood Studios is the best theme park to meet Pixar and Star Wars characters.
- Animal Kingdom is the best theme park to meet… uhh… animals? Yeah. Animals.
For now, let’s list all the characters you can find in the different theme parks. Remember, they might not be there every day. Some show up only during specific seasons, and others may not appear at all for various reasons. This is often the case with wandering characters. Characters featured in character dining experiences and meet & greets at attractions are usually more consistent in their availability.
Magic Kingdom
- Aladdin & Jasmine: You can find them at the Agrabah Bazaar.
- Alice: Walking around. Seasonal.
- Ariel: Meet Ariel at her grotto. There is usually a Disney Genie+ for this one.
- Beast: Character Dining at Be Our Guest. He doesn’t stop at the tables.
- Belle: You can meet her at the Enchanted Tales with Belle. Disney Genie+ available.
- Chip N’ Dale: Walking around Tomorrowland.
- Cinderella: Character Dining inside Cinderella's Royal Table.
- Country Bears: Frontierland.
- Daring Disney Pals at Pete’s Silly Sideshow in Storybook Circus: There are two queues available here. One for Daisy and Minnie and the other is for Donald and Goofy. The characters here are dressed as wizards and magicians, which is a nice touch.
- Gaston: Walking around. Seasonal.
- Jack Sparrow: Near the Pirates of the Caribbean.
- Mary Poppins: Liberty Square. Rare appearance.
- Meet Disney Princesses in Princess Fairytale Hall: You can usually find princesses like Tiana, Cinderella, Jasmine, Ariel and Elena of Avalor here. Keep in mind that you will only find a selection of those, and it’s hard to know who will be there. Disney Genie+ is available.
- Merida: You can find her at the Enchanted Glade Gazebo in Liberty Square.
- Mickey at Town Square Theater: Disney Genie+ option
- Mirabel: Seasonal. She is usually found in Fairytale Garden.
- Peter Pan: Walking around, usually near Peter Pan’s Flight.
- Stitch: Tomorrowland. Rare appearance.
- Tinker Bell at Town Square Theater: Seasonal
- Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Eeyore and Piglet: Character Dining at The Crystal Palace.
- Winnie the Pooh and Tigger: Walking around, usually near The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh.
Epcot
- Alice: United Kingdom pavilion.
- Anna and Elsa: Norway pavilion.
- Asha: Seasonal. World Showcase gazebo.
- Aurora: France pavilion.
- Belle: France pavilion.
- Daisy: Dreamers Point.
- Disney Princesses: Character Dining at the Akershus Royal Banquet Hall. A selection of random princesses will be there. Options include Ariel, Belle, Cinderella, Snow White, Jasmine, Princess Aurora and Mulan.
- Figment: Imagination pavilion.
- Goofy: Near Epcot’s Main entrance at selected hours.
- Donald Duck: Mexico pavilion.
- Jasmine: Morocco pavilion.
- Joy: Joy from Inside Out. Seasonal. You can meet her inside ImageWorks.
- Mary Poppins: United Kingdom pavilion.
- Mickey and Minnie: Imagination pavilion.
- Mickey, Pluto, Chip and Dale: Character Dining at the Garden Grill in The Land pavilion.
- Mulan: China pavilion.
- Pluto: Creations Shop.
- Minnie: Near Epcot’s Main entrance at selected hours.
- Moana: Near or inside Journey of Water.
- Snow White: Germany pavilion.
- Winnie the Pooh: United Kingdom pavilion.
Hollywood Studios
- Ariel (Live Action version): Walt Disney Presents.
- BB-8: Star Wars Launch Bay.
- Buzz Lightyear: Toy Story Land.
- Chewbacca: Star Wars Launch Bay. Also found walking around Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge.
- Chip and Dale: Echo Lake.
- Darth Vader: Star Wars Launch Bay.
- Disney Junior pals: Animation Courtyard. Meet Vampirina, Fancy Nancy and more.
- Donald and Daisy: Echo Lake.
- Edna Mode: Pixar Plaza.
- Frozone: Pixar Plaza.
- Goofy and Max: Grand Avenue.
- Jessie: Toy Story Land.
- Kylo Ren: Walking around Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge.
- The Mandalorian and Grogu: Walking around Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge.
- Mickey & Minnie: Red Carpet Dreams.
- Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Donald: Character Dining at Hollywood and Vine.
- Mr. and Ms. Incredible: Pixar Plaza.
- Olaf: Celebrity Spotlight. Disney Genie+ available.
- Pluto: Animation Courtyard.
- Rey: Walking around Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge.
- Stormtroopers: Walking around Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge.
- Sulley: Pixar Plaza.
- Vi Moradi: a character from the Star Wars comics. Found walking around Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge.
- Woody: Toy Story Land.
Animal Kingdom
- Chip and Dale: part of Donald’s Dino-Bash in Dinoland USA.
- Daisy Duck: part of Donald’s Dino-Bash in Dinoland USA.
- Donald Duck: part of Donald’s Dino-Bash in Dinoland USA.
- Dug and Russel: Discovery Island Trails.
- Goofy: part of Donald’s Dino-Bash in Dinoland USA. Rare appearance.
- Mickey and Minnie: Adventurers Outpost. Disney Genie+ available. They are wearing cute safari gear!
- Mickey, Donald, Daisy, and Goofy: Character Dining at Tusker House Restaurant.
- Moana: Discovery Island Trails.
- Pocahontas: Discovery Island Trails. Rare appearance. She can also be seen from time to time sailing around Discovery river.
- Rafiki: Discovery Island Trails.
- Scrooge McDuck and Launchpad McQuack: Discovery river, sailing around. Rare appearance. Scrooge McDuck also appears in Dinoland USA from time to time for Donald’s Dino-Bash.
- Timon: Discovery Island Trails.
Closing Thoughts
Now you are ready to try and collect every Walt Disney World character! …wait, why am I talking as if they are Pokémon? In fact, it does sound like this sometimes, right? You might be walking around only to come face to face with a “wild” Disney character, and that’s your only chance of grabbing a picture. As it also happens with Pokémon, some of those Disney characters appear only from time to time, and there are even some of them not listed above that can appear during special occasions!
We hope you had fun reading our guide. Remember, always check your My Disney Experience app on the day of your visit, since the app usually lists which characters will be available (and at what time) during that specific day.
Happy hunting!
