Buying souvineirs ahead of time??

[casieleigh]

First trip w/ 2 boys ages 5 and 1 in October. Staying for 7 nights at POFQ resort. We will buy some souviniers in the parks, but in hopes of saving some cash, I had considered buying some things online and taking them with us (a surprise in the room each day--from home?) Just not sure what's worth buying ahead and what's most overpriced that the kids will be DYING to have and I'll cringe that we could have bought it at home for much less. . .

ideas:
autograph book
T shirts
stuffed animals
glow sticks

?? Are these good ideas?? any others?? What do YOU wish you had bought ahead of time??
casieleigh is online now Reply With Quote

 

[Marionnette]

First trip w/ 2 boys ages 5 and 1 in October. Staying for 7 nights at POFQ resort. We will buy some souviniers in the parks, but in hopes of saving some cash, I had considered buying some things online and taking them with us (a surprise in the room each day--from home?) Just not sure what's worth buying ahead and what's most overpriced that the kids will be DYING to have and I'll cringe that we could have bought it at home for much less. . .

ideas:
autograph book
T shirts
stuffed animals
glow sticks

?? Are these good ideas?? any others?? What do YOU wish you had bought ahead of time??
casieleigh is online now Reply With Quote

I don't consider anything that you purchase ahead of time to be a souvenir since the whole idea is that a souvenir is a remembrance of your trip.

However, if your goal is to save money by purchasing new things to be given to the kids to distract them from the many fun things that Disney fills their gift shops with, then just about anything will be good.

Not many kids will be satisfied with a dollar store glow necklace when what they want is the light-up flashing crown or light sabre. A cute t-shirt from Walmart is not going to have the Fab 5 with "Walt Disney World 2012" printed on it. You're not going to find Duffy and his many outfits anywhere but at Disney, so if your kids want him, a stuffed animal from the Disney Store isn't going to cut it.

In short, I think that a lot of parents who pre-purchase souvenirs find that the effort falls flat when the kids are bombarded with Disney's very skillful marketing at every attraction exit and each night-time show.

OTOH, if you're making autograph books and personalized t-shirts for the family, then it can add to the fun of your trip and I say "go for it". I just feel that the rest of the stuff is unnecessary and it ends up being money that need not be spent in order to enjoy the trip.

 

[iluveeyore]

When my kids were little, we allowed them each $20 to buy a special souvenir - they usually chose a stuffie, and we still have them now. I was also able to buy the light up spinny things they sell at all the parades/fireworks at night at the Disney Store before we went, and I just hid them in my bag until they noticed all the ones Disney was selling, went off and left them with their Dad for a bit, then came back with, surprise, a spinny Disney thing!!! They didn't know I had bought it at home! They were just as happy with the glow bracelets I had packed as well. Kids don't know if you bought it there or not, and ours were too busy in the parks to want to be dragged through a gift shop, so it was easy to just let them pick out their stuffie when the time came, and spending more money than necessary was not an issue. The Disney shopping online has some good deals usually, and they do sell park-specific merchandise now too, so you should be able to buy some surprise bargains, and the boys won't know the difference!
Enjoy your trip!

 

[Pluto.AuD]

I purchased sweatshirts before our trip. They're so much more expensive than any regular shirts or souveniers.

 

[sk!mom]

What do YOU wish you had bought ahead of time??

Nothing. I wouldn't consider things bought ahead of time to be souvineers. To me a souvineer is a remembrance of the trip. About 10-12 years ago, I did pick up some inexpensive pins for a pin trading start. DD16 has enjoyed those for years and will trade out every trip. I will also usually watch the Disney site for deals on character shirts to wear on the trip. Again not as a souvineer but as vacation clothes. We then continue to wear them after the trip.

I've never understood the idea of giving kids a "Mickey gift" every morning. I didn't want my kids to expect a bunch of merchandise. To me that would only encourage the "gimmes" which I discouraged. But then DH and I aren't souvineer people. We view the photos to be the best souvineer and wanted our children to feel that way. This worked well for us. My DD could browse right through a souvineer shop without asking for anything.

We only buy souvineers if we see something really special.

 

[dhardawa]

I think it all depends on how you do it. I did take glow items last time and they were a huge hit. My kids see people selling glow items and want something so I whip something out of the bag and they are just as happy. They really also don't care about having something specifically from the gift shop with regards to things like stuffed animals. They just want a stuffed animal and if I can bring one out, they're happy. But, I don't consider these souveniers. We still buy tons from the actual parks. I'm also tempted to buy park merchandise off disneystore.com so it really is just like in the parks, but I can use coupon codes and get it cheaper.

 

[4HppyCamprs]

I have to agree with others that if you buy something ahead of time it is not really a souviner. I personally would prefer to limit the spending amount at the park rather than buy stuff just to have stuff and purchase it in advance. There are no memories attached. I still remember picking out my Tramp stuffed animal back when I was a little kid at Disneyland and my mom was on a very very tight budget. That said I see no harm in getting glow sticks in advance. Kids like those no matter what and there is no point in waiting on those. I also would order the autograph book in advance or make one from the Creative DISigns board in advance since you will want to have it ready to go when you get to "the world". Have a great trip and as long as you have some great pictures you will be creating some great memories

 

[Patience]

I have a daughter who was four and a half when we went to WDW last October. I purchased two princess dresses and matching light up wands on sale at the Disney store before we went. "Tinkerbell" left the outfits out for her, one on the day she had an appointment at BBB and one on the day we had a dinner at Akershus with the princesses. She was so excited and I saved a ton buying those dresses at the Disney Store instead of in the parks. The light up wands were free thanks to the Costco Disney gift cards with bonus $10 Disney store gift cards. Tink also left some small items on the other days, things like a stuffed Mickey, a bracelet, etc, which were purchased very inexpensively before our trip. My daughter was so excited to see what Tink left for her each day that the only thing she asked for in the parks was a balloon (which we bought for her).

When she's older, we will probably give her a small amount of money to buy something she picks out but at her age, the little gifts from Tinkerbell were very magical. I loved seeing her face light up when she saw her sparkly, beautiful princess dresses!

 

[nilseks]

My kids are getting a bit too old for it now, but a few years ago I would always buy the spinny glow stuff ahead of time. If you have a Disney store near you, they are often on clearance. I have bought them for as little as .99 each. I also buy shirts from the Disney store but they are more for me than for the kids. My kids really don't care much for souvenirs or themed clothes. Oldest used to get a dated Disney ball (usually the baseball) every year for maybe $5. Last year he didn't even want that. Youngest tends to want to pick out a stuffed animal every year, even at age 8. I am fine with that because he still loves all the ones he has picked out over the years.

Although it will mean nothing to them now, probably the best thing you can do is make or buy an autograph book. My kids are too 'cool' to have books signed now, but they LOVE looking back on them from previous years.

At any rate, we tend to keep things very simple, and basically we have always said they could pick out one or two things on the trip. If you think you will go often, it's important to set that precedent, particularly with the 5 year-old. One thing we have done is started a tradition of picking out an ornament every year. It's a family decision and my kids are to the point where they are more excited about picking out the ornament than picking things for themselves. We love putting up our tree every year and pulling out ornaments from years past!

 

[KY*Figment]

I don't consider anything that you purchase ahead of time to be a souvenir since the whole idea is that a souvenir is a remembrance of your trip.

However, if your goal is to save money by purchasing new things to be given to the kids to distract them from the many fun things that Disney fills their gift shops with, then just about anything will be good.

Not many kids will be satisfied with a dollar store glow necklace when what they want is the light-up flashing crown or light sabre. A cute t-shirt from Walmart is not going to have the Fab 5 with "Walt Disney World 2012" printed on it. You're not going to find Duffy and his many outfits anywhere but at Disney, so if your kids want him, a stuffed animal from the Disney Store isn't going to cut it.

In short, I think that a lot of parents who pre-purchase souvenirs find that the effort falls flat when the kids are bombarded with Disney's very skillful marketing at every attraction exit and each night-time show.

OTOH, if you're making autograph books and personalized t-shirts for the family, then it can add to the fun of your trip and I say "go for it". I just feel that the rest of the stuff is unnecessary and it ends up being money that need not be spent in order to enjoy the trip.

Somebody needs some pixie dust to make them less of a downer!

 

[cymbaldiva]

Was the reality of that post too much for you to deal with?


Posted from DISboards.com App for Android

 

[iheartpeterpan]

When my DD was little, I purchased a ton of items at the dollar store that were left at the room when "Tinkerbell" came to visit. My daughter absolutely loved this, and now that my nephew is coming on our next trip, she has asked to go buy things to leave from Tinkerbell. I think it's great that my dollar store visit results in items that my kids love to receive, it's a special part of our trip. And it means they ask me for less in the parks.

My DD brings those gifts home and they are definitely souvenierns!

 

[Darcy03231]

When I took my niece (she was 4, almost 5) I brought a lot of stuff with me that I had purchased at our local Disney Store. "Tinkerbelle" brought a gift each night. Autograph book and pen, trading pins, t-shirts, small toys, etc.

I found it really cut down on the wanting something in every gift shop. I also told her we would do our shopping on the last day. In every shop we took pictures of what she thought she wanted, along with the price and where it was and on the last day she bought her souvenir. Her choice ended up being a Polly Pocket type Tinkerbelle doll & clothes set that was less than $15.

 

[danceintherain]

First trip w/ 2 boys ages 5 and 1 in October. Staying for 7 nights at POFQ resort. We will buy some souviniers in the parks, but in hopes of saving some cash, I had considered buying some things online and taking them with us (a surprise in the room each day--from home?) Just not sure what's worth buying ahead and what's most overpriced that the kids will be DYING to have and I'll cringe that we could have bought it at home for much less. . .

ideas:
autograph book
T shirts
stuffed animals
glow sticks

?? Are these good ideas?? any others?? What do YOU wish you had bought ahead of time??
casieleigh is online now Reply With Quote

Think carefully about your kids and decide what you think they would want. Even so, sometimes all it takes is for someone else to have something for a kid to want it.
The light up spinning things are particularly frustrating in the parks, because they're cash only.
Hats are also worth adding to your list, if your kids will wear them. Though I think some of the more gimmicky ones may be hard to come by online and it will be difficult to predict which one in particular your child may want.
On my son's first trip to Disney at 3 months, I thought it'd be sweet to get him a Disney hat in the parks. Four parks later we realized that Disney hardly carries hats small enough for 3 month olds, and they tend to stock them in pink more than blue.

Not many kids will be satisfied with a dollar store glow necklace when what they want is the light-up flashing crown or light sabre. A cute t-shirt from Walmart is not going to have the Fab 5 with "Walt Disney World 2012" printed on it. You're not going to find Duffy and his many outfits anywhere but at Disney, so if your kids want him, a stuffed animal from the Disney Store isn't going to cut it.

In short, I think that a lot of parents who pre-purchase souvenirs find that the effort falls flat when the kids are bombarded with Disney's very skillful marketing at every attraction exit and each night-time show.

OTOH, if you're making autograph books and personalized t-shirts for the family, then it can add to the fun of your trip and I say "go for it". I just feel that the rest of the stuff is unnecessary and it ends up being money that need not be spent in order to enjoy the trip.

When my parents took us as kids, we were allotted a very small souvenir budget. They picked up t-shirts for us at Walmart nearby to save money. I was no less excited about these t-shirts than I would have been had I picked them out in the parks. We were always satisfied with what we had rather than wanting things we knew we couldn't have. Fast forward 10 years later and my youngest brother was given a lot higher souvenir budget than we ever were, and whined and complained the entire trip. My Mom tried to drag me back (through a cell phone call) into the World Showcase from the exit of Epcot one day, because my brother wanted a light up spinning thing and she didn't have any cash. I can only imagine the whining that ensued.
Kids are only as spoiled as you let them be.

While I do think that there's a certain value garnered by picking out souvenirs during a vacation, I also know that many times those items are cast aside as soon as you return home. It makes sense to me to want to save a little money on those small items that may not be in the budget otherwise.