Character Bus At Epcot?

[barbaraann]

Tell me about this character bus at Epcot. When does it usually arrive, is it only there at park opening or only on early mornings. I have noticed that on early mornings at Magic Kingdom they always have lots of characters, but I have never been at early morning at another park. Plan on going to the one at Animal Kingdom on my next trip.

 

[timandlesley]

I am interested in knowing this as well!

Lesley

 

[ccgegg]

We saw the character bus leaving Epcot (located between World Showcase and Future World) at around 3pm because the characters had to go to a parade. Not sure when it arrived.

 

[beattyfamily]

Tell me about this character bus at Epcot. When does it usually arrive, is it only there at park opening or only on early mornings. I have noticed that on early mornings at Magic Kingdom they always have lots of characters, but I have never been at early morning at another park. Plan on going to the one at Animal Kingdom on my next trip.

There is no set time they drive around that I know of. Maybe on the day you arrive, if they have a "Character Meet and Greet" paper you can grab one or ask a CM the bus' schedule that but I don't know of any schedule.

It's not just in the AM; we've seen them a few times in one day.

They drive around and stop at Spaceship earth for photos and autographs and if you time it right it can be not that crowded but it also can be very crowded and lines form fast.

In December, they are dressed in festive winter scarves, hats and clothes etc...

 

[HollyJoy]

All I have is the schedule from this past December, and the character bus stopped at the Showcase Plaza at 11:15am, 2:05pm, 3:10pm, and 4:15pm daily. It was really cute. It was loaded up with characters, and the meet and greets were great. The characters spent more time with the girls here than anywhere else!

 

[Eeyore2142]

When you arrive at Epcot, pick up a times guide. There is a section on there with the character meet and greets. I think the one with the character bus says something along the lines of "Characters on Holiday". It it at multiple location through the day - by the fountain, spaceship earth, and Japan for sure.

 

[gabbygrennell]

Definitley grab a park guide, check for the meet and greet times..

We didnt know about the character bus, but many of the cm's told us where and when it would arrive!

We saw it several times throughout the day, right in between future world, and world showcase!
Although, the time they spent there was only 10 minutes or so, and as soon as it pulled up, tons of kids flocked to them!
So, my suggestion is to get in line quickly for the ones you really want, because when it is time to go, it is time go!
Gabby

 

[live4christp1]

The bus is great, lots of characters. Should show on the schedule I think as Disney Characters on Holiday. They play music, it's listed as 20 minutes I think on the guide. When they start playing The Macarena, that is the characters cue to wrap things up and head to the bus. Seen many characters here that we haven't found anywhere else, Prince John, Frier Tuck, Smee, the characters usually are very playful here, its just kind of chaotic as there are no set lines and people just kind of bunch up and form their own lines. I think at one stop last year we got about 5 or 6 pictures and autographs which is pretty good for 20 minutes.

 

[bamagirl@hrt]

When we were there in Oct. '04, the first stop for Future World (in front of Spaceship Earth) was about 9:45, I think. Anyway, we timed just right that it was driving around SE as we came out of the SE ride. There were very few other people around. There were TONS of characters! Jiminy Crickett (who I'd read here is pretty rare), Pinochio, Mickey, Goofy, Max, Baloo, King Louie, Chip & Dale, Mary Poppins, Captain Hook, Mr. Smee, Pluto, Rafiki, Meeko, etc. When Jiminy Crickett got off the bus, he grabbed my DDs hand & they skipped off together. The characters split up around the Leave a Legacy tile monuments. It was easy to form lines there. It was fun seeing who was around the next corner. We were able to visit with all of the characters we wanted to. We had already had pictures with some of the characters at other places. I felt that the character interaction there was better than almost anywhere else we went!

Oh, you may already know this, but Mickey & Goofy appear outside Mission:Space dressed as astronauts. We just learned about that by luck. I had riden MS first and was sitting on the wall outside the ride with our two kids while DH rode. A CM came by & told us to walk over to this particular area where Mickey would soon come out. And when he appeared, he had Goofy with him! And we were first in line! Awesome!

 

[barbaraann]

I am so jealous that your daughter got to skip with Jiminy. He is my all-time favorite Disney character. I guess I will really have to keep my eyes and ears open and definitely check the Times Guide for Epcot. We will be there twice on our trip so I hope I catch a character bus. THANKS AGAIN

 

[kilee]

We've seen the bus several times too. The stops and locations are listed in your time guide. We've seen characters like Mary Poppins, Friar Tuck, Robinhood, Koda, Timon, Goofy & Max, Pluto, Dopey, Meeko, Donald, and Terk. Of course, Chip and Dale, Mickey, and Minnie I believe have been there everytime. These are the one's we've gotten pics w/ from the bus. There are others of course. It is really a great way to get autographs with the characters.

We've seen space Goofy (not Mickey) outside the entrance of Mouse Gear-- in the alcove type walkway w/ the Electric Umbrella. He was really hidden and there was nobody around. This was in fall of 2003.

 

[mommie2angels]

barbaraann, another great place to visit with Jiminy is in Italy at Epcot. You have to walk back into Italy to see the characters. You can ask a CM their time schedule for the day and if Jiminy will be there.