Cheaper places to buy souvenirs outside the park ?

[richfei]

I came back from a week's vacation at DL
We never bought any souvenirs in the park
They just seemed so expensive

Before entering the park, we stopped off at Walmart and found a nice Disney section i.e pens, autograph books, mugs, magnets, postcards etc. Prices were good so we bought a lot of items there

We also stopped off at the Disney character warehouse outlet in Fullerton. But that was really disappointing. Really old merchandise and not very good quality and prices were not that great either

I was wondering if there were places in Anaheim or nearby we could have tried for more reasonable Disney goodies i.e outside the park. We never tried Target or any of the big box stores. Perhaps next time

 

[cougarfan84]

Last time I went, we stopped by Target and picked up some souveneirs instead of buying in the park. It was quite a bit cheaper, however, the selection was a lot more limited than what you would find in the park. I'd imagine the merchandise was similar to what you found in Walmart.

The other option that I've done as well is buy souveniers in the hotel gift shop (if they have one). We bought a couple of shirts and a few other items in the gift shop last time we went (we stayed at the Residence Inn in Garden Grove), and while the prices weren't dirt cheap like Walmart/Target, they were still a little lower than the park itself and the quality was still good..

 

[cchavez]

I would love to know too since we need to bring back gifts for our kids friends.

 

[starshine514]

I've always been afraid to buy something at Walmart as a souvenir for someone b/c I thought maybe they had seen/bought the same item at our Walmart and would know I'd been cheap about it. Or, worse yet, forgotten entirely and picked something up once I'd gotten back. So, I haven't really looked anywhere but the outlet (and I didn't find too much there)... that being said, I'd really like to hear from people who have done this. Do the Walmart/Target type places have more Disney stuff near Disneyland? Is it stuff you can't buy at the same store in your hometown?

I did forget some people last trip - and ended up ordering park merchandise from the Disneystore website for them!

 

[cougarfan84]

I've always been afraid to buy something at Walmart as a souvenir for someone b/c I thought maybe they had seen/bought the same item at our Walmart and would know I'd been cheap about it. Or, worse yet, forgotten entirely and picked something up once I'd gotten back. So, I haven't really looked anywhere but the outlet (and I didn't find too much there)... that being said, I'd really like to hear from people who have done this. Do the Walmart/Target type places have more Disney stuff near Disneyland? Is it stuff you can't buy at the same store in your hometown?

I did forget some people last trip - and ended up ordering park merchandise from the Disneystore website for them!

When we went to Target, they had a Disney Souvenier section in an area of the store. It wasn't too fancy - mainly things like pens, autograph books, mugs, etc. - but it was low cost and being poor students on a budget it was within our price range. The items were unique enough that we wouldn't be able to find them in our local Target here in Utah. The only hesitation that I had about it was the quality (you get what you pay for), but you could always check it out and see if there was anything you liked there.

 

[richfei]

I've never noticed much if any specific Disney stuff in Target or Walmart outside of the Anaheim stores. I live in the Bay area. I thought the selection in the Anaheim Walmart wasn't bad. I didn't see any Mickey ears or Disney candy or much in the way of clothes but enough general trinkets to definitely make it worthwhile. I was wondering if any of the Anaheim chain stores had a Disney section. We never really went shopping and just bought a few items in Walmart when we were down there last week. Just wondering for next time

 

[wdwrich]

If you have transportation, there is a Disney Warehouse Outlet store three miles north of the Disneyland resort. The address is 243 Orangefair Mall
Fullerton, CA 92832, and the phone number is 714/870.9363. They have the official merchandise at reduced prices. Inventory can vary, but we've found some good deals there on official stuff.

 

[farmgirljen]

I purchase things online through the disney outlet or the disney store,= before the trip and then give those when we get back or pack them (if they are small and easy to hide) and use them as "perks" through out the trip...the kids always ask "when did you buy this?" lol...

 

[TheEpicPancake]

I always stop at the dollar store to pick up glow things for my kid (husband, whatever you want to call him heh) but otherwise I mostly stick to buying things in the park that you really CAN'T buy other places. Then again I don't have children to buy for.

 

[cyclenut]

The OP mentioned having visited the Fullerton outlet and not being too impressed. That store is pretty well travelled so the "good stuff" goes pretty fast and is in low quantity as a result.

Disney limits what they will sell through retail chains such as Target or WalMart. Yes, it is licensed merchandise, so in that way it is authentic, but it isn't very likely that you'll find the same things there that you would inside the parks.

Stretching your budget means you'll need to get creative. Try visiting the World of Disney store in DTD. It is huge and it isn't like the DisneyStore you may have in your local mall. They do have some park-specific merchandise. Talk to a CM there about lower priced items. They can usually point you to some of the better values.

A PP suggested you try on-line. That is a good suggestion, but don't limit yourself to the DisneyStore site. There are some good Disney things on Amazon and eBay but be sure to read reviews (if you can) to avoid getting stuck with a low quality item. Generally speaking the Disney stuff brings top dollar so it can be a bit of a hunt to find a good value, but they are out there.

Happy Hunting!

 

[lovebug33]

Does anybody ever find anything good in those Disney outlet stores? We stopped at ours in Vegas and it was BAD. They were selling 50th anniversary merchandise for 5-10 dollars for things! That was, what, 6 years ago? It seemed like a dumping ground for everything they've never sold in the last decade. I wouldn't have touched any of that and I won't go back, either!

 

[ddwlms]

I found excellent stuff at the Disney outlet one out of four trips. We were just there last week and they had merchandise that I have purchased at Disneystore.com on sale for a cheaper price then the outlet price. It is really hit or miss. They had Disney stuff, but not much Disneyland stuff. (except they still have golden 50th Mickey hats.) Maybe someone knows if there is a specific day that they get new merchandise. ?

I've also purchased a hand bag in the park and found the very same one at WM for exactly half the price.

If you don't have an AP, sign up for a Disney CC to get 10% purchases over $50 at DTD store.

 

[teach1abc]

We went to Disney last December. I ended up buying a new tshirt and pajamas for my kids for each day we were there from the disney store (online). I found the things on sale. I think I got the pjs for $8 and tshirts for $7. We stayed for 3 nights so both kids got 3 pjs and 3 tshirts. The last time we went, we bought my son one tshirt in the park for $30!

I also picked up some Disney themed toys, coloring books, etc, at the Dollar Store so they had some surprises during the trip. Since they got these presents, they did not need to go in the souvenir stores at the park which was nice.

 

[cchavez]

I think I will try the disneystore in DTD. Does anybody know what type of cheaper items they carry? Pens, keychains, etc?

 

[farmgirljen]

I also like to look for things that come in muliples- like pens, etc... Online right now there are some really cute Alice in Wonderland Pens that come in a pack of 6...

 

[richfei]

I also like to look for things that come in muliples- like pens, etc... Online right now there are some really cute Alice in Wonderland Pens that come in a pack of 6...

that's what we did
it was a budget minded vacation for us and we just bought a few packs of pens as well as other souvenirs and handed them to my kids friends when they came back. they were happy enough to get anything. they didn't care it came from a particular store in the park

 

[starshine514]

Does anybody ever find anything good in those Disney outlet stores? We stopped at ours in Vegas and it was BAD. They were selling 50th anniversary merchandise for 5-10 dollars for things! That was, what, 6 years ago? It seemed like a dumping ground for everything they've never sold in the last decade. I wouldn't have touched any of that and I won't go back, either!

I liked the one in Vegas. I can't say I bought a lot there - bought each girl a Princess Minnie hat for like $5.99 (when we went last, I saw the exact same ones in the World of Disney store for like $16.99), bought a Jack Skellington newsboy hat for $15.99 (like $36.99 on the original price tag - didn't see this one at DLR) and maybe a few charms or hair clips. Like I said, nothing much, but I did have a lot of fun browsing there - it was really neat to be able to purchase Disney parks stuff in Nevada!

I found a couple of things at the one in Fullerton as well. Truly though, I had the best luck at the Premiere Character Outlet in Orlando. It was a much nicer store and had nicer stuff, too.

It is just my imagination, or is the 3 miles to the outlet in Fullerton one of the longest 3 miles in the world?

 

[carebee21]

Does anybody ever find anything good in those Disney outlet stores? We stopped at ours in Vegas and it was BAD. They were selling 50th anniversary merchandise for 5-10 dollars for things! That was, what, 6 years ago? It seemed like a dumping ground for everything they've never sold in the last decade. I wouldn't have touched any of that and I won't go back, either!

The Disney character warehouse usually has garbage IMO but occasionally you can find a good deal on pins. We much prefer the actual Disney store outlet located in the outdoor outlets (sorry, I can't think of the name, we just call them the indoor and the outdoor outlet centers) but it's the one closer to the stratosphere side of the strip... They have both disney store clearance and Disneyland park clearance items.