Cool (free) stuff to collect on your WDW trip

[Kim1964]

Someone mentioned collecting free things for the scrapbook during their WDW vacation. I thought it would be fun to post a list of things we've collected that were free.

-Resort maps
-The little envelope they put your KTTW cards in
-The whole folder of stuff they give you at check in
-The parking permit for your car window
-The Mickey face cardboard "coasters" they leave under your room mugs and glassware
-Napkins
-Receipts from a special meal
-Menus
-The folio they slip under your door at the end of your stay
-Co-pilot cards from when you sit in the front of the Monorail
-Fastpasses you didn't have time to use
-KTTW cards
-Swizzle sticks
-Park times guides and maps
-Pool or special event wristbands
-The Mickey head confetti they spread on the table when you celebrate a special occasion at a Disney restaurant (at least California Grill does!)
-The special occasion buttons they distribute, like Happy Birthday, Anniversary, etc.

Anyone else want to add to the list?

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

-the folders your dining pics come in from Chef Mickeys, Akershus, and CRT. I shrink and copy them to use in layouts.
-The "newspaper" that comes in your welcome packet about your resort.
-tickets
-photopass cards
-luggage tags
- trading cards from bus drivers
- the coloring pages the kids can do while you check in

 

[outlander]

The little shapes that you get when you visit each country's kidcot station in EPCOT

The treat bags (cut out the design) from MNSSHP

Special event maps and brochures

 

[ogreenlee]

I went thru the FAQ here on the scrapbooking site, and found some cool things to do from other folks.

I'll copy/paste some of the replies: Not all are necessarily free, but good info!

Welcome to the wonderful world of scrapping. It is both fun and addicting.

Pick up 2 of everything (park maps, schedules, and such) so that you have a front and back. You may want to mount them whole or cut some things out of them.

Save everything. Merchandise bags, tags, register receipts, napkins. I found a great layout idea from a hang tag on a beach towel, and I used a bag that had silhouetted Mickey heads all over it as a background.

Buy some post cards, especially some of the cut out character ones. There may also be some scenes that you might not be able to get with your camera.

Take pictures of things like lamp posts, signs, clocks, the door of your hotel room showing the room number. Anything that could be cut out or silhouetted to use as an accent on a page. I took pictures of the beautiful carpets on the cruise and used them for Mickey heads and picture mounts.

Take a couple of large document mailing envelopes to keep all the things you have collected. I have even heard of people mailing them home to themselves as they got full.

And lastly keep a journal, even if you only write a few notes at the end of the day about the things you did. It will come in very handy

You won't know what you will use until you are sitting there scrapping.

Have a wonderful trip and come back and hang out with us.

Chessie

Buy postcards of after-dark activities (some of the hardest to photograph) like parades and fireworks displays. Also, consider getting them for rides or show where flash photography is not permitted if they are available.

Invest in one Mickey-head paper punch. I have used those little punched shapes to decorate soooo many pages!

I have even taken photos of tile-work in the floor of a bathroom at Animal Kingdom (because I thought I might want to use the pattern on a page). It is amazing what you will see that sparks an idea, if you are just looking for it. My family thinks I am crazy, but they still love me.

I would also like to add my own suggestions. I found some great stickers at WDW when I was there. There was a box of stickers with four rolls of stickers- one roll per park! I had to get it! Also, I saw stickers with a safari theme in the Animal Kingdom. It came with Mickey and friends dressed for the safari or with Pooh and friends dressed for safari! They were really cute! (I opted not to buy those before, but I will probably buy them in August). If you love Mickey (like me!) and you see stickers with him alone or with a few friends, don't turn them down EVER! Mickey stickers (especially full body) are hard to find. Pooh stickers are everywhere, but Mickey is tougher to find.

WHEW! It is great to know I am the only "nut" who collects napkins, brochures and everything else to bring home for my scrapbooks! Those little standup cards in the rooms that tell you how to use the phone are wonderfully useful. You should've seen me trying to collect the "pixie dust" they threw on us at the Cinderella Castle breakfast.....trying to keep up with that until we got home was no small chore. Resort maps, menus, merchandise tags, bags, the list goes on and on....and most of this costs nothing (if you were already buying whatever it came with anyway). I have never thrown away the credit-card rooms keys - they are in the scrapbooks. CMs are prone to stick stickers on the kids - we keep those.

My poor family has just gotten used to throwing nothing away at Disney World until they ask me about it first!

I read in one of the magazines something I thought was a good idea. By two postcards every day showing something significant about that day. Do your journaling on the back of one and mail it to yourself. Save the other and then you can put both front and back in your scrapbook. That gives you a head start on the journaling and definitely captures the moment right then!

I know this thread stopped long ago, but I wanted to add a suggestion. Use Disney Dollars on your pages...might even be cheaper than stickers.

 

[MedCruise07]

This is soooooo helpful! I'm wondering about the bus driver cards and the little cutout things from the kidcot stations in Epcot--can you just ask for these? I don't want to be rude but I also don't want to pass up something that is routinely given out if only I had bothered to ask. Thanks!

 

[rlovew]

You can also send yourself a picture in a few different places over email and then just have to pay for the printing. I know there is a email picture postcard from Mars at Mission Space and in innoventions at thinkplace you can email a picture of yourself back too, i think you can do it in the immagination pavillion also. You can also take the pop quiz in the Living Seas and then have a certificate emailed to you.

Rebecca

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

nothing new to add, just thought it was funny. I am so tired I thought Cool Free said coffee!

 

[PirateMel]

I went down in Dec and it was really cold, I opened the Mickey Icre cream really carfully and kept the wrapper to place along side the pic of Mom bitting MM ear off the Premium Bar!

I keep everything as well, all mailing that come from the CC, new letters, etc., and scan and copy them for backgrounds and Journaling. I don't write on my pages.

I also have TT bags from MNSSHP, and a coffe cup from MVMCP. Sick but effective for my pages.

I have the parking tickets, they show the dates for when I stayed off property.

 

[mmkk]

These are great tips!!! Now I am wondering if this trip in November is going to be a two volume trip!!!
At the restaurants, are there take home menus that they give you? Last scrapbooked trip I made my own with the menus on the websites, but if I can get them from the restaurants, thats even better!

 

[MazdaUK]

Are these things phot safe, has anyone checked? I'm paranoid about wrecking my pics and I don't think we can get archivers spray here

 

[ogreenlee]

You can't get archiver's spray in the UK? That seems strange considering there are so many old things to archive there.

I'm sure you can find something online, right?

Anyway, if not... I think you're fine as long as your stuff doesn't come in contact with your pics. You can use pockets or envelopes mounted onto the page, as well. The acid isn't gonna creep over to your pictures, I promise!

 

[MazdaUK]

All our old things are archived in atmospherically controlled acid-free environments - scrapping is in its infancy here! I don't know what the problems would be shipping sprays by air - I'll investigate.

restaurants oftem hand out recipes if asked - HBD has them on a hat shape!

 

[mmkk]

I like the new customized maps they'll send you-what a great addition to the scrapbook!

 

[PrincessOliviasMom]

I don't have anything to add but this is a great thread. Thanks for all the great ideas!!!