Disney Store vs. WDW Princess Dresses

[msukar]

I read in a pp that the princess dresses sold at WDW were much better than the ones sold at the Disney Store. Can anyone tell me what the differences are? Are they less scratchy, or prettier? If anyone has a photo of a dress from the parks I would appreciate it! I was going to get my girls a new one before we left but if the other ones are much nicer & I don't have to ball it up in the suitcase on the way down it may be worth the extra $$. Thanks!!

Karen & the girls

 

[shruley]

I have become a connisuer of Princess dresses, lol, and I would never buy them in WDW. While they may be styled slightly differently, I wouldn't say they are fancier or less scratchy than what you can buy at the Disney Store or through Disney Direct. And they are much more expensive. I found a Cinderella dress there very similar to what we have through DIsney Direct for $60. I paid about $15 for mine (was on sale half price from $30 but come on!) I don't think the dresses there were worth the money. They did have special dresses, like the one Cinderella wears in Cinderellabration, but that was $95! I wanted to get DD an Auora dress in WDW but just couldn't justify the expense.

 

[Emmaline Lola]

I was having breakfast this morning at the Poly, and went into the gift shop and walked past the princess gowns and had to touch them because they looked sooo stiff!

You bet you they were as stiff and scratchy feeling as they were looking! And to top it off, they were $60!!!!!!!!!!

I don't know the ones in the disney store, but the ones at wdw, do not seem worth the $$ at all!

just my 2 cents!

el

 

[disneymom225]

We knew DD was going to be TInkerbell for Halloween when we wnet to WDW in August so we thought it would be cute to get her costume there-we were willing to pay a little more b/c it came from WDW BUT not $60! We ended up getting it for $20 through Disney Store. I don't think it was a nice but for something she will wear for such a limited time (although she still does put the costume on and "flys" around the house). I would vote against it-save the money for another princess item!

 

[FSUGrad97]

I looked at the ones at WDW and the Disney Store, and I didn't see any difference other than the price.

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

I have to agree with everyone else. I just bought a Cinderella costume from Disney Direct for $12.00, and got the Deluxe wedding gown for $31.00, regular price $85.00. She'll use the cheap one for dress-up and the other one for Halloween next year.

 

[lucky1]

The dresses at WDW are much better made than the ones at disney direct or disney store. While I have not purchased any at the parks, I looked them over and found that they are made of much better material and were lined as to not to be as scratchy. We had one from disney direct for our most resent visit and my daughter complained that it was too scratchy until we put a shirt on underneath it. I did see some dresses in Target's toy section and they look like they might not be as stiff or scratchy as disney direct and they cost about $20.

 

[crisi]

The dresses at WDW are much better made than the ones at disney direct or disney store. While I have not purchased any at the parks, I looked them over and found that they are made of much better material and were lined as to not to be as scratchy. We had one from disney direct for our most resent visit and my daughter complained that it was too scratchy until we put a shirt on underneath it. I did see some dresses in Target's toy section and they look like they might not be as stiff or scratchy as disney direct and they cost about $20.

We haven't bought any from Disney Direct. We have some Target ones or "Costume City" ones and some Disney World ones. The Disney World ones are MUCH fancier - glittered tulle for instance - and much better made (my daughter wore her Minnie Dress as a dress for two years before she finally outgrew it - a little stained with the lace on the bottom torn off. Her Belle dress is a year and a half old and has been worn for MANY play sessions and a couple dress up days. The Costume City ones (you know, the $12.99 Halloween specials) barely hold up through Halloween. The Target one she will outwear before she outgrows (it is huge though) and does seem to be the most comfy of the lot.

The Disney ones are $60+ - I think the Target one I paid $30 for is the right blend of price and quality, but I'm willing to overpay for a souvienier at Disney.

 

[720L]

I know the ones from WDW wash a lot better. I washed both on gentle and hung to dry--the Disney store one looks faded and old now. The WDW one looks the same as when I bought it. I also think there is more detail on the ones from WDW.

 

[tink2]

In my opinion, the ones from WDW look much more authentic - like the actual princess dresses- than the ones from Disney Store or Disney Shopping. To me, they are prettier and more 'fancy' looking. But, they are $60 for the dress only, not to mention shoes, crown, etc. etc. So, one year DD5 wanted to be Jasmine and wanted to look like THE Jasmine. The outfit from Disney Store that year was purple and DD's response was "that isn't what she wears every day in the parks". So, I went on ebay and bought the outfit for $40- shoes, crown, everything. It was in great shape. Now, it was just as scratchy as the ones she has from the Disney Store- we had to put her on stockings under the pants. But, it was almost exactly like what Jasmine wears in the parks. Now, one of the gold decorations came off much sooner than I thought it would- and she was not rough on it at all- very 'princess' like! So, if you want it to look more authentic, go to ebay and shop. Saying that, the Belle outfit from Disney Shopping this year was very, very pretty on DD, now 6. And, the ones from Disney Store are different from the ones at Disney Shopping now. I liked the Belle from Disney Shopping much better than the one from Disney Store- a much prettier color and design I thought. Anyway, there's my opinion.

 

[msukar]

Thanks for all your replies. I think I will look on ebay. Does anyone know the id that Disney uses on eBay? Is there another seller in particular that sells the WDW costumes for a good price? Thanks!

Karen

 

[tink2]

Disney doesn't have an ebay store itself. It used to have Disney Deals, but for some reason I can't get that one to come up since last week- anyone know why??? Anyway, type in the kind of dress you want- ie Jasmine costume. You might want to try different searches- Jasmine costume, Jasmine Disney World costume, Jasmine dress up, Princess Jasmine costume, etc. Different searches will result in different results- some you won't get in others. There are several sellers that sell these all year long in their stores, but most of them sell them for close to park prices. You may get lucky since it isn't close to Halloween time. Just do a search and keep a watch on the prices- if you watch long enough and check daily- you can usually get lucky and find one at a terrific price!
Good luck!!!

 

[FourFlans]

My two cents.......

We were in WDW last week. Gave DDs 8 & 5 new princess dresses before leaving for vacation so they could anticipate their "dates" with the princesses for lunch. These I bought on ebay or Disney Direct.

And they were fine! The girls loved them and never complained once.

However, DD5, whose favorite princess is Belle, fell head over heels for the Belle Christmas dress and cape at WDW. She spent her own money to purchase the set and I think it was worth every penny. I've never seen her look more beautiful!

The dress itself is better quality than the others, but not substantially. And it is prettier, but not significantly.

So other than the nostalgia of owning THE dress, I think you're wise to bargain hunt a little.