Ideas on how to gift Disney experiences

[stitchfan18]

My parents are taking our whole extended family to Disney next year, so for Christmas they are planning to gift some fun experiences that we typically don’t do. I’m trying to help them come up with fun ways to present the kids experiences. Does anyone have ideas for gifting droid building or light saber building besides just giving a gift card with the cost of the experience? Also, are there any fun ideas for 4 & 5 year old boys besides droid building?

 

[DISfam2401]

Following... Gifting Droid experience for Christmas for our January visit. I was thinking maybe Droid mickey ears but all of them that I could find have bows on them! Also looking for advice for gifting BBB for my daughter (or if that's not open yet, there are a few companies that will send fairy godmothers to your hotel room.)

 

[Marthasor]

If you are willing to do activities that are not in the parks, you may want to consider a fishing excursion, https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/recreation/fishing/, or spending some time at Ft. Wilderness Campground - at the Ft., you can get lunch (we love P&J's Takeout there), visit the stables (if the children are small enough, they can do a pony ride), rent canoes/kayaks and go gem mining. In the parks, you can do the Pirate's Adventure in MK Adventureland, https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/attractions/magic-kingdom/pirates-adventures/, and Wilderness Explorers in AK, https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/attractions/animal-kingdom/wilderness-explorers/ - both of which are a lot of fun and are free.

 

[hpsalb]

I bought some build/design a droid kits from Target that would be fun to go along with a gift card or certificate. Another idea is to gift something to wear to the experience (like a themed shirt).

 

[bsmcneil]

My parents are taking our whole extended family to Disney next year, so for Christmas they are planning to gift some fun experiences that we typically don’t do. I’m trying to help them come up with fun ways to present the kids experiences. Does anyone have ideas for gifting droid building or light saber building besides just giving a gift card with the cost of the experience? Also, are there any fun ideas for 4 & 5 year old boys besides droid building?

Pre-covid, I got my oldest tickets to their first NFL game but more often than not, tickets are electronic. So, I made a mockup of one, had it printed on card-stock (and it clearly said something like "Memento only") and gave it to them for Christmas. I think that once you settle on something(s), you could do something similar. As folks mentioned, there are good activities at Ft. Wilderness - so you could find some of their art/logos and make something. While the age wouldn't necessarily line up (nor do I think they do it anymore), there used to be a boating program and my partner and I rented sea-doos. If it were something like that, I could imagine a kid enjoying a toy sea-doo (or horses for horseback riding, etc), just as a physical/tangible thing to connect to (and then once they're back, they can have that to connect to as a memory from the trip). Or maybe buy a picture frame that correlates to the activity so that once they're there and a picture is taken, they can have it to look back on. I definitely like the idea that someone mentioned re: t-shirt; plus, as they get older, things like that can be re-used in making a t-shirt quilt.

ETA: thinking more specifically about your question - I could imagine something like a card that has Star Wars-esque writing (thinking of the signs from SW:GE) and invites them to think about the power/idea they'd like to infuse their light saber with. Or it can talk about how they've been chosen and the force will guide them to the right ___ (droid, crystal, saber, etc).

 

[alyssa810]

When we've done similar gifting, we've found that gift cards work really well; even between myself and my DH, we will give Disney gift cards for things that we wouldn't normally buy for ourselves, and we're always happy to receive them! To the OP, your extended family might find something they want to once they're down there and they could use the gift card to pay for it.

 

[starry_solo]

My parents are taking our whole extended family to Disney next year, so for Christmas they are planning to gift some fun experiences that we typically don’t do. I’m trying to help them come up with fun ways to present the kids experiences. Does anyone have ideas for gifting droid building or light saber building besides just giving a gift card with the cost of the experience? Also, are there any fun ideas for 4 & 5 year old boys besides droid building?

Legos along with the gift card. Maybe if they legos in the shape of a droid or light saber.

Build a droid with legos first!:
https://www.lego.com/en-us/product/imperial-probe-droid-75306
Lego lightsabers:
https://www.amazon.com/Lightsaber-Purple-Yellow-Lightsabers-Skywalker/dp

 

[bsmcneil]

Legos along with the gift card. Maybe if they legos in the shape of a droid or light saber.

Build a droid with legos first!:
https://www.lego.com/en-us/product/imperial-probe-droid-75306
Lego lightsabers:
https://www.amazon.com/Lightsaber-Purple-Yellow-Lightsabers-Skywalker/dp

This is great!

 

[stitchfan18]

Thank you for all the great ideas!

 

[irene6118]

This may be a silly question, but are Disney gift cards only good at Disney? I was going to get a couple for my daughters but if they don't use them up while at WDW, can they bring them home and use them at regular stores or restaurants?

 

[bsmcneil]

This may be a silly question, but are Disney gift cards only good at Disney? I was going to get a couple for my daughters but if they don't use them up while at WDW, can they bring them home and use them at regular stores or restaurants?

When you say regular stores or restaurants, do you mean like Target and Olive Garden? Disney Gift Cards can be used on ShopDisney.com, which will be the main way they can use them if not near a park/resort/DCL.

 

[irene6118]

Yes, that was what I was asking. In the past I have gotten my daughters visa gift cards that could be used any place that visa is accepted so I was wondering if that would be the case with the Disney gift cards. So what is the advantage of purchasing Disney gift cards? Do they not accept other gift cards?

 

[bsmcneil]

Yes, that was what I was asking. In the past I have gotten my daughters visa gift cards that could be used any place that visa is accepted so I was wondering if that would be the case with the Disney gift cards. So what is the advantage of purchasing Disney gift cards? Do they not accept other gift cards?

So - the visa gift card idea is a great one for its portability because Visa is a financial services company and not a store (though you often have to pay an extra fee for that flexibility whereas when you buy a gift card for a specific company, there usually is not a fee for the card itself). Disney (and any branded gift cards for a particular business) are only as special as the giver/receiver thinks based on their affinity for the company; it's like saying, "Why buy a Target gift card when you can only use it at Target?" Disney accepts Visa and Mastercard - so Visa/MC gift cards should work fine there if that's your preference. Similarly, the Landry's restaurants (Yak and Yeti, T-REX, Rainforest, and ... there's one I may be forgetting) will let you use their GCs there. I don't know if Patina groups do the same. But Disney Gift Cards are used all around the property for lots of different things (there were a number of times when I wasn't sure - for instance, at Disney Springs - and I think every time I asked, I was told it was accepted though I recognize that won't be true for everyone/every store). There's Genie+ and Lightning Lane options now; you can use it to buy snacks (even at MCO at the Disney store) and first aid stuff, etc.

Yeah, it's a gamble that if someone doesn't spend it all, it won't go to full use (though, again, you can always use it for ShopDisney.com, or future Disney trips, and there are programs to exchange gift cards). But, again, that's the same with any company-based gift card.

...Actually, this makes me wonder if you could use it for Disney+ - I'm guessing the answer is no.

 

[irene6118]

So I guess there's no real advantage to buying a Disney gift card vs a visa gift card (other than saving the $3 fee that I pay at my credit union). And there is the disadvantage of being limited to only Disney and associated businesses. I think for me it makes more sense to get something with a bit more flexibility since my girls are older. Thank you for your help.