Souveniers that are worth the $$??

[domesticdiva]

WE are going to WDW in 8 days and I don't want to buy a whole bunch of souveniers that will find thier way to the trash in a few weeks, so I ask what are some worthwhile souveniers that are definate keepsakes?? I'm not concerned about the cost really, more so the value for my buck, I don't want toys or clothes, because they always get tossed aside or broken, any suggestions?

 

[S. C.]

My Grandsons enjoyed getting the pressed pennies.

 

[STEAMBOAT209]

I usually try to find keepsake items and that are useable, not just dust collectors. Key Chains, watch, adult and childrens, drinking mugs or cups, not the plactic ones from the resorts, but the ones you can use daily a the dinner table. Also the beach towels and good for home too. And its also fun trying to look for items to bring home that as you say won't find their way to the trash after a few days. Good luck searching.

 

[DVCLiz]

The only thing I bought for myself last time was a book in Mexico about the animal carvings, and a set of four of the smaller ones. I have always admired those brightly painted carved animals, and several times I've said, "Next time I'm going to get some of those, and buy that book as well." So, this trip I did. I have a small cat, an armadillo, a turtle, and a fish. From now on, I'm going to get a new one (or two) every time I'm in Epcot.They sit on a shelf above my computer, so I have a little "Disney" nearby, but it's not overwhelming (despite the fact that I LOVE WDW, I'm not really a Disney-theme merchandise kind of person!!)

Things that have stood the test of time for my girls include a few special stuffed animals, the sticks you can buy outside Mexico that you use to throw another stick up into the air, a belly dancing outfit (expensive but still used!) and a character outfit. We have also gotten a lot of mileage out of the many art kits we've purchased over the years. DD can draw a pretty good Mickey and Minnie now!!!

 

[CJMZ]

I have used the Mickey Mouse Cookbook often it has recipes from the different resturants at WDW and DL. We also got the ice trays that have the ice cubes that are shaped like mouse ears. I also got some for my niece and nephew and they loved it.

 

[maggiew]

What ages are you talking about? Kids?

Things that I have purchased that are worthwhile:
1. My Anne of Green Gables Coffee mug from Canada pavillion. I drink my tea out of it every day at work.
2. My Off Kilter CD. I often throw that in my CD player on my computer at work and listen while working.
3. Every trip I buy my mom an Old Country Roses tea cup and saucer. She has 4 now. Its a nice easy way to get her collection built up.
4. Last trip we went offsite to WalMart and they had a HUGE Disney section. I purchased 4 melamie (sp?) dinner plates with mickey on them. Plus 4 bowls. When I got home I threw away the kids' old toddler type plates and now the kids use these every day for their meals! I would like to go back next trip and see if they have cups/glasses!
5. I bought a nice shirt from Italy pavillion that I wear a lot. It is a short sleeved, ladies style tshirt (very soft) and has some scenes from Italy on it.
6. I have some special pins that I have mounted in a frame that I have on the wall in our upstairs hallway.
7. DD spent her $25 souvenir money one year on one of those twirly things that spell words when you twirl it around. She bought it at Fantasmic. Anyway. We bring that back on each trip. Plus we have used it at home on several occasions for parades and ball games. At the time I didn't want her to spend all her money on that one thing, but it worked out well in the end!
8. One trip I also purchased one of those Italian charm bracelets and also an attachment that was a watch face that had Mickey head icon on each side. It was inexpensive (on order of ~10 for watch face) and is useful.

That's all I can think of for now. Hope that helps.

Maggie

 

[sassyredhead]

1. Mickey Mouse pizza cutter. I think of our trip every time I use it!

2. Beach towels. I know they are more expensive than those purchased at Target, but the Target ones don't say Walt Disney World!!!

3. My daughter loved the pressed penny book. Since we've been home, she's glanced at it daily.

4. Passport from Epcot.

Have a wonderful trip!

 

[dizagain]

We always choose one Christmas ornament with the year on it and then a second one that we just love. We also have enjoyed the art kits we have purchased at MGM - still around and used three years later. The pressed pennies are special to my girls as well and they like to look through the album. Mouse ears are always proudly displayed in their rooms. DH and I really don't buy much other than the ornaments - I have one Mickey figurine that is special because it was a gift from my DH after our honeymoon. There are so many things at WDW...hard to choose!

 

[hdecker]

We always do the Christmas ornament, beach towel and that years scrapbook or photo album. We are still enjoying towels from 7 different trips every day when we shower. It is also alot of fun when we are planning a trip to look back at the previous years scrapbooks and see how the kids have grown and how the parks have changed.

 

[englishteacha]

We get a Christmas ornament on every vacation we take. We have one from WDW, Cedar Point, Knoebels, HersheyPark, and from some local trips. I love decorating our Christmas tree and seeing all the places we've been. The Disney one is a picture frame with Mickey and Minnie as bride and groom, and has our wedding photo inside as we went there on our Honeymoon. The Christmas ornament is the only souvenir we usually get, unless we get a great deal on a T shirt or keychain. I also take a lot of photos. Now we've gone digital, I have albums on my computer from trips, and some on our webpage.

 

[mibcv]

My daughter (7) cherishes her autograph book -official WDW blue- has used it on 5 trips and still going strong. Also, bought her a disney charm bracelet and buy 1-2 special charms each trip. My husband loves the Mickey ear bottle opener to open beers! My favorite is a family photo from every trip by the park photographers because this way we have a picture will all 3 of us from our vacation!!!

Cathy

 

[loveswdw]

One trip I bought a really nice WDW jacket at DTD. Navy blue, lightweight, all the park emblems embroidered in gold on the back and smaller on the front left lapel. I love it! Wear it all the time and get lots of compliments. I think it was $55 or $65 but worth every penny.

We also do the Christmas ornaments. We have so many I could almost do a Disney tree.

For my DS2 we bought him a Pal Mickey. It works great in the parks and Mickey still tells him corny jokes at home. He loves his Mickey.

Though I must say I disagree about the plastic cups you get in the parks. We use them everyday and they are a great CHEAP reminder of your trips.

 

[melomouse]

I buy Christmas ornaments each year, fridge magnets, beach towels, and the occasional T-shirt if it's really special.

I am insanely practical, I guess...

 

[lnh'smom]

CJMZ - Where did you find the cookbook and the ice cube trays? If you can remember. Those sound pretty cool. I have never seen them anywhere. TIA

 

[formernyer]

I agree with the OP. I had no interest in having my kids purchase all sorts of useless stuff that they wouldn't touch a week after we left Disney. I also didn't want to pay for souveniers at the super-inflated WDW park/resort prices.

Here's how I solved the souvenier dilemma...

We drove to Disney, so I had transportation. I told the kids on the drive down that rather than buy souveniers in the parks I'll let them look at everything in the gift shops, but only to get ideas of what they might want. I told them that on the last day of the trip we'd go to Kissimmee and buy souveniers in the giant gift shops. Although you can't find EVERYTHING in the Kissimmee gift shops, there's still a huge Disney assortment and most of the items are discounted 50% or more off of the park/resort prices. My kids didn't mind getting nothing at the parks and they were actually EXCITED about the big souvenier shopping trip!

Once we got to the gift shops I did my very best to steer my kids in the direction of more useful items, rather than "disposable" toys. I also tried to steer them toward items which said WDW on them (and sometimes even "2006") rather than just character items that can be purchased in any Wal-Mart store.

DD9 ended up selecting the following:

WDW 2006 beach towel - $7.99
WDW 2006 baseball cap - $6.99
Pair of Flip Flops (they look like solid blue while you're wearing them, but when you take them off you see the Disney characters) - $8.99
WDW notepad, address book, and pen set - $2.99
3 WDW pencils - $1.00


DD10 selected the following:

WDW 2006 t-shirt - 9.99
WDW ceramic mug - $5.99
WDW 2006 zippered beach bag - $7.99
WDW stickers with her name on them - $2.99 (very overpriced IMO but she really wanted them)
3 WDW pencils - $1.00


For those people who have younger children that prefer toys and stuffed animals to more practical souveniers, my recommendation is to purchase Disney-themed items ahead of time whenever you see them on clearance. Bring them with you on the trip and give them to the kids while you're at the parks, rather than purchasing overpriced items in the gift shops.

 

[KarenAylwood]

The last time I was at WDW I told myself that I wouldn't buy any crap. So... here are my souveniers:

- a set of 3 pairs of pooh underwear (they had it at the pooh store in MK but I bought it at DTD). Makes me smile every time I wear them!

- a fold up brush that you can keep in your purse. I love these- I got a princess one, mom got a minnie one.

- a fun cup from the Living Seas that's like a hologram (I know that's not the term for it... it's kind of ribbed and when you turn the cup the characters move- I can't think of the term for it right now). It says "I found Nemo at the Living Seas" on it. I use it as my water glass almost every day.

- a vintage tshirt with Aurora on it.

- BEST PURCHASE: a brush with tinkerbell on it. I love it and use it every single day. Also brought one back for a friend (Ariel fan) and she uses hers everyday too. Found it at DTD World of Disney store- wasn't expensive either.

Next stop at the World I plan on buying a watch (unless I can find a classy Disney watch somewhere at home that's probably cheaper than I'd find at WDW), probably more underwear, a beach towel (lost one recently ) and pretty much anything Disney I think I'd use on a regular basis. I saw polos last time with a little embroidered Mickey that I think I will get- I wear polos all the time. I also might just buy one of those refillable mugs next time! My mom uses hers everyday for coffee.

 

[MayMom]

I have a couple of things I buy every trip.

I teach school and I always buy a mousepad for the computers in my classroom. I use the new one at my personal computer and transfer the older one to a student computer for them to enjoy.
Also in my classroom I have an area that I put personal photos - so I always buy a Disney frame and put family photo from our trip in it - my students really like to look at these.
One of my favorites was a nice biography of Walt Disney purchased on Main Street at MK - I wrote a note inside the front cover about the trip when I purchased it and also put a trip photo inside to use as a bookmark. I always think my kids will see it one day when I am gone and see how much our time together meant to me.
Old stand-bys are the small Disney albulms with the year on the side - I like having all of those years lined up on my shelf. And we always do a Disney ornament, but it MUST be one that I can insert a photo into - so my kids can see themselves growing up at WDW when we are decorating the tree at Christmastime.

 

[cinderanna]

On our last trip we bought a shot glass from each of the parks, except Epcot because we didn't get to go there. We usually get a shot glass anytime we go somewhere, so we are starting to get a nice collection. We are planning on getting one from each park again on our next trip. I believe the one we got in MK we got engraved with the year on the back.

 

[snowwite]

WE are going to WDW in 8 days and I don't want to buy a whole bunch of souveniers that will find thier way to the trash in a few weeks, so I ask what are some worthwhile souveniers that are definate keepsakes?? I'm not concerned about the cost really, more so the value for my buck, I don't want toys or clothes, because they always get tossed aside or broken, any suggestions?

My fave souvenier= Mickey tea ball and holder,AKL mug
DD fave souvenier= tigger,tink,Mickey,Cinderella and castle sterling charms for bracelet,tink denim jacket
DS fave souvenier=beach towel,sketch kit
DH fave souvenier=3 golf shirts from outlet store and Donald mug( which just broke-oops!)

 

[MrsPete]

WE are going to WDW in 8 days and I don't want to buy a whole bunch of souveniers that will find thier way to the trash in a few weeks, so I ask what are some worthwhile souveniers that are definate keepsakes?? I'm not concerned about the cost really, more so the value for my buck, I don't want toys or clothes, because they always get tossed aside or broken, any suggestions?

We don't buy souveniers anymore -- not just at Disney, but on other vacations too. The decision has worked out well for us. Our decision was mostly based upon the fact that vacation souveniers rarely turned out to be favorites -- instead, they were quickly forgotten and tossed into the yard sale bin. Also, I disliked the gotta buy something for the sake of remembering the trip, gotta buy something even if I don't see something I need or want attitude. It seemed that shopping was becoming a main focus on the trip, and that's not what I want from a vacation.

My kids don't even question our no-souvenier stance. They understand that they can pull out their own money (though we make no special preparations for them to have "extra" on vacation) if they wish, but they never do. They understand that they go on multiple vacations every year, and that skipping souveniers is one part of being able to go somewhere just about every month.