Which park for most characters?

[threeboysmom]

My sister is interested in getting as many autographs as she can on her next visit. She is only going to the parks for one day (!) and her purpose is just to collect autographs. She has a lot of the "common" characters and is planning on going to MK as she thinks that's where the majority of characters are. I, on the other hand, think she needs to head to MGM where I believe the most unusual characters can be found.

Who's right? Which park should she go to? She only has a 1-day pass so she can't parkhop (which actually would be the ultimate choice - MK/MGM).

Thanks!

 

[Greg K.]

If time is precious, you can't go wrong there. You can hunt and hunt and hunt for characters at the other parks, with limited success. They come and go unpredictably.

At MK, between the parades, character meals, and the opening extravaganza -- get there before it opens for your best chance at autographs! -- you stand a very good chance of not only getting the familiar, but the unfamiliar, too.

 

[mom_rules]

We found a ton of characters at MGM-almost around every corner. Hollywood and Vine is great for character breakfast. If you want to see a pile in one place try to find out when the double decker bus full of characters hits Epcot. I think we got at least a dozen in one spot. Daisy and Donald, Genie, Baloo, Tigger and some other hard to find characters were there as well.

 

[slp87]

When we were in the world a year ago, we saw the most characters at MGM. We saw them just inside the entrance, near the chinese theater, near the Drew Carey show, back on the New York street area, and on Mickey Ave. We saw so many unusual characters as well.

 

[pintrader]

as a frequent visitor to WDW (weekly) I thnk you can actually get to see more of them at MGM. You have all the movie characters (toy story, aladdin)along with the disney stars(Mickey, Minnie) and where else can you have a whole lane full of Winne the Pooh characters?

However, if you go to Main Street you will see 6 ot 8 of them at a time and then on to the old queue for 20,000 leagues and they rotate characters there every 20 or 30 mintes. They get hot and thirsty ya know.

 

[InstImpres]

My vote is also for MK. In 25 mintus we got Cinderella, White Rabbit, Cruella, Tweedle Dee & Dum & Queen of Hearts. Then you can visit Toon Town.

 

[eeyore0062]

I would recommend Magic Kingdom. She could spend at least an hour or 2, just getting autographs in the front of Main Street.

Why not stop by Guest Relations on your way into each park and get a printout of where which characters will be that day, and when? Then there will be less disappointments if the characters aren't available.

 

[MamaQuack]

We were there all last week. There were characters everywhere - literally in all the parks but especially in AK, MGM & MK!!!!! In EPCOT the characters on the bus stayed out for pics for more than an hour! In AK the characters were literally following us around to get pics - it was wonderful - no need to waste money on character meals.

 

[erikthewise]

Originally posted by mom_rules
Hollywood and Vice is great for character breakfast.

Hey come on! This is Disney! It sounds so natural though...

 

[mom_rules]

Oops! Freudian slip?-let me just go back and change that.

 

[paulsimon]

Surprisingly, we find EPCOT to be a great place for characters. The lines never seem that long there for characters. Maybe people only think it's for adults and there are fewer kids. Magic Kingdom designated character areas always seem to have long lines (they should do fast pass for Ariel's Grotto).

They do the Characters on Holiday where about 10 characters travel around the world showcase in a double decker bus. They get out at scheduled stops to take pictures and sign autographs. Check a parks guide for times.

You can also catch a lot of the characters in the countries. These areas are never crowded - it's almost like a secret. They keep the characters in their themed countries - Whinnie the pooh characters and Mary Poppins in England, Aladdin characters in Morocco, Belle in France, Mulan in China. I can't remember any others.

There are also three character meals. They have a breakfast with the princesses - we did this it was great. At the Garden Grille they have Mickey and Friends. Also at the Garden Grille they have the Ice Cream Social. It's not really a meal but it's a chance to sit down and cool off and meet some characters.

 

[mom_rules]

paulsimon-that's the one I was thinking of. On our Double decker they had eeyore, genie, donald and daisy, mickey, baloo, timon tigger, and probably about 1/2 doz more. All had plenty of time for numerous photos and autographs.

 

[MetalMasterC]

The only disadvantage about MGM is that you have to see them all before Parade. Usually Mickey, Minnie, Buzz, Woody, Muppets, Monsters Inc. and Lilo and Stitch are around after parade. But they usually have princesses near the Hat and other random characters on New York Street.

In MK, there are 4 times more after parade.

As for Epcot, they added characters back into the countries on October 1, 2002, as sort of a demand that guests have been asking a lot about. This enhancement was put in emphesis in all 4 parks, especially MK and Epcot.

AK hasn't changed since opening. (Then again, I personally don't like working AK hehehe.)

 

[meeko_33785]

My first impulse for finding characters at the parks would be MK. There's usually a ton of them there. I know last time I was there I saw more than 30 different character before noon. MGM is also a good idea, especially if you're looking for newer characters such as Hercules or the Monsters Inc. Characters. Just a few tips. If you do decide to go to MK, be sure to do the popular locaions like Toontown or Ariel's Grotto first thing in the morning. Als try the Expo Hall around 11 am. There's usually a couple of Princesses in there after they finish their breakfast at the Castle.