World of Disney Store - Do they Really Have Everything?!

[Palm_Tree]

First trip to WDW with the family is coming up. My wife and I want to do our best to try to limit the amount of time (and energy!) we spend with our kids in the park's stores buying toys and souvenirs. It would be ideal (but probably impossible) if we could tell the kids that we will save all of our shopping until the last day when we head to the World of Disney Store, and that whatever items they see in all of the parks we visit during the week they will find at this one, great big store. My question is - is this really true?!

 

[Lesia]

nope - buy it when you see it, cause you might not see it, whatever it is, again. Now, if you have a card that will get you a discount (AP, Disney Visa) at the WoD, and they have something you already bought, just buy it again, and take the other back to the gift shop at the resort.

And if you are staying onsite, you can have resort delivery (next day),or even front of the park delivery (3 hours).

 

[worm761]

for the most part~yes. but there are exceptions. they do not sell any park specific or ride specific stuff. so you will not find EPCOT gear there or tower of terror stuff. but you will find all the princess stuff and all the "generic" souvies there. "generic" meaning sold in most of the souvie stores.

do i make sense?

 

[silverarrowknits]

Most of the general Disney stuff can be found at WoD or at the toy store next door, whose name is escaping me right now.

Specialty stuff like ToT, RnR, Splash Mt, etc stuff can only be found at their respective rides.

 

[jenseib]

WOD has alot, but I actually liked alot of stuff at the parks better. Especially if you want something to do with that parks theme. I also thought some of the parks stores had better selections that at WOD. But then WOD had stuff I never saw in the parks too. I do love WOD though and between DH and I spent close to 200 there!

 

[disney111]

It's kind of like a 'greatest hits' shop with all the most popular stuff. They have the biggest selection but they definitely don't have everything. Like others said they don't have the ride specific stuff stuff. But I'd be a bit surprised if your kids didn't find something they want at the World of Disney or the Once Upon A Toy shop which is nearby.

 

[DisTeach1]

And, I will add, that Animal Kingdom stuff is really scarce at WOD, so if you see something at Animal Kingdom, you should buy it there.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

A few years ago they were selling various shirts and hats from the 4 parks, however since then they have stopped selling those items.

 

[suzimar57]

i agree with the above poster - your children should be able to find something in either WOD or Once Upon a Toy - even then, they may be overwhelmed by the choices!

 

[WaltD4Me]

WOD is huge and I'm sure your girls will find plenty there they want to buy, but don't count on finding the exact same things they or you saw elsewhere at the parks. I would say if you or the girls see something you REALLY love and seriously believe you'll be sorry you didn't get it if you go to WOD and they don't have it, buy it where you see it. My niece saw a beautiful Mulan figurine once at the Tinkerbell shop at MK, it was our first morning in the parks and I convinced her to wait, she talked about the Mulan a few times, but we never made it back to the Tinkerbell shop and when we got to WOD they had NO Mulan merchandise, let alone the figurine. I got it for her on my next trip, but I know I was lucky they still had it. She still loves it though, it's on her dresser still.

 

[Disney Khi]

I want to chime in here because I don't want the OP's kids to be disappointed. I was like the OP and wanted to wait and see what was at WOD. Both times I went there it was very, very crowded--like hard to move crowded. And I was there at the end of Feb/beginning of March, so it wasn't a particularly busy time at WDW. Also, they were out of sizes that my party wanted in a lot of different shirts and hoodies that we looked at. I really wished that I had bought some things that I had seen in the parks, but by then it was too late. I would definitely recommend that if you see something you like, you should buy it when you see it.

I also would like to add that if you don't get a size of clothing that you want in the parks, try the Disney Store at the Orlando airport. There was a hoodie that I really wanted, but they didn't have my size at the WOD. Happily, they had it at the Disney Store at the airport! The ladies who work there said that a lot of people come in and have the same experience that I did. I guess they just don't have as high of volume at the airport store, so they are able to keep more in stock.

 

[Millie12591]

WOD has alot, but I actually liked alot of stuff at the parks better. Especially if you want something to do with that parks theme. I also thought some of the parks stores had better selections that at WOD. But then WOD had stuff I never saw in the parks too. I do love WOD though and between DH and I spent close to 200 there!

Agreed, but I think I my favorite shop would be Mousegears in Epcot, you can find so much there! It was my whole families fav. shop, although I found some really cute stuff that I didn't see at a lot of other shops on our first day in MGM. It was a princess shop, not very big, but such cute stuff! So when I got the advice to buy when you see it before we went on our trip and I didn't I was sure to not miss it the next time we were in that park. I was just glad we had two days at most of the parks to do just that!
Although I have to say, it was really just for the little things that I did this, not the bigger stuff, you notice some of the bigger items (that's not park related) is just about every where you go. Stuffed animals and T-shirts, purses, pirate stuff, that sort of thing.

 

[tndisneyfan]

If you see something in the parks you really want, I would just go ahead and get it. There is no guarantee ( ? that just looks spelled wrong) that you will be able to find it anywhere else, or like I did with the Grumpy clip-on watch, remember where you saw it.

 

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

Incase you see something at the World of Disney but they don't have it in the size you want, here is what you should do. Take the item to the cash register and ask if there are any in the back. Sometimes that has worked out for me and other times it has not. If it turns out they don't have any extras take the item to the information desk and they will look on a computer which stores all over WDW would be selling it.

 

[Diznygrl]

See it, like it, BUY IT! I was there in early December. First day, I was at Animal Kingdom and saw a really cute pair of those Santa Mickey ears. I knew I wanted them so I could wear them to MVMCP, but I figured "Eh, I'll wait and get them someplace else later." Well, the joke was on me. Two days I searched every store I saw looking for those ears and couldn't find a single pair. Not even at the same shop at AK I first saw them, and not even at World of Disney. Fortunately I eventually found some at a store in Epcot, a few pairs hidden in a corner. Never saw them again after that, even during the 13 days I had left at WDW.

Even the cast member who tried to help me by looking in the back at the DtD Christmas shop told me, "If you see something you like, GRAB it because chances are you won't see it again."

 

[Mickey's Neighbor]

WOD is great ! I wanted to get my daughter a Pirates hoodie that we saw at Pirates for Valentine's Day. I went back on a school day without her and found they only had it in xs and it was really small. After searcing all the stores on Main Street I headed for World of Disney. I found the same hoodie there but they also only had xs. The clerk was great he called the stockroom but they didn't have any other sizes. He then send me to the information desk with the product information and they checked their computer and the Caribbean Resort had some in stock in all sizes. I drove there and got the hoodie in time for Valentines day.

That being said you won't find all the things you see in the parks at WOD.

 

[SantaClaus]

Save your shopping 'til the very end of the day at the park. Many shops (particularly those on the way out) stay open past the official park closing time. Also, you won't have to lug the goodies around all day on rides and its a good way to kill time instead of standing in line waiting to exit the park. Just tell your crew that you're doing all the attractions first and saving the shopping 'til the end!

 

[Claire&TheBoys]

Also, if you're staying on-site, don't forget to take advantage of Package Delivery. Like another pp, I love MouseGear and get a lot of souvenirs there and then have them shipped back to my resort gift shop. I love not having to keep up with them.

Even if you are not staying on-site, you can have your packages sent to the front gate for pick-up on your way out.

 

[PanamaMike]

WOD is a large store true, but it isn't some sort of Super Walmart mega-store.

As other people have suggested, if you see something you like buy it because you may not find it anywhere else. And should you change your mind later, you can return it at any cash register on the property.

 

[jenseib]

Save your shopping 'til the very end of the day at the park. Many shops (particularly those on the way out) stay open past the official park closing time. Also, you won't have to lug the goodies around all day on rides and its a good way to kill time instead of standing in line waiting to exit the park. Just tell your crew that you're doing all the attractions first and saving the shopping 'til the end!

I totally disagree with this! The stores are EXTREMELY packed at the end of the day. It's really hard to move around in them, (and I had a stroller on top of that, so it was impossible) I ended up just leaving and shopping the next day. It was just insane in there. You can always send it back to your resort or to the front of the park.

Also we went to WOD on a Friday morning. Early on it wasn't too bad, but it got busy fast. Byt 11 it was crammed. I think it was becuase the weather was iffy and alot of people decided to to DTD instead of a park, not knowing how the weather was going to turn out.