Because Disney is not expensive enough, you'll want to drop a load of cash on souvenirs, right?
RIGHT?
I don't know what it is about Disney, but I always come away with T-Shirts, hats, etc. See those orange Crocs pictured to the left? I actually HAVE a pair of those. Perfect poolside footwear at the Polynesian. Right now half of you are green with envy and the other half of you are removing me from your Christmas card lists.
I've been to Italy three times in the last few years to promote translations of my novels, and I can't recall buying a single souvenir for myself. Great trips, but no shopping. And yet I cannot remember ever going to Disney and NOT getting myself at least one T-shirt. Oh, and if you spend enough money in one of the shops, the usually have something like a discounted beach towel you can buy.
Guess how many beach towels I have. Never mind.
So what about you guys? Are you shoppers? Do you have a secret stash of mouse ears at home? Or do you prefer to save your money for beer?
When I go to Disney I go there with two girls under 5. What do you think? I'm lousy with the stuff.
ReplyDeleteBut for myself? Nope. Never. The wife has a few t-shirts but not an every time we go there kind of thing. For the girls, yes - Every. Damn. Time.
Yup! I have tons of Disney stuff at my house...from snowglobes (love the one with the Villains and also the Nightmare Before Christmas one) to a tapestry on my foyer wall which depicts the castle. Disney merchandise is so diverse...there is something for everyone. How could you not spend money? My downfall is the World of Disney store...if Disney makes it, they have it there and, of course, I need it for my very own. LOL!
ReplyDeleteEric,
ReplyDeleteI really had a hard time picking out a shirt for my wife. Maybe this just shows my personal taste (or lack thereof) but all the men's shirts and hats seemed way cooler than the stuff for the ladies. But then when my wife shops for herself she always finds really cool stuff.
Debi,
They do have a bewildering variety. My wife almost purchased a Disney Advent calendar. Almost.
No kids so we usually don't end up with much of anything. A magnet or two, maybe. I do the pin trading thing though.
ReplyDeleteI've had to purchase an extra bag. No joke. T-shirts, hats, sweatshirts and the previously mentioned Christmas stuff. I am a huge sucker. It's just part of the experience for me.
ReplyDeleteI've gone to Disney somewhere around 15 times since my college program in 2002. The majority of those times I do pick up a t-shirt. I just love getting a cool new Disney t-shirt (my monorail shirt is my favorite). But aside from that, a Mickey crystal figure for my Ma and a talking Baby Eeyore for meeee---yyyy Nephew. My Nephew... I tend to buy very little. I used to buy pins here and there. But I'd rather spend the money on the food and the experience.
ReplyDeleteI'm guessing 6 towels. And BTW, sweet Crocs dude.
Rebelcomix,
ReplyDelete6 towels is a pretty good guess. To be honest, I didn't count, but it's in the 5-6 range.
And I agree that if budget is an issue, I'd rather blow my cash on beer and grub.
Everytime we go we always pack lightly [pack a small suitcase w/clothes inside a larger suitcase, so you have an empty one when you get there... for stuff :)].
ReplyDeleteI usually try to get stuff with some sort of vague use- pajama pants, dishes [pizza plates were the coolest last time], notepads/journals [great portable sketchbooks]. Try not to get too many t-shirts as I already have way too many [I totally caved on the spanish monorail shirt I saw when we were visiting the Polynesian tho]. Park exclusive action figures are fun to come across, and plush toys are great as they're light/inexpensive and acts as good padding while packing.
I also have both red and black pairs of Mickey Mouse crocs. Which I wear almost everywhere- these things are near impossible to kill [the black ones were purchased after falling in the Lagoon by accident after a boat rental excursion- I thought I broke the red ones but I just needed a new button on the side]
I'm an anime/manga fan, so Mitsukoshi is always my weak spot- so much fun candy and gobs of Ghibli merchandise [as a Canadian, I was stoked to buy an Anne of Green Gables anime artbook there]. Them having more Marvel merch will probably be my death :)
My favorite things are probably ride-specific merch [little figures or plushes], and souvenir mugs [which get reused all year round]. Also, I liked the Ice Tea I picked up at the gift shop- use a little here or there, and you can make it last till your next Disney trip :)
In my experience, unless you're rich, budget should ALWAYS be an issue at Disney. Have a number in your head that you shouldn't go above and know that you probably will anyway. Because there's always more to do and more to spend money on at WDW.
ReplyDeleteJeepers,
ReplyDeleteThere is Anne of Green Gables anime? I had no idea.
Rebelcomix,
Sound advice. As a younger man on a tighter budget, I would always opt for beer over merchandise. Now that I'm a little older (NOT rich at all, but making an okay living) I can usually squeeze out at least ONE T-shirt.
Victor---
ReplyDeleteYeah, tho it's never been dubbed in english [saw a few eps on French language CBC ages ago]. It was a pre-Ghibli work from Isao Takahata and Hayao Miyazaki in the late 70's. As such, Epcot's Mitsukoshi stocks assorted merchandise for it and shelves it alongside other Ghibli merchandise [ie- Totoro, Kiki's Delivery Service, Ponyo]. Got a Future Boy Conan and a Castle in the Sky artbook from the same display.
There's also a more recent anime w/o Miyazaki's involvement adapting the authorized prequel novel published here in Canada recently [this naime is also not out in English oddly]
Andre
Vic,
ReplyDeleteHere is my Disney Advent Calendar, complete with velcro-backed ornaments you attach to the Mickey eared wreaths. My hubby just rolls his eyes...a LOT! LOL!
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=2196088704420&set=a.1947645653499.110608.1313299789&type=1
Debi,
ReplyDeleteSo it's not just my wife!
Nope...there are many of us....
ReplyDeletePin trading! I became addicted a couple of years ago, during a previous trip. And things that are Halloween/vampire related. This year, I'll be looking for skeleton stuff because of a new project I'm working on. But for the girls? Plush, plush, and more plush. And t-shirts.
ReplyDelete