For a lot of people, the souvenirs they bring home from a Disney vacation are just as important as the attractions they experienced while there. Souvenirs can be a great way to remember a special moment you had at the parks or even just a way to bring Disney into your everyday life.
For our family, we each have something (or more than one!) thing that we tend to gravitate toward when picking souvenirs. My husband loves Vinylmations, but only gets them when they hold a special meaning for him. He also buys a pin from each resort that we stay at or a pin to commemorate a special event that we attended. He teaches at a university and his office is decorated with all of his Vinylmations and pins. He keeps a corkboard on the wall for the pins and the Vinylmations sit on his bookshelves in front of the books.
I don’t have a specific item that I look for, but I like things that are more subtly Disney. I have a couple of scarves with Mickey hidden in the print and a Disney Vera Bradley bag with small Mickey heads on it. I can use those in my everyday life and they don’t scream Mickey to everyone I walk by. I do like to get a new Christmas ornament on many of our trips. My favorites are the ball ornaments that are shaped like Mickey’s head (stays with my theme of being a little more subtle!).
Our oldest son loves stuffed Mickeys. He has a couple larger versions, but most are the regular small toys. He loves when he finds a Mickey wearing an outfit he doesn’t have yet. Our youngest son’s favorite character is Dumbo, so he’s always on the lookout for a new Dumbo anything. He’s got the Dumbo ear hat, a shirt, a pin, a POP vinyl and a crazy number of stuffed Dumbos. My daughter loves anything princess. She’s only 3, so she’s not too picky, she just likes to get new toys!
I found a thread on the DISboards where the posters are discussing their favorite souvenirs, so I thought I’d share some:
aarcher86 – I get a coffee mug and a Christmas tree ornament each trip. I love taking the ornaments out and remembering the trips while we decorate the tree!
Kristina4109 – I hate to dust so I don’t like getting cute little decorations. I love getting things I will USE. T-shirts, hair ties, Christmas ornaments, and my favorite Disney souvenir ever – water bottle straps!
brykun – I love character autographs!! My kids love doing the pressed pennies which make great cheap souvenirs!
scampagna6 – My Honeymoon was at Dixie Landings in 1995…..9 months later our Souvenir showed up. My 1st born son was made in Walt Disney World!! He was also the most expensive souvenir I ever got!!
Gilrond – I like to get a pin specific to the year or any special event occurring at the time. Also, I usually get a mug or some other kitchenware item that I can use on a daily basis. Character pens are nice because I take them to the office to have a little bit of Disney at work.
verleniahall – our ear hats! Plus all the photos with the DH smiling
MrsHull – Mine is a little German house that hangs on the wall and predicts the weather. It isn’t very accurate, but it is just like one my grandmother had when I was a child and I adore it.
pigletmom – My absolute favorite souvenirs are the silhouettes we had done of our kids twice when they were little. The profiles are an incredible likeness. They do them in Liberty Square now, but we had it done on Main St. I think I paid $17.95 (although it was quite few years ago) and you get 2 sets, each facing a different direction. The artist uses a small pair of scissors to quickly create black cutout pictures that are mounted on an oval matte. It was amazing to watch! You can get the silhouettes done separately, but we had had all 3 done together. We also purchased the frames because I knew I would have a hard time finding oval ones at home. We gave the second copy to my in-laws.
Ciandella915 – Every time we go, we always make sure to get chopsticks from Japan. They have that awesome wall covered in options! Then, every time we make stir fry (or eat Ramen, ha!), we’re always reminded of Disney. It’s a nice way to incorporate it into every day life back home!
Oswin – I’ve been getting drawings by the teacher of the Animation Academy at Hollywood Studios since I was about 12. I have all of them framed and hanging on my wall, they’re my favorite Disney treasures!
Let me know – what’s your favorite souvenir? Do you have something that you tend to pick up on every trip?
