Magic Kingdom is a park full of whimsy, iconic attractions, and hundreds of souvenirs that are so tempting. But honestly, you might regret buying some of them almost immediately.
Let’s go shopping!
We’re in the parks almost every single day, and we’ve both seen people buy things they’ve regretted immediately and also bought things ourselves that we wish we had never done. We asked our team for some stories of the times they made an impulse purchase they shook their heads at later, so learn from our mistakes — don’t do this on your trip!
First up on the list may surprise you, but we’ve had MANY members of our team regret buying a Poncho from the parks, both when it did end up raining, but especially when it didn’t.
Beware the plastic poncho!!
Here’s the thing: Disney World ponchos aren’t very great quality. Will they get the job done? Sure, in a way, but they’re also very likely to rip and tear, and then you just spent all this money on something you can’t reuse. Not to mention that many people feel suffocated in them on hot, humid days in the parks (which, let’s be honest, is a large part of the year). Instead, we recommend buying a poncho online or at a store back home before your trip!
They’re not the greatest
Our favorite poncho to take to the parks are the FROGG TOGG ponchos. They have a little bag that will carry your wet poncho and they are super good quality. On top of that, they are way cheaper than the ones in the parks!
Frogg Toggs Poncho
Second, we have something that many people love, but when you think about it, they’re just not practical — BALLOONS! Balloons can be found in 3/4 Disney World parks, plus Disney Springs, but you’ll never find them in Animal Kingdom as they can be a danger to the animals’ health.
Disney World Balloons
These are adorable, especially with all their different designs, but if you’re trying to carry it around all day and you don’t have a stroller to tie it to (and even if you do, sometimes they get VERY annoying to deal with), you’re going to have nowhere to put it on rides, and that’s just a disaster. If you’re going to grab one, we recommend buying it at the end of the day and then keeping it in your hotel room for the duration of your trip.
Balloons on Main Street
If you do buy a balloon, just know that you can ask for it to be deflated at the Disney Store at MCO so you can take it home with you! Then you can get it inflated again once you are home.
Next up, face paint is super cute and can be something fun to do for kids (and kids at heart!) but there’s one time when we really think it’s far from worth it — on a hot day.
Rock Your Face
Not only will you be sweating a ton, but you should ALSO be reapplying your sunscreen, and that will 100% smudge all that face paint. If you keep your receipt, you can get free touch-ups all day, but let’s be honest — on a hot day, you’re not going to want to return to a face paint stand three times throughout a day that’s full of other activities.
Face Paint in EPCOT
This one may shock you, but a few of our team members feel strongly that eating lunch or dinner in Magic Kingdom is something they regret every time! Why, you may ask? Well, you’re steps away from the Monorail, which in turn can take you to three resorts that have way better dining experiences.
Disney’s Contemporary Resort
You’ve got tons of quick service and table service restaurants available at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort, Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort, AND Disney’s Contemporary Resort, and our whole team is in agreement that essentially any option at any of those three is a better choice than dining somewhere in Magic Kingdom. So if you’re looking for a meal that will really impress you, this is where to go!
Grand Floridian Resort
Finally, this goes for all Disney World parks, but buying a Bottled Water is something we’ve only done a handful of times and regret it no matter what. Staying hydrated is extremely important, but there are also FREE cups of water you can get at each quick service location, and that’s what we recommend using to keep yourself good throughout the day. Bring a reusable water bottle from home, and boom, you’re golden! Some of this water can taste a bit yucky, so we like to use the water bottle refill stations located around the parks. We have found that the water from those locations tends to taste a bit better!
Did someone say free water?
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Comments? Sure!!! First Impulse buy?? Not at all, anytime. Been to WDW since it opened, my best memories is when I was able to take my mom and they had a Sealtest Ice Cream shop and we sat in those wire chairs. But here’s my counter voice to everything stated above. How much does a loved one’s smile cost? What is it worth to you as a Parent or friend? Tell me, explain it. I have spent 1,000’s at Disney bought so many balloons, popcorn buckets, face paintings, pearl necklaces, all kinds of Chinese stuff, Disney dolls, you name it I have eaten in every restaurant they have, and some no longer there. Remember their deal with Pepsi and FritoLay?? Ohhh or the Fruit juice blend only in CA. Adventure land? All those things, all that money bought me something It’s called smiles. Lifetime pictures of smiles, the Ponchos are still in a drawer, too many to count, the old yellow ones, and the clear ones, who can predict rain? You talk of saving money, squeezing that dollar, regretting that expense. When you have a purpose, when you have kids or a partner, you decide what it takes to make them beyond happy, sparing no expense at Disney is just one way. Don’t pass that up. All my kids are grown now with their own families. Each one remembers every trip we made to Disney, every meal, every balloon, and they still have momentos to prove a lot of it. I once drove 400 miles to and fro to Jack’s in LBV when they sold Polynesian-style shoes with my ex-wife, as she always wanted a pair. Yes, I paid more, yes, the trip cost. But those shoes and sipping Pina coladas in pineapples, YES PINEAPPLES in the Polynesian hotel bar , made the trip more than worth it. Now run along, go live, nothing’s free. Except those Disney Moments………………From a Grandpa who doesn’t agree with the above.
Aw – we loved those themed ponchos! But I will say two things. One, if for whatever reason, you want or you assume that you will be able to buy a WDW themed poncho at the parks, just know that sometimes the ponchos that are available are NOT themed, and I don’t think that the non-themed ones cost any less (which is a REALLY bad deal). Although, we once got a discount due to an ‘old’ style WDW poncho that one of our party was wearing which was a little ripped. A CM approached us and said they could offer us a discount on a new poncho if we traded in the old one (they wanted all the old ones, but we weren’t selling the non-ripped ones!). This was pre-COVID so it was many years ago. The second thing I will say is we did trade up to reusable travel ponchos a long time ago. They are worth it if you have plans that you will brave the weather to keep!
Dont forget Crockets tavern Geyser Point and Trails end are also a boat ride away as well