Disney Tips Your Guide To A Great Disney Vacation
Disneyland introduced new restrictions for character meet-and-greets earlier this week, changing how guests interact with their favorite characters on select occasions.
Since the park’s opening, meet-and-greets have been a hallmark experience, allowing guests to engage with beloved characters, from classic icons like Mickey and Minnie to newer favorites like Elsa and Moana.
Credit: Disney
The rarest and most exciting meet-and-greets often take place during after-hours events, such as the Oogie Boogie Bash at Disney California Adventure Park. Characters like Pain and Panic, Cinderella’s stepsisters, and even rarer figures like Sid from Toy Story have appeared, creating unique and unforgettable photo opportunities for guests.
Disney Restricts Character Meet-and-Greets at Disneyland After Dark
This week, Disneyland hosted its 90s Nite event, where it introduced strict new rules for its character meet-and-greets.
According to a notice shared on Reddit, guests attending the event on March 6 were informed that characters would no longer be available for traditional photo ops. Instead, attendees would only have the option for “wave and play” interactions with characters at Fantasyland Theatre, including Darkwing Duck, Huey, Dewey, and Louie, Launchpad McQuack, and Scrooge McDuck.
Update for tonight’s character experiences at fantasyland theater
byu/Noodlesaurus90 inDisneyland
The notice also made clear that “Disney PhotoPass will not be available for these characters,” leaving guests to capture photos on their own devices as the characters moved through the area. This change follows similar restrictions at past Disneyland After Dark events. “This is how it worked for Star Wars Nite characters last year,” one Reddit user noted. “No photo-ops except with backgrounds or droids.”
Standby Lines Cause Chaos at Previous Events
Attendees at previous Disneyland After Dark events who used traditional standby lines shared mixed opinions about the changes. Some suggested the new approach was an improvement.
“I remember when Queen Amidala was at Star Wars Nite 2023,” one guest recalled. “The line went from Fantasyland Theatre past the Frontierland entrance. I’m so glad that they changed it to a walkthrough ‘wave and play’ experience last year.”
Credit: Disney
One guest who attended 90s Nite before the new restrictions went into effect expressed frustration over the chaos of the standby lines. “The characters would be on for 30 minutes, then a 30-minute break,” they said. “It was awful. Disney didn’t want to spend the extra money on two of each character. It’s so blatantly greedy and ripping off the attendees.”
Another guest echoed similar sentiments, recounting how they waited for over two hours only to miss out on meeting the characters. “I waited in line for an hour, and the characters all went on break as I was walking towards them,” they said. “I wasted about two hours to get a picture with a cardboard cut-out of Gizmo Duck… really was looking forward to Darkwing Duck.”
It remains to be seen how the new rules will play out at the upcoming Star Wars Nite on April 8.
Are you planning to attend a Disneyland After Dark event soon?
