Characters

[BecBennett]

Do they have specific meet and greet locations for characters? Or is it more of a luck of the draw as to who is about?

My daughter really wants to meet Rapunzel.

 

[BrianL]

I think they have locations, but they are less structured than at WDW. The princesses were standing along the World Bazaar area, and small crowds would gather around to interact. Some characters roam a little bit, but are still in an area. The princesses did not seem to be mobbed. The longest M&G line I saw was for Duffy and Shellie Mae (seperate).

 

[OhioStateBuckeye]

I think they have locations, but they are less structured than at WDW. The princesses were standing along the World Bazaar area, and small crowds would gather around to interact. Some characters roam a little bit, but are still in an area. The princesses did not seem to be mobbed. The longest M&G line I saw was for Duffy and Shellie Mae (seperate).

Are the characters listed on the park map?

 

[BrianL]

Are the characters listed on the park map?

Some were...like the Meeting Docks at DisneySea..but I did not see the World Bazaar meets on the maps.

 

[OhioStateBuckeye]

Some were...like the Meeting Docks at DisneySea..but I did not see the World Bazaar meets on the maps.

Thanks. My boyfriend and I like characters a lot, specially ones we have never met. But I'm having a hard time figuring out which characters might be there.

 

[aussie shaz]

We arrived at Disneyland at about 3.30-4pm and there were heaps of characters out the front, before you go into World Bazaar. There were lots that we've never seen before. They seemed to have quite a few unusual characters. I think they must have meet and greet out there at the same time every day.

 

[BecBennett]

Thanks. My boyfriend and I like characters a lot, specially ones we have never met. But I'm having a hard time figuring out which characters might be there.

Yeah that's my problem too, DD is freaked out by costumed characters, so I'm not looking to see every character we can, but she has specifically asked to see Rapunzel, so I'd like to give that a go.

 

[dimndgal1]

There are a few specific meeting spots for the staple characters but the rest are 'roaming' and can vary - I have seen a mix of princesses in Fantasyland each time we go and am not sure if they are on a set rotation or not. Most were with their prince and the roaming characters do not have a line but, rather, a mob that sometimes gets organized into a line (Stitch often does at DisneySea but I have seen Jafar just gaggled). That said, it seems that the characters do try to see out the littles to make sure they get to meet a princess or other character and Mr Incredible went out of his way to get a photo with my husband when we wandered by.

One thing I did before we went for the first time was to search Instagram and other photo sharing sites for "Tokyo Disneyland" and other variants to see what photos were being posted. The locals here take TONS of photos and it gave an idea of who was popular and who was consistent. We learned the easiest way to meet Mickey is right after park opening at DisneySea (we sent one parent off to grab FPs and the other waited with the kiddos) and we saw that Ariel seemed to be the only princess with regularity (as she has a spot at DS)... other than that, we just took what we could when we could as we came across them! I will say, though, if you can find a character meeting time during a parade or show, it's AMAZING - DD 8 spent 5 minutes with the bad guys from Pinocchio while the show was going on and they were hilarious with her! We had the same thing happen with Panchito and Jose from the 3 Caballeros at TDL during the parade on a previous trip.

 

[hasabigrock]

I noticed that at the base of the MiraCosta next to the Harbor there were characters throughout the day. Pinocchio, Geppetto[sp], and Jiminey[sp] Cricket were common.

Also the Fairy Godmother wears a mask instead of being a face character. The single most terrifying character experience ever.

 

[hasabigrock]

Another point on meeting characters in the parks. At Walt Disney World and DLC people will queue up and take turns seeing the characters. At DisneySea I noticed people would just encircle the character and then try to get their attention. Characters get a 3-5 minute warning before going back in and shortly after that will play, dance with another character nearby and then go in.

Once I saw J.Crcket from my MiraCosta rom so I ran down to meet him while the family napped. I had a very hard time getting a chance to get my picture with the character. If you're not a little aggressive you won't get to see the character.

Also, autograph books aren't as big a thing in Tokyo as in the states. We did Chef Mickey's at the Ambassador and we were one of the only tables with an autograph book.

The other thing that shouldn't have been a surprise is that the characters are quite a bit smaller. While getting my pic with J.Cricket I put my arm over his shoulder and was astonished as how light and frail he felt even thru the costume. I felt like I needed to be careful to not crush him like a...bug.

 

[Agent 86]

My daughter really wants to meet Rapunzel.

It's a bit "hit or miss", but the cast members standing near the Wait Times board normally speak English quite well. They have a print-out of ALL of the character appearances at the park and can confirm whether or not a character will be appearing and, if so, when and where. I say it's "hit or miss" because although they understand the more common Disney characters (e.g. Donald Duck), some of the more unique ones (e.g. Uncle Scrooge) were a puzzle to them. It might help if you had a photo or item of merchandise with Rapunzel on it to show them if you do ask.

 

[retwinked]

The area which has seen the most consistent appearance of characters at both parks is right at the entrance after you enter the gates. It's just before you go down the hall of Main Street or World Bazaar.

The characters who have dedicated greeting spots are:

SEA: Ariel, Duffy & Shelly May, Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Donald Duck
LAND: Toontown - Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Donald, Daisy, Chip & Dale

There is no fixed schedule for any other characters, and face characters are particularly random. As mentioned previously, it really is best to ask a cast member, especially the ones standing near the Wait Times board. Otherwise your best chance is to wait around at the entrance area and see who comes. Or if you see a line forming against some sort of railing or to the side or in front of a door/gate, it's a good chance a character will come out.

 

[Jade-Elise]

Never been to Disney anywhere before, but it seems popular to get autographs. Does Tokyo Disney characters do this? I haven't really found much information regarding this. Also my kids have made a list of characters they want to meet. Any chance you could give me an indication on likely hood of seeing these in a 4 day period? (I have no idea how plausible this request is so I apologies in advance) Just managing expectations.

Olaf
Stitch
Buzz Lightyear
Bambi
Duffy, ShelliMae, Gellatoni
Rapunzel & Flynn
Alice and Cheshire Cat
Mickey, Donald & Pluto
Aristocats
Inside Out Sadness

 

[bc7ate9]

Never been to Disney anywhere before, but it seems popular to get autographs. Does Tokyo Disney characters do this? I haven't really found much information regarding this. Also my kids have made a list of characters they want to meet. Any chance you could give me an indication on likely hood of seeing these in a 4 day period? (I have no idea how plausible this request is so I apologies in advance) Just managing expectations.

Olaf
Stitch
Buzz Lightyear
Bambi
Duffy, ShelliMae, Gellatoni
Rapunzel & Flynn
Alice and Cheshire Cat
Mickey, Donald & Pluto
Aristocats
Inside Out Sadness

I can speak to some of your question...

Stitch is very popular in Japan so if he is out, be prepared for a crowd - and they are definitely crowds - not lines. For whatever reason, despite a propensity for queuing pretty much everywhere in Japan, the roaming characters at Disney are a free for all.

Bambi doesn't meet at any Disney park.

Duffy and gang have designated meeting spots at DisneySea.

The fab 5 characters are easy to find in various costumes at both parks.

Marie from Aristocats is also very popular so prepare for crowds.

 

[Agent 86]

I'd just echo what bc7ate9 said - Duffy and Co have designated meeting sports and they are POPULAR. Seriously, ridiculously popular. The line to meet Duffy was always huge whenever we walked through Duffy's hometown area.

Similarly, Marie from the Aristocats is crazy popular. It will be a struggle to get an opportunity to take a photo with Marie as she's roaming the park due to the crowds, but be persistent, yet polite and you'll be okay. Mickey and Donald have designated meeting spots (with formal lines). I'm not sure about Pluto.

Maybe try searching Instagram for recent photos from Tokyo Disney to see who may be around?