You don’t have to break the bank when you buy Disney merch. If anything, the last few weeks at the Disney Stores prove that with discounts of anywhere from 30%-70% as they clear their shelves as they go out of business. But what about when they’re gone and all we have is the Parks, online, and the 25 US outlets left to choose from?
Well I just got back from Walmart with a huge haul of Disney items. And I spent less than $20. As much as I love Target and their new/sad/semi-themed “Disney Store” area that can be found in the kids/furniture/bathroom section…
Disney: All of Them
I find these Target Disney Stores to be always more expensive than Walmart and with less of a selection. Walmart generally has more stuff, more diverse stuff across the board – toys, accessories, and media. I went into my shop today wanting to get something from each of these areas and spend less than $20. Did I – yes, in fact I almost spent less than $15. Now this is not an advertisement for Wal*Mart, this is just a way to show that you – and ME – you don’t have to spend tons of cash to buy Disney products. This was especially valuable to me as I recently came out of a four day trip to Disney World where I didn’t overspend, but I definitely “SPENT” – and still saw a lot of items that I had to say “no” to. So I also tried to buy some items today that reminded me of my trip to Disney World.
So what did I say “yes” to at Walmart today?
Accessories: A pair of Vampirina sunglasses ($1) and a pair of “Frozen II” sunglasses ($4.72)
The Vampirina sunglasses were a steal at $1 and the Frozen II sunglasses were a bit pricier at $4.97. I was drawn to the Vampirina ones mostly because I like the show and the character and met her at Disney Hollywood Studios’ Hollywood and Vine restaurant.
Vampirina is a cool Disney Junior character and her personification at DHS was fun and the character was very high energy. Seriously check out some of the youtube vids of this character meet and greet. For me its the best in the park – and the mickey pancakes are not to be missed.
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you know I’m a huge Frozen fan so the “Frozen II” sunglasses are a no-brainer. They are my second pair of Frozen sunglasses purchased at Walmart and I liked the first one quite a bit. I wear them around my neighborhood during my afternoon walks and they do a great job repelling the light plus look quite stylish. In terms of my WDW vacation, I rode the Frozen Ever After ride at Epcot twice during my visit (no small feat considering it had the longest wait time of any ride on my trip) and it was a personal favorite ride (maybe not a top 3 or 4 in all 4 parks but definitely a top 3 at Epcot) – great animatronics, limited screens, a fun drop, the backwards track – if you’ve been on it, you know it.
Speaking of “Frozen II”…
Toy: A bean bag Elsa from “Frozen II” plush ($3.72)
Even though those Vampirina glasses were only $1, this is my steal of the day. There is no way that this Elsa plush goes for less than $14.99 in the Disney Parks and I’m thinking she’s probably going for $19.99 easy in the Norway Gift Shop at the exit of the Frozen Ever After ride. Heck I purchased a similar sized 22 (from “Soul”) plush at the resort gift shop for $20 so I know I’m in the ballpark. The doll has some nice detail, a cool rendition of her Frozen II dress, cape included, and is an all-around bargain that could not be passed-up. Also Elsa is wearing her Arendelle Celebration gown (the one which she sings “Into The Unknown” in) which is actually kind of a hard find – I think they’ve only made one or two other toys wearing this outfit – as opposed to her journey outfit or Water Noch/”Show Yourself” outfit.
Media: A copy of “Mary Poppins Returns” ($9.96)
Now I know what you’re saying: why did you buy this when you’re a Disney plus subscriber and can watch it on your TV in 4K for free? Well #1 I basically collect DVDs and I also have 2 DVD players and sometimes I just like the packaging and like watching things on DVD better and when that happens, I buy the DVD without even thinking twice. Sometimes the DVDs also come with a redemption code or extra features (not the case here though). But there’s another reason: outside of buying DVDs on Amazon they are darn hard to find and seeing a copy of “Mary Poppins Returns” in the wild at Walmart was again, something I could not pass up. And I didn’t break the bank on this one – in fact, its a pretty good deal and still $5 cheaper than it would be at Target and $10 cheaper than it would be at the parks.
But how did this relate to my stay at the parks – well it relates to one coming up in the future. I really want to eat dinner at Citricos at the Grand Floridian as the restaurant has been re-themed to “Mary Poppins Returns” and my goal is to watch the film a few times before I return to WDW in January for my next trip – so this DVD is going to come in very, very handy. And since I save all that money, I’ll be able to afford Citricos which is currently clocking in at $60-80 per person without drinks.
So all-together this haul cost me just under $20 before tax – a good Disney haul and one that did not break the bank, showing that you can buy souvenirs at Walmart and spend your money at the parks on something else like a $16 Pandoran Sunrise with Na’vi Flute Cup in Pandora: The World of Avatar – or an $8 Mickey pretzel (yeah I bought both of these on my last trip).
No Scoops Club 