How to Use the My Disney Experience App to Locate Character Meet-and-Greets

Meeting characters is an important part of a Disney World vacation. We have stood in many lines to meet characters and interacted with others around us. One of the things we’ve learned is that guests don’t always include character meet-and-greets as part of their pre-planning process. The common theme we hear is that parents don’t realize their children will even want to meet characters. So they have no idea where to start and touring plans get thrown to the wayside as they try to figure out where to meet a character.

A perfect example was a visit to Magic Kingdom when we were waiting to meet Ariel at her Grotto. It was a significantly long line and the family ahead of us commented how they couldn’t believe so many people were waiting for a character. After a short conversation, they mentioned that they had just gotten in line because their boys had seen a character out in the park and asked to meet characters. They really didn’t plan to meet any characters and had no idea where to find them. Then, I mentioned that Captain Jack Sparrow met in Adventureland and everyone’s faces lit up. You could tell they were fans. So I opened the My Disney Experience app and showed them how to find which characters were actively meeting at Magic Kingdom that day.

Since then, I’ve made it a point to include a brief set of instructions for using the app on every character meet-and-greet article we publish. We can tell you how to plan for character meet-and-greets, which ones are typically available, and what kind of wait times you can expect. But the bottom line–you need to be able to use the My Disney Experience app on the day of your visit to see which characters are meeting, where, and when. So below, we’ve provided a step-by-step screenshot tutorial.

Step One: Open the My Disney Experience App

Below is a photo of the home screen for the My Disney Experience app.

Step Two: Select the Pin Drop

Select the pin drop at the bottom of the screen. It’s the second icon.

Step Three: Scroll Horizontally to the Character Section

After selecting the pin drop, you’ll see various icons at the top of the screen. You can swipe or scroll horizontally until you reach the characters icon.

Step Four: Choose How You Want to View Characters

Once you select the Characters icon, you have options. A map will appear that shows the characters locations in each park. You might notice the small Mickey Mouse icons. Select any of these to see who’s meeting at that location on the map. However, we rarely use the map to locate characters. It’s a great tool and you might need to use it if you’re not familiar with the park’s layout. But if you’re looking to meet a specific character or see a list, we prefer to use the location and list method.

The first thing to do is select locations from the drop-down list underneath the characters icon.

A list of locations pops up. (There are no character meet-and-greets at Disney Springs. If you select it, you’ll get a message saying you’ve filtered out the fun.) Next, you’ll select the location you’re visiting. This filter is crucial to use day-by-day when looking for characters per park.

After you’ve selected the location, you’ll want to select “Show List” in the bottom right-hand corner of the app screen. (Again, you can use the map as an alternative, but we much prefer the list view.

The list character shows how many characters are meeting per your location selection. In the screenshot below, we bypassed the location filter and went straight to Show List. It tells us that 61 characters were meeting in all four theme parks. As you can see, if we were only visiting Magic Kingdom, it would be a headache to sort through all of those meet-and-greets. So make sure to use the location filter and show list display to keep things simplified.

Step Five: Identify the Characters You Want to Meet

Once you’ve narrowed down your options you can take an individual look at what characters you want to meet. So if we scroll down and select Mickey Mouse, his individual character screen appears. It tells us that Mickey Mouse meets at Magic Kingdom Park (our location setting), specifically at Town Square Theater on Main Street, U.S.A. The app says Today’s Appearances are from 9:00 a.m. until 8:30 p.m.

This is where we think the map view comes in handy. Now if you know that Town Square Theater is next to the park’s entrance, you wouldn’t need the map. But if you have no idea, you can select view map. You’ll get a zoomed in view of the location.

If you zoom out a little bit, you can see that Town Square Theater is first thing on the right when you enter the park. On a side note, if you’re completely turned around and unsure how to return to the front of the park, you can use the “get directions” selection and it will provide walking directions based on your location. You will need to have location setting turned on or you can manually select your location.

A Few Things You’ll Want to Know

We always stress that it’s essential to check the My Disney Experience app on the day of your visit for exact characters, times, and locations. But there is something very important you need to know:

As the day passes, you might notice that characters disappear from the app. When their last scheduled time passes, the meet-and-greet automatically disappears. A new schedule won’t be loaded until the following day.

So if you’re back in your room by 9:00 p.m. and want to see what characters will meet at Epcot on the following day, you’re out of luck as far as the app goes. That’s why we keep a character guide for every park:

• Magic Kingdom Characters Guide
• Epcot Characters Guide
• Disney’s Hollywood Studios Characters Guide
• Disney’s Animal Kingdom Characters Guide

You also do not want to wait until 5:00 p.m. to see if you can find Mirabel because you promised the kids you would see her on your Magic Kingdom day. Many of the characters (with a few exceptions) meet outside and those meets often wrap up by 5:00 p.m. (This is why it’s so important to check the app on the day of your visit for specific characters exact times.)

Lastly, characters at Disney are considered entertainment, and Disney stresses that entertainment is subject to change. Most of the regular characters we list in our guides are consistently at Disney World every day. But a character could get sick or have an emergency and have to leave. So if meeting Princess Jasmine is at the top of your list, it’s better to get that meet-and-greet out of the way earlier rather than later.

The Resorts Gal Spin

When I’m touring with my niece and nephew or children of friends, I always let them know that we will meet a certain character if we can, and prepare them for a potentially long wait. I also try to remember to bring a character autograph book along so they can collect an autograph. One of the things I learned early on is that when your children see other children getting autographs, they are going to want the same experience. You can purchase a character autograph book at almost any gift shop at Walt Disney World or order one online ahead of your visit. I like to keep a Sharpie in the attached elastic band and keep the book in my backpack.

Can’t Find a Character? If a character isn’t listed (who you are pretty sure meets regularly), ask a cast member wearing a blue shirt if they can help you locate them. The cast members who work the character meet-and-greets wear blue shirts and khaki pants or shorts. The best place to find them is at another meet-and-greet.

Final Thoughts

We hope this tutorial helped you learn the best way to locate characters in the parks! Remember you can open the My Disney Experience app and practice this tutorial before your vacation. But, remember you need to do it earlier in the day because each character’s listing disappears when their meet-and-greet time ends. For more meet-and-greets you might enjoy the following:

• Where to Find Disney Princesses at Magic Kingdom
• Where to Find Disney Princesses at Epcot
• Where to Find Star Wars Characters at Disney World
• Where to Find Pixar Characters at Disney’s Hollywood Studios

Or you can preview the entire list of characters who meet regularly at Disney World.

In the Comments

Did you find this step-by-step process helpful? Do you have any other questions about locating characters at Disney World? Let us know in the comments below.