Guide to Magic Kingdom Characters at Disney World

A visit to Disney World wouldn’t be complete without meeting characters at Magic Kingdom. This guide to the character experiences at Magic Kingdom will tell you where and who to meet for your visit.

Meeting favorite characters at the Magic Kingdom can be so much fun. Although characters can change and sometimes you will be surprised by who you find at the entrance of Main Street, most character locations are permanent places to meet characters.

Some of our favorite memories at Disney World has been meeting characters during character meals, meet and greets or waving to them during a parade.

The characters at Disney World are exceptional at making your day at the parks special.

Characters at Magic Kingdom

Depending on the age and interests of your family there is a beloved Disney character to meet for everyone.

If you have someone who loves Disney princesses there are many of them at the park. If your kids love adventure Peter Pan or Stitch may be a good fit.

Walt Disney World has four parks. Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom.

It is important to know that some characters like Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse can be found at each of the parks while other characters like Buzz Lightyear can only be found at Magic Kingdom.

Guests who have specific characters they would like to meet should download the My Disney Experience app to have the most up to date times and characters at the park.

There are a lot of characters to meet at the Magic Kingdom so I divided them up into the areas of the park that you can meet them.

Characters at Town Square Theater

As soon as you arrive and make your way through the gates of the Magic Kingdom you will head to your right to find the first two characters in the park located at Town Square Theater.

This is where you can meet Mickey Mouse or Tinker Bell, or both. If you meet both you will have to wait in two different lines. Update: As of 2022 Tinker Bell is not at the Magic Kingdom. Mickey Mouse is still meeting guests.

You may also find different characters at the entrance of Main Street U.S.A. This is random and is not listed on the app.

As I was researching this Snow White had an appearance at the Town Square Theater Porch. It is always a good idea to check the app before you arrive and during your visit.

Also be prepared that some characters encounters are sightings where they wave from a stage and others are meet and greets that you may have to wait in line for.

Characters in Tomorrowland

Buzz Lightyear sighting at Rocket Tower Plaza Stage
Stitch sighting at Rocket Tower Plaza Stage

Characters in Fantasyland

Fantasyland is where the majority of characters are at the Magic Kingdom. For the Disney princesses meet and greet in Princess Fairytale Hall you can meet Elena, Tiana, Cinderella, and Rapunzel. You can secure a Genie+ pass to skip the line at Princess Fairytale Hall.

All the character meeting times are listed on the My Disney Experience App.

Anastasia at Cinderella Fountain
Belle at Maurice’s Cottage
Chip at Storybook Circus
Cinderella at Princess Fairytale Hall
Dale at Storybook Circus
Drizella at Cinderella’s Fountain
Elena at Princess Fairytale Hall
Merida at Fairytale Garden
Peter Pan at the Neverland Map
Pluto at Storybook Circus Calliope Tent
Princess Tiana at Princess Fairtale Hall
Rapunzel at Princess Fairytale Hall
Tigger at the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
Winnie the Pooh at The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh

Characters in Frontierland

Country Bears sighting on Country Bear Jamboree Balcony

Characters in Adventureland

Aladdin in Agrabah
Princess Jasmine at Agrabah
Captain Jack Sparrow at Adventureland Stage

Character Meals at Magic Kingdom

There are a few different opportunities for character dining at the Magic Kingdom. Guests can meet characters at The Crystal Palace, Be Our Guest, and Cinderella’s Royal Table.

Update: Cinderella’s Royal Table and Be Our Guest have not returned as character meals. They are open but without the characters. I will update this as I learn more. Below is what you can expect if they return.

Cinderella’s Royal Table offers breakfast, lunch, or dinner options inside Cinderella’s Castle. This is a very popular dining reservation and very pricey.

You can make reservations in advance and I suggest doing that if you would like to do this meal. Princesses will visit your table as you eat and the views of the Magic Kingdom make this an amazing meal.

The Crystal Palace offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner buffet options for guests visiting the Magic Kingdom. Here you can also meet Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Piglet, and Eeyore.

If you are planning on doing character dining be prepared to spend 1.5 to 2 hours at the restaurant. If you are planning 2 days at Magic Kingdom this would be a good choice for day 2.

Disney Princesses at Magic Kingdom

The Disney Princesses at Magic Kingdom can be found in Fantasyland and Adventureland. Princess Jasmine meets guests with Aladdin in Adventureland.

Princess Elena, Tiana, Rapunzel, and Cinderella greet guests at Princess Fairytale Hall. Guests can also meet Belle at Maurice’s Cottage.

Lightning Lane through Genie+ is offered at Princess Fairytale Hall. This is a add-on paid skip the line feature that guests can purchase in addition to their daily admission ticket.

There are two different Princess Fairytale Hall meet and greet options. One is Cinderella and a visiting princess. The other is Tiana and a visiting princess.

I checked wait time mid-afternoon on a moderate crowd day and they were 30 minutes for Cinderella and 50 for Tiana. This can flucuate but it gives a general idea of what to expect.

This information can be found under the entertainment tab in the My Disney Experience app.

Ariel used to meet in Ariel’s Grotto. I hope they bring this back because it was a great meet and greet to do after riding the Little Mermaid attraction.

Characters at Magic Kingdom Shows and Parades

Disney Adventure Cavalcade is a smaller version of a parade. It offers an assortment of characters to wave hello to. Some of the characters you can see are Miguel from Coco, Moana, The Incredibles and Toy Story characters. This is always subject to change.

Mickey’s Celebration Cavalcade features Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Goofy, and Pluto as they wave hello to guests. The cavalcades are a great way to see a lot of characters and not take a lot of time out of your day. Showtimes are listed in the entertainment tab.

There is also Mickey’s Magical Friendship Faire show at the stage in front of Cinderella’s castle as well as Disney Festival of Fantasy Parade which is a daily parade that goes along Main Street U.S.A.

Disney Characters at Special Events

Depending on what time of year you visit you can expect to meet special characters. If you are visiting during the Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom you will see characters dressed in costumes.

During the Christmas holiday you will see characters dressed up in their holiday outfits. There are also special shows and characters during the holidays that can only be seen during the evening parties.

Tips for Character Experiences at Magic Kingdom

Decide what characters you want to meet before you arrive at the park. Of course you may find ones you didn’t expect but if there is someone you are hoping to meet include it in your park itinerary.

Be flexible. At times the character you were hoping to see is not there or the wait times may be long. Be flexible with your plans.

Always be kind to the cast members. This should go without saying but it is so important to remember the cast members are doing their best and to treat them with kindness.

If you are planning on meeting a lot Disney World characters consider purchasing an autograph book for your trip. This makes a great souvenir.

On one visit we made our own book and put the picture from our meeting on the opposite page. It is a really great keepsake to look back on.

Take advantage of the parades and shows to see a lot of your favorite Disney characters without waiting in long lines.

If this is your first time to Disney World and you don’t want to spend time waiting in lines to meet characters consider a character meal outside the Disney parks. There are a few great character dining experiences at the Walt Disney World resort.

Guests visiting the Magic Kingdom can walk to Chef Mickeys at the Contemporary or 1900 Park Fare at the Grand Floridian. Chef Mickey’s has Mickey and friends. 1900 Park Fare has Alice, the Mad Hatter, and Mary Poppins.

If you are planning a meal during your non-park days consider Topolino’s Terrace at the Riviera Resort. We prefer doing a big meal on our non-park days to not feel rushed to move on to the next thing.

Do a bit of research before your visit to know which characters are at which park. If you are looking for Star Wars characters you will only find them at Disney’s Hollywood Studio. If you are looking for Frozen you should visit Epcot.

It is good to know this before you arrive at the park and are disappointed you didn’t get to see your favorites. If meeting characters are high on your list consider doing them first thing in the morning.

I don’t typically recommend this but if you are visiting with small children you may want to ride a few attractions in the first hour and then include the character greetings that are top of your list.

Meeting characters at Magic Kingdom can be a really awesome way to spend your time at the park. The characters are so much fun and do a great job of adding that extra magic to your Disney vacation.