A day in the Disney World theme parks isn’t complete without meeting some of your favorite Disney characters. Whether you are excited to meet Mickey Mouse and friends or your daughter loves the Disney Princesses, the good news is that there are an extensive range of Disney Characters at Epcot to meet.
I’m not sure EPCOT turned out to be the Experimental City Prototype of Tomorrow that Walt had envisioned, but I will tell you it’s one of the best places to meet some famous and diverse characters!
Guide to Disney Characters at Epcot and How to Meet Them
You’ll be surprised by how many Disney characters you can meet at EPCOT. This guide will explain what is so special about meeting Disney characters at Epcot, plus a list of all the characters you can see in the park.
Some of these characters are available to meet every day, while others are harder to find. Make sure you download the My Disney Experience app ahead of your visit so that you can see when and where you’ll be able to find them on any given day.
What Makes Meeting Characters at EPCOT Different?
One of the reasons I love meeting characters in EPCOT is due to the World Showcase. The countries are home to various characters that either live or visit these specific places in their movies.
You’ll be able to meet Donald Duck in his unique Mexican costume or see Snow White in Germany. The backgrounds of these meet and greets are often very picturesque and unique with special themes.
We loved seeing Winnie the Pooh trying to catch butterflies in the back area of the World Celebration. You can now find Pooh back at Christopher Robin’s room in the United Kingdom.
Epcot often has some surprise character pop ups, where they are doing cast member training. You can sometimes find rare characters in the countries, especially close to the holidays and holiday parties.
Another completely random character experience happened when my husband and I was walking around the World Showcase. In the American pavilion, we happened to stumble on Goofy.
It was a fun experience as it was unexpected and my husband tends to be a bit goofy himself. So getting them together my husband embodies a big kid all over again.
What Characters are Featured in Epcot?
There is such a wide variety of characters available to meet all throughout Epcot. You can meet the following characters at EPCOT:
- Alice in Wonderland – United Kingdom
- Anna – Royal Sommerhus in Norway Pavilion
- Ariel – Akershus Royal Banquet Hall in Norway
- Asha – World Showcase Plaza
- Belle – France Pavilion and Akershus Royal Banquet Hall in Norway
- Chip – Garden Grill
- Daisy Duck – Future World at Epcot’s Main Entrance
- Dale – Garden Grill
- Donald Duck – Mexico Pavilion
- Elsa – Royal Sommerhus in Norway Pavilion
- Figment – Image Works
- Goofy – Communicore Hall and sometimes at the Future World Main Entrance
- Princess Jasmine – Morocco Pavilion and Akershus Royal Banquet Hall in Norway
- Joy from Inside Out – Imagination! Pavilion
- Mary Poppins – United Kingdom Pavilion
- Mickey Mouse – Communicore Hall and Garden Grill
- Minnie Mouse – Communicore Hall, Main Entrance
- Moana – Journey of Moana in World Nature
- Mulan – China PavilionÂ
- Pluto – Future World Main Entrance, Garden Grill Restaurant
- Sleeping Beauty – France Pavillion and Akershus Royal Banquet Hall in Norway
- Snow White – Germany Pavilion and Akershus Royal Banquet Hall in Norway
- Winnie the Pooh –Â Christopher Robin’s Room in the United Kingdom
Princesses at Epcot
Epcot is a wonderful place to meet so many princess in one place. Many of them, you can only meet at Epcot. The World Showcase is a great place for both adults and children because the meet and greet opportunities in the countries are so beautifully themed.
Anna and Elsa – Anna and Elsa have their very own special meet and greet location at the Royal Sommerhus in the Norway Pavillion.
Asha – Asha from Wish, has a special themed meet and greet in the gazebo in World Showcase Plaza near the Mexico pavilion.
Aurora – Aurora has a beautiful meet and greet in the France pavilion near the walkway to Ratatouile.
Belle – You can meet Belle in her village outfit in France along the water.
Moana – Moana has her own meet and greet location next to the Journey of Water attraction in
Mulan – Meet her inside the China Pavilion in her beautiful dress.
Snow White -You can see Snow White in Germany in front of her wishing well.
Jasmine – You can visit Jasmine in a beautifully themed area tucked away inside Morocco.
What time can you meet princesses at EPCOT?
You’ll find that the characters are available throughout the day, which is why I recommend downloading the My Disney Experience app for full information about who you can meet on your day in the park.
Keep in mind that the World Showcase area of the park doesn’t fully operate until after 11 am, which is when you can expect most of the characters to start appearing. That said I met Mulan with no wait around 10 am, it was a complete accident, and it was my first time meeting this Disney princess.
Most of the princesses stop meeting before it gets dark, so make sure to check the app for the most accurate meeting times.
Character Meets by Country
The World Showcase has many unique opportunities to meet even more Disney characters. Let’s take a look at who you can meet in each country around the world starting with Mexico.
Mexico – Meet Donald Duck in his sombrero and poncho.
Norway – Meet Anna and Elsa at their Royal Summerhus and other princesses at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall.
China – Meet Mulan inside the China Pavillion
Germany – Meet Snow White in Germany, outside in front of her wishing well like the one from the movie.
France – This is the only place that you can meet Aurora from Sleeping Beauty and Belle in her village dress.
The United Kingdom – In the United Kingdom, you can see Alice in front of the tea garden. You can meet Mary Poppins here as well. In the back of the pavilion, you can meet Winnie the Pooh inside Christopher Robin’s bedroom.
What are the 11 countries at EPCOT in order?
Mexico, Norway, China, Germany, Italy, the United States, Japan, Morocco, France, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
Depending on how you enter Epcot’s main entrance, or from the back entrance at the International Gateway, the United Kingdom will be the first country you come into.
I love coming into the International Gateway entrance when I’m staying at Disney’s Swan Hotel. This is also a great place to meet Daisy Duck!
Attractions at Epcot with Characters
One other thing to keep in mind is that many of the attractions in the park now feature Disney characters as well. It is a great way for visitors of all ages the chance to see some of their favorite characters come to life.
- Remy’s Ratatouille Adventure
- Frozen Ever After
- Pixar Short Film Festival
- The Gran Fiesta Tour
- The Seas with Nemo & Friends
- Journey into Imagination with Figment
EPCOT Character Dining
A great way to guarantee time with the Disney characters is to book a character dining meal. There are two great options in EPCOT, both of which are open throughout the day.
Make sure you book in advance if you are interested in either of these offerings though, as they typically book up very quickly.
Garden Grill Restaurant
Located in The Land pavilion, this restaurant slowly rotates in a 360 degree motion above the Living with the Land attraction. As well as this unique setting, it offers fresh food that’s grown in the attraction below.
Garden Grill is hosted by the mischievous Chip and Dale, but you’ll also get the chance to meet Mickey Mouse and Pluto most days here.Mickey Mouse is dressed up in an adorable farmer outfit, making it a unique character photo opportunity.
The restaurant is open throughout the day and is a great option for families and picky eaters. It appeals to both boys and girls, so is ideal for families looking for a classic Disney meet and greet opportunity.
Akershus Royal Banquet Hall
Families with young girls or Disney Princess fans won’t want to miss the chance to dine at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall. Here you’ll get a chance to meet a whole selection of Disney princesses, as well as dine on classic Norwegian dishes. Even fussy eaters will enjoy dining here though, as the menu is extensive to choose from.
Open throughout the day, this is one of the toughest reservations to come by. Make sure you try and secure your reservation on the day they are offered, as you may find you miss out otherwise.
How Do You Find Where the Characters in EPCOT are on the My Disney Experience App?
The My Disney Experience app has a separate drop-down tab on each theme park for the character experiences. Here you can filter to EPCOT and then see who is out and about on any given day.
You’ll be able to view the location to meet the characters on the map, as well as the times they are expected to be there. I always recommend that you arrive well in advance of the final time listed on the app though, as they sometimes have to close the lines when it gets too busy.
This is a great feature for anyone spending a few days in the parks to ensure you don’t miss seeing your favorite characters before you go home.
If you find that you’ve missed out on seeing one of your top characters in EPCOT, you can use the app to see if they are at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, the Magic Kingdom in the Princess Fairytale Hall, or Disney’s Hollywood Studios in the Animation Courtyard instead.
Top Tips for Meeting Characters in EPCOT
A little known secret are the secret places characters are known to gather. We often find rare characters near the American Pavilion usually around 11AM though the time is subject to change. If you look for the brown gates in EPCOT, characters will often come in and out of there for some spontaneous meet and greets.
This is where we were able to meet Tigger above and these cool characters below.
Now that you know how to make the most of your time in EPCOT, here are a few tips to help meet as many characters as possible on any given day.
Children may enjoy having an autograph book of their character meets, allowing them to collect the signatures of all the characters they meet to look back on in the future.
- Make sure you bring a thick pen or buy one in the theme parks as these are easier for the characters to hold.
- Character meet and greets do gain long lines, so try to get to each location ahead of the start time.
- If you are traveling with young kids, bring snacks and water, as these lines are sometimes outside in the hot Florida sun.
- You can’t expect to meet every character in one day, so come up with a plan for which ones will be your priorities.
Where to meet Mickey at EPCOT in 2024?
Mickey has a brand new meet and greet area at the new Communicore Hall called Mickey and Friends. He meets here daily with Goofy and Minnie in their classic outfits.
You can also meet Mickey in his cute farmer outfit with blue jean overalls if you have a reservation at Garden Grill Restaurant inside the Land Pavillion.
What makes EPCOT unique?
EPCOT brings cultures from around the world to the Walt Disney World resort. With the multiple festivals that happen throughout the year, EPCOT is a great theme park for the entire family. If you’re a foodie or love to see unique things about the countries that are hosted inside the World Showcase, be sure to plan a whole day here.
Final Thoughts
EPCOT is often overlooked by families with younger children, but as you can see, it’s an amazing theme park for anyone wanting to meet a huge variety of Disney characters in one day. Use the My Disney Experience app to plan out your meet and greets and ensure you don’t miss out on meeting any characters your family particularly loves.
If you are interested in either of the character dining opportunities here, make sure you book them well in advance to avoid disappointment. You could easily spend the whole day walking around and meeting characters here, so be sure to pace yourself during your next visit.
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