If you’ve visited Walt Disney World before, you’ve no doubt seen stores filled with Disney pins. Disney World pin trading is a popular hobby with individuals of all ages.Â
The Walt Disney Company is constantly bringing out new releases and limited edition pins for people to collect. We spent years going to Disney World without having our own collection of Disney pins and didn’t know what we were missing.
Pin Trading is such a fun way to add some extra magic to your next Walt Disney World vacation. Plus you get to meet and talk to a lot of fun cast members along the way!
Today we’re going to share with you everything you need to know about Disney pin trading and how to get started with this fun activity on your next visit.
What is Disney Pin Trading?
Disney pin trading involves trading official collectible Disney pins. You’ll see many cast members in the parks wearing lanyards or pin holders with their costumes, and you can ask to see their pins and trade. You can also look for the Mickey Pin Board to find cast members to trade with.
Some stores and resorts also offer pin trading boards with a wide selection of pins. If you are serious about pin trading, you can join in local pin trading events and gatherings.
Disney pin trading dates back to 1999 when Disney started as part of the Millennium Celebration in October of that year. Before that, pins were always present in the Disney parks, but they were treated as a souvenir to take home or a badge to wear on your clothing or bag.
Pin trading at Disney came about after they held the Odyssey of the Mind function, where pins were being traded between attendees. In 2000, the idea also spread to Disneyland, but Walt Disney World has always been considered the home of pin trading. If you are lucky enough to travel to other Disney destinations around the world, you’ll also be able to participate in this fun activity.
Who Can Get Involved With Pin Trading?
Pin trading is an activity that’s suitable for people of almost all ages, and children of about five years old and above love getting involved in the fun. The only consideration when pin trading with younger children is that the pins are sharp on the back of each Disney pin, so they’ll probably need assistance from an adult. Be sure to keep the pin backs on the pins around young kids.
Pin trading is certainly not a cheap activity for kids to get started with, but many enjoy adding to their collection during their Disney trips. When it comes to finding cast members to trade with, you’ll primarily find them in Disney stores. If you see someone wearing a green lanyard, these are reserved just for children. Anyone operating a ride can’t wear pins, so keep this in mind when looking out for someone to trade with.
The great thing about trading with cast members is that they can’t say no to your trades. They have a selection of about a dozen different pins, and you will be able to trade anything in your collection with them. It’s important to ensure you always use official Disney pins when trading, as otherwise, you won’t be able to take part in this activity.
Keep this in mind if you are purchasing pins online before your visit, as many of the inexpensive ones aren’t going to be official. You can trade up to two pins with one cast member in a day, so you have plenty of opportunities to enjoy trading in the Walt Disney World Theme parks.
How to Get Started with Disney Pin Trading
No doubt you are itching to get started with Disney pin trading by now, and we don’t blame you. It’s an exciting activity that anyone can enjoy on their upcoming trip, and you’ll find that you have some great interactions with cast members in the parks, thanks to pin trading.
To get started, you’ll need to begin with a small collection of pins and somewhere to store your pins. In the parks and resorts, you’ll find some great starter sets for sale, which contain a small collection of pins usually based on one theme. They offer greater value for money than buying pins individually and are a good way to start off your collection.
Try to find a starter set that comes with a lanyard, as this is generally the preferred way to store your pins. If you become more serious about pin trading, consider upgrading to a pin trading book or folder, where you’ll be able to store more pins for your trip.
Now that you have everything you need, it’s time to start hunting down pins in the parks. Keep your eyes peeled for cast members in the parks who have lanyards or are looking after a pin book or pin trading board.
Enjoy browsing their selection of pins, but don’t feel obligated to trade if you don’t like anything on display. Pin trading is a fun way to get involved with cast members around the parks, and you’ll create great memories just from doing this activity on your upcoming trip.
When you get home from your vacation, you may want to think about how you are going to display your pins. One of the best ways to have them out on display in your home is via a cork board, which is an easy and inexpensive way to display them.
You might even want to consider purchasing a hat or a vest to show off your pins. Use your imagination to find a way to incorporate your Disney pins into your home, and you’ll love looking at them until you head off on your next Disney vacation.
Read Also: Collecting and Wearing Disney Pins
Types of Pins
Not all Disney trading pins are exactly the same, and you’ll find some pins have various markings on the back of the pin, which indicate its rarity or the collection it is part of. Some are collectible pins that are sought after by Disney fans.
You can find pins for attractions, your favorite characters, movies, and more. Disney pins can be from Pixar, Disney, Star Wars, or Marvel.
These are a few of the most important types of pins you should know about when you are starting off your collection:
- Limited Edition – Only available for a limited time or as part of special events
- Limited Release – A small number of these pins were created, making them a much rarer option
- Cast Member Exclusive – These pins were only available for purchase by cast members at the cast member stores on propertyÂ
- Surprise Pins – These are rare pins that can sometimes be found in Disneyland and may be released during special pin trading events. Walt Disney World.
- Hidden Mickey Pins – These pins aren’t available for purchase and are only available through cast member trades. You’ll know they are hidden mickeys when you find a silver hidden mickey somewhere on the pin. These are also part of a series so you can try and collect them all!
- Series Pins – They may be linked by the type of pin they are, or they could fit together. They are a set of pins that collectors will try to complete.
- Mystery Pins – Some cast members will have a mystery trade so you don’t know what you’re getting, also known as a blind trade.Â
- Scrapper Pins – These are counterfeit pins that imitate real pins that are out there. Beware of scams! Serious collectors will be able to distinguish these fake pins or scrappers.
- Slider Pins – These have movement on the pins.
- Light-up Pin – These are typically older pins that light up when activated.
How Much are Trading Pins at Disney World?
Pins start at around $9.99 each, but if you are looking to purchase rare pins or discontinued ones online, expect to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars for the rarest pins.
Pins can be purchased in almost any store in the resort, and you’ll find different selections available throughout Walt Disney World.Â
Disney Pin Trading Rules
- You can only trade official Disney pins, you will see ©Disney on the back of the pin.
- The pins must be in good condition and have a back on them.
- Pins should represent a Disney character, icon, event, place, or location.
- You can only trade two pins per Cast Member or trading board per day.
- Cast Members can’t refuse a trade unless it violates the rules.
- No money can be exchanged for pin trades.
What is the Etiquette for Disney pins?
- Ask to initiate a trade.
- Be polite/kind during the trade.
- Offer a pin that isn’t already on the pin board or lanyard.
- Lanyards that are different colors represent an age group they want to trade with, like green lanyards meaning kid trades.
- Don’t touch other people’s lanyards.
Disney Pin Trading Tips & Tricks
- Cast members often have new pins in the morning so early trades are often better.
- Check out the resort gift shop for pin boards to trade. You can also find them at the stores in the parks.Â
- You can buy just the pin backs at many pin stores, this is a great purchase in case you lose your pin backs and still want to trade pins.
- Don’t purchase from eBay or Amazon, these are often scrappers. Thought they may be cheaper than retail price, they are a scrapper pin and not official pins.
The official merchandise locations are
- Disney’s Pin Traders at Disney Springs
- Frontier Trading Post in Frontierland at Magic Kingdom park
- Pin Traders – Camera Center at EPCOT
- Discovery Trading Company at Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park
- Celebrity 5 & 10 at Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Other Magic Kingdom locations for pin trading are Guest Relations, Main Street Emporium, The Town Square Exposition Hall, Tomorrowland Pin Cart, and Memento Mori.
Other EPCOT locations for pin trading are Mission Space gift shop, Test Track gift shop, KidCot locations.
Other Animal Kingdom locations for pin trading are Discovery Trading Post, Africa Pin Station, and Garden Gate Gifts.
Other Hollywood Studios locations are Sid Cahuenga’s One-of-a-Kind, Great Movie Finds, Tattooine Traders, and Tower of Terror gift shop.
Disney Pin Acronyms
- AP (Artist Proof)
- CL (Cast Lanyard pin)
- CME (Cast Member Exclusive pin)
- DH (Disney Hotels)
- DLP (Disneyland Paris)
- DLR (Disneyland Resort)
- DPB (Disney Pins Blog)
- Grail (A pin collector’s favorite pin)
- HM (Hidden Mickey pin)
- HTF (Hard To Find)
- ISO (In Search Of)
- LE Pins (Limited Edition pin)
- LR (Limited Release pin)
- MOG (Mickey’s of Glendale: Cast Member store)
- NBC (Nightmare Before Christmas)
- NFS (Not For Sale)
- NFT (Not For Trade)
- OE (Open Edition pins)
- PP (Pre-Production)
- PTD/PTS (Pin Traders Delight/Pin Traders Sundae)
- PTE (Pin Trading Event)
- PTN (Pin Trading Night)
- PODH (Piece of Disney History pin)
- PODM (Piece of Disney Movie pin)
- RSP (Random Selection Process)
- RR (Rare Release)
- SPR (Surprise Pin Release)
- WDI (Walt Disney Imagineering pins)
Looking After Your Pin Collection
When you’ve started to invest time and money into your pin collection, you’ll want to take good care of them. One common issue is losing the backs of the pins, so you may want to invest in a bag of spare official Mickey Mouse backs, which you can find at many of the pin trading stores.
Check out the Epcot pin store or the Disney Pin Traders at Disney Springs for a great selection of pin accessories. You’ll also want to avoid just chucking your pins into a bag, as they may get scratched or damaged. Find a good way to look after your pins between trips so that you are ready to get them out again on your next Disney vacation.
Disney pin trading is an activity that guests of all ages can enjoy, and you’ll soon see how addictive building your pin collection can be. We encourage you to keep an eye out for all of the pin trading locations around the parks, as it’s a fun way to add a new activity to your upcoming Disney vacation.
You don’t have to spend a fortune to get started, and even if you want to keep your collection small, you’ll still be able to join in with all of the fun of Disney pin trading.
Read Also: Collecting And Wearing Disney Pins
1 comment
Brindy
Has this changed back to normal recently? We went last September and there was only one tiny board by the front gate that had pins to trade. I was so sad because pin trading was always one of my favorite things at the parks.