It’s the most wonderful time of the year… to find characters dressed in their holiday best at the Disneyland Resort!
Not only are the parks decorated for this festive season, but the characters bring out their winter wardrobes with some new additions this year.
And we’d be remiss not to mention that today is Mickey’s 94th birthday! It’s hard to imagine another character more beloved than this fellow, and he’s been consistently popular these nine decades. That’s some amazing staying power.
Disneyland celebrated the occasion with a special character cavalcade:
Before we get into the holly jolly, I have a bit of a holiday surprise for you arriving at the Disneyland Resort TODAY…
Mando & The Child
The Mandalorian and Grogu (the Child) will be seen around Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge starting today (November 18th). The characters had been teased at the D23 Expo earlier this year. But it sure was a missed opportunity that they didn’t debut yesterday, in time for Star Wars Life Day!
If you hope to see Mando and Grogu today, expect to find a LOT of fellow friends crowding around. This is what Galaxy’s Edge looks like this morning as crowds await the arrival of this amazing duo.
When they finally arrived, the crowd went crazy. Justifiablyy so. They look incredible. AND, as a special extra surprise… they appeared with Boba Fett as well. Reunion time!
My thanks to Suzanne Lee and Karey Kusuhara for the photos and videos! The force was strong with you ladies!
Now, let’s check out who else you might find on your next visit to the parks…
Disneyland Holiday Characters
Happily enough, your journey begins in Town Square on Main Street, U.S.A. In view of the beautiful Christmas tree and garlands strung from the buildings, you are likely to encounter all of your Fab Five friends and more. This year, they got new holiday costumes!
Say hi to Mickey Mouse:
Minnie Mouse:
Donald Duck:
Daisy Duck:
Goofy:
Pluto:
Along with Chip ‘n Dale, they can all be found meeting with guests, signing autographs, and posing for photos.
But if you don’t happen to catch them in the Square, make sure to keep an eye out for the Mickey and Friends Holiday Cavalcade as it travels between Main Street and Fantasyland!
And of course, there’s also “A Christmas Fantasy” parade! That parade boasts a wide collection of characters, from classics like Minnie and Mickey, to an array of Princesses, and ending with Santa.
Main Street, U.S.A. is not the only place to discover characters dressed up for the holidays.
If you visit New Orleans Square, you can find Jack Skellington in his Sandy Claws suit meeting with his beloved Sally:
This couple is beyond adorable together and I always love chatting with them!
And in the evening over at Tomorrowland Terrace, you’ll want to stop by the Disney Holiday Dance Party, which features multiple character appearances.
On my recent visit, I caught Marie from The Aristocats:
She was visiting with her brothers Toulouse and Berlioz:
Then there was a chipmunk trio as Chip and Clarice arrived:
Along with Dale:
I also saw Clarabelle Cow:
With Horace Horsecollar:
Goofy was the final guest star!
And no holiday visit to the parks would be complete without saying hello to the jolly old elf himself – Santa Claus!
In Disneyland, he’s meeting at Winnie the Pooh’s “thotful spot” in Critter Country. At Disney California Adventure, he can be found at the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail.
Disney California Adventure Holiday Characters
Turning our character search to Disney California Adventure, we get some rarer character visits, some tinsel touch-ups to outfits and a new character appearance!
The Fab Five characters are out meeting on Buena Vista street in their holiday outfits. But, if you don’t catch them individually, you can still see Mickey Mouse and his friends in Mickey’s Happy Holidays cavalcade that runs a few times daily.
Happily for old-school animation fans, Disney California Adventure continues to lean into the classic characters from the company’s history. This year, just down the parade route from the Carthay Circle restaurant, you can find the delightful Daisy Duck alternating with a new visitor to the park:
When Daisy is not there, you may be lucky enough to meet Clara Cluck!
It’s really wonderful to see the park embrace period-appropriate characters and have Clara join Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Clarabelle Cow and Horace Horsecollar in representing the early Walt Disney era of cartoons.
Traveling down the parade route, you might want to detour before you reach Ariel’s Undersea Adventure and instead walk a little ways toward Grizzly Peak where you will see a cheerful and rustic meet and greet spot has been created for some UP friends!
You may find Carl, Russell, and Dug meeting here at different times of the day. Sometimes these are solo character visits and sometimes they meet in pairs.
I happened to stop by when Russell brought Dug along to say hello, while sporting some Christmas cheer:
On another visit, I found Carl:
Now let’s wander even further down the parade route toward Paradise Gardens where you’ll find a wonderful pair of meet and greets with characters who are also featured in Viva Navidad!
Mickey Mouse & Minnie Mouse meet here together:
And they alternate with The Three Caballeros!
I so enjoy visiting this fun trio and watching them tease and play with each other. Jose and Panchito know exactly how to get Donald all riled up and they love doing so – however, Donald can give as good as he gets!
But probably my favorite appearance of the day was one I’d missed seeing last year – Hawkeye and Kate Bishop getting a holiday introduction via their Avengers Assemble stunt show at Avengers Campus! While they start off in their hero costumes to take down the bad guys, by the end, they’re donning ugly sweaters ready for some hot chocolate and a well-deserved rest! They are also joined by a few good friends…
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Let’s Hear From You
I had a fantastic time seeing so many characters during this happy holiday season at the Disneyland Resort! Which character or characters are you most excited to see for the holidays this year?
What are your thoughts about seeing the characters of the Disneyland Resort dressed in their holiday finest? Are there more classic Disney characters you’d like to see added to the parks this holiday season? And how about the addition of Mando and Grogu? Share your thoughts in the comments below!