The Best Orlando Souvenirs: What to Buy and Where to Get Them

All of the major theme parks offer lots of opportunities to purchase keepsakes, ranging from cuddly toys to pin badges and merchandise from some of your favourite franchises. You can also start your very own collections, choosing something new each time you visit the parks to remember your time there.

Here’s our guide to some of the best souvenirs you can buy during your holiday to Orlando, Florida.

Best Walt Disney World Resort souvenirs

We’re starting our list of the best Orlando souvenirs at Walt Disney World Resort, a destination that’s high on the itinerary of family holidays in Florida. With four incredible theme parks, two epic water parks, and four golf courses, you’d be forgiven for thinking you might not have time for souvenir shopping. But there’s always time to pop into a store or two for a quick browse in between rides!

Summary – best Walt Disney World Resort souvenirs

• Disney pins
• Mouse ears
• Paint your own Disney Character

Mickey and Minnie Mouse Ears

Some of the most popular souvenirs at Walt Disney World Resort are the Mickey and Minnie Mouse ears. They come on an easy-to-wear headband, which means you can wear the ears during your time in the Parks as well as take them home as a memento.

These ears come in a variety of shapes and sizes, so there’s something to suit everyone. Choose from classic ears, limited edition designs to celebrate different anniversaries or launches, and themed ears.

If you’re visiting on your honeymoon, you can even get bride and groom ears – you’ll get plenty of attention and congratulations wearing these around the park!

Cost: Prices of ears vary, but they start at around $34.99 (about £28).

Disney pins

Disney pins are excellent souvenirs, especially if you’re a regular visitor to Walt Disney World Resort. They’re tiny and don’t take up much room, so they’re easy to take home, and they are a fantastic reminder of your trip. It’s also a great way to start a collection.

Choose from pins featuring your favourite Disney Characters or movies, plus souvenir pins for special events and limited-edition designs. Some of the pins come with dates on them, making them a perfect reminder of your holiday. You can also buy a lanyard to display them on so you can wear your pins when you visit the Disney parks (or even at home!).

Did you know that not only can you buy pins, you can also trade them? During your trip, if you see a Disney Cast Member with pins on their lanyard, you can ask them to trade for one of your pins!

Amy, Content and Social Media Manager at AttractionTickets.com and Disney expert has visited Walt Disney World Resort 6 times and has her own extensive pin badge collection. “I love going through my pins and reliving some of the amazing memories I’ve made during my trips to Orlando! I’ve got over 15 pins now, and my collection grows every time I visit!”

Cost: Costs of pins range hugely depending on the pin. You can expect to pay between $17 (£13.50) for some of the cheaper pins and $40 (£32) for the limited edition ones.

Paint your own Disney Character

For a handmade souvenir, head to The Animation Experience at Conservation Station in Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park. A Disney animator will give you step-by-step instructions on how to draw your own version of a Disney Character inspired by the real-life animals in the park.

This is your chance to get a completely unique Disney souvenir – that you’ve made yourself!

You don’t need a reservation, and the daily schedule is posted on the My Disney Experience app, which you can download once you get to Walt Disney World Resort. Be sure to give yourself enough time to get there – you’ll need to board a train to get to the Conservation Station.

Cost: This is a free experience.

Best souvenir shops at Walt Disney World Resort

There are 274 places to shop at Walt Disney World Resort, so there are plenty of places to pick up your memorabilia during your holiday. We won’t list them all here, but here are some of our favourites:

Disney Character Warehouse at the Orlando outlets

All this souvenir shopping can get very expensive, but we’ve got a top tip to help you grab a bargain on your Disney merch. Disney Character Warehouses are large stores which sell authentic Disney items at significantly discounted prices.

The lines here are often old stock, which is why they’re available to buy at a more affordable price, but often, there’s nothing to date the merchandise, so it’s a great way to save some pennies if you don’t mind this.

Locations:

• International Drive – 4951 International Drive Suite 95, Orlando, FL 32819
• Vineland – 8200 Vineland Avenue Suite 1252, Orlando, FL 32819
• Sunrise – 12801 W. Sunrise Blvd., Sunrise, FL 33323

Cost: Disney merchandise is available with discounts of around 50-80%

Best souvenirs from Universal Orlando Resort

Get behind the scenes of some of the biggest films in history at Universal Studios Florida and take on some of the most epic rides in the world at Universal’s Islands of Adventure. And there’s more: Universal Epic Universe is a brand-new theme park opening in May 2025!

With rides dedicated to the likes of Men in Black, Spider-Man, and Jurassic Park, plus The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, the list of souvenirs available from your favourite films is almost endless.

Summary – best Universal Orlando Resort souvenirs

• Harry Potter souvenirs
• Minions merchandise
• Lanyards
• Collectible pins

Harry Potter souvenirs

There’s so much on offer at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter that it probably deserves its own blog post! Fans of the boy wizard can purchase everything from Hogwarts robes and quidditch brooms to pin badges and stationery. Harry Potter sweets such as Bertie Bott’s Every Flavour Beans make an excellent present for classmates or colleagues.

One of the most exciting souvenirs to get for budding witches and wizards is a wand. Not just for decoration, an interactive wand can cast spells to create incredible experiences in Hogsmeade, Diagon Alley, and Ministry of Magic (opening May 2025). Remember, you don’t choose the wand, the wand chooses you!

Cost: Interactive wands start at around $65 (£52)

Where to find wands:

Minions merchandise

If you’re travelling with children (or even big kids!), a visit to the gift shop outside the Despicable Me Minion Mayhem ride is guaranteed to keep them busy. Here, you’ll find every type of gift imaginable, from minion t-shirts and hats to cuddly minion toys. Choose your favourite from Stuart, Kevin, or Bob.

Cost: Various prices, depending on the souvenir.

Lanyards

Lanyards are low-cost souvenirs that are also practical. As well as choosing a design to represent your favourite park, film, or character, they’re also useful for keeping tickets handy and accessing lockers when boarding rides. You can also use them when you get home for your keys.

Cost: Lanyards start at around $10 (about £8)

Collectible pins

Just like at Walt Disney World Resort, you can get collectible pins from Universal Resort Orlando. You’ll find pins based on characters and films at shops across the park – and you can display them on your lanyard!

You can also trade pins at a cart in Universal Studios Florida near the NBC Media Center for a fun, interactive way of building your pin collection.

Best places to get your Universal Orlando Resort souvenirs

With the theme parks, water parks, resort hotels, and CityWalk, there’s no shortage of places to pick up your Universal Orlando Resort merchandise. Here are some of our favourite spots for shopping in the resort.

Souvenir pick-up and delivery at Universal Orlando Resort

Don’t want to carry your shopping through the parks all day? All guests visiting Universal Orlando Resort can have their buys sent to the front of the park to pick up later in the day. If you’re staying at one of the Universal Orland Resort Hotels, you can have your shopping sent directly to your hotel room.

Top tips for buying souvenirs in Orlando

Here are some of our top tips for buying souvenirs during your trip to Orlando.

• Set children’s expectations: You could end up spending a small fortune on keepsakes in Florida, so make sure you set a budget for shopping and let your children know to stop endless questions!
• Bring a spare suitcase: If you’re going to shop til you drop during your trip, then it’s worth bringing an empty bag with you for all your purchases.
• Be careful when buying fragile items: Before you buy, consider how you’re going to get these home safely. If you can’t work it out, it might be best to leave them in the store.

Image Credits: HarshLight, Rennett Stowe, Robert Linsdell (flickr.com), Wonderworks, Jeremy Thompson (flickr.com)