Fiction Fridays: Hidden Mickeys

Do you struggle to keep your little ones entertained during those long waits for their favorite ride at Disney World? When my fiance and I were at the Magic Kingdom on Monday, we overheard a girl say to her father “this place is boring” (in her defense, we had been waiting in line for Splash Mountain for about 45 minutes at that point). How heartbreaking though, right? There is one secret to keep line waiting interesting and your kids occupied all day long while walking around the magical world of Disney. Hidden Mickeys!

All across Disney World, there are various Mickey outlines hidden in the decor and landscape. It’s difficult to say exactly what form it will come in, but typically it is the outline of Mickey’s head. A few examples that my fiance and I found throughout our vacation include rope (both in Frontiersville and on the Ferry) that is wrapped to look like a Mickey head (aka 3 large circles), and a trash can that had a circular whole with two circular recycling signs that looked like ears.

There are a reported 1000 Hidden Mickeys throughout Disney World, and more that are possibly unfound. They were placed on location by either Disney cast members or engineers. The search for these hidden Mickeys is fun for kids of all ages, and not necessarily easy! But it’s a great way to spend your “dead” time in line.

I am talking about this phenomenon in Fiction Fridays, because the whole idea was made well known to the public through Steven Barrett’s book Hidden Mickeys: A Field Guide to Walt Disney World’s Best Kept Secrets.  Not only does Barrett explain the history of Hidden Mickeys and certain criteria to distinguish a Hidden Mickey from an Obvious Mickey, he lists various Hidden Mickeys, giving you clues on where to find them. Some may call this cheating, but I call it helpful hints. Walt Disney World is ginormous, and its nice to have a few hints on where to start. It’s also almost like having an answer key, so you can point out certain Mickeys to your kids when they get restless from not finding any.

Definitely worth the buy. If not for a fun game, than for an added layer of interest to your family’s vacation :)