Hi there, Cassy! Thanks for returning to the Disney Parks Moms Panel with your question.
Meeting characters at the Disneyland Resort is simply magical. Many characters freely roam around different areas of the park and it's like you just stepped in to their neighborhood. On my family's last visit, we discovered Peter Pan sitting and watching folks go 'round on Dumbo the Flying Elephant. Most people didn't even know he was there! As we were walking up to him, he quickly noticed that my daughter was dressed as Tinker Bell so he rushed over to greet her. Then, out of nowhere, Captain Hook appeared and Peter and my daughter took turns making silly faces at him. It was such a fun and unique experience!
I'm not aware of a yearly character calendar, but I do have some tips to help you locate some characters you perhaps haven't met yet. First, use the
Disneyland app to see where and when a large variety of characters are meeting that day. Recently, I noticed Kristoff, Pocahontas, a few other unique characters appear on the app on certain days. Another tip is to try to visit during special events like
Lunar New Year or
Halloween Time. Mulan and Princess Elena were available to meet earlier this year and the villains come out to play at Halloween Time. You can also book a character dining meal. The
Minnie and Friends – Breakfast in the Park at the Plaza Inn has an abundance of characters to meet and is my absolute favorite character dining experience.
I hope you get to meet a handful of new friends during your next visit. See ya real soon!
-Linda M.