Character hugs are back at Disney World! See the surprising wait times

Yay for hugs and autographs again! People have been waiting literal years for non-distanced meets to return, and the wait times prove it!

Character Meets

I (Monica) know I am not alone in saying that when Disney announced the many changes coming to the parks upon reopening I was shocked. I remember sitting there listening to the conference with Orange County contemplating just how different our experience in the parks would be.

Everything changed. Temperature screenings, masks, parades, park passes, fireworks, and characters. Even something like dining plans which felt like it had nothing to do with a pandemic was stripped from us. It was truly a shock to get used to.

With the return of normal character meets today, April 18, it feels we have jumped a major hurdle. Yay for Mickey hugs!

Wait Times

When indoor meets returned last November, Guests were still not thrilled with the mask requirements and social distancing. You can usually meet Mickey at Town Square or the princesses at Fairytale Hall within 5 minutes of getting in line.

However, now that masks and social distancing are BOTH gone, boy the wait times have jumped up!

At just after 9:00 am, here are the following meets and wait times:

• Olaf: 20 minutes
• Sulley: 30 minutes
• Mickey and Minnie at Red Carpet Dreams: 45 minutes

• Tiana and Rapunzel: 5 minutes
• Cinderella and Elena: 15 minutes
• Mickey at Town Square: 30 minutes

Ok so those weren’t too bad! Just an hour and a half later, here’s a look at 10:30 am:

• Olaf: 25 minutes
• Sulley: 30 minutes
• Mickey and Minnie at Red Carpet Dreams: 40 minutes

• Tiana and Rapunzel: 50 minutes
• Cinderella and Elena: 60 minutes
• Mickey at Town Square: 50 minutes

And finally, here are the wait times at noon:

• Olaf: 20 minutes
• Sulley: 15 minutes
• Mickey and Minnie at Red Carpet Dreams: 80 minutes

• Tiana and Rapunzel: 40 minutes
• Cinderella and Elena: 40 minutes
• Mickey at Town Square: 45 minutes

I’m a bit surprised wait times are lower than I was expecting! What do you think of these wait times? Did you think they would be higher or lower? Let us know in the comments below and on Facebook.