Giving loved ones the gift of a trip to a Disney park is truly a marvelous experience. Not only do you get to enjoy the trip with them (we hope), but you get the joy of their reaction at receiving new of the trip. Whether the trip is to Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World or one of the other Disney parks around the world, we have creative ways to give the gift of a Disney trip. Keep reading to find one that works for you.
12 Fun Ways to Reveal The Gift of a Disney Trip
Some of these ideas use items you may already have at home while others combine the Disney trip reveal with physical gifts.
For some suggestions, we have provided links to Amazon product pages. We receive a small commission from Amazon for referring you with those product links, but the price you pay does not change. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
Let’s get to the magic!
Build the Excitement with Legos
Choose one the many excellent Lego sets available. You can go with a Disney, Pixar, Marvel or Star Wars theme or something else you love. Now, write or tape a note on the last page of the building instructions. Once your recipient accomplishes the task of building their new toy, they will be rewarded with an awesome surprise! Here is a sweet Lego set featuring Mickey, Minnie and Pluto on vacation marked for builders four and older.
Fun For Frozen Fans
Is your loved one a Frozen fan? Follow Elsa and Anna’s lead from Frozen Fever, and create a string trail to the big surprise. Here is how you do it.
Hide a card, map or note proclaiming the gift of a Disney vacation. Tape the end of a ball of yarn or long piece of string to the card. Now unravel that ball or yarn as you wander and weave all over your home. Take it around and under tables, through doors and over footstools. All the while, you should be leaving a string trail. Give empty end of the yarn to your giftee.
Just like Anna in Frozen Fever, your lucky recipient will need to follow the yarn trail all the way to the wonderful surprise gift!
A Swaddled Gift
Attaching a little note about your trip to a Disney plush is a good choice. But, make a good choice into an awesome one by tucking the gift note into a plush toy with a built in pocket. Check-out this adorable Grogu stuffie with a swaddle blanket. You can swaddle up the note about your trip with “Baby Yoda” himself. Not a Star Wars fan? You can find other swaddled characters at that same link, like Simba or the big cheese himself.
Why is Joy So Happy?
For another fun variation on a plush toy reveal, and one that will work for non-readers, simply give this plush Joy as a gift. Once the gift has been opened ask, “Why do you think Joy looks so happy?” Then, answer your own question: “Because, we are going to Disneyland!”
A Magic Reveal
Purchase a MagicBand+ and wrap it up. These little wristbands attach to your tickets and work at park turnstiles and Lighting Lane touch points, plus they even offer enhanced experiences at places throughout the parks. Your giftee will be stunned when what looks like a cute watch turns out to be the key to their awesome vacation. You can find out more about MagicBand+ on the Disneyland website. Good things really do coming in small packages!
Or Time for the Magic of a Disney Gift Trip
Would you rather give the gift of a watch? Wrap one up with a note that says “Time for Magic! We are going to Disneyland!” You could also try “Countdown to Adventure!” or whatever most fits your recipient. Extra points if the watch is Disney themed, like this Cars one. Kachow!
Small Stocking with a Big Surprise
This idea is specific to Christmas… unless you really want to surprise someone by hanging up stocking in June. We have a list of great stocking stuffer ideas in this post. You can attach a little note to any one of those mini gifts proclaiming the mega upcoming trip. Pick something practical to use on the trip, like sunglasses, or something fun and charming, like some Stitch slime; the recipient is sure to love what they find hanging from the mantle.
Solve the Puzzle of a Disney Trip Gift
Several online photo printing services like Snapfish or Shutterfly will custom print photo puzzles for you. Create a puzzle revealing your Disney trip and task your recipient with solving the puzzle to get the message.
Would you prefer to go the low-tech route? Write your message on a piece of lightweight cardboard and cut the pieces yourself with a pair of scissors. You can also buy puzzle blanks like this one (we have not tried this particular product, but we have used ones like it).
Open the Puzzle
You can find some pretty awesome looking puzzle boxes on Amazon. We have only tried some from our local store, so we cannot speak to the quality of any online one in particular, but we do think they are a tremendous way to reveal a surprise. Hide a little note inside something like this, and your giftee could love the process of revealing the surprise almost (but not quite) as much as the surprise itself.
A Suitcase Full of Clues for a Disney Gift Trip
If you like the idea of turning your recipient into a detective, you can also fill a suitcase or travel backpack with things to use on a Disney vacation (here are some ideas). Ask your loved one to look over the items and decide what they all have in common. Answer: “You will use them all in Disneyland!” Think you might need to add some big hints? Be sure to toss in a character hat or Disney tee.
A Happily Ever After
There are so very many precious Little Golden Books with Disney stories. Find one that speaks to your giftee and add a very special message to the last page. A trip to Disneyland Resort is sure to be a breathtaking “Happily Ever After.” For books with a specific Disneyland theme, try the classic Little Man of Disneyland or Santa Stops at Disneyland or choose from so many more.
If you would prefer something weighty for an older reader, check-out The Imagineering Story by Leslie Iwerks or Ink & Paint: The Women of Walt Disney’s Animation by Mindy Johnson.
We’re Going to Disneyland!
We hope you enjoyed these 11 creative ideas for revealing a trip to Disneyland as a gift. We also think you cannot go wrong with number 12: look your recipients in the eyes and tell them the big news. Creative surprise are a blast, but there is also something magic about just connecting face to face over the joy for a Disney vacation.
Thanks for reading our twelve creative ideas for revealing the gift of a Disney trip.
We hope you found an idea that worked for you. For other gift ideas, be sure to check-out this clickable list and our stocking stuffer guide. As you are planning your big trip, we suggest starting with our Step-by-Step Disneyland Prep and perusing other articles on Mouse Brief. Most of all, we encourage you to sign-up for our free newsletter and get future articles right in your inbox: just subscribe below.