Pal Mickey: Our Personal Disney World Tour Guide!

Special Addition Anniversary Pal Mickey

Some of you may be wondering why a grown woman is carrying around a plush Mickey Mouse at Disney World. While I gave up having a security blanket years ago (Mouse Blanket still sleeps at the foot of my bed FYI, no shame!), I do insist on having my Pal Mickey with me every time I make a visit to Disney World. This is because Pal Mickey is not just your average stuffed toy, he's a talking, joking, GPS enabled tour guide that is programmed to say over 700 phrases and interacts with more than 400 infrared sensors in the parks, tells you where in the park you are, reminds you of parade times, and lets you know if costumed characters are nearby!

When I first visited Disney World in 2008 for my honeymoon and birthday, I had made my mind up months in advance that I had to have a Pal Mickey. I researched them on the Disney website and looked a few up on eBay but in the end decided that I wanted a brand new one from the park, and so it was agreed that we would pick one up for my birthday. We started our search for Pal Mickey the minute we walked through the gates of Magic Kingdom, it was my absolute first priority, but even after a thorough turning over of the Emporium and the 20,000 square foot World of Disney at DTD, there were no Pal Mickey's to be found. There were a few displays mentioning it's existence, but not a single toy could be found in any park or store that we visited.

I was so disappointed.

After a couple of days we were avoiding the parade crowds and making one last trip through the Emporium when I looked way up to the top of one of the shelves that was holding various stuffed Mickey's dressed in sorcerer outfits, and that's when I spotted him.

He loves to talk about Spaceship Earth!

A Sorcerer Mickey sitting comfortably in his dusty bright yellow Pal Mickey box.

I immediately flagged down the first Cast Member I could see and begged them to take him down to see if he worked. At first they told me no because he was just a display item, but I explained that we had been looking for them at every store we'd visited and that it was my only true wish for my birthday, so Disney Cast Members being as they are, got him down for me. They told me that there was a good chance he wouldn't work, but when I squeezed his tummy I got an immediate "Hahaha oh gosh!" and I was elated!

Pal Mickey in Norway

We made sure the rest of his buttons worked and took him to the counter to purchase. It was then that they informed us Pal Mickey had been discontinued and the reason we couldn't find any was because they had sold out about a month before. They said they hadn't noticed the one I spotted on the top shelf and if they had seen him he would have been shipped back to the parent company. They said it was likely that I got the very last Pal Mickey in existence!

Ever since, Pal Mickey has accompanied us on every Disney trip. As we walk through the gates it's always exciting to hear "Oh boy! We're going to have a great day at Magic Kingdom!"  or hear about how he got gold dust in his nose as we walk through the exit for Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.

Enjoying some quick service chocolate cake

Pal Mickey tells us interesting facts about each animal at Animal Kingdom park, gives us interesting facts about each country in Epcot, and tells us just how tall he would have to be to wear the hat in Hollywood Studios (he gets scared when you bring him around the Tower of Terror, and may constantly remind you that he's not tall enough to ride it!)

If you can pick him up on eBay he's a great find, and our Disney vacations wouldn't be complete without him. He's usually the star of my vacation photos and it's my hope that he will last for years to come!