If you are heading to Southern California soon to visit a certain “Mouse”, you’ll want to pay attention. Most people don’t realize that you don’t have to enter one of the Disney Parks in order to meet him. Mickey Mouse can be found outside the parks!
Where?
You can find him at Surf’s Up! Breakfast with Mickey and Friends located within Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel.
You’ll want to make an advanced dining reservation (ADR in Disney lingo) to make sure and secure your spot, though you can walk-up and take a chance on availability.
Surf’s Up! Breakfast with Mickey and Friends is one of just a handful of character breakfasts located on Disney property. It is conveniently located at Disney’s Paradise Pier Hotel on the ground floor. You can find this resort located near the end of Downtown Disney, easily accessible to both theme park entrances – though probably a 20 minute walk.
This hotel is the least expensive of the Disney hotels on property in California. The other two hotels – Grand Californian and of course, the Disneyland Hotel. The theming is just what you’d expect in Southern California and you can even spy the theming on the roof – waves!
Just before school started this past fall, we found ourselves in California once again. Since we always make sure to take at least one day to enjoy non-park Disney fun, we decided to surprise someone with a character breakfast.
TIP: Character meals save you time at the parks. You can have a wonderful meal and get all the photos and autographs of favorite characters….no need to stand in all those lines while at Disneyland. Saves time! Great event to do on arrival day to get everyone in the magical mood!
We are big on surprises in our family. Someone had no clue what we were up to UNTIL she spotted this sign.
Look at the smile! Priceless!
Which characters will you find at Surfs Up! Breakfast with Mickey and Friends?
Well, Mickey Mouse of course!
While the friends are subject to change, on the day we attended we met Mickey, Minnie, Daisy, Pluto and Stitch.
Each Disney character breakfast I’ve attended in California does it right – they simply have a character “meet & greet” at the very front of the restaurant with the main character. You take all your photos BEFORE you sit down. There is a great backdrop, perfect for photos. No worries though, as the other characters will come directly to your table – no need to chase them down in the restaurant (like I’ve seen parents do) – a definite no-no!
The character meal is an all you can eat buffet. It allows you the freedom to stay as long as you want and get all those character meet & greets!
The buffet includes an omelet station, delicious flatbreads, Mickey waffles, banana-caramel French toast, a parfait station, smoothies, beef chilaquiles with salsa verde and queso fresco, smoked salmon and much, much more! It’s definitely got some California flair to it.
Pricing (as of August 2013):
Adults (ages 10+) – $31.99
Children (ages 3-9) – $16.99
Infant (0-2) – FREE
Have you ever attended one of Disney’s character meals? What did you think?
You may be interested in these other Disneyland/California Adventure Trip Reports Below: (Disney World, Florida, posts will be in my Travel Tab above):
I think I need a vacation! On that note, I really can’t wait for E to be old enough to take to Disney.
Character breakfasts are my very favorite! Pinning to my Disney Boards