So if you have been to one of the Disney Parks, you may have noticed the pins that all the cast members are wearing. You can get these pins at a wide array of shops in the parks and there are even kiosks dedicated to the pins. Heck, you can even trade the pins at these kiosks and with the cast members. Sounds like fun to get a few, right?
I am sorry to say that this was not the case for my wife and I. We had heard about Pin Trading from another couple we knew and thought we would at least look into it when we took our honeymoon to Disney World. This had been a big mistake on our end as we had developed a slight addiction to the pins. Normal people would have purchased of their favorite ride, park, or character, but we ended up going to a few kiosks and cast members to trade and buy more pins. Let’s just say we spent between $300 to $500 on pins alone during our 7 day trip.
Now before you are too quick to judge, some of those pins can get pretty pricey. We started off with the cheapest pins we could find to see what the hype was all about. I believe we had gotten a mystery 2-pin pack that was of the current set available, which was a set of multi-colored mickey heads, so we both could have one. The pins were neat, but there was nothing special about them and we went on our way. I believe we had bought a few other pins that day that were themed on the park we went to and some of the rides as well.
The next day, we decided to give the pin trading a try and we got 2 more mystery packs. We didn’t have any of those colored Mickey pins so we had to get 2 more and finally got some duplicates to trade. With the pins in my fanny pack (dorky, but seriously useful in the parks) we headed off to another park. Since our friends were avid pin traders, they had told us what to look for when we are searching to trade pins.
It was not hard to find a cast member wearing a lanyard with about 8 pins on it. They are scattered all over the parks and some even wear a little binder-like bag with a few more pins on it. We were quick to learn the rules of pin trading as the cast members we very nice about it. Pretty much the only rule is that you cannot trade them a pin they already have (Kiosks and some stores are exempt from this rule). I forgot what we had traded for, but after we traded our original duplicates we were hooked.
We came up with a system that we would buy a couple of the mystery 2-pin packs and trade them since they were the cheapest you could buy, which they were still around $10-$15 a pack. With a new load of duplicates, we headed off again finding our favorite characters and trying to complete random sets. In our last couple days we had found the big Disney Pin Trading kiosk where we waited in line just to trade some pins on a board.
If we were not told about the pin trading, we would not have noticed the boards scattered around the parks either. Let’s just say we made at least 3 stops to the big Disney Pin Trading kiosk. It is funny though. With all of the mystery packs we had bought we had not completed the Mickey head set. It was not until a few years later when we had bought a random pack of 100 off of eBay that we finally finished the set.
Now, sitting at home is a special organizing bag of at least 200 pins and it is still growing thanks to the same friends who introduced us to the pins. I know it is not for everyone, but I would recommend giving it a shot if you visit the parks. We are prepared when my family goes to Disney World again as we have a sandwich baggy full of pins we want to trade. It’s an addiction, but one I am glad to have.
Why am I glad to have an addiction to Disney Pins? Let me put it simply. My wife and I love Disney and we are going to pass that love to our kids. Disney has let us keep in touch with some of our friends and also meet new friends. We had recently learned that there are many Disney communities that are formed specifically for Disney Pin Trading. There is one near us in the Twin Cities that we are excited to go to and meet some more new Disney enthusiasts.
Are you a Disney Pin enthusiast? Lets talk. Leave a comment below.
