It’s no secret that I love Disney! While I enjoy sharing new additions to my Disney collection, I also own a handful of vintage Disney items from the 80’s and 90’s. Many of these are from childhood Disney World vacations or McDonald’s Happy Meals. I thought it would be fun to share these items with y’all and relive some of my childhood Disney memories. If you’re a fellow 80’s/90’s kid, then my collection of vintage Disney merchandise will make you especially nostalgic!
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Vintage Disney World Memorabilia
Many of my fondest childhood memories are from family vacations to Walt Disney World during the 90’s. I’m thankful that I still have some vintage Disney World memorabilia as tangible reminders of these trips that fostered my lifelong love of all things Disney! Here are my vintage Disney World items:
1989 Mickey Mouse Plush
I got this plush Mickey Mouse during my first trip to Disney World. His shorts are red fur and his shoes are yellow fur. This is quite different from today’s Disney plushies that wear actual clothes.
1992 Perdita Plush
My most-loved vintage Disney toy is definitely this plush Perdita I got during a summer 1992 trip to Disney World. The 30th anniversary of 101 Dalmatians was in 1991, and Disney released it from the animated movie vault on VHS tape. I became obsessed with the movie, which is ironic considering I’m not a dog person today! So when we took this specific trip during 1992, Disney World had a lot of 101 Dalmatians merchandise in the wake of the 30th anniversary. Pretty much all the souvenirs I got that trip were 101 Dalmatians related.
Anyways, I remember seeing this plush Perdita in gift shops throughout that trip, and telling my parents I wanted her. My parents didn’t like to lug souvenirs around the Parks, so we would typically set aside time to go souvenir shopping at the Disney Village Marketplace (in area that is now Disney Springs) towards the end of the trip. I was so excited when the time came for us to buy my Perdita! When I first got her, she had bright white fur with black spots, a blue collar, and license that said “Perdita.” Over the years Perdy’s fur became more grey with black spots, and her collar and license became so worn that they fell off. However, much of her charm is in her well-loved status. I will never get rid of her!
1993 Minnie Mouse Plush
It became a tradition for me to pick out a stuffed animal as one of my souvenirs during most of my childhood Disney trips. In summer of 1993 I chose this Minnie Mouse plush. Her shape is very similar to the Mickey plush I got on my first trip, and her shoes are also yellow fur. However, she is wearing an actual dress!
Funny story: This Minnie Mouse used to have white bloomers underneath her dress. But at some point, my younger brother decided to set Minnie Mouse on top of a lightbulb while a lamp was on. Luckily she didn’t catch on fire, but she did begin to smell smoky. After taking her off the lamp, her bloomers had a brown spot on them, which wasn’t becoming. We removed the bloomers to try to clean them. But then we couldn’t get them back on because of how big her feet are. So now she looks a bit scandalous since she’s wearing a dress that doesn’t completely cover her bottom, with nothing on underneath.
Vintage Walt Disney World Pictorial Souvenir
So, I’m honestly not sure what year this Disney World Pictorial Souvenir is from, because I don’t remember buying it. It’s either from my first trip in 1989, or from one of my parents’ Disney trips before I was born. But my parents gave it to me last fall when they were going through things in their house, so I have it at my apartment now.
Disney World 25th Anniversary Pressed Quarter
Pressed coins are an inexpensive Disney World souvenir that doesn’t take up much space in your luggage. Although they are still available at Disney World, I didn’t seek them out on more recent trips. However, I was super into them during my 90’s childhood Disney vacations. This Disney World 25th Anniversary pressed quarter is from a 1996 Disney World trip.
Disney World 25th Anniversary T-Shirt
Do any of my fellow 90’s kids remember the pink castle decorated with candy accents to celebrate Disney World’s 25th Anniversary in 1996? I know a lot of people weren’t fans of it. Although I think the more subdued castle redecoration for this year’s Disney World 50th Anniversary is better, I still thought the bright pink candy castle from 1996 was cool.
During that same trip I got a commemorative Disney World 25th Anniversary Shirt. The back of the shirt has the traditional castle and old school Walt Disney World logo and says, “That Was Then.” Then the front has the 25th Anniversary pink castle with newer Disney World logo (that’s still the current logo today) and says, “This Is Now.” I’m glad I still have this vintage Disney shirt. It’s hard to believe Disney World is now twice as old and is celebrating their 50th Anniversary this year. I plan to write another blog post later this year with some of my favorite Disney World memories in honor of the 50th Anniversary.
Minnie Mouse Glass with Handle
We bought this Minnie Mouse glass in Fulton’s General Store at Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside Resort (back when it was called Dixie Landings). It’s one of the items my parents gave me when they were going through things in their house this past fall.
Figment Magnet
I have this Figment magnet from the 90’s on my fridge! Even as a kid, I loved Epcot, and have always liked Figment and Journey into Imagination.
Vintage Disney World Autograph Book
I got this character autograph book at Disney World during one of my childhood trips in the 90’s. I even took it on my most recent trip in 2015 and had characters I didn’t meet as a child sign it-specifically Duffy the Disney Bear, Marie, and Daisy.
Souvenir Soft Drink Cup
This souvenir soft drink cup from Disney World is another gem my parents found when they were doing some cleaning last fall. I’m not sure if it is from our 1989 trip or one of our early 90’s trip. I originally shared this in my October 2020 Favorites post, but definitely felt like it was worth mentioning again here.
Vintage Disney Toys from McDonald’s Happy Meals
In addition to my Disney World souvenirs from the 80’s and 90’s, I also still have some vintage Disney McDonald’s Happy Meal Toys. I have fond memories of getting Happy Meals and trying to collect all the toys as a kid, and the Disney themed toys always got me extra excited! (I’ve you’ve been reading the blog or following me on Instagram for the past several months, then you know I have recently enjoyed collecting recent McDonald’s Disney Happy Meal Toys.)
Mickey & Friends Epcot Adventure Happy Meal Toys
McDonald’s featured Mickey & friends toys dressed up in costumes representing the Epcot World Showcase countries in 1993 or 1994. I can’t remember the exact year, and I’ve seen both years on eBay listings. This was one of the promotions where I really wanted to collect them all, and I was able to get at least five of the eight total toys. I still have Mickey from the American Adventure, Minnie from Japan, Daisy from Germany, Chip from China, and Pluto from France. There was also a Dale from Morocco, Goofy from Norway, and Donald from Mexico. I really thought I remembered getting the Donald from Mexico, but I might be mistaken.
You can still get these Mickey & Friends Epcot Adventure toys from eBay! Some of the listings are even new in package!
101 Dalmatians
McDonald’s had multiple 101 Dalmatians Happy Meal Toy collections during the 90’s. My memory is fuzzy on the exact years of these particular 101 Dalmatians toys I have, but I know they were at some point in the 90’s. The first picture was part of a collection of different train cars that connected together. Not all of the toys in this line were 101 Dalmatians themed, so I’m glad I got this particular one. Then I believe the two Dalmatian puppy figurines in the second picture coincided with the release of the live action 101 Dalmatians movie. I think the puppy with the Mickey ears is so cute! As I mentioned earlier, I loved 101 Dalmatians as I kid, so I got really excited about these sets, and the Happy Meal toys I got were ones I wanted to hold on to.
Vintage Disney Toys from Burger King Kid’s Meal
Burger King also had their fair share of Disney toys in Kid’s Meals during the 90’s! In fact, my brother and I got so into collecting some of these that we would make our mom call different Burger Kings in town to see what toy they had. We definitely drove all the way across town to a Burger King at least once because they had a Disney Kid’s Meal toy we wanted! Thanks Mom!
The Lion King Burger King Kid’s Meal Toys
Burger King released a line of Lion King toys in their Kid’s Meal to coincide with the release of the animated movie in 1994. Lala, Rafiki, and Pumba/Timon are the only three toys that I have with me at my place, but I know I also had Simba and Mufasa at some point. Burger also did a different Kid’s Meal toy promotion with Lion King finger puppets. We definitely got at least a few of these, but I’m not quite sure where they are. If we still have them, they are in my parents’ attic somewhere
Pocahontas Burger King Kid’s Meal Toys
Burger King also had Pocahontas Kid’s Meal toys to celebrate the release of the movie in 1995. The only Burger King Pocahontas toy I have with me is Flit. I know we had at least several others at some point. However, we were never able to get Meeko the raccoon, despite my mom calling multiple Burger Kings. I still vividly remember being so bummed, haha!
Vintage Disney World Glass from McDonald’s
McDonald’s also had drinking glasses to commemorate Disney World’s 25th Anniversary. You would purchase these separately from your food. My parents found the Hollywood Studios one at their place back in the fall and gave it to me. McDonald’s would have marketed this as the “Disney-MGM Studios” glass back in 1996/1997. There were also designs for Epcot and the Magic Kingdom. I’m pretty sure we had the Epcot one as well. Maybe it will turn up at my parents’ house eventually!
Fun Throwback with Vintage Disney Items
Hope you enjoyed coming along for this trip into Disney nostalgia with a glimpse into my collection of vintage Disney items. These are all items I have with me at my apartment. There’s potentially more throwback Disney memorabilia from the 80’s and 90’s in my parents’ attic.
Do you have any favorite Disney items from the 80’s and 90’s that you still own? PS. I realize that the 80’s and 90’s aren’t vintage in quite the same sense as earlier decades, but I think they are far enough in the past to now be considered vintage. Makes me feel old-haha!
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-xoxo Liz
