Disney Outlet Report: It’s a Post-Christmas Miracle!

After avoiding the Orlando Premium Outlets during the busy holiday season, we’re back with our first 2020 Character Warehouse Outlet Report. This features merchandise photos and commentary from the Walt Disney World clearance center near Disney Springs.

It’s a… miracle. It’s really, a sort of a miracle because it happens every year post-Christmas at the Disney Character Warehouse Outlet. And if you waste that miracle, you’re gonna burn for it, I know what I am talking about. You have to do something. You have to take a chance. You do have to get involved. You have to dig in the bins of Minnie Mouse ear headbands, dig through the DCL Alaska merch, and scrounge the shelves of holiday sweaters.

Our last outlet report was a doozy, in some “so bad, it’s good ways.” In my view, those are the best type of visits to the Disney Character Warehouse Outlet. Not only because they make for more entertaining photo reports, but because I’m less tempted to buy anything on those visits. This report is the polar opposite, with barely any humor (not that my jokes are funny, anyway) but with more usefulness in terms of things you might actually want to buy…

Before we get going, let’s start with the usual caveats. First, some items sell out in hours or days, never to come back in stock. Other things languish on shelves at Character Warehouse for months.

I swear some of these shirts have been here for over a year. As such, don’t get your heart set on buying anything you see here–it may already be gone.

Second, crowds are always something to consider when it comes to the Orlando Premium Outlets. We highly recommend going later in the day–ideally the evening. It’s been at least 4 months since we’ve gone before 8 pm, and that’s because of the line to enter the store.

While we haven’t seen this firsthand in a while, you should check out our “Disney’s Longest Line in Florida is at Character Warehouse!” post if you “want” to be scared out of visiting in the morning or midday. (You won’t encounter the pirates at night.)

If you do opt to go, there are two Disney Character Warehouse Outlet stores in the Orlando area. One is on Vineland, somewhat near Disney Springs. The other is on I-Drive, closer to Universal. We always do the Vineland location because it’s more convenient and parking is less of a hassle. As always, we recommend reading our How to Shop the Outlet Stores for Discount Walt Disney World Merchandise guide for more background info on these stores.

Now for a look at some of the interesting merchandise at the Vineland Disney Character Warehouse Outlet store as of mid-January 2020…

Several racks of the store are full of Christmas merchandise, which is no surprise since the holiday season just ended at Walt Disney World.

I’d expect more Christmas arrivals over the next couple of weeks, as there were discounted holiday items in the park gift shops up until this week.

I really like this ugly Christmas sweater, but didn’t end up purchasing it because the neck is too wide.

I’m guessing it’s actually a women’s sweater, but I don’t think that really matters. The ugly style is universal.

I have no clue why these, Tsum Tsums, or Funko figures are popular, but everyone else seems to love them. Different strokes for different folks.

Personally, I’m still holding out hope that the Main Street Christmas Tree Farm shirts will make their way to the outlet. That was the one thing this Christmas that I really liked.

Christmas Dooney & Bourke handbags have also made their way to the outlet.

Although that’s not true with this design, it’s not uncommon for some Dooney bags to make it to the outlet while they’re still being sold at full price in the parks. Same goes for those really expensive dresses.

Here’s some 50th Anniversary Haunted Mansion stuff from Disneyland.

After the special event there ended, this was sold at Memento Mori in Magic Kingdom. Now it’s being sold at the outlet. So much for scarcity driving demand on Disney merchandise.

There were a few different varieties of LoungeFly bags, including a couple that were for sale last time we were at the outlet in November. I’m slightly surprised there’s still a purchase limit on these, as they don’t seem as popular as they used to be.

The above design is fine, but the zipper looks to me like it’s the Evil Queen’s mouth. I suspect that’s something you can’t unsee once you notice it.

I don’t have a ton of nostalgia for 80s/90s fashion and think most of it should stay in those decades.

However, I like both of these deigns. They’re fun, colorful, and not too over the top. Not my style, but I still like them.

Several bins and shelves had the Minnie Mouse ear headbands.

Above are the various nations from World Showcase, plus one that I think was modeled after a wall in Epcot.

Plenty of Halloween merchandise is still around, too.

In addition to these plush sets, there are headless horseman cups, light-up ears, tons of shirts, and a bunch of weird Nightmare Before Christmas stuff.

My favorite thing is this vest. I’m not sure who would actually wear it by choice (it looks almost like a Cast Member costume), but points to the designer for effort. It’s fun.

Sadly, the Palo uniform for sale last time is now gone, defying all odds. Sadly, we didn’t have a chance to purchase ours, really throwing a monkey wrench into our big heist, Codename: Colossal Cheese Caper.

There’s surprisingly little Pandora – World of Avatar merchandise and the 20th Anniversary items are finally all gone, so Disney is filling the void with the other main Animal Kingdom merchandise no one wants: Rivers of Light stuff.

The mug is actually tastefully designed and low-key…but I really don’t have any desire to own Rivers of Light merchandise.

Lots of good Disney Cruise Line Alaska merchandise remains on the shelves.

This stuff will probably be around for a while, so if you took this cruise and are visiting Walt Disney World in the next couple months, it’s definitely worth checking out the outlets.

A small selection of various Disney things made by Pandora.

That wraps up this month’s Disney Character Warehouse Outlet Photo Report. We should note that there are actually numerous other solid items that we didn’t have the time or space to cover here. Normally, over half of inventory at the outlets is just weird stuff that no one wants. Other items are a mix of niche products, seasonal merchandise, and overstock on popular high-margin items like the Minnie Ear headbands. This time, we saw a lot of good, mainstream shirts, hats, bags, and coffee cups in addition to the above. It seems like a pretty good time to visit if you’re looking for a wide variety of decent or better stuff!

Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!

YOUR THOUGHTS

What do you think of the merchandise in this outlet report? Will you be purchasing your own Palo uniform? What about the Halloween items? Thinking about moving to Alaska just so you can buy all of this Alaska DCL merchandise and rep your new home state? Have you visited the outlet recently? Find anything good, or did you think it was a frustrating waste of time? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!