Pete’s Silly Side Show (Meet Disney Pals as Circus Stars at Magic Kingdom)
Pete’s Silly Side Show is a character meet location at Disney’s Magic Kingdom. You’ll find this character meet at the back of Storybook Circus near the Fantasyland Train Station.
In this article, we’ll walk through the newly reopened Pete’s Silly Side Show and preview the characters available at this location. Additionally, I’ll share how long we waited and a few tips for this meet-and-greet.
There are a total of four character meets at Pete’s Silly Side Show. However, there are only two characters per side.
So you’ll have to wait in two lines to meet all four characters. But we have no complaints about a two-for-one character meet.
Pete’s Silly Side Show is open daily from 10:00 a.m. until 7:00 p.m. However, you may want to confirm the exact hours on the day of your visit in the My Disney Experience app.
When you arrive at Pete’s Silly Side Show, you’ll have to decide which characters you want to meet first. Usually, a wait time is posted for each set of characters.
Minnie Mouse and Daisy meet on the left-hand side of Pete’s Silly Side Show. When I got in line, they had a 20-minute posted wait.
Several fun elements make up portions of the queue.
You’ll walk through a roped-off area before entering the circus tent through Pete’s wide jaws.
A partition splits the middle of the tent, keeping guests on the same side they entered.
Here is a look at the queue and how many guests were ahead of me. It was 5:23 p.m. when I joined the line.
One of the positive aspects of this meet is that guests can see the characters while waiting.
Daisy is the first of the two meets. She is dressed as Daisy Fortuna, a fortune teller in the circus.
She is adorable in her gypsy costume. Unfortunately, I didn’t have my autograph book with me, but all the characters at Pete’s Silly Side Show sign autographs.
Unfortunately, there are no PhotoPass photographers at this location. These hideous machines have been installed and do a terrible job of snapping photos.
Photo boxes are the latest negative trend, and they have multiple issues. First, they’re taking the place of talented jobs in the park. Secondly, we’ve lost the ability to have candid photos taken by photographers while visiting with characters.
If you pay for the Memory Maker, you’re now paying for a machine to take your photo. While this isn’t a big deal for something unique like ride photos, it is a big deal for these moments when you pose to have your photos taken with characters.
It seems like Disney doesn’t consider that when we share family photos with characters on social media or with our friends, they become marketing materials.
I don’t know about you, but seeing photos of my friends in the parks has always made me want to visit Walt Disney World. But, unfortunately, now you’re stuck with the photo box that makes most of us look, well, frumpy.
So you probably won’t share those photos. (The ones you purchased.)
Anyway, Minnie Mouse the Magnifique is next. She’s a fabulous dog trainer in the circus, and precious poodles surround her.
From the pom poms in her hair to the hot pink-trimmed dress, she’s a doll!
I got in the line to meet both Dasiy and Minnie at 5:23 p.m., and it was 5:46 p.m. when I met Daisy. So all total, I waited 23 minutes to meet both characters. That’s not bad.
You’re dumped into Big Top Treats when you leave either side of this meet and greet. To rejoin the line, you’ll want to stay to the left and walk back to Pete’s Silly Side Show.
Pete is still standing outside waiting.
This time we’re headed back on the tent’s right side to meet Goofy and Donald Duck.
They have similar thematic elements on their side of the queue.
Donald meets as Donaldo, the snake charmer. Goofy meets as the Great Goofini. He’s a bit of a stuntman.
So, when I joined this line at 5:50 p.m., it was visually shorter. It took less than 10 minutes to get to the front of the line.
However, the guests ahead of me had a baby that spit up on Goofy and the floor of the meet-and-greet area. So the cast members had to call in a custodial crew.
It was interesting to see how long it took to wipe up the minor accident. When someone finally arrived, the guests behind me joked that they were treating it like a code 2319 from Monsters, Inc.
In all seriousness, it took three cast members, half a bottle of cleaner, and approximately ten towels to clean up the area, which was a five-inch parameter at the most. Everyone who had decided to stick around for the wait was laughing.
We met Goofy nearly 30 minutes later at 6:16 p.m.
Of course, Goofy had no fault in the matter. He was rip-roaring to get back out and greet guests.
Donald was patiently waiting to meet everyone too.
He’s always up to pose for the camera.
Had things gone smoothly, we would have waited less than 35 minutes to meet all four characters. However, since this location hasn’t been open long, it’s hard to say the best time to meet these characters.
Previously, I found the sweet spot between 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. when crowds dwindle in this area. Additionally, if you find yourself looping the Walt Disney World Railroad, this is a fun spot to hop off the train and meet the characters.
For more character meets, we have an entire list of locations for all the parks:
Or you may enjoy these other character guides:
- Magic Kingdom Character Meet and Greets
- Character Meets at Hollywood Studios
- List of Characters that Meet at Epcot
- Meet Mickey and Minnie at Adventurer’s Outpost
In the Comments
What do you think about the character meets at Pete’s Silly Side Show? Do you have a particular character you want to meet?
