Let’s face it, souvenirs can be expensive. Not just in Disney World, but anywhere you go. There are some less expensive souvenirs you can plan for though. It’s becoming a pretty popular thing to do while in the parks and around the resorts. Have you seen the pressed penny machines in Disney World?
This is something we started doing a few trips ago, when our daughter was two. She would get a little restless if we were spending a lot of time in a store and my husband noticed a lot of these machines around. So when she would start to get bored, he would take her over to the closest machine and let her pick out a design for the penny. It was a hit! We ended up buying a penny book for her when we got back from the trip and she wanted to start saving quarters and pennies for the next trip.
If you haven’t noticed the pressed penny machines yet, look for them during your next trip to Disney World. They are all over the place and they each have 3 or 4 designs to choose from. The next trip, after we found out about the machines, we came prepared. Our daughter had saved up throughout the year and had plenty of quarters and pennies to use. We also picked up a Tinker Bell penny book in Epcot and she loved placing each penny in the book.
It’s such a fun way to buy souvenirs. It kind of turned into a scavenger hunt. Any time we went into a shop, a resort hotel, or a different area of a park we were on the lookout for these machines. By the end of the trip, all of the kids were excited about collecting the pennies.
Some of them will have the name of the park where the machine is located and others will have the section where they are located. For instance, one of the pennies says “Epcot” and another says “Germany.” She also has one that says “The Land,” because the machine was located in ‘The Land” building in Epcot.
There are so many machines located all over Disney World property that you can keep the pressed penny souvenir tradition going for years. Plus, I’m sure new machines get added from time to time. There is a website you can visit to see where machines are located. We found it on one of the machines and it’s a pretty helpful website, http://ctmgroupinc.com/disney/.
Here are the different maps they have:
When you click on a location on the map, it will show you the designs that are available. Keep in mind that there are some changes going on in Disney World right now, especially at Hollywood Studios. So all the pennies may not be available, because sections that are now closed (as of today 4/3/2016) are still on the map.
You will notice two colors on the map. If the color of the location is copper then it is a pressed penny machine, if the color is silver then it is a pressed quarter machine. We only tried the pressed penny machines and the cost is 50 cents a penny. The quarter machines are $1.25 a quarter.
Most of the pennies have Disney characters on them and they are usually doing something or dressed in clothes related to where the machine is located. I loved the design choices on the Boardwalk at the Boardwalk Inn.
So if you are looking for a fun and inexpensive souvenir, then you might what to think about the pressed penny machines. I know our daughter is excited to get more pennies the next time we visit. She wants to fill up her book!
Have you gotten a pressed penny from Disney World?
Thanks for reading!
*Liz*
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What an awesome idea. When i was a kid, we would always get at least a couple of the pressed pennies. 🙂
Hi James!
It’s such a great souvenir for kids. To be honest, the adults were having a pretty good time with it too 🙂