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View Full Version : Has the adult costume policy changed recently?



Wedge
03-29-2014, 06:19 PM
This week, I saw multiple adults in Disney character costumes that were park guests and not cast members. They still didn't look as good as a true meet-and-greet character, but still it was very obvious that they were in full (or close to full) costume / cosplay as some of the iconic Disney characters. I'm sorry that I didn't get pictures to show as an example (some were pretty impressive) but has the park rule about adults in costume changed to start allowing this? I wouldn't think so, but I was surprised how these people got through the front gate unnoticed with the policy that I was aware of.

Here are examples of what I saw:

Wilderness explorer from UP (this was the most impressive)
Girl wearing custom merit-badge sash with badges, yellow shirt, khaki shorts, the socks, and backpack with a wilderness explorer flag

Ariel (human form) and Eric getting some pictures taken in Fantasyland
Eric with white shirt, red sash around waist, and blue pants
Ariel with red hair and human form dress

Merida
Green long sleeved dress with red frizzy hair

I saw a few others that were not Disney related, like Attack on Titan, but I was still able to identify who they were trying to be.

houseofmouse
03-29-2014, 07:18 PM
Maybe since everyone knows there was a huge Cosplay event, it was okay? Were people lining up to meet and greet?

Wedge
03-29-2014, 08:05 PM
That is a good point. No, I did not see anyone asking for pictures or treating them as the actual characters.

cstephens
03-29-2014, 10:54 PM
I can see how some of the people you described aren't in costumes per se - they're just wearing the same color/type human clothes that normal people might wear. There's also something called Disneybounding, which Disney has kind of stolen to some degree and re-named as "show your Disney side", in which people wear normal clothes that echo the color schemes and stylings of various characters. I've seen a lot of that particularly at the meet and greet for Elsa and Anna.

KarenW2
03-30-2014, 01:18 AM
I'm pretty sure there hasn't been a change in rules about adult costumes in the park. The other thing to consider is that they may not have been wearing those clothes when they went thru the entrance! Lots of people carry huge back packs and could've changed clothes once they got into the park.

Nikara
03-30-2014, 03:37 PM
Almost certain this is the Disney-bounding effect. As others above have said, people dress in outfits that "evoke" the characters, but aren't specifically dressing like them. All of the clothing is supposed to be normal/modern clothing, just often in styles similar to the costumes characters wear. From the sound of the costumes you describe, the only one that sounds particularly close to the edge is the wilderness explorer one- having actual props related to the movie. Otherwise it is just people wearing dresses in the park whose hair color matches a character- not much Disney can do to stop that! Disney seems to like it, in fact: It's a way for adults to connect with the characters, and avoids the reasons they ban costumes in the park. If you are wearing clothing similar to characters, but not really a costume, it isn't likely that you will get confused with the character, and trick guests. I suspect this trend will continue to grow. I know my family is planning a few Disney-bounding days when we visit WDW this summer.

tea4two
03-30-2014, 06:14 PM
We've had lots of fun Disneybounding/Disbounding at the parks. It's a fun way to connect with groups of friends at the parks (everyone picks a different character, themed together or not) and to swing dance on Saturdays. There have been nights when several Minnie's have shown up at PFF for the Royal Swing Ball.

Wedge
03-30-2014, 07:16 PM
Thanks for the information on Disney-bounding, I had no idea there was such a thing. Now that you mention that I did see a few others dressed in regular clothes that had character elements but didn't look like costumes. One was stretchy yoga pants with green fish scales and a t-shirt with 2 seashells on the front. I complimented that girl on her outfit.