The Disneyland Resorts in both Hong Kong and Tokyo are known for their incredible merchandise especially their popcorn buckets. Disney merchandise collectors in the United States have often yearned for more of this incredible merchandise to make its way over to the US theme parks.
The merchandise at Hong Kong Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland feature a heavy emphasis on characters especially with wearable characters in the form of headbands, keychains, and other stuffed plushie options.
Now we know that one of these popular crazes is coming to the Disneyland Resort in California! Keep reading for all the details of this hit merchandise and new character options that will be available soon.
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NEW Halloween Create Your Own Headband Accessories
Disney shared that there will be new Create Your Own Headband accessories available for Halloween at Disneyland.
Starting August 23 on the first day of the Halloween celebration at Disneyland and while supplies last, you can decorate your headband with new characters: Jack Skellington, Sally, and Zero from Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas. See the new plush accessories above!
Why is Hong Kong and Tokyo Disney Merch So Popular?
Disney Bounding is especially popular in the international Disney Parks and many of the merchandise items that feature characters correlate directly to the fashion being worn in the parks. You will typically see Disney Bounders incorporate plushie keychains, headbands, or hold small plushies as part of their look.
You may have even heard of the Duffy and Friends franchise which has a large fanbase throughout Asia with its huge themed merchandise collection. Guests can also meet Duffy and Friends in the Asia parks and they are very popular there! We've even seen Duffy make appearances in the US parks, most recently at the After Hours events at Walt Disney World. The popularity of Duffy also draws guests to the merchandise featuring him and the other bears.
One notable difference of the merchandise in the Asia Disney Parks vs. the US Disney Parks is the stronger emphasis on stuffed plushies and accessories most notably with large keychains and character ear headbands. These plushies become accessories themselves!
Disney Character Ear Headbands
Disney Character Ear Headbands are easily one of the most popular merchandise items at Hong Kong Disneyland Resort.
These are customizable headbands that allow guests to pick different stuffed characters to attach to the headbands. You can fit a few characters on these headbands, usually about two or three, and switch them out for other characters.
It's a pretty simple process to purchase the Disney Character Ear Headbands, you just pick a headband, choose a mini plush accessory, and attach it to the headband. Each character mini plush has velcro to easily attach it to the headband.
These character headbands are an absolute hit at Hong Kong Disneyland and now they have been confirmed as coming to Disneyland in California!
What Characters Can I Get?
To celebrate Pixar Fest which takes place at Disneyland from April 26th through August 4th, there will be a variety of Pixar characters available including Buzz Lightyear, Alien, and Lots-o-Huggin’ Bear.
Along with Pixar characters, classic characters for these ear character headbands also include:
- Mickey Mouse
- Minnie Mouse
- Donald Duck
- Daisy Duck
- Chip
- Dale
- Winnie the Pooh
- Tigger
- Stitch
It looks like you can fit up to three of these plushies on the headband although I am sure you could try to push the limit and fit even more!
This is such a cute merchandise option and one that I think will be pretty popular especially since you can change out the characters to match your outfit!
Where Can I Buy Ear Character Headbands?
The Disneyland Create Your Own Headbands will be available at The The Mad Hatter on Main Street, U.S.A. at Disneyland and Bing Bong’s Sweet Stuff in Pixar Pier at California Adventure.
It is unknown for now if these headbands will be available on the Disney Store online but chances are we will see them offered online and even at Disney World if they are popular at Disneyland.
When Will Create Your Own Headbands Be Available?
These new headbands were available starting Friday, April 26th during the start of Pixar Fest. They returned to Disneyland on August 8, 2024 (available while supplies last).
I can't wait to get my own Create Your Own Headband and I hope we see more characters available when they debut. I would personally love characters from the Pixar Film Up like Doug and Kevin.
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