You may vacation at Disney every year, but to true locals, you still have the delicate aroma de tourist. Anyone who lives and works at Disney can spot a vacationer a mile away, but do you know how to spot the locals?
Disney Cast Members do, of course, visit the parks themselves with their families and friends. Sometimes, they’ll also work in street clothes – for example, when checking that the experience of a particular ride or attraction is up to scratch.
These little quirks will help you spot a Cast Member sans costume almost any day.
1. Look for People Watchers in the Park
Tourists usually spend their time in Walt Disney World looking at the park. Cast Members are less interested in the features of the park, and more attentive to the people around them. They lack the frantic pace of visitors who see the parks rarely, or perhaps even once in a lifetime. When Cast Members are taking in the theme parks on a day off, they’re visiting the same way most people would hit a mall or local museum.
Visitors who are strolling at a leisurely pace or sitting on a bench with no sense of impatience or anticipation about them are often Cast Members. Those who are getting more enjoyment out of people watching than park ogling almost certainly are.
2. Check Out How they Point
Cast Members can’t help it. They might be pointing out the bread isle at WalMart or the nearest open pump at the gas station and most of them will still use the signature two finger Disney point. Since this is a fairly unnatural way to gesture, chances are excellent that anyone you see using the Disney point around the Central Florida area is a current or former Walt Disney World Cast Member.
3. Put on a Birthday Button and See What Happens
Birthday buttons are a great way to get lots of attention when you’re in the Disney parks. Cast Members everywhere will give you a cheerful birthday greeting for your special day. The problem with automatically responding to these buttons all day when you’re in costume, is that it makes it really difficult not to do the exact same thing in street clothes.
There are undoubtedly some really kind strangers who will wish you happy birthday just to be nice, so this isn’t a fail proof indicator that you’ve spotted a Cast Member, but it’s a good place to start. If you see someone start to wish you happy birthday and stop themselves, or say it and immediately look like they wish they hadn’t…you’re almost certainly dealing with someone who works in the parks and knows they just blew their cover.
4. Notice How they Talk to Kids
Cast Members are trained to talk to kids in a very special way. Children are usually “princess” or “Prince Charming.” They take a knee to hear what pint sized guests have to say, and often have a creative themed response. Like Disney pointing, or responding to birthday buttons, this is a difficult habit to ditch.
Even some parents will barely bend down when they’re talking to their children (after all, you’d have to spend the whole day in a perpetual crouch to really come down to their level for everything they say). If your child strikes up a conversation with the next person in line and they automatically drop down to his or her level to answer, there’s a good chance you’re talking to a Cast Member. If they know all the right things to say in response to your child’s lively story about her meeting with Cinderella, you can be certain it’s someone who spends their working week in the park.
5. Look at Their Bags
Some tourists traverse the parks with so many supplies you’d swear they were headed into a third world country where basic necessities are in no way guaranteed. Those bulky bags are nearly always an indicator of a visitor. In the same vein, a lack of bags is a good sign of a local.
If you see a woman without even a purse, it’s probably a Cast Member who doesn’t need anything more than an ID and a credit card because she’s only in the park for a few hours. Cast Members can also leave their belongings backstage in a locker, making it even easier to visit without lugging around a lot of extra items.
6. Watch for Lanyards
Cast Members can’t have their ID showing when they’re onstage out of costume, but many will simply flip them around and keep their handy ID lanyards on anyway. These aren’t like the thick pin lanyards that you can buy in any park gift shop. Cast Member lanyards have a thin string and a metal accent that’s usually either a character or a popular theme park icon. These lanyards can have either a plastic card holder or a small credit card sized zip top bag at the bottom. Regardless of the card that’s on display, these lanyards are an almost foolproof indicator of a Cast Member.
Cast Member spotting can be fun if you’re avidly curious about the people who put the everyday magic in Walt Disney World. Since they can get into the parks for free any time, there are always plenty of Cast Members around on their days off, or passing the time before a shift.
Try to keep in mind, though, that these CMs are off duty and enjoying their time at Disney much like you are. They probably can point you to the nearest bathroom, but so can the greeter passing the time outside the nearest attraction, and she’s getting paid for it.
