Pressed Pennies in Disney World – A Fun and Less Expensive Souvenir

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. 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, so it was fun for all of us. 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:

• Magic Kingdom
• Hollywood Studios
• Epcot
• Animal Kingdom
• Disney Springs
• Disney World Resort Hotels 

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.

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.

There are other options to display pennies too. Instead of keeping them in a book, some people display them in a picture frame. The most popular way to display them in the frame is in the shape of a Mickey head, which is a really cute way to display the penny collection. I’ve also seen people put holes in them and use them as key chains. There are some really creative ideas out there!

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, because she wants to fill up her book. Plus, now that our son is older he wants to start a Disney pressed penny collection too. Loving this new Disney tradition for our family!

Have you tried the pressed penny machines in Disney World?

Thanks for reading!

*Liz*

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Liz

I love all things Disney, but my main love is for Disney World and I'm always planning for the next trip. Before becoming a Disney blogger, I was a radio DJ, so I guess I'm just continuing in the communication industry, just in a different form. I love talking Disney and I could talk about Disney all day. That's why I started blogging and created the Facebook group. The Disney community is full of friendly, helpful, and happy people...and I love being a part of it! If there is any Disney subject you would like to see covered just let me know! Need help planning your Disney vacation. Feel free to contact myself or Melissa at Never Stop Dreaming Travel Co. We love helping people plan their trips! Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy! Don't forget to check out our Countdown to Disney app! Feel free to email me with suggestions of things you would like to see in the app :-)