The secret charity store that sells Disney’s lost and found including 75p Minnie ears – I saved nearly £100

A TRIP to Walt Disney World can cost families thousands but there is a clever way that holiday makers can save BIG on merchandise, including the iconic Minnie Ears and exclusive toys.

With up to 160,000 visitors a day, Disney World ends up with a lot of items in its lost and found – from dads dropping their sunglasses on the Guardians of the Galaxy rollercoaster to toddlers leaving their new cuddly Mickey on It’s a Small World.

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The parks regularly donate the unclaimed items to several nonprofits that run charity shops in Central Florida.

One of the stores is the Boys & Girls Club of Central Florida that supports local communities and families in need.

The Disney items are extremely popular and the donations from the theme parks are the most the store gets from a single donor.

We realised that the shop was only 25 minutes away from our holiday apartment in Orlando and so decided to take the drive to see what bargains we could find.

The store is located at Winter Park, around 17 miles away from Disney World.

Almost like a charity superstore, you can tell it’s a Disney hotspot as soon as you walk through the door as the glass cases by the tills are full of row upon row of Minnie ears.

As a Disney fan – and an avid collector of ears – I was in heaven. There were limited edition ears, Halloween ears, Christmas ears and more.

The official ears were priced between $4 – $15 (£2.95 – £11) – a fraction of the in-park £34.99 (£26) cost – but there were plenty of ‘unofficial’ versions for as little as $1 (75p).

After picking up a pair of pink sparkly ears for myself for $6 (£4.40) and a classic Mickey ears hat for my little boy for $1.99 (£1.50) we headed over to check out the rest of the merch.

There were fantastic t-shirts, bags and hoodies – all in fantastic condition.

I was delighted with my new Epcot t-shirt for $8 (£5.90) and my husband bagged a brand new in-box Star Wars mug for $5 (£3.70).

I worked out I had saved nearly £100 for all of the souvenirs, with t-shirts around $34.99 (£26) and coffee mugs being around $16.99 (£12.50) in the park.

The store is usually a designer sunglasses paradise with Prada, Ray Bans and Gucci for around 80 per cent off but it was slim pickings on our visit.  

As well as the lost and found items, Disney World also donates other unused merchandise and products.

So even things like fabric, tech and office supplies sold in the store might have once belonged at Disney World.

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We were happy with our haul, but I still regret leaving the racoon soft toy for $6 (£4.40) from the new Tiana’s Bayou Adventure which retails for for $30 (£22) in the park.

If secondhand goods aren’t your thing but you still want a bargain, Disney Character Warehouse is your best bet for official merchandise for between 50 – 80 per cent off.

There are two of these stores near Walt Disney World, one at Orlando Vineland Premium Outlets (8200 Vineland Ave., Suite 1252) and another at Orlando International Premium Outlets (4951 International Drive, Suite 95).

These stores sell official past-season Disney merchandise so you can expect to pick up exclusive ears and t-shirts from past seasons and events such as Epcot’s Flower and Garden Festival, Christmas or Halloween.

Another cool location for Disney fans is Recycling the Magic, located at 16415 W Colonial Dr in Oakland, Florida which is a store full of vintage collectables from Disney’s past.

They have props and signage from the parks and even parts of the ride vehicles for guests to proudly display in their homes.

But as much as I love Disney, I couldn’t see myself trying to haul one of the old doors from the Kilimanjaro Safari vehicles though airport security.  I’ll stick with my ear collection.

If you are looking for more tips, here is a woman who has been to the Disney theme parks more than 50 times.