Tell me about banshees

[Nohal]

We are going in August with the family and I think that DGD might want a banshee. Are they worth the money which I believe is $65? What do they do inside and outside of the park?

 

[holden]

Worth is relative. Will your DGD enjoy the toy? They do the same thing inside and outside the parks.

 

[CAS239]

They don't do anything special inside or outside the park. Their a small banshee that you can put on your shoulder and run a wire under your shirt to your pocket that has a remote so you can move the banshee a little bit.

Or you can just bring it home and use as a prop to display it as you can get a stand for it

 

[mekay1012]

We missed getting one last June when we were at AK. My dd still talks about not getting it. We are going this July and I'm hoping she will be able to get one then.

 

[Ds4angels]

Friend's DD *had to have one*. Her DD played with it twice after they got home. But like any other toy YMMV

 

[Hope Soda]

My 7 year old got the shoulder banshee. It's really cool, but it doesn't fit him very well (he has a very tall/skinny/lanky body type, and no real substance to his shoulder area). He played with it a lot on the trip, and a little after returning home. My husband played with it a couple of times, as well. I don't feel like it was the best value for our money, but it did make my son really happy at the time, and he purchased it using mostly his own souvenir money that he got for Christmas (I had to pitch in about $12).

My 4 year old, after seeing my 7 year old play with his banshee, decided that he must also have a banshee. Fortunately, I managed to direct him to the banshees on a stick, at the other side of the store. It has a lever on the handle that makes the wings flap. This one was less realistic, less cool, and much less expensive (I think like $13, so very good for a Disney souvenir). Because he was not tall enough to ride things like Expedition Everest and Flight of Passage, he had a blast playing with this toy with other too-short kids waiting for the rest of their families to get off the ride.

Side note: If you decide to buy a shoulder banshee, be aware that there can be quite a line in the gift shop at the rookery, so you won't be able to get one if you have a FP+ or dining reservation somewhere soon after. We had to wait about 20 minutes. However, I also recently read an article about FOP reaching its record wait time of 6.5 hours that day, so that could potentially be related to the rookery wait; perhaps it's not so bad on a less crowded day in Pandora.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

I literally have a whole area of my basement dedicated to expensive Disney souvenirs that my kids “had to have”, and played with twice after we got home, and the shoulder banshee is the latest in that collection, lol. On the positive side, they do bring back a lot of memories for me (I love the Mickey tour guide talking doll that we got for my oldest DD 6 th bday, it brings back so many memories of when my oldest was little)

 

[CinderellaDream]

Both of my daughters "had to have" these banshees and now both banshees sit in their rooms and collect dust. They were fun at first but the excitement faded pretty quickly and they don't fit my daughters' narrow shoulders very well (ages 8 and 6). I think a better price point would be maybe $45-50 rather than $65.

 

[disneyvoice]

We have one that is perched on its holder and sits on the shelf above my husband's desk in his home office. We also purchased three others (with perches) for Christmas for our 3 young nephews. No idea if they actually do anything but we thought they were kind of a unique gift.

 

[Disney Khi]

Before our trip in August, DD8 was set on getting a banshee. I knew she would just play with it a few times, then it would just sit around our house collecting dust. However, I told her she could get it as her one and only souvenir if she really wanted it. On the day we went to buy it, she decided that it wasn’t worth the money. She picked out the little banshee on a stick instead. I was thrilled. She actually has played with this banshee some, and it’s cool because you can swoop it around like it’s flying. And it is a much less expensive dust collector.

 

[BrianL]

The Banshees are admittedly very cool and realistic looking, but they are indeed pricey. I think part of that is the experience of pairing with one, etc. It's a bit too expensive for me, but, hey, it's Disney. I would say that an fan of the movie might appreciate it more as a souvenir. As a toy they are not cheap. They do have some other Banshee toys and plush that might be a good alternative.

 

[LizGirl]

My kids saved up their own birthday money and elected to buy banshees. They are 10 and 8. Every once in a while, they will get them out and play with them for a few minutes. They are kinda fragile so they worry about breaking them.

I was shocked at how much mileage they got out of the Pandora styled bubble wands. They, again, spent their own money. But it was well worth the $20 for the days worth of entertainment they got out of them. I had no idea they would be such a hit. Especially at this age.

 

[katherine52478]

Just a note: you don’t have to wait in line at the Rookery to purchase. If you know which one you want, you can just ask for it at the register. Either way, you get a new one in a box, not the actual ones on the wall in the Rookery.

My 11 year old son wanted one for almost a year. We got it in January and he played with it twice and now it is on the stand in the basement gathering dust. At least I have a photo with it on his shoulder!

 

[KenHutch]

Don't forget to budget $20 for the perch. My 8 year old god daughter as already identified this as a must have in June.

 

[TwinkleKS]

We have three ... one for each kid, got them at Christmas. The kiddos are 7,9, and 9. They fall off of their shoulders pretty easily because the kids are small. They played with them for maybe five minutes at the hotel that night and haven't touched them since.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

If you decide not to get it at the park, and then you regret it, you can buy it at shop Disney. But online they come with the perch so they’re like $85

 

[Catvondita]

I have no idea why these things were sold out. Its a little toy you put on your shoulder and you make it move on your own.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

I hear they are $80 now. They were $50 when Pandora first opened.

 

[KenHutch]

I have no idea why these things were sold out. Its a little toy you put on your shoulder and you make it move on your own.

Well I know why I am buying one. My reason is 8 years old ans says she will just die if she doesn't get one and she actually sat and watched the entire film with me.

 

[Catvondita]

Well I know why I am buying one. My reason is 8 years old ans says she will just die if she doesn't get one and she actually sat and watched the entire film with me.

Lmao. Well that is a good reason! lol