We Found a RARE Hidden Mickey That Only Appears Once a YEAR in Disney World ?

OK, everyone, take off your Santa hats for a moment. We interrupt your holiday celebrations to bring an important date to your attention. November 18th, 2023 is the date of Mickey and Minnie’s 95th birthday. Happy birthday, Mickey and Minnie!

Mickey and Minnie at EPCOT

Of course, we’ll eat a treat (or two) in Mickey and Minnie’s honor, but did you know that there’s a SECRET birthday celebration that happens on November 18th? Spoiler alert: super wholesome moment ahead!

We headed straight to the Magic Kingdom on Mickey and Minnie’s birthday. After all, it seems like the perfect place to celebrate such an important day!

What better way to celebrate Mickey and Minnie’s birthday than by taking a trip to Magic Kingdom? ✨?? pic.twitter.com/FBTIEEF9pg

— AllEars.Net (@AllEarsNet) November 18, 2023

Now, you might think that our top priority was visiting Town Square Theater to meet Mickey, but instead, we hightailed it over to Fantasyland. Off to Under the Sea — Journey of the Little Mermaid!

Time for a little backstory! Each year, on November 18th, a RARE hidden Mickey appears in the queue for Under the Sea — Journey of the Little Mermaid. Believe it or not, this hidden Mickey is so rare it only shows up ONCE every year — and only for a super short window of time! See that oddly shaped cutout in the Little Mermaid queue? Well, at noon every November 18th, it creates a hidden Mickey and Minnie shadow! That’s MAGIC!

The hidden Mickey and Minnie shadows appear at noon, as long as the sun and clouds cooperate, that is. Last year, we captured some AMAZING photos of this phenomenon, so we were hoping to get lucky again this year. We made our way through the queue and waited for the shadow!

Cast Members created a separate line inside the Little Mermaid ride queue for guests hoping to see the shadow. For reference, you can find this spot past the outdoor portion of the queue underneath the rocky ceiling.

We branched off to wait in line for Mickey and Minnie!

Then, right around noon, the sun shone perfectly through the rocks to create a Mickey and Minnie-shaped shadow. At first, the light only made a soft Mickey shape, but we held out hope for Minnie to appear, and she did! (Minnie is on the right; she’s got a faint bow outline between her ears.)

All around, Cast Members and guests cheered for the sun to do its thing, and finally, we got the perfect shot! There they are!

Here it is! This hidden Mickey appears only ONCE per year on Mickey’s birthday — today! pic.twitter.com/DBy7h7nleQ

— AllEars.Net (@AllEarsNet) November 18, 2023

Everyone around us was so happy and excited to see this ultra-rare hidden Mickey. You have to time it juuuuust right, but if you can make it over to Fantasyland, it’s well worth a visit.