So.Gay sat down with the viral creators to discuss their connection with the queer community, the friend group’s origin story, the importance of accessibility-focused content, their favorite restaurant on Disney property, and more.
5 annual park admission passes, please! Social media sweethearts, The Plus Size Park Hoppers, are just as kind in their interview with So.Gay as come across in their Disney park videos. We discuss their favorite restaurants, rides, and rollercoasters at Disney, along with why their years-long friendship is more powerful than any hate comment could ever be. The group goes viral for filming their trips to Disney and has been lauded for sharing honest content as plus-sized people navigating the park.
The friends and members of The Plus Size Park Hoppers are Ashley Dignard, Sarah Dignard, Deanna Wood, Katie Mazzeo, and Stephanie Lanciani. Lanciani spoke with us in the midst of planning their 2026 park adventures.
So.Gay: How did everyone meet each other? What’s your origin story?
Stephanie Lanciani: Ashley and Sarah are sisters. They’re kind of at the core of it all. They grew up going to Disney with their parents, so they went maybe five times before they were adults. I met Ashley when we were in middle school. To put it into perspective, I’m 33 now, so we were 12 when we met. We were more acquaintances until high school, and then we became really close friends. We all got introduced and things grew from high school and afterwards. Our first Disney trip all together was in 2016, so a while after we had already been friends. We were in our early 20s at that point, and Sarah and Ashley knew what rides would work for us and what wouldn’t, since they had been a bunch of times already. I wasn’t really nervous because they would tell me, “Oh, you’ll be fine on this one,” or “If you want to avoid that one, maybe,” and we had a great time. Everything was great.
Then the year after that, ‘Flight of Passage’ opened, which is a simulation ride at Animal Kingdom. It’s Avatar-themed, and you’re flying on a banshee. We were all really nervous to try it, but excited, too. It sounded really cool, but nobody had any experience with it, so we were all really nervous and didn’t ride it that year.
Then we skipped Disney in 2018, which was crazy—we didn’t go at all that year. In 2019, we were like, “Okay, I guess we’ll try it. We’ll try the test seat.” We were so nervous, which I think is natural. I think a lot of people go through that anxiety just trying the test seat in front of people, and even after the test seat, trying the ride. It’s when you don’t know what to expect that things can feel really scary. We tried the test seat, and a few of us were able to ride, but a couple of us couldn’t. I started thinking that we could make videos about this to help other people. I know we felt really bad, like we were not feeling great, and I thought, “I think other people probably feel like this sometimes too, and I would like to help ease that anxiety.” But we were only going once a year at that time, and we’re from Massachusetts, so it wasn’t easy for us to get to Florida very often. Then, in 2023, after COVID, they started selling annual passes again. I knew we needed annual passes, since we hadn’t gone anywhere in a few years. We decided it was time we should go, and then after that, I was like, “Wait, I think we could do this. We could actually make content. If we have annual passes, we can go all the time.” Then it kind of happened—we just started doing it.
So.Gay: Love that you’ve been friends for so long, that connection shows in the videos. Have you thought about moving down there from Mass.?
Stephanie: We get that question a lot, and we all just really love Massachusetts. Sure, like we love the New England area. We love the culture here and would miss it too much!
So.Gay: You mentioned that 2023 was when you realized that you could make content that inspires people and empowers. Can you recall which videos really blew up, and how you realized you were resonating with people?
Stephanie: When we first started making videos, we just hoped for the best. Ashley does all of our video editing. She’s amazing. I can’t comprehend what she does. She’s so good. I kind of describe our process as throwing spaghetti at the wall and seeing what sticks. We had no idea what we were doing. I always say we had no right to make content because we had no background in that. I have a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice. None of us had any communications degrees or anything like that, so it was a little different than what we probably expected for ourselves. At the start, a lot of our videos were just very eccentric, and we were trying to see what worked. We wanted to just kind of be a part of the Disney community. Also, we didn’t see a lot of members of the Disney community who looked like us. We didn’t see a lot of plus-size Disney creators or even a lot of plus-size creators in general. There are some, but it’s definitely not as many. We wanted to see a plus-size friend group. That was something we noticed as adults. Something that not everyone experiences as an adult is just having such a core friend group. People whom you can go to for everything. That’s kind of what we showcased in the beginning and what we showcase now, honestly, because that’s our truth. That’s our reality.
The first video that really blew up was our Tron ride test video, which was us trying the Tron ride. It’s similar to ‘Flight of Passage’, where you’re riding on something. It’s like a motorcycle. It’s a little non-traditional of a seat for a roller coaster, and we tried the test seat.
So none of us were able to fit on the test seat, which was a little different because a lot of the rides at Disney we are able to ride, most of us, for the most part, are able to ride comfortably. Luckily, there is a modified seat that we all fit in, and a lot of people don’t know that. They think if they don’t fit on the test seat, they assume they wouldn’t fit, but that modified seat is there. We were so happy to spread that awareness! This was one of the videos that had us all on FaceTime together after it went viral, like, “Wow, this video is getting a lot of traction.” We were not used to that yet. We hadn’t gotten a lot of eyes on our videos yet, and we were so excited. I’ll never forget that feeling of just being all on FaceTime, giddy, not believing people are liking our Tron video. Then we started seeing all of the mean comments pour in almost immediately after. It was very quick. Some of those comments still stay with us to this day.
So.Gay: I hate that you deal with such terrible people online.
Stephanie: If you asked me to name hate comments… they’re all the same, for one. They’re all boring and they mean nothing to us. I could tell you more about so many nice messages, stories, comments, and interactions with people in the parks that are so sweet. People just thanking us for showing them that they could go to Disney. We can name all of those positive moments all day long. We could talk about them for hours, and those mean so much more to us than any of the hate comments.
So.Gay: You guys have a lot of queer fans. How has that connection been? Gays love theme parks, have you seen that?
Stephanie: Yes, I’ve noticed many queer and theater people love theme parks—the show and inclusivity are part of the appeal, especially at Disney. During Pride Month, Disney features special murals and celebrations that enhance that inclusive feeling. Some of us in Plus Size Park Hopper are queer, and our group stands for joy, inclusivity, and visibility, values that overlap with the queer community. The queer community is amazing.
So.Gay: Can you give any advice for new creators or anyone who’s dealing with negative comments?
Stephanie: At first, it was really hard. I won’t lie and say that it was easy right off the bat. We’ve all had some people in our lives say something mean to us at one point or another. And of course, it hurt. Those kinds of things do stay with you, even from childhood. But then, when it happens online in such a big way… I, for one I, didn’t think that we were going to get bullied. I didn’t think we were going to get hate comments. I was very naive. I do know that at first there was that concern amongst the group about receiving hate comments. I was like, “I just don’t think that we will be received that way.” I may have taken it the hardest, probably because of that, because I had never thought that anyone would think that way about my friends and me. I remember the first time after the Tron video, I went to the grocery store, and thought “everyone’s looking at me. Everyone’s thinking these horrible things about me.” I dropped a gallon of water and it spilled all over the floor… Which is probably why people were looking at me, but I thought, “Oh my God, they’re all thinking I’m fat.” I had a panic attack. It was really rough. That was the first time I had really left the house since the Tron video. Now I have some perspective, and I know they were looking at me because I dropped the water. I realized that not everyone’s staring at you all the time. Knowing that definitely helps.
Also, we have each other. There are other creators who are not in a group posting online, and I think that’s more difficult. We are a group of five women who have each other, and we have a group chat, and we can talk about anything we want. If there’s a mean comment that hurts us, we can talk about that. If there’s a podcast talking about us in a mean way, we can talk about that. There’s a lot of power in being able to talk to someone else about the same experience that you’re going through. We’re all going through it together. Also, I don’t want to sound cliché, but I think Taylor Swift has really helped us ‘Shake It Off.’ A lot of Taylor songs resonate with us that we wouldn’t have expected to in certain ways. She has a song called ‘Thank You Amy,’ which is basically saying: I wouldn’t have all of this great stuff if it wasn’t for the bad that you created for me. That resonates with us because we have such an amazing community, and we might not have had that community if we weren’t received the way we were by some angry people.
So.Gay: It really seems like having each other is like the antidote to all that evil online. I wonder how other creators really deal with that if they’re on their own?
Stephanie: I imagine it’s so difficult if you’re doing this alone. We’re very lucky to have each other throughout this entire experience. Our lives now are a lot different from what they were two years ago. So it is amazing to be able to do that together. It’s amazing to see my friends blossom in a way. We were all a little bit shy, and now none of us are shy at all. It’s really nice to just see everyone embrace their confidence. It’s really nice.
So.Gay: That confidence radiates through the screen. Since I’m talking to a Disney expert, what are your recommendations for a day at Disney? Favorite restaurant?
Stephanie: We all have the same favorites, which is so funny. I don’t know how it happens, but we all just love it. Our favorite restaurant, collectively, is Le Cellier Steakhouse, which is in the Canada Pavilion at Epcot. Whenever it’s someone’s birthday and we somehow end up in Disney, we’re just going to Le Cellier Steakhouse for great dinner. We love it because the experience is really nice. It’s a nice, quiet, calm dinner. The steak is just phenomenal and the poutine is so good.
So.Gay: Okay, so after the beautiful restaurant in Epcot, where do you recommend something like a great dessert or a sweet treat?
Stephanie: We all like different things when it comes to desserts. We love the ‘All American Sundae’ from the Plaza in Magic Kingdom. It’s so good! Also, we all love the churros from Nomad Lounge, which fun fact, are actually gluten-free. They’re the best churros we’ve ever had. I think ice cream would be like the center of the sweet treat answers.
So.Gay: Yeah. Or the famous Dole Whip.
Stephanie: Dole Whips are so good.
So.Gay: As ride lovers, which is your favorite in all the parks?
Stephanie: A bunch of us really love the Guardians of the Galaxy Cosmic Rewind. I really want to talk about this ride. Most of us would say that’s our favorite roller coaster. One of us is not able to ride it, unfortunately, but it is very different from most roller coasters. Have you been on it?
So.Gay: Yes! They rotate through different songs and that changes the experience, right?
Stephanie: Exactly. My favorite song they play is ‘September.’ It’s so fun. The song does dictate the mood of the ride. We have gotten ‘Everybody Wants to Rule the World’ and I like it, but it has a very different vibe from ‘September.’ ‘September’ feels like a celebration.
So.Gay: Are there other rides that really resonate with you and the group?
Stephanie: My favorite ride deep down is Haunted Mansion. I just love it. It’s so nostalgic for me. I went with my grandmother when I was nine for the first time, and I’ll just never forget the way I felt, and I just think it’s so fascinating. I wish I could just be dropped off in like the mansion and could explore everything.
So.Gay: That’d be a great promotion for Disney, if they let you do a behind-the-scenes video.
Stephanie: I would love that. That’s an idea for the future.
So.Gay: Are there any other future ideas that you have or things to manifest?
Stephanie: We really want to go to Europe this summer. We’ve never left the country. We really want to go to Disneyland Paris. We would love to explore other parts of Europe and maybe go to London, see some things.
So.Gay: Disneyland Paris sounds like a great trip!
Stephanie: Yes. There’s so much for you to explore.
So.Gay: How many times are you hoping to visit Disney in like 2026?
Stephanie: Since we want to go to Disney Paris and we’re hoping to go to Disneyland in California… We want to go for Pride Night actually in June. It just looks so fun and like a great time. We’re kind of battling with the idea that we have to go to Disney World a little less to be able to go to these places, too. So maybe like four times to Disney World and then a couple of times like Disney Paris and Disneyland.
So.Gay: Well, I hope you get your passports ready because it seems like Disney in Europe is calling your name.
Stephanie: I’m so excited for it. We’ve been manifesting it for a little while now.
