Adult Siblings Surprise Parents at Disney World to Recreate Nostalgic Childhood Vacations (Exclusive)

Christopher EdwardsWed, June 3, 2026 at 8:30 AM UTC

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Tim Murphy surprises his parents on the Pirates of the Caribbean Ride at Disney World's Magic Kingdom.
Credit: Meg Murphy/Ellie Bright -

Meg Murphy and her brother Tim planned an elaborate surprise for their parents during a Disney World vacation

Tim initially said he couldn't go on the trip due to work, but secretly joined the family with help from Disney World cast members

The emotional reunion went viral, amassing over a million views and surprising the siblings with its popularity

Meg Murphy didn't want to mislead her parents, but keeping this secret was worth it.

“I'm a horrible liar,” Meg tells PEOPLE. “Knowing I had to put on this performance for a few days was overwhelming."

But the 27-year-old photographer was determined not to spoil the big moment. Soon, her younger brother, Tim, would be joining Meg and their parents on a Disney World vacation after he previously backed out.

In a March Instagram video posted by Meg, Tim shocked his parents by joining his family just as they were boarding the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disney World's Magic Kingdom. In the video, Tim quietly climbs into the seat next to his parents, while the couple, who had no idea he was coming, aren't looking.

His mother's emotional reaction caused the video to go viral, amassing over a million views.

"We knew we could dilute the surprise and tell our parents, and it would be so much easier to just have them know and coordinate transport logistics and tickets and things, but we were like, 'If we can do this big, this would be so cool,'" says Meg, who lives in Nashville, Tn.

Tim, a musician, previously planned to join the family vacation, but had to cancel last minute after getting a touring gig playing drums for the country singer Willow Avalon. The trip was going to be his first time seeing his parents in four months.

"It broke my heart to call her and tell her, 'Mom, I'm sorry, I can't come,'" Tim, 25, tells PEOPLE. "She was obviously supportive, but she was super bummed, and I felt like a bad son."

"It's gotten very hard for me to even plan those trips or think about them, and it feels stressful and sad because I love my job, but my job kind of takes me away from a lot of great moments with the people that I love," Tim continues.

Tim and Meg Murphy with their parents Jennifer and Timothy Murphy Sr.
Credit: Meg Murphy/Ellie Bright

To pull off the surprise, the siblings enlisted the help of Christina Falcone and Ellie Bright, their friends who are Disney cast members and offered to assist in the operation.

"They were awesome," says Meg.

The Murphy family with Disney World cast members Christina Falcone and Ellie Bright.
Credit: Meg Murphy/Ellie Bright

Before Tim joined the family vacation, Meg put on a bit of an act to her parents in order to justify appearing nervous.

"I was on a remote work assignment, and I was going back and forth with a client at the time, and so I basically used that as my excuse to be super stressed," says Meg.

"I changed Timmy's name in my phone to the client's name that I was working with, so that anytime the phone buzzed they wouldn't question what's going on. I would just say to my parents, 'I'm so sorry, I gotta go take this call.'"

Orchestrating the moment required a careful song and dance. While Tim waited at the Pirates of the Caribbean ride, Meg took her parents to the Monsters, Inc. show. There, she took her mother's phone.

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"I wanted to lock her out of her phone, so that she couldn't track Timmy's location and see that he was there. So I just never gave the phone back to my mom."

While his family got seated on the ride, Tim was hiding by the wheelchairs, waiting for their friend Ellie to give him the signal to get on the ride.

"I was pretty anxious," says Tim. "There was nothing designating me as a part of the cast, and a couple of the workers came back and were like, 'Who are you?' And I was like, 'This is hard to explain...'"

Tim Murphy hides while waiting to surprise his family at Disney World.
Credit: Meg Murphy/Ellie Bright

As the family got settled on the boat ride, Meg pulled out her phone to record the moment. When Tim climbed into the ride, he tapped his dad on the shoulder and asked if someone was sitting there.

"The moment that I knew they had no idea is when I tapped my dad and he was kind of annoyed, and then my mom saw me and she didn't react right away. She just stared at me for a second," says Tim.

Though Meg says they're "an emotional family," her mother's reaction still shocked her.

"We both knew it would be emotional, but I don't think we knew how much," says Meg. "I didn't anticipate the very big tears and big emotions."

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After Magic Kingdom, the family visited Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom together during the vacation, before Tim had to return to work. The trip was nostalgic for the family, who visited Disney often when Meg and Tim were growing up.

"We are the most egregious Disney Family," says Meg.“This place means a lot to us. It means a lot to our mom in particular. She's the one who inspired these trips since we were kids.”

"My dad enjoys it, but he tags along. He would rather have a piña colada and not have to walk hundreds of steps." Meg continues.

The siblings say the video going viral was a shock to them.

"We were like, you know, our grandma's gonna like the post and share it with some aunts and uncles, and that's gonna be it," says Meg.

Jokes Tim, "I've been busting my a-- my whole life trying to get exposure as a drummer, and I get it for a Disney video."

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”