It’s no lie that a family trip to Disney can drain a bank account real quick, so when you’re faced with an “extra” expense, it can be a tough decision to make. Is it worth it or not?
Personally, I think these types of family outings should be experienced by everyone at least once. I have heard over and over again that the Halloween event is way more “worth it” than the Christmas event, so if you’re trying to choose between the two, I’d choose this one! I may be saying this because I’ve never experienced the Christmas event, but we’re been to this Halloween event twice and it’s been memorable both times.
The only way I don’t think it’d be worth your money is if your kids go to sleep an hour into the party. That’d be a bummer.
Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party is a special event at Disney World’s Magic Kingdom on select nights in August – November. Only a limited amount of tickets are sold for each night and everyone without a wrist band will be directed out of the park after 7:00pm…party time! If you are a MNSSHP ticket holder, you may enter the park as early as 4:00pm, but all the “extras” don’t start till 7:00pm.
Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom
All the “Extras” You Need To Know About
- Trick-or-treating. There are 15 different “treat stops” throughout the park, some unfortunately with long lines, but nothing longer than 10 minutes. The longest line we had was at Tomorrowland’s Walt Disney’s Carousel of Progress. The amount of candy they give you is outrageous and they literally forced us adults to participate. “Here, you need a bag too! Don’t be silly, here’s your bag!” I was happy to see the Allergy-friendly options to ensure everyone got to participate in the treat overload.
- Smaller crowds. I don’t think anyone enjoys theme park crowds and this is maybe worth the money all by itself. Not all rides are open during this event, but the ones that were have short lines! My kids are youngers and their favorite rides include Mad Tea Party, The Many Adventures of Winnie The Pooh, and the Tomorrowland Speedway. Almost all rides had wait times of 20 minutes or less. WORTH IT!
- Hocus Pocus Villain Spectacular. The Sanderson Sisters are back and hosting this amazing show at Cinderella’s castle four different times throughout the night. They invite friends like Oogie Boogie to join them for the fun.
- Mickey’s “Boo-To-You” Halloween Parade. The parade is headed by the headless horseman galloping down the road. Following close behind are tons of Disney characters, villains and heroes. Family friendly ghosts give a “sparking” performance with shovels! Beware, you will be singing the “Boo-to-You” song all the way home.
- The Costumes! Seeing all the family costumes (some go all out!) was pretty neat. General Disney World rules don’t allow anyone over 13 years of age to wear costumes, but the MNSSHP is an exception. We saw an excellent Captain Hook and a group dressed up as the cast from Hey Arnold! Another group was dressed up as characters from The Incredibles, all the ones who died by wearing capes. You can get some great ideas here before Halloween.
- Happy Hallowishes Fireworks. Another favorite and Disney never disappoints with their fireworks.
- Monstrous Scream-O-Ween Ball. What’s better than a dance part with Sully & Mike Wazowski?! This dance party goes on all night from 7pm – 12am and is an excellent alternative for kid’s who can’t ride many rides!
- Special Character Appearances. Jack & Sally from The Nightmare before Christmas, Cruella de Vil, and the Queen of Hearts are some to make special appearances. Don’t worry, Princesses with their Princes are also out at the party!
- Speciality Foods. The season brings deliciously themed desserts around the park. The Haunted Mansion desserts are available in Liberty Pumpkin Cheesecake Dome while we were there. Candy Corn soft serve ice cream and cotton candy is available at Auntie Gravity’s Galactic Goodies and throughout the park. A ghoulish Strawberry Lemonaide slushie (topped with worms!) is available at Friar’s nook.
- Photopass Magic Spots. There are always designated areas in the park where photographers are set up to take your beautiful pictures, but during MNSSHP, the characters that show up in your photos are unique to the event. This year’s favorites are the dancing ghosts on Main Street and apple cauldron at the party entrance before Fantasyland.
Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party
TIPS
- Eat before you go! If you are already in the park, eat before the party starts at 7:00pm.
- If you have younger children who usually take naps during the day, make sure they don’t skip a nap! You will want them awake and energized for the whole party. Times goes by so fast when you have specials shows, parades, trick-or-treating, and all the rides to ride!
- Bring an extra set of clothes. Young kids may get tired and start complaining about their costumes being hot or itchy. Shocker, right?!
- You may want to bring your own bags for candy. The bags they give out are on the smaller side and easily get full after about 4 treat stops. Make sure you bring a sturdy bag with handles so it’s easy to carry!
- If you can, go to the midnight Boo-to-You parade and you won’t have to fight for a spot.We tried finding a spot for the first parade and barely got spots 4 rows back, even showing up 20 minutes before! The last parade, at midnight, had tons of spots, and a lot of the characters came up to the girls!
- Bring your own glowsticks! I purchase glow stick wands, bracelets, and necklaces at Walmart beforehand since it’s a night event. The kid’s liked to wear them and didn’t ask for any of the ones for sale in the park.
- There is a Hocus Pocus Villain Spectacular show about 20 minutes after the Hallowishes Fireworks show, so if you happen to snag a great viewing spot of the castle, don’t lose it! Have someone in your party grab some Disney Halloween treats on Main Street while you wait.
- If you’re still asking yourself if it’s worth it after reading this post, just don’t buy a ticket. 😉
