What's the lowdown on Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party? Now the idea of a separately paid ticket kept us from considering this for a while. We thought, what could be worth that extra ticket, but Walt Disney World doesn’t disappoint when you challenge them by asking questions like that. Described in its individual parts it may not sound as impressive, but it is so I’m going to try and give that essence of why the overall experience is a must.
The elements:
Dates, Tickets and Basics
Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party is taking place on many summer/fall nights at the Magic Kingdom in Walt Disney World, starting in August this year. Here are the dates:
August – 16, 20, 23, 27 and 30, 2019
September – 2, 6, 8, 10, 13, 15, 17, 20, 22, 24, 27 and 29, 2019
October – 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11, 14, 15, 17, 18, 20, 21, 24, 25, 27, 29 and 31, 2019
November 1, 2019
Prices vary from $70-$135, depending on the night, and Annual Passholder and DVC discounts are available for certain nights.
MNSSHP is a hard ticket event, which means your ticket gives you entry and you do not need an additional Magic Kingdom ticket.
Party hours are 7pm-12am, but you can enter the park at 4pm with your party ticket.
Cast members pass out MNSSHP wristbands at the Magic Kingdom entrance.
Special entrance
When you enter the Magic Kingdom, you get your ticket or MagicBand scanned and receive a special wristband to identify that you are a party guest. Enjoy the atmosphere of Main Street, USA, and then head to the right when you enter the park, in between Town Square Theater/Tony's Town Square and the Chapeau hat shop. You will see lighted columns direct you down a special path. Don't miss this special entrance to the party- this is where you will receive your candy bags and a bag of premium-sized candy. There are also neat PhotoPass opportunities and a chance to see the character statues in their costumes.
Lighted column denoting special entrance.
Candy
You can fill up on as much candy as you can handle with handfuls at each lighted column trick or treat location. Grab a map when you enter the party that shows you where all the candy spots are located. Pro tip- bring an extra shopping bag to dump all of your candy in- your small bag will fill up fast! And all the candy is pretty much the same at each location. The trick or treat spots also give you a chance to see the inside of attractions in a different way, which is fun for the Disney parks nerd like me. If you have allergies, request a special teal treat bag, and then you can collect treat tokens redeemable at Town Square Theater or Liberty Square.
Atmosphere
The general atmosphere is what makes the Halloween party so special. Everyone is collectively in agreement that costumes, from representative to all-out fandom, will all be Disney-based. No Thing 1 and Thing 2 shirts cutting it here. Costumes are not required to enjoy the fun, though. Enjoy the spooky atmosphere on Main Street USA, with Mickey balloons lighting on and off and specialty pumpkins flickering above the shops and on the light posts. Visit Frontierland to hear spooky songs from the Cadaver Dans and head to Storybook Circus to dance with Disney Jr pals in their Halloween costumes.
Strategy
There are many approaches, but most can include the parade, stage show and Hallowishes fireworks. So to fill in the time between, you may have to choose what is most important: attractions with little to no wait time, characters in special costumes, PhotoPass opportunities with magic shots, pursuing the special food items, and trying to get to all the candy spots. One important tip to make your experience better though is to not plan on doing everything. There just isn't enough time!
Special character meets and Greets & photopass opportunities
Headless Horseman magic shot leaving the party...... Photo by Walt Disney World PhotoPass photographer
For our first visit we had our child there for the first time so we enjoyed getting pictures with the characters in their Halloween costumes. This seems to take a deceivingly long time for some characters, though. Buzz Lightyear and some of the characters tucked away in odd areas of the park seemed like the shortest waits. When you wait for Minnie you also get Daisy, too, in the Storybook Circus area, but again, deceivingly long. This party is a great opportunity to meet some characters that you normally never see like Jafar and other villains, princesses with their princes, all Seven Dwarfs, or regular characters in their Halloween costumes. The rare characters generally seemed to have shorter lines with the exception of Jack Skellington from Nightmare Before Christmas which has a pretty big following and is the most Halloween-y character there, and the Seven Dwarfs.
Here's a list of characters that are supposed to be available for meeting during the party (subject to change):
Main Street U.S.A. – Mickey Mouse, Tinker Bell
Adventureland – Aladdin with Abu, Princess Jasmine, Jafar, Genie
Tarzan, Jane and Terk
Captain Jack Sparrow
Moana
Frontierland – Brer Fox and Brer Rabbit
Liberty Square – Jack Skellington and Sally
Fantasyland – Belle and Gaston
Alice, the Mad Hatter, Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum and the Queen of Hearts
Ariel & Prince Eric
Pooh, Tigger, Eeyore and Piglet
Cinderella & Princess Elena, Rapunzel and Tiana
Anastasia and Drizella
Storybook Circus – The Seven Dwarfs
Donald, Daisy and Minnie Mouse
Pirate Goofy
Cruella De Vil
Tomorrowland – Lots-o'-Huggin' Bear
Elvis Stitch
Check your map for the special PhotoPass opportunities through the Magic Kingdom, and many are magic shots, where they insert something cool to your photo, like holding a poison apple, the headless horseman, etc. These are a great memento from your time at MNSSHP! My favorite was holding the lantern in front of the Haunted Mansion.
Here's a map that denotes where everything is happening during the party:
Speciality Treats
On the specialty treat side, the Magic Kingdom has upped its game this year with many specialty treats only available during the party. The Haunted Mansion portrait tarts from 2017 were a hit with me (the haunted mansion is my favorite attraction), and I was able to find two out of the four, since they are located in different places throughout the park (Liberty Square Market, Aloha Isle, Auntie Gravity's, and Storybook Treats). This year they've been replaced with some other special items: Constance’s For Better or Worse Wedding Cake at Liberty Square Popcorn Cart, Maleficent waffle cone at Storybook Treats, Pumpkin Spice soft serve and milkshake at Auntie Gravity's, Worms & Dirt and Hades nachos at Pecos Bill's, and the Jack Skellington and Sally push pop at Cinderella Castle popcorn carts and Headless Horseman Cheesecake at Sleepy Hollow.
Boo to You Parade
This parade is not your normal parade. It's my favorite, and I wouldn't consider myself a parade person! There's just something very unique about it. The music will stay in your head for weeks (yup, still there!) and there are many unique characters, with the villains having their due at the end of the parade. Do not miss the gravediggers and the Haunted Mansion ghosts!
The parade is run twice during the party, at 9:15 PM and 11:15 PM, and if you want a really good seat, hit the later parade. This is after the fireworks, and a lot of people seem to clear out after that, giving you a better chance of a great seat with the 11:00 parade. You can view it in Frontierland or Main Street USA.
Spelltacular Stage Show
Are you a Hocus Pocus lover? Then don't miss the Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular stage show, offered several times during the party (8:30 PM, 10:45 PM, and 12:00 AM) on the Castle Stage. The dastardly Sanderson sisters are back, summoning Disney villains to help them out with a spell. The actresses are amazing and the story is fun. The last show is at midnight, and hit this one for a great spot close to the stage.
*New this year* Disney’s not so spooky spectacular
Replacing the long running Happy Hallowishes this year is Disney’s Not So Spooky Spectacular, the nighttime spectacular fireworks offered during MNSSHP at 10:15 PM. This fireworks show has a unique Jack Skellington puppet and has new projections telling the story of Mickey and friends exploring a spooky haunted house. This is also one of the only times the Magic Kingdom uses the full 180-degree perimeter fireworks! Get a spot in the Castle Hub to see Jack Skellington.
attractions
One plus of doing a hard-ticket event is short waits on attractions. If this is a major reason you are attending the party, you will be able to skip the usual long queues. You can bet many people will be hitting the E-ticket attractions like Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, Space Mountain, etc, but Haunted Mansion will probably have a longer line due to it's already appropriately matching theme and cast members done up in ghoulish makeup. If you miss the Haunted Mansion though, no worries as you'll catch a lot of your favorite animatronics coming to life in the Boo to You Parade.
This year, Disney has upped the ante by plussing a few attractions with some spooktacular effects. Mad Tea Party will have special lighting effects, Space Mountain will have a new spooky soundtrack and special effects, plus it is in complete darkness! Pirates of Caribbean welcomes live actors for funny one-liners.
Touring Plans
Plan for Hitting the Highlights and Staying the Whole Party
4pm- Enter the Magic Kingdom, get some pictures on Main Street before dark. If you have regular park tickets in addition to the party tickets, make your three FastPasses for this time before the party and get some attractions out of the way.
5pm- Eat dinner if planning on doing this at Magic Kingdom. If wanting to meet Moana, queue up now, she begins meeting at 5:45 PM.
6pm- Enter through special entrance near Tony's Town Square and get your special pictures and candy bag. If wanting to meet a special character, head to the character's location and queue up. (Can do this earlier if not eating dinner early-or even better get dinner to go and eat in the queue)
7pm- Get most desired character meets completed (Seven Dwarfs, Jack Skellington & Sally, Moana) and hit trick or treating stations. Start in Frontierland for least crowds. Most people start in Tomorrowland and head counterclockwise, so do the opposite. Watch a performance of the Cadaver Dans while in Frontierland. Could also ride Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.
8pm- Pirates of the Caribbean, Haunted Mansion, grab any specialty treats on this side of the park (Liberty Square, Frontierland, Adventureland). Hit trick or treating stations along the way and any low-wait character meets. Do your shopping for any party-exclusive merchandise.
9pm- Everyone else will be headed to the parade route. Instead, head to Fantasyland or Tomorrowland for attractions (Space Mountain and Mad Tea Party have Halloween overlays), trick or treating, and more character meets.
9:50pm- Grab spot for Happy Hallowishes.
10:15pm Happy Hallowishes Fireworks.When fireworks are complete, head to Main Street to grab spot for Boo to You Parade if you are not already there.
11:15pm Headless Horseman and Boo to You Parade
11:45pm Grab a final treat (Zero Pumpkin Waffle Sundae, anyone?) and head to Castle Stage for Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular.
12:00am Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular
Enjoy the last bit of atmosphere before heading out!
Insider Tips
There is an ebb and flow to the party. Try to time your long line characters or attractions when there is a parade or stage show going on. If you can make it this late, seeing the last parade, fireworks and stage show will allow you more time for other items.
Take some time to check out the Cadaver Dans in Frontierland. These are the Dapper Dans from Main Street, U.S.A. dressed as the ghosts from Haunted Mansion and singing a more haunting repertoire. Performances are at 7:00, 7:45, 8:30, 9:50, and 10:30 PM.
You can arrive for the party as early as 4pm with your tickets even though the party doesn't start until later. This is a great time to ride attractions while many people are exiting the park in anticipation of the party and before all the Halloween Party guests arrive.
If you have a stroller, bring it. Kids get tired out and it is helpful to have a spot to stash the candy and any costume elements that don't make it.
If you come in costume you'll really feel part of the fun. Full costumes are not required. Some of the best ones are ones you have to figure out. Also check the costume restrictions before planning your costume.
Do try to see at least one of the stage shows and the fireworks. They are unique and can't be seen any other time unlike some of the Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party entertainment that ends up in the Magic Kingdom in general around Christmas week.
Finally, Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party is fun for all ages. There's something for everyone!
And most finally, Boo to You and Happy Hallowishes!
-Mackenzie
Photos by Mackenzie Clark (The Click Chick Photography)
