Today's Bonus Thread - Do You Attend After-Hours Parties at Magic Kingdom?

[josh]

Do you attend Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party or Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party? Do you recommend them to others?

From September's operating schedule, it looks like Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party is scheduled on the following dates in 2011:

Tuesday September 13th
Friday September 16th
Tuesday September 20th
Friday September 23rd
Tuesday September 27th
Friday September 30th

September 9th and 10th are Night of Joy dates, not Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Dates. Sorry about that.

 

[jilly7896]

We attended the MVMCP in 2007 and were really disappointed. I would not recommend it. I was hesitant to do the MNSSHP in Sept, but now wish that I had since I heard it was so much better than the Christmas party. Next time I guess...

 

[mousehelper]

We have done both the Mnsshp and the Mvmcp. If you are a many time visitor, and are looking for something extra to do... I can see a party being fun. Or, if you are visiting Grandma, and want to go to Disney while down there-- hey, a Party ticket is cheaper than a day ticket for the park.
They just are such a time sucker. You really should be rested when you go-- so a big day at the other parks that day isn't a smart idea. And then, the next morning, you really can't get up and get going, so you lose that Rd day. That's a big consideration for many who only have 5 full days in the parks.
For us-- we liked Mnss much more than Mvm. Really, I think you're paying for a cool parade and fireworks. And Mnss was better on both counts. And--- who doesn't like the Villains?
I would not go to Mvm again. I could be talked into Mnss. The shovels on the pavement and the HM dancers are pretty cool. Now if they would just give out a little less smarties and a little more chocolate.......

 

[4mickeyfreax]

We've done two MNSSHP's, one in 2007 and again in 2009. We thoroughly enjoyed MNSSHP, and would definitely not hesitate to do it again. We LOVED the parade, Boo to YOU, and are still talking about it! We've also done one MVMCP in 2008. We weren't so thrilled with the Christmas party.

While there was nothing "bad" about the Christmas party, I think that with all the guests dressing in costume for MNSSHP, the atmosphere of the park is different--perhaps that is why I prefer the Halloween party over the Christmas party. For some reason, we have a perceived better value of MNSSHP over MVMCP, and trust me, it wasn't about the Halloween candy.

 

[4mickeyfreax]

for us-- we liked mnss much more than mvm. Really, i think you're paying for a cool parade and fireworks. And mnss was better on both counts. And--- who doesn't like the villains?
I would not go to mvm again. I could be talked into mnss. The shovels on the pavement and the hm dancers are pretty cool. Now if they would just give out a little less smarties and a little more chocolate.......

totally!!

 

[Minnie]

We did MVMCP in 2008. It was fun and something I am glad we did once. We would love to check out MNSSHP, but we can never get to WDW in the fall with school and sports.

 

[vicki_c]

We've been to 3 Halloween parties - 2 when we lived in Florida since we could just pop over basically, 1 this past year when we went down to try and watch the space shuttle launch.

On a regular longer Disney trip, I just don't think I would spend the money. The parties are fun, but just not all that to me. When we went the first time, we had just moved to Florida and were living in an apartment and I saw it as a fun way for the kids to trick or treat. The next year, again, it just seemed like something fun to do around Halloween. This year, we only did it because we only had a 1 day Disney ticket to use on our trip (we were mainly doing the shuttle and US/IOA), so it was a cheaper way to go to the parks than buying additional tickets for a day.

For the Christmas party, I don't think I would go based on all reviews I've seen. When we went on our Christmas trip, we went during Christmas/NY week, so we were able to see most of the party stuff during the normal park day.

 

[vatmark]

We have done MNSSHP party once(2005) and MVMCP(2006) once. We probably wouldn't do the christmas party again because it was just okay but we loved the halloween party. It was the highlight of our trip. We were just in Disney this past Sept. but the party wasn't offered during the time we went. I would definitely recommend the halloween party to others.

 

[texhanddoc]

Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party is the best after hours party at Disney. We have been twice and have had an absolutely fantastic time each time. The whole "Is MNSSHP worth it?" debate will rage on and on. Your experience at these parties has a lot to do with your financial situation since the tickets for the parties are quite pricey and many believe that they have payed enough for the regular tickets. It also has to do with the particular day you choose to go as crowds can vary widely. With all of that taken into account, pound for pound, the Halloween Party is awesome!

I have been to the Xmas party twice also and have had two different experiences. One was horrible basically due to the immense crowds and the other was quite good, but still not quite Halloween Party fun levels.

Either way... if you find that you want to consider spending the money, they are both outstanding ways to spend a great evening at Disney. But, the Halloween Party really shouldnt be missed.

 

[jillyb]

We've not been to either of these yet. I think I'd go just to say I'd done it.

 

[RoonieRoo]

We went to both the MVMCP and MNSSHP the first year they did them. They were absolutely awesome that first year or so. We've done MNSSHP once or twice since that first one and, where it was fun, we couldn't stop comparing it to when they first did it and all the things they had cut out and the crowd difference.

I'm torn on if we will do MVMCP on our upcoming December trip. We also buy AP's and that makes the ticket price for the party even more annoying.

I only recommend the party to friends if 1) They aren't AP holders and 2) Disney is a rare trip for them. But even then, it's hard to recommend MVMCP for the cost and what you are getting.

Plus the selling point of being a ticketed event with smaller crowds is completely lost now since they are 1) selling so many more tickets now and 2) from reports of others not doing a good job of policing the gate crashers.

 

[Lisa]

I've never been to the Halloween party but I do want to go - especially after reading the great reviews here. I've done the Christmas party several times, and some years have been better than others. I'd probably do it again.

 

[blyday]

We have never done either. We came close to doing MVMCP during our only December trip so far but decided against it since it was DSIL's family first time going to WDW. We found that there was plenty of "free" Christmas things to do to keep us entertained. Our last night we spent over on the Poly beach to watch the party fireworks from there. A couple sitting next to us commented that they were even better from the Poly then they had been inside of the park because you get a better panoramic view of ALL of the fireworks going off over the entire park. Just wish that we had been closer to a speaker to actually hear the music!!!

Now......we have done the Halloween party at DLR but that was back before they moved it into DL park. We really enjoyed every minute of it and would LOVE to try the new party. (In fact, we even talked of squeezing out an extra trip from our Premier passes just so we could go this year!!!) Based on how much I like the DLR party, I'm quite sure that we would enjoy MNSSHP and perhaps....some day we will be there when it is on!!!

 

[texhanddoc]

Brenda,

You really need to hit the Halloween Party. Even if its for a quick weekend trip. It is well worth it. The music and the announcer for Hallowishes are awesome. You need to move one of your SWW vacations over to Halloween. I know you can do it.

 

[blyday]

Brenda,

You really need to hit the Halloween Party. Even if its for a quick weekend trip. It is well worth it. The music and the announcer for Hallowishes are awesome. You need to move one of your SWW vacations over to Halloween. I know you can do it.

You really don't know my DH....do you??? His b-day is June 10th and SWW is where he likes to celebrate it!!! I LOVES Halloween but worships SW!!!! I'm sure we will get there some time though.....we have MANY more Disney trips in our future!!!!!

 

[josh]

The Pirate and Princess Party remains my favorite, mostly because there was no one else there. The only real downside was that Jack Sparrow stole three consecutive girlfriends from me. I stopped going to his meet and greets after that. I'm right there with you guys otherwise. Disney needs to step up their Christmas Party game, though they really have no reason to because the tickets continue to sell for most dates. I'm not expecting any differences from either this year - other than the standard $2-$5 price increase.

 

[bdlily]

We've only done MNSSHP but we loved it! My favorite parts were seeing the characters in their costumes and seeing characters they don't bring out often. We saw Snow White with ALL of the dwarves and I practically hyperventilated from excitement.

 

[Brandie]

I wish I could go to MNSSHP. The only opportunity I've had to visit any of the parties was at Christmas 2008 (looks like this was a popular year to go). We were there for Christmas and, as Vicki pointed out, there were already enough festivities to participate in with my regular park ticket.

 

[Darcie]

The Pirate and Princess Party remains my favorite, mostly because there was no one else there. The only real downside was that Jack Sparrow stole three consecutive girlfriends from me. I stopped going to his meet and greets after that. I'm right there with you guys otherwise. Disney needs to step up their Christmas Party game, though they really have no reason to because the tickets continue to sell for most dates. I'm not expecting any differences from either this year - other than the standard $2-$5 price increase.

I agree, the Pirate & Princess Party was awesome!

We have also done MVMCP & I loved it. We went in November & crowds were very low - the character interaction was amazing. We saw so many characters, most with no line at all. I'm not a parade person but I loved this one. I've never been to the Halloween party so I can't compare but I would go to either of them if they worked out with our dates.

 

[Craig]

We have been to the Pirate and Princess and 2 MNSSHP's. Well worth the time and money to us. The Halloween party was outstanding. Although I would recommend going closer to Halloween when it's cooler if you can. It was a little hard to get in the Halloween spirit while sweating like a pig.