Another One-Day Wonder (Halloween Party Sept 2018 complete)

Tickets to Mickey's Halloween Party bought for September 24th!! :) I got on about 7 AM this morning (west coast time) and they site was working just fine. I bought the two tickets in two different transactions, since we used the gift card for one, and my regular card for another. But they are both already linked in my Disney App, and it makes me very happy to look at it and see them there! :)

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Woohoo! It's always a great feeling when you have tickets purchased. It makes it feel more real!
 
Tickets to Mickey's Halloween Party bought for September 24th!! :)...

Woot! Now for some tips: start checking the forecast the week before your party, but expect the weather to be pretty warm. There is a chance the fireworks will get cancelled (last year was a bad MHP season for this -- fireworks got cancelled a lot, it seemed), so have a Plan B ready to go as soon as you hear the dreaded, "Due to winds at higher elevations..." announcement. You'll be off and running to be first in line for something while everyone else is still stunned and groaning. And keep watching here for reviews of the first party! The info gleaned there will be very helpful for making the most of your time at your party (e.g. locations of things -- especially if anything has been moved around, new attractions or decorations, fun extras, etc.). This is going to be so much fun!
 
Woohoo! It's always a great feeling when you have tickets purchased. It makes it feel more real!

I open the app at least once a day, just so I can see those tickets sitting there! It improves my mood immediately!

Woot! Now for some tips: start checking the forecast the week before your party, but expect the weather to be pretty warm. There is a chance the fireworks will get cancelled (last year was a bad MHP season for this -- fireworks got cancelled a lot, it seemed), so have a Plan B ready to go as soon as you hear the dreaded, "Due to winds at higher elevations..." announcement. You'll be off and running to be first in line for something while everyone else is still stunned and groaning. And keep watching here for reviews of the first party! The info gleaned there will be very helpful for making the most of your time at your party (e.g. locations of things -- especially if anything has been moved around, new attractions or decorations, fun extras, etc.). This is going to be so much fun!

Right? My last October trip we were park hopping all day and it hit like 102º or something equally ridiculous, plus, living in the Phoenix area, we know heat. :) We'll probably wear shorts and t-shirts, and bring leggings and long-sleeves we can layer with after dark if needed. And have light jackets and pants picked out in case it happens to randomly be a cool weekend. (Which would be awesome!) I'll definitely be stalking the party reports from the week before! And we'll consider fireworks a bonus if they happen!
 
I'm so excited for you and Jaina! Your trip sounds wonderful!

I love the pics of your daughter when she was younger. So cute! And the pic of you and your dad!
 


I'm so excited for you and Jaina! Your trip sounds wonderful!

I love the pics of your daughter when she was younger. So cute! And the pic of you and your dad!

Thanks! I thought I responded to this earlier when you posted it, but DIS loves to make me hit "Post Reply" twice before it actually goes through about half the time...

This sounds like so much fun to plan! Can't wait to hear how it goes!
We are getting so excited, even though it's still 2 months+ away! :)
 
So, our t-shirt plans are gone, because when we were at the Disney Store outlet the other day, we found this Rey costume for $10, plus I had a 25% discount that day. It is a size too small (a 7/8) but we tried it on and it mostly fits and was comfortable. DD wanted to be Rey last Halloween and we couldn't ever find a costume for a good price. She is super excited, and I just got my BB-8 shirt from Amazon. (It was $20 last time I was considering it, and was down to $8.95!) I will work on a hat to complete my "costume."

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I am happy that she found something she likes, because although I was excited to avoid costumes when we were touring somewhat-hardcore, and it might be very warm, I didn't want her to be disappointed that there were so many amazing costumes there and that she wasn't even dressed up. So yay for continuing plans! We haven't changed our hotel yet though, haha, so that's feeling pretty settled!
 


Woot! And score (!!) big time on the sale prices! :) You both are going to have so much fun. Make sure to post your party photos when you get back home! (And you will have to do the TOT trail in Launch Bay and the M&Gs!)
 
We will be at the same Halloween Party too! It will be our first experience of a Disneyland Halloween party. Because Halloween isn’t really celebrated here in Australia we are super excited!
 
Woot! And score (!!) big time on the sale prices! :) You both are going to have so much fun. Make sure to post your party photos when you get back home! (And you will have to do the TOT trail in Launch Bay and the M&Gs!)
I will definitely have to try to make that happen. Those would be some fun pictures if the lines are shortish at some point!

The Disney Outlet is one of my most favorite places :) What an awesome find!!
I love it too. Sometimes when I'm feeling itchy I like to just walk around in there and see if I can find any awesome deals. The regular Disney Stores are good too (there are 2 others in this area I think) but just smaller, and there are good deals less often.

What a cute costume! Glad it's going to work for her and your t-shirt is adorable!
Thank you!

We will be at the same Halloween Party too! It will be our first experience of a Disneyland Halloween party. Because Halloween isn’t really celebrated here in Australia we are super excited!
Yay! Have you figured out if you're going in any kind of costumes?
 
We're just over 7 weeks out, woohoo! Excited for that day when I can see "my" day on the Disneyland calendar with the Daily Events Schedule. Mostly interested in what might be down, but there's no telling for sure right now. The Matterhorn might be down, which would honestly be just fine with me... But I can't recall ever riding it at night, so I guess that would be fun. It's so rough though. :P

At this point our plans are to hopefully check into our hotel (even if our room isn't ready) around noon and then walk over into Downtown Disney. I think we just walk down Disneyland Dr and then take a left and a right after Paradise Pier. I need to figure out if we'll have any luck cutting through the Grand as we exit at the end of the night. I need to look into that. We are trying to decide if we want to walk, take a Uber, or take the ART. Walking is simplest, obviously, but not if it's going to be a grand trek and we're already tired. I don't think they'd let us in the Grand that time of night without a key card though, so... We might check out some of the hotels on our way, depending on our mood. Check out what shops are there at that point, World of Disney, etc. Get our "window shopping" in before our actual park time starts.

Hoping to be in line at CA by 2:15-2:30. Still trying to pin down our strategy when we get in around 3-3:15.

In other news, I made two great finds costume-wise this week. This cute BB-8 lanyard at Barnes & Noble, and this shoulder bag, which is what I was looking for (nice wide adjustable strap, mostly fabric, and doesn't clash with my outfit like my normal parks bag, which is a weird salmon pink, but oh so useful!) at Goodwill for $2! It washed up just fine.
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(pic of the offensively-colored AE bag)
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Getting so excited!!
 
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At this point our plans are to hopefully check into our hotel (even if our room isn't ready) around noon and then walk over into Downtown Disney. I think we just walk down Disneyland Dr and then take a left and a right after Paradise Pier. I need to figure out if we'll have any luck cutting through the Grand as we exit at the end of the night. I need to look into that. We are trying to decide if we want to walk, take a Uber, or take the ART. Walking is simplest, obviously, but not if it's going to be a grand trek and we're already tired. I don't think they'd let us in the Grand that time of night without a key card though, so...

Hoping to be in line at CA by 2:15-2:30. Still trying to pin down our strategy when we get in around 3-3:15...

If you will be going on Disneyland Dr. to get to DTD, you'll have at least two choices (depending on the construction, which is still pending, pending, pending...):
1. Cross at Magic Way, then enter the path (right on that corner) to M&F, go through bag check there (usually very quick and in the shade), and take the tram to DTD. If it's really hot that afternoon, this might be a good option.
2. If construction on the western end of DTD has already begun (basically anything west of the monorail track will be demolished at some point), then you can walk to the parking lot just past the PPH (the lot behind the AMC building) to what will be the new bag check there (should be by the monorail track and the back of the Lego Store). You'll be able to enter DTD from there. (Disclaimer: this bag check hasn't opened as of today, so check back before your trip to see if it is open to you by then.)

After the party, you should have no problem exiting through the GCH to Disneyland Dr. That is totally allowed. If you do this, enjoy some time in the lobby and take some photos before heading back to your hotel!

Don't be alarmed if the lines for DCA appear really long when you arrive. Sometimes the lines can look a bit scary when the early party hours start because lots of MHP guests park hop right off the bat. The lines will move, so hang in there! (And if Oogie is decorating the DCA front entrance again this year, listen up! He talks!)
 
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If you will be going on Disneyland Dr. to get to DTD, you'll have at least two choices (depending on the construction, which is still pending, pending, pending...):
1. Cross at Magic Way, then enter the path (right on that corner) to M&F, go through bag check there (usually very quick and in the shade), and take the tram to DTD. If it's really hot that afternoon, this might be a good option.
2. If construction on the western end of DTD has already begun (basically anything west of the monorail track will be demolished at some point), then you can walk to the parking lot just past the PPH (the lot behind the AMC building) to what will be the new bag check there (should be by the monorail track and the back of the Lego Store). You'll be able to enter DTD from there. (Disclaimer: this bag check hasn't opened as of today, so check back before your trip to see if it is open to you by then.)

After the party, you should have no problem exiting through the GCH to Disneyland Dr. That is totally allowed. If you do this, enjoy some time in the lobby and take some photos before heading back to your hotel!

Don't be alarmed if the lines for DCA appear really long when you arrive. Sometimes the lines can look a bit scary when the early party hours start because lots of MHP guests park hop right off the bat. The lines will move, so hang in there! (And if Oogie is decorating the DCA front entrance again this year, listen up! He talks!)

Thanks for all the great advice!! We will be staying on Katella, basically back behind PPH, so we will definitely use the parking lot entrance. That is such good news to hear we can probably exit through the GC! That would significantly shorten our walk time!
 
Thanks for all the great advice!! We will be staying on Katella, basically back behind PPH, so we will definitely use the parking lot entrance. That is such good news to hear we can probably exit through the GC! That would significantly shorten our walk time!

Just double check to make sure which bag check is open at the time of your visit. The DTD construction/demolition has been significantly delayed, so either the DLH bag check (by ESPN Zone/Earl of Sandwich) will still be open -- it still is open now -- or the new bag check behind the Lego Store/monorail track will be in use.
 
Just a few more days until our day (the 24th) is "live" on the Disneyland calendar. So excited! The operating hours don't matter, obviously, but I'm curious to see what will be down. It's looking like probably just the Matterhorn. And Downtown Disney may be a little torn up, obviously. I heard some really interesting thoughts on why the construction hasn't started yet on a Disney podcast.
In other-life news and travel, I am super excited because in 2 weeks I am going to Hawaii!! My parents are on a mission for our church there for 18 months (they left in February and I miss them a lot!) and I am going with my brother/SIL and sister/BIL for a week. My amazing, sacrificing husband bought me the ticket for Mother's Day and our anniversary in May, and he is taking on all the 5-kids responsibility plus trying to work some while I'm gone. My parents are in Laie City, working at the Polynesian Cultural Center, so we will mostly be there. My dad has mentioned several times going over to Aulani to check it out and maybe eat, and I'm excited about that. I definitely never thought I'd go there (I've never even been to Hawaii) so that's pretty cool! I'm super excited for a vacation, (with no kids, though I'll miss my husband!) and to see Hawaii and Aulani and snorkel and hike and do the catamaran, etc!!
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How wonderful that you get to visit your parents! And super bonus that they're in Hawaii!

I heard some really interesting thoughts on why the construction hasn't started yet on a Disney podcast.
So, what did you hear? :)
 

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