**Disney After Hours - Magic Kingdom** FAQ & Discussion Thread

[Mrjoshua]

To anyone going to VAH, I'd prioritize what you want to do. If your plans include Space Mountain or Pirates, I would line up for one of those (separate line for Pirates, FP line for Space) about 10 minutes prior to party time. I would work your way across the park, stopping to hit the attractions (rides, food, Magic Shots) you like during the party. Hopefully, you'll be over at the other overlay ride sometime between 11pm and 12am-ish, as the overlay rides have had shorter waits mid event. I would definitely attend the 1am stage show, and the Maleficent prowl immediately afterward, as doing so will not cost you any ride or attraction time. Neither requires much effort to get a good viewing spot.

 

[KangaFan]

It makes me sad and angry to read these recent poor reviews of VAH. We already have tickets for 8/8, but I wouldn't have bought them if I had seen these reviews first. 8/8 is our last night in the parks, so if we end up having a bad experience and need to complain about lines, crowds, etc., is guest services open during the event or will I have to wait until the next day? It won't do me much good to get extra FPs though because we are only planning to be in MK for lunch and then heading out.

We also have tickets for the 8th for our party of 10 and have just one park day after the event. If our night is like this, I may see you in line at guest services since its sounds like this event was not properly staffed. I'm really hoping there were enough complaints that Disney does something to improve the experience for the last two events.

 

[mydisneykids]

Can I ask what peoples thought are on this?
We went last summer and there were no lines for anything. We walked on every ride. We had such a good time that when 2 of my kids had to head home mid week my daughter that stayed with me and I did it again.
Is the change because it is the Villains? I understand they are selling more tickets but are more people going because of of the villain theming?
I was hoping to buy tickets for a date in Sept. It will just be the regular after hours by then, does anything think it will go back to the regular attendance?

 

[Haley R]

Can I ask what peoples thought are on this?
We went last summer and there were no lines for anything. We walked on every ride. We had such a good time that when 2 of my kids had to head home mid week my daughter that stayed with me and I did it again.
Is the change because it is the Villains? I understand they are selling more tickets but are more people going because of of the villain theming?
I was hoping to buy tickets for a date in Sept. It will just be the regular after hours by then, does anything think it will go back to the regular attendance?

There are tons of reviews if you just go back a few pages. I think the first page might have a list of reviews also. They are definitely selling more tickets to this event and you can tell when you get there. If you go in with the mindset that it’s not going to be an empty park like dah than you should be okay. Just don’t expect to ride everything nonstop.

I’m hoping the regular dah will go back to normal in terms of crowds

 

[Martini35]

We are going on the 8th as well but have low expectations. Hoping with the late hours on the 7th maybe it won't be as crowded?

 

[disneycat321]

Can I ask what peoples thought are on this?
We went last summer and there were no lines for anything. We walked on every ride. We had such a good time that when 2 of my kids had to head home mid week my daughter that stayed with me and I did it again.
Is the change because it is the Villains? I understand they are selling more tickets but are more people going because of of the villain theming?
I was hoping to buy tickets for a date in Sept. It will just be the regular after hours by then, does anything think it will go back to the regular attendance?

I don’t think DAH like this exists anymore. We did all 3 events this week, and VAH was by far the most crowded, but at AK and HS there were still lines for the headliners, though much smaller than normal. We did walk on EE at AK and almost walked on TSM, but the other headliners were not true walk ons. I think the after hour events have just gotten more popular or something, and villains is...villains, I guess. We still had fun at them, but we’ve never attended any others. If you’re comparing them to early events, you may be disappointed.

 

[preemiemama]

It makes me sad and angry to read these recent poor reviews of VAH. We already have tickets for 8/8, but I wouldn't have bought them if I had seen these reviews first. 8/8 is our last night in the parks, so if we end up having a bad experience and need to complain about lines, crowds, etc., is guest services open during the event or will I have to wait until the next day? It won't do me much good to get extra FPs though because we are only planning to be in MK for lunch and then heading out.

Personally, I would probably complain the following day. Guest Relations is probably open during the event, but you might have a more even temper/better perspective the following day.

 

[disneycat321]

We attended VAH last night after doing DAH at AK and HS earlier in the week. Of the three, HS was my favorite. VAH was by far the most crowded. That’s probably because it’s not an after hours event; it’s a villains event. We had fun, but we are DLR people who make our way over to WDW every few years, so we go big when we do. I am not into villains, and to be honest I found the whole theme in the hub a little disconcerting - it just didn’t FEEL right... like MK/DL should. I didn’t expect to feel like that about it. I guess I am just not the target audience.

Some info from our experience:
- We waited 20 for SM at 12 with a posted wait of 35. It was a cool experience and I’m glad we tried it.
- We only waited 15 for pirates because we got in line 5 or so min before park close, following suggestions here.
- We waited 20 for BTMRR (which was posted) because we wanted to ride after dark. Splash was a walk on but posted as 20. People Mover, Dumbo, Barnstormer, and Buzz (end of night) were walk ons.
- We had zero trouble with the snack carts. There were tons more than at AK or HS, and I loved being able to get fresh popcorn so many places! The lines moved very fast.
- The stage show was cool I guess, but mostly if you like villains. I did appreciate the castle projections. The Maleficent dragon was very cool.

All in all, I think the event is good for people who must try all Disney events, people like us who only visit every few years and want to try all the things while they’re there, and people who love villains. If you’re wanting a regular DAH for rides, I’d skip it.

We don’t regret attending and definitely had fun, but I wouldn’t do it again.

 

[Rera2528]

Our family has done DAH in early March for the past three years, and we are doing our first August trip this year. We have been planning to go on 8/8, but we have hesitated to buy tickets based on mixed reviews (although the ones from last week made me think we would be ok and I meant to buy but forgot). Based on the reviews from 7/25, we are still waiting. We want to see reviews from 8/1, with the understanding that if it sells out in between now and then, then that's that. We have absolutely loved DAH, and everyone on here has been wonderful about tempering my expectations not to try to equate the experiences. But man, that's a lot of money for a mediocre time!

 

[maui2k5]

Our family has done DAH in early March for the past three years, and we are doing our first August trip this year. We have been planning to go on 8/8, but we have hesitated to buy tickets based on mixed reviews (although the ones from last week made me think we would be ok and I meant to buy but forgot). Based on the reviews from 7/25, we are still waiting. We want to see reviews from 8/1, with the understanding that if it sells out in between now and then, then that's that. We have absolutely loved DAH, and everyone on here has been wonderful about tempering my expectations not to try to equate the experiences. But man, that's a lot of money for a mediocre time!

We are in the same boat looking at the 8/8 for the 4 of us which is nearly $600. The middling reviews make us continue to hold off on tickets. Then again if the reviews are good next week would that prompt hold outs like us to fill up the 8th???

 

[Rera2528]

We are in the same boat looking at the 8/8 for the 4 of us which is nearly $600. The middling reviews make us continue to hold off on tickets. Then again if the reviews are good next week would that prompt hold outs like us to fill up the 8th???

Our alternate plan is the H2O Glow Night. We were going to do it on Saturday (again, holding off with tickets, but this is to get closer on weather), but we may just go ahead with it on Thursday.

We all have continued to talk about it, and to quote the 12 year old, "it would be awful to ruin our memories of amazing DAH nights with an awful experience for VAH." So we are much more on the "no" end. But if the reviews next week are amazing, we're likely buying (with the masses I think/fear).

 

[elle101me]

I am also waiting to see how 8/1 goes before deciding on 8/8. I keep changing my mind.

 

[123SA]

I have tickets for both 8/1 and 8/8. We did regular DAH last summer twice and had a great time

If I go on 8/1 and have the same over crowded experience noted for last night, do you think I can talk guest services into giving me a refund for 8/8?

 

[maui2k5]

I have tickets for both 8/1 and 8/8. We did regular DAH last summer twice and had a great time

If I go on 8/1 and have the same over crowded experience noted for last night, do you think I can talk guest services into giving me a refund for 8/8?

If you make a strong enough case they might... I hope it does not come down to that for you.

 

[cindyfan]

I think the fact that the parks are closing earlier (I've rarely experienced a 10 pm closing in MK in all the summers I've been there as was the norm this past trip) and there are less "free" EMHs (one pm in MK for the whole week we were there) is enticing people to buy into these events more. Especially since they are marketed as low waits like many of us remember from "the good old days"...

I remember the good old days when there were "E-ticket" nights!! It would cost $10/person and the park stayed open an extra 3 hours.... sometimes until 2am!!!
It would be so awesome, riding everything multiple times without even getting off the ride!
Things have changed so very much in these last few years!

 

[maui2k5]

I remember the good old days when there were "E-ticket" nights!! It would cost $10/person and the park stayed open an extra 3 hours.... sometimes until 2am!!!
It would be so awesome, riding everything multiple times without even getting off the ride!
Things have changed so very much in these last few years!

Ah the good old days... Things truly were more enjoyable in many ways 20 years ago visiting WDW now.

 

[provoaggie]

I don’t think DAH like this exists anymore. We did all 3 events this week, and VAH was by far the most crowded, but at AK and HS there were still lines for the headliners, though much smaller than normal. We did walk on EE at AK and almost walked on TSM, but the other headliners were not true walk ons. I think the after hour events have just gotten more popular or something, and villains is...villains, I guess. We still had fun at them, but we’ve never attended any others. If you’re comparing them to early events, you may be disappointed.

It's harder with the smaller parks because there is less to do but when we did Animal Kingdom 2 weeks ago the park was pretty much dead. We waited 20 minutes for Flight of Passage but outside of that we walked right onto every single ride in the park. I never waited in line for a drink or snack and I have several pictures walking around the park where we never saw another person. It was amazing and if VAH would have had 2-3x as many people then I probably would have been okay. Instead it felt like a day in the park. We didn't want right on to anything and getting around was crazy because walkways were packed and the snack stations all had lines.

 

[disneycat321]

It's harder with the smaller parks because there is less to do but when we did Animal Kingdom 2 weeks ago the park was pretty much dead. We waited 20 minutes for Flight of Passage but outside of that we walked right onto every single ride in the park. I never waited in line for a drink or snack and I have several pictures walking around the park where we never saw another person. It was amazing and if VAH would have had 2-3x as many people then I probably would have been okay. Instead it felt like a day in the park. We didn't want right on to anything and getting around was crazy because walkways were packed and the snack stations all had lines.

That’s definitely true. Our DAH at AK was great, but not totally empty. No complaints about that one at all. I’d say VAH felt like what maybe I wish a day in the park was and maybe even what it used to be, but we’ve been a little stunned by the massive crowds at MK this trip in general. Our last trip was 6 years ago and admittedly was in May so probably a lower crowd time, but it was nothing like this. We’re very used to crowds because our home park, DLR, is always pretty crowded, but the crazy wait times here have been pretty shocking. We were especially surprised by the crowds at the 11pm-1am EMH this week. I guess Disney doesn’t need to make these AH events so uncrowded because they’ll always be better than all other times by comparison...?

 

[preemiemama]

That’s definitely true. Our DAH at AK was great, but not totally empty. No complaints about that one at all. I’d say VAH felt like what maybe I wish a day in the park was and maybe even what it used to be, but we’ve been a little stunned by the massive crowds at MK this trip in general. Our last trip was 6 years ago and admittedly was in May so probably a lower crowd time, but it was nothing like this. We’re very used to crowds because our home park, DLR, is always pretty crowded, but the crazy wait times here have been pretty shocking. We were especially surprised by the crowds at the 11pm-1am EMH this week. I guess Disney doesn’t need to make these AH events so uncrowded because they’ll always be better than all other times by comparison...?

I agree- MK seemed to be the most crowded of the parks while we were there. We have always gone in the summer for our trips- from 2005 through this year we've taken 9 different trips- I've never seen an EMH as crowded as the one we encountered that week. BUT, it was the only "free" one in the pm at MK that week. It was so crowded and difficult to do things that we actually left by 11:30, and we've been in the parks several times for 4th of July week. As I said earlier, I think the lack of typical summer hours, less "free" EMH, and more DAH events has been negatively affecting things. I would also agree with the PP who said staffing was an issue as well- I think this is true for VAH as well as regular park operations.

 

[maui2k5]

I agree- MK seemed to be the most crowded of the parks while we were there. We have always gone in the summer for our trips- from 2005 through this year we've taken 9 different trips- I've never seen an EMH as crowded as the one we encountered that week. BUT, it was the only "free" one in the pm at MK that week. It was so crowded and difficult to do things that we actually left by 11:30, and we've been in the parks several times for 4th of July week. As I said earlier, I think the lack of typical summer hours, less "free" EMH, and more DAH events has been negatively affecting things. I would also agree with the PP who said staffing was an issue as well- I think this is true for VAH as well as regular park operations.

I think opening up EMH to several of the Disney Springs hotels has ballooned the number of people that can stick around which inflates the crowds. Disney is making it so the only way you can experience the parks with reasonable crowds is to pay fo the extra events.