Is MVMCP worth the splurge?

[Amy M]

There is finally a MVMCP scheduled on a date that my family may be able to attend. For the last several years we have gone to my MIL’s house for Thanksgiving and have driven down to WDW for one night just to get our Disney fix. We take time to enjoy the resort, Disney Springs, and resort hopping to check out decorations. We have never had the chance to to the Christmas party, but I have always wanted to. Is the party worth the money? My husband is all about getting a good value for the money when it comes to stuff like this. He would spend the money as long as he feels like “it is worth it”. We have never felt like we have wasted money on any of our trips to Disney. Our Disney trips have all been amazing. However, I don’t personally know anyone that has been to a party, so this is new territory for me.

Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks in advance!

 

[cakebaker]

It’s not to me. I think they’re over sold and the crowd level was the worst of any day we went to the park on our last time trying it. If you’re in it just for the rides, maybe. But anything party specific had terrible, hours long lines. We used to love it, but swore off them years ago. I’m sure you’ll get opinions that say they great, but that’s not my experience, at least not anymore.

 

[dachsie]

I had a great time at it and felt it was worth it. Will totally put you in a Christmas mood. If you can afford it, I would do it to experience it at least once. Nothing like snow on Main Street

 

[kiford]

We've always enjoyed it - I think we've done it 3 or maybe 4 times. DH's greatest disappointment when we went last year between Christmas and New Year's was that MVMCP was over so he didn't get to go. I kept telling him that we were going to actually be there on Christmas so how can that feel less like the holidays just because MVMCP wasn't on but he really wanted to go. So we'll be doing it again this year in early December. I like it better now that they've expanded the usual cookies and hot chocolate offerings to a greater variety. We had a lot of fun last time going to all of the places and trying all of the different selections and picking our favourites. We stayed to the absolute end to watch the end of the night party. We were dead tired by then but the amount of stuff we got done between the fireworks and the end of night was great. We did Buzz Lightyear 3-4 times in a row and were often the only people in view on it. At one point, the three of us (we were with a friend) each took our own cars to compete with each other.

It's pricey but I think you need to do it at least once.

 

[gwynne]

We did the Christmas party last year. Loads of people, very long lines, it was one and done for us.
Have you considered going on the Wanyama Safari with your group? I think it's limited to 12, so it's a small group tour into the savannas. The animal viewing is amazing!
It's followed by a wonderful multi-course dinner at Jiko with pairings. Highly recommend!

 

[CampbellzSoup]

If you’ve never done it do it now - it’s only going up in price.

 

[Upatnoon]

1. It's generally cheaper than a 1-day ticket to MK.
2. You get free cookies and cocoa, so "dinner" is on Disney
3. You can enter the park at 4 p.m., so its really a full 8 hours in the park.
4. While the park is packed for the parades and fireworks, the ride waits are less as the evening goes on than a regular park day.
5. You don't have to watch a parade in the heat of the day, its at night and cooler.
6. It's a fun event

 

[disneydreamer781]

I would say it's worth it to do at least once. Particularly if you don't regularly go in December. I've done it twice and may consider doing it again but will probably wait a couple of years. The parties we did weren't too bad but I have heard some parties are very busy.

 

[Amy M]

Thank you for all of these wonderful replies so far. When we have gone in November in the past, it has strictly been a resort only trip. This would be the first time we will have ever seen MK (actually any of the parks) decorated for Christmas. I did notice that the price of the party is less than a 1-day ticket too, so that is a plus. We would want to do many of the rides as part of the party too. Are all of the rides open during the party?

If we do this, I am thinking that staying on the monorail would be the most convenient. Is there a resort that anyone would recommend? We have only stayed at GF for one night and that was super convenient to get to MK, but it seems like CR might be the best for leaving the park. It probably doesn’t matter though. This may come down to whichever has the best discount (and it the recent past that has been GF based on my research).

 

[mamaofsix]

For sure it's worth it if you do it the right way. This is what makes the cost a value to us:

-Get there for 4:00, not 7:00, and stay late.
-Do the party in place of a park ticket that day. When I hear of people who pay for a park ticket that day on top of the Christmas party, it seems like a waste of money to me.
-Do lots of rides (lines are mostly short!) and bring a back pack to stash extra cookies. You'll have treats for days for "free"
-Enjoy the parade, firewords and maybe a few shows, but skip the character meet and greets. Standing in line for characters for hours on end is not a good use of $100 per person, IMO.

I will echo what was said previously, that if you've never done it you should certainly do it once!

 

[mamaofsix]

Thank you for all of these wonderful replies so far. When we have gone in November in the past, it has strictly been a resort only trip. This would be the first time we will have ever seen MK (actually any of the parks) decorated for Christmas. I did notice that the price of the party is less than a 1-day ticket too, so that is a plus. We would want to do many of the rides as part of the party too. Are all of the rides open during the party?

If we do this, I am thinking that staying on the monorail would be the most convenient. Is there a resort that anyone would recommend? We have only stayed at GF for one night and that was super convenient to get to MK, but it seems like CR might be the best for leaving the park. It probably doesn’t matter though. This may come down to whichever has the best discount (and it the recent past that has been GF based on my research).

Oh, if you've never seen MK decorated for Christmas, you HAVE to go!!!

Yes, almost all of the rides are open - and have very short lines (longer waits at 7DMT and PP).

Any of the monorail resorts would be great - I like GF's decorations best at Christmas, but all of them are great choices

 

[Amy M]

For sure it's worth it if you do it the right way. This is what makes the cost a value to us:

-Get there for 4:00, not 7:00, and stay late.
-Do the party in place of a park ticket that day. When I hear of people who pay for a park ticket that day on top of the Christmas party, it seems like a waste of money to me.
-Do lots of rides (lines are mostly short!) and bring a back pack to stash extra cookies. You'll have treats for days for "free"
-Enjoy the parade, firewords and maybe a few shows, but skip the character meet and greets. Standing in line for characters for hours on end is not a good use of $100 per person, IMO.

I will echo what was said previously, that if you've never done it you should certainly do it once!

You make some excellent points. This would only be a party day for us, so that is where I am seeing value in these tickets. I didn’t think about bringing a backpack for extra snacks...I will definitely have to remember that! Are the main snacks cookies? They don’t have Mickey ice cream bars included do they???

 

[Amy M]

Oh, if you've never seen MK decorated for Christmas, you HAVE to go!!!

Yes, almost all of the rides are open - and have very short lines (longer waits at 7DMT and PP).

Any of the monorail resorts would be great - I like GF's decorations best at Christmas, but all of them are great choices

Seeing the park decorated for Christmas is one of the biggest reasons I want to do this (and the rides of course). I am also thinking about making this a surprise for my girls. I don’t know if I will be able to keep that secret though. We love talking about Disney!!!!

 

[mamaofsix]

You make some excellent points. This would only be a party day for us, so that is where I am seeing value in these tickets. I didn’t think about bringing a backpack for extra snacks...I will definitely have to remember that! Are the main snacks cookies? They don’t have Mickey ice cream bars included do they???

Well, they didn't have Mickey ice cream bars last year, but they did have snow cones included Last year, there were:
-Snowcones
-Snowman soft pretzels
-Dove Chocolates
-TONS of cookie varieties (candy cane, snickerdoodle, ginger molasses, sugar, chocolate chip, etc.)
-Lots of free beverages (Hot Chocolate, Cold Apple Cider, Fanta, Eggnog)

There will be a map to find the different free snacks. Snack lines look long, but don't be deceived - they move really quickly because there is no monetary exchange involved

 

[Amy M]

Well, they didn't have Mickey ice cream bars last year, but they did have snow cones included Last year, there were:
-Snowcones
-Snowman soft pretzels
-Dove Chocolates
-TONS of cookie varieties (candy cane, snickerdoodle, ginger molasses, sugar, chocolate chip, etc.)
-Lots of free beverages (Hot Chocolate, Cold Apple Cider, Fanta, Eggnog)

There will be a map to find the different free snacks. Snack lines look long, but don't be deceived - they move really quickly because there is no monetary exchange involved

Good to know about the snack lines!

 

[Amy M]

Does anyone know about how far in advance I should purchase tickets? I assume they are non refundable.

 

[Shughart]

Dates do sell out, but I think you have time before that happens. For historical data on that and more information on MVMCP, come join us here! https://www.disboards.com/threads/o...arty-oh-so-jolly-holiday-celebration.3729624/

 

[dachsie]

Thank you for all of these wonderful replies so far. When we have gone in November in the past, it has strictly been a resort only trip. This would be the first time we will have ever seen MK (actually any of the parks) decorated for Christmas. I did notice that the price of the party is less than a 1-day ticket too, so that is a plus. We would want to do many of the rides as part of the party too. Are all of the rides open during the party?

If we do this, I am thinking that staying on the monorail would be the most convenient. Is there a resort that anyone would recommend? We have only stayed at GF for one night and that was super convenient to get to MK, but it seems like CR might be the best for leaving the park. It probably doesn’t matter though. This may come down to whichever has the best discount (and it the recent past that has been GF based on my research).

Most every ride was open except CoP and some of the shows

 

[Ensusieasm]

There is finally a MVMCP scheduled on a date that my family may be able to attend. For the last several years we have gone to my MIL’s house for Thanksgiving and have driven down to WDW for one night just to get our Disney fix. We take time to enjoy the resort, Disney Springs, and resort hopping to check out decorations. We have never had the chance to to the Christmas party, but I have always wanted to. Is the party worth the money? My husband is all about getting a good value for the money when it comes to stuff like this. He would spend the money as long as he feels like “it is worth it”. We have never felt like we have wasted money on any of our trips to Disney. Our Disney trips have all been amazing. However, I don’t personally know anyone that has been to a party, so this is new territory for me.

Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks in advance!

Their are a few reasons a party ticket is more valuable for you than others.
#1 You are getting a party ticket instead of a more expensive one day ticket.
If you were getting a multi day ticket, the value would be different. I have an annual pass, so for me there is not the same value as for you.

 

[tinkerhon]

This was a "must do" for us for around 10-12 years ago - crowds were lower, and they used to give out pins and take family photos that they used to mail and they were always waiting for us once we got home - then they stopped doing both and we had the kids, and despite the fact that we relaxed during the day and went to the party at night, the kids still got tired before the party ended ! Wasn't worth it anymore - at least for us