"Official" 2018 Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party - A Spooktacular Celebration!

[mgellman]

My son used ear plugs but now uses noise reducing headphones. He has ADHD & Autism.

My son, who also has autism, loves the noise canceling headphones. He really likes to look at fireworks but the sounds were too disturbing without the headphones.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Could have done without the nearly hour long trek back to GF after the party (left MK around 12:20), but sometimes Disney transportation mojo just doesn’t work in your favor.

All in all, a fun evening. Arrived at 6:45ish. I was bummed by crowds at first. I usually find at a party if it’s crowded you can zig or zag and find something else to do. Early on it seemed as all options - rides, photopass, treat lines (we don’t do characters) - were painfully long at every turn. I’ve been in plenty of long treat lines in the past, but the ones we tried seemed so slow for some reason. At one point it was so congested trying to walk from Fantasyland to Liberty Square that I did let the thought of “bailing” creep in my mind.

But things loosened up closer to first parade time, it seemed. Generally speaking.

We did the Plaza Garden Dessert Party and watched the parade from the garden, which I posted above. The fireworks view was of course great and it was nice to stay seated on the fake grass. It was a relatively small crowd of Dessert Party guests. It made the dessert and viewing areas quite pleasant.

Did a lot of the dance party next to Storybook Circus with Timon, Doc, and Vamparina. DD could have stayed there all night.

I’d say we had a more “successful” party post-fireworks as it was more manageable... more rides, more treat lines.

In full disclosure, we did Disney After Hours last night so that probably had my mind twisted at the start of tonight.

Always amazed at the creativity of some of the costumes.

So overall, a good night with some ups and downs. We didn’t technically “do a lot” but that’s OK for what we want out of the party. I can appreciate how that might not work for many.

Happy to answer any questions.

 

[beaprn]

Spirits restored. Fun parade!

I don’t think my make shift strategy to watch the parade from the Plaza Garden turned out all that bad. DD on my shoulders had a great view. Only a couple of other people had the same idea. Walked up 5ish mins before the parade got there, super easy. The garden elevation is a precious few inches higher which helps.

Obviously not ideal, but good enough for us to get a parade fix in.

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I do hope there was no one behind you when you put DD on your shoulders 5 mins before the parade LOL!

 

[CampbellzSoup]

Was there tonight totally light crowd got tons of candy and saw the fireworks parade Hocus Pocus show did 7 Rides and 4 characters.

I am done my poor feet!

Edit:
Wow I’m reading the reviews...I honestly felt it was light outside Main Street. I guess not having my kiddo yet also can effect the viewpoint from an adult only view

 

[PrincessMamma4]

Yeah, I hate to join the crowded chorus too, but this is bordering on that not worth it scale to me. Sad because I love MNSSHP.

This is my 5th year of going. Can’t tell if it’s just me, the date, or what.

Still smiling though!

Which party date did u attend?

 

[Rich M]

I have noticed most of the negative reviews have been Friday night parties. Has anyone noticed the same crowd problems on the Tuesday parties

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Which party date did u attend?

I was there last night. Friday 9/21.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

I do hope there was no one behind you when you put DD on your shoulders 5 mins before the parade LOL!

Should have clarified I guess. First, I would never do that if there were people behind me. Second, this was in the Plaza Garden dessert party area which - and since it’s not really an ideal spot to watch the parade - at that point had no more than 10 people there, 5 of which were actively watching the parade (2 of which were us), the rest were lounging in the garden. There was plenty of space along the rail closest to Main Street should others have wanted to watch from there.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Some fireworks pics from the Plaza Garden Dessert Party.

I mentioned above it was relatively small numbers in the garden once fireworks time came around. Maybe 50 people? Very much a guess on my part. Lots of room to move around. Some people stood, but we stayed seated the whole time.

There was a PhotoPass photographer mulling around taking pics, which was nice.

I’ll add, while the Hub outside looked crowded, I didn’t think it looked absurdly crowded. I said this last year too but I think the dessert party at MNSSHP is more of a luxury/splurge than a major crowd avoidance technique, which is different than how I view HEA.

Time stamp is 10:09pm, which would have just been a few minutes after we sat down.






Everybody scream! Always love the 180 degree ending. The Hub (and garden area) is a good spot to be able to pan left to right and really see it all. Pic only captures a small portion of course.

 

[mckennarose]

I have noticed most of the negative reviews have been Friday night parties. Has anyone noticed the same crowd problems on the Tuesday parties

We were at the party this past Tuesday September 18, and there were crowds but not enough to ruin it for us. Granted, we were two adults without kids (our first trip to WDW without kids!) and we didn’t do any characters and very few TOT lines. We found the rides walk on between 4 and 6:30 with the exception of 7DMT which was 25 mins.

We watched the first Hocus Pocus show but it was crowded. In hindsite I would skip that show but we were passing from Tomorrowland to Frontierland so we stuck around to watch. We also ducked up to HM area before the first parade, got some magic shots and had fun watching and interacting with the ghosts when we got out of HM while the parade was going on.

We did dart to Adventureland after the parade to grab a spot in front of Crystal Palace for the fireworks.

After the fireworks we took a slow walk to Frontierland for a parade spot at about 10:40, grabbed some snacks and sat on the wooden walkway to people watch and snack until the parade started. We had front row spots for the 11:15 parade. After it passed we again went through Adventureland (including a bathroom break) and got to Main St as the parade was passing there. Then we got a spot right in front for the midnight Hocus Pocus show, which was so much better for us viewing. I will say that area was VERY crowded and mostly adults. It would’ve been too crowded for little kids, IMO.

For us, doing rides early and the shows later worked out much better. And since it was just the two of us we were able to maneuver around crowds quickly.

 

[Tigger in a kilt]

Should have clarified I guess. First, I would never do that if there were people behind me. Second, this was in the Plaza Garden dessert party area which - and since it’s not really an ideal spot to watch the parade - at that point had no more than 10 people there, 5 of which were actively watching the parade (2 of which were us), the rest were lounging in the garden. There was plenty of space along the rail closest to Main Street should others have wanted to watch from there.

I’ve never been, so I’m really struggling with understanding views. From what you said, it sounds like it is possible to see the parade from the garden. I don’t particularly care about having the greatest front-and-centre view - I would much rather be somewhere that is not too crowded. Would you recommend the party viewing area for the parade? It sounds like it could be the answer to my problem.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

I’ve never been, so I’m really struggling with understanding views. From what you said, it sounds like it is possible to see the parade from the garden. I don’t particularly care about having the greatest front-and-centre view - I would much rather be somewhere that is not too crowded. Would you recommend the party viewing area for the parade? It sounds like it could be the answer to my problem.

Recommend may be too strong a word. Did it work for impatient people like us who don’t want to wait for a better spot and don’t need to be on the curb to watch? Yes. You’re a sidewalk full of people away from Main Street so I’d keep expectations muted. When I get back I’ll put together a better summary of our timing and such.

DD has been singing Boo to You all morning, so she seemed to like the view!

 

[Tigger in a kilt]

Recommend may be too strong a word. Did it work for impatient people like us who don’t want to wait for a better spot and don’t need to be on the curb to watch? Yes. You’re a sidewalk full of people away from Main Street so I’d keep expectations muted. When I get back I’ll put together a better summary of our timing and such.

DD has been singing Boo to You all morning, so she seemed to like the view!

How cute - I’m glad she had fun!

That’s really helpful, thank you. I was having trouble picturing it, but if it is visible only through the 4-deep crowds on the sidewalk then that makes more sense to me. I will have a think about it. Enjoy the rest of your trip!

 

[Rich M]

We were at the party this past Tuesday September 18, and there were crowds but not enough to ruin it for us. Granted, we were two adults without kids (our first trip to WDW without kids!) and we didn’t do any characters and very few TOT lines. We found the rides walk on between 4 and 6:30 with the exception of 7DMT which was 25 mins.

We watched the first Hocus Pocus show but it was crowded. In hindsite I would skip that show but we were passing from Tomorrowland to Frontierland so we stuck around to watch. We also ducked up to HM area before the first parade, got some magic shots and had fun watching and interacting with the ghosts when we got out of HM while the parade was going on.

We did dart to Adventureland after the parade to grab a spot in front of Crystal Palace for the fireworks.

After the fireworks we took a slow walk to Frontierland for a parade spot at about 10:40, grabbed some snacks and sat on the wooden walkway to people watch and snack until the parade started. We had front row spots for the 11:15 parade. After it passed we again went through Adventureland (including a bathroom break) and got to Main St as the parade was passing there. Then we got a spot right in front for the midnight Hocus Pocus show, which was so much better for us viewing. I will say that area was VERY crowded and mostly adults. It would’ve been too crowded for little kids, IMO.

For us, doing rides early and the shows later worked out much better. And since it was just the two of us we were able to maneuver around crowds quickly.

Thank you for that information. We will be 3 adults so similar plans as you except maybe a few more TOT since I am bringing it back from my GS lol

 

[Kevin4321]

If you are staying at a monorail resort the night of the party, are you allowed to drive to the resort that night? If not, what time does the road close for perimeter fireworks.

 

[paopiru]

Some fireworks pics from the Plaza Garden Dessert Party


Time stamp is 10:09pm, which would have just been a few minutes after we sat down.
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Everybody scream! Always love the 180 degree ending. The Hub (and garden area) is a good spot to be able to pan left to right and really see it all. Pic only captures a small portion of course.
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It will be my first time at WDW and the fireworks look so nice! I'm excited but a bit worried about the crowds though.

 

[mckennarose]

Thank you for that information. We will be 3 adults so similar plans as you except maybe a few more TOT since I am bringing it back from my GS lol

If you do wind up in the hub for the first Hocus Pocus show and try to head toward Liberty Square and up to Fantasyland, be aware that they will have the path to Liberty Square blocked right after the bridge, as well as the path on the left side of the castle right before the 9:15 parade. We had to cut through the seating area of Sleepy Hollow and in front of HOP to get up by HM.

 

[CampbellzSoup]

I got the fireworks hocus pocus show and parade one after the other 10:15 10:45 and 11:15.

Man I really HATE when people put their phone above right in your face that has to be my only Disney pet peeve

 

[Rich M]

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If you do wind up in the hub for the first Hocus Pocus show and try to head toward Liberty Square and up to Fantasyland, be aware that they will have the path to Liberty Square blocked right after the bridge, as well as the path on the left side of the castle right before the 9:15 parade. We had to cut through the seating area of Sleepy Hollow and in front of HOP to get up by HM.

I plan to watch the last show and let the crowd die down. We are staying at the Poly so at least we won't be too far.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

I plan to watch the last show and let the crowd die down. We are staying at the Poly so at least we won't be too far.

That’s what I thought too last night and I’m at GF. Don’t be fooled by the amount of people that will still be in the park and filtering out well past midnight. It’s still a lot of people.

Last night either Disney was being cheap and not running the Express Monorail (thereby funneling everyone to the Resort Monorail) or there were mechanical problems, either way it made for very long boat and Resort Monorail lines...among the longest I have ever witnessed (approx 12:20/30ish, not exactly sure).

I chose Resort Monorail, but should have chosen Poly/GF boat despite the long line. By the time our monorail left the resort boat line was non existent. They had the big boat in service on the GF/Poly route in addition to the smaller boats which helped that line a bunch. I chose poorly.

So, my vote would be to stick around Main Street as long as you can past midnight if you can. The difference in experiences between 5-10 mins here or there is material.

Like with anything at the end of park closing, YMMV!