Every year, Walt Disney World throws a Halloween Event called Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. This party requires a separate ticket and often sells out. Whether you choose to attend in August or October, one thing is certain: you need to have a party plan!
Why do you need a Plan?
Alright, I get it. You may just want to go to the party and let the magic happen. That is totally valid. I would like to warn you, though, that many people who don’t plan walk out of the party a bit disappointed and feel as though they missed something.
There are a lot of events and opportunities, and you will have to have an idea of the timing of these events so that you don’t miss them!
Although the party doesn’t officially start until 7 pm, you can get into the park at 4 pm! I would highly recommend arriving early, grabbing a bit to eat, and hitting a few rides if that is important to you!
Mickey’s Boo-To-You Halloween Parade
Do you normally like parades? I don’t always catch the parades on normal park days, but throughout my research with my mom, we determined that we did not want to miss this parade! There are a ton of characters you don’t see at other times of the year, and it really added to the magic. Even my husband, who is more a fan of the rides than the shows, told me after that he was so glad we watched the parade.
I won’t go into too many details on the parade so I don’t spoil it, but just know that the music will likely be stuck in your head, and you will get so many great pictures!
The parade starts in Frontierland and ends by the Fire Station on Main Street USA. There are two showtimes, 8:15 pm and 11:15 pm.
The first showtime at 8:15 pm is generally more crowded than the 11:15 pm show. (A lot of families with younger kids head out after the fireworks) Florida weather is unpredictable, and the show has been cancelled before due to rain. Keep an eye on the forecast, and hit the earlier show if you don’t want to take a chance on rain, or if you think you may be a bit tired at 11:15!
If you want a good spot, try to stake out your spot a half hour or so in advance. We grabbed a snack and hunkered down. It was a great opportunity to take a beat, and regroup (and dig in to a bit of our candy!) By the time we got to Liberty Square, there weren’t many spaces near the front left! Cast members will shuffle you down the street, or towards the back, and if you have shorter folks with you, you will miss a lot of the show. Prioritize if the parade is important to you, and try to plan out your activities/rides around it so that you make your way to your chosen spot by 7:45 pm.
Disney’s Not-So-Spooky Spectacular Fireworks
The Halloween Fireworks truly were spectacular. Jack Skellington hosts the event where Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Goofy explore a haunted house and have run-ins with classic Disney Villains!
The fireworks show is roughly 12 minutes and kicks off at 10 pm. If you want the best view, make sure that you can see the castle; this is where the projections will be visible. I recommend heading to the main street area around 9:40 pm.
Rides
If you are looking to get on rides super quick with no lines, this isn’t the party for you! Wait times fluctuated throughout the night, with Tron being a 25-minute wait at times and 50 minutes at others.
If you spend your whole night on line for rides, you will miss a lot of what the party has to offer. So, if rides are your only priority, I would suggest not spending the money on this ticket.
I would pick out 4-5 rides that are important to you and focus on completing those, having any others be bonuses depending on the time you have leftover.
We wanted to experience rides that had unique experiences for the night (starting at 7 pm), including Space Mountain, which was pitch black with special background music, and the Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor that had jokes with a Halloween Twist!
Tron, Space Mountain, Tiana’s, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Haunted Mansion were our top choices. We had a bit of extra time, so we were also able to hop on the People Mover and It’s a Small World!
Trick or Treating
If you like sweets, you are in luck! There is Trick-or-Treating throughout the park, where you can collect candy. You will receive your bag near Tomorrow land after you receive your wristband and make your way into the park. After that, there are designated locations with trick or treat stations in each land. These spots are shown on the event map in the Walt Disney World app!
Have a food allergy? Check out my Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Allergy Guide here!
For some folks attending the party, this is a priority, and they want to “get their monies worth”. For others, like myself, this wasn’t as big of a priority. Keep in mind that these lines can be slow moving, and can take up a lot of your time.
Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular
This show is hosted by the Sanderson Sisters and also takes place in front of the castle! If you haven’t seen it before, I would recommend stopping by to check it out! Showtimes are at 9:05 pm, 10:35 pm, and 12:00 am.
Dance Parties and Music
There are dance parties throughout the night at multiple locations, including Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe, the Rockettower Plaza Stage, and Story Brook Circus.
There are also multiple opportunities to listen to great music! The Cadaver Dans Barbershop Quartet sings throughout the night over in Frontierland at 7 pm, 7:45 pm, and 8:45 pm.
A pirate band sings over in front of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride every hour at the 15-minute mark!
Character Meet and Greets
The Halloween Party is a great opportunity to get one-of-a-kind pictures with your favorite characters in special costumes! The lines for these meet and greet can be LONG (especially for Jack Skellington and Sally). Friends of mine have waited on line for over an hour and a half to interact with the characters and grab some pics.
If you don’t want to wait on long lines, you are in luck. Many characters wandered through the park, allowing guests to interact. We met Jack Sparrow, chatted with Mother Gothel, and more without having to wait.
Special Treats and Food Items
The party will have exclusive food and beverages that you can only get at this ticketed event! This year’s options included the Madame Leota Seance Candle and Mickey-shaped Pumpkin Cheesecake. Check out Walt Disney World’s Foodie Guide for more information!
Plan out which treats you are interested in, and the locations where they are offered, so you don’t have to backtrack all around the park.
Event-Exclusive Merch
If you want some exclusive merch, check out the Emporium! While visiting in September there were plenty of sizes available at the end of the night, so don’t stress to hard about getting a spirit jersey in your size!
PhotoPass Experience
If you have PhotoPass, you will look at the different opportunities at the Not-So-Scary Halloween Party with Halloween-themed magic. There were so many opportunities up and down Main Street, USA., around the castle, and in front of the Haunted Mansion. Many spots even had props!
Making an Itinerary
Alright, now that you know what your options are, figure out your priorities! For my family, it was easiest for us all to visualize our timeline on a single page.
Create your own for free using Canva! Below you can see my family’s (we went to Crystal Palace for Dinner, a family favorite). We wrote down the showtimes for everything we were interested in, and everyone picked the top rides they wanted to do. This kept us focused that night, and on time!
Having a plan for Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party can really enhance your experience. Scoring a prime spot for the parade, making sure you hit those unique rides, and watching the exclusive shows all require planning. Figure out what is important to you, have at least a rough idea of what is important to you, and have fun!!
Have you been to Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party before? What did you prioritize? Let me know down in the comments, and thanks for reading! 🙂