by Cruisin’ Diva
I bet you can’t guess our theme for costumes?!?! We have attended Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party (MNSSHP) many times in years past. We have always gone in the month of September, and this year was no exception. We love traveling to Walt Disney World at this time of year because of the low crowds, but here’s a few things I’ve noticed over the years past. Prior to the new Fantasyland, which was formerly known as Toontown, we experienced very low wait times on rides and candy stops. During the re-imagining of Fantasyland, Magic Kingdom was much more crowded and had very high wait times on every ride and candy stop. Now that Fantasyland has been completed, we noticed low wait times on rides and high wait times on the candy stops. After we passed the first candy stop, we opted out of candy altogether this year and went straight for the rides. Every ride seemed to be 10 minute or less wait, including Space Mountain, which was one of our first rides of the night. The exceptions were Peter Pan, and we waited around 20 minutes for that, but this was the first time for us to see the new queue line and it was well worth the wait, and Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, which was about 45 minutes so we decided to skip it. Here’s a couple of tips that my family recommends if your are going to attend MNSSHP.
- Go in September, on a weeknight. We have found this to be optimal time to visit this event. The weekends in September are still very crowded due to locals visiting and that’s also the case for the party. More locals will attend Friday night more than they will a school night.
- Try to make Hallowishes, the Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular, and the Boo To You Halloween Parade. Hallowishes only happens once per party night at 10:15 pm. The Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular happens on the stage in front of the castle at 8:00 pm, 9:15 pm, 10:40 pm and midnight. The Boo To You Halloween Parade (my personal favorite parade of all time) is held twice during each party, 8:30 pm and 11:15 pm. One thing that is fantastic to see is the Headless Horseman who opens up the parade. We were not able to see him because of the wet pavement and that wasn’t safe for the horse. It really sets the tone for the parade and is my all time favorite thing to see. We have found two spots to be optimal for viewing. Of course, any spot is great, and if you can get to any spot early enough, and want to wait, feel free to grab you a front row seat along the route. Unfortunately, we are usually last minute to the parade, but have found that Frontierland, where the parade starts, by Splash Mountain, was excellent. The other place we found was by Sleepy Hollow (nice pun for the Headless Horseman) in Liberty Square. The spot we actually grabbed this time was right down from Sleepy Hollow next to the castle. The twins had front row seats and it was amazing!
- If you can, or want to dress up, do it! This was the first year we ever decided to dress up as a family and are so glad we did! In prior years, we allowed the boys to put on their costumes, but we always felt we were missing something! So this year, everything changed and it was epic. If you do decide to put on your costume, make sure to follow Disney’s guidelines here. Keep in mind that this is Florida and it is still HOT in September and October, so when choosing a costume, make sure you are comfortable.
- Have fun. We had a amazing time riding rides we weren’t able to ride the previous day due to wait times. Take advantage of that!
- Remember, this is an special ticketed event, and your theme park tickets will not be able to grant you admission. Check out ticket prices here! (They are well worth it!!)
Here is the Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular:
Here is Hallowishes:
If rare characters are on your list, check out Soarin Diva’s article here! If you are not sure to theme your costumes or not, check out Dressup Diva’s article here! If you’re ready to book your vacation and have a Spelltacular good time, please check out Patricia Payne from All For Dreams Travel here.
Happy Halloween!!
I hope it isn’t weird to comment on a 2 year old post but I’m hoping you can help me with a question. We will be attending our first MNSSHP in a few weeks and have decided to dress up in the exact same theme your family did. My 12 year old son will be dressing as Kyle Ren and we have a mask similar to the one in your picture that goes with his costume. Was your son able to wear the mask into the park? I’ve read the costume guidelines and it does say no masks that cover the eyes for guests under the age of 14 but if your son was allowed to wear it, then maybe we would try to take it and see if they allow it. Thanks!
Thank you for reading our post and we hope your family enjoys the party! Cruisin’ Diva no longer writes for the site but you are correct. Following Disney’s costume guidelines found here:https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/events-tours/magic-kingdom/mickeys-not-so-scary-halloween-party/#/drawer=drawerDressedOccasion
GUESTS AGES 13 AND UNDER
Costumes and some masks may be worn, as long as the mask does not cover the entire face and eyes are visible.