Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party 2018

Once again, our fall break took us to our home away from home.  As always, one of the highlights of our week was attending Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party.  It is our collective number one event of the year.  The boys love the rides, costumes, and trick or treating, while I am always captivated by seeing the happiest place on earth transformed into a Halloween town.

The Halloween party ticket provides entrance to Magic Kingdom as early as 4PM, although the party doesn’t officially start until 7PM.  I recommend that clients either tackle a smaller park the morning of the party (ie. anything other than Magic Kingdom) or, if their trip length permits, take the day off from the parks).  We arrived this year around 5PM and were cheesing for the Headless Horseman magic shot just a few minutes later.  (Note: I much prefer this shot at night on the way out!)

We enjoyed the fall and Halloween decorations all week long.  On party nights, it is fun to see them transform after dark with spooky music and all of the flickering lights.

Starting around 4PM, this separate path into the park will be set up for Halloween Party guests only.  I loved the Main Street vehicle and undead driver this year!

You will head down this path right past Tony’s Town Square to get your treat bag, special treats and find a few PhotoPass photographers with cute props and backgrounds.

One of the BEST parts of this year’s party was attending with a huge group, all costumed as Disney cast members.  This is 9 of us, but we had two more that we met up with a little later.  Keeping 11 together in the park was surprisingly easy, as everyone was very laid back and just went with the flow.   John, always planning and plotting, thought of the costume idea last year when we were in the park at the party.  He said “Next year I want to dress up as a Starbucks cast member so maybe I can get a free drink.”  And with that, a great idea was born!  At the time we thought it would be just the four of us, but it had such a bigger impact with 11.

Bestie M and I made all of the name tags on the cricut.

Our first order of business was not rides or candy, but to meet our people in our natural habitats.  LOL.  I met Shannon the VIP guide just outside the entrance!!  We even did the Disney point.  :-)

Disney VIP Guide Cast Member Costume: Shirt  |  Tie  |  Skirt |  Vest (made by mother with this fabric)

Little Lauren met her people – Disney security – right inside the gates.  Bestie M and I laughed and laughed when she chose to be a security guard.  She has a mind of her own.

Whit was beside himself with excitement when he met Innocent, a sanitation cast member.  And Innocent was almost in tears to meet Whit!  It was one of the sweetest moments of the night and still almost makes me cry.  Y’all probably know by now that Whit is the most tenderhearted, always rooting for the underdog, kindest, sweetest soul.  When I asked him who he wanted to dress up as, he didn’t even hesitate when he matter-of-fact said “the custodian”.  He said “it’s a super important job”, and he’s so right.

Disney Sanitation Cast Member Costume: Shirt Shorts

In fact, Whit met sanitation cast ALL over the park ALL night and received the same reaction.  Many of them exclaimed “you chose dress up as me????!!!!!”  in disbelief.  One even gathered a group together and let Whit lead the rest of the kids in our group in what they fondly called “janitor games”.  Brer Rabbit was wandering around and took part in the fun.  I have a bunch of terrible pictures because I was a little overwhelmed with this magical moment.

Moving along, John met Sienna in the Main Street Bakery (now Starbucks).  And no, he did not get a free drink.  Only a huge hug and a heartfelt smile.  <3

Starbucks Cast Member Costume: Shirt |   Apron  |  Hat Shorts

JJ’s Casey’s look-alikes, Chris and Doreene, were another group that was surprised and then overjoyed to meet him.

The same can be said for Missy’s Plaza and Confectionery gals.  Ashlee literally squealed from across the way and said “Looook!!!!  It’s us!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”  She had the best smile!

Luke chose Space Mountain for his cast member, and we met Michaela right after riding!

Space Mountain Cast Member Costume: Shirt made by bestie M on Cricut

By this point, we were united with our remaining two.  Colin met his cast member outside of the Tomorrowland Speedway.

Tomorrowland Speedway Cast Member Costume: Shirt made by bestie M on Cricut

Over in Frontierland, Matt met Sean.  And then he met another Matt.  It was especially funny when we were getting off of a different ride and the original Matt was walking by and shouted over some heads “Hey Matt!!!!”

Saralyn met Chantelle outside of Haunted Mansion!

Haunted Mansion Cast Member Costume: Shirt and Headband from ShopDisney.com

Last but not least was Honey.  His ride was shut down without a cast member in sight, so we just took his photo standing outside of the ride where he also fielded multiple questions about the ride while we watched the fireworks.  bwahahahaha

Jungle Cruise Skipper Cast Member Costume: Shirt  |  Hat purchased in Animal Kingdom  |  Shorts already owned

In addition to meeting cast members, we started off with rides in Tomorrowland and worked our way around the park.  We were able to do Buzz Lightyear, Space Mountain and  Tomorrowland Speedway before the official party start time at 7PM.  Right at 7PM we got on Mad Tea Party, which had extra spooky music and lights added for the event.

Afterwards, we ride Mine Train with about a 25 minute wait, our longest of the night.  (Posted wait time was 35 mins but, in my experience, they always move faster.)

Next was Haunted Mansion – this should be a must-do on any party night.  The Ghost Hosts are all extra spooky and Madame Carlotta (or is it Renata? I think they are sisters but cannot tell them apart) is extremely entertaining.  You can also always find a good “magic shot” out here with the PhotoPass photographers only available on party nights.

We ate at Peco’s Bill and then did Thunder Mountain and Splash Mountain.  To wrap up the rides we did this evening, we continued on to Pirates of the Caribbean and then multiple times on Aladdin’s Magic Carpets.

In between the rides, we ducked in trick or treat lines as we passed them.  You can fill up a bag in no time flat, and go back to each station as many times as you like.  They are located all over the park and it is very easy to “fit” this into your schedule for the night.  One of our favorites is located inside Mickey’s PhilharMagic, where they play old Halloween movies on the screen.

It is also worth mentioning that guests with food allergies can get a special teal treat bag.  When using this bag, cast members give you a teal token at each treat station and then you can redeem the tokens at the allergy-friendly center for special treats!

After dark the park seems to take on a life of its own, with the characters, decorations and eerie  music.

And, of course, the castle itself is transformed throughout the night as well!

Be sure to stop for the Cadaver Dans, should you find them roaming the park on party night.  They are a fabulously spooky take on the day time Dapper Dans!

If you end up in the right place at the right time, be sure to see the Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular show on the castle stage.

The Happy HalloWishes fireworks are our very favorite of the year.  They are perfectly choreographed between music, castle projections and booms and the ending is absolutely jaw dropping!  We were flying high on Aladdin’s Carpets during the fireworks this year.  Rather than trying to rush into the thick of the crowd, we opted to enjoy them from a distance.

My favorite parade of the year is hands-down Boo to You!  It is chocked full of characters in costumes, rare villains, and of course the Haunted Mansion grave diggers, ballroom dancers and hitchhiking ghosts.  We did rides during the first parade this year and all of the party-goers outside of ME were tuckered out by the second parade.  Missy volunteered to take all the kids home and Honey and I stayed for the parade.  I was so happy that he indulged me because we lucked out with the most FABULOUS viewing location right at the end of Main Street!

Another fun part of the Halloween Party are all of the fabulous PhotoPass locations, props and Magic Shots.  Be sure to stop for the photographers all over the park as many of them have a little something extra spooky up their sleeves.  All of these photos are included if you have purchased the Memory Maker as part of your vacation package.

There are tons of special and rare characters out (Jack and Sally, Seven Dwarfs, Aladdin, Tarzan, Pooh, Lotso, etc.) but all generally have an incredibly long wait.  We never use the time to meet any of them unless we happen to be dressed as them for the party.  :-)

You can also pick up a party exclusive Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom card.  My kids still enjoy playing and collecting cards, so we always make a point to get it.  This years card featured Orange Bird!

This year’s party also had a bunch of specialty treats located throughout the park.  We passed a few and all had long lines.  They look really cute!

All in all, we had a fabulous night and it was the perfect kick-off to our second favorite holiday of the year!  I heard reports of EXTREMELY crowded parties early on in the season and was very, very happy that our night was not at all crowded.  I believe this was due to extraordinarily HOT temps during the day and a rain shower late in the afternoon.  I figure both kept day of ticket sales at bay.

As an independent consultant with Glass Slipper Concierge, an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, I offer concierge travel planning for Walt Disney World® Resort, Disney Cruise LineDisneyland® Resort, Adventures by Disney®, Aulani and other delightful destinations.

 

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3 thoughts on “Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party 2018

  1. i am in hysterics over honey fielding jungle cruise Qs! hahahaha! these costumes were simply incredible! you’ve really outdone yourself!

  2. So bummed that John’s ploy for a free drink didn’t work for him! HA! Great theme for a group costume!

  3. This pregnant mama also got a little emotional about Whit meeting the sweet cast member! What a special experience for that man, and the others who work so hard, often with little recognition! He’s right, it is an important job. When I did the College Program 12 years ago one of the first things we learned is that “EVERY Cast Member is also a custodian.”

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