5 Tips for Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party

I recently attended Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party at Magic Kingdom in Disney World and it was an amazing experience!  In this blog I’m sharing 5 Tips for Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party.

*Cue Spooky Music Playing*

What is Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party (MNSSHP) ?

MNSSHP is an after hours ticketed event at Magic Kingdom in Disney World that is Halloween themed.  Fear not, as the Boo To You Parade sings, “It’s really not-so scary”, and it’s true!

The party is meant to be a fun and lighthearted take on Halloween.

The event starts at 7pm and runs until midnight on select nights starting in August running through Halloween night.  Ticket holders can get into Magic Kingdom starting at 4pm on party nights.  Non-ticketed guests will be asked to exit the park by 6pm, so be mindful of this when planning out your full trip schedule if not attending the event.

With your MNSSHP ticket you get:

1. Entry to Magic Kingdom Park with lower crowds (and attractions wait times)
2. Exclusive Halloween themed shows, parade and fireworks
3. Exclusive Character Meets like Jack & Sally, Vampire Mickey and more!
4. Trick or Treat stations throughout the park
5. Unique Halloween Sips + Bites and party only merchandise
6. Ride overlays and park decor
7. Exclusive Magic Shots with Memory Maker, just ask a Photo Pass Photographer

Need tickets?  I can help, get a MNSSHP ticket quote today!

With so much to see and do at MNSSHP it’s easy to get caught up in all the fun and excitement happening.  Here are my 5 Tips for a great Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party Experience:

1. Have a plan that aligns with your intentions
2. Create a schedule with your party priorities
3. Eat a meal before the party
4. Enter Magic Kingdom early
5. Be prepared to stay until close

Have a plan that aligns with your intentions

If you’ve been reading the blog for awhile now you know we start all of our planning with intentions, it’s the foundational tool for our entire process and MNSSHP is no different. For more on Setting Intentions read Blog #3.

Since this is a time specific after hours event it’s even more important to know ahead of time what you want to do, because time goes FAST!  Below is the schedule of key events that happen during the halloween party:

Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular! – August and September: 8:35pm, 10:45pm, 12am; October: 7:40pm, 8:35pm, 10:45pm, 12am

Boo To You Parade – 9:15pm, 11:15pm

Disney’s Not-So-Spooky Fireworks Spectacular – 10:15pm

Cadaver Dan’s Barbershop Quartet – 7 p.m., 7:45 p.m., 8:30 p.m., 9:50 p.m., and 10:30 p.m.

Monstrous Scream-O-Ween Ball Dance Party – starts at 7pm, ongoing until midnight

Disney Junior Jam Dance Party – starts at 7pm, ongoing until midnight

ZOM-BEATZ-BASH Dance Party @ Cosmic Rays – starts at 7pm, ongoing until midnight

Take time to review the special party offerings listed above as well as everything Magic Kingdom has to offer and create a short list of priorities.  Set intentions based on your party priorities, these will start to create your plan for the event.  To help with this, grab our Must Do List here.

For us, two key intentions were to ride attractions with low waits and watch the Boo-To-You Parade.  These two intentions created a specific plan for our party night, we’ll talk more about this in the next section.

Create a schedule with your party priorities

Now that you’ve set intentions for MNSSHP it’s time to create a schedule with your priorities in mind.  Aligning your intentions with your plan will ensure you get to accomplish what you want during the event, and really your entire trip.

To help you create a schedule, I’ve created a Disney Special Event Day Planner! Download the free day planner !

To start populating your day planner, follow these 3 simple steps:

1. First, review your intentions and see what’s most important to your travel party, prioritizing overlapping intentions.  Enter these into your must do’s.
2. Add all times for key events like parades, fireworks, etc. so you have those easily available when planning out your day.
3. Input the things you want to do into the time slots, starting with your must dos and thinking about where you’ll be within the park at certain times, for example if your priority is to ride Pirates of the Caribbean with the halloween overlay and you also want to see the Boo To You Parade and ride Splash Mountain, then part of your schedule might look something like this:

8:00pm – Grab a dole whip in Adventureland, trick or treat at Tiki Room

8:15pm – Ride Pirates of the Caribbean

8:30pm – Grab your Parade spot on the Frontierland Bridge

9:15pm – Watch Boo-To-You Parade 

9:45pm – Ride Splash Mountain after Parade ends (will likely be walk on!)

The best thing? You can be as specific or as general as you want to be with your plan.

Even just knowing your top party must do’s will help guide what you do and don’t do.

Eat a meal before the Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween party

This one seems unimportant, but eating before the party will save you time during the party for other things.  Eating early also allows you to enjoy all the Halloween Sips + Bites you want throughout the evening.

We were able to snag a 3:30 Dinner Reservation at O’hana which gave us another perk, we left our car parked at Disney’s Polnesian Village Resort and took the Monorail to Magic Kingdom to and from the park avoiding the Ticket & Transit Center.

After eating A LOT (because O’hana is delicious!), we arrived at Magic Kingdom around 5pm.

We didn’t mind losing the hour per se, because when we entered we found that the park was in a transition period and starting to empty.  We were able to enter, pick-up our treat bags, take castle pictures and ride Pirates of the Caribbean as a walk-on attraction.

Other reservations to consider in the Magic Kingdom Resort Area:

1. Chef Mickey’s – easy walking access from The Contemporary
2. Steakhouse 71 – great option for adult parties or older children
3. Gasparilla Island Grill – sit down option at the Grand Floridian
4. Whispering Canyon – although a Boat Ride away, this is a great option to fill you up

You could also get a 4:15-4:30pm reservation at any of the Magic Kingdom Restaurants, at your Disney Resort or eat a quick service when you arrive or at your Resort.  Key is to have had a meal and enjoy all the snacks during the event.

Enter Magic Kingdom early

With your MNSSHP you get access to Magic Kingdom Park as early as 4pm and it’s worth entering as early as possible for several reasons:

1. If your intentions are to do some of the exclusive character meets, especially Jack & Sally, you’ll want to line up as soon as you enter to avoid being in line all night.  This line tends to be the longest so plan ahead for this as well as other meets.
2. You get the time, so use it!  Whether you use it to eat a meal, ride attractions or take in sights, these 3 hours can help free up time during active party hours for party exclusive activities.
3. If using the time to ride attractions you can use Disney Genie+ up until party start time.  Use it strategically and stack rides later in the day up until 7pm.

Passholder Tip – enter as early as you want and stay for the event!

You can pick up your treat bags and wristband at several locations throughout the park starting at 4pm.  Check with Guest Relations for locations or look for Halloween blow out signs to pick-up your party gear.  Cast Members were in various locations looking for event bands, so be sure to get yours.

Looking for other activities to do when you arrive early to Magic Kingdom?

Check out Blog # 22: 10 Activities to do in Magic Kingdom!

Head over to our Planning Community Happy Haunts Plan Disney and ask for ideas! 

We love welcoming Happy Haunts into the community to plan together.

Be prepared to stay until Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party Ends

Just like arriving early, be prepared to stay until close, even with littles.

There is A LOT to see, do and taste so utilizing as much of the party time as possible is key to getting it all done.  If attending with young children, here are a few tips to keeping them comfortable and happy for the late night:

1. Keep pre-party activities to a minimum, use this as a rest day.  Enjoy your Resort or a character breakfast.  We typically avoid pool time as this can be a tiring activity.
2. Try and fit in a nap before the party if possible
3. Be sure to have a stroller so they can rest if needed
4. Bring PJs and change them as it gets later so you can transfer them right to bed when you get back to your Resort.
5. Bring a portable noise machine and attach it to your stroller to avoid sudden wake ups from fireworks or other event activities if they fall asleep.
6. Use rider swap so you don’t have to wait in line twice to stay with small or sleeping littles.

You can also take in the last Hocus Pocus Villain Spectacular at 12am and let the crowds twindle a bit.  They also don’t immediately kick you out at midnight, so if you’re in a ride queue or shop, enjoy it and exit without a huge crowd.

One thing to keep in mind is post party transportation, be sure you know what time the last bus, Monorail or water taxi leave Magic Kingdom so you don’t get stuck trying to find alternate transportation back to your Resort.

For more on setting intentions read Blog #3: Setting Intentions

Just starting your planning? Checkout the How to Plan Series to get started!

Still deciding when to go?  Grab the free When to Go to Disney World Guide  which takes you through 3 Simple Steps to choose your best time to go.Ready to book? Get a free Travel Quote from me and let’s start planning your magical trip!

“Oh come on. It’s just a bunch of Hocus Pocus” – Max