MNSSHP - Halloween Party too crowded / not worth the $$?

[oceanmarina]

Hi all,

Last summer we went to the MNSSHP for the first time - we went on opening day / the first night they had it in August.

Before going all I heard from friends who had went was that since it was a ticketed event the park is not that crowded and you will be able to "walk on" rides with little or no wait. So that's what I expected.

Well, after going I was surprised at how crowded it was. And the wait for rides were WORSE than the other nights we had been at MK that week (I think it was 30 minutes for It's A Small World, ect ). The lines were way LLOONNGG for everything, getting candy, taking pictures. For what I paid, I guess I was expecting a less crowded / more intimate experience.

I was just surprised at the discrepancy of what I was told vs. what we experienced.

Am I missing something, Is it that the first night it opens is more crowded than usual? We will be at Disney this August again and while my kids loved getting the candy and wearing their costumes, I wouldn't want to pay for tickets again if the crowd levels I experienced were the norm.

I also posted a poll so everyone could weigh in.

Thanks for any feedback, Marina

 

[disneyvoice]

It depends on why you are going to MNSSHP.

We don't go for the rides or the candy. We enjoy getting unique photos with the characters and doing other photo opportunities that are only available at the party, seeing the Halloween shows and parade, and just enjoying the fun Halloween atmosphere. It's not uncommon for us to not do any rides at all when we go to MNSSHP. If you are strictly wanting to go for shorter lines at the attractions then opening night, weekends, and the days leading up to October 31 will not be the best days to go.

So I don't really know how to answer your poll since we don't worry as much about the crowds. I think it's worth the money even though the crowds can be really heavy.

 

[Disneylover99]

We were there on opening day as well last year. It was more crowded then opening day the year before. We still had a great time and it was still noticeably less crowded on opening day last year than the sold out party we've been to in previous years.

Candy lines are often long early in the night, but they move fast. Character lines are always long no matter what. I think the last week of August is one of the times when ride lines are not too long anyways, so attending a late August party is not really an advantage in this respect.

But to answer your question, even a sold out party is still worth it to us. We go for the party vibe, parades and fireworks.

I didn't vote, because while I still think it's worth it, I always expect the crowds.

 

[Spencer Wright]

I also went the first night last year (no children involved) and had most of the same thoughts as you, however answered yes. I had mixed feelings about the event, however my sister and mother LOVED it, and we are going back this year. I was shocked and appalled as to how crowded the parks were, but found after about 9pm there was a serious drop off in the number of people on attractions, as people watched the entertainment, and then left. To pay that money and leave at 10 is stupefying to me but it is was it is.

Once about 10pm hit, I found that Small Word was walk on, Space Mountain was brief; and we were able to do much more. I was going to pass, but again my mother and sister love it, so I am looking forward to is this year!!

For me, I think the crowds seemed more problematic than they probably were in actual fact because, as I am sure you recall, it was SCORCHING!!! Like I think I cooked a bit. This certainly helps with seeing the crowds as problematic.

...so, to get to my point, I did vote yes, and felt the decorations, shows, and (after 10pm) short waits for attractions was absolutely worth it. I was shocked as to how crowded it was, but it seemed to die off. However, keep in mind we totally skip Meet and Greets and Trick or Treat, which you indicated may be important to you. Those lines were irredeemably bad!!

 

[sam_rogers]

We have been to a couple of parties in mid September and never found queues for rides etc too bad. We usually go on one of the mid week parties so I don't know if that makes a difference

 

[BrianL]

MNSSHP is usually crowded but I have never seen the ride lines to be long. Usually it's people waiting to meet the special characters and other party-exclusive activities that get very crowded. Haunted Mansion might have periods with long-ish lines, though usually never as bad as any given day really. 7DMT remains popular as well. Most other stuff has generally been short waits or walk-on for me. I haven't been in a couple of years so I can't say that might not be changing, but it was my experience at any rate.

 

[Spencer Wright]

MNSSHP is usually crowded but I have never seen the ride lines to be long. Usually it's people waiting to meet the special characters and other party-exclusive activities that get very crowded. Haunted Mansion might have periods with long-ish lines, though usually never as bad as any given day really. 7DMT remains popular as well. Most other stuff has generally been short waits or walk-on for me. I haven't been in a couple of years so I can't say that might not be changing, but it was my experience at any rate.

I have heard Kevin Close from the podcast say that these events (mainly MNSSHP and MVMCP) used to have lower crowds as a perk, however this is no longer the case. Its a shame!

 

[crostorfer]

The first night of the event is for press/bloggers. It tends to be more crowded than other early parties. Had you gone, say, to the 2nd or 3rd party, you may have had a totally different experience.

I think anyone going in with the expectation that it isn't going to be crowded, or even that it will be "less crowded", needs to temper their expectations. Crowded vs less crowded is becoming more and more subjective at WDW. Will the party be less crowded than, say, this week has been at the MK? Yes, considering its been steady 4 hour waits and the FP+ line for BTMRR has reached all the way back to Pecos Bills.

 

[Disneylover99]

I also went the first night last year (no children involved) and had most of the same thoughts as you, however answered yes. I had mixed feelings about the event, however my sister and mother LOVED it, and we are going back this year. I was shocked and appalled as to how crowded the parks were, but found after about 9pm there was a serious drop off in the number of people on attractions, as people watched the entertainment, and then left. To pay that money and leave at 10 is stupefying to me but it is was it is.

Once about 10pm hit, I found that Small Word was walk on, Space Mountain was brief; and we were able to do much more. I was going to pass, but again my mother and sister love it, so I am looking forward to is this year!!

For me, I think the crowds seemed more problematic than they probably were in actual fact because, as I am sure you recall, it was SCORCHING!!! Like I think I cooked a bit. This certainly helps with seeing the crowds as problematic.

...so, to get to my point, I did vote yes, and felt the decorations, shows, and (after 10pm) short waits for attractions was absolutely worth it. I was shocked as to how crowded it was, but it seemed to die off. However, keep in mind we totally skip Meet and Greets and Trick or Treat, which you indicated may be important to you. Those lines were irredeemably bad!!

I didn't notice the heat, but I think the rain helped to clear out the park later in the evening. It rained pretty solidly while we waited for the second parade.

 

[Davey Jones II]

At every party we've been to, the waits for the rides were short. But the last one we did at MK was in 2015. From what I've read, if you want short wait times these days, do the Tuesday night party.

Another factor this year: they are closing MK at 6 p.m., to clear out non-party goers. I think freeloaders swelled the crowds in recent years (i.e., some without tickets just refused to leave). It seems that Disney will be doing a better job of clearing out the riff raff this year...

 

[jhoannam]

We’ve only been twice, to WDW, and both times in October and did MNSSHP. This year we’ve decided to skip that season due to the shorter MK hours (because of parties) and crowds. We really enjoyed going to the party but I don’t think we would go back again during that season, mostly because MK is so crowded on non-party days. We go in October, during fall break, and it’s packed.

 

[KCMA]

I can't speak for the Halloween party as I will be attending my first one this September but I have been to the Christmas party.. and like a few posters have said it all depends on what you go for.. for the Christmas party we didn't worry about rides.. we focused on the characters and attractions you can't do or see during normal hours and that will be our plan during the Halloween party this year.. we will be at MK two other full days during our ten day trip so we are lucky to have that luxury with the party

 

[LuvMyEAR]

We attended the sold out party on Halloween Night 2017 and we were pleasantly surprised with the short line and low-crowd feel. We skipped any candy lineup with more than 20 and then realized that these are the fastest moving lines ANYWHERE. All were well stocked and staffed.

I kind of wondered if the Oct 31 crowd has more into the atmosphere, characters and Halloween shows and pretty much ignored the rides. Also found the park began to drain after the parade, and more so after the fireworks. I would normally shy away from sellout nights but wouldn't hesitate to do it again.

 

[Davey Jones II]

We never did the treat trails early in the party. Always later, when the lines are shorter. Treats are easy to get after the second parade. And if you tell them that you haven't had any treats yet, they'll give you double handfulls!

 

[HuricaneSugar]

Last year we went during the second week of September. It may have been due to being the Friday after the hurricane, but we had very low waits on all rides. We rode Pirates 3 times and all other rides at least once during the party (Space Mountain and Jungle Cruise were down and Splash was under refurbishment.) We also got pictures with most the the characters (except 7 Dwarfs, Halloween Mickey and Minnie, and Moana.) We were also able to get a good spot for the parade, fireworks, and stage show within minutes of their beginnings.

 

[Miumiu4me]

I’ve been to two parties in recent years and I won’t spend the money again. It’s just too crowded on the weekends and my job doesn’t allow me to go midweek. I don’t think a few extra shows and characters with hour long lines are worth the price of admission.

 

[Redbudlover]

I would never miss the MNSSHP! Just do not go opening night! Don’t go weekends! During the week I can ride multiple times after 9 pm and also from 4 to 6 pm the lines are short. I love the parade and the fireworks. Characters not very important to this 71 year old lady! But I do love the candy lines