I attended the Thursday, 10/24 party and it felt very crowded compared to parties I have attended in the past. All the lands felt more congested and harder to navigate than when I was in MK earlier in the day. The last sold out party I attended was
MNSSHP in 2016 and it was nothing compared to this year. Fortunately I had a "relaxed" itinerary and no character meets planned since no one was really new this year. Attractions besides 7DMT, PP, Pirates, and Space Mountain seemed very low the whole night. This is what I accomplished while trying to take it easy:
Bypass PhotoPass pics
Monster's Inc ToT a "few" times...
Space Mountain (about a 25 minute wait)
Shopping at Big Top Souvenirs
Fantasyland ToT
BTMR (less than a 10 minute wait)
BTMR and Splash Mountain ToT
Ice cream/party snack break
Watched 1st parade by Plaza while eating collected snacks
Front and center HUB spot for new fireworks show (I avoided all videos prior to viewing in person and they were ok. Not bad, but not what I was expecting for a new nighttime "spectacular")
Front spot for 2nd parade in Liberty Square
HM PhotoPass pics
7DMT right before midnight
After 12am
Main Street PhotoPass pics
Headless Horseman PhotoPass pics
Back at CR by 12:40am
Even though there were some crowds and the heat/humidity was high, I still had a great time and left with a ton of candy. The crowds won't deter me from going again in the future, just helps me set a new expectation. I have DL planned for next October, but will try to find a weekend I can run to WDW and fit a party in.