Boy do they oversell this Halloween party!!!

[cinnaminny]

We were at the first party this year and thought it was really crowded also. It was fun though, I don't think I would do it again though. Maybe if I had a little kid?

 

[gharter]

Here now. 55 mins space mountain. 35 mins for pirates. 40 mins for Big Thunder. 10+ mins for the “treat” stations. Crowds everywhere. Seriously? We may as well have come in July!

That was our experience as well last year.
Loved the parade, fireworks and stage show!
From reading, we were expecting smaller wait times for rides and that clearly was not true.

 

[Elle23]

This is why we will never do another party. We did MVMCP a few years ago. Never again.

Same. We were one and done with parties due to the crowds.

 

[Babs1975]

So disappointing. Will be anxious to hear how Christmas parties go or if they get their act together capping attendance lower. We've always had no wait times on rides in the past and is the reason we go to the party. If that's not the case, this year will be the last for us.

 

[CogsworthTN]

We went October 2 and it was so nice. We were able to enjoy rides and the candy lines were very manageable. October 4 was a different experience. It was a sold out party, but the crowd levels were horrible. We have never experienced the large mass of people at Magic Kingdom as we did that night. You could not move. The candy lines were a wait time of 20-25 minutes and the ride wait times were worse than any visit we have ever made during normal hours. It was so miserable we left at 8:30. We decided we will never do another party night.

 

[Remy is Up]

Went in Mid September and wont go back to the MNSSHP for quite a while. Crowd levels were as bad as peak holiday. Not worth paying that much to be a sardine.

 

[totallytigger]

We’re headed down next week and won’t be attending a party. Our experiences the past two years have not been great—way too crowded for the price. We feel that the only extra ticketed event worth extra $$ is the DAH. We have done this twice and have had a great time. We also enjoyed EMM at MK with my DGD, but I wouldn’t pay for it with just adults.

 

[angierae]

We're already considering doing Keys to the Kingdom instead of a party for our 2020 trip (still debating between Halloween and Christmas) because although we really loved the party in 2013, the stories I'm hearing about crowds and the price increases have me worried.

 

[oceanscape]

OP here. All I can say is that it was a huge disappointment and waste of money and we will never do a party ever again. I can’t believe WDW are milking this by selling so many tickets. I don’t even think it was sold out?!???!

We’ve been to WDW in summer, and over the holidays and yet we all said we have never experienced crowds as bad as last night. It was horrible.

Also, sorry to sound so depressed, but we thought the parade was very disappointing! Maybe it’s because it had been raining so they couldn’t do the same things? I don’t know, it just seemed very cheaply done and there was nothing special or memorable about it.

By the way, the funniest thing is that yesterday a member of our party asked a CM if FP+ is available during the MNSSHP. The CM chuckled and said “ma’am, you won’t be needing fastpass during the party, all the rides will be a walk-on or 5 mins wait maximum. You’re going to have a blast!”. How wrong she was!

 

[Ds4angels]

We forget we are in the minority of WDW visitors. So while many here won't go back to the party b/c it's not what it once was, there a tons of people waiting to throw their money at Disney. I very much doubt they will scale back ticket sales for the x-mas party or any other party. People will pay, so Disney will charge.

 

[SG131]

So disappointing. Will be anxious to hear how Christmas parties go or if they get their act together capping attendance lower. We've always had no wait times on rides in the past and is the reason we go to the party. If that's not the case, this year will be the last for us.

Since tickets went on sale at the same time, I'm going to guess they have a similar cap.

We forget we are in the minority of WDW visitors. So while many here won't go back to the party b/c it's not what it once was, there a tons of people waiting to throw their money at Disney. I very much doubt they will scale back ticket sales for the x-mas party or any other party. People will pay, so Disney will charge.

I think more and more groups of people are considering whether or not the party is worth it, not just us on the boards. People who do an internet search to see if they want to go and see all these reviews about how crowded it is. People who as the question is this worth going we are only interested in rides. Or people who go every year or even every couple years who say I'm now not really getting much out of this and the shows have stayed the same. I do think there will always be the new people who jump into it, but I do think there is a ceiling as far as how far disney can push it before they see a decline in interest and I think they're approaching it.

 

[BayouQueen]

Thanks OP for posting about your experience. Super helpful for trip planning. Good heads up.

 

[ktlm]

We were there September 30 and it was great- low crowds and almost all the rides were walk on except for 7DMT. One of the best parties we have ever attended. We had a fantastic time.

We were there October 5 and it was miserable. Extremely crowded, hot, and long lines for everything (rides, characters etc). We have been to many sold out parties over the years (and had a great time anyway) and this one seemed more crowded and I don't think it was even sold out. I think they are definitely letting more people in. We wound up leaving at 11, which is unusual for us. We just weren't having much fun which is also unusual for us at MNSSHP as it is usually our favorite park time- but part of that was how hot and muggy it was that night. Also- that night it did not seem like that many people were wearing costumes. Sunday night a ton of people were wearing costumes. One of our favorite things is seeing what everyone had come up with. That party was a dud in our eyes.

So we did 2 parties last week--- one absolutely fantastic and one we did not really enjoy.

Also- as far as park level crowds--- Sunday- Thursday of last week were extremely low- Space Mountain was 10 minutes in the middle of the afternoon on Sept. 30. The crowds picked up substantially Friday, and Saturday and Sunday were crazy crowded.

 

[wilbret]

I agree with the OP. We were there Thursday. Daytime crowds were a 2/10 and the Party was the most crowded I've ever experienced, and we've been going since 2012.

We rode a lot of stuff before the party started. Space Mountain was a walk-on. When the party started? The line was out the door.
Pirates was always a walk-on ride, but it was 30 minutes. Haunted mansion normally moves well, but never dropped below 30 minutes.
We normally cram in 3 rides on 7Dwarfs, but got one in this year. Trick or Treat lines were so ridiculous, my kids said they weren't interested after doing just a couple.
Every photo opp had a line to it. It was a little miserable.

It breaks my heart, because this was always my favorite event, and it's a tradition for us, but $500 for tickets for this experience isn't worth it.

 

[Celia and the cats]

The first year we went was in 1998. My mother and I were only a handful of adults who dressed up. It was so empty back then! We went on the last night and they wanted to get rid of the carved pumpkins and the rest of the candy so they were asking us to take it all with us - so we left with a stroller full of candy and jack-o-lanterns. They also gave out a free copy of your character photo.
The last time we went was in 2007 (I believe) and it poured! I was completely shocked when they gave everyone a free pass for any park for our troubles.

My kids are older and graduated to the "scary" parks. But it sounds like MNSSH is crazy now!

 

[puffkin]

We gave up on the Christmas Party years ago. Too crowded and incredibly expensive for what you got. But we still enjoyed the Halloween Party. But we have also been seeing the huge uptick in crowds and the lack of updating the elements that make it truly different (shows, parade, fireworks). We decided this year (especially with the huge price increases) that neither was worth it for our family of 4 anymore. Sounds like we made the right decision!

 

[dlavender]

That's really a shame. As I've stating in other places, if they are going to keep raising prices, they are going to have to raise their standards to match. 55 mins for SM during a special ticketed event?! Shouldn't happen, IMO.....

We went to our first party last year, on the Friday night before Columbus day, so almost exactly 1 year ago. We thought it was fine, except for the treat lines. Told my kids we'll do plenty of that on Halloween. Lines were manageable, but no real walk-ons, minus Barnstormer. Crowds weren't terrible in the walkways, but hardly an improvement on the next days MK crowds. We wrote it off then as a one and done, and it looks like we made the right call.

 

[DisDreaming4116]

I went to the MNSSHP on Sept 14 this year. This night, the party was sold out. While I thought it felt busier than the two parties we went to in 2017, I was able to do everything with little to no waiting. I do not doubt anyone who says they found long lines everywhere but I think part of that can be planned around. I don't look down at anyone who doesn't make a plan, but all over the DIS boards, there are reports of what to/not to do and how it can positively impact your experience.

For families with children that can't stay up late, I truly feel sorry for you because the 10pm-1:00am party time is where it's at.
After the 10:15 fireworks, it feels as if 2/3 of the crowd leaves the park. Also, if you find a TOT line that is extremely short (after 10pm, I found most were), just go through it again and again and again! No reason to search all over the park to do 5 TOT lines when you can go through the same line 5x and get the same amount of candy in much less time. I did Buzz Lightyear X3 and was able to stay on without getting off, PP x2 , HM, Splash x2, Peoplemover, Pooh x2, Pirates, Under the Sea and 7DMT (got in line at 11:45). I saw the fireworks in the first row up against the fence in the hub grass with a 20 minute wait and sat for both parades from Frontierland with 15 minute waits. Got more candy than I knew what to do with. Also, if you are able to stay late, don't rush out of the park. There will be transportation available to you and use the 12:30-1:00am time to get great pictures in the hub and Main Street.

I didn't do any of the meet and greets except for the grave diggers which are usually "hidden" away and have a short line.

I say all this because I would like people who are planning on attending MNSSHP to know it's not all gloom and doom. There are people who are having success and a wonderful time at the party.

 

[wilbret]

That's really a shame. As I've stating in other places, if they are going to keep raising prices, they are going to have to raise their standards to match. 55 mins for SM during a special ticketed event?! Shouldn't happen, IMO.....

We went to our first party last year, on the Friday night before Columbus day, so almost exactly 1 year ago. We thought it was fine, except for the treat lines. Told my kids we'll do plenty of that on Halloween. Lines were manageable, but no real walk-ons, minus Barnstormer. Crowds weren't terrible in the walkways, but hardly an improvement on the next days MK crowds. We wrote it off then as a one and done, and it looks like we made the right call.

We were there that same night last year, and we had a good experience. I think it even rained and ended the villian spectacular we were watching...

I'll tell you one reason my kids are probably jaded. We took them to Universal the past couple years and stayed on site. Express Passes to every ride makes for a lot of fun.
3 fast passes at Disney is a joke. Long lines at a special ticketed event is a joke. Heck, we stayed at Holiday Inn for Sea World and it included Quick Queue for every ride!
Everyone has a phone. Why not equip the parks with tech to let people check into line and come back when it's their time? Why must we waste time literally standing in line, when we can report back on time?

 

[dlavender]

We were there that same night last year, and we had a good experience. I think it even rained and ended the villian spectacular we were watching...

I'll tell you one reason my kids are probably jaded. We took them to Universal the past couple years and stayed on site. Express Passes to every ride makes for a lot of fun.
3 fast passes at Disney is a joke. Long lines at a special ticketed event is a joke. Heck, we stayed at Holiday Inn for Sea World and it included Quick Queue for every ride!
Everyone has a phone. Why not equip the parks with tech to let people check into line and come back when it's their time? Why must we waste time literally standing in line, when we can report back on time?

Yes! I remember they kept pushing back the final Hocus Pocus show due to the sprinkling, but it started to rain a little harder and they cancelled it. Didn't ruin the experience, but even on that night when things weren't "too bad", I still didn't think it was worth a repeat. I couldn't imagine if it was the experience the OP shared here. Definitely would have sworn it off.

Yeah, express pass included in the deluxe stay at Uni is awesome. Got a rate at RPR last December there for $205/night which included express for our family of 5. It really makes for an awesome day at the parks. 3 FP and constant refreshing is tiring and most of the time frustrating... I know we are straying OT, but for WDW to offer a similar deal they would really have to charge an astronomical amount for an unlimited FP option. Probably would have to price starting at $500/pp per day or something like that, as evidenced by the crowd paying $70 just for 1 hour of unlimited access to 3 rides....