A Hauntingly Merry Journey (10/17-11/8)-updated 1/6

[mickey916]

10/28 continued…Making the Most of our Final Party Time​

After the parade we walked to Fantasyland and finally had a chance to see the beautiful lanterns near the Tangled restrooms. So Pretty! I liked the purple and green trees too!



We went through the treat line at Mickey’s Philharmagic and Donald Duck was there greeting fans in his Halloween costume. Very cute! However, CMs were rather aggressively telling people to keep the line moving as people were attempting to stop and take a photo. There weren’t even many people going through the lines but the CMs didn’t allow people to stop. My flyby photo came out pretty good. I appreciate that they want to keep the lines moving but it is odd to have characters along the lines that people obviously want to stop to greet and expect people not to stop.



We walked around taking some cool photos of the Halloween inspired decor.

Beast’s Castle…


Seven Dwarf Pumpkins



We headed to Tomorrowland next and stopped in for a bit at Monsters Inc Laugh Floor. This was a treat stop but they also allowed people to sit in the theater while the monsters told jokes and commented on people’s costumes as they walked by. It was very funny and a nice rest stop.

The newly refurbished Astro Orbiter looked so pretty all lit up.



Space Mountain had an overlay for the party called Deep Space Mountain where the ride is in total darkness with spooky music playing. I rode it with only a 5 minute wait. It’s usually fairly dark but it definitely was completely dark. It was a bit unnerving to not be able to see anything ahead of me. I don’t remember the spooky music at all but there was a 9-ish year old girl seated behind me that screeched a very high pitched, ear-piercing screech the entire time so I probably just couldn’t hear the music. I’m not a huge fan of Space Mountain anyways but this was worse than usual. I felt much more jerked around probably because I couldn’t see the turns coming to prepare for them mentally. My back (and ears) hurt a bit when I got off.

Space Mountain was lit up very well though in green and orange so at least it was pretty.



After my ride on Space Mountain it was time for the fireworks. We watched them from the Tomorrowland bridge. It wasn’t too crowded and we had a decent view. My pictures didn’t come out great though so I won't include them here.

I’ve always wanted to ride Tron at night so I headed there next. The ride was a walk on.



I didn’t really notice the outside portion too much as it went by so quickly but I love the Ares overlay. I think it’s better than the original.

We rode the People Mover, stopped for a couple Photopass photos and then went to Liberty Square to see the headless horseman lead the second parade.

I took some more photos of decorations. I love this lit-up Mickey wreath!



We finished our night in Adventureland.



We went through the Skipper Canteen treat trail and rode the Jungle Cruise. I had read online that there was some sort of special treat given to people after riding Jungle Cruise but we didn’t get anything. Maybe it was too late in the evening. We rounded out our evening by stopping by the Pirate Band again. Yes, they were still playing just before midnight! I don’t know if these musicians perform anywhere else but they were awesome!



We didn’t stick around for the final showing of Hocus Pocus on the stage and opted to head out with the crowds. We took the ferry boat back to the TTC as the monorail line was really packed.

Overall we had a fabulous 15 hour day in the park. The morning was great with lots of rides and minimal waits. We got way more candy than we anticipated as we hadn’t really planned on going through all those lines. We ate some, donated all the non-chocolate to my sister-in-law’s classroom, and actually froze the rest for future sweet tooths. We loved the parade and the Cadaver Dans, we enjoyed the fireworks, we rode a few rides, and we loved all the special effects throughout the night. We even enjoyed (most) of the party-specific treats we tried. All that being said, I think next time we may try Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party before repeating this one. I was partially regretting that I hadn’t booked that as well for this trip (the first night of that overlapped our trip but was already sold out by the time I thought of it). While it was expensive we felt like we got our money’s worth. It was a great birthday gift!

Total steps: 28,432

Up next..DH’s favorite breakfast before heading to Hollywood Studios

 

[Wood Nymph]

I don’t remember the spooky music at all but there was a 9-ish year old girl seated behind me that screeched a very high pitched, ear-piercing screech the entire time so I probably just couldn’t hear the music. I’m not a huge fan of Space Mountain anyways but this was worse than usual. I felt much more jerked around probably because I couldn’t see the turns coming to prepare for them mentally. My back (and ears) hurt a bit when I got off.

I wouldn't like a totally dark ride, either. But I have spent a large part of a ride with my eyes closed. I didn't know that RNRR went upside down until my teenage daughter told me.

The screaming girl would have been annoying.

 

[ddluvsdisney]

So did you and DH dress up? I was hoping to see a costume. Haha
Looked like a fun time. I like that the rides were mostly walk ons. That surprised me.
I probably won’t do another party but thanks for sharing so I felt like I experienced it too.

 

[mickey916]

I wouldn't like a totally dark ride, either. But I have spent a large part of a ride with my eyes closed. I didn't know that RNRR went upside down until my teenage daughter told me.

That's funny! Probably was less scary when you didn't know!

The screaming girl would have been annoying.

It was very annoying. It wasn't like an occassional screaam. It was constant, the entire ride!

So did you and DH dress up? I was hoping to see a costume. Haha

No. I wore a Mickey spider T-shirt and he wore a Jack-o-lantern tee shirt. We considered going as Dr. Doofensmirtz and Perry the Platypus but life was too hectic before our trip to put it together. Also, DH was convinced we were going to be wearing raincoats the whole time so everything would be covered. Before our trip it seemed like it poured every party night. We really lucked out though with perfect weather on our party night.

Looked like a fun time. I like that the rides were mostly walk ons. That surprised me.

It seemed very crowded around the parades and in the bottleneck areas but the rides and the treat lines weren't crowded at all. It surprised me too, especially since it was Halloween week.

I probably won’t do another party but thanks for sharing so I felt like I experienced it too.

Happy to bring you along!

 

[tinkerbellmagic]

I’m so late to the party but I’m starting at the beginning now. I’m so happy to read about your fun adventures!
Looks like waffle time!!!

 

[mickey916]

I’m so late to the party but I’m starting at the beginning now. I’m so happy to read about your fun adventures!
Looks like waffle time!!!

Welcome to the party!

 

[cheryllarsen]

What a fun read. Thanks so much for posting!!

 

[mickey916]

What a fun read. Thanks so much for posting!!

Thank you so much!

 

[mickey916]

10/29 1900 Park Fare & Hollywood Studios​

Back in April of 2024 when 1900 Park Fare re-opened we booked an ADR for breakfast during their opening week. DH loved their double chocolate muffin but we felt there were issues with keeping the hot food hot and cold food cold. We gave it another try in April of 2025 and luckily they had worked out all the kinks regarding food temps. It has become one of our top two breakfast choices (with the other being Boma). So, we headed there again on this trip.

For my first plate I chose: cinnamon pull apart bread, beef and potato hash, cheesy potato casserole, carved ham, bacon and cheesy scrambled eggs.



I loved each one of these dishes once again. The beef hash can be a little salty but it has great flavor.

DH chose the double chocolate muffin (of course), fresh strawberries, breakfast pizza and cheesy potatoes.



He liked all of these items but felt like the double chocolate muffin wasn’t as good as previous visits. It was a little dry.
We both got bowls of the famous strawberry soup. I always add fresh strawberries to mine.



The first time we tried this it was served room temperature and we didn’t care for it. Now that they do a better job of keeping it cold, it is delicious! We both had two bowls!

We also each had a small serving of bread pudding with vanilla creme anglaise which I didn’t get a picture of. We’ve never met a bread pudding we didn’t love so this was quite good too. We also tried the oven roasted turkey from the carving station which was good but not as good as the ham.

We had quick visits from Cinderella, Tiana, Aladdin and Mirabel pretty much just as we were seated. We’re not really big character visiting people but we said hi to each of them and took some photos.

One of the common complaints from this restaurant is that it can be very noisy. However, oddly enough on this visit, it wasn’t noisy at all because the restaurant was basically empty. Our ADR was for 8:30 and there was one large party of about 10 people and then maybe two other families of four. I don’t know if it was just a slower time of year or if the high price tag has scared people off (currently $58 per adult, $37 per child for breakfast). While we really enjoy this breakfast it is a bit pricey and probably not going to be something we do every trip. It is very good food and we have had excellent service. It is a nice splurge from time to time. We gave 1900 Park Fare breakfast an A.

After breakfast we headed to Hollywood Studios, arriving there at 9:45. There’s not a lot DH can ride at Hollywood Studios so we decided to focus mainly on seeing the shows. We headed first to the newly reopened Little Mermaid - A Musical Adventure to catch the 10:00 show. We felt it was perhaps improved since the previous version but still just okay. The platform that the Little Mermaid “swims” on was very visible and kind of awkward looking. We think the Finding Nemo show at Animal Kingdom is a better show.

We left the theater and made it just in time to see the Frozen Sing Along at 10:30. This is always such a fun show. The “historians” do a great job.

Tower of Terror was posted with a 30 minute wait but Lines said it would be 11 minutes so I gave it a shot and went there next. It was a 30 minute wait, which wasn’t too bad anyhow.

We headed next to see the new Villains show.



We intentionally avoided watching any YouTube videos of this show prior to our trip so we didn’t know what to expect. We loved it! It was way better than we imagined it to be. This is so well done that it gives me a lot of hope for the eventual Villains land at Magic Kingdom. Don’t skip this show!

After the show we visited with Olaf and walked through Walt Disney Presents to see the models of the new attractions being built at Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, and Hollywood Studios.

We watched the Beauty & the Beast musical next. We always enjoy this show as well. Our sons actually were in this musical together in middle school. Our oldest played Gaston and our youngest was Maurice. The show brings back great memories.

We rode the only ride DH rides at HS, Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway next with a posted 35 minute wait. We only waited 18.

We headed to Toy Story next. The wait for Slinky was posted at 55 minutes but Lines said 18. I decided to give it a shot to see who was closer. It ended up being 33 minutes, again not bad for Slinky. While I was in line the Green Army Men came by and played their drums. So talented and very cool to see!



I enjoyed looking at all the theming while in line for Slinky.



We walked through Batuu to check on the status of Rise which had been down all day. It had reopened but due to the backlog they weren’t offering a single rider line so I decided to skip it.

Having seen all the shows and ridden all I wanted to ride, we decided to take the skyliner to get some dinner. We got off at the Caribbean Beach stop and walked over to the Riviera Resort for one of our favorite quick service restaurants, Primo Piatto.

DH was still feeling full from breakfast so he didn’t get anything. I ordered the Grilled Vegetable Pita (which used to be called the grilled vegetable skewer but never had a skewer). Grilled Pita, Quinoa Salad, Plant-based Cucumber Yogurt



This is so fresh and flavorful. This time it had a little more spiciness than I remember from last time (when it was called vegetable skewer) but this is definitely a must get dish!

Overall on this trip we gave Primo Piatto an A- (we ended up going here a few times, more on that coming up). This particular night though was an A.

After dinner we took the Skyliner back to Hollywood Studios and headed back to our hotel for an early night after the previous night’s late night.

Total steps: 17,766 (7 miles)