Boo Bash appearing to be a COMPLETE LETDOWN shortly after opening.

[focusondisney]

Sure, it is a Halloween party and the only one that is currently offered.

No, it is not a Halloween party by Disney standards. It was never sold as a party. It is a plussed up After Hours event. That is what Disney advertised & that is what we’re getting. Many people have happily paid for & attended AH vents for years. We aren’t upset about the price point & know what we’re getting for the price.

Anyone who continues to expect a Halloween party is only setting themselves up for disappointment.

 

[Chavaleh]

This. People are SO ok and complacent with throwing money at Disney they aren't looking at the big picture.

You could say that about ANYTHING related to Disney or Disney World. Just because it isn't worth it to you doesn't mean it isn't worth it to other people. Clearly it is or people wouldn't be buying tickets.

I have zero interest in the parties. I want to experience the parks less crowded, after dark with short wait times. The snacks and special lighting/experiences are just icing on the cake. To me it's worth the money they charge. I don't care if they ever have another holiday party again except in that I know a lot of other people enjoy them. They aren't my thing.

It feels as if some people are blaming those of us who like the AH events for the parties being taken away. Disney is a business. If it makes sense for them to hold the Halloween and Christmas parties again from a business perspective (be that money or a PR plus) they will.

 

[Disneylover99]

No, it is not a Halloween party by Disney standards. It was never sold as a party. It is a plussed up After Hours event. That is what Disney advertised & that is what we’re getting. Many people have happily paid for & attended AH vents for years. We aren’t upset about the price point & know what we’re getting for the price.

Anyone who continues to expect a Halloween party is only setting themselves up for disappointment.

While I agree, it’s billed as an after hours party, and it does sound like last night delivered on its promise, there are so many (some watered down) Halloween elements incorporated into this, that I can see how/why people would be attending to get a Halloween fix and end up comparing it to MNSSHP. I mean, “Boo Bash” sounds like a Halloween party.

 

[Magnoliafan]

Watching the live stream, Boo Bash looks like an event that is right up our alley. Plenty of room to walk around. Some cool lighting effects and music here and there. Short lines. Complimentary ice cream and popcorn.

I'm wondering how many people complaining have been to an AH event before? Looking at the description of Boo Bash, it definitely seems more like an event in line with AH rather than MNSSHP with regards to price tag and offerings. We absolutely loved AH. MNSSHP was a one-and-done for us.

I hope everyone there is having a great time!

I’ve been to multiple AH events and also multiple MNSSHPs and this was exactly like a regular AH event with a sprinkle of Halloween. I got there around 7:30 and walked onto Small World and then waited 10-15 minutes for Under the Sea, before heading to watch HEA from Casey’s. After the park closed to day guests, I walked onto Pirates, Jungle Cruise, Magic Carpets, BTMR, and Splash, stopped at 3 candy stations, watched the first two cavalcades, waited 15 or so minutes for HM and then PPF, then 20 for SDMT, before wrapping it up in Main Street to watch the last cavalcade and Maleficent. In between, I picked up 3 waters, a Mickey bar, and a popcorn, with waits no more than 3 minutes. The only thing I forgot to do was the Cadaver Dans, but I was too tired to go back to Frontierland. I could have easily done more rides, but I took it easy a bit and decided not to run around the park. I was very happy with the whole thing. And it’s exactly what I hoped it would be. It was definitely crowded in Frontierland for the Cavalcades, but the amount of walk ons was on par with the best AH I’ve attended. Magic Carpets wasn’t running continuously because there was no line - CM started it up whenever someone asked to ride. On BTMR, I was told to pick any row. And on Splash, I had a log all to myself.

I also think that even in an alternate universe where Covid didn’t exist, MNSSHP would have been altered for 2021. Closing out MK at 6pm for a hard ticket event 4 days a week the entire first month of the 50th anniversary was not going to happen - especially since it would mean that either the anniversary fireworks only ran 3 nights a week OR guests would have to pay for a party ticket to see them more than 50% of the time. So I see holiday AH as a way for Disney to milk the holidays for extra profit without angering the many many people traveling to MK later this year. I don’t think it’s a predictor of the future of the parties.

 

[LisaDKG]

No one is saying it SHOULD have been a "party". You're completely missing the point. The issue people are having is that Disney charged SO much for SO less when you look at the 2 events (AH and MNSSHP) and that because this was likely so much more profitable for Disney than MNSSHP, its unlikely MNSSHP will ever come back (or if it does it almost certainly won't be at the price point it was).

Also, for the record, typical AH events don't have things like trick or treating, costumed characters, and certain other features that WERE exclusive to MNSSHP so just as one can say this wasnt a MNSSHP, it can also be said that it wasn't a regular AH either.

Yes!

No, it is not a Halloween party by Disney standards. It was never sold as a party. It is a plussed up After Hours event. That is what Disney advertised & that is what we’re getting. Many people have happily paid for & attended AH vents for years. We aren’t upset about the price point & know what we’re getting for the price.

Anyone who continues to expect a Halloween party is only setting themselves up for disappointment.

...What Disneyliscious said, especially because everyone's semantic hangups around the word 'party' is silly!

 

[Disneyliscious]

I have zero interest in the parties. I want to experience the parks less crowded, after dark with short wait times.

That's the problem you're not seeing. Your description is EXACTLY what MNSSHP was just a few years back.

 

[focusondisney]

That's the problem you're not seeing. Your description is EXACTLY what MNSSHP was just a few years back.

I agree, that is how the holiday parties started. But disney has been overselling them for many years now.

 

[CampbellzSoup]

Do people not understand that we know what an After Hours event is and entails? They layered it with a Halloween theme, and advertising, so the only thing we have to compare it to is the last Halloween offering Disney provided to us.

 

[ttfn3]

It just seems so weird to be doing Halloween things in August.

I agree. It's early August. It's still summer for me. I don't like the seasons/holidays rushed (personal opinion).

 

[luv2cheer92]

Do people not understand that we know what an After Hours event is and entails? They layered it with a Halloween theme, and advertising, so the only thing we have to compare it to is the last Halloween offering Disney provided to us.

The description/offerings/name is a whole lot more similar to Villains AH. So why not compare it to that? Which based on pretty much everything I've read and seen, they are almost identical, other than being more Halloween related obviously. I'm not sure why people would continue to expect it to be like MNSSHP.

 

[maltdizzy]

As he went away, the fox remarked 'Oh, you aren't even ripe yet! I don't need any sour grapes.' - Aesop

The first-hand reports here are positive, with realistic expectations. It has me looking forward to our Boo Bash. The time to mourn the loss of MNSSHP this year was back when Boo Bash was announced in June; now it is just beating a dead horse. Disney delivered what they advertised and for what we paid. I actual prefer the idea of a less crowded, simpler, after-hours event. The parties always disrupted MK for months, closing the park early half the week and creating larger crowds on the other half.

 

[DisLiss]

I don't necessarily think that the traditional parties will never return, due to the success of the After Hours parties.

I think it depends more upon crowd numbers than ticket price. Even if the current after hours event tickets were exactly double the price of MNSSHP tickets, then Disney would need the After Hours event to bring in at least half the number of guest that the party did in order to even out on ticket sales. But it sounds like the crowds are even lower than that to me.

And on top of that, the parties tend to go big on special purchases---either food or merch., and I don't know that this event did that to the same extent. If not, then less items purchased by fewer people could result in even lower profits for Disney as well.

I guess time will tell. I like the parties, but I don't like how crowded they get on certain nights and as the holiday grows closer. And while I don't love the cost of after hour events, and I don't have any excitement at all over the free snacks, at at all, I do really, really love low crowd events. So, I'll be mostly happy, but one bit not thrilled no matter what they do.

(I remember back in the late 90s/early 2000s, the after hour paid events were so inexpensive (even accounting for inflation) and we adored them!! Low crowds on the cheap! Those were the days! )

 

[Selket]

Did the AH and the MNSSHP events run together in the same time period? I can't remember. I think both are good in their own ways and probably I'd pick the party over AH but I'd prefer no rides and more "show" like fireworks, parades, stage shows, etc. The "free food" is not appealing at all. I think the parties will return because there's enough people that like the party things (and the earlier hours) and enough who would love to pay more for fewer people and no wait rides. I hope they do both types of things in the future.

I also think it's ok to have an opinion from watching a YT video or live stream vs. being there. I've been able to tell from watching videos of an event if I'd like it or not. I originally thought the "Glow" parties at Typhoon Lagoon seemed like a "money grab" idea but I watched a YT video...and I bought a ticket. I LOVED that event and I hate wearing a bathing suit and I don't even like riding the water rides - haha! I really hope that comes back a some point as it was one of my favorites.

 

[Gina-Gina-Bo-Bina]

The description/offerings/name is a whole lot more similar to Villains AH. So why not compare it to that? Which based on pretty much everything I've read and seen, they are almost identical, other than being more Halloween related obviously. I'm not sure why people would continue to expect it to be like MNSSHP.

Comparing it to an After Hours event is EXACTLY what it should be compared to. It's just easier for folks to justify their own personal decisions or agendas by comparing it against something it has not been advertised or intended to be.

I even looked up the cost of the last AH event we attended in May 2019. It was just a "regular" After Hours at MK, not the pricier Villains AH. Our cost for that event, for 2 adults, was $266.26. This year's AH Boo Bash cost us $274.77. That's an $8.51 difference, or a 3% increase. Even if we don't factor in the rate of inflation, that $8.51 is more than made up by the addition of the Halloween cavalcades, trick-or-treating, and other seasonal touches that are "extra" over a regular AH even in the spring when there's nothing special happening.

The last MNSSHP we attended in October 2019 cost us $207.34......and was so unbearably overcrowded that we left at 10:30 pm because it was virtually impossible to enjoy any of the MNSSHP features due to a gross overselling of tickets. We had been attending MNSSHP since fall of 2015 and had watched a steady decline in value for the price, and this night was the straw that broke the camel's back for us. We left saying 'never again'.

All reports from folks who actually ATTENDED last night's event overwhelmingly support the notion that this event indeed maintains it's After Hours roots, and I am beyond happy. If that's the case, I will absolutely be satisfied with the price paid. This is what we, personally, were hoping for.

 

[srauseo]

Here's the way I'm looking at this:

I am in Disney World for 4 days in October. I could get a four day park pass for $122 a day. Instead I bought a three day park pass for $130 a day.

I spent $159 on Boo Bash. That's $37 more than another day on the park pass would have cost me, plus $24 for the higher pricing per day for the 3 day pass. So in effect this cost me $61 more than what I would have paid.

Albeit that's for 5 hours in the park vs. 12 hours (8:30am to 8:30pm) but with smaller crowds and shorter lines. I will very likely accomplish a whole lot more in those 5 hours based on the reports I am seeing (I am ride focused). And I get to spend the better part of the day relaxing by the pool instead of sweating it out in a crowded park waiting in lines. This is worth $61 to me. The ice cream, popcorn, cavalcades, Dapper Dans, etc., are just gravy.

 

[HashberryOTG]

No matter what, some will like it, some will be disappointed. I love the descriptions from folks that attended and had a blast watching one of the live streams last night. For what it was advertised, I'm not sure if I would have gone if I had the opportunity (trip isn't until November). Love that it was set up as an after hours. The crowds looked great, even a little low. Ride times reported are crazy good. Cavalcades and lights were beautiful! I do feel many people were excited to watch the cavalcades go by, given their body language and the looks on their faces.

On the other hand, I would like exclusive merch and maybe fireworks. I'm pretty neutral on fireworks myself, so not sure on that one. Oh, and ride overlays, love those. And I felt the price was a little high, even if it's mostly in line with other after hours events. Add a dessert party for that price and now you're talking! THEN I'll love the fireworks! From the safety of a protected corner of my party, lol.

I don't know that all the arguing has a point. If someone is happy or unhappy with it, this isn't going to change their mind. Some people are comparing this to an after hours event, which is how it was billed. Some people are comparing it to past Halloween offerings, which is also fair.

 

[havoc315]

Do people not understand that we know what an After Hours event is and entails? They layered it with a Halloween theme, and advertising, so the only thing we have to compare it to is the last Halloween offering Disney provided to us.

I disagree..... Based on the advertising, my comparison would be to Villain's Night After Hours. From the way they marketed it, it was totally obvious to me that this was being promoted as something analogous to Villains Night, and nothing at all like MNSSHP.

And from all the reports and live feeds, looks exactly like I expected it to be. I was worried they might not keep capacity low enough to assure low crowds, but that seemed fine.
Got the cavalcades, just like Villain's Night, got the ice cream and soda, every significant ride open with low waits.... Seems great.

 

[TomorrowlandKD]

Why is everyone so stuck on being OK that this event is exactly what an After Hours party should be or is advertised to be?

Sure, it is a Halloween party and the only one that is currently offered. Sure, we don't know if MNSSHP party is ever coming back in the iteration that we have experienced.

The bottom line is that so far, it SEEMS as there is less value than an MNSSHP for the amount money being paid (I did not attend so, like the OP, I am judging by basing on what the live reports form vloggers and other Disers have presented after 1 party). Not only is it way fewer hours than MNSSHP but there is way less to do entertainment wise and character-wise and reports are saying that it wasn't even that empty (which seems like what drives most people on this thread to do After Hours?)

Edit: deleted. It's just not worth the effort anymore.

 

[Heather07438]

It's so very hard trying to compare anything at WDW apples to apples. There is no objective way to stamp a precise cost value on any trip component. We can look at what else that money might get us but the pros & cons of everything are a personal matter, and the value resides there.

 

[havoc315]

Using your vehicle analogy, would you compare a 2019 Lexus to a base model 2021 Chevy Trax? Especially when both vehicles very clearly note their features for potential buyers on the window sticker? And sure, maybe the Trax is more expensive than that Lexus, but perhaps the Lexus has a bazillion miles on it that lowers the overall value.

Good analogy, but I'd go even further.
Like comparing a $80 steak dinner with a $200 bottle of wine.
They are totally different things. The only similarity -- they are two things you might have at the restaurant.
The $200 bottle of wine won't satisfy your hunger for a tender piece of meat. And vice versa.

The parties are about the entertainment and theming, with fairly short lines being a secondary benefit.
The AH events, including Boo Bash, are about very very short lines, with a little extra entertainment and theming as a secondary benefit.
The parties won't satisfy you if you're basically looking for a night of walk-on rides. The AH events won't satisfy you if you're there for character meets and special entertainment.

They are different things. And there are marketed as different things. The people complaining that it doesn't compare to MNSSHP... unfortunately, they set their expectations in the wrong direction by not paying attention to how Disney was promoting the event. They placed their assumptions about a Halloween party, on something that was never promoted in that way.