I visited the parks from Oct 2 to 10th and these are my observations. First off book your hotel around 5 months in advance to get the room that you want, especially when booking with HOJO's. I found the crowds to be heavy but manageable during the time that I was visiting the mouse. Take advantage of the Fastpasses and single rider lines. Ride the rides first thing in the morning before noon when the crowds are the lowest. Mickey's Halloween Party...I went to the Oct 5 and 8th parties, and had a blast at both. The cost for the Tues party was $49USD and Friday was $54USD. You can buy the tickets ahead of time starting around July 14t5h onwards online on the main Disney website. I loved the fireworks, parade, character interactions, and ended up with close to 20lbs of candy that the kids enjoyed afterwards. The bags that they give you are tiny, so the best advice is to bring a backpack with you with a lg bag inside and as the treat bag get's heavy dump it into the backpack to even out the weight distribution. It's definitely worth it to see DL in it's Halloween glory, and it's a fun time of year, with tons of character interactions throughout the day, and alot more entertainment in general than off season. Hope that this helps you out.