HalloweenTime at DLR Info and Photo Superthread #3

[revwog1974]

Sherry, I have another question for you, if you don't mind. You said on another thread that you'd need to "sneak" back in the bag you bought last year. Is it a problem to bring in outside bags?

You also talked about bringing a flashlight for the darker treat trails. Would you advice this? I don't really want to haul a lot of stuff around with me all night, but it will be just me and my 6-year-old and she doesn't love dark places. Maybe I just answered my own question there. I can't imagine anyplace in Disneyland getting all that dark, but I find I can't really picture the treat trails. Are they scary? Are they dark?

Thank you for all the help you give and for making this planning fun. Thanks for hosting the weekly and daily themes and getting people to post pictures. My daughter doesn't know we're going, but each week we look at the pictures and she's really wistful. It's been a hoot. I guess I'm a bit sadistic, but I'm trying to prepare her while also keeping the surprise intact! It's been great fun. Thank you!

 

[Sherry E]

Sherry, I have another question for you, if you don't mind. You said on another thread that you'd need to "sneak" back in the bag you bought last year. Is it a problem to bring in outside bags?

You also talked about bringing a flashlight for the darker treat trails. Would you advice this? I don't really want to haul a lot of stuff around with me all night, but it will be just me and my 6-year-old and she doesn't love dark places. Maybe I just answered my own question there. I can't imagine anyplace in Disneyland getting all that dark, but I find I can't really picture the treat trails. Are they scary? Are they dark?

Thank you for all the help you give and for making this planning fun. Thanks for hosting the weekly and daily themes and getting people to post pictures. My daughter doesn't know we're going, but each week we look at the pictures and she's really wistful. It's been a hoot. I guess I'm a bit sadistic, but I'm trying to prepare her while also keeping the surprise intact! It's been great fun. Thank you!

revwog1974 -

I'm sorry it took me a while to reply - I had already signed off of the DIS for the night when you posted.

I guess "sneak" was probably not the right choice of words on my part when talking about bringing in my tote bag from last year. I guess what I really meant was to bring it in and stash it somewhere - either in a locker, or fold it up and smoosh it into the main purse/bag I have with me so that I don't have to carry it separately until it's time to collect candy!

I don't think you should have a problem bringing in an outside bag - I haven't heard of this happening thus far.

I don't think the flash lights - or any light-up devices - are necessary for walking around at the MHP. Disney does a good job of keeping everything well lit enough to get around, while also maintaining the proper 'atmosphere' for a Halloween party. Some areas of the park are a little bit darker than others - like back in Frontierland, for example, not far from that Round-Up/Carnival area, and Pixie Hollow, a couple of spots in Fantasyland, etc. Some trails are extremely well-lit.

I think that it's just like trick or treating outside of Disneyland, in a neighborhood - some folks use the special Halloween flashlights or lanterns that come out every year, and some don't. They are not really necessary, but some folks like to have them for fun, and for those times when they may hit a spot that is a little less well-lit.

Back when we had "Mickey's Halloween Party" Theme Week in this thread, in my intro post I included a few pictures (with eerie red and purple lighting effects) of a dark, spooky area of Frontierland. That's about as scary as it gets - and it's not too scary. There's a little bit of fog in that spot, but not much. Along the Rivers of America there is some fog. It's all more atmospheric than anything else, and very family-friendly.

Now if we were talking about Universal Studios, I would avoid any and all fog, as it would mean that there was a hatchet-wielding maniac lurking behind a corner, waiting to jump out at me and chase me down. Uh...no thanks to that one!

Thank you so much for the kind words! I'm glad you've joined us and stuck around! Also, I'm glad you've been enjoying the thread and that it's been helping you plan your trip in some small way.

 

[tamiandryan]

Just bought our Halloween Party tickets for the 15th yesterday! Getting pretty pumped now!!!

 

[deejdigsdis]

Sherry, I have another question for you, if you don't mind. You said on another thread that you'd need to "sneak" back in the bag you bought last year. Is it a problem to bring in outside bags?

I just wanted to confirm what Sherry said. There is no problem with bringing in outside bags. Here's the bag I used 2 years ago. I will take it with me again next month.

 

[revwog1974]

Thanks so much. I was pretty sure we could bring in bags but then I got worried. I don't really want to carry a flashlight with me so it sounds like it will be fine.

 

[seadd67]

where bring our own bags to, we are going to the mall tomorrow and getting our treat bags,we seen them there two weeks ago when we went to the mall. We did this for the last two years but at WDW, i cant imagine them turning you away. Now like I said we where at WDW the last two, there they did hand out bags to you as you enter the park,dont know if DL does this but its something to keep in mind.
I have a question, when exiting the park for the night the CM handed out lots of candy when exiting the park, does anyone know if they do this at DL?

 

[Sherry E]

where bring our own bags to, we are going to the mall tomorrow and getting our treat bags,we seen them there two weeks ago when we went to the mall. We did this for the last two years but at WDW, i cant imagine them turning you away. Now like I said we where at WDW the last two, there they did hand out bags to you as you enter the park,dont know if DL does this but its something to keep in mind.
I have a question, when exiting the park for the night the CM handed out lots of candy when exiting the park, does anyone know if they do this at DL?

seadd67 -

Yes - You do get smaller plastic bags when you get your wristband at the party in Disneyland. The Cast Members hand them out. They don't hold very much - which is why most folks end up with larger bags and bigger loads of candy - but they hold enough if you only go to a few treat stations.

Yes, the CM's hand out large quantities of candy when you exit Disneyland at the end of the party. Many people have said that they got at least 50% of their candy for the night at that moment, when they left the party. They said it seemed like the CM's were just trying to get rid of it. We left one hour early last year so they were not yet handing out candy at the exits.

 

[Sherry E]

I was just reading some things on MiceChat/MiceAge, as I was scouting for Halloween info/photos - specifically, Andy Castro's Dateline Disneyland piece and a Trip Report by "Ron W" about his trip to DLR on September 15th.

Between those two items, I saw a whole lot of photos of the Frankenweenie exhibit at the Animation Building and the Carnival. Actually, between the two I saw a lot of photos of all of the Halloween Time offerings (not a lot of treat photos, but worth a look anyway).

It's funny - anyone who has never been to DLR for the Halloween season will walk in and think "Oooh, look at all the decorations."

But...on the other hand...those of us who have visited many times during the season will notice what is missing from the decorations that was there in the past.

So, the tram display is still there - and, as I've said before, it's a waste to put it in that spot as it should be inside one of the parks. The parks need more decorations! It makes no sense to have this adorable, festive Halloween character display out on the tram path where it's very hard to get photos of it!

The masked floral Mickey that was there at the DL entrance last year is not there this year.

The flowers around the Hub don't look terribly Fall-like (not yet, anyway).

As we've discussed, there is only one Villain at a time in the tent at the Carnival.

The pumpkin carving area looks so bare - in the past it was located in a spot where it was surrounded by those wonderful Autumn touches like fake flowers, hay, leaves, random scarecrows or prop pumpkins, etc. It's been relocated, so those details seem to be missing to a large degree.

I didn't see a photo of Duffy's pumpkin patch photo spot, so I wonder if he is still there. (I thought I heard that we was there this year?)

The Ray Bradbury Halloween Tree is still there. Of course, the Dia de los Muertos display is still there.


I guess it bothers me that when certain things are added in (the Carnival), other things will surely vanish, like the floral masked Mickey, the extra details at the Round-Up, the ability to meet more than one Villain at a time and the Fall flowers. This is what seems to happen during the holidays, too - Disney adds in something and then, poof! The dramatic light canopy disappears from New Orleans Square, or the good trees in Toon Town are replaced with ugly trees.

For some reason, Disney has a hard time adding things and still keeping other things as is. They always do a 'plus one; minus one' thing. This is what I think will happen this year for the holidays too - Cars Land and Buena Vista Street will be fully decked out in Christmas decor...but will the bugs still get their holiday overlay in A Bug's Land? Will New Orleans Square still be fully decorated?


Anyway, if you haven't already done so, check out Andy Castro's Dateline Disneyland piece and Ron W's Trip Report on MiceChat - I don't like to refer people to "the competition," but I think those two things are worth a look for those who are eager for more photos and info right away (as I know some are).

 

[sonjaandsue]

Sherry-

Thank you for your "balanced" reporting on the other blogs. I am very disappointed that there is only one villain at a time - that is a blow to my Halloween spirit.

Any chance that the floral masked Mickey will appear for MHP?

 

[Sherry E]

Sherry-

Thank you for your "balanced" reporting on the other blogs. I am very disappointed that there is only one villain at a time - that is a blow to my Halloween spirit.

Any chance that the floral masked Mickey will appear for MHP?

sonjaandsue -

You're very welcome! No problem at all. I thought it was worthwhile to mention those two particular items from the other site because we have had a lack of detailed photos and reports over here, for the most part, since Tom's DIS Unplugged blog and Disneyland 1951's post back on page 37 of this thread. Both Andy Castro's article and Ron W's TR thread have a lot of photos and details that I think people would be interested in seeing. Otherwise, if I hadn't seen anything different over there than what we had already seen here, I wouldn't have mentioned them!

I hate hate hate the one Villain at a time thing. Yes, I'm sure it will be fun to interact with the Villains one on one, and it looks like a cool purple backdrop inside the tent, but I still don't like it. I like them to be outside, in a regular photo spot, with a few of them at a time! Also, I like seeing the other characters in costume on Main Street - it makes sense because Main Street is one of the few places in the park that is thoroughly decorated!

I suppose they could always find a way to get the floral Masked Mickey in place over the next couple of weeks, in time for the parties to begin - although it was up on opening day of the season last year. How hard can it be? They'd had all year to get it set up!

 

[Susiesark]

Last year, we not only took in our larger bags from the Disney Store, but we took a collapsible rolling ice chest, and put it in a locker. Then throughout the night we would dump all of our candy into it. Between my friend and I and our 2 daughters, our combined total of candy was over 48 lbs.
I asked a few different stores within Disneyland yesterday, and they are no longer selling the ghost popcorn bucket in the store with the popcorn voucher. It can only be purchased at a popcorn vendor, and you do not get a passholder discount. Deluxe souvenir bucket is $6 and the Mickey ghost bucket is $12. Big price difference for the same amount of popcorn.

 

[laura&fam]

I hate hate hate the one Villain at a time thing. Yes, I'm sure it will be fun to interact with the Villains one on one, and it looks like a cool purple backdrop inside the tent, but I still don't like it. I like them to be outside, in a regular photo spot, with a few of them at a time! Also, I like seeing the other characters in costume on Main Street - it makes sense because Main Street is one of the few places in the park that is thoroughly decorated!

I don't love the one villain at a time but I hate the idea of not knowing what villain it will be. Who wants to stand in line and not even know what they are standing in line for? That makes absolutely no sense to me

 

[asianway]

I don't love the one villain at a time but I hate the idea of not knowing what villain it will be. Who wants to stand in line and not even know what they are standing in line for? That makes absolutely no sense to me

Especially when it seems that the villains are "nothing special" even though they set a precedent in prior years.

They diverted the extra villain budget to bring extra VIPs into the festival area, but they didnt do new costumes this year.

It all has to do with entertainment management and what they think people want, but they just lost my Halloweentime money...no need to travel if its same old same old.

 

[tksbaskets]

Hi Sherry,
Thank you for the updates and scoops. I wouldn't know anything without you and this thread.

I think it is wonderful to know how DL changes from year to year and I find myself coming back to this thread often for updates.

I appreciate all the time and effort that you take to keep us in the know!

Teresa

 

[Sherry E]

Last year, we not only took in our larger bags from the Disney Store, but we took a collapsible rolling ice chest, and put it in a locker. Then throughout the night we would dump all of our candy into it. Between my friend and I and our 2 daughters, our combined total of candy was over 48 lbs.
I asked a few different stores within Disneyland yesterday, and they are no longer selling the ghost popcorn bucket in the store with the popcorn voucher. It can only be purchased at a popcorn vendor, and you do not get a passholder discount. Deluxe souvenir bucket is $6 and the Mickey ghost bucket is $12. Big price difference for the same amount of popcorn.

Susiesark -

You brought out the heavy artillery for the candy haul last year!

Thanks so much for that update. It's good to know that the bucket can no longer be purchased in the store with the voucher (and AP discount). From what DIS'er isisisme was saying a few pages back, this is the last year for that bucket (and lantern too, I think?) altogether, according to Mouse Planet. I don't know if that will actually be the case, or if Disney will release a sort of 'modified' version of the ghost Mickey bucket next year (sometimes they change the designs of items a little bit, and then release them again later with minor alterations), but I guess it's safe to say that anyone who wants that ghost Mickey popcorn bucket and lantern should get ithem this year, just in case they disappear forever!

(I wonder if that means that the snowman Mickey popcorn bucket is going to become extinct as well, after this holiday season...)

I don't love the one villain at a time but I hate the idea of not knowing what villain it will be. Who wants to stand in line and not even know what they are standing in line for? That makes absolutely no sense to me

laura&fam -

Yes - I don't like that, either. At first I wasn't clear on whether or not the Villain in the tent was someone we could conjure up (in other words, could we go in and say, "I want to conjure up Cruella" and have her magically appear from behind a curtain?), or if the Villain was just whoever happens to be on 'tent duty' at that moment. It is sounding more and more like it's the latter scenario. Even if we could specifically ask for the Villain of our choice (within reason, or selected from a designated 'menu' of sorts), I still don't like the set-up. It doesn't seem efficient to me in terms of handling a certain number of guests who want photos within a reasonable time frame.

I guess that Disney is trying to make the Villains more mysterious and more of a selling point for the MHP. If they take away some of the Villains' visibility and accessibility in the daytime and make them more connected to the party itself, they can lure more people into buying the MHP tickets.

Also, it still just makes no sense at all to not have any other characters in costume on Main Street. Main Street is the only 'land' that is fully decorated - from the pumpkins on the balconies and in the windows, to the festive store window displays and the Hub and all of that. It makes sense to have a few characters there in costume instead of forcing everyone back to the Carnival/Ranch/Round-Up area.

I don't like a lot of what I have been seeing and hearing about this season because I feel like DLR is stripping down an already stripped down Halloween Time, when they should really be building it up to be bigger and better than ever.

Hi Sherry,
Thank you for the updates and scoops. I wouldn't know anything without you and this thread.

I think it is wonderful to know how DL changes from year to year and I find myself coming back to this thread often for updates.

I appreciate all the time and effort that you take to keep us in the know!

Teresa

Thank you so much, TK (or do you prefer Teresa?)!

I really appreciate the kind words: - I am very grateful to everyone here who contributes by sharing photos and giving us updates & news! Even the smallest details of changes in the season can be newsworthy, and I like to know about them!

 

[perlster]

So, the tram display is still there - and, as I've said before, it's a waste to put it in that spot as it should be inside one of the parks. The parks need more decorations! It makes no sense to have this adorable, festive Halloween character display out on the tram path where it's very hard to get photos of it!

not impossible, though:

 

[Sherry E]

not impossible, though:

Good picture. I've definitely seen photos of the display over the years, and I've passed by it in the tram.

I think the reason why we don't see many more photos of this display is because people who don't take the tram don't know it's there, or they are unable to get a shot of any of it from the tram as they are passing by (or maybe their view is blocked by other people where they are sitting).

It's such a cute display - it is a shame that it's not more visible given the total lack of decorations in DCA and the increasing lack of decorations in DL.

 

[Kilted Candyman]

Starting to feel a bit bummed out. Was looking really forward to this but it is now looking like I am a day late and a dollar short.

Too late to cancel. I hope the tour turns out better...

Jim

 

[Sherry E]

Starting to feel a bit bummed out. Was looking really forward to this but it is now looking like I am a day late and a dollar short.

Too late to cancel. I hope the tour turns out better...

Jim

Jim -

You'll still have a great time! There would be no reason to cancel even if it weren't too late. There are a couple of things that are missing or that have changed, but the basic important things are still there (Main Street decorations, Haunted Mansion Holiday, Ghost Galaxy, pumpkin carvers at the Round-Up/Carnival, etc.).

The tour will probably be a lot of fun - are you doing the tour/party combination package (Ultimate Experience) or the tour and Halloween party separately?

I still haven't really seen any photos of pins yet - I know you were looking for those! Even when I looked around on other boards, I didn't see any pin photos. If I get there before you take your trip I will be sure to get lots of pin photos!

 

[Kilted Candyman]

Jim -

You'll still have a great time! There would be no reason to cancel even if it weren't too late. There are a couple of things that are missing or that have changed, but the basic important things are still there (Main Street, Haunted Mansion Holiday, Ghost Galaxy, the Round-Up, etc.).

The tour will probably be a lot of fun - are you doing the tour/party combination package (Ultimate Experience) or the tour and Halloween party separately?

I still haven't really seen any photos of pins yet - I know you were looking for those! Even when I looked around on other boards, I didn't see any pin photos. If I get there before you take your trip I will be sure to get lots of pin photos!

Cool. I was getting worried the way the thread had turned. I appreciate all your efforts here and the work you have put into it.

As for the pins I should be there a week from tomorrow so hopefully they will have everything out by than.

On the tour, it was booked up the Friday so we rearranged our trip to stay there Sat instead of going to the LA Zoo and the Tar Pits. A bit of a disappointment for Amy since she was looking forward to the zoo and the convertible I rented for her to drive around LA but the plus side is she gets to see WoC which is her favorite.

Jim