HalloweenTime at DLR Superthread #4

[Comicbookmommy]

Do you think the Toon Town pre-party will srill happen? That was a blast!

 

[Oswald23]

Do you think the Toon Town pre-party will srill happen? That was a blast!

I asked the same question one or two pages ago (no attack please just stating I want it to know as bad as you are) But it is still not sure. They downgraded the Halloween time so much I don't think it will happen. But that's just me being negative

Sherry's tip was to wait and see what happens to the schedule of ToonTown attractions on party nights. I can tell you they are not up yet. Funny thing is on non-party nights they are up even after the first party. That can be a good thing, or they still don't know what they're gonna do.

 

[dolphingirl47]

I am hope that I am reading something in here that is not there, but I looking at the schedules, after 12th September it states "Schedule Unavailable" for the ranch and all the Toon Town Attractions. I thought that Toon Town was safe from the chop, but now I start to wonder.

Corinna

 

[lorijohnhill]

All of the Rivers of America attractions are listed as "schedule unavailable" also... hmmm...

 

[tjcrabb]

I think several of the schedules are wonky. I am (not so) patiently waiting to book a fantasmic dinner at BB. I was checking the website and fantasmic is showing 10/03 but not showing up under the dining packages for that date.

 

[HopLow1968]

And on the sparkling Halloween certerpiece........ I love Halloween. And I love sparkly things.......... but that just seems......... odd.

My first thought was autumn leaves caught in a frost.

 

[Comicbookmommy]

I asked the same question one or two pages ago (no attack please just stating I want it to know as bad as you are) But it is still not sure. They downgraded the Halloween time so much I don't think it will happen. But that's just me being negative

Sherry's tip was to wait and see what happens to the schedule of ToonTown attractions on party nights. I can tell you they are not up yet. Funny thing is on non-party nights they are up even after the first party. That can be a good thing, or they still don't know what they're gonna do.

Thanks for the information! I really hope it happens. My son got to meet Clarabel Cow and Horace and was so happy (two of his favorites) and going on treat trails throughout Toon Town was awesome! Fingers crossed!

 

[Mr. Bastos]

Ordered our Ticket's for the 31st on the 8th, and haven't gotten them yet. Hopefully today or early this coming week. We really need to figure out our costumes though haha. Also on an unrelated note, we decided to dine at Big Thunder Ranch during a quick trip next weekend, since we've never eaten there and we read it will be closing (possibly soonish), we need to try it.

 

[DnA2010]

Hi guys, we are very close to booking a trip to DL for Oct- our dates are going to be
Oct 18th - arrive LAX around 6pm-
Oft 25th - depart LAX around 6:30pm-

We will have 5 day hoppers and buy tickets to a Halloween party- just curious what day in this time you would do the party?

 

[Kilala]

I just took a photo shoot in my Halloween cat costume. I will try to post the by next Tuesday.I have some pics up on Facebook Here's the link https://www.facebook.com/cristine.armstrong/posts/921855321242235?pnref=story

 

[Sherry E]

Has anyone tried to book the happiest haunts tour yet? When they updated the cost of the tour they also took out the phrase occurring nightly during the halloween season. I know the blog won't be announcing anything about it for a month or so, if at all. I am curious to see if it is nightly or party nights only.

Mind you, I have never done the Happiest Haunts tour, but I didn't think -- or realize -- that it ever took place during Mickey's Halloween Party. Did it/does it? I thought that it was always worked around the MHP schedule -- except for when the Ultimate package was being offered (which was the combo of the tour and the party). There are so many parties though -- 17 of them -- that I wonder if the tour is not happening on those nights? I don't know. I am just speculating, like we all are. But it is curious.

I've been wondering the same thing. I also find it interesting that there are NO available dates showing yet. Even those that are within the 30 day booking time.

Even if the tour were to start a couple of days into the Halloween Time season, the dates and info should be up by now. I don't know what is going on with that whole Disney system -- between the Dining reservations issues for October, and the problems people had and are having with receiving their MHP tickets, etc. It's all askew.

When MHP ends at 11pm, do the shops on Main St stay open another hour like on regular park nights?

I am not 100% sure, but I think they may stay open a little bit past the end. I could be totally wrong. I don't think I have ever heard anyone talk about staying past the closing of the party to shop, but I would not be shocked.

We've done a lot of hard ticket parties at WDW. And I always enjoy myself more if I know I have 2 parties to fit it all in. It takes some of the pressure off.

And I wanted to see the goats in their Halloween scarves too!

I ordered our tickets Monday and they arrived yesterday.

I'm glad you got your tickets already. While I think the party is too expensive, and I think that one party will suffice, it helps to have two parties to kind of spread things out a bit more... especially now that it seems that all of the characters wearing anything even remotely Halloween-ish are going to be party exclusives! The lines for the characters will be longer, so more waiting will be involved.

The goats in their Halloween scarves are so cute. They love attention from humans!

I'd be shocked to see any of that come back. They Disney hand giveth.....and it taketh away. I think this all just gives them some cover to cut back in these areas. In general, the hard ticket parties at WDW have had a variety of things removed through the years and there just never seems to be much given back.

Yes -- I agree. All of the other stuff going on is the excuse to take more things and make them party exclusives, and then continue to hike up the MHP prices. Now it's to a ridiculous point, though. At least WDW doesn't call it a season, correct? They have MNSSHP and some other things scattered around, but they don't label the season Halloween Time or anything. It seems like DLR is trying to get closer to that WDW model of doing things, so I don't even know why they call it a Halloween Time "season" at this point, except for that now they have backed themselves into a corner and people expect it. There might be lower expectations if they just had Mickey's Halloween Party and then 'surprised' us with whatever decorations they manage to put up somewhere in Disneyland, but didn't call it Halloween Time.

At one point long ago there was a Food & Wine Festival in DCA. That's been gone for years, and it doesn't look like it's ever coming back either. And why not, I wonder?

I'd like to "like" this post....... but I just can't.

And thanks for posting the link to the merchandise thread. I hope the hoodie shows up on Disneystore.com. I want one but have a hunch they'll be out of a lot of that stuff by the time we get there in late October.

And on the sparkling Halloween certerpiece........ I love Halloween. And I love sparkly things.......... but that just seems......... odd.

When Erin at the Parks Blog first mentioned the "sparkling new décor" or whatever she called the new 60th-themed Halloween décor in her blog last month, I think a lot of people were scratching their heads about it. "Halloween" and "sparkly" don't seem to go together. When you think of Halloween and Fall, you think of something a bit more rustic... oranges and browns... rusts.... yellows.... Fall décor is generally not sparkly. Holiday season/Christmas décor can be sparkly, so that might make some sense. I wasn't sure what the Halloween-Diamond décor would look like.

However, I guess that the Fall centerpiece is supposed to essentially represent dew drops dripping off of leaves.

Do you think the Toon Town pre-party will srill happen? That was a blast!

I don't see why it shouldn't, but this year.... anything can happen. I don't trust them.

I asked the same question one or two pages ago (no attack please just stating I want it to know as bad as you are) But it is still not sure. They downgraded the Halloween time so much I don't think it will happen. But that's just me being negative

Sherry's tip was to wait and see what happens to the schedule of ToonTown attractions on party nights. I can tell you they are not up yet. Funny thing is on non-party nights they are up even after the first party. That can be a good thing, or they still don't know what they're gonna do.

I can't blame you for thinking it might not happen. This year everything is so scaled back that I can't help but wonder too...

Yes, that's what happened last year -- it was noticed that Toontown was closing earlier than usual (or Car Toon Spin had different hours, or something along those lines), and that's how it was concluded that Toontown was going to have the pre-party again. Hopefully, within another few days, we might have a better idea..

I am hope that I am reading something in here that is not there, but I looking at the schedules, after 12th September it states "Schedule Unavailable" for the ranch and all the Toon Town Attractions. I thought that Toon Town was safe from the chop, but now I start to wonder.

Corinna

While I don't fully trust that Toontown is 100% safe over the next few years, I don't think it would be closed down yet.

All of the Rivers of America attractions are listed as "schedule unavailable" also... hmmm...

You mean unavailable every day after Halloween Time starts on 9/11?

My first thought was autumn leaves caught in a frost.

Yes! Exactly! That makes more sense than dew drops. I think that is what it's supposed to be -- icicles dangling from leaves.

Ordered our Ticket's for the 31st on the 8th, and haven't gotten them yet. Hopefully today or early this coming week. We really need to figure out our costumes though haha. Also on an unrelated note, we decided to dine at Big Thunder Ranch during a quick trip next weekend, since we've never eaten there and we read it will be closing (possibly soonish), we need to try it.

Supposedly the BBQ restaurant is closing after 1/10/16, so it's a good idea to eat there before it does. During summertime I know that in the past they have had desserts like strawberry shortcake, cobbler, etc. They have also had desserts more specific to Fall and the Holidays. Next week I don't know if they will still be in summer mode or transitioning into Fall mode, but check the dessert menu as well.

Hi guys, we are very close to booking a trip to DL for Oct- our dates are going to be
Oct 18th - arrive LAX around 6pm-
Oft 25th - depart LAX around 6:30pm-

We will have 5 day hoppers and buy tickets to a Halloween party- just curious what day in this time you would do the party?

Welcome! I'm glad you joined us.

If I had to pick a Halloween Party date in that time frame, I think I would go for the party on Monday, October 19th. There are two reasons I choose that one. For one thing, the advance price is cheaper than the subsequent party nights that week. The other reason is that, because the advance price is cheaper, it means that Disney is expecting fewer people at that party. You can always tell when they expect a night to be more crowded or more popular, as the prices are higher. Since 10/19 is less expensive, it's probably not going to be quite as busy -- still busy, but less so than the other party nights later in the week.

 

[mom2rtk]

I'm glad you got your tickets already. While I think the party is too expensive, and I think that one party will suffice, it helps to have two parties to kind of spread things out a bit more... especially now that it seems that all of the characters wearing anything even remotely Halloween-ish are going to be party exclusives! The lines for the characters will be longer, so more waiting will be involved.

The goats in their Halloween scarves are so cute. They love attention from humans!



Yes -- I agree. All of the other stuff going on is the excuse to take more things and make them party exclusives, and then continue to hike up the MHP prices. Now it's to a ridiculous point, though. At least WDW doesn't call it a season, correct? They have MNSSHP and some other things scattered around, but they don't label the season Halloween Time or anything. It seems like DLR is trying to get closer to that WDW model of doing things, so I don't even know why they call it a Halloween Time "season" at this point, except for that now they have backed themselves into a corner and people expect it. There might be lower expectations if they just had Mickey's Halloween Party and then 'surprised' us with whatever decorations they manage to put up somewhere in Disneyland, but didn't call it Halloween Time.

At one point long ago there was a Food & Wine Festival in DCA. That's been gone for years, and it doesn't look like it's ever coming back either. And why not, I wonder?

I want to spend one party mostly doing characters, and the other one catching the few we missed and staking out a nice spot for the fireworks.

Good point about WDW not having a Halloween season. I wonder if that little detail slipped their minds as they cut everything back this year? If they want to call it a season, they really do need something other than an exclusive (extra cost) party, don't they?

 

[lorijohnhill]

You mean unavailable every day after Halloween Time starts on 9/11?

The unavailability seems to begin on 9/13. I didn't click on every single day, but clicked many of them and they show unavailable the days I clicked through 10/3 (which is the last day showing on the schedule).

 

[DnA2010]

Welcome! I'm glad you joined us.

If I had to pick a Halloween Party date in that time frame, I think I would go for the party on Monday, October 19th. There are two reasons I choose that one. For one thing, the advance price is cheaper than the subsequent party nights that week. The other reason is that, because the advance price is cheaper, it means that Disney is expecting fewer people at that party. You can always tell when they expect a night to be more crowded or more popular, as the prices are higher. Since 10/19 is less expensive, it's probably not going to be quite as busy -- still busy, but less so than the other party nights later in the week.[/QUOTE]


Thanks! We are so thrilled! The next task will be easy, pack-able costumes! I just booked the flights, and ordered park hoppers from Airmiles, we are officially booked!
The only reason I am considering not doing the Monday as it will be hard to not enter parks till 3pm- although we could sleep in, swim, get ready and then it would be time to go!

 

[Sherry E]

I want to spend one party mostly doing characters, and the other one catching the few we missed and staking out a nice spot for the fireworks.

Good point about WDW not having a Halloween season. I wonder if that little detail slipped their minds as they cut everything back this year? If they want to call it a season, they really do need something other than an exclusive (extra cost) party, don't they?

They initially just had the party at DLR. The party (which was in DCA at that point) was a hit, and Haunted Mansion Holiday (in DL) was a hit, so they created a "season" with a name later on -- maybe just to give the party some context. There were decorations in both parks, and everything felt more involved. Now they have backed themselves into a corner with the season, even as so, so many Halloween things have fallen to the wayside in the last 5-6 years.

When the first signs of Halloween merchandise appeared a few weeks ago -- pins -- I wondered why the pins only said "Halloween" and didn't say "Halloween Time." I don't know if that has been happening for a while -- I have not looked at the pins in a long time -- but in the past there were pins that actually said "Halloween Time."

 

[lorijohnhill]

Mind you, I have never done the Happiest Haunts tour, but I didn't think -- or realize -- that it ever took place during Mickey's Halloween Party. Did it/does it? I thought that it was always worked around the MHP schedule -- except for when the Ultimate package was being offered (which was the combo of the tour an the party). There are so many parties though -- 17 of them -- that I wonder if the tour is not happening on those nights? I don't know. I am just speculating, like we all are. But it is curious.

When I was talking with the CM that said he was developing the tour, he said the tour would be scheduled in the evening on non-party days (beginning around 6:30 pm or so) and then scheduled earlier on party nights so that the tour would end prior to the start of the party.

 

[Sherry E]

The unavailability seems to begin on 9/13. I didn't click on every single day, but clicked many of them and they show unavailable the days I clicked through 10/3 (which is the last day showing on the schedule).

Interesting! I have no idea what is happening. Let's hope they're not shutting down the Rivers of America too. They have to make it foggy for the party!

Thanks! We are so thrilled! The next task will be easy, pack-able costumes! I just booked the flights, and ordered park hoppers from Airmiles, we are officially booked!

The only reason I am considering not doing the Monday as it will be hard to not enter parks till 3pm- although we could sleep in, swim, get ready and then it would be time to go!

You could swim, sleep in, do a character meal, explore Downtown Disney a little bit -- you'll be able to fill the time!

When I was talking with the CM that said he was developing the tour, he said the tour would be scheduled in the evening on non-party days (beginning around 6:30 pm or so) and then scheduled earlier on party nights so that the tour would end prior to the start of the party.

That makes sense -- it fits with what I thought. I thought that the tour was kind of worked around the MHP schedule, and that it happened earlier on party nights. I wonder why it's not showing up yet. That whole DLR system is so wacky.

 

[DnA2010]

Whoops- I meant the next task will Not be easy! Pack-able costumes!!

 

[Sherry E]

Whoops- I meant the next task will Not be easy! Pack-able costumes!!

True! Unless you have costumes that are totally flat, without any layers, bulk, padding, accessories, etc., it is hard to get a costume down to packing size without ruining it. I once saw party guests walking around dressed as giant Crayola Crayons, and there was also a guy in a giant chicken suit of some sort -- feathers and all. I wondered how those were packed -- or maybe they were not packed, if the guests were locals and could just drive over.

 

[tjcrabb]

Mind you, I have never done the Happiest Haunts tour, but I didn't think -- or realize -- that it ever took place during Mickey's Halloween Party. Did it/does it? I thought that it was always worked around the MHP schedule -- except for when the Ultimate package was being offered (which was the combo of the tour and the party). There are so many parties though -- 17 of them -- that I wonder if the tour is not happening on those nights? I don't know. I am just speculating, like we all are. But it is curious. Even if the tour were to start a couple of days into the Halloween Time season, the dates and info should be up by now. I don't know what is going on with that whole Disney system -- between the Dining reservations issues for October, and the problems people had and are having with receiving their MHP tickets, etc. It's all askew. At one point long ago there was a Food & Wine Festival in DCA. That's been gone for years, and it doesn't look like it's ever coming back either. And why not, I wonder?

I think the only year it was the same night was the year of the ultimate package aka the year I went I hope they do it more than just party nights, its a lot to do both and you cut into expensive party. I wonder what is causing the behind the behind the scenes chaos. The additional announcements shouldn't be the cause because it is only news to the public (for the most part) not the company. I had forgotten about food and wine at DCA! You are right it makes more sense at DCA than epcot.