HalloweenTime at DLR Superthread #4

[kandeebunny]

Can someone who has been on it please tell the perks of the Happiest Haunts Tour? WDW has nothing like it, and this is our first Halloween at DLR.

 

[Lauren in NC]

So, we were in the parks today. They put out the Halloween decorations around the Big Thunder Ranch area, but BTMBBQ is still July 4th. Definitely a bit of a weird juxtaposition! I took a quick photo on my phone, so sorry for the bad quality!

 

[Kilala]

So, we were in the parks today. They put out the Halloween decorations around the Big Thunder Ranch area, but BTMBBQ is still July 4th. Definitely a bit of a weird juxtaposition! I took a quick photo on my phone, so sorry for the bad quality!

Wow! it's like people that don't want to take down thier Chirstmas decorations until Febuary 1st

 

[Sherry E]

Finally joining! I've been stalking this thread since we were all waiting for the announcement of the party dates. My family goes to DL every few years but this will be the first time that (1) it's a girls' trip, just me and my mom, and (2) going during the Halloween season!!!

We're doing MHP our first day, so we have time to hit the rides on our other days. Our priority is the enjoy the party experience, even if there are less offerings this year. (Although my mom shares the same birth year as DL and is always excited to go on an special anniversary year.)

I do have a question though. Are the treat trails fun for adults? My mom dismisses it as a kid thing, but I'm interested.

Welcome! I'm so glad you joined us.

As Kilala and tjcrabb mentioned, the treat trails are fun for all ages. Personally, I like being able to trick or treat in Disneyland -- because it's the only place I can do it as an adult and not be given weird looks. I haven't trick or treated in the "real" sense since I was a child, so it's fun to be able to do it once in a while at the party. There is a great assortment of candy and healthy treats (apple slices, carrots, etc.). I think you'll have a great time.

Can someone who has been on it please tell the perks of the Happiest Haunts Tour? WDW has nothing like it, and this is our first Halloween at DLR.

Here is a great review/article about the Happiest Haunts Tour from last year - http://www.laughingplace.com/w/articles/2014/09/18/happiest-haunts-disneyland-tour-review/. It will tell you exactly what happened and what the perks were. I don't know if anything will change this year, but we'll find out soon.

So, we were in the parks today. They put out the Halloween decorations around the Big Thunder Ranch area, but BTMBBQ is still July 4th. Definitely a bit of a weird juxtaposition! I took a quick photo on my phone, so sorry for the bad quality!

Thank you so much for letting us know about this and for sharing the photo! First of all, yes -- it is a very weird juxtaposition. It's "2 holidays colliding" -- but not the two holidays that we would expect to collide!

My second thought when looking at the photo was, "Oh, thank goodness they're putting something Fall-ish at the Ranch!"

So... what this may or may not mean is that, although the actual Carnival is not back this year (and no pumpkin carvers), the little log cabin/Scare-Dy-Crow Shack could be decorated one last time (with all kinds of vintage Halloween décor inside). The "pumpkin people" (shown in my post on page 1) might be back one last time.

And maybe the goats in Halloween scarves will be there?! Oh, let's hope so. Even though I am still very annoyed at DLR for not bringing the pumpkin carvers back, I hope that they are putting all of the wonderful autumn décor all around the ranch and Roundup -- there is usually a lot of décor all around that area. If they do, it will be the last year for it, but there may, indeed, be one final chance to see the goats in Halloween scarves!

Wow! it's like people that don't want to take down thier Chirstmas decorations until Febuary 1st

My hunch -- and it's only a guess -- is that the flags and patriotic touches stay up from 4th of July (or just after Memorial Day) to Labor Day, and then come down. But at least there is some semblance of Halloween/Fall décor appearing there one final time!

 

[HopLow1968]

I think that I, personally, would aim for seeing PTN on a non-party night, and just stick to the Halloween party-specific things during MHP. Your priorities may be different, though. If you want to meet and get photos with characters, a lot of them are only available at the party itself, so you might want to focus on that, and also on seeing Halloween Screams, the Cadaver Dans, etc.

The MHP should involve fewer people in the park than there would be on a normal day, but I would bet that there will still be a lot of people waiting for PTN. In fact, a lot of people may skip seeing PTN on other nights because they expect low crowds at the MHP, only to find out that there are still a lot of people waiting to see it at MHP!

Doesn't the Screams fireworks pretty much immediately follow the PTN parade? I was thinking that all the good spots for the fireworks would be taken by people who had already waited for PTN. I'd especially like to get a spot on the hub that lets us see down the parade path to the matterhorn, but also has a good view of the castle and the "ball". I assumed that I would have to wait at least an hour before the parade in order to do this.

 

[jammyjam25]

Doesn't the Screams fireworks pretty much immediately follow the PTN parade? I was thinking that all the good spots for the fireworks would be taken by people who had already waited for PTN. I'd especially like to get a spot on the hub that lets us see down the parade path to the matterhorn, but also has a good view of the castle and the "ball". I assumed that I would have to wait at least an hour before the parade in order to do this.

I'm worried about this as well as I'm planning not to see PTN during the party but want to see Halloween Screams with a decent view.

 

[Mommy2PrincessAbby]

We plan on trying to grab an okay spot for both about an hour before, so I guess around 7:45, we are going to two parties, so we have two shots at it... Kinda puts a big hole in the party. I am hoping most people will leave after the fireworks and we can ride rides the last hour.

 

[Kilala]

I just got back from shopping and I saw very little in the way of Halloween/fall candy and food. I have to go back to Target today to get some of the Pepperage farms Pumpkin Cheesecake cookies. They are the only ones that has then. I can't believe i got this but at Wal-Mart I got a 3 pound bag of Candy Corn . It the kind with chocolate tips. I did take a few photos. Since I have to go out again today I will try to go a differnt Target. I also got my ticket for the 16th party. So I will be going twice this year maybe a third time If my friend Lori can't go on the 16th

 

[Alohagirl73]

Happy to be back here after taking a year off of Disneyland Halloween. We got our tickets in the mail yesterday for the first party on the 25th of September. My DD will be 4 and probably dressed as Anna or Elsa. My baby will get to go to Disneyland for the first time that night. Doubtful he will be dressed up.

 

[Sherry E]

Doesn't the Screams fireworks pretty much immediately follow the PTN parade? I was thinking that all the good spots for the fireworks would be taken by people who had already waited for PTN. I'd especially like to get a spot on the hub that lets us see down the parade path to the matterhorn, but also has a good view of the castle and the "ball". I assumed that I would have to wait at least an hour before the parade in order to do this.

I'm worried about this as well as I'm planning not to see PTN during the party but want to see Halloween Screams with a decent view.

This is the first time there has been a real, full-length parade in Mickey's Halloween Party (with Halloween Screams following it), so I assume that Halloween Screams will run shortly thereafter -- but I don't know how long the down time will be between the two as compared to a normal, non-party night with a parade and fireworks. I don't know if the fireworks time will be altered a bit. I don't know if Cast Members will want people staying put in the middle of the street and around the Hub in between the parade and fireworks. They may ask people to move (though most likely they won't). I really have no idea because, again, this is the first time we have had a real parade included in the party. I don't know how much it will mirror or follow what happens on a regular night. You're probably right in that people will hang around, and there will be quite a lot of people milling about in that area. Hopefully some folks will decide to skip PTN at the party.

It will be interesting to see how this works, with the full parade at the party, and if crowds seem better or worse because of it!

I just got back from shopping and I saw very little in the way of Halloween/fall candy and food. I have to go back to Target today to get some of the Pepperage farms Pumpkin Cheesecake cookies. They are the only ones that has then. I can't believe i got this but at Wal-Mart I got a 3 pound bag of Candy Corn . It the kind with chocolate tips. I did take a few photos. Since I have to go out again today I will try to go a differnt Target. I also got my ticket for the 16th party. So I will be going twice this year maybe a third time If my friend Lori can't go on the 16th

That's a lot of candy corn! I'm surprised you didn't see more Halloween/Fall items. Now is when the wave of seasonal goods should be taking over all of the store shelves!

Happy to be back here after taking a year off of Disneyland Halloween. We got our tickets in the mail yesterday for the first party on the 25th of September. My DD will be 4 and probably dressed as Anna or Elsa. My baby will get to go to Disneyland for the first time that night. Doubtful he will be dressed up.

I wonder what your baby will be thinking as he looks around at all of the funny adults in crazy costumes! What an introduction to Disneyland he will get!

 

[SeattleSuz]

Quick question, do they do character dance parties during the Halloween party? When we went to MNSSHP 3 years ago, they had a Stitch Dance Party in Tomorrowland and I think a Toy Story dance party in Frontierland. Do they do that at DLR?

 

[Canadian Harmony]

Its just as Kilala said the adults definitely participate in the trick or treat. Everyone that purchases tickets to the party gets a treat bag to fill. If you want to fill it multiple times you totally could. I didn't get to all of the treat stops and my bag was completely full. Plus others in the thread have mentioned that if you go near the end of the night they hand you even more at a time. I think its totally worth doing particularly since its the good stuff Years ago they handed out dried apples (I don't know if they still do) as one of the healthy treats, they are really good!

I'm unusually excited about this! I haven't been actively trick or treating since I was a kid. Taking my kids around doesn't count (even though I help them with the candy )

 

[SeattleSuz]

My TA was telling me that when we go to the Parks the day of the HP, that they will give us our wristbands right away, instead of having to go back to the main gate at 3. Can anyone confirm this?

 

[Chris9ty]

We may have to take some time from the party to watch Paint the night parade since we are going the first week of October and the days we are in the park the parade isn't scheduled until 10:45 with only one showing. At least the 8:50 during the party my kids may be awake for that. I was hoping for it to be earlier since it should be dark early. We'll play it by ear and see what happens!

 

[Sherry E]

Quick question, do they do character dance parties during the Halloween party? When we went to MNSSHP 3 years ago, they had a Stitch Dance Party in Tomorrowland and I think a Toy Story dance party in Frontierland. Do they do that at DLR?

Yes, they do. Last year's map (linked in the MHP FAQ on page 1) shows where the dance station was located - https://wdpromedia.disney.go.com/me...en-party/pdf-mickeys-halloween-party-2014.pdf. I don't know what the dance station will be this year, but I'm sure there will be at least one (though, in the past, prior to 2014, I thought there was more than one).

I'm unusually excited about this! I haven't been actively trick or treating since I was a kid. Taking my kids around doesn't count (even though I help them with the candy )

It is especially fun to revisit one of the great joys of youth and trick or treat as an adult, since it's not something we can really do in "real life." Disneyland or any Disney park is really one of the only places where it feels acceptable and encouraged for all ages to hit the treat trails! I think that some adults may not want so much candy, but they will hit the different stations and collect the candy to then bring home and hand out to trick or treaters on Halloween night. There is just something fun and satisfying about opening up a bag and watching the candy fall into it!

And one great bonus of trick or treating at Disneyland is that each stop is a sure thing. We know we will get candy. You know how, as a child, if you went trick or treating in a residential neighborhood there were always the houses that had candy... and the houses that didn't have candy? There is always 'that house' (or maybe multiple houses) that wants nothing to do with Halloween. All the lights are off. No decorations are on the door. No pumpkins on the doorstep. The curtains are drawn. Sometimes a person will answer the door and say "Oh, I forgot that it's Halloween." Other times no one answers at all.

At Disneyland we don't have to wonder which houses will have the candy -- because all of the treat trails will have candy (and healthy treats too)!!!

My TA was telling me that when we go to the Parks the day of the HP, that they will give us our wristbands right away, instead of having to go back to the main gate at 3. Can anyone confirm this?

I don't think you get the wristband right away, meaning early in the day.

There will be a station set up somewhere in the park. So if you are already in Disneyland before 3 p.m., you can go to that station (wherever it ends up this year) at 3 p.m., show your MHP ticket and get your wristband. You won't get a wristband until you show your MHP ticket, and you can't use your MHP ticket until 3 p.m. or 4 p.m. (depending on the party time that night).

We may have to take some time from the party to watch Paint the night parade since we are going the first week of October and the days we are in the park the parade isn't scheduled until 10:45 with only one showing. At least the 8:50 during the party my kids may be awake for that. I was hoping for it to be earlier since it should be dark early. We'll play it by ear and see what happens!

That's a very good point -- the latest PTN may be too late for kids, and the earlier time would be better. That may be a great reason for a lot of people to choose to see PTN at the party instead of on another night.

 

[SeattleSuz]

Yes, they do. Last year's map (linked in the MHP FAQ on page 1) shows where the dance station was located - https://wdpromedia.disney.go.com/me...en-party/pdf-mickeys-halloween-party-2014.pdf. I don't know what the dance station will be this year, but I'm sure there will be at least one (though, in the past, prior to 2014, I thought there was more than one).

I don't think you get the wristband right away, meaning early in the day.

There will be a station set up somewhere in the park. So if you are already in Disneyland before 3 p.m., you can go to that station (wherever it ends up this year) at 3 p.m., show your MHP ticket and get your wristband. You won't get a wristband until you show your MHP ticket, and you can't use your MHP ticket until 3 p.m. or 4 p.m. (depending on the party time that night).

Good to know! I got all excited, looking at the map, forgot about how cool the parties are! I am happy that Jack and Sally will be in NO square, probably near HM, right? DD will be overjoyed to see them!!! I am wondering now who the Tomorrowland dance party characters will be this year, since they were Monsters U last year. Inside Out, maybe?

Thanks for the wristband info. When we did the MNSSHP at WDW, we just came from another park and went to MK at around 5 or so. I didnt realize that they had stations set up inside DLR. Good to know!

 

[Sherry E]

Good to know! I got all excited, looking at the map, forgot about how cool the parties are! I am happy that Jack and Sally will be in NO square, probably near HM, right? DD will be overjoyed to see them!!! I am wondering now who the Tomorrowland dance party characters will be this year, since they were Monsters U last year. Inside Out, maybe?

Thanks for the wristband info. When we did the MNSSHP at WDW, we just came from another park and went to MK at around 5 or so. I didnt realize that they had stations set up inside DLR. Good to know!

You're welcome!

In this press release, the same Monsters U Dance Party is mentioned - http://disneylandnews.com/2015/08/1...ebration-adds-sparkle-to-halloween-time-2015/ -- but when I read it I think I wondered if the text was just copied from last year, or if there really would be another Monsters U Dance Party.

There should be one wristband station set up inside Disneyland -- probably no more than one -- and then the one right near the entrance, which people will go to when they enter the park.

Jack and Sally (or just Jack, maybe) will be somewhere in NOS -- both at the party and hopefully in the daytime too. Most likely they will be somewhere near HMH.

 

[keishashadow]

so, who wants to share their secret spot to watch hallowishes. one we don't have to stake out hours early if possible.
uncharted waters for us. on past visits to DL have just looked up in the sky and seen FW well enough, usually back in area between alice and small world. want to make sure we are in general correct spot this trip.

 

[LisaT91403]

There should be one wristband station set up inside Disneyland -- probably no more than one -- and then the one right near the entrance, which people will go to when they enter the park.

Just an FYI that I recall the line being pretty long to get the wristbands inside the park last year. I guess we shall see where they set it up this year, and what the crowd control is like.

 

[pudinhd]

I don't know if this has already been mentioned and I missed it... I was just thinking about the treat trail and meet and greet with Phineas and Ferb / Perry inside Innoventions. With the new Innoventions opening in October, I am wondering if they will move the TT & M&G or if they will be another thing missing.

I also have a question... I think the meet and greets near the parade route have stopped during the cavalcade and fireworks. I am wondering if that also applies to meet and greets that are farther away and can't be seen from the parade route. Does anyone know?