HalloweenTime at DLR Superthread #4

[IAmElsan]

You're welcome!

The Villains have had an interesting journey for the last several Halloween Time seasons. At one point, years ago, you could find some Villains in California Adventure, in the Hollywood area of the park. That was in the daytime, and then you'd also see them during the Halloween party, which used to be held in DCA. Then, in 2009 the Villains moved over to a dedicated daytime Villains photo spot near It's a Small World in DL, where they stayed for a few consecutive Halloween seasons. The party eventually moved over to Disneyland as well, and you could meet more Villains there.

Then, the Halloween Carnival debuted at the Big Thunder Ranch area of Frontierland in 2012, and the Villains were suddenly scaled back in terms of daytime appearances. In other words, for a few consecutive years, instead of being able to meet 2-4 Villains at one photo spot, all at the same time, you had to wait in line at this "Conjure a Villain" tent at the Carnival, where you could only meet one Villain at a time. Some people waited in the line, only to later find out they were meeting a Villain they had already met. The Villains' appearances outside of the Conjure a Villain tent were gradually reduced to the Halloween party only. It seemed like a deliberate ploy on Disney's part to coax people into buying MHP tickets -- making the Villains mostly party-exclusive.

Last year there was no more Carnival (since that area of Disneyland is going to be razed) and, if I recall correctly, there were some Villains back out in the Town Square area, as well as at the actual party, of course. Corinna or someone else here may have a better memory of who was out last year in the daytime, and at which approximate times, to give you a sense of what to expect and plan for.

There was a new paid-event-within-a-paid-event last year, with the addition of the new Mystical Spirits of the Blue Bayou -- https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/b...o-mickeys-halloween-party-at-disneyland-park/. It was only accessible to people who paid for it, and who also paid for Halloween party tickets. Dr. Facilier was there.

When the holidays start moving in during your trip, you will see the closure of Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy, most likely. That should be closed immediately after 10/31 is over, for the removal of the overlay. It should only be closed a couple of days, however. So you will want to ride that in the first couple of days of your trip if you want to experience the Halloween version. Likewise, all of the Halloween decor in Disneyland should start coming down almost immediately after Halloween, though it may take a day or two to get it all down.

It's a Small World will close sometime in October -- my guess is that it will be closed as of 10/17, but I could be wrong -- for the installation of the holiday overlay, which takes about 2-1/2 weeks to put together. So it should be closed for the duration of your trip -- however, there is a chance (not a guarantee) that It's a Small World Holiday could soft open on your last day, November 4th. In fact, a few holiday things could soft open on 11/4 this year, depending on what Disney is going to do for the season and when it officially starts. if the holidays officially begin, for example, on 11/11, then I would expect soft launches of IASWH and maybe some of the other entertainment on 11/4. If the season is beginning later than 11/11, then it's possible everything could soft open later too. We won't know what's happening with that for a while.

Haunted Mansion Holiday stays open for the rest of the year once it opens at the start of Halloween Time in September, so you won't miss that.

Oh wow the villains certainly have seen many a novelty through the years!!
Do you happen to know the pricing or least ballpark on that event within an event thing they had with Dr. Facilier?
I hope to meet as many villains as possible since after the 31st it'll be back to usual characters out and about. Are Jack and Sally there through the holidays as well or are they only around for Halloween?

Thanks again for all the info!!

 

[Sherry E]

Oh wow the villains certainly have seen many a novelty through the years!!
Do you happen to know the pricing or least ballpark on that event within an event thing they had with Dr. Facilier?
I hope to meet as many villains as possible since after the 31st it'll be back to usual characters out and about. Are Jack and Sally there through the holidays as well or are they only around for Halloween?

Thanks again for all the info!!

You're very welcome!

The Mystical Spirits of the Blue Bayou event was a whopping $150 per person -- http://www.**************.net/2015/...turing-dr-facilier-coming-to-disneyland-park/ -- on top of what people were already paying for the actual Halloween party tickets. Ultimately, the event got good reviews for the most part, seeing that it was the first year for it. I would have to imagine that Disney will try to do a similar event-within-an-event at Disneyland again this year, but if, for any reason, the Halloween party moves over to California Adventure for a year or two (and that's only speculation based on the upcoming Star Wars Land construction, not an actual fact), then a premium dining event such as Mystical Spirits would have to move along with it. And then it would likely get a different name, and possibly a different "starring" Villain.

You may or may not see Captain Hook, Cruella, the Queen of Hearts and some others out in the park past Halloween, but they won't be stationed at any kind of organized, dedicated Villains photo spot by then.

Jack is out all through Halloween Time and then through the Holiday season. He will be at the Halloween party as well, more than likely. I have seen him with and without Sally, but it seemed like he was seen with Sally more often than not last year, from the reports I was reading/hearing in various places. You never know, though, if Jack will be alone or with Sally.

 

[IAmElsan]

You're very welcome!

The Mystical Spirits of the Blue Bayou event was a whopping $150 per person -- http://www.**************.net/2015/...turing-dr-facilier-coming-to-disneyland-park/ -- on top of what people were already paying for the actual Halloween party tickets. Ultimately, the event got good reviews for the most part, seeing that it was the first year for it. I would have to imagine that Disney will try to do a similar event-within-an-event at Disneyland again this year, but if, for any reason, the Halloween party moves over to California Adventure for a year or two (and that's only speculation based on the upcoming Star Wars Land construction, not an actual fact), then a premium dining event such as Mystical Spirits would have to move along with it. And then it would likely get a different name, and possibly a different "starring" Villain.

You may or may not see Captain Hook, Cruella, the Queen of Hearts and some others out in the park past Halloween, but they won't be stationed at any kind of organized, dedicated Villains photo spot by then.

Jack is out all through Halloween Time and then through the Holiday season. He will be at the Halloween party as well, more than likely. I have seen him with and without Sally, but it seemed like he was seen with Sally more often than not last year, from the reports I was seeing.

Oh Disney....$150 pp?!?
So if you went to the party and attended this dinner event it was pretty much an additional 225ish on top of your multi day pass for however long you go to the park during your stay? Wowzers!!

 

[Sherry E]

Oh Disney....$150 pp?!?
So if you went to the party and attended this dinner event it was pretty much an additional 225ish on top of your multi day pass for however long you go to the park during your stay? Wowzers!!

Yep! That's about it. So, it definitely would be good -- or less traumatizing! -- to do that kind of event on a day that you were not already going to be paying to be in the park, if you can, because paying for regular park admission (whether with an AP, a Hopper, a 1-park ticket, etc.) as well as the Halloween party, as well as Mystical Spirits (or whatever this year's version of the event is called), all for the same day would be a really expensive day at Disneyland!

 

[Kilala]

Thanks for clearing that up for me Sherry about IASWH

 

[dolphingirl47]

Corinna or someone else here may have a better memory of who was out last year in the daytime, and at which approximate times, to give you a sense of what to expect and plan for.

Captain Hook, Cruella, The Evil Queen and Judge Frollo were all out an about at one time or another and would show up on the app. Cruella was usually around the opera house and the others were strolling on the path between Alice in Wonderland and It's A Small World. They tended to be out in the mornings up to around 2 PM.

Corinna

 

[Aeryn76]

Never done a Halloween party at DL or at WDW before. I'm going the third week of September & if the party is going on then, I wonder if it would be worth it? Don't have kids and will be going solo and also will be my second time going to DL

 

[Sherry E]

Never done a Halloween party at DL or at WDW before. I'm going the third week of September & if the party is going on then, I wonder if it would be worth it? Don't have kids and will be going solo and also will be my second time going to DL

Hello, and welcome!

Ordinarily the Halloween parties at Disneyland begin on the last Friday in September, and that is usually 2 weeks after the Halloween Time season has officially begun. This year, however., I'm not sure if the Halloween Time season is starting on 9/9 (which seems early) or 9/16 (which seems late), or somewhere in between. And, because of the uncertainty about the Halloween Time start date, I don't know if the Halloween party will begin on 9/23 or 9/30, or somewhere in between. I am guessing that the parties will begin on 9/23 this year, but 9/30 is always a possibility.

So, if there is a party going on during your trip, I'd say that whether or not it's worth it depends on how much you like Halloween, collecting candy, maybe wearing a costume (assuming that is allowed this year), meeting characters that may be party-exclusives, possibly getting on some rides without long waits, etc. It's a lot of money to spend, but one of the main selling points of the party is the party-exclusive Halloween Screams fireworks (unless, for some reason, the party moves out of Disneyland park this year), and those are great!

I think that the party is fun to try at least once, even as a solo traveler. Some folks think it's very worthwhile and worth the cost. Others think that one time is enough and they don't really need to do it again. I am one who thoroughly enjoys the party when I go -- I love Halloween anyway -- but I don't need to go to the party every year when nothing new is really being added to it and I don't have kids.

Last year Disney took the Paint the Night parade and included it as part of the party, even though it was available on all other non-party nights too. I wasn't really fond of that decision on their part. They were essentially having the party guests pay extra -- the tickets had gone up from the previous year -- to see a parade that could be seen by anyone, on any night. It was not a party-exclusive. I don't know if they are doing that again this year, but I hope not. I really hope they keep the party entertainment specific and exclusive to the party.

 

[cinderbellasmom]

I missed a huge detail- when was dressing up during MHP banned? We went in 2014 and adults & kids were dressed up. We're going with a group of 15 family members the first week of Oct, 12 of the people have never been to DLR. I was already bummed about all of the closures but this is really going to upset the kids who've already picked out their costumes!

 

[Sherry E]

I missed a huge detail- when was dressing up during MHP banned? We went in 2014 and adults & kids were dressed up. We're going with a group of 15 family members the first week of Oct, 12 of the people have never been to DLR. I was already bummed about all of the closures but this is really going to upset the kids who've already picked out their costumes!

Here is a post that mentions something about it -- http://www.disboards.com/threads/disneyland-when-to-go.3484063/#post-55176868.

Here is a thread that indicates MHP is included as well -- http://www.disboards.com/threads/costumes-no-more-for-adults.3469426/page-14#post-54886429.

I would have had to imagine that a Halloween party at DLR or WDW would allow some exceptions, but maybe not?

ETA: Upon further investigation, apparently Disney did say that adults couldn't dress up for the MHP either? I don't know -- I missed that part, where they stated that. That sounds odd, seeing that it is a Halloween party. We'll see what happens when the time comes. Kids will be able to dress up, regardless of what restrictions are imposed upon the adults.

 

[cinderbellasmom]

As always Sherry, thank you for the info! In the past my husband and I haven't dressed up (strange considering his bday is on Halloween) but, because we're going as such a big group we thought about doing costumes this year. I'll have to keep an eye on this

 

[Liat]

Wow I hadn't heard about the no adults being allowed to dress up for the halloween parties! That sucks. We go every year and although I've never gone full out (more like extreme disney bounding) I always loved looking at all the costumes people wore. Last year there were some amazing outfits (my favourite was a beach-wrecked little mermaid one *done really tastefully*) and you can tell that some people put a ton of effort into them.

 

[lindyv321]

I think that Disney Bounding is a great alternative for adults! I am hoping we will get to attend a party and I am going to bound as Minnie! Well I'm going even if there is no party the week we go (9/25-9/27) cause I already bought red capri's

 

[Sherry E]

As always Sherry, thank you for the info! In the past my husband and I haven't dressed up (strange considering his bday is on Halloween) but, because we're going as such a big group we thought about doing costumes this year. I'll have to keep an eye on this

You're very welcome, although I wasn't much help. I had another couple of tabs/windows open when I was trying to reply above, and I was working on some non-Disney-related things at that moment and was distracted. I was frantically going back and forth between tabs, trying to reply and work on my other stuff, and I think I was pulling up the wrong things. I knew I had seen discussion of the costume issue in a few threads around the board within the last few months, but some of the discussion took place when I wasn't here for a while and I had not "watched"/saved the threads to be able to locate/pull them back up easily. I was trying to find a couple of the comments and threads I remembered seeing -- and I did not find everything.

Hopefully someone who followed the issue more closely than I did will chime in here on this thread and fill us in on more of the details.

For some reason, it had escaped me that the Halloween parties at DL would definitely be impacted by the costume issue too, IF that is the case -- I think I thought that it was a "wait and see" sort of situation, like we will wait and see what happens when the details of MHP are released in July or whenever. I might be totally and utterly wrong about that detail, however! Let's face it -- adults like to dress up for Halloween parties too, so to not have that option would be very disappointing. I don't wear a costume to MHP, but I would want to have the choice to do so if I felt like it!

I would greatly miss not being able to see adults walking around MHP dressed as giant Crayola crayons, fluffy chickens and Gumby!

In any case, yes, let's see if anything changes by the time the MHP details are released. If not, then Disney Bounding is a great alternative, as llindyv321 mentioned above.

 

[Abbey1]

In regards to the costume restrictions- Back in December, Disneyland banned guests over 14 from wearing masks and costumes. It was a part of their heightened security measures, which also included installing metal detectors, explosive-sniffing dogs, and increased security officers. They also banned toy guns (astro blasters etc) from the parks and discontinued their sale.

I really think that guests attending the Halloween party will still be allowed to wear costumes, especially after speaking with a CM about the restrictions. Perhaps they can have increased security on party nights for guests headed into the parties?

 

[AussieCaribou]

Hi all,

Just on the dressing up in a costume issue... from the Disneyland event page about the Halloween

"Costume Guidelines: Guests under the age of 14 may dress in their favorite Halloween costume and must follow at least these guidelines."

There is no other detail (or option) for those over the age of 14. I really hope that they review this and allow us older kids to come and play too.

I am going to guess that the poor people on the email line will be tired of my name soon...because I emailed to ask about this. After all, if we don't say that we older kids want to dress, we might be disappointed. lol

 

[Royal Consort]

Basically if adults can't dress up, I won't be bothering going to the party. It's the whole point of the fun (since I have no kids). I tend to think Disney would know this and their hunger for $$ will result in alteration of guidelines.

 

[Sherry E]

I just can't see a Halloween party that doesn't allow adults to dress in costumes. Now those who have never been to MHP should know that you certainly don't have to dress up if you don't want to. It's kind of 50/50 -- half of the people at MHP are dressed up and half of them are not. So it's not necessary to dress in costume to have fun -- but, again, because it is a Halloween party and Halloween parties usually involve costumes on people of all ages, I would have to think that adults will be allowed to wear costumes at MHP.

I was just at DLR a couple of weeks ago and if there were metal detectors anywhere I must have walked right past them and didn't realize it! What I did encounter was a particularly thorough CM at the security tables/tents, who was not letting me get by her without looking in every compartment of my bag. I had to lift everything out of the pockets so she could see the bottoms of them. And then, just when I thought I could finally walk away, she stopped me to ask me what was hanging around my neck. "It's a camera," I said, bewildered. She instructed me to open up the camera case so she could look inside. Thankfully, the next CM I encountered at the security tent later on that day was not even half as thorough, and she didn't require as much checking at all.

 

[mom2rtk]

I just can't see a Halloween party that doesn't allow adults to dress in costumes. Now those who have never been to MHP should know that you certainly don't have to dress up if you don't want to. It's kind of 50/50 -- half of the people at MHP are dressed up and half of them are not. So it's not necessary to dress in costume to have fun -- but, again, because it is a Halloween party and Halloween parties usually involve costumes on people of all ages, I would have to think that adults will be allowed to wear costumes at MHP.

I was just at DLR a couple of weeks ago and if there were metal detectors anywhere I must have walked right past them and didn't realize it! What I did encounter was a particularly thorough CM at the security tables/tents, who was not letting me get by her without looking in every compartment of my bag. I had to lift everything out of the pockets so she could see the bottoms of them. And then, just when I thought I could finally walk away, she stopped me to ask me what was hanging around my neck. "It's a camera," I said, bewildered. She instructed me to open up the camera case so she could look inside. Thankfully, the next CM I encountered at the security tent later on that day was not even half as thorough, and she didn't require as much checking at all.

I don't see it either Sherry. I have been to Halloween parties at both WDW and DLR. I was a little nervous heading into the one at DLR last year about whether we'd enjoy it as much since it didn't have a Halloween parade. I immediately decided that the guests in costume made up for it. Honestly, I really can't see spending the money on a party if adults can't dress up. It seems like the atmosphere would be completely different...... and lacking. And honestly, Disney better get off their duffs and make a decision early. The costumes we saw were not the sort you pick up last minute at the corner store. The ones we saw and loved were the sort people work on for months ahead of time.

 

[riostoker]

No adult costumes at the Halloween Party makes me sad. We had such a great time people watching while eating dinner at the last Halloween Party. Some of the adult costumes, especially, were so clever, fun, and creative!