Help manage my expectations - MNSSHP vs. MVMCP

[VeronicaZS]

We will be doing our first party on Nov 9. I have been follow the posts regarding how crowded the MNSSHP feels and wanted to get an idea if that is what I should expect for the MVMCP. I don't think the recent reports will deter us but I just want to make sure I manage my expectations about how busy it will be. How long will the lines be for the headliner & normal rides? How early to we need to stake out a good Main St. spot for the parade? How long are the lines for treats. I don't think we will do any characters but are there some that are easy (less than 10 min) to meet?
TIA!

 

[hiroMYhero]

We will be doing our first party on Nov 9. I have been follow the posts regarding how crowded the MNSSHP feels and wanted to get an idea if that is what I should expect for the MVMCP. I don't think the recent reports will deter us but I just want to make sure I manage my expectations about how busy it will be. How long will the lines be for the headliner & normal rides? How early to we need to stake out a good Main St. spot for the parade? How long are the lines for treats. I don't think we will do any characters but are there some that are easy (less than 10 min) to meet?
TIA!

Here’s the main MVMCP thread where parties are compared to previous MVMCParties.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/o...-merry-christmas-party-holiday-magic.3668978/

 

[Disfan454]

We did our first MNSSHP last year and it was definitely more crowded than I assumed. There was a line for everything except some trick or treat spots. This year is our first MVMCP and I am assuming it will be the same. All characters are too long to waste party time on and treat lines are too long as well. We're really just doing it for the atmosphere and the short wait lines.

 

[PrincessJo]

We went last year to MNSSHP, the week before Halloween. We were VERY disappointed and won't be doing it again. The ride times did not decrease AT ALL. The line for Big Thunder was over an hour before the party started and was still over an hour long after the party started. The lines for treats were outrageous. I couldn't justify spending an hour in line for one small pop. Not worth the money for us.

 

[Mikey15]

We went last year to MNSSHP, the week before Halloween. We were VERY disappointed and won't be doing it again. The ride times did not decrease AT ALL. The line for Big Thunder was over an hour before the party started and was still over an hour long after the party started. The lines for treats were outrageous. I couldn't justify spending an hour in line for one small pop. Not worth the money for us.

This must be very dependent on the party day. Guessing late October is worse and weekends are worse?

Early October was great for us last year... better lines for 7DMT and anything else we wanted to hit on Halloween party night versus the EMH evening (1am close I think?) we did a couple nights before. We could just walk through the trick or treat spots, no waiting.

 

[Elsaspiritanimal]

Did the MVMCP last year the week after Thanksgiving. It was VERY crowded, and we had to wait around 15-25 minutes for BTMR, 30 minutes for Space, each line for cookies and hot chocolate was out the door. The wait for the pretzel was only about 5 minutes but with no cheese to dip it in kinda felt like a waste anyway. My husband was very grumpy by the end of the night. I think if we had expected it to be that busy it would have been fine, but I didn't realize it would be like late morning crowds and not able to use fast pass. Not the end of the world at all, but when you just spent the whole day scoring fast passes, then you all of sudden have to wait in line after line, it was tough to swallow. I still might end up going this year with no men-folk in tow, but now I realize how busy the parties really are. As long as you know going in it will be busy, you can still have a good time.

 

[tsme]

It’s terrible, don’t go to either! Just kidding, the parties are a lot more crowded than they use to be, so expect some waiting. I’d grab a parade spot 45 min prior for a front row & expect to defend it. The parties are festive & fun. Have a great time.

 

[disneyeek]

I think this is so subjective and changes from party to party. We went to the MNSSHP last year on the Friday before Columbus Day (high crowd weekend). We had a bit of rain before the start of the party (5:00ish) and then clear from then on. We didn't wait more than 5 minutes for any candy lines, took a bunch of magic shot photos with no lines. Didn't do any characters except for Pirate Goofy and only waited 5 minutes for him. Walked on a bunch of rides. We had a blast. We watched the parade from Frontierland and got a good spot about 20 minutes early.

It's been a while since we went the MVMCP (2015), so I don't remember too much. But I don't remember waiting long for any rides including BTMR and Space. Treat lines weren't too bad and we got a lot of cookies and an hot cocoa. We did wait for the 7D's and that was about 1.5 hours. Saw Santa Goofy with about a 5 minute wait. Watched the parade from Main Street, but I don't remember how long we staked out our spot.

I think go in with no expectations except to have fun and enjoy it!

 

[OneinThree]

We were almost sure this was going to be the first time taking the family to a Christmas party, but if the trend we're seeing with MNSSHP holds (30,000+ tickets), there's just no way to justify the $600 dollars. The marginally shorter lines are pretty insignificant when the crowds for the main draw (characters, treats, shows, parades) are just mobbed. Hope Disney figures it out.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I think there is just no way of knowing at this point. I went to one of the last MVMCP's last year and felt the crowds were quite manageable. We don't do character meets, but the treat lines moved very quickly (last year, you could get almost all of the treats in Pinocchio's, so there was no need for us to stand in multiple lines) and we got a great spot for the first parade in Frontierland about 30 minutes before start time. I just went to MNSSHP last Friday and the crowds were much larger. If this trend continues, we may be seeing more crowded parties this year. We just don't know if WDW will adjust capacity up or down. That being said, we've had fun at every party we've gone to, though I much prefer MNSSHP over MVMCP.