Is MNSSHP worth the money and time?

[michvin]

We will be going on our first family disney vacation this October. Two of the nights we are there they will be having the MNSSHP...I was wondering:
1) what time does it ususally start
2) is it worth the extra money
3) is it totally mobbed or a relaxed, fun time?

I just realized and figured out the abbreviation for the halloween party yesterday, so I am now redoing our schedule to either go to the party or not go to the party. Any advice is appreciated...my kids are DD 4 1/2, DS 6, and DD 18mos at the time of trip.

 

[SharBear4]

IMO it was very worth going to. We went in Oct 03 and loved it so much, we went again later in the week! I think you'll all enjoy it!
Sharon

 

[rachellemharris]

Hi,
I can tell you that we went several years ago and I thought it was well worth the money. It was cheaper then and there were way fewer nights offered. We happen to go on Halloween and I thought it was not crowded at all. There were times when we were the only ones around. The kids got so much candy.
Now I do believe it has gotten more popular. But I believe they still limit the amount of tickets they sell. It is really neat to see how quickly they transform the park to a halloween theme.
I can remember that it was dark when it started but I don't remember the time. Since it is October it is less busy. And how many people can say they trick or treated at Mickey Mouses house. As you can guess we will be there again this year. Halloween Night.

 

[pyrxtc]

It starts at 7pm and goes til midnight. From what I understand, you can use your MNSSHP ticket to get into the park as early as 4 pm. I like this idea since we won't have to use a park day off of our tickets and still get extra time in the park. It works well since we are not going to MK for the day until 3 days later.

After all my reading, I defiantely think it's worth it.

 

[mom2cinderella]

We went twice last year so obviously we thought it was worthwhile!

A big reason why I wanted to do it was because, unlike Christmas, the other parks don't do much if anything for the Halloween "season". To the best of my recollection, AK, MGM, and Epcot had no fall/Hallo. decor or events. I *think* DTD and the resorts only had activities on Halloween itself. MK had a few fallish things put up, but most of the Halloween stuff takes place only during the party.

Last year we went on Tuesday the 26th and had a blast. We went again on Halloween night. It felt a little more crowded, but mainly it wasn't as fun because it was our last night there and the kids were just plain tired. I think they (6 1/2 and almost 5) fell asleep in the stroller around 9 or 9:30.

Michele

 

[idofabric]

YES! I love this party! We have gone the last 2 years! Last year we all went in costume. My DH wore a bright orange shirt and was a Pumpkin.... I had a green shirt and felt leaves, so I was "de vine"... Sorry!
Tons of candy,don't miss the Headless Horse man. There is a lot of stuff on other sites on this, try a search.
It was some of the most fun we have ever had at WDW. And couple it with the Food and Wine Fest, and it is the best! The weather was also great, after all the hurricans we had last year in the south. Any type of costume is ok. And you can get free photos taken- we did at every photo site they had, the CM's allmost draged us in for photos!

 

[pixiepower1971]

We went last year and had a blast! My kids like the Halloween party better then the Christmas party. And they love the Christmas party!

It was busy but not too crowded. TONS of candy...even for the adults!
The parade is not to be missed. The headless horseman is great! The characters are in costume and the Haunted Mansion CMs are all decked out in makeup and in total character that night.

You can usually get in around 4 and hit the park until 6. Then you have to go to Tomorrowland but they have all the rides open and things to do to keep you busy that hour until the party opens. Take the day easy and take a nap so you can stay until the end of the party. This is a not to be missed event IMO.

Dress up in costume...almost everyone does and it is fun!
And the fireworks are incredible. The 360 fireworks are the best!

 

[AB&Me]

We went in Oct. 04 and LOVED it. We got to MK at 9AM and played all day. It was our only day there, so we squeezed in everything. (Not that I recommend doing it that way... but you do what you have to do!) The park closes at 6 to the public, but if you are already in, you can stay. My dad and step-mom and oldest neice stayed in the park and did some stuff (I'm not sure what) while my sister and I took our girls (2 (Snow White) and 5(Sleeping Beauty) ) to the car to put on their costumes. We came back in and the park looked totally different! It is so cool! There are huge blow-up jack-o-lanterns everywhere and really cute decorations. There is a special Halloween parade at 8:00 and it is FANTASTIC. I LOVED it. When I watch my video of that (short) trip, that parade is my very favorite part. I love it! You can ride rides with little to no wait at all. The best part was when we met the characters, they talked to my dd2 as if she truly was Snow White. They ALL spoke to her and called her by name and asked about the dwarfs... stuff like that. She LOVED it. There was a Villian meet and greet in front of the castle, and she got to meet the Evil Queen. I told my DD to tell her that SHE was the fairest of them all, and the Queen GLARED at me as if she was going to KILL me! I laughed and laughed! My dd still talks about it! It was awesome! The other really cool thing is, alot of the characters are actually in Halloween costumes. (Mickey was a scarecrow, Minnie was a princess, Pooh was a bee hive...) I LOVED this party and want to go back! My dh can't go in October, though, so we've opted for June.

Do the Party. You'll love it.

AB&ME

 

[MINNIEBOWSER]

I went a few years ago and just loved it. I went on the Friday before Halloween and it was very crowded. We did not go on any of the rides because the lines were quite long but I enjoyed the atmoshere SOOOOO much that I did not mind the crowd and loved it anyway. Don't miss it!!

 

[Suzanne74]

I say do it but since it is a late night and your kids are young, I recommend doing it during the middle of your stay and using the morning to sleep in and playing at the resort pool before heading out about 4pm. Why waste a hopper ticket in the AM only to be tired at night???

 

[Schmeck]

When we went on Halloween, it was very crowded - but only at the candy stations and photo sites. The rides were walk-on most of the night!

Hint: If you want candy first, don't wait in the lines on Main Street. Instead, go deeper into the park, and you'll find it much less crowded.

 

[wfloyd]

We enjoyed it when we went last year. It happened to be on one of the sold out days early in October but we didn't find it too crowded. We also didn't do many of the rides so I am not sure about all the wait times. We didn't stay the entire time because there came a point when DS was just too tired and wanted to go to sleep. But with all the stuff going on around him, he wouldn't put his head down for any rest.

 

[princess-rn]

We were there in October 2004

It starts at 7pm...and I think ends at MN. I DO think it was worth the money. MK is decorated wonderfully. The atmosphere is one of a kind. We did dinner at LTT and the characters were dressed up..it was great. My BIG complaint with the party was it was a little chaotic. (course we probably made it this way) I was dissappointed because there was so much to see and do...and I didn't feel like we had enough time to do it. I really wanted to see the special fireworks and parade. So we trick or treated in tomorrowland for a little bit..did the "costume party" and headed to the castle to watch the fireworks and parade (one right after the other) By the time the parade and fireworks were done it was 11pm. (we saw the later of the 2 shows) To make matter worse..I wasn't impressed with either. the fire works were ok..but wishes was better. The parade was ok..but nothing really special. I did like it because there were more villians present. (btw..most people disagree with me about the parade and fireworks..so it may have just been me)

I LOVED the party..but I wish I wouldn't have gotten caught up in the parade and fireworks hype and trick or treated more with DS and made my way throughout all of MK.

I say go and enjoy!

 

[TinkAtHeart]

My family (my parents, brother, DH, DD-6, and myself) has a tradition of going to WDW in October. This October will be the 7th year in a row that we have gone. We couldn't go to the Halloween party the first year because Disney did not have it early in the month. We have gone every year since then. It is fabulous!!!

One important thing to note is to have costumes for your children (yourself too if you wanted). Most children are dressed up for this and a lot of adults are, too. I know my DD would be crushed if she didn't have a costume to wear when we go.

The party is great. WDW has stations set up through the park where you can trick-or-treat. You can get a complementary photo of your group. All the rides are open. As far as I'm concerned, our trip would not be complete if we didn't go.

Hope this helps. Enjoy your trip!!!