MNSSHP 2015 - Be Prepared For Chaos

[GreatLakes]

"but sounds like hot lapping rides like a boss" What?

I believe what this poster means is that if everyone is in live for 7DMT, candy, a meet and greet, or at the hub for a show. parade, or fireworks you should be able to head out to the other lands and ride attractions with short waits. Just get away from those things and go ride the mountains, Jungle Cruise, or other rides.

Or they mean something completely different and I'm way off.

 

[Dentam]

The dessert parties are sold out for all the parties already. And yes it's probably a great strategy to see the parade and enjoy fireworks...but then again you're already paying for the party ticket. And last year we sat curb side in town square and enjoyed the parade, and sat in the tomorrow land terrace and watched hallo wishes. Without having to pay "extra" on top of the party ticket...

Thanks for the info! We've never been to MNSSHP but were hoping to go during our next trip (which won't be for another 2-3 years) and now I'm wondering if we should just skip that idea. Time will tell if Disney gets their act together with these parties!

 

[Princess Olivia]

I'll echo this. I'm definitely not trying to discount anyone's experience but we went for the first time to last nights MNSSHP and had a fabulous time. We got there at 4, ate a quick bite then rode Jungle Cruise, Big Thunder, and 7 Dwarves. Then got in line for Jack & Sally at 6. We were done with them at 8:20, had spots ready for the 1st parade, scooted over to the FP viewing area to watch the castle show & fireworks (which were fantastic!). Our group of 8 was easily able to sit in the grassy area and see it all without issue. Then we went trick or treating through Adventureland and Frontierland and rode Solash and Big Thunder as walk ins a few times before we headed back to the hub to catch the last castle show and eat a snack before heading out around 12:45. Some smaller areas of the park were more congested but overall I never felt like it was crazy busy.

Awesome! I like your plan. We aren't seeing characters this time but I almost always use the wishes FP on regular nights. Love the spot. Were you in front of Casey's or The Plaza?

Where did you watch the first parade? I think I've almost always watched from Frontier Land or Liberty Square. I wonder how easy it would be to get to the FP viewing for Hallowishes...

 

[jhaig]

Sorry, but I want more bang for my buck than waiting 2 1/2 hours in line for one character meet.

 

[afyoung]

Media + Disney Parks Blog + the bloggers could have easily put another 2K+ people in the park last night.

I should add that I think it's important for these folks to be able to go & get reviews up, as we all benefit from that, but the total number of tickets available to the general public should have been reduced accordingly, and I don't think it was.

Or maybe dispense the media tickets over two nights with the understanding your review has to come out after the 2nd media night. Then there is no pushing and shoving for those first night review tickets. Of course just being aware of the number of media tickets and underselling the real cost tickets would be good too.

 

[afyoung]

I wonder if the proximity to a holiday and long weekend for a lot of the country inflated the opening day crowds more then they expected. Since a lot of people were off Monday adding Tuesday as a vacation day to attend the party would mean missing only one day of work/school where a normal Tuesday would mean missing two.

I always assumed they sold the same number of tickets as park capacity, whatever that is. I never thought they would only sell, say, 20,000 if they can have 40,000 in the park. I always just figured a "sold out" party had the same number of people as when the park is closed for capacity.

It is limited because there are less restaurants open, some rides don't operate, etc. The cast memebers have to be more focused on characters since there are more of them available.

 

[bellazachmom]

OK, I've gotta ask,

How in the world do you become a blogger that gets invited to these events?!?!?!

 

[mom2AidanAndEli]

I'll echo this. I'm definitely not trying to discount anyone's experience but we went for the first time to last nights MNSSHP and had a fabulous time. We got there at 4, ate a quick bite then rode Jungle Cruise, Big Thunder, and 7 Dwarves. Then got in line for Jack & Sally at 6. We were done with them at 8:20, had spots ready for the 1st parade, scooted over to the FP viewing area to watch the castle show & fireworks (which were fantastic!). Our group of 8 was easily able to sit in the grassy area and see it all without issue. Then we went trick or treating through Adventureland and Frontierland and rode Solash and Big Thunder as walk ins a few times before we headed back to the hub to catch the last castle show and eat a snack before heading out around 12:45. Some smaller areas of the park were more congested but overall I never felt like it was crazy busy.

\

Goes to show it's a matter of perspective! There's no way I would consider waiting 2.5 hours for ONE meeting to be a fabulous time!! 2.5 hours???? Especially at the price I'd be paying for a ticket, I would want to be doing much more than that.

I was feeling really bad that I've never been able to go to the party, but now maybe I'm not missing so much! The Villains party about did me in!

 

[Emagine]

Awesome! I like your plan. We aren't seeing characters this time but I almost always use the wishes FP on regular nights. Love the spot. Were you in front of Casey's or The Plaza?

Where did you watch the first parade? I think I've almost always watched from Frontier Land or Liberty Square. I wonder how easy it would be to get to the FP viewing for Hallowishes...

Oh, do tell... I have not seen the hub changes yet. I am trying to make my plan too and sound similar to yours. Parade, fireworks... but trying to figure out location.

 

[mesaboy2]

And this is what I call bull on (not you mesaboy2!! But the people estimating those numbers!!) When we did MVMCP it was way more crowded that night than any other day in the park that week, even during peak afternoon hours. In my opinion, there is no way they are capping tickets at 35k.
I agree that I doubt they are selling 75k, but with the removal of the information that this is a limited entry event, there is no way they are selling under 50k per party. And it's not always just certain areas that are busy. When we did MVMCP, all I could think about was how glad I was that I didn't have a stroller as it was wall to wall people everywhere in the park, not just main street and the hub.

I'm confident they are not selling that many. You cannot estimate real numbers based on subjective and anecdotal reports like these. If ride wait times last night were higher I might consider they are selling more than 35K, but still nowhere near 50K. The numbers I posted come from many years now of following knowledgeable sources both inside and outside Disney. You are of course free to disagree with them.

Sold-out nights always come with exclamations of how crowded it was (which means different things to different people) but also include many reports of "hot-lapping rides like a boss". Last night sounds no different to me. The only thing new here is that the first party sold out.

 

[CinderElsa]

It seems there was a DPB contest with 150 winners, each of whom was allowed to bring one guest = 300 extra people total.
Contest link: http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/bl...ot-so-scary-blog-party-at-magic-kingdom-park/

This would be separate from the bloggers & media folks invited by Disney.

 

[JOE DELL]

Maybe you have to be fifteen or a rapper to understand it?

****Hot lapping rides"****
Gee Johnny Spase Mountain sure was swell. Yes it sure was Betsey Sue. Hey Johnny seeing everyone is standing in line waiting on candy and refreshments or watching the parade maybe we can get back in line and ride it again?? Why sure we can Betsey Sue, thats a swell idea its only a 5 minute stand by time.

You must be 75 and a retired Sunday school teacher.

Please don't stereotype people.

 

[CinderElsa]

I believe what this poster means is that if everyone is in live for 7DMT, candy, a meet and greet, or at the hub for a show. parade, or fireworks you should be able to head out to the other lands and ride attractions with short waits. Just get away from those things and go ride the mountains, Jungle Cruise, or other rides.

Or they mean something completely different and I'm way off.

I understand YOUR post, but I can't figure out how to even parse the other one. If that was the intended meaning, then yes, I agree.

 

[amber.miller]

You spent almost 2.5 hours in line for one thing? I think that may have influenced your results, you weren't actually moving around the park for half the party LOL! Personally 2.5 hours for those characters would be the last thing I would do, but think about it... For families with young kids who need to do the party early you missed the entire party.

We are a family with young kids. Our group was made up of myself, my husband, our 3 boys age 7/6/1, my mother and two local adult friends. My husband and I waited in the line with our 7 and 6 year old sons because Jack is their favorite character and it was a must do for us. In no way did we miss the entire party. We rode some of their favorite rides with no wait, saw their favorite character, had front row seats for the parade, great spots for the castle projection show and fireworks, filled 3 bags trick or treating and saw the last Hocus Pocus Stage Show before leaving at almost 1am. Perhaps if we had kids who weren't able to stay up late it would have been more of a time drain, but that's not the case for us so it wasn't.

 

[amber.miller]

Awesome! I like your plan. We aren't seeing characters this time but I almost always use the wishes FP on regular nights. Love the spot. Were you in front of Casey's or The Plaza?

Where did you watch the first parade? I think I've almost always watched from Frontier Land or Liberty Square. I wonder how easy it would be to get to the FP viewing for Hallowishes...

For the parade we were on the curb almost directly in front of Starbucks. My mom got there about 7:15 to snag a spot and had no problems, although she said it filled in quickly after that. We thought about watching back in Liberty Square or Frontierland but went with Main Street this time. Depending on how your group is, you could make it over to the FP view of areas. We went over there about 20 minutes after the parade was over and they were half empty on the side in front of the Plaza. I think it took awhile for folks to realize they were open seating.

 

[amber.miller]

\

Goes to show it's a matter of perspective! There's no way I would consider waiting 2.5 hours for ONE meeting to be a fabulous time!! 2.5 hours???? Especially at the price I'd be paying for a ticket, I would want to be doing much more than that.

I was feeling really bad that I've never been able to go to the party, but now maybe I'm not missing so much! The Villains party about did me in!

If i hadn't known going in about the long wait I may have been disappointed. But I read numerous threads about the wait times for Jack & Sally. Maybe my perspective is different, but there are only two opportunities to meet Jack and this party is one of them. We can ride rides any park day, we can trick or treat excessively on Halloween. For our family, it was worth the time and cost because what we wanted to accomplish was Jack, Hallowishes, Boo to You, Stage Show, and rides and trick or treating if time allowed. We were able to do all of those things without rushing about or stressing so that's why I consider it a fabulous time

 

[GreatLakes]

I understand YOUR post, but I can't figure out how to even parse the other one. If that was the intended meaning, then yes, I agree.

"hot lapping rides like a boss"

Hot lapping rides = riding multiple times in quick succession with little to no wait
Like a boss = "a catchphrase often used in image macros or GIFs that feature a person completing an action with authority and finesse." That is from Know Your Meme but it is NSFW so I don't want to link it.

It originated, as far as I know, in a Lonely Island song of the same name...also very much NSFW.

 

[Disneymom1126]

And this is what I call bull on (not you mesaboy2!! But the people estimating those numbers!!) When we did MVMCP it was way more crowded that night than any other day in the park that week, even during peak afternoon hours. In my opinion, there is no way they are capping tickets at 35k

One thing I wonder about though is that during the day the crowd is more spread out at the rides, restaurants, etc. whereas at the parties people are more likely to be in some of the same places (Main Street, rare character meets, etc). If you account for most rides being walk-on or close to it at the parties but 30-60 minutes waits during the day...then add in all the people in restaurants I bet that makes a big difference.

 

[Princess Olivia]

Oh, do tell... I have not seen the hub changes yet. I am trying to make my plan too and sound similar to yours. Parade, fireworks... but trying to figure out location.

They are awesome! We always sit on the fp viewing area in front of Casey's, sitting against back wall to far right (facing castle). There's usually a ton of room, I usually stand but you don't have to.
I'm trying to decide if we should do first parade then move to viewing area and take in 12:00 stage show. I've only gone to first parade once, in 2003. With the new show I'm rethinking normal plan..

 

[CinderElsa]

"hot lapping rides like a boss"

Hot lapping rides = ridding multiple times in quick succession with little to no wait
Like a boss = "a catchphrase often used in image macros or GIFs that feature a person completing an action with authority and finesse." That is from Know Your Meme but it is NSFW so I don't want to link it.

It originated, as far as I know, in a Lonely Island song of the same name...also very much NSFW.

"Like a boss" I knew... "hot lapping," not so much, but the syntax of the sentence just... doesn't make sense. Maybe I just got stuck in the Pit of Yore (or Your, as the case may be).

So they were trying to say... "you can hot lap rides like a boss?" I finally understand.