MrToadsWildRide
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Aug 17, 2009
- Messages
- 106
I've been going to Disney World for quite a long time. Okay, decades. But I've never been there during their Halloween party. I finally had the opportunity to go this past week. So here's a long time visitor's view of Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party. (like this has never been written about before)
Main Street
First of all, visiting the Magic Kingdom during an event like this is an opportunity to enjoy a really unique Main Street Experience. If you visit the MK in October, you will see lots of Halloween decorations. But to visit during the MNSSHP, you will get the full effect.
The usual Main Street white lights are off and the buildings are lit up in an ever changing array of spooky inspired colors. All of which are synced up to Halloween themed music they are playing. Everything from Nightmare Before Christmas songs, to Thriller. And my new favorite Halloween song, "It's Halloween-Lo-Ween everybody ...". (the Paris Disneyland mix, which I found thanks to this board, on another thread)
If you're a MK fan and you like Halloween, you will really love this experience. And it's not just the lighting and the music. Standing there on Main Street, taking it all in, you're also treated (like how I snuck that in?) to the usual stream of guests. Although on this night, many of them are all decked out in some good, some great and some awesome costumes. That's a pretty big deal.
On any other day, if you show up dressed as Tinker Bell, you're most likely not going to be let in. But tonight, the rules are bent and you're inner Tink is free to fly.
I saw some great costumes. A pair of glowing jelly fish. Which were incredible. So was an entire family of Incredibles. Dad and son had on the muscle suit. Elasta-Mom appeared to be pregnant, so I guess there's going to be a sequel. She was pushing Jack-Jack in a stroller. It goes on and on like this, all night long.
Parking yourself on the curb in order to get a good view of the parade is no longer a necessary chore. The lights, the music and the costumes made for a really unique and entertaining show. Best of all, no lines to endure and no FastPass+Extreme Edition, "did you pay extra to stand here(?)" required. Just lean against a glowing pumpkin-adorned lamp post and take it all in.
The Parade
Mickey and Minnie? Check. I get it. It can't be Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween party without the head cheese. Although he was in a Jester costume. I thought it was (or maybe used to be) a vampire costume. Perhaps the vampire theme was too scary for a not-so-scary event. They must have put the vampire costume in storage next to the Alien Encounter alien. (which was awesome)
The Boo-To-You music they play is great. It's fun, catchy and not-so-scary. (beginning to sense the theme?) It will get stuck in your head as you wonder around afterwords. But it's probably time to give It's A Small World a musical rest.
They start with the usual cast of characters. Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Daisy. Peter Pan and Wendy? Captain Jack Sparrow? I almost checked My Disney Experience App to make sure I was at the Halloween parade. It seemed less Not-So-Scary and more Not-So-Halloweeny. If it wasn't for the music and the guy next to me dressed as Tink (kidding), it could have been just another standard Disney parade. Not bad. But not so spooky. (well, man-Tink would be spooky)
Then came the Hitchhiking Ghosts. These guys were awesome. I didn't notice them at first, as I was watching the ghostly dancers that came before them. As soon as I saw the Hitchhikers I had a TiVo moment. Back it up. Back it up!
I would have followed them down the street, but there was actually other people there watching the parade. So moving was not an option. I made a point to watch the second parade that night, just to get more Hitchhikers. I guess they're like cowbells. What we need is more Hitchhikers. (think Chris Walken's voice)
I watched the Hitchhikers roll by for as long as I could. Then I turned around and saw the parade crashers. That's all I could think of when I saw a bunch of square dancers followed by Claribell Cow. (not sure if that's the cow's name, if it is, the fact that I know it, is scary) It was like "Hoop-De-Doo it's Halloween!" I not only love the Hoop-De-Doo Revue, but I've been in it. I have no idea why this was happening in the Boo-To-You parade. Yet, it got a little odder when Chicken Little (?) showed up next.
Eventually, they did a hard reset when the weirdly distorted hyenas showed up. They weren't just scary, they were hard to look at. They stood straight up but their heads stuck out from their mid section and swiveled around uncontrollably whenever they moved. Well, I can't unsee that. Boo-To-Me I guess.
After that came the villains, which took things up a notch or two on the not-so-scary scale. Oogie Boogie was pretty cool. From a nightmare perspective, probably the scariest thing in the parade.
Aside from the oddities, the parade was good. Loved the Hitchhikers, got a Halloween themed song stuck in my head and I loved the Hitchhikers.
Speaking of Hitchhikers. (which I loved) I wouldn't be adverse to having some more Haunted Mansion guests. Like the care taker and his shivering dog. (did you know he shivers? Did? Does?)
Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular
This was a good show. Clearly everyone liked Dr. Facilier, as many people sang along with him. Oogie Boogie was a surprisingly good dancer, for a bag of bugs. He voices the song really well too. Whether or not you're a fan of the mouth moving characters, it works for Mr. Boogie.
Along with the singing and dancing, you get a castle show too. They have their awesome projectors fired up in sync with all the action. So even if you're not too close to the stage, you still get a great show. I liked it. And I'm not really a big fan of the castle stage shows.
Then this happened.
After everyone was into their halloween groove of Spelltacular, singing along with I Put A Spell On You, they ran Celebrate the Magic projection show on the castle. It was like somebody popped out the Halloween DVD and put in Summer. The castle projection shows are incredible. But, everybody's like, "Hey we're all wearing costumes down here." If this was a movie theatre we'd be yelling "focus!" I really think they could have skipped this (usually great show) and went straight to the fireworks. After all, we did get a Halloween projection showing during Spelltacular.
HalloWishes Fireworks
When I saw the fireworks show at Hollywood Studios on Star Wars Weekend, I thought I had seen Disney's best fireworks show. Cause, well, Star Wars.
One of the things that makes a great fireworks show great, is the music that they sync it all up to. The Hallowishes music was great. (I gotta find another word for great) It was upbeat. Fast. It had Ooogie Boogie. It ended with a song "Everybody Scream!" And everybody screamed. Instead of standing there thinking "wow this is a great show" (as is typical), you're part of this show. Very festive. Really liked it.
Haunted Mansion
After the fireworks, I went over to the Haunted Mansion and saw the lady out front. What's her name? I don't know, she didn't have a name tag. I'm guessing she's the bride in the attic? Either way, she was entertaining. She has a lot of fun with the guests. No script. Just improvising. Definitely worth seeing.
Frontierland Singers
That's not what their called. But if they want me to know their names, they need some signs. Anyway, these guys are also really good. They're all done up to look spooky and dead, but in a not-so-scary way. Their rendition of the headless horseman theme song (?) is great. (you'd think Tony the Tiger was writing this stuff)
So, is it worth it?
At around $70 per person (above and beyond the added cost of admission), it's reeeeally expensive. So, there's that.
But if you have some serious disposable income, you've come to the right place.
As someone who's seen the Magic Kingdom countless (I literally cannot count the number of times) over the years, it was more than a great experience. Whether or not you dress up, you still get to experience all the other costumes. Though I'd say the best costumes where the ones that included the entire family. While you may (or may not) feel comfortable dressing up to take your kid trick-or-treating, you will blend right in here if you do and I bet your kids would love it. (well, maybe not man-Tink)
Which reminds me. Since I spent most of my time doing what I did, I didn't do any trick or treating. At least not in the park. But I did get some Dove chocolate when I walked out. They were passing out as much as you could carry as we left. Actually more than I could carry, as I was dropping chocolate. I can't imagine what I looked like, frantically dropping and picking up Dove chocolates. I solved my first world problem by eating a few.
All in all, I'm really glad I went. And yes, I will go again. Sadly it will have to be next year, as this year is sold out. Which is probably a good thing, as I would have disposed of more income this coming week.
So, Boo-To-You!
Main Street
First of all, visiting the Magic Kingdom during an event like this is an opportunity to enjoy a really unique Main Street Experience. If you visit the MK in October, you will see lots of Halloween decorations. But to visit during the MNSSHP, you will get the full effect.
The usual Main Street white lights are off and the buildings are lit up in an ever changing array of spooky inspired colors. All of which are synced up to Halloween themed music they are playing. Everything from Nightmare Before Christmas songs, to Thriller. And my new favorite Halloween song, "It's Halloween-Lo-Ween everybody ...". (the Paris Disneyland mix, which I found thanks to this board, on another thread)
If you're a MK fan and you like Halloween, you will really love this experience. And it's not just the lighting and the music. Standing there on Main Street, taking it all in, you're also treated (like how I snuck that in?) to the usual stream of guests. Although on this night, many of them are all decked out in some good, some great and some awesome costumes. That's a pretty big deal.
On any other day, if you show up dressed as Tinker Bell, you're most likely not going to be let in. But tonight, the rules are bent and you're inner Tink is free to fly.
I saw some great costumes. A pair of glowing jelly fish. Which were incredible. So was an entire family of Incredibles. Dad and son had on the muscle suit. Elasta-Mom appeared to be pregnant, so I guess there's going to be a sequel. She was pushing Jack-Jack in a stroller. It goes on and on like this, all night long.
Parking yourself on the curb in order to get a good view of the parade is no longer a necessary chore. The lights, the music and the costumes made for a really unique and entertaining show. Best of all, no lines to endure and no FastPass+Extreme Edition, "did you pay extra to stand here(?)" required. Just lean against a glowing pumpkin-adorned lamp post and take it all in.
The Parade
Mickey and Minnie? Check. I get it. It can't be Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween party without the head cheese. Although he was in a Jester costume. I thought it was (or maybe used to be) a vampire costume. Perhaps the vampire theme was too scary for a not-so-scary event. They must have put the vampire costume in storage next to the Alien Encounter alien. (which was awesome)
The Boo-To-You music they play is great. It's fun, catchy and not-so-scary. (beginning to sense the theme?) It will get stuck in your head as you wonder around afterwords. But it's probably time to give It's A Small World a musical rest.
They start with the usual cast of characters. Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Daisy. Peter Pan and Wendy? Captain Jack Sparrow? I almost checked My Disney Experience App to make sure I was at the Halloween parade. It seemed less Not-So-Scary and more Not-So-Halloweeny. If it wasn't for the music and the guy next to me dressed as Tink (kidding), it could have been just another standard Disney parade. Not bad. But not so spooky. (well, man-Tink would be spooky)
Then came the Hitchhiking Ghosts. These guys were awesome. I didn't notice them at first, as I was watching the ghostly dancers that came before them. As soon as I saw the Hitchhikers I had a TiVo moment. Back it up. Back it up!
I would have followed them down the street, but there was actually other people there watching the parade. So moving was not an option. I made a point to watch the second parade that night, just to get more Hitchhikers. I guess they're like cowbells. What we need is more Hitchhikers. (think Chris Walken's voice)
I watched the Hitchhikers roll by for as long as I could. Then I turned around and saw the parade crashers. That's all I could think of when I saw a bunch of square dancers followed by Claribell Cow. (not sure if that's the cow's name, if it is, the fact that I know it, is scary) It was like "Hoop-De-Doo it's Halloween!" I not only love the Hoop-De-Doo Revue, but I've been in it. I have no idea why this was happening in the Boo-To-You parade. Yet, it got a little odder when Chicken Little (?) showed up next.
Eventually, they did a hard reset when the weirdly distorted hyenas showed up. They weren't just scary, they were hard to look at. They stood straight up but their heads stuck out from their mid section and swiveled around uncontrollably whenever they moved. Well, I can't unsee that. Boo-To-Me I guess.
After that came the villains, which took things up a notch or two on the not-so-scary scale. Oogie Boogie was pretty cool. From a nightmare perspective, probably the scariest thing in the parade.
Aside from the oddities, the parade was good. Loved the Hitchhikers, got a Halloween themed song stuck in my head and I loved the Hitchhikers.
Speaking of Hitchhikers. (which I loved) I wouldn't be adverse to having some more Haunted Mansion guests. Like the care taker and his shivering dog. (did you know he shivers? Did? Does?)
Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular
This was a good show. Clearly everyone liked Dr. Facilier, as many people sang along with him. Oogie Boogie was a surprisingly good dancer, for a bag of bugs. He voices the song really well too. Whether or not you're a fan of the mouth moving characters, it works for Mr. Boogie.
Along with the singing and dancing, you get a castle show too. They have their awesome projectors fired up in sync with all the action. So even if you're not too close to the stage, you still get a great show. I liked it. And I'm not really a big fan of the castle stage shows.
Then this happened.
After everyone was into their halloween groove of Spelltacular, singing along with I Put A Spell On You, they ran Celebrate the Magic projection show on the castle. It was like somebody popped out the Halloween DVD and put in Summer. The castle projection shows are incredible. But, everybody's like, "Hey we're all wearing costumes down here." If this was a movie theatre we'd be yelling "focus!" I really think they could have skipped this (usually great show) and went straight to the fireworks. After all, we did get a Halloween projection showing during Spelltacular.
HalloWishes Fireworks
When I saw the fireworks show at Hollywood Studios on Star Wars Weekend, I thought I had seen Disney's best fireworks show. Cause, well, Star Wars.
One of the things that makes a great fireworks show great, is the music that they sync it all up to. The Hallowishes music was great. (I gotta find another word for great) It was upbeat. Fast. It had Ooogie Boogie. It ended with a song "Everybody Scream!" And everybody screamed. Instead of standing there thinking "wow this is a great show" (as is typical), you're part of this show. Very festive. Really liked it.
Haunted Mansion
After the fireworks, I went over to the Haunted Mansion and saw the lady out front. What's her name? I don't know, she didn't have a name tag. I'm guessing she's the bride in the attic? Either way, she was entertaining. She has a lot of fun with the guests. No script. Just improvising. Definitely worth seeing.
Frontierland Singers
That's not what their called. But if they want me to know their names, they need some signs. Anyway, these guys are also really good. They're all done up to look spooky and dead, but in a not-so-scary way. Their rendition of the headless horseman theme song (?) is great. (you'd think Tony the Tiger was writing this stuff)
So, is it worth it?
At around $70 per person (above and beyond the added cost of admission), it's reeeeally expensive. So, there's that.
But if you have some serious disposable income, you've come to the right place.
As someone who's seen the Magic Kingdom countless (I literally cannot count the number of times) over the years, it was more than a great experience. Whether or not you dress up, you still get to experience all the other costumes. Though I'd say the best costumes where the ones that included the entire family. While you may (or may not) feel comfortable dressing up to take your kid trick-or-treating, you will blend right in here if you do and I bet your kids would love it. (well, maybe not man-Tink)
Which reminds me. Since I spent most of my time doing what I did, I didn't do any trick or treating. At least not in the park. But I did get some Dove chocolate when I walked out. They were passing out as much as you could carry as we left. Actually more than I could carry, as I was dropping chocolate. I can't imagine what I looked like, frantically dropping and picking up Dove chocolates. I solved my first world problem by eating a few.
All in all, I'm really glad I went. And yes, I will go again. Sadly it will have to be next year, as this year is sold out. Which is probably a good thing, as I would have disposed of more income this coming week.
So, Boo-To-You!
