MNSSHP in a nutshell please? What's the hype all about, etc...

[moopdog]

We will be there this year for this, and I'm wondering what it's all about and if we need to dress up. What exactly happens and are crowds insane based on this? Would we be crazy to avoid MK on this day (9/29) because of the halloween thing or would we be crazy to GO to it??!!

I realize everyone will have their own opinions... just trying to get a feel for it. Our party will have a 3 month old, 4 year old, 5 yo, and an 8 yo.

 

[BratTink]

The party definitely lives up to all the hype. If you like Halloween you'll love this as everything disney does is amazing and MNSSHP is too! The decorations alone are worth going for; Main Street looks great. Its so much fun to go trick-or-treating IN THE MAGIC KINGDOM. The parade was different with the characters wearing costumes.
Not everyone gets dressed up, I didn't and won't this year, it just depends on you and what you're comfortable with. I don't like getting dressed up so I won't. The kids will but the 3 other adults I'll be with won't but I am wearing a witch tee.
It really brings you into the fall and halloween season. I was there is 2003 and the park was full but not crazy crowded. Most rides were walk on. I definitely think you should go. In fact we planned this vacation in Oct so we could go to MNSSHP!

 

[Noelle]

It is worth it...We had so much fun - probably just as much if not more then the kids! We went with our two kids and another family. All of the adults had a blast trick-or-treating. We had so much candy. We're not big costume people. But last year we bought hats at Disneyland and wore color co-ordinated shirts. (We could easily take the hats off if whenever we wanted). I was the Cheshire Cat and DH was the Mad Hatter. The girls wore full costumes Alice & the Queen of Hearts. The cast members all commented on our "family" even though our costumes weren't really costumes...But when you saw us as a group you knew what we were. The lines for the rides were really short. But I know that's not a guarentee...We might have just been there on a slower night than others. The fireworks were great. My kids loved the Haunted Mansion part. The decorations were terrific. There were plenty of photo opportunities too. We're going again this year and I'm looking forward to the riverboat with storytelling. I hope it's running this year. Last year once we got back to the hotel, the four adults sat around trading candy out from the party. I totally felt like a kid again!

 

[Tiggerlover48]

We are also thinking of going the same day. My DH is not going to dress up!! But I did buy 3 t-shirts in different colors that have the same pattern, maybe we will wear those. I have to see if my DS6 wants to dress up. I know it will be hot. So we will see. I haven't bought my tickets yet, but am leaning towards bitting the bullet!!

 

[magicaldisney]

Here's a low down on the

there is a limited # of tickets sold for these parties so it is never as crowded as an average day at the park is. We have never (for the last 5 years) waited in line for a ride for more than 5 minutes. A lot of the rides, towards the end of the evening, you can just stay right on the ride and do it again.

party is from 7:00 p.m. until midnight

trick or treating for children and adults, with or without costumes (most children dress in costume, and some - many adults dress in costume....my children have been in costume, but us parents have not)

special fireworks

special parade with the headless horseman starting it off

characters are in costumes, you might also see some that are a little harder to find.

dance parties with characters

you used to receive a free photo for each member in your party that attended but I believe this might be changing.

This is the only time you will see any of the parks decorated for Halloween.

 

[magicaldisney]

On a whole separate note..........

When I typed my reply, I didn't put in the guys dancing. When I sent the message they were there in place of where I typed the word "party". Is this something new? That's never happened to me before. I've always had to manually put these things in.

 

[seven dwarfs]

We have done both parties before. They both are great. I will add if the party is sold out or near sold out it is not so fun. The lines get long. I am speaking of kiddo rides. Like Peter Pan. We have seen the lines longer then on the reg park day. SO, it just depends.

 

[FionaLovesShrek]

We did this last year, it was our first MNSSHP. I had the same questions as you. We let DD dress up, we wore Halloween t-shirts. It was fun to see all the Halloween decorations. The "trick or treat/ free candy" lines were long, DD only did a few. The longest wait for a ride was 10 minutes...that was a plus! The parade was great....waited especially to see the headless horseman before the parade kicked off I hated the theme music (personal preference) hence one of my tags. It was a great experience for our family, glad we did it once but we probably won't do it again.

 

[rcraw45425]

On a whole separate note..........

When I typed my reply, I didn't put in the guys dancing. When I sent the message they were there in place of where I typed the word "party". Is this something new? That's never happened to me before. I've always had to manually put these things in.

DId you do party with a colon like this?

I think that's the icon for party.

 

[rcraw45425]

Yep, that's what happened, party followed by a colon equals:

 

[magicaldisney]

YEP, that's what I did. Thanks guys, now I know!!