To do or not to do Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party?

[disney20082011]

We are planning a trip the first week of December. Should we plan on going to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party? What are the pros and cons? We have never been to any of the parties, but I am not sure if I can justify the extra cost.

 

[believinthemagic]

I am sure many will disagree, but we did MVMCP a year ago and I didn't feel it was worth the extra money. The best part was the parade, which was very cute & lines were short which was nice. But most of the decorations are things you can see without attending the party. The cookies and hot cocoa are not all that great. I do have to say though that it rained the night we went which may have put a damper on the evening. A few of the stage shows were cancelled that night due to rain.

IMHO is was just average but not worth the money spent. I rather take the money and use it elsehwere.

 

[BoardWalkBelle]

Yes, do it!!! I love it! It is full of Christmas spirit and gets you in the mood for Christmas!
They have Christmas music playing all thru the park that only happens during the parties..special Christmas themes firweoks, special parade, free cookie and hot cocoa. characters dressed in christmas costumes.you need to do it at least once..you wont regret it

 

[CouchTater]

We love the Christmas party. We get there at 4 and get in a lot of rides and all before the party starts and it gets pretty crowded. Nothing puts you in the Christmas spirit more than walking down Main Street with a hot cup of cocoa and the snow falling. The parade and shows are great and a great fireworks show. We hit the resorts and see all the decorations there usually in the mornings and early afternoon and then head to the party. We're a couple in our mid 50's and we are just like kids.

 

[mesaboy2]

If you were asking about MNSSHP, I'd give you an unqualified "yes". While we enjoyed MVMCP and recommend it be experienced once, I'm not as enthusiastic about it as I am MNSSHP.

 

[letsgoreds]

Unless you are using it as your entrance into the parks that day (starts at 4pm), it really isn't worth it. Not much different from EMH. The parade was fun, snacks were nice, but the cost is extreme.

 

[minnie mum]

It really depends on the ages and makeup of your group, but I agree with Believinthemagic. If you have been to WDW a ton of times (including during the holiday season) then perhaps the novelty of the party is enough to justify the expense of the extra tickets. But I really did'nt think it was all that special.

Honestly, MK is so beautifully decorated for the holiday season (along with the resorts), and you can see that during regular park hours. If you want hot chocolate and cookies, you can buy them. Characters will still be around in the park during the day. Going to the parties requires a big chunk of change. I'd rather spend it elsewhere.

 

[DISHoppy]

Unless you are using it as your entrance into the parks that day (starts at 4pm), it really isn't worth it. Not much different from EMH. The parade was fun, snacks were nice, but the cost is extreme.

Agreed. We've used it as our opening night (arriving Sun and leaving Fri) for our Dec stays, so it works out like a day @ the MK for us from 4-10ish. It's been getting more and more crowded because DI$ keeps increasing the ticket allotment. We've done it three times, and last Dec was our last for quite some time. It's just not worth it unless you can stay all the way through, which we can't with DDs 5 & 8. Maybe when they are teens (and probably sick of us dragging them to WDW by then). It's nice to experience once, but only worth it if you can take the time to enjoy the entire evening of it.

-Kevin

 

[bluejasmine]

Christmas is my hands down favorite holiday and time of yr and I think you should defanitely go atleast once to MVMCP, the parade, snow on main st and cookies and fireworks are great!

that being said, we enjoyed the MNSSHP more and Im not a Halloween fan..

 

[mousermerf]

Let's frame this more realistically..

Is your choice..

It versus something else...? Or it versus time...? Or it versus funds...?

Because really, it's cute but it's not unmissable. If you have the time, money, and it wont make you miss out on something else - sure, why not? It's your money.

But if you're going to have to scrape to pay for it, skip something else you really want to do, or somehow have a lesser experience by moving things around or something - don't bother.

Me personally? Not worth it to throw the money at it - it'd be better spent with a nice dinner somewhere on property and since i'm not rolling in dough that's an either/or proposition for me - ya see? But if you can easily do both and be happy, then do both and be happy.

 

[stitch34]

It is quite expensive... but gotta say, my family loves it!

How many of you would there be going? If 2 or 3 or 4, maybe worth trying... but if a large group... just too much money.

We had another family with us last year - they had never been to the party. I feared they'd complain afterwards that it was a waste of money - and thankfully they really enjoyed it a lot!
What they did... was decided to not get park hoppers and use their park hopper money towards party tickets instead. I just planned out schedule without park hopping - and on party day we COULD park hop - did AK on our regular ticket... then came to MK at 4 on the party ticket.

Just saying, if could skip park hoppers and do party instead?

The parade is GREAT! Oh, something about those toy soldiers... ahhhh!
The fireworks - honestly, they are my FAV of all disney fireworks - the magic of Disney and Christmas wrapped together. They are beautiful!

Hot chocolate and cookies... no big deal.

Lines for rides - yeah, that was nice. Last year party started at 7 - and we went from 7-8:15 riding rides - one after another, just went right on them.... then stopped, caught some of 1st parade, got some cocoa and cookies and hung for a bit, saw fireworks, a couple more rides and saw the second parade.
Characters - is nice to see some of the characters dressed for the holidays, and some that usually aren't out (if want to wait in long lines that is!)

There is a lot of holiday stuff otherwise - parks and resorts decorated, Osborne Lights - kinda don't NEED the party - but well, my family just loves it.
We'd do it twice each year if it weren't for the cost. For us our main interest is the fireworks and parade - that's a lot of money to spend for that.

I think if your group is big.... just don't spend all that extra money. But if only a few of you... eh, is something nice to do at least once!

 

[disney20082011]

Some more information about our group... There will be six of us, DH, DD(10), DS(10), a twenty-something couple and me.

We have been to DWD several times. We went in November several years ago and saw the Christmas fireworks from the Contemporary consierge lounge.

We are from the Midwest, so "snow" does not have much magical appeal.

My children will be 10 and I am not sure the characters will be a priority for them, especially if there are large lines!! We plan on eating at Chef Mickey's one night and CRT once, so I am not sure if that will be enough characters for them!!

I do think the parade would be awesome. And, the short wait for rides is very tempting.

Money is not a big problem, just don't want to throw it away. I am thinking about maybe taking the money we would have spent on the party and taking an Illuminations' cruise.

 

[Kona65]

The first time we did MVMCP is was great, and well worth the money. The next few times, still nice, but not worth the extra money. We enjoyed going to the other park that was staying open late instead.

 

[JennyDrake]

If you have never done it, I would say that you should go.

Pros include a great parade and I am not a "parade person"

Cons cocoa (watery) and cookies (blech) are nothing speical at all. Very few eateries open. The park can be nearly empty or it can be PACKED and miserable. I have seen both.

 

[brymolmom]

We did it in 2010 for the first (and last) time. Been to WDW lots of time. Went with kids aged 7 and 8 and four adults. The decorations were nice - but you can see them without the party. We saw the show in Tomorrowland and really liked it - if there were a few more like that it might have been worth it to me. Between that show and the parade and the hot chocolate (that I could have bought about 25 cups of for the cost of the party) - that was about all we 'got out' of the party.

I think they need to add a couple/few more special shows and/or start it earlier to make it worth it to me.

We won't go again.

I know some people love it and MAYBE that's why I had my expectations set so high - but I agree with pp...it wasn't too much different than any other EMH for me.

 

[dzneelvr]

Thanks for all the honest feedback. DH and I have decided to pass on the party and do the Fireworks Dessert party again instead! we truly enjoyed this with DS and DD last year and cocoa and cookies won't cut it with DH after all the fantastic choices the dessert party offers.

 

[jojomoore]

I loved it when we visited the world in 2010. I think it is a wonderful way to get into the Christmas Spirit. Something about being on Maintstreet all lit up with street performers singing christmas carols watching the parade just made me feel transported to another time and world. Awesome We also enjoyed meeting characters - the seven dwarfs. We took lots of pictures. We had to leave early because my DN was sick but I would like to go back some day.

 

[shburks]

I'd say skip it, too. We've been twice during the time frame for MVMCP and opted not to go. While we COULD afford it, I just cannot justify it for a few extra hours in the parks. We don't stay late and prefer to get up in the mornings and get going so a party until 10 doesn't appeal to us! The decorations are beautiful but you can see those any night there's not a party!