Villians Sinister Soirée

[aaarcher86]

My son and I went last year. We didn't have the opportunity to meet Maleficent and we didnt book any extras. We still had a blast. So much fun that we booked the bounce back offer. MNSSHP is MAGICAL no matter what. You are going to LOVE it.

I'm sure it is. However, we booked this time with the sole intention of doing the Halloween party and meeting Maleficent/Hook/Jack and Sally was our top priority. After planning for 11 months, making a BBB appointment so my youngest could be Tink for her photo OP with Hook, and paying extra for MNSSHP tickets, it really taints my mindset going in when they pull regular offerings to charge even more for them.

I'm sure we will still have a bunch of fun on our non soirée day, but I'm not sure it'd be worth doing a second time.

 

[JimmyV]

I don't care about them offering premium experiences. I care about them *taking away from the base experience* in order to offer the premium experience. Offer the premium without diminishing the base, and I don't have an issue.

BINGO! Make the premium events "extra" to what the base event already provides. But don't isolate certain elements that used to be part of the base event, siphon those out of the base event, and then make you pay extra for them. And....the premium events really should be limited in capacity. If one is going to pay extra (on top of already paying extra), then the event should truly be special and limited to only the number of people that can be accommodated without having to wait in long lines. Do those things and I have no issue with making the decision whether to go or not.

But when Disney makes decisions, they look at what the majority will think. They have to.

Not sure this is true. Don't they simply have to look at whether a small minority of people think the decision is worth the cost? Disney could make a special VIP ticket available to 100 people per night where those people pay $500 per person for 3 hours in a room with 20 Villians who are not elsewhere available. Disney doesn't have to care what the "majority" thinks of such an event. It just has to think about whether it can sell 100 tickets per night over the course of 30 or 40 nights that they run this event.

 

[tiriggs1]

I'm sure it is. However, we booked this time with the sole intention of doing the Halloween party and meeting Maleficent/Hook/Jack and Sally was our top priority. After planning for 11 months, making a BBB appointment so my youngest could be Tink for her photo OP with Hook, and paying extra for MNSSHP tickets, it really taints my mindset going in when they pull regular offerings to charge even more for them.

I'm sure we will still have a bunch of fun on our non soirée day, but I'm not sure it'd be worth doing a second time.

You will love Jack & Sally!! Make sure you get in line early -or- we went during the 1st parade (slightly smaller line). We still waited a little over an hour to meet n greet. It was so worth it!

 

[aaarcher86]

You will love Jack & Sally!! Make sure you get in line early -or- we went during the 1st parade (slightly smaller line). We still waited a little over an hour to meet n greet. It was so worth it!

Yeah. I think we are going to line up for them around 5:30p and get them out if the way early.

Does Jacks head look as bizarre in person as it does in pictures?

 

[MickeyMinnieMom]

If only they'd make these tickets refundable like they did the soiree.

Yeah - I really think these party tix should be refundable. I think it's their purview to change entertainment, but in the even that change REALLY decreases the value for a customer they should be able to get a refund without a hassle.

 

[JimmyV]

...and the actual hour we will be inside the castle is time I would have spent in line waiting on the Dwarves. Before the Soiree was announced, we were planning on ~1.5 hours in line for them. Once we decided on the Soiree, we decided we would forego the Dwarves in exchange for the plethora of villains. So no Dwarves, but who we will meet more than makes up for it, and is a savings of ~ 30 min. Give or take.

I get your point. But it is also true that you will have now paid two admission prices ($70 and $99) and have to choose between which adventure you want to pursue: the Dwarves or the Villians. If you pay both prices, you should be able to get both experiences. If you cannot, then it is fair to say that the $70 you are paying for the base party is not being fully rewarded. So perhaps the VSS should be held once a night, and should begin about a half an hour before the base party ends, and extend to an hour after the base party ends. That way, you would get the full run of the park for the entire length of the base party (except for the last half hour), and would get a 90 minute VIP party. You would then get to do everything you want on the same night, which for nearly $700 for a family of four, is not asking too much.

 

[MickeyMinnieMom]

Not sure this is true. Don't they simply have to look at whether a small minority of people think the decision is worth the cost? Disney could make a special VIP ticket available to 100 people per night where those people pay $500 per person for 3 hours in a room with 20 Villians who are not elsewhere available. Disney does't have to care what the "majority" thinks of such an event. It just has to think about whether it can sell 100 tickets per night over the course of 30 or 40 nights that they run this event.

I think we mostly agree...

In this situation, they essentially look to maximize:

(# guests x $60ish) + (# guests x $160ish) - costs

If enough guests at $60 said "NO WAY -- now I'm not buying a ticket at all!", they couldn't make enough on the special-special offering unless they charged WAY more... likely getting THAT group to balk and say "FORGET IT!".

It's a matter of how big each pool of potential customer is, and how much they're willing to pay. They'll seek to balance that out and net the highest amount possible.

 

[Angel Ariel]

This sounds so cool!!

It really was . I still remember Flynn and rapunzel talking about how big Pascal got, and how it must have been Pascal that stole all the apples, not Maximus. It was one of the best meet and greets I've ever had. I'm glad we had that opportunity, and it makes me sad that it was taken away from others.

 

[tiriggs1]

Yeah. I think we are going to line up for them around 5:30p and get them out if the way early.

Does Jacks head look as bizarre in person as it does in pictures?

We didnt think so, but as you know.... everyone has a different opinion

 

[JimmyV]

IIf enough guests at $60 said "NO WAY -- now I'm not buying a ticket at all!", they couldn't make enough on the special-special offering unless they charged WAY more... likely getting THAT group to balk and say "FORGET IT!".

Ahhh. But there's the rub. If they didn't subtract anything out of the $60 event in the first place, there would be no reason for anyone to say "No Way" to the $60 event. The people turning away from the event now are doing so only because value has been decreased. If they kept the 2014 event essentially the same as the 2013 event, and merely added more to the VSS, then it would be a win-win all the way around.

 

[MickeyMinnieMom]

It really was . I still remember Flynn and rapunzel talking about how big Pascal got, and how it must have been.Pascal that stole all the.apple's, not Maximus. It was one of the best meet and greets I've ever had. I'm glad we had that opportunity, and it makes me sad that it was taken away from others.

That's too funny!! Yeah -- I can see -- especially after that experience!! -- being disappointed that others won't have the same opportunity.

 

[DisneyRobin]

I agree. Look at it this way. Imagine that in 2015, Disney started charging $20 per person for evening EMHs and to justify the cost, it added in a dessert party for all who paid to get in. People grumble, gripe, but pay it. Then, in 2016, they charge the same $20, but added a special $30 VIP pass on top of that which would grant you access to the Mountains and the A&E meet and greet area, which would be closed off to people who didn't buy the extra pass. Now, I suppose families who don't ride the Mountains would not see this as a reduction in value of the base $20 ticket price. But for those who do ride the Mountains and want to see A&E, this change would cause a tremendous decrease in value. When it comes to MNSSHP, to many people, the Villians are their Mountains, so to speak.

Shhhhh! Don't give Disney any ideas!!

 

[ShannonMB]

I get your point. But it is also true that you will have now paid two admission prices ($70 and $99) and have to choose between which adventure you want to pursue: the Dwarves or the Villians. If you pay both prices, you should be able to get both experiences. If you cannot, then it is fair to say that the $70 you are paying for the base party is not being fully rewarded. So perhaps the VSS should be held once a night, and should begin about a half an hour before the base party ends, and extend to an hour after the base party ends. That way, you would get the full run of the park for the entire length of the base party (except for the last half hour), and would get a 90 minute VIP party. You would then get to do everything you want on the same night, which for $nearly $700 for a family of four, is not asking too much.

I see what you mean, but I still maintain that I wouldn't be able to meet that quantity and caliber of characters appearing at the party if I did nothing the whole party but stalk characters! I mean, meeting all those hard (for me) to find villains in one hour? They could have 6 of each in multiple locations of the park and I still don't know that I'd accomplish it.

It really boils down to how much a family wants to see those villains up close. At Halloween time. I've always been one who would love to see a Villain character meal. I feel like they read my mind and offered something that is actually beyond my expectations. All the time I was wishing they would do something really cool with the villains, I never even allowed myself to hope that it would also be a really good value! It is Disney after all, and the magic often comes at a premium - I'm used to that. Yes, they have me right where they want me, I know.

 

[Angel Ariel]

I don't think the majority argument applies to this event. There's a max of maybe what, 500 people/night that can experience the soiree? That isn't anywhere near a majority of MNSSHP guests, so how can the desire of the majority be the driving factor?

 

[Angel Ariel]

Ahhh. But there's the rub. If they didn't subtract anything out of the $60 event in the first place, there would be no reason for anyone to say "No Way" to the $60 event. The people turning away from the event now are doing so only because value has been decreased. If they kept the 2014 event essentially the same as the 2013 event, and merely added more to the VSS, then it would be a win-win all the way around.

Exactly.

 

[JimmyV]

I see what you mean, but I still maintain that I wouldn't be able to meet that quantity and caliber of characters appearing at the party if I did nothing the whole party but stalk characters! I mean, meeting all those hard (for me) to find villains in one hour? They could have 6 of each in multiple locations of the park and I still don't know that I'd accomplish it.

It really boils down to how much a family wants to see those villains up close. At Halloween time. I've always been one who would love to see a Villain character meal. I feel like they read my mind and offered something that is actually beyond my expectations. All the time I was wishing they would do something really cool with the villains, I never even allowed myself to hope that it would also be a really good value! It is Disney after all, and the magic often comes at a premium - I'm used to that. Yes, they have me right where they want me, I know.

See, if I were Head Mouse For A Day, the VSS would be an almost entirely "after hours" event so that the people who paid $70+$99 would get to enjoy the entirety of the $70 event and then would make their way to the $99 event when everyone else was heading to the exits. Both admission prices would be utilized to their maximum capacity. And as for the Villains Character meal during the Halloween season? It astonishes me that this hasn't already been done. People were selling their first-borns for seats at the Star Wars character meals in May. Convert the Crystal Palace into a Villains dinner from 4:00 p.m. until 10:00 p.m. and they could charge whatever they wanted for it and it would sell out every night.

 

[cakebaker]

Ahhh. But there's the rub. If they didn't subtract anything out of the $60 event in the first place, there would be no reason for anyone to say "No Way" to the $60 event. The people turning away from the event now are doing so only because value has been decreased. If they kept the 2014 event essentially the same as the 2013 event, and merely added more to the VSS, then it would be a win-win all the way around.

Problem being, the soiree would then lose it's exclusivity and that's a big draw.
It's because they took those characters out of the party line up that the soiree is popular- it sure isn't due to the food.

As long as people will pay for it, Disney will charge for it. I think it's short sighted on their part, but time will tell.

 

[patrickpiteo]

See, if I were Head Mouse For A Day, the VSS would be an almost entirely "after hours" event so that the people who paid $70+$99 would get to enjoy the entirety of the $70 event and then would make their way to the $99 event when everyone else was heading to the exits. Both admission prices would be utilized to their maximum capacity. And as for the Villians Character meal during the Halloween season? It astonishes me that this hasn't already been done. People were selling their first-borns for seats at the Star Wars character meals in May. Convert the Crystal Palace into a Villians dinner from 4:00 p.m. until 10:00 p.m. and they could charge whatever they wanted for it and it would sell out every night.

all great ideas...

 

[Angel Ariel]

Problem being, the soiree would then lose it's exclusivity and that's a big draw.
It's because they took those characters out of the party line up that the soiree is popular- it sure isn't due to the food.

As long as people will pay for it, Disney will charge for it. I think it's short sighted on their part, but time will tell.

I.disagree. there are plenty of rare villains that you could put in a soiree setting and get a big draw. Hades? Meg?(since she is apparently a villain). Shan yu (who met at TOT 10 mile party last year). Mother Goethel (and she sings too!), etc. I'm sure others.could add to the list. Ursula in.Vanessa form! That would be awesome! (Since I'm sure her regular costume is too elaborate for a character meal venue)

You can keep the headliner villains meetable for all guests and still have rare/exclusive villains in the soiree.

 

[MVC1225]

I understand. If I was only attending MNSSHP I would not care at all about the changes, personally -- so subjective, and depends so much on why we each buy a party ticket to begin with.

Curious about something... knowing all what you know now, would you choose -- IF it were possible to pick between these two offerings (which it obviously isn't now!):

1) $60ish for the 2013 MNSSHP experience OR
2) $160ish for the 2014 MNSSHP + soirée experience

Number 2 hands down.

We have attended the 2012 and 2013 parties. We mainly go for the parade, trick or treating, and the rides with no lines. While we watch the Villains Mix and Mingle we have never tried to get in line to meet them. We do not like standing in line for characters and much prefer character meals to meet characters. We really like the Villains though and have wanted a Villains character meal for ages.

We have already have our tickets for MNSSHP on 10/16 and this morning got the Soiree for three adults. We chose the later one since that gives us much of the party to do what we want (we will probably watch parade in the reserved area but then not stay for fireworks and just watch those from wherever we are in the park) and then have the Soiree after we are done with the party and rides.