On September 22nd I had the opportunity to be a guest at Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party. After spending all day in Magic Kingdom, the clock struck 7 and the party began. Looking at my map and trying to make a plan with some of my friends there was a lot to do and only 5 hours to do it all. There was trick or treating to be done, event merchandise to buy, characters to meet, shows to watch, parades, and of course Hallowishes. I am a bad news first kind of person, so here goes.

Unfortunately, I was attending a sold out party. The park was filled with costumed guests who like me wanted nothing more than to do everything on their list if they could. So to say lines were long is an understatement. Lines were unbelievable for character meet and greet which was the main thing I wanted to do that evening.

To give you an idea Jack and Sally had an estimated 2 hour line when we went to see them, Cruella had a 1 hour line, Mickey and the gang also had an hour line. Put that together and you miss some of the shows and, possibly, the fireworks show. As such I made an executive decision and skipped out on these characters. I was able to see Lotso, Snow White (no Prince however), and the Hag. I also took the opportunity to see Elsa and Anna as their line was only a 30 minute wait (a record low!).

I did not do any trick or treating as lines to get candy were also long and I can buy myself a bag of candy for cheaper than the event ticket.

Now that we have the negatives out-of-the-way let us look at the positives.

Celebrate the Magic was pretty much the same but offered a bit more on the villains side and covered the castle with some interesting projections. I really enjoyed the additions and hope they will remain for a time, but I feel they will change once the Christmas season is upon us.

After Celebrate the Magic was Wishes, but not as you know it. The Ghost Host brought us a wonderful Happy Hallowishes, which is much different and probably the highlight of the night. With new mixes of some of our favorite villains songs as well as projections along the castle during the performance it was a sight to see. YouTube videos do not give it justice and it is definitely one of those firework displays that you should simply watch and not try to record. You lose the magic while trying to view it through a phone or camera display.

Hocus Pocus Villain Spectacular was amazing. During the performance your favorite witches and mine return, after only 22 years away this time (they claim they are getting better at it, I say one of us 90’s kids lit the candle on purpose). The costumes were spot on, you could swear it was really Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy on stage from their facial expressions, movements and mannerisms. Of course the sisters are not here to steal all of Disney’s children, they simply want to throw a party, and with the help of some villainous friends that is just what they do. As much as I hate to admit it after the Sanderson Sisters the best costume was Oogie Boogie (I shiver at how real it looked). Best of all the Sisters sang the famous “I Put A Spell On You” to the delight of the crowd with a very emphasized “heck to pay”. It was definitely a high-energy crowd who was ready for this return of the Sisters a long time ago. We were sad when we had to say bye-bye because we could have danced all night, or til we were dead, whichever came first.

Mickey’s Boo to You Halloween Parade was fantastic. The floats were all excellently themed and characters that are not usually in the parade had their own floats (like Clarabelle Cow and Clara Cluck). Each different float had themed music that goes with the overall music and the dancers were all fantastic. In true villain fashion they got the last laugh (quite literally in the Evil Queen’s case) and were presented at the end of the parade. This was definitely one of the best parts of the night and was my closing event.

After this I went and got my party merchandise and began the trek home. As there was still one more Hocus Pocus Villain Spectacular there was not a huge crowd trying to leave while I was.

So the question is, with a price range of 63-80 dollars, was my night worth it? Yes, and no, for what I wanted to do it was very difficult. The sheer amount of people made it impossible to see all the characters (Disney however organized this as best as they could, having multiple lines at once so there could be a constant draw). Trick or Treating was not as important to me so that is not a down side. The shows and parade were phenomenal, as such if I could go back I would still purchase another ticket. I cannot control how many guests are in the park, or how many come to the party. What I can control is my attitude and if I look back I had an amazing time. For that there is no price.

– Leslie

*To the readers, I apologize for my absence and the well…few months between posts. I work 40+ hours each week here at Disney and am also still in school during my time here. I hope I will be able to write more for you all soon.