Tell me everything about MNSSHP

[dlmof2]

Going to DW this October and don't know anything about this! Going with husband and twin 5 year olds.

 

[MickeyMomV]

Any "touring" advice? We have tickets for the first MNSSHP, we are going with our then 4 year old son. In what order would you suggest doing the activities mentionned in this thread, like a little trick or treating, some meet and greets, parade, fireworks, a couple of attractions...

I would check the lines for the meet and greets first and jump in one if it looks low. Then check the parade time and make sure you have a good spot for it as it is completely different from the regular parade, you won't want to miss it. It is Awesome!! You can trick or treat at any time.

For the rides and everything else keep in mind there is a 30 to 60 minute transition from regular hours to party hours. The cast members do an awesome job "hearding" everybody out who doesn't have a wrist band but they are not going to pull people out of line if they don't have one, they are just going to keep new people from getting in line. So it does take a little time for the ride wait times to go down. Use that transition time for things that are only available for party guests, like the meet and greets.

 

[thomas998]

Did it for the first time with 3 other adults this past October. I was skeptical at first, but now I'm a beleiver. It was a fantastically fun night!!! Make sure to wear your costumes, and have a blast. I highly recommend!

But remember its Florida, so don't go overboard on the costume... if you do, you may cook yourself. Make sure your costume is cool (but bring a jacket depending on the how late in the season it can actually get cool sometimes) and make sure you wear comfortable shoes.

 

[thomas998]

Any "touring" advice? We have tickets for the first MNSSHP, we are going with our then 4 year old son. In what order would you suggest doing the activities mentionned in this thread, like a little trick or treating, some meet and greets, parade, fireworks, a couple of attractions...

Normally I would say skip the first parade and use that time to hit any meet and greet or rides that are more popular because you will get a slight reprieve in the lines as people flock to the parade... but with 4 year olds they might not be awake when the second run of the parade hits so do the first one. Aim to get a spot near the water but on the other side of the road so you are looking at the water, that way you have less light from the stores in your face, also you are away from Mainstreet which tends to be the most crowded...

The lines for most rides will be shorter than usual, but some will still be very long, mine train was horrible last year even by the end of the party... probably will be this time so frankly skip it, not worth the wait during a party when you have limited time and other things to do.

For quick candy the go to Fantasyland that area always has more stations than any other part of the park.

Photopasses....if you do the memory maker deal then you will have several oportunities for photos that will give you the addons that you can't get other times... like your photos with the hitchhiking ghosts or your kids standing in front of a witches cauldron.

For the fireworks best spots tend to be in the front of the castle as you would expect and it gets very crowded... to me the worst place to be is behind the castle...

best use of time is usually spent doing rides that would otherwise have longer waits like pirates... but you'll generally see ride times start to climb toward the middle part of the evening, best times to ride are early in the party or late near the end. I wouldn't recommend doing all the meet and greets, they take lots of time because they tend to be popular so decide on which ones you really want to do and hit them first.

 

[lunchbox1175]

if we tell you eeeverything, we will ruin all the surprises.

 

[Wildflower]

We just recently found out about this!! We have been to 1 MNSSHP and 2 MVMCP and never knew to get the cards! Do you know if you can get a card for the party even if you have already received your allotted cards for the day? We are planning a trip in October and my son is already planning what cards to bring and is super excited to be continuing his quest from March instead of starting over again.

Yes, you can. Word of warning though, the line can get REALLY long for it...

 

[MickeyMomV]

Yes, you can. Word of warning though, the line can get REALLY long for it...

Thank you!! At this point I think my son finds more enjoyment out of the quests than doing rides. I think that is a sign we go too often, although once a year from MI isn't often enough IMO.

The lines are probably all those people that get the card and turn around and sell it on ebay for $30 to $40. LAME!!!!

 

[Wildflower]

Thank you!! At this point I think my son finds more enjoyment out of the quests than doing rides. I think that is a sign we go too often, although once a year from MI isnt often enough IMO.

The lines are probably all those pople that get the card are turn around and sell it on ebay for $30 to $40.

Lol indeed. I think part of the line is those who get regular cards or sign up/start the game at the same time and they can only do a few of those at once. If it were just handing out a card, it would be pretty fast...and what you said too!! As to EBay, we've found cards for that year's party for $5-10 if you're patient. (had to do that with the headless horseman one and I think the $7 for that included shipping and came in a plastic sleeve...I know still mental for something that was FREE but my son really wanted it and I wasn't willing to stand in line that long. compromise!)

 

[thomas998]

Thank you!! At this point I think my son finds more enjoyment out of the quests than doing rides. I think that is a sign we go too often, although once a year from MI isn't often enough IMO.

The lines are probably all those people that get the card and turn around and sell it on ebay for $30 to $40. LAME!!!!

Oh come one... without Ebay how could some folks afford to go. Considering how high prices were going for the ticket to the party last year I was tempted to sell my families and tell the kids we'd do it next year. I think I saw a couple of auction where the tickets were close to 1,000 for the Halloween day.

 

[dlmof2]

Normally I would say skip the first parade and use that time to hit any meet and greet or rides that are more popular because you will get a slight reprieve in the lines as people flock to the parade... but with 4 year olds they might not be awake when the second run of the parade hits so do the first one. Aim to get a spot near the water but on the other side of the road so you are looking at the water, that way you have less light from the stores in your face, also you are away from Mainstreet which tends to be the most crowded...

The lines for most rides will be shorter than usual, but some will still be very long, mine train was horrible last year even by the end of the party... probably will be this time so frankly skip it, not worth the wait during a party when you have limited time and other things to do.

For quick candy the go to Fantasyland that area always has more stations than any other part of the park.

Photopasses....if you do the memory maker deal then you will have several oportunities for photos that will give you the addons that you can't get other times... like your photos with the hitchhiking ghosts or your kids standing in front of a witches cauldron.

For the fireworks best spots tend to be in the front of the castle as you would expect and it gets very crowded... to me the worst place to be is behind the castle...

best use of time is usually spent doing rides that would otherwise have longer waits like pirates... but you'll generally see ride times start to climb toward the middle part of the evening, best times to ride are early in the party or late near the end. I wouldn't recommend doing all the meet and greets, they take lots of time because they tend to be popular so decide on which ones you really want to do and hit them first.

You said the best place to see parade is by water? I've only been to Disney once in the past 15 years and I don't know where the water is. Can you explain? Thanks in advance!

 

[sophie_the_pooh]

You said the best place to see parade is by water? I've only been to Disney once in the past 15 years and I don't know where the water is. Can you explain? Thanks in advance!

I figured he meant the water between the Castle and Tomorrowland!

 

[Tuvalu]

You said the best place to see parade is by water? I've only been to Disney once in the past 15 years and I don't know where the water is. Can you explain? Thanks in advance!

I figured he meant the water between the Castle and Tomorrowland!

Think @thomas998 means to watch the parade in Frontierland, on the side of the street with the buildings, facing the river (Tom Sawyer Island sits in the middle of it). Frontierland has more "breathing room" to watch a parade than Main Street does.

 

[thomas998]

Think @thomas998 means to watch the parade in Frontierland, on the side of the street with the buildings, facing the river (Tom Sawyer Island sits in the middle of it). Frontierland has more "breathing room" to watch a parade than Main Street does.

This is what I meant... water by the castle isn't a good place to be for the parade you would be too close to mainstreet where all the crowds are.