MNSSHP - Actually Worth It?

[ynahtebwdw]

Hey there!

Is MNSSHP actually worth an extra $100 or so just to stay in the park past 6pm? We're an adults-only party and the extra activities seem pretty focussed on kids, we're also from the UK so Halloween isn't something we usually celebrate.

We've never been in October before and I'm interested in experiencing this new aspect of WDW that we've never done before, but....$100 each?

 

[Andrew Appleby]

We're there in August with our 2 children and have paid the extra to experience it. We look at it as a way to experience Halloween USA style. If we were adults only we would still do it just to have the experience but I agree it does seem more child focussed.

 

[larryz]

My advice -- try it and see. If nothing else, you'll have plenty of candy to snack on for the rest of your visit.

 

[KRW101]

If your budget allows for it, try it once. The fireworks and the parade are a lot of fun. Besides when you are vacationing there, you don’t need kids to be a kid!

 

[J_Carioca]

I've done it twice (no kids either time). The first time was much better, largely because we went earlier in the fall and the park that night was quite empty. We walked on to many rides and enjoyed the relative lack of guests. The second time: we went last October right before Hallowe'en and were very disappointed. The park was SO busy; lines for rides were actually worse than on regular days and it was slow moving through crowds that big. We felt it was not worth the money at all.

Here are my thoughts:

Do go early on in the fall. The closer you get to Hallowe'en the busier it will be. The park will be overcrowded and you won't get to do any rides.

Do go if parades are your thing and you want to see a new one. It's really good! Don't watch the parade on youtube before you go; you'll ruin some of the surprises!

Do go if you love fireworks. The show is different than the usual and very good.

Do go if you like costumes - you'll see some amazing ones.

Do dress up!

Do enter the park at 4pm even though the party officially starts at 7pm. They let you in earlier if you have a ticket for the party.

Don't waste your time going around to the trick or treat stations. Sure, "free" candy is nice but you've paid a hundred bucks each to get in. Use the time more wisely.

Ultimately what's "worth it" for some people will not be for others. Personally, I feel that spending several days at WDW is special enough as it is and I'm starting to resent all the "extras" they offer, including things like the Hallowe'en party. But it's just a personal thing.

 

[JIMINYCR]

Ive gone to the event twice with friends. We are all adults. We did dress up in costume and had a blast taking in the events and viewing the vast array of costumes others had home made or were store bought. We did very little candy seeking and concentrated on m&g's going on rides late into the evening and viewing the awesome parade and fireworks show. For us it was well worth the cost and if given the opportunity we will return for others.

 

[belledream]

The price has definitely gone up since I went, but I would say it was worth it to experience it once. Not just to 'stay in MK past 6pm' but to celebrate Halloween, see the unique parade and fireworks, and even though we were also just a party of adults, we certainly enjoyed roaming the entirety of an emptier MK at night collecting candy. Dressing up in costume was a fun touch and there are a lot of good photo opportunities as well!

If Halloween isn't of that much interest/nostalgia to you though, I would say that $100 to see what it's about can be steep when you can just watch movies or Google it though. Even if you don't attend the party, MK in October is still decorated beautifully for fall and it's just as nice to soak in a bit of Halloween that way as well.

 

[marni1971]

If you’ve never done it, most probably.

If you’ve done it a few times possibly not anymore.

 

[LUVofDIS]

The party has a few things that are just amazing. The Boo-To-You Parade is one of if not the best parade I have ever seen. The Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular is one of the best stage shows WDW does. The Fireworks show, the music and dialog mesh perfectly with the show.

Last year we did this party twice during our September visit. I will probably do a long weekend this year just to do this party and Food and wine. By the way there are only the two of us, we have no kids, we don't feel this is geared towards kids at all. The fun is what you make it.

With that being said the parade and the show are better than their Christmas party counterparts, the fireworks show is better at the Christmas party. The over all atmosphere is better at the Christmas Party. All in all, I love the Christmas Party more. Though it doesn't need to be said, this is my opinion.

If you are going just for the lower crowds and to have shorter waits, the price maybe to much and not justifiable. If you enjoy the unique character meets, shows, parades and fireworks, or a few of these things than this is definitely worth doing.

 

[NelleBelle]

The party has a few things that are just amazing. The Boo-To-You Parade is one of if not the best parade I have ever seen. The Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular is one of the best stage shows WDW does. The Fireworks show, the music and dialog mesh perfectly with the show.

Last year we did this party twice during our September visit. I will probably do a long weekend this year just to do this party and Food and wine. By the way there are only the two of us, we have no kids, we don't feel this is geared towards kids at all. The fun is what you make it.

With that being said the parade and the show are better than their Christmas party counterparts, the fireworks show is better at the Christmas party. The over all atmosphere is better at the Christmas Party. All in all, I love the Christmas Party more. Though it doesn't need to be said, this is my opinion.

If you are going just for the lower crowds and to have shorter waits, the price maybe to much and not justifiable. If you enjoy the unique character meets, shows, parades and fireworks, or a few of these things than this is definitely worth doing.

This! We've been to MNSSHP 2x--first time end of Sep/early Oct. and the park was fairly empty; second time was on Halloween and I the crowd level was a bit more but definitely less than during the day. We spent time getting unique photo pass/M&G pictures taken in our costumes. We thought lines for the rides were actually quite low--rode 7DMT at least 4 times that night with a short wait. HM had a very long line due to the most amazing theming I've ever seen outside! Getting over there after dark is a definite must-do! We totally agree that the Boo-to-You parade is the best parade WDW puts on (the music is my ring tone during October)! The fireworks show is our favorite show (like it better than Wishes and Illuminations). We went through the trick-or-treat areas when we ran across them but definitely did not seek them out but the candy was good and plentiful (definitely not stingy with it).

All in all, we would definitely do the party again and feel it's one of the only "uncharges" we are willing to spend on. I would do it as if it were just an adults-only trip, for sure. Unfortunately, unless we do one of the new August parties or head for a long weekend at DLR, our MNSSHP days are likely over for a long time as our kids have now reached the age where we can't pull them from their school (older son is going into HS and even though the school allows family vacation time during the school year, it's very hard to make up missed science labs, etc).

 

[phillip9698]

My advice is don't pay for a full day in the MK on top of paying for the party. Just pay for the party and do something else during the day, maybe a water park. If you aren't interested in taking pictures with characters then during the party you will be able to ride just about anything as a walk on except Haunted Mansion and the Mine Train. You will still have time to see the parade and fireworks.

Just make sure you go early in the season and not on a Saturday.

 

[crxbrett]

I'm still contemplating trying it. An empty park in Sep open til midnight is mighty tempting to me! I'd like to see the fireworks once from inside the park, too. I've only seen them from the Poly but they looked pretty cool.

 

[graphite1326]

We have done it twice. Once with the kids and once without. The kids got tired early so it that case it was not worth it. Great fireworks. It's not that crowded at least the times I have gone. The rides were walk-ons. Lots of candy for everyone. But I would not do it again as just adults either. Don't get me wrong it was fun but the price is such that it would not be something I would do over and over again.

I recommend if you are ok with spending the money go.

 

[ynahtebwdw]

Thanks for all the replies!

We're going in late october so the crowds have the potential to be nightmarish but we're going to give it a chance anyway! Now to choose a costume...

 

["El Gran Magnifico"]

From an AP perspective with 2 small children, I will continue to go until they outgrow it. I use the AP to get in the park around 2 and use my FP options until about 5:30. Early Dinner at CHS, CRs, or PBs - get my wristband then on to the party. It's a good and controlled environment for the kids to dress in costume and trick or treat. IMO Hallowishes is the best fireworks show in the MK and the Boo To You parade almost has a hypnotic quality.

Now, once my kids do outgrow it and move on to Uni's HHN, I'll probably never go to another MNSSHP (well maybe for nostalgia when I'm much older).

 

[nkellerrd1101]

Hey there!

Is MNSSHP actually worth an extra $100 or so just to stay in the park past 6pm? We're an adults-only party and the extra activities seem pretty focussed on kids, we're also from the UK so Halloween isn't something we usually celebrate.

We've never been in October before and I'm interested in experiencing this new aspect of WDW that we've never done before, but....$100 each?

It has been about 3 years since my last visit to WDW but if it is still the same, YES MNSSHP is worth it. My family and I have done it at least 10 times. Not sure if that helps.

 

[LUVofDIS]

We attended the party twice last year and just decided today that we will do it twice this year. It will be the beginning of October. I can't wait, the parade alone is worth it to me.

I will mention, there are two major meet and greets. The Seven Dwarfs and Jack and Sally. There will be long waits for these two. If you don't have an AP, I would get to the party at 4pm. that is when they start to allow party guests in. If they do it the same as they have done in the past years Jack and Sally start receiving guests at 5pm. I have seen the line start before than. I would get in line for them at around 4:30. If not, I would wait until the end of the night. The Seven Dwarfs start I believe around 6:30pm. We were able to get to Jack and Sally early and than headed over to the Seven Dwarfs. We got both done early in the party and than enjoyed the rest of the party without waiting long for everything else. These were the only two meet and greets we wanted to do. Please note that last year Snow White was not part of the Seven Dwarf's meet and greet, this was a let down. I am sure that you can meet them as a whole for an extra fee somehow. There are other characters but these two seem to be the most popular. We walked by the Jack and Sally line later in the night and the line was very long. The only other lines that can get long are the Pooh character meets and the Jack Sparrow meet.

The only ride during the party that is an absolute must is the Haunted Mansion, Madame's Rinata and Carlotta and what I believe is their butler are on the front lawn and they are very entertaining. There is also a photo opportunity that will just mesh nicely with the theme of the party. Technically you don't have to do the ride, the ride is identical to its normal operation. We do the ride, as a matter of fact we will do it a couple of times if the line is not bad. All other rides are optional and depend on time for us.

Last year I actually encountered the two Madame's walking from the Hunted Mansion towards Frontierland, it was by the stockades in Liberty Square, my wife was posing for me in the stockades. The two Madame's spent a few minutes having fun with us.

Other than what I said in my post above and here, the only other thing I would suggest is to dress up. It can make the party more fun and just feels like you are participating more in the event. This is by no means a must, it just seems to increase the whole feeling of the night. Warning, do not dress to heavy and also check out Disney's rules for dressing up for the party.

 

[Andy_0410]

Thanks for all the replies!

We're going in late october so the crowds have the potential to be nightmarish but we're going to give it a chance anyway! Now to choose a costume...

From the uk also and done it every year for last 6 years though do admit getting a bit expensive. Saying that will be doing it this year too
Favourite parade and love American candy so worth it
Pick a theme to dress up will be a lot of fun as long as you do not mind people looking and staring at you

 

[DreamalittleDisney]

From the UK and going again 21st Oct for 10nights, so not only are the tickets all at the top end of pricing but probably all the busier nights too .. wanted to do this but the cost for 2adults and 1 child is ridiculous considering we've already paid for our tickets for whole trip which werent any cheaper considering MK shuts at 7pm for 5/10 nights because of this event

Understand it's a great opportunity for locals to do a family event for Halloween but it would be good to have some sort of discount for people who are on property with tickets for 2 weeks anyway.

 

[Think Tink]

I'm going in August. I went last year and didn't stay for the party and regretted it so bad that we booked the same week, (I love Orlando's hot weather, truly.) This time around we bought the MNSSHP tickets. I love the Halloween vibe the parks give off and felt I missed something by not seeing it for the parades and party after 7.