MVMCP worth it?

[WishIWasAtWDW]

is it worth it to pay the 70 some dollars to attend mickey's very merry christmas party? one of my mom's friends just went to disney last december and bought a ticket for the party. she said that there were still people in the park who did not pay for the party and they were allowed to go on the rides and everything. the only thing they got for their 70 dollars that was different from the people still in the park was hot chocolate and sugar cookies. is this correct? we are thinking about planning a trip this december and we really want to go to mvmcp but paying 70 dollars for hot chocolate and sugar cookies sounds crazy! i hope my mom's friend was just confused. :veryconfu

 

[LSonDubz]

Im pretty sure we saw different fireworks for the MVMCP ?

we went to the last day of the party in 2008 which was on a friday, we went to the magic kingdom the following day (saturday) and it was the same fireworks display, the same "night before christmas play" and the same parade :shrug:

 

[LSonDubz]

People without wristbands are allowed to stay on MAIN STREET for the first parade and fireworks ONLY. They may not enter any stores or any lands without a valid wristband as CMs stop everyone and ask to see them. As far as I remember, only Mickey's Twas the Night Before Christmas was being shown outside of the party.

there were multiple people without wristbands walking around freely and going on rides, i guess just a case of workers not doing their jobs :shrug:

 

[mousefan1972]

we went to the last day of the party in 2008 which was on a friday, we went to the magic kingdom the following day (saturday) and it was the same fireworks display, the same "night before christmas play" and the same parade :shrug:

Yes, they are the same. As soon as the parties end, all of that stuff is free with park admission.

there were multiple people without wristbands walking around freely and going on rides, i guess just a case of workers not doing their jobs :shrug:

I had the opposite experience... the CM's were very aggressive in checking wristbands and escorting those without them out of the park. :shrug:

 

[marcriss]

We love the Christmas Party, we actually do it twice. It's a great opportunity to get on a lot of rides without long waits. My daughter (2 at the time) loved the character dance parties! We went in early December, one party was kind of crowded the second was empty and that was awesome! It takes the pressure off trying to do the rides when the park is open to the public. We did the Grand Prix twice with a five minute wait, we never wait on the line for this ride. My husband and son were even able to walk onto the Astro Orbiter and rode it during Wishes. It's worth trying once to see if you like it. If you have an AP they have some days with discount tickets, cheaper than the regular discounted days.

 

[Mystic]

I had the opposite experience... the CM's were very aggressive in checking wristbands and escorting those without them out of the park. :shrug:

They were the same way when I was there. We couldn't set foot off Main Street or in a store or on a ride without a wristband being shown to a CM. Maybe the people they saw had the wristbands but they were hidden by clothing. :shrug:

I know the night we were at the party we had long sleeves and sweatshirts on because it was quite cold and the wristband was on tight enough so I couldn't slip my hand out of it but not loose enough to go over my clothes (if it was, I could have easily slipped it off)

 

[NortyUK]

I went to MVMCP for the first time this last December. In fact it was my first extra paid for event I've been to.

I really enjoyed it and was such a good atmosphere, I just wish I was more awake! I had flown in from the UK the night before and for some reason Jet Lag kicked in for some reason! LOL!

I say it was worth the extra money!

Tom

 

[slappy magoo]

Did MVMCP for the first time with my wife and baby this past December. Saw plenty of people without wristbands being told to go to Main Street when they tried to experience attractions. It's "worth it" if you intend to really take advantage of it - get there at 4, stay till midnight. You'll get on more rides, definitely. The flip is, Main Street is a madhouse until after the first parade & fireworks, and even then people stake claims for the next parade.

I know, in the past, people without MVMCP tickets had to leave the park at closing, no sticking around for parade or fireworks. I really hope they go back to it.

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

We went twice this trip. I would recommend against going on the DVC discounted night, far too crowded. The second parade is far less crowded and easier to get decent photos. The scrum to get free hot chocolate and cookies was almost as obscene as the house ends that were taking two or three each to sustain them in their waddle to the next outlet.

Some of the special events were well planned and performed and its definitely worth a punt.

 

[disneytopdog]

I will be at WDW Sunday Nov 29-Friday December 4. What night during that week would have the least crowd for MVMCP?

 

[swimmom]

I will be at WDW Sunday Nov 29-Friday December 4. What night during that week would have the least crowd for MVMCP?

The time we went on a Sunday was less crowded than when we went on a Friday. Obviously Friday's are more crowded with Florida residents.

 

[WishIWasAtWDW]

thanks for all the answers! i will let my mom's friend know how it was supposed to be during the party. i think we will def buy a ticket and go see the mvmcp when we go in early december. :xmas:\

 

[JoeH]

The Parties are great, we've been to both the MNSSHP several times and MVMCP once. DW loves the MNSSHP but I'm a Christmas nut and love the decorations. We went to MNSSHP the Tuesday before Halloween and on Halloween last year and both nights the CM's were only allowing those with the wristbands to go further into the park and asking the day guests to politely leave. This is the first I heard of Day guests being able to stay on Main Street until after the parade, this didn't seem that way for the MNSSHP but we had fun both nights, closed the park each night. We're going this year Nov 15-22 and planning on going to the party on Thursday the 19th. We just buy one less day with our package and take it easy in the morning and early afternoon.

You'll enjoy it.

Joe

 

[KaliSplash]

Definitely go for it. We've done it twice. The first time several years ago included a free Christmas photo if you were willing to stand in line long enough. We weren't. But the extra shows, the goodies and the parade and especially the atmosphere is fantastic! And it's not $70, as has been pointed out. (at least it wasn't last year, this year, who knows?)

 

[erstwo]

The time we went on a Sunday was less crowded than when we went on a Friday. Obviously Friday's are more crowded with Florida residents.

disneytopdog - I agree with this! We went the Sunday - Thursday before Christmas week this past December.

Sunday was our best day at the MK! Even before the party, the park was pretty much empty. There was a wait of 20 mins (gasp!) for all the mountains. Everything else was pretty much walk on. And by walk on I mean, walk the entire walkway and then just step onto the ride. I kept thinking things would get busier as the 4 pm MVMCP time drew near, but if anything, it got less crowded!

I would go Sunday if you possibly can.

 

[AGentlRose]

I had the opposite experience... the CM's were very aggressive in checking wristbands and escorting those without them out of the park. :shrug:

I had the same experience. For MVMCP, the CMs were checking wristbands before allowing a guest on the rides. Same with when we stayed for EMH one night at the Magic Kingdom, the CMs had flashlights to check the dates on your room keys.

 

[disneygirl1]

I would definitely say go, at least once so you can say you experienced it. We went for the first time this past December and I am glad we did! While the crowds were a bit heavy and the parade was good, I have to say that I enjoyed MNSSHP much better. But again go, it was a great time!

 

[disneytopdog]

disneytopdog - I agree with this! We went the Sunday - Thursday before Christmas week this past December.

Sunday was our best day at the MK! Even before the party, the park was pretty much empty. There was a wait of 20 mins (gasp!) for all the mountains. Everything else was pretty much walk on. And by walk on I mean, walk the entire walkway and then just step onto the ride. I kept thinking things would get busier as the 4 pm MVMCP time drew near, but if anything, it got less crowded!

I would go Sunday if you possibly can.

The Sunday that I will be there is the Sunday of Thanksgiving Weekend. Now I could be wrong but you would think with that being a Holiday weekend that Sundays party would be PACKED....

Any thoughts on this form the experts??????

 

[kimmychad]

we enjoy the party, it's one of our favorites. and there are discounts for annual passholders for certain dates.

but don't wait till 11:30 to get hot chocolate and cookies, they shut some of the stations down, which I didn't agree with. the events were supposed to last from 7 till 12.

and don't think you can just walk up to some of the shows when they start, get to anything requiring seats at least 30 minutes prior, many people were turned away last year for the show at the galaxy palace theater, and when someone asked the castmember how soon they should get there the cm said at least 45 minutes, but that was probably a little too soon.

 

[DTM93]

I had the same experience. For MVMCP, the CMs were checking wristbands before allowing a guest on the rides. Same with when we stayed for EMH one night at the Magic Kingdom, the CMs had flashlights to check the dates on your room keys.

We had the complete opposite, not one person checked out wristbands and unfortunately my parents are refusing to go to another one because they will think it will be last time where we were never checked at all and we saw people with the wristband and there were a few people we saw enterting the park on 3 nights with the same wristband and some people not even wristband, I thought it was bad.

 

[SMRT-1Michael]

we went in 2008 and had a blast. We go to MVMCP each year and always enjoy the holiday destivities. Since we are locals to Florida, its easy to just drive up for 3 or 4 nights and enjoy the holiday season. Also for my birthday. When you get there, they give you wristband. After 7 o clock, you must have a wristband to enter the rides. Any one who doesnt have a bvand will be told to leave, so dont worry about it being crowded.