2017 DISNEYLAND RESORT HALLOWEEN TIME / MICKEY'S HALLOWEEN PARTY THREAD!

[MerMazing]

Thanks Sherry E for your "insider knowledge". This got me super excited that we should have some info in the next week or so.

 

[monorailrabbit]

It doesn't look like we're getting the official Halloween Time announcement today (which might be OK, if a lot of people are still away on their holiday vacations and would miss seeing the Parks Blog info anyway), so that leaves tomorrow, 7/6 (which is less likely), and next Monday through Thursday (7/10 - 7/13) for the announcement. I still think that Wednesday, July 12th is probably the most likely date for the news (based on the pattern of the last 3 years), but it would be great if they'd give it to us on Monday or something out of the ordinary!

I hope you're right! We leave on vacation to Canada on 7/14, and I would love to have our tickets before we leave! Can't wait to nail down our last piece!

 

[mummabear]

It doesn't look like we're getting the official Halloween Time announcement today (which might be OK, if a lot of people are still away on their holiday vacations and would miss seeing the Parks Blog info anyway), so that leaves tomorrow, 7/6 (which is less likely), and next Monday through Thursday (7/10 - 7/13) for the announcement. I still think that Wednesday, July 12th is probably the most likely date for the news (based on the pattern of the last 3 years), but it would be great if they'd give it to us on Monday or something out of the ordinary!

Dear Disney,

Patience isn't a virtue I possess, please let me know if there is a party on Sept 22nd.

Kind Regards,
Mummabear

 

[Sherry E]

Dear Disney,

Patience isn't a virtue I possess, please let me know if there is a party on Sept 22nd.

Kind Regards,
Mummabear

I hope you're right! We leave on vacation to Canada on 7/14, and I would love to have our tickets before we leave! Can't wait to nail down our last piece!

I fear that the Halloween party tickets will not be on sale before you leave on the 14th, sadly (not even the tickets for AP holders, DVC members or Disney Visa/Rewards members), but I definitely think we will have the official Halloween Time announcement and news (complete with Mickey's Halloween Party dates and ticket sale dates) shortly before you leave. So you might not have MHP tickets in hand, but you will be armed with knowledge!

I wish they would put the MHP tickets on sale right when the announcement comes in, but I think we will probably have to wait another week (after the official announcement comes in) for the first wave of tickets to go on sale (for Annual Pass/Disney Vacation Club/Disney Visa), and then yet another week after that for the general public tickets to go on sale.

When do you get back from your Canada trip?

The good news is that the party tickets never seem to sell out right away. It has taken a while for anything to sell out in the last few years, but ultimately, almost every night sells out, or there might be one lone night left available by October. Usually it starts with one night selling out, then another random night, then there is a pause in the action at some point, somewhere. Then there might be a wave of several nights selling out in quick succession, possibly sometime in September (though that could change). But it takes a while for all of this to get going. In other words, if the advance tickets were to go on sale on, say, July 20 or 21, it's unlikely that they would be sold out by July 25th. It should take a while.

I always think there is a bit of sticker shock over the prices when the announcements are first made, so that probably prevents a good number of people from pouncing on the tickets as soon as they go on sale. People probably have to process the total cost and assess which nights are more cost effective, if they can go on those nights, and if they want to squeeze in a second or third party too.

 

[superme80]

During the party, is the entire park normally open for party goers? Or is it just certain parts?

 

[dtrain]

During the party, is the entire park normally open for party goers? Or is it just certain parts?

The whole park is open, and you can walk on most rides.

 

[monorailrabbit]

I fear that the Halloween party tickets will not be on sale before you leave on the 14th, sadly (not even the tickets for AP holders, DVC members or Disney Visa/Rewards members), but I definitely think we will have the official Halloween Time announcement and news (complete with Mickey's Halloween Party dates and ticket sale dates) shortly before you leave. So you might not have MHP tickets in hand, but you will be armed with knowledge!

I wish they would put the MHP tickets on sale right when the announcement comes in, but I think we will probably have to wait another week (after the official announcement comes in) for the first wave of tickets to go on sale (for Annual Pass/Disney Vacation Club/Disney Visa), and then yet another week after that for the general public tickets to go on sale.

When you you get back from your Canada trip?

The good news is that the party tickets never seem to sell out right away. It has taken a while for anything to sell out in the last few years, but ultimately, almost every night sells out, or there might be one lone night left available by October. Usually it starts with one night selling out, then another random night, then there is a pause in the action at some point, somewhere. Then there might be a wave of several nights selling out in quick succession, possibly sometime in September (though that could change). But it takes a while for all of this to get going. In other words, if the advance tickets were to go on sale on, say, July 20 or 21, it's unlikely that they would be sold out by July 25th. It should take a while.

I always think there is a bit of sticker shock over the prices when the announcements are first made, so that probably prevents a good number of people from pouncing on the tickets as soon as they go on sale. People probably have to process the total cost and assess which nights are more cost effective, if they can go on those nights, and if they want to squeeze in a second or third party too.

We are only gone for a quick weekend, back on 7/17. (First time to Canada! Woohoo!) As long as we have dates I would be happy. We are tying to figure out which day to do what and since it's a short stay we are really hoping to time things right with the Magic Mornings and parties. We didn't splurge for hoppers (I know! ) but DH just insists we don't need them, so it's harder for me to plan until I know which day the party will be. It sounds like usually they are right around the same prices as WDW, so that's what I'm planning for $$

 

[figment_jii]

During the party, is the entire park normally open for party goers? Or is it just certain parts?

Most of the park is open during the party (Toontown is open for the first part of the party, but then closes after the pre-party ends), but not all attractions are open. The big attractions will be open, but some of the smaller ones will be close (e.g., Tiki Birds, Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, Sleeping Beauty Castle Walkthrough, etc.). Also, not all of the restaurants/CS locations are open during the party (so make sure to eat first!).

The whole park is open, and you can walk on most rides.

By the end of the party, a lot of attractions are walk-on or nearly walk-on (not all, HMH and Space still had lines when I went), but at the start of the party, the attractions can still have fairly lengthy lines. Star Tours had a posted wait time of over an hour a bit after the party started and it took about that long to get through the line (not a good use of party time!).

 

[superme80]

Most of the park is open during the party (Toontown is open for the first part of the party, but then closes after the pre-party ends), but not all attractions are open. The big attractions will be open, but some of the smaller ones will be close (e.g., Tiki Birds, Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, Sleeping Beauty Castle Walkthrough, etc.). Also, not all of the restaurants/CS locations are open during the party (so make sure to eat first!).


By the end of the party, a lot of attractions are walk-on or nearly walk-on (not all, HMH and Space still had lines when I went), but at the start of the party, the attractions can still have fairly lengthy lines. Star Tours had a posted wait time of over an hour a bit after the party started and it took about that long to get through the line (not a good use of party time!).

Thank you!!!!!

 

[Sherry E]

We are only gone for a quick weekend, back on 7/17. (First time to Canada! Woohoo!) As long as we have dates I would be happy. We are tying to figure out which day to do what and since it's a short stay we are really hoping to time things right with the Magic Mornings and parties. We didn't splurge for hoppers (I know! ) but DH just insists we don't need them, so it's harder for me to plan until I know which day the party will be. It sounds like usually they are right around the same prices as WDW, so that's what I'm planning for $$

About the not splurging for Park Hoppers...

In general, I'm a fan of Hoppers and I think they can be very useful in certain situations, but I don't think they are necessary for every group to have in every situation. I think that, for some groups, it really does work better to stay in one park per day and not bounce around between them. For other people, the flexibility of being able to pop over to the other park on a whim is crucial.

To be honest, there have been times when I was certain I would be starting at one park and hopping to the other park during the day... only to end up staying in one park the whole day and night. And there have been times when I planned to stay in one park the entire day... only to end up going to the other park for some unexpected reason. So, clearly, I can't even figure out my own best strategies for visiting the parks!

I think that, essentially, everyone has to do what they think will work best for their group and for their individual situations/preferences, but many people really get along fine without hopping.

 

[mummabear]

We are only gone for a quick weekend, back on 7/17. (First time to Canada! Woohoo!) As long as we have dates I would be happy. We are tying to figure out which day to do what and since it's a short stay we are really hoping to time things right with the Magic Mornings and parties. We didn't splurge for hoppers (I know! ) but DH just insists we don't need them, so it's harder for me to plan until I know which day the party will be. It sounds like usually they are right around the same prices as WDW, so that's what I'm planning for $$

Where in Canada are you heading to?

As far as the hoppersngo we give these some real consideration each trip now that we are a family of 5 tickets.
We have decided it's no longer worth it for us at WDW but we have got them this trip at DLR. if we had to had to cut costs one trip through it would likely be the first to go, in fact one of the main reasons we got hoppers for this trip was so that we could do BBB then AG(sneaky Disney setting it up like that!)

 

[SothrnChic]

So somewhere in my latest web searching, I came across this blog on the latest Disneyland rumors. One of them included changing Guardians of the Galaxy and possibly Radiator Springs Racers into Halloween rides for the fall... how likely are these rumors really going to take place?? I am going to have one disappointed 5 year old son if they change the GOG ride to something scary when we are there at the beginning of October. I am not as concerned about the RSR since it still sounds kid friendly.

http://micechat.com/165197-miceage-disneyland-rumor-update-max-pass/

 

[Sherry E]

So somewhere in my latest web searching, I came across this blog on the latest Disneyland rumors. One of them included changing Guardians of the Galaxy and possibly Radiator Springs Racers into Halloween rides for the fall... how likely are these rumors really going to take place?? I am going to have one disappointed 5 year old son if they change the GOG ride to something scary when we are there at the beginning of October. I am not as concerned about the RSR since it still sounds kid friendly.

http://micechat.com/165197-miceage-disneyland-rumor-update-max-pass/

We've been talking about it (not just the overlays, but about Halloween moving to DCA in 2 phases, this year and next year) in this thread, off and on, since that MiceChat article came out.

The Halloween Time/Mickey's Halloween Party announcement (with details of whatever is happening for the season) from the Disney Parks Blog will come out in this upcoming week -- most likely Wednesday, 7/12, but possibly Monday, Tuesday or Thursday. We will have our answers then, about overlays and whatever else is happening. We just have to hang in there for a few more days!

The rumors -- and that's all they are for now, until we get an official announcement -- seem pretty credible to me. One main reason they seem legitimate is that they are very specific as to which 2 rides are getting overlays, as opposed to just a general comment about two unnamed rides getting overlays at some point in the future. These rumors specify which ones, and when it will happen.

Also, although there have been rumors and speculation about the ultimate location of Mickey's Halloween Party for quite a while (assuming it is impacted by the coming Star Wars mania), to my knowledge, unless I overlooked something, the Radiator Springs Racers and Guardians overlay rumors are pretty recent. And... these rumors of the ride overlays were announced pretty close to when the official Halloween Time announcements will come in from the Parks Blog.

It seems that when MiceChat releases very specific rumors quite close to when something is going to (officially) be announced, the rumors mostly turn out to be accurate -- with only a few slight variations. If MiceChat had posted those rumors a full year in advance, or even 6 months in advance, I would say the likelihood of them being accurate would be lower, because there would be too much time for ideas to get shelved and plans to change.

I don't think that the overlay on the Guardians ride is going to be that scary -- and possibly not even that extensive.

 

[Ready-4-Disney]

The villains are a favorite for the HALLOWEEN Time in the parks.
How do you think Disney will set this up in DCA, if the rumors are true that the party is moving this year?

 

[Sherry E]

The villains are a favorite for the HALLOWEEN Time in the parks.
How do you think Disney will set this up in DCA, if the rumors are true that the party is moving this year?

The rumor is that the Halloween Party is moving to DCA next year (2018), but that both the Guardians ride and Radiator Springs Racers will get Halloween overlays this year. In other words, according to the rumors, the transition of Halloween Time (as a season, not just the party) is supposed to take place in two phases, this year and next year. Next year would be the year with the party moving, including the Frightfully Fun Parade.

As for the Villains... In the old days (up through 2008), the Villains were set up in a couple of spots in the Hollywood area of DCA for Halloween Time, although I think there were some standard, everyday Villains still in Disneyland too (Cruella, for example). That was back when the party was still held in DCA too, and there were Halloween decorations in DCA. During the actual party there were more Villains out and about.

In 2009, the Villain photo spot was gone from DCA, and the main Villain photo spot for Halloween Time was near It's a Small World in Disneyland, which is where it stayed until the Halloween Carnival opened and the "Conjure a Villain" tent appeared.

In 2010 all of the Halloween decorations were gone from DCA and the Halloween Party moved over to Disneyland.

So... this time around, IF the rumors of the 2-phase transition of Halloween Time turn out to be accurate, I would not be shocked if the Villains are still in Disneyland this year, in and out of the actual party. Depending on how much Halloween Disney ultimately ends up leaving in Disneyland by 2018, they might keep the Villains there for daytime photos. But then during the actual party in DCA (if it moved there), they could have dedicated photo spots where different Villains would be set up.

I'm really not sure how it will work this time around, because it is unclear what will happen to Halloween things in Disneyland if the goal is to move the season over to DCA by 2018. If the idea is to just strip Disneyland of most of its Halloween fun, then some Villains would have to end up in DCA. But if Disneyland will get to keep a bit of Halloween fun, then the Villains could stay there and then only appear in DCA for the actual party. It will be interesting to see how it is handled!

 

[rentayenta]

I need party dates!

 

[monorailrabbit]

Where in Canada are you heading to?

As far as the hoppersngo we give these some real consideration each trip now that we are a family of 5 tickets.
We have decided it's no longer worth it for us at WDW but we have got them this trip at DLR. if we had to had to cut costs one trip through it would likely be the first to go, in fact one of the main reasons we got hoppers for this trip was so that we could do BBB then AG(sneaky Disney setting it up like that!)

We are heading up to Winnipeg - we're taking our dog with us and are planning on hitting up a bunch of the off-leash dog parks and the zoo. So excited! He's an Alaskan husky so both of us hate summer with a passion! We can't wait to get out of here! It's the upper 90's all week with heat indexes in the 120's!

 

[figment_jii]

Take this for what it's worth (purely speculation), but the operating calendar for August 21st went up today on Disneyland.com and Haunted Mansion still has operating hours listed. Likewise, they announced that Space will be down from 8/21 to 9/14 for refurbishment. This seems to imply that HalloweenTime might not start until September 15th this year...

 

[Sherry E]

Take this for what it's worth (purely speculation), but the operating calendar for August 21st went up today on Disneyland.com and Haunted Mansion still has operating hours listed. Likewise, they announced that Space will be down from 8/21 to 9/14 for refurbishment. This seems to imply that HalloweenTime might not start until September 15th this year...

It does seem like it's pointing in that direction, for sure. Good info!

I had been thinking that Halloween Time was starting a bit too early if it were to get going on 9/8, even though it started on the 9th last year (which also seemed a bit too early), but it also seemed like 9/15 might be too late to start it because it's such a popular season. My guess was that they might go with another weekday start date like a Monday or Tuesday (which is what was happening with the holiday season for a while), just to compromise between starting too early and too late. However, now it does look like at least something will be opening/starting on 9/15, so it might as well be the whole season.

I am interested to see how it's handled IF the rumors of the 2 ride overlays in DCA are accurate. They might not be very extensive overlays requiring much down time, unlike what Haunted Mansion usually needs, but I wonder if there will be a point when all 4 rides (HM and Space Mountain in DL and Guardians and RSR in DCA) are down at the same time, or if 2 will get their overlays first, with the other 2 going down for overlays next.... Or will Disney skip doing anything for Haunted Mansion this year (which seems very unlikely since they say on the DLR website that it will be back this year)? Maybe they will open up HMH slightly later in the season than usual?

So many possibilities. At least we will know what's happening very soon!

 

[gottalovepluto]

Dear Disney, it is Monday morning & I'm doing everything I can to procrastinate because I really don't want to start in on this huge pile of work. Help a girl out and release those party dates so I can plan a Halloween Disneyland trip instead?