Another perspective: we went last night and didn’t feel like it was worth it. It was PACKED. Like, this did not feel like it was an exclusive event. The treat trail lines were crazy, like half an hour to 45 minutes for a handful of candy and some characters standing there with preset lines. The big rides had long waits during early mix-in. We had Lamplight reservations at 4:45, so I was worried the lines at the main gate was going to be nuts, but they must’ve upped their game, because we went straight through and got our wristbands, maps and treat bags. We enjoyed our drinks and appetizers at LL, then went to hit some treat trails and couldn’t believe the long lines.
We did the Parade Dessert Party at Sonoma Terrace, and that was well worth it. I wish we could do that without the whole party thing! Great service. We are all gluten free, and they arranged for an awesome plate for each of us that seriously looked better than the regular offering. We had melon, pineapple, strawberries and grapes, a lemon cream tart, a chocolate cream tart, and a chocolate mousse cake,. We couldn’t finish them. The drinks were good, too. Cold bottled water, soft drinks, and 2 cocktails or beer/wine per person. My husband and daughter ditched after the early parade. I hit up Incredicoaster and GotG with no wait. I did the Villains Grove, and they said the line was 60 minutes at 9 pm, I’d say it was more like 45. So long! I mean, it was cool, but I was under the impression there were characters in there, and there weren’t. It was basically a fog-machine walkthrough with pretty lights and ominous music. Like I said, mildly cool, but not worth the hype IMHO.
I did manage to get a few character pictures just before I left at 11, when the lines were lower. It’s nice that PhotoPass is included with the party.
Again: it was fine to do once, but meh. We saw a lot of cool costumes, though, very elaborate. My 19 y.o. Daughter popped on her foam “box of Crayola Crayons” costume which is easy and fun, and got lots of nice compliments since she was the only one.
It's crazy - I wonder how many more tickets came out for each night? We'll never know. You should have seen my face when I realized that I couldn't pay with my carefully, thoughtfully, lovingly churned gift cards. It was credit card only and that was NOT a part of my plan for our California trip. Oh well, that GC balance can pay for a nice meal when we're there!
