15. Not So Scary: Have Fun AF at Mickey's Halloween Party 2023

Happy Halloween! Yes, Halloween starts in August now. Well, at least it does at Disney! In this episode, I'm covering everything that you need to know to have a Fun AF time at the annual Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party. Tune in for my top tips for getting the most out of your party night, and which new party foods I am most excited for!

Disney Parks Blog Foodies Guide to Halloween
Disney Springs for the Fall Menus
MNSSHP Costume Guidelines
Makin' Memories Travel
MNSSHP Tips & Tricks are on the blog

Download my free guide: 10 Tips for A Luxe Disney Vacation or connect with me on Instagram @michelevisitsmickey.

This episode was produced by The Podcast Teacher.

Transcript

Happy Halloween, folks. I know it's still probably 100 degrees out where you live. It definitely is where I live. But, at Disney World, starting tomorrow, it's fall and the Halloween season comes starting tomorrow with Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party. Okay, that's a mouthful. So hereafter on this pod, we'll refer to it as either the Halloween party or Mickey's not-so-scary. Anyway, it is my most favorite event of the year. That could be because, well, Halloween is my birthday, so I'm sort of partial to that time of year. 

It is an absolute favorite event of mine, the Halloween Party, and it's an annual pilgrimage. I go every year except for the couple of years that instead I did Halloween on the high seas. But picture those pumpkins lining Main Street USA Disney characters dressed in the spooktacular Halloween best exclusive entertainment that you won't find any other time of the year, like the Sanderson sisters. And get your glow-in-the-dark Loungefly and Halloween mouse ears ready because we're about to debrief the hilarious haunting celebration that combines the spellbinding magic of Disney and the mischievous charm of Halloween. 

So let's get the boring shit out of the way right away so then we can talk about how I, an expert, do Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party and give you the lowdown on insider tips. So select nights between August 11 and November 1. Tickets are on sale and they're on sale now. And they do sell out for some strange reason. August 15 is already sold out and Halloween night is already gone as well. It's always the first to sell out, so you want to go ahead and get your ticket.

If you do want to go and visit during Halloween, of course I can help you more on that later. But just a word of caution. If you're a DIYer and not a listen to me-er, then be sure not to buy your tickets off of the secondhand market. There was woman boohooing on Facebook about how she was trying to sell her Oogie Boogie Bash ticket. That's the quote unquote Halloween party over in Disneyland and she was trying to sell it above ticket price and she got busted because Oogie Boogie Bash tickets sold out so quickly that the ticket services team actually has time now to go to secondhand ticket seller sites and they're totally busting people. So don't show up at the gate trying to get in with a ticket that you bought off of a second hand retailer, because tickets are non transferable and non refundable, and trust me, you could get busted and then you'd be out the money and you wouldn't be able to go into the park. 

Okay, back to the boring shit. The party starts at seven, but you can go in with your ticket as early as 04:00 in the afternoon. At 06:00 p.m. anybody without the special wristband that you will receive when you go in with your party ticket is more or less kicked out. More about that later. Of course, my favorite part of any special event, but especially a Halloween one, is the food. 

So one of the things that is included with your ticket is the ability to trick or treat at several different spots throughout the park. First timer's mistake. I didn't bring my own bag. And the one that Disney gives is a little small, it gets heavy, and you have to carry it around. Now, for 2023, Disney is changing that and they are becoming eco-friendly. And it's a bigger bag, but it still isn't something that has a strap. It's reusable. So it's a cute little souvenir, but it's not a sling bag or a fanny pack. So you're still going to have to carry it around. So more on how to attack that later. But if you're an early-to-bed person and you're not going to stay until the end and you insist on trick or treating, then I suggest you grab your Lounge Fly backpack and use that. At least that way you can carry the candy on your back.

Of course, I may or may not be imagining myself doing this with my three different Halloween lounge flies that I already have with what I am certain to be is a new one being picked out in the not-too-distant future for me. So anyway, yeah, okay. In years past, you also used to get free Mickey ice cream bars, popcorn, and certain Coke beverages. But this year, I cannot seem to find that information anywhere. So in addition to raising the prices this year, Disney may have cut that. But if you see it, please send me a DM on Instagram @michelevisitsmickey. That is, of course, Michele with one L: M-I-C-H-E-L-E visits Mickey. So I can accurately prepare for my free popcorn if it's coming, because that was one of my favorite things.

Okay, now here is a list of all the goodies that you can get during the party. And I'm going to go through these very quickly because a link to the blog post where you can find them is in the show notes. So we have at Auntie Gravity’s Galactic Goodies. The apple fritter milkshake. It's nonalcoholic, and it is going to be available at the Magic Kingdom during the day, as well as at the Halloween party starting on August 11. At the Cheshire Cafe, we have the Mummy Treat, which is a flaky pastry with chocolate hazelnut filling. It's topped with white icing. It is also available starting August 11.

It's brand new for this year, but it's only available during the Halloween party. The Queen of Hearts slushy and the witch's cold brew which is a French vanilla Joffrey's coffee. Cold brew. Yes, please. Topped with pumpkin spice foam and Halloween sprinkles. It's nonalcoholic, and it's also available during regular park hours. Now at Cosmic Ray's Starlight Cafe these are only going to be available during the party and they are all three new for 2023. We've got the Twice Spice Chicken Sandwich that's called the Terrifying Twice Spice Chicken Sandwich, the Snarling Sub, which is a meatball sub, zombie Fingers, which are almond Cookie fingers, and the River Sticks Elixir, which is a drink with kiwi lemonade and luster dust.

The Friar's Nook, also new and only available for the party or during party hours. Not available during regular Magic Kingdom hours. The pain and panic brat. The Pain and Panic loaded tots and the Buffalo Chicken Hand Pie over at Pecos Bills, which is usually my favorite place to get a quick service bite. Also available only during the party and all new is the Cajun Burger, the Bucket of Bones and the Candy Corn Milkshake. And I must be honest, none of those three things sound like they appeal to me. So I have a new plan in place to not have to have a quick service meal. I will get to that shortly.

Now, the outdoor vending cart near the Haunted Mansion, yeah, is the Skull Brownie, and this is Mexican spice chocolate brownie with Dolce delete filling and sugar ice. And let me tell you, the picture that I will post on Instagram makes it look pretty damn good. The Sunshine Tree terrace. There's the Tropical Graveyard, which is mango mousse, sour tropical gelatin topped with cookie crumbles, gummy worm sprinkle, and a Tombstone chocolate piece. I would say that that sounds like an eleven year old person's favorite thing, and that's what it looks like. It's like one thing topped on top of another. But I'll watch for reviews of people going to the party before I go and see if it sounds good. Of course, you can never go wrong at the Plaza Ice Cream Parlor.

And this year, there's the apple fritter sundae. Again, it's only available during the Halloween party hour, so that's something to take advantage of. Ice cream cookie sandwich is also a great idea. 

So here are some things that sound more exciting to me than Pecos Bills. The Golden Oak Outpost has a Tombstone Tart, which is a filet pastry filled with strawberry jalapeno jam and topped with sprinkles and sugar spiders, and then the loaded sweet potato fries. So if I need something savory, although the sweet potato fries the base sound savory, the rest is the cinnamon sugar, marshmallow cream, butterscotch chips and toffee pieces. Maybe not so savory at Liberty Square Market. This is my favorite thing always. It's quote unquote, new for this year, but that just means it's new at the party. They have had similar things in the past. It's the Black Velvet whoopee pie Sleepy Hollow. Again, all new, all only available during the party is the Chicken Wings, the Headless Horseman Cupcake, which is just a yellow cupcake top, cream cheese buttercream, spicy cheese flavored snacks, and a chocolate piece that sounds delicious to me. A cinnamon fennel cake. 

And then for those of us who love our Dole Whip, there is a special Dole Whip available during the party. It's a Hades cone. It's a Dole Whip mango and habanero topped with blue, raspberry shell, and chili lime seasoning. And I have to try that even though I don't like spice. And so the chili lime seasoning and the Habanero soft serve doesn't sound great. I mean, I have to do it for the gram, right? 

And then over at everyone's favorite churro cart near Cinderella Castle, there is an apple churro, a Jack Pop, which is a chocolate fudge brownie, and the Sally Pop, which is a yellow pop with raspberry filling. And then, of course, you can never go wrong at the Main Street Bakery where there are Mickey shaped cinnamon rolls, mickey shaped pumpkin cheesecake, and just a moment, a squirrel moment here from the party Foods to discuss the bougie treats at Disney Springs. Because I will have to hit these up before the party or on another date that I'm there on my trip, because I absolutely must have the Donald Duck candy corn sipper. And usually those sell out at all the Park Resort locations, but at Disney Springs, you can usually find them. Also, Gideon's Bake house is going to have some special fall pumpkin goodies.

And at Jock Lindsay's Hanger Bar again, I don't drink a lot, but when I do, it's rum, so I definitely have to try this. It's Captain Morgan spiced rum, pear, nectar, lemon juice, simple syrup, and a cinnamon stick garnish. It's called the Autumn Smash, and it's actually available all of October, so I'm stoked. 

Okay, back to Mickey's not-so-scary Halloween party. Let's talk more boring shit. The rules of the costumes. You can dress as your favorite character, but you can't pose for pictures or sign autographs. They must be family friendly. No Nazis, Prince Harry like costumes. They cannot contain any props or accessories that could be mistaken for an actual weapon. Lightsabers are okay. Costumes cannot contain sharp or pointed objects or any materials that may accidentally strike another guest or that another guest would trip over. So your costumes cannot drag to the ground. So full length princess dresses. Hike them up, folks. You don't want to be able to surround the entire body. That's also for security and screening. If it does, you will be subject to additional screening. It will take you longer to get in. Capes may be worn as long as the length doesn't go below the waist. Themed T shirts, blouses, sweatshirts, and hats are fine. Acceptable accessories include transparent wings, plastic lightsabers, as I said, toy swords, tutus. Costume headgear may be worn as long as it does not fully cover the face. 

Quick caveat. These are the adult, as in over. I think it's 14 or 15, but you get my drift. Anybody who's listening to this podcast, costume guidelines. If you need the pint sized entourage ones, I'll put a link where you can find all the costume guidelines in the show notes, but not going over those. So of course, you do know what I'm going to say. If you haven't already heard episode three of this podcast, please go listen to it. You can check out my friends Ashley and Lauren. Once upon a wardrobe. They have some great Halloween templates that you can get for just a few dollars with costume ideas. 

But they have dressed me for all of my Disney Halloween trips the past three years, and you can see how good I look on my Instagram again @michelevisitsmickey. As I said, they've got some great Halloween party costume ideas. And even if you're not going to the Halloween party, once upon a Wardrobe has some great, quote unquote, fall Halloween ideas for things you might want to wear to the parks to get some fabulous pictures, even if you're not going to the Halloween party. However, for me, this is a big year. I have one of those birthdays that ends in a five or a zero, one that I'm actually kind of scared about. I just don't like the sound of it. So I'm going all in on my personal styling this year. Well, because I'm bougie, but also because I can justify it. 

I want to do something from a movie that was released the year of my birth, and I really just can't think of one. So I know that Lauren and Ashley at Once Upon a Wardrobe are going to get their creative juices flowing. For my outfit, I'm recording this at the end of July, even though you're not going to hear it until August 10. And I literally have already put in my order for their custom services so that I have enough time to order things that are on Etsy and take a month of production and shipping time. So that's also just another good hint for you. If you are ordering anything for Halloween on Etsy, it's already a party on there. Go for it. Do it now. There are ears that sell out or that people don't have time to make because of shipping time. 

So I alluded to the things that make my party experience better. So I'm going to tell you how I do the Halloween party. And trust me, this is very, very different from any other piece of advice that you will get. First of all, and this is actually pretty standard, don't waste your time with sit-down dining. The two castle restaurants, Beasts and Cindy's, are both available for reservations, but they are time-consuming. So why waste an hour of your precious party time there? Don't do it. Go back another time. 

And along those same lines, the special dessert parties waste of money. You don't get the best view of the castle for the projections. And at the Halloween party, they're super special and super fun, and they're only done at that time of year. So just go beyond Main Street with everyone else. Exclusive to the party activities include the Hocus Pocus villain spectacular, which is the Sanderson Sisters Disney's not-so-spooky spectacular, which is the fireworks that I just mentioned. It features Disney characters and it's hosted by Jack Skellington from The Nightmare Before Christmas. There's the Boo to You Halloween Parade, which is my favorite parade of all….I was about to say of all time, but that would be the Electric Light Parade. So my second most favorite parade of all time. I mean, he got the hitchhiking. Ghosts.

And then of course, you can trick or treat. Also, you get to see the characters dressed in their Halloween costumes, which I think is super fun. And you should check with your favorite travel agent before you go because we will be able to tell you where the characters are this year. Usually they're in the same place, but you never know, things could change. For example, this year we have Minnie, Daisy and Clarabelle dressed up as the Sanderson Sisters, which is new this year. For the Halloween party, you've been able to do it before on Halloween on the high seas on the Disney Cruise Line. So you get to see Minnie Mouse dressed as Winifred, Daisy Duck as Sarah, and Clarabelle Cow as Mary. So if you hit up your favorite travel advisor, we can tell you where all the characters that you miss want to see will be, because the lines for those do get long. And I do want to encourage you to prioritize those again, because you're not going to see them at any other time of year. 

All the attractions at the Magic Kingdom, not all of them are open, however, some have special, what we call Halloween overlays for the holiday. And I will tell you about those in just a minute. But one to note that is going to be open this year is Tron Light Cycle Run, and it is going to be using the virtual queue. And thank God Genie Plus is not active during the party. So the virtual queue will be the only way that you can get onto Tron Light Cycle Run, and the way to do that is at 06:00 P.m., only guests attending the party. You don't have to be at the party yet, but your ticket has to be linked to your My Disney Experience. And then you can join the virtual queue at exactly 06:00 P.m., along with every other guest who wants to ride it at night. So you may or may not be lucky with that. 

And then other party specific activities are magic shots. I never let any of my guests go to Disney World at all without the photo pass. It's just so much fun. But at the party, at the Halloween party, it's super special. You can get photos with cauldrons bubbling over the scary apple from Snow White. There's just so many great PhotoPass opportunities. And for me, that's a highlight of my party. 

Okay, here is my bougie strategy. And I promise you this. Nobody else is going to tell you not to go right at four. Every other blog that I've read, every other tip sheet, everyone wants you to got the most out of the money that you paid for your ticket. And I agree, the tickets did go up substantially in price this year. I have an annual pass. I do not have to go right at 04:00. And here is why. Because everybody else is going right at 04:00 because they maybe don't have a ticket to the park otherwise, or a park reservation for the day of their party. And so they want to get the most out of the attractions as possible. 

But the entrance gate to the park and security to get screened to get into the park gets backed up starting at around 315 in the afternoon. And I personally do not want any part of that. The sun is still up, it is still too hot, and it gets way too freaking crowded for me. So I say you want to go earlier than seven, but not the 04:00 early. I personally like 530 or six. That's my sweet spot. That way I avoid everybody who's coming right at seven and everybody who's going right at four. So I do my best to miss both times of peak crowding at the main gate. And I will tell you that going right at seven, people are exiting on one half at six and then the other half, or they're getting screened to go in because you can go in as early as four. And it is a disorganized shit show, for lack of a better word. Like they have not figured out how to queue people into the park for special events. I don't know, it's their first rodeo or something. 

So I go. Like I said, 530 or six is my sweet spot. My strategy, I know I have an annual pass and I can do the parks differently than most people, but my strategy is to see and do anything that's not available at any time of the year. So things like those special foods I went over, special shopping opportunities, merchandise, hello, me, and those photos I mentioned. So the only attractions I do are the ones with the special holiday overlays, which are Haunted Mansion Pirates, space Mountain Mad Tea Party and the Monsters Inc. Laugh floor.

So this year, really the only one I absolutely care about is pirates. I'll explain more about that later. And then I really hope I get the virtual queue for Tron. That would be super special. I 100% skip Space Mountain. I did it two years ago. And the holiday overlay is basically lights completely out, like no light whatsoever, and then a spooky track. And I was terrified, I was really scared, and I was like, I'm never ever doing this one again.

I don't do the Mad Tea Party on my best day because of dizziness, and it will have special lighting and strobe effects for the Halloween party. So if you too get any kind of motion sickness, I definitely advise staying off of that one. Monsters Inc. Loft floor sure sounds fun. The Haunted Mansion. I'm going to show you how I skip the ride, but do the entertainment, which is basically the Halloween overlay. And then a must do for me is Pirates because they have live entertainment throughout the ride and it's really cool. So, again, I pick a signature restaurant to dine at for a late lunch, very early dinner, like around four if I can. And that's where I get my special, quote, celebratory Halloween meal at the resort. 

And at Disney Springs, the cast members are allowed to dress up for Halloween. They're not at the parks. So I have my special birthday celebration button, which I get at guest services on Disney Springs on day one of my trip. And if you're staying at a Disney resort, I recommend you get your button there, and that way you avoid all the crowds at guest relations at the theme parks to get your celebratory button. By the way, that goes for anything. You can be, quote unquote, celebrating Halloween, and they will give you a button. You can also order I'm celebrating Halloween, or my special one that says, I'm celebrating my Halloween birthday that I ordered on Etsy.

I get all my singing revelry birthday pictures out of the way at my late lunch early dinner. That way I don't have to worry about eating at the party or even, like, a counter service meal. All I have to care about is my snacking, my way around the Magic Kingdom, and my free popcorn, which would be a priority if it were happening again. So I rope dropped the first show at a Cadaver dance, and then I head right to Pirates as soon as that's over. Usually there's a great photo op with King Tuck Goofy that's nearby. And last year it wasn't a full meet and greet, and it's never listed as a full meet and greet. It's more like a selfie photo op. And there's no line, so you really just have to be bold and jump in front.

And losers. People who don't listen to this pod don't realize that there's a line, and they may give you a dirty look, but I don't care. Okay, then I head over to the Haunted Mansion, and I show the cast member at the wheelchair line that it's my birthday celebration or any other celebration that you may be having and that I don't want to get on the ride. All I want to see is lawn entertainment, which includes Madame Leota and Mistress Lillian Gracie Nay O'Malley, otherwise known as the tightrope walker in the stretching room. She is the ghost host of our ghost Host adventure in the Haunted Mansion's. First wife. So Lillian was born into a wealthy and doting family, but ran away from home at the age of 15 to pursue a relationship with her true love who was a circus performer. I find it really weird that she's named Lillian… after Lillian Disney, Walt's wife? I don't know. 

Anyway, so that puts me in the perfect position to go from Liberty Square right there by the haunted mansion to Main Street where it's then easy to squeeze in from all the people who have already been standing there. I mean it's just little old me squeeze in for the first showing of the hocus pocus villain Spelltacular and then the boo to you parade and the special fireworks showing. 

Yes, that's correct. I do all my entertainment with all the people who are there with their kids. So I know it's completely antithetical to anything I would ever say any other night of the year, which is skip the first time entertainment and do it when all the little ones are in bed. But this time I want to do it because then all of those little ones are going to go trickortreating and then to bed. And then I get to take magic photos, eat and shop till I drop and visit the characters without them. It's grand. I love it. I don't care about the trick or treating. I don't find the candy that good. I also can't finish it all and I'm not hauling it in my ass on the way home on the airplane. But if you do, I do recommend doing it last. Remember, you have to haul that candy around with you and most of the lines are open until midnight. So just wait. I promise you they are not going to run out of candy. Okay? 

So if you're ready to purchase your ticket to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween party, you can head to my website at makinmemoriestravel.co That is Makin with no G. M-A-K-I-N memories travel dot Co not dot com. And hit the contact me button and we can talk all about your Mickey's not so scary Halloween party adventure. And that link is also in the show notes. So until next time, see you real soon.