Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party Tricks and Tips!

We went to our first Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween party at Walt Disney World in early October. October 9th to be exactly, a Tuesday. I thought it would be less crowded, but it really wasn't. There were lots we didn't get to see and do (we didn't even make it to Frontierland!) but we did accomplish a lot.

Yes, you pay extra to go on select nights, and I highly recommend you purchase ahead of time because some parties do sell out.

I have some tips and tricks if you decide to go. Heck, we need to go back another time, which probably won't happen for many years, but it's a goal so we can do the things we didn't get to.



1. Wear a costume! My daughter was Eleven from Stranger Things, and my son was Rick from Rick & Morty. Make sure it's comfortable though. There is a lot of walking. Ladies, you don't need fancy shoes to go with a costume. My kids just wore sneakers, and so did I. Also, please note that people 14 years old and older cannot wear a mask.

I was just the one paying for it all, hence my t-shirt.

2. Try out the Halloween foods! There are some that are only available during the Halloween party.

If I had the funds, I'd have tried them all, but unfortunately I ran out of cash, so we just tried the following:

The Maleficent ice cream cone found at Storybook Treats. It's made with lime sorbet and is put in a cookie cone. The horns are chocolate. This was a win for us all! If you like lime desserts, you'll probably like this.

This is the not so poison apple cupcake found at Starbucks. It was delicious. The cupcake is cinnamon apple flavored, and there is TONS of buttercream frosting. Almost too much for me though. I would get ONE and share it.

This is the Candy Corn Milkshake found in Tomorrowland at Auntie Gravity's Galactic Goodies. It comes with cotton candy on top, plus a Mickey Mouse marshmallow. The shake tasted more like vanilla to me, and there was LOTS of it. Again, just get one!



3. You can go through the candy lines as many times as you want! Seriously. If you have an allergy, don't worry, there are special allergy free options around the park.

4. The parade is at 915 and 1115. Generally the later parade is less crowded, so go for that one.

5. Go on the rides! We walked right on the People Mover. The wait for Space Mountain was longer though, about 35 minutes. We also did the Speedway, which was 25 minutes. Buzz Lightyear was 20 minutes. I would have preferred 15 minutes or less lines, but as I mentioned, there seemed to be a lot of people.

6. Purchase the Oogie Boogie Popcorn Bucket! It's only available at the party. We bought ours at the red popcorn stand by the castle. He is now sitting on our bookshelf and fits right into the Halloween decor.

7. Do NOT waste party time by booking a reservation at a restaurant. Go for a quick service meal. We ate at Pecos Bills. Also, decide if the Halloween fireworks are important enough to see. If not, skip them. All the lines will be short! We decided to watch them only because it was our first halloween party, but if we go again, we'd skip them. It's a cool show, but nothing we HAVE to see again.

8. The party starts at 7 but you can show up at 4. Follow the signs for the first trick or treat stop. Yes, it'll be open at 4, and there are cool photo ops. This is also a great time to have dinner so you're not missing party time.

9. Check out the 1045 Villain Spooktacular Show near the castle, and then stay in that area for the 1115 parade. We stood on a curb and when the show was over, we just plopped right down for the parade. Do not give up that curb spot because people will swarm after the spooktacular show. Some people tried to push us off, but we refused and sat our butts right down.

10. It WILL get crazy as soon as a parade ends. Hoards of people will be heading for the exit. Instead of getting stuck there, head to a store! We popped into the confectionary until the crowds thinned out.  My son found a treat!

We did enjoy our time at the party, but we didn't feel like it was enough time. 7-12 sounds and looks like a lot, but it goes fast! If you can, I highly recommend going more than once. We didn't even get to see any of the characters because those lines were generally over an hour. But we did get some Magic Shots! There are PhotoPass castmembers throughout the park who can do them. But again, the lines could get long so we didn't get as many done as we'd like.

Also, yes, you do get TONS of candy. This was my bag, and my daughter's. My son was worried I'd take some of his candy so he didn't want me to mix his with ours. If you are flying, I recommend putting the candy in the suitcase because security will go through food items and you don't want to get held up.

Plus, it's good candy, not that cheap stuff! And yes, you CAN get more than one bag. Most of the castmembers at the beginning of the candy spots have them. Or bring your own bag! Remember: you can go through the candy lines as much as you want. Load up!

We certainly did.

Have you ever been to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party?