Let's go to Disney's after hours Christmas Parties!
It's currently October 22nd which means Christmas is just a few short days away.... at the Disney Parks that is. And if you're anything like me, you are not so patiently awaiting the return of the festive decor that showers the Magic Kingdom once Halloween is over.
With the holidays being just around the corner, you might have seen tickets for Disney World's Christmas after hours events go on sale recently. These would be Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party and Disney Jollywood Nights (a NEW Christmas party). If you've never been to one of these hard ticket events, you're probably wondering how one goes about getting tickets and making the most out of these parties. Lucky for you, I'm going to explain it all here!
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You can get tickets for either of the parties on the Walt Disney World website. It'll take you to a screen that looks like the one above. From there you'll select the number of guests attending the party and the calendar will show you which dates are available for your party. As you can see, the opening dates for the Jollywood Nights party are already sold out. The cost of the tickets will change depending on the day. The closer you get to Christmas, the more expensive the ticket will be. There may be special discounts for annual passholders and Disney Vacation Club members, but they're pretty negligible.
So, you've got your tickets and you're going to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party (MVMCP). What do you do now? Well, it really all depends on what your goal for the party is. Are you there to meet special characters? Do you want to ride attractions with overlays? Do you want to take advantage of the free snacks provided throughout the park? It all comes down to what you believe to be the main goal for the party. Once you've figured that out you can work out a game plan.
IF YOU WANT TO MEET/SEE COOL CHARACTERS
If your goal is to meet or see characters you know and love in their special outfits, what you want to do is grab the special park map they offer you as you walk into the park after checking in for the party. There will be a key that will tell you which spots characters will be at with their holiday outfits. Typically you can tell which characters will be at each location because it's their typical meet and greet area. I would absolutely recommend getting in line for the one you'd like to meet the most first, because those lines will be long all night. If meeting characters is something you enjoy, it's well worth your time!
(Mickey's Once Upon a Christmastime Parade 2022)
IF YOU WANT TO EXPERIENCE ATTRACTIONS AND ENTERTAINMENT
Lucky for you, there are LOTS of things to do at the after hours Christmas parties. That park map I recommended before? That will help with this as well! There will be a guide that will tell you the times and locations for all the entertainment and special attractions that the event offers! If your main priority is riding attractions, my recommendation is to skip the first castle show and parade and head straight for the rides. The first shows of the evening are going to be packed because people want to see those first. Don't worry, they show them twice every party, so you wont miss it. If you want to view the fireworks, that is only a one time showing, so keep an eye out for the time that one starts, you'll want a good viewing location, so it's better to get your spot earlier rather than later.
If you buy a ticket to the after hours event in place of going to the parks earlier in the day, Disney typically lets you into the park at four pm, with the parties starting typically around 7 pm through midnight. If you happen to have park tickets for that day, take advantage of it! In my experience, Magic Kingdom tends to be fairly empty and the lines seem to be shorter on party days. So you can definitely fit everything you want to do within that day.
IF YOU WANT TO FOCUS ON SNACKS AND PHOTOS
The snacks and photos are exactly what I went to the party for. I was eager to try everything and run around the whole park to see how many free cookies I could get (spoiler alert, it was a lot). If this is what you want to focus on, you are thoroughly going to enjoy your time. The lines for the snacks are short to almost non-existent if you go to an earlier party. Plus, they give out snacks throughout the night. If you want to purchase specialty snacks, get those first! Remember, you can get in line for cookies and drinks as many times as you want. Different areas offer different flavors. Some places might have snickerdoodle cookies while others may have chocolate chip, etc. This goes for the drinks as well. Some places will only have cocoa, while others have eggnog, and others will have apple cider ( my personal favorite). Honestly, you could go at getting snacks any way you wanted and I don't think you'd have a problem.
Photo opportunities like the ones shown above are located all over the park. It could be that we got there early, but there was absolutely no wait for these spots. It was incredibly easy to get our photo taken and be on our way. I do want to note if you want photos with characters, refer to the advice given for meeting them. Cast members will be stationed next to characters for photo opportunities as well.
I do want to add that some stores within the park will be closed during the Christmas parties, so if there is anything you were looking at purchasing, do it earlier. The exception to this is Ye Olde Christmas Shoppe in Liberty Square.
JOLLYWOOD NIGHTS
Because Jollywood Nights is a new after hours event coming to the Walt Disney World Resort, there isn't too much I can advise on. However after browsing the website, it seems like Jollywood Nights is going to be very similar to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party - with snacks, photo opportunities, character meet and greets, and entertainment. I did read that guests are invited to "dress to impress" or "show off your own unique style". This makes sense as Hollywood Studios is themed after old Hollywood, so we can only assume that music, entertainment, and decor choices will reflect that as well.
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