5 Tips to Get the Most out of Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party

A very popular add on to trips from August to October is Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. This special, hard ticketed event at the Magic Kingdom takes place during the fall season.  For more details and an overview of the event, click here. If you've decided this is a great event to attend and secured tickets with your Kingdom Konsultant agent, here is your next stop to maximize your time to get the most out of the event!  1) Enter Magic Kingdom before the official party start time. The park will close to day guests at 6pm and the party officially starts at 7pm, but with your MNSSHP ticket, you can enter the park at 4pm.  Arrive between 4-6pm to get into the park, secure your wristband and pick up your candy bag.  Grab an early dinner and some photos on Main Street or by the Castle in your party outfits and make a plan for when things kick off at 7.  This way you won't be wasting the valuable party time on these essentials.  2) Prioritize which characters you want to meet. These will be some of the longest lines of the party, with Jack and Sally, the Seven Dwarves, and the Winnie the Pooh characters averaging about 2 hours.  You can get in these lines before the party starts, but if you want to do all three that would be just about all of your party time.  We saw some of the lowest waits for Jack and Sally just after 7, dropping from 120 minutes before the party started, to 35 minutes just before 7:30pm.  If meet and greets are important, hop into one of the big lines before the party starts.  It will be a bit of a wait, but it won't be during valuable park hours.  Get another one just after the party starts, and then try to knock out a few during the first parade.  Character lines will be cut off before the party ends, so this is one thing you don't want to save for last. 3) Pick a plan for the parade, stage show and fireworks. There are two main strategies here, pick which one fits your party and goals best.   Option One - Prime viewing locations or finishing your night earlier: Get to the Hub area around 8-8:30pm and secure a spot where you can see the first parade and the castle stage.  Hang out here and watch the stage show, the first parade, and then hang around for the fireworks. Option Two - Maximize party accomplishments and time: Skip the first parade and enjoy shorter wait times. Watch the fireworks more towards the sides of the castle or down Main Street (closest to what you want to do next) and then immediately get into your next line for rides or characters.  Watch the second parade from Frontierland where you can get a good spot without waiting around, and then watch the 12am stage show to maximize your party time.   4) Save Trick-or-Treating until about the last hour or so of the party.   We were actually able to fill up our bags with just about the last 30 minutes of the night.  Lines will be much shorter and we find the scoops are a bit bigger! While the thought of noshing on candy all night can be exciting, the lines fill up fast as the party starts and can start to suck into your time.  You'll get a full size candy when you pick up your trick or treat bag, so snack on that and wait until later if you can! 5) Consider the weather and activities when picking your costume or outfit.  I'm the first person to get excited when I see a guest in an elaborate outfit, but if you plan to ride rides, make sure your costume will actually fit on them.  It is typically still hot in Orlando for the party season, so I recommend dressing lightly or in layers, you don't want to be miserable sweating all night. Even with all these tips to maximize your time, you won't be able to do it all.  There is more to do than the time really allows, so make sure you know what is important to you and have a great time!  Maci Schau Maci is an avid foodie and loves trying out new restaurants and seasonal food offerings in the parks.  You can email Maci at maci@kingdomkonsultant.com.