MICKEY’S VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS PARTY
There are SO many things to see and do at all of the Disney Parks during the holidays that it would never be able to fit in one post, so today I’m going to talk about the Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party at Magic Kingdom over in Florida.
I went to this party this year, so I will include some tips from my experience during a sold out party!
Be sure to visit the Disney World website for official information and to purchase tickets to the party! https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/events-tours/magic-kingdom/mickeys-very-merry-christmas-party/
General Information About the Party
This party is an extra ticketed event—meaning, your regular admission ticket does NOT provide access to this party. Tickets for the party start at $99, depending on the day, and run select nights from mid November until December 22. Tickets sell out fast, so be sure to purchase them in advance online.
Parties start at 7pm, and general admission in the park needs to leave after the first Frozen Holiday Wish (the castle lighting, more on that to follow) at 6:15pm. Guest must show their party wrist bands in order to stay in the park after the show.Check out THIS POST by WDW Prep School to learn more about the party, including dates, maps, costs, and more.
Party Perks—AKA FREE FOOD!
One of the perks of the party is that you get free snacks! The party originally started with fresh baked cookies, but over the years they have included various other snacks, like pretzels and snow cones.
When you first walk in the special entrance for the party, you are given a cookie—this year it is a Santa Mickey sugar cookie. Other cookie and snack stations are set up around the park. You find these by looking for large inflatable peppermint sticks.
Frozen Holiday Wish
During Frozen Holiday Wish, Anna, Elsa, Olaf, and Kristof from Frozen come out on stage to light the castle in ice.
This magical performance goes off once at 6:15pm before the party officially starts, and again at 8:15pm.
Anna and Olaf, with the help of the audience, convince Elsa to cover the castle in ice. After a little bit of Frozen magic, the castle lights up in it’s holiday lights. It is truly a spectacle and amazing to watch.
We tried to watch the castle lighting as many times as we could while we were in Disney World. I highly recommend seeing it!To see the full version of the show (on the first night it ran for 2018), check out this video below from Disney Parks Blog!https://youtu.be/_n4uCx2WSJM
Holiday Wishes Fireworks
The Holiday Wishes Fireworks are a holiday edition of the firework show that Happily Ever After replaced. This firework show only plays during the parties, and includes 360 degree fireworks. Meaning, if you stand in front of the castle to watch the show, at various points there will be fireworks all around you.
Naturally, this firework show is set to Christmas music. Since it is based on the past Wishes fireworks, it features very little projections on the castle. It is a wonderful firework display! There is a desert party option for this firework show, but it is an extra cost, and there really isn’t a need to purchase a better viewing area during the party.To learn more about the desert party offered for this firework display, visit https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/magic-kingdom/wishes-fireworks-holiday-dessert-party/
Stage Shows
There are various stage shows that go on through the night, including:• Mickey’s Most Merriest Celebration• A totally Tomorrowland Christmas• Edge EffectWe didn’t catch the later two, but we saw the second half of Mickey’s Most Merriest. It includes a cast of Disney favorites, including Mickey, Minnie, Donald, Daisy, Goofy, and more. They perform Christmas and Holiday classics. This stage show is very cute!Since I didn’t see much of the stage shows, I recommend you check out Disney Tourist Blog’s post about the Christmas Party and check out their sections on these stage shows. (https://www.disneytouristblog.com/mickeys-very-merry-christmas-party-review-tips/)
Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmas Time Parade
This parade, which only runs during the party until December 22, then during regular hours after the 22nd, is a holiday spectacular. It was one of my mom and mine’s favorite parts of the party. You can view this parade from multiple locations. Main Street is the most popular. If you want less crowds, however, try watching it from Frontierland (which is at the parade route’s start).
This parade features many of the Disney characters in their holiday best, festive dancers, and Christmas staples like the marching toy soldiers. It runs two times nightly, so you have twice the opportunity to see it.
I love this parade, so I highly recommend seeing this parade during the party! Also, be sure to catch Vanellope and Ralph from the Wreck if Ralph movies in the parade!
Special Character Meet and Greets
Just like at Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party, you can find unique character meet and greets at the Christmas party! These characters include Nightmare Before Christmas's Jack Skellenton as Sandy Claws, Scrooge McDuck with Donald Duck, Nick and Judy from Zootopia, Santa Goofy, and the Seven Dwarfs.
These special character meetings usually have long lines, so unless you feel like meeting these rare characters is worth the price of admission, your time might be better spent meeting one or two of them. It is all personal preference.EasyWDW.com has a post all about who you will find at the party—and where! Be sure to check it out if meeting characters is part of your party must-do activities. Find the post here: https://www.easywdw.com/easy/blog/mickeys-very-merry-christmas-party-2016-character-locations-schedules-and-strategy/(Yes, the post is from 2016, but the locations are the same. The only diffrence I could find is that the wait for Nick and Judy is a lot shorter)
Special Merchandise
During the parties, select merchandise will be rolled out that is only available to party guests. This includes basic items like shirts, sweatshirts, pins, and more. My favorite items I saw this year were the party-specific mugs and the magic band.
This magic band, which cost $35, comes in a collectible box (that is scented like Christmas trees!) and makes a special noise and effect when using to enter the Magic Kingdom. These are limited released magic bands, meaning there are only 2,000 made each year.
Visit https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/2018/11/new-must-have-holiday-merchandise-from-mickeys-very-merry-christmas-party/ to see more merchandise available only during the party!
Tips from My Experience
I loved the party, and I would do it over, and over, again. I recommend purchasing a ticket to this event, and purchase them in advance to save money and guarantee a ticket. Even on a sold out night, the lines for the rides and the crowds were not bad. We were able to see what we wanted and ride the rides we planned on.
Stick around for at least one parade, and at least one castle lighting! I waited until later in the party to stop at all the cookie/snack stations. The lines were a lot shorter during the later hours of the party. They wont run out, so don’t worry about missing out if you wait!
Don’t waste valuable party hours on dinner reservations. It will likely be the best line times of your trip, and dinner can sometimes take up a big portion of your night! Also, the firework and parade desert parties are not worth your money, in my opinion. They are an extra fee, on top of the party ticket, and even on a sold out night, you’ll be able to see the fireworks and parade from good locations. Save your money!
I did a lot of research before going, and I highly recommend checking out Disney Food Blog’s video about the party! They talk about the special snacks for purchase during the party as well.https://youtu.be/E8qOYbRLHF0I also recommend checking out Disney Food Blog's ebook about Disney World during the holidays. I purchased it and found a lot of great information! Click here to learn more. All in all, I highly recommend this event and I can’t wait until next year to go back!See ya' real soon!