This frightfully fun Halloween event returns to the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Florida on select nights until November 1, 2023.
There are 4 main elements to this year's event, in addition to most of the rides and attractions being open in the dark: the trick-or-treating, a fireworks spectacular, a live musical show and a special parade.
We went along on September 26 to check out everything that it has to offer.
Although the event officially starts at 7pm, it's possible to enter the park from 4pm. We got to the park slightly ahead of this time and joined the huge queue in front of the entrance. In the scorching hot sun, this uncovered area wasn't an ideal place to hold the thousands of guests arriving for the event and unfortunately we did witness one guest faint due to the heat. The staff did rush to their assistance, and once the gates opened admission was handled efficiently to get everyone into the park pretty quickly.
Main Street is decorated for Halloween but the rest of the park looks pretty much the same as it usually does.
Trick-Or-Treating
Upon entering the Magic Kingdom guests are directed along Market Street, which runs parallel to Main Street, and are given trick-or-treat bags and their first treats, typically M&Ms, Skittles or miniature chocolate bars.
There are a further 13 trick-or-treat locations around the park, identifiable by large inflatable totum poles.
It's a shame the trick-or-treat locations do not feature any theming or Disney characters, it's simply 'cast members' (staff) at a pod, putting a handful of candy into guests' bags.
Long queues form for many of these stations, so it's probably not the best use of your time at the event, for what is essentially just some free candy that you can buy from any superstore.
Disney's Not-So-Spooky Spectacular
Look to the sky for a mesmerizing spectacular starring Mickey and friends—and some pretty wicked Disney villains.
Gather round as your host—Jack Skellington—delights with this not so scary-tale that proves anything can happen at Halloween!
During a frightfully fun fireworks display, Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy are spirited away to a mysterious haunted house where they encounter dancing skeletons, waltzing ghosts and a sinister gathering of Disney villains! Don’t miss this dazzling spectacular featuring state-of-the-art projection effects, lasers, lights and fireworks.
Compared to a normal 'end of day' fireworks show at the Magic Kingdom, this one is very high on pyrotechnics, with much less reliance on projection mapping. There were so many fireworks that the castle became engulfed in smoke and at times was almost invisible!
Jack Skellington was a particular highlight, with Disney magic in full effect to create the illusion that the character is right there in front of the castle.
Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular
Experience chills and thrills while encountering Disney villains during a wickedly fun celebration at Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party!
The mischievous Sanderson Sisters from Hocus Pocus return in 2023 to throw a glorious Halloween party.
Winifred, Mary and Sarah to use their magic to host a decidedly wicked live show.
Enlisting the help of the Disney villains, the 3 sisters mix sinister shadows, terrifying nightmares and use the nefarious powers of their frightening colleagues to conjure the ultimate Hocus Pocus Party Potion—and cast a spell on everyone in Magic Kingdom!
Look for appearances from Dr. Facilier, Oogie Boogie and Maleficent. Combine them and other great Disney villains with amazing dancers, wild visual projections and otherworldly special effects to make Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular a not-to-be-missed Halloween treat!
Although no reason was given, on the night we attended only a shortened version of the show was performed. The full show is 22 minutes long, but it lasted around half of that, and the crowd really enjoyed what was performed. It was a shame that we only got to see this cut down offering, as the live vocals, catchy music, colourful costumes and high production values felt like a strong opening to a great show that was over all too quickly.
Mickey's "Boo-to-You" Halloween Parade
Guests really get into the spirit of Halloween when attending this frightfully fun parade. By far the highlight of the event.
Catch a glimpse of dastardly villains, ghastly ghouls and other iconic characters as they float by during this spellbinding parade. Twice nightly, this beloved cavalcade brings forth an assortment of fiendishly fun floats, as each land of the Magic Kingdom park comes together to celebrate during Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party.
Highlights include:
- A flurry of favorite Disney friends, including Mickey Mouse, don Halloween costumes as they prepare to go trick-or-treat down Main Street, U.S.A.
- Minnie Mouse, Daisy Duck and Clarabelle Cow run amuck dressed as their favorite Halloween sisters—the Sandersons from Hocus Pocus, Hitchhiking Ghosts and the spectral Bride glide among the waltzing spirits—representing the Haunted Mansion from Liberty Square
- A wicked assortment of Disney Villains reign over a Fantastyland-inspired grand finale.
The first parade was delayed, with the reason given being 'inclement weather conditions' but the weather was actually perfectly fine. There had been heavy rain earlier in the evening but it had cleared well ahead of the scheduled start time.
The second parade was delayed by 30 minutes, apparently due to experiencing 'technical issues' but when it did begin we were certainly in for a treat. The floats, costumes, dancers, and music all combined to create one of the best Disney parades we've ever seen.
Overall, the running of the event didn't seem to be up to the usual high standard that you would expect from Disney, given the premium price it carries. For an event that costs upwards of $149 for 5 hours, it's a very expensive experience for families.
Due to the timings of the main 3 performance elements, there's a lot of just standing around waiting for the next one to begin. They've not allowed enough time for guests to go and enjoy a few rides or get something to eat and drink.
The event is sold as a 'limited capacity' offering with reduced wait times for the attractions, but this wasn't the case, with the ride queues similar or longer than during the daytime.
The new attraction TRON: Lightcycle / Run was available to guests via a virtual queue at 6pm, which resulted in many guests in queues or on rides frantically hitting the refresh button in the app before or during their experiences to get a slot to ride.
Guests are allocated a boarding group, but no estimated time is given, you simply wait until your group is called and then have up to 60 minutes to get to the attraction. The issue with this, is that you might be about to sit down for a meal in a restaurant or be in middle of one, or be about to watch one of the Halloween shows when you are called and therefore have to rush your meal or miss out on a show in order to ride.
We noticed plenty of guests dashing around or using the app to juggle dining reservations and rework their plans for the evening in order to accommodate the virtual queue and delayed shows. It results in guests spending quite a lot of time on their mobile phones, and certainly removes any spontaneity, needing a robust and adaptable schedule in order to attempt to see everything in one visit.
If you intend to come to the event purely to do some trick-or-treating and catch the three main performances that's absolutely fine, and many are probably happy with that, but if you'd like to enjoy the other rides and attractions and have a meal it might be better to do so on a separate visit.
Thanks to the three hours pre-event park access between 4pm and 7pm, we managed to experience Haunted Mansion, Space Mountain (the Halloween version) and Pirates of the Carribbean, which given their themes felt the most fitting for the night.
The question is, whether you consider $149 for three shows and some trick-or-treating a good value evening, and that's entirely subjective. It was an enjoyable evening for us and we would certainly consider going again.
