The Kiss Goodnight: The Greatest Thing Most Guests Don’t See
Too few Walt Disney World fans know about The Kiss Goodnight. If you just thought, “what’s that?” you’re not alone. The Kiss Goodnight is a little over 2-minutes long, and it is the Magic Kingdom’s way of saying “goodbye” to guests at the end of a long day.
It usually play every 30 minutes after the park closes (meaning you could see it more than once in a single night–we once saw it 3 times in the same night!), and starts with Cinderella Castle “twinkling” as the music from When You Wish Upon a Star slowly builds.
A narrator then greets the last of the guests in the Magic Kingdom, saying:
“Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, on behalf of everyone here at the Magic Kingdom, we thank you for joining us today for a magic gathering of family, friends, fun, and fantasy. We hope your magical journey with us has created wonderful memories that will last a lifetime.
Walt Disney said that the Magic Kingdom is a world of imagination, hopes, and dreams. In this timeless land of enchantment, magic and make believe are reborn, and fairy tales come true. The Magic Kingdom is a place for the young and the young at heart. A special place where when you wish upon a star, your dreams can come true. Until we see you again, have a safe trip home. Thank you, and goodnight.”
Here’s a video I shot of The Kiss Goodnight:
In the Summer of 2008, long before I started this blog, I did a “Top 30 Must-Sees” countdown to our then-annual Walt Disney World trip. On that list, I ranked The Kiss Goodnight as the #2 experience we were looking forward to (#1 was spending time with one another…so The Kiss Goodnight was basically the #1 Disney attraction) on that trip. That ranking and those words still ring true today. Here’s what I said then:
“I think it is safe to say that for something that lasts only about two minutes to be one of the most anticipated experiences at Walt Disney World, it must be pretty special. I think it really goes without saying that for that thing to be the second most anticipated experience at Walt Disney World, especially given the myriad of amazing sights, sounds, tastes, etc., it must be out-of-this-world, jaw-droppingly, insert string of adjectives here, amazing. Such is the Kiss Goodnight, the nightly Cinderella Castle show that occurs thirty minutes after the Magic Kingdom closes (then again an hour after).
The Kiss Goodnight is the proverbial icing on the Cake (Castle!) for us. After a long day in the parks, we can’t help but just stop and watch the Kiss Goodnight, completely frozen and unable to move. For us, the combination of the beautiful light display and hearing about the meaning Walt Disney wanted the parks to have for guests does it every time. We both get choked up. Being in an almost-deserted park as the ‘young at heart’ during Walt’s favorite time of day, we can’t help but think of his influence, and how special it is to walk alone in the last park he envisioned and take it all in. The Kiss Goodnight demonstrates what makes the place inherently special and transcendent of the concept of a “theme park” (Sarah cringes when she hears people call Walt Disney World a theme park, as that phrase truly doesn’t do justice to what the parks are). Simply put, the Kiss Goodnight concisely states and embodies the ‘Magic of Disney.'”
Even though it’s almost impossible to explain, this pretty much sums up why we feel The Kiss Goodnight is so special, and why it gives me goosebumps every time I see it. It’s not an amazing, state-of-the-art attraction. It’s one of those little things that elicits an emotional response from us, and is therefore one of the most important experiences we can have at Walt Disney World. Besides the TTA, it’s likely the “attraction” we experience most on each trip we take to Walt Disney World (despite living in Indiana, closing shift managers at the Magic Kingdom recognize us, so I guess we have a bit of a reputation…).
Even though The Kiss Goodnight is the absolute best time to take photos of Cinderella Castle (due to the lighting), most of the time I just find myself standing there gazing at the Castle in awe, paralyzed by the beauty of the moment. Not everyone will feel the same way. If they were to see it, I suspect most visitors to Walt Disney World would probably shrug it off, thinking it of very little significance in the grand scheme of their trips.
However, I’m convinced that most people who “get” the Disney theme parks would get goosebumps if they were to stand in a mostly-empty Magic Kingdom and watch and listen to this on a tranquil Main Street USA. It’s special not just because you’re in the park at such a peaceful time, essentially by yourself with Cinderella Castle, but also because of the significance of the words in Roy O. Disney’s Walt Disney World opening day dedication speech. The Kiss Goodnight basically embodies and reminds us exactly why it’s so great to be a Disney fan. If you haven’t stayed to experience The Kiss Goodnight before, you should definitely make an effort to do it at least once. It absolutely belongs on everyone’s Disney Bucket List.
Beyond that, being a Disney fan who has seen The Kiss Goodnight makes you part of an exclusive club (we ought to have a secret handshake!). Not many people can muster the stamina it takes to be in the park that late, so those who answer “yes!” when asked if they’ve seen The Kiss Goodnight are almost certainly the most passionate of the passionate Disney fans, who have made the effort to be in the Magic Kingdom during that peaceful and special time of night. You know right when they give that enthusiastic answer that they “get” it. It’s like a knowing nod. Those who have seen The exclusive club is made up entirely of crazy Disney fans, but it’s a very special club, nonetheless!
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Your Thoughts…
Are you part of the club? What do you think of The Kiss Goodnight? If you haven’t seen it, does this post make you want to stay up late for it? Share your thoughts in the comments!
So this August was our first family trip to Disney World and we went all out and had a blast. Days before we left I saw either this post or one that’s similar. I made it a point to plan a day to see this and refused to watch the video. There ended up being three nights that the park times said they were closing at midnight or 11. The times it closed at midnight we were so tired we went home. But our last night there I told the wife and kids we were staying to see the goodnight kiss. Well 11 o’clock comes and we are getting off the haunted mansion ride and make our way over to the castle to see the show. Well 11:15 comes and what happens? They decide to have the Main Street electrical parade again. While this was cool to see with a near empty park and I was able to get some amazing shots of the floats and characters we were tired at needed to get up early for baggage check. So if their closing time is posted as a certain time when do they do the goodnight kiss? Because if what you said was true they shouldn’t of had the parade at closing.
Of course my guess is that since the parade moves to Disneyland next month they want everyone to see it. Hopefully if we ever get a chance to go back we can see this.
If MK stays open until 11:00 is that the time of the kiss goodnight? We’re taking our four grandchildren the end of August and trying to decide which night to stay for the kiss goodnight.
I am so glad I came across this post. I have been to MK dozens of times and have never experienced the Kiss Goodnight. I was getting teary just reading this, and I cannot wait to experience it live during my trip this September. I didn’t even watch the video you posted so as to not “spoil” anything from my first experience.
My family and I got to go to Disney over the Memorial Day weekend this year. I used your site as one of my Planning sites. And on the day we spent the entire day in the MK i had told my family I am not leaving until the Goodnight Kiss gets played. You were absolutely right, I stood there staring at the Castle in awe of what was going on….not a single picture!! hahahaha. Thank you for all your posts but for this one especially.
We stayed in the Polynesian Resort and the following nights I could watch the transformation of the castle from the Beach eating my Dole Whip!!! thanks again
Yes! Yes! Yes! You wrote exactly what I feel during the goodnight kiss! Some won’t “get it” but for those of us that do… well it is the only way to end the night after so much magic. I tear up every time. Thank you for this wonderful blog!
Wow this blog post alone made me get teary eyed,, how the heck am I going to be when I watch it next month on our honeymoon!! I love your blogs by the way and your wife is so cute and looks gorgeous in all her Disney inspired outfits.
With the price changes and a child turning 3 this year, we were not able to justify the cost to renew our passes this year. (We hope to wait a few years and do it again, and feel incredibly blessed to have had them for two years.)
We stood with our 3 princesses and 1 prince on Main Street the last night our passes were active watching the Kiss Goodnight…and yes there were goose bumps and tears from these Disney Magic-loving parents.
How can I see it if the park closes?
I’m sure this was posted a while ago, but I recently came across it while looking for tips on planning our New Year’s Eve trip to Disney World this year. I am in tears reading this post. I haven’t been to Disney in about one year, three weeks, and four days and I have to wait until December to be ‘home’ again. Current home is all the way in New York, so I feel very far & also very strange that I literally cry over how much I love Disney and how much I miss it, very often, but reading your posts on how in love you two are makes me feel a bit better. I cannot wait to experience The Kiss Goodnight again and this time share it with my entire family and my own child 🙂
WDW is my center, my medicine, my cure and I love watching the Kiss Goodnight, is a must see every trip. My daughter and I always stay and close the parks. Best feeling ever.
My husband and I did this this last trip, on our couple’s day (we were travelling with my in-laws). It was a 1am event, and my husband was sick and we were soaked from Splash Mountain…and it was the coldest day on our whole trip in December…but the magic of that two minutes was well worth everything, and we will be doing this at least once per trip from now on.
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