Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party 2013 Tips

The schedule and ticket prices for the 2013 Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Parties at Walt Disney World is now available, with the party occurring September 10, 13, 17, 20, 24, 27, & 29, and October 3, 4, 6, 10, 11, 14, 17, 18, 20, 22, 24, 25, 27, 29, & 31, plus November 1. On these nights, the Magic Kingdom closes at 7 p.m. to guests who haven’t not purchased tickets for the Halloween Party.

So you can prepare for the Halloween Party, we thought it would be a good time to look back at our experiences at past parties to help you determine whether this expensive hard ticket event is worth it to you, and if so, what your “Plan of Attack” should be to efficiently conquer the various offerings.

Should I Attend?

So at over $50 a pop for tickets to the 2013 Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party, you might be trying to determine, “is it worth it?” If you’re asking this, you’ve probably never been, otherwise you’d know the answer to this question. Our opinion, as Disney-biased tourists, is that it most definitely is worth the price: at least once. Once you’ve experienced the party once (it doesn’t change much year-to-year), you might determine that it’s simply too expensive to experience again. For a one time event, though, it’s definitely worth it for everyone except those on traveling on thin budgets. Personally, we prefer Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, but I think it’s fair to say that the two are about equally popular with guests (the guest costumes at Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party are pretty awesome to see).

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Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party 2013 Tips

Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party is a special hard ticket event held in the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World. For 2013, the party will be held on November 8, 11, 14, 15, 17, 21, & 22, and December 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12, 13, 15, 17, 19, & 20. After December 20, the party entertainment is available to all day guests (and included in theme park admission), but waiting until Christmas week also means going during the busiest time of the year, and when rooms and dining are most expensive.

Here is our party review and tips for 2013, based upon our experiences attending the party for the last five consecutive years. The Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party 2013 schedule has not yet been announced, but it will take place select dates in November and December. Ticket prices will vary for 2013 based upon whether you purchase in advance or on the day of, are a child or adult, and whether you have an Annual Pass, Disney Vacation Club membership, or some other affiliation that entitles you to a discount. In any case, the event is not cheap, starting at $57 for children with advance purchase on select nights and exceeding $70 for adults on the “Premium” night! To purchase tickets, visit Disney’s Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party page.

That said, if you’re visiting Walt Disney World in November or December, Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party is an absolute must-do! But more on that later. First, let’s provide an overview of the events to those who haven’t been.

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Monstrous Summer All-Nighter Planning Tips

During the Monstrous Summer All-Nighter, Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, Disneyland & Disney California Adventure will be open for 24 consecutive hours beginning on May 24, 2013 at 6 am until 6 am on May 25, 2013. This is an extension of the “Limited Time Magic” promotional efforts and the kick-off of the Monstrous Summer to promote Disney*Pixar’s Monsters University. It also falls on the Friday before Memorial Day weekend, making it the perfect time to take a long weekend trip to Walt Disney World or Disneyland! We participated in the events of “One More Disney Day” (the 24-hour Leap Day event in 2012) and it was a ton of fun. It was also a great, unique opportunity for photography–so great that I made an eBook about the experience!

Based upon our experiences last year, here are some tips for enjoying these special events if you’re going to be Walt Disney World or Disneyland, and also some tips for those of you watching the fun from home! While this planning guide is a great primer, if you want a better idea of what to expect during the 24 hour event, I strongly encourage you to read our trip report from 2012′s “One More Disney Day” 24 hour event. Even if you’re not going, there are some pretty photos from the event!

Also, check out our general Disneyland Trip Planning Guide and Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide if you’re not a “regular” at either park for more general planning tips. With that said, here are our Monstrous Summer All-Nighter tips! (more…)

Tips for Celebrating at Walt Disney World

Celebrating birthdays, anniversaries, honeymoons, and graduations, among other things, at Walt Disney World is extremely popular, and for good reason. Not only is Walt Disney World a great place to visit on any ole ordinary day (as you presumably know given that you’re reading a Disney blog), but it’s a great place for a celebration, with a lot of special activities and add-ons possible, and an overall atmosphere that is conducive to celebrations.

Disney prides itself on its parks and resorts being great places to visit to celebrate (although to be fair, I think they want everyone to visit, no matter what the reason…they’d likely market the parks as being great places for zombie enthusiasts if it were profitable enough demographic), so much so that a recent year-long marketing campaign was actually called “What Will You Celebrate?”

Celebratory fun at Walt Disney World can come both from pre-planned activities and via the spontaneous acts of Disney Cast Members. Obviously spontaneity cannot be planned, but here are some of our recommendations for celebrating your special event at Walt Disney World. (more…)

Tower of Terror 10-Miler RunDisney Race Review

This is a review of the inaugural Tower of Terror 10-miler race. This runDisney review is written from the perspective of two individuals having run their first race, so it’s our initial impressions without the benefit (or hindrance) of comparison to other events.

The Tower of Terror 10-miler race occurred on September 29, 2012 and was (big shock) a 10 mile race. A few miles shorter than a half marathon. We registered for this race months in advance with the intent of training vigorously for it, and for a couple of weeks back in May 2012, we did exactly that. Between May and September, we did pretty much nothing to train for it. On the day of the race, we had Tonga Toast from Captain Cook’s and followed that up with a preview of Food & Wine Festival. To our credit, we didn’t have any wine, but the point is that we didn’t really take pre-race preparations seriously. Neither of us had ever run any sort of marathon or competitive race, so we were a little worried about being swept…but not so worried that it caused us to actually train. (more…)