Best & Worst Dates for Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party
Wondering about the least-crowded or most-crowded nights to attend the 2023 Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party? This post covers the best & worst dates to buy tickets for Magic Kingdom’s special event, so you can plan your vacation around avoiding these crowds.
Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party occurs in Magic Kingdom on 37 select nights August 12 through October 31, from 7 p.m. until midnight. There are more party nights this year than ever before, which has become something of a trend. Unsurprisingly, Halloween is always the busiest (and most expensive!) night of the party, but if you have other options, when should you attend?
Expect the parties to be busy, in general. Last time it was held, most nights were crowds were moderately crowded to very crowded–we would strongly recommend “Is Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party Too Crowded?” for a look at what we mean.
When it comes to choosing the least-crowded Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party, the first rule of thumb is that the cheaper nights are the less busy ones. There are numerous different ticket price groupings, with most of cheapest dates are all in August and early September.
Prices get progressively more expensive in October, at which point many dates are over $150 per ticket. It’s pretty easy to spot some trends simply by looking at Disney’s calendar of available party dates. However, not all dates in the same price tier will be equally busy.
In an ideal world, we would recommend attending a party on a Tuesday in August. Even Friday in August will be less busy than Fridays in September and October. The one exception to this is the first party, which is always busy due to vloggers, bloggers, influencers, all of the fans who want to be “first,” and Walt Disney World guests doing late summer vacation who are leaving that weekend and don’t have any other MNSSHP nights during their trip.
However, demand should drop off after that, especially for weeknights. If you can’t go in August, early to mid-September on a Tuesday night will be the best option.
We predict that the August 23 party will be the least busy of the entire season…but there’s the slight chance celebrating Halloween in August might not sit well with you. (Hence our prediction that it’ll be the least crowded party!)
Historically, there are generally three rules for how busy Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party will be:
- Tuesday nights are always the least crowded
- Friday nights are the most crowded
- The parties get progressively busier the closer you get to Halloween
We consider these fairly hard and fast rules because locals/Annual Passholders don’t want to take their kids to the Halloween party on a school night, and because they actually start thinking about Halloween when you get closer to Halloween.
As such, pretty much any Tuesday night through September 20 would be a good day to attend, as would Sundays through September 25.
There’s one Monday night party this year–on September 5, which is Labor Day. Typically, that’s not a busy weekend at Walt Disney World by holiday standards and most Southerners doing long weekend trips will head home by then. It wouldn’t be my first choice, but I’d definitely pick the party on September 5 over the one on September 2. The Friday one will almost certainly be worse.
You might think that “it doesn’t matter if every single party sells out,” which very well might occur with the 2023 Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party given that it’s returning from a two year hiatus. However, our experience has also been that capacity caps are increased as the event wears on.
Totally anecdotal, but we attended over a dozen MNSSHP nights in 2019, including numerous “sold out” parties in August and October. The latter were easily 30% busier on average. Of course, things could always be different this year–again, it has been 3 years since the last Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party.
Basically, tourists go to the parties on whatever night they feel like going (they’re on vacation, it’s all the same to them), but locals who could go any night of the season choose more carefully. They’re the ones who tip the scales in terms of congestion.
With that said, overarching crowd trends also come into play–if there are fewer tourists, it stands to reason that there’s also less demand for MNSSHP. As a general matter, October is also more crowded than mid-August through September, which definitely adds to it. In the last few years, October has become busier and busier at Walt Disney World, and we do not expect that trend to change.
Tourists also don’t have the same luxury of picking and choosing nights, having only a few days from which to choose during their trips. But locals with the entire calendar in front of them want to get dressed up and take their kids later on weekend nights, once Halloween is actually on their radar and they have made costumes.
Plus, locals know that Florida is still hot and humid in September, and typically cooler in October, making those bulky or ornate costumes more feasible later in the season.
While crowd level recommendations for the entire calendar of dates is well beyond the scope of our knowledge and expertise, we think if you follow the go Tuesday, don’t go Friday rule (expanded to ‘go school nights, don’t go weekend nights’), and/or plan for a trip earlier in the Halloween (if you still have that luxury–if not, there’s always next year), you’ll be pretty well set.
Another easy trick that you should use for determining whether Disney is projecting a particular party to have low or high attendance is to look at the price of tickets for that party, and available discounts.
Disney does not offer Disney Vacation Club or Annual Passholder discounts out of some sense of corporate benevolence, it does so to encourage guests to attend the cheaper parties because they have lower attendance. How this can be helpful in your planning is when you see an anomaly party, price-wise.
For example, if there’s a weeknight party that should have low attendance but has no discounts available and is priced higher, then perhaps that is because Disney knows something we don’t. Maybe there’s a convention or athletic group that is anticipated to make a large ticket buy.
Regardless of all of the other tips that we have, you can be pretty certain that if a party costs less, it will be less crowded. If a party costs more, it will be more crowded. Disney has mastered the art of manipulating attendance patterns with discounts and pricing tricks in order to more evenly re-distribute crowds. Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party is no exception to this rule.
The only thing to potentially keep in mind, or use as a “tie-breaker” when two dates you’re considering are priced the same is to think about potential demographics of the parties. In our Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party Guide, we strongly encourage guests to not do attractions during the party despite the shorter wait times, because there is a lot of party entertainment (so much that you can’t see it all in a single party), and rides can be done on a normal day in the Magic Kingdom.
Annual Passholders and locals are more inclined to follow this because they have regular access to the attractions in the Magic Kingdom, and could do them any ole time. By contrast, many tourists do not have such access, and are willing to pay a premium to attend the event for shorter lines, plus some Halloween entertainment.
Factor in when locals are more likely to be attending the parties you’re considering (based on the above) in the case of a “tie” in terms of pricing, and either go to or avoid that party depending upon whether characters/entertainment are more important to you, or doing attractions with shorter waits is more important to you. Obviously, it’s your decision, but we recommend picking the tourist-filled nights if you can and focusing on attractions during a different day in the Magic Kingdom.
With 37 party nights, chances are your Walt Disney World vacation will be impacted by Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party regardless of whether you attend. There’s also the matter of Magic Kingdom during the day on event nights, and you should absolutely plan around this.
In short, Magic Kingdom is least busy on days with Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party in the evening and more busy on days that MNSSHP isn’t happening. This is because the Halloween Party is separately-ticketed, which causes Magic Kingdom to close early on MNSSHP nights. Many day guests avoid Magic Kingdom on party dates because the park hours are shorter and fireworks are not shown to regular guests. This results in significantly lighter crowds before the party.
These same guests then flock to non-party days in Magic Kingdom. Even though the park has longer hours on these dates, you will get less done than you could before ~5 pm on a party day. So long as you’re comfortable missing the fireworks or are fine watching from a resort restaurant or the TTC, we highly recommend doing your days in Magic Kingdom on party dates.
Avoid Saturdays in Magic Kingdom during party season, which will likely have 9/10 or 10/10 crowd levels. Also steer clear of any days that are in between two or more Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party nights. This is less important in August and September when attendance levels are lower, but is absolutely essential in October.
If you have a Park Hopper ticket, visit Magic Kingdom during the day on Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party nights, and then head to another park at around 4 pm. Animal Kingdom will always be your best option for lower-crowd evenings during the fall. Disney’s Hollywood Studios is another solid option. Epcot tends to be the “hopper park” (especially during Food & Wine Festival) so we’re less inclined to recommend it.
If you don’t have a Park Hopper ticket…we’d strongly recommend upgrading to one. As far as splurges go, this is a valuable one to have during party season at Walt Disney World.
In practice, since our Halloween party visits don’t operate in a vacuum, we love the party on the last Tuesday in September or the first Tuesday in October. We view this as the “sweet spot” because it allows us to plan a trip around both Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party and better weather. It used to be that this also allowed us to attend the early days Epcot’s International Food & Wine Festival, but with that being moved forward a couple of weeks pretty much every year, it now starts in August…just like the Halloween Party.
Also like the Halloween party, the Food & Wine Festival is less busy on weekdays. Going at the very start of Food & Wine allows us to enjoy that, plus Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party during a less-busy September date, and weather that has cooled since the start of the parties in September. But don’t tell anyone else about this sweet spot…it’s our secret!
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Your Thoughts…
Which dates are your favorites for doing Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party? Have you had more success going earlier in the season as opposed to waiting until October? What about Tuesday v. Friday v. Sunday nights? Think “sold out” in August still has fewer people than “sold out” in October? When are you planning to go this year? Do you agree or disagree with our advice? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback—even when you disagree with us—is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
We are coming with my 8 month pregnant daughter in law the week of Labor day. She’s so excited…but I was wondering if anyone has any experience to know what the crowds are like (historically) on Labor Day. There’s early park admission that day.
We are going August 13-23, planning on doing the Not-So-Scary Halloween party on August 20th. How soon do you think it’ll fill up? Do you think it’ll sell out that early? We’ve never gone during this time before! Thanks in advance!!
We are looking at being in WDW Oct 30-Nov 3 this year. Anyone have any recommendation for choosing between the October 31 or Friday November 1 party? I don’t mind the higher cost for Halloween night if it would be less crowded than on Friday night. Thanks for the always entertaining information Tom and thanks everyone else for your comments and input on the blog as well!
We are as well and I am having the exact same dilemma. Did you receive an answer?
We are going the same time and I am having the exact same dilemma .
No but what I have gathered from online sources is that the Halloween party always sells out and sells out early, so I am betting ANY party has potential to be less crowded than 10/31. So I am planning on 11/1. Now looking for something else fun for my girls (2 and 6) to do on Halloween night in WDW. But we’re in WDW so can’t really go wrong !
Tom
If most of the parties sell out, then why are some more crowded than others.
Do they sell a different number of tickets for some nights?
If they sell the same number of tickets each night, then all sold out nights would have the same crowds, hey???
Thank you
Thinking about attending the one on 9/20. I will have a then 3 year old by that point. Will it be worth it to go? It will also be our first time to Disney as well.
YES! My little girl STILL talks about Halloween at Disney. We took her last year, she was 3. She LOVED it!
Hi! I am travelling all the way from Argentina and I want to make the most of my trip to Orlando! There is a lot of information around, but I would like to know personal opinions…I want to book for MNSSHP, which begins at 4 PM at Magic Kingdom. I want to buy a 4-day park pass, should I do a full day at Magic Kingdom from 9 AM to MNSSHP or do half a day in another park and then go to MNSSHP? Thanks!!!
if i had a 4 day pass, i would probably do magic kingdom for a full day (one where a party is not scheduled for the evening) and do hollywood studios for a half day and then go to the halloween party at mk at night. mk is just so huge that you want a whole day at least just to ride the rides. theres not as much that we are interested in at hollywood studios, so i would make that a half or 3/4 day.
In 2016, I landed in Orlando on Sunday, October 30th and went to MNSSHP. I had no previous experience so I thought it was a lot of fun. In 2017, I gathered my kids, grandkids and spouses to go to WDW. We went mid-October because of fall break in the school system. I watched a video of opening night of MNSSHP which was a rainy mess. I decided to wait till closer to our vacation to buy tickets but we were aiming for the Thursday of our trip. Weather sounded good so I bought the tickets a day or two ahead and it worked out fine. I wouldn’t recommend this for Halloween night or even the closer weekends but it worked for us. No matter what the weather, the party goes on but I can tell you from watching that first night video that the dancers weren’t dancing (too much chance of injuries). My favorite was the Boo Parade and the fireworks. I actually watched the parade both times both trips. Enjoy and Boo to You!
If you had one to pick only 1 would you do Magic Kingdom OR Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween party?
MNSSHP – It is cheaper than a 1 day ticket and a lot less crowded! – That’s what we have done this year – Plus free sweets!!
Definitely MNSSHP. It’s cheaper than a full day, the party is so much fun and very festive, and cuts way down on the crowd. We do it almost every year!
We are hitting the August 28th party. Yes it will be way early and probably still very hot but now that our kids are getting older pulling them out of school is getting harder to do.
We attended the Xmas party the week AFTER Thanksgiving the past 3 years (pulling our kids out of school for a week) and it’s been great. Less crowds, perfect weather.
But we wanted them to see the Halloween party (before they get too old) plus we get to visit my retired parents in Florida BEFORE school starts on September 5th!
What do you think about October 21 (Monday) party. We will b there the whole week of October 20-25 trying to decide which party day to go to. Thanks in advance.
We will be there the week of Labor Day. There is a party Labor Day evening. Even though it’s a holiday would MNSSHP be less busy that night as it’s a school night or will the holiday add to the crowds?
Is it okay to purchase MNSSHP tickets from Undercover Tourist? Their tickets are $10 cheaper than buying direct from Disney and they say they can be linked to your magic band. I guess what’s throwing me off is that UT says their tickets can be used for any party night but the prices change on Disney’s site depending on the day you choose.
I am going the week after labor day Tue night, then staying until the following Monday, so I had the option of Fri 9/7 or Sun 9/9. Decided to go on Sun, assuming it will be less busy, although I will be at the part for 8AM on Sun & again on Mon, so I will need a rest Sun afternoon LOL. I know it is going to be hotter than I will like, but the whole trip is hotter than I would like, this was the only week in Sept that worked & the party was a huge priority for me since I have never been.
Then when I was starting to make my party plan (yes 100 days before my trip LOL) I determined that there was so much I wanted to do, that I would go to the Fri party also. This is my first solo trip and a treat to myself for getting through some recent tough times so I decided I could splurge on the second party 🙂
I’m not understanding why the guy writing this article is talking about which times are more crowded. I have been to the party s few times already. Disney told me instead of allowing say 12,000 in magic kingdom for the day the Halloween party is only about 4 thousand. It is so the lines are shorter. I am calling them again to ask. That’s why am not understanding why the guy is talking about it being more crowded on certain days than others .
Some parties will be sold out and at max capacity (for the party). Other nights there are still tickets available and thus less crowded. I’ve been at different times the past few years and the closer to Halloween/ weekends definitely feel more crowded to me. We’ve been to a sold out party and while it was crowded, it was nothing like a regular park day. I love going to the parties. It really cuts way down on the crowd.
Hi Tom,
Do you know when dinner reservations during the Halloween parties are released?
Thank you!
I’d like to know as well!!
What about the first night? It is not the cheapest but not the most expensive… I know August weather is not fun… but how are the crowds that night? thanks!!
Something just anecdotal – but I have heard that a lot of blogger/vlogger’s go the first night so that they can post updates and that increases the crowds – but again that info is from some of the same blogger/vlogger’s so take it for what it is worth 🙂
This will be our fourth MNSSHP and we have gone on Thursday every single time. I want to avoid the craziness that is surely Friday evening but also save the party for near the end of our trip because it just builds up even more excitement for me. I have always loved Halloween and I really enjoy these parties.
Speaking from personal experience, that late August date is just too darn hot and humid. Last years MNSSHP first date coincided with the tail end of our visit, so we jumped on it as our only times to be able to do Disney are the summer. Hot, humid, and stormy (though it was a brief storm that we waited out while our daughter amused herself in the play area for Dumbo) is not fun.
Is MNSSHP a stand alone ticket or do you need to have a MK ticket in addition to the MNSSHP ticket? The reason I ask is because we are NOT getting hopper passes on our next trip and I want to know if we could go to HS in the morning, take a break, and then go to MK at 4:00 for MNSSHP. Thanks!
Completely separate ticket that does not require MK admission. The scenario you explained would work perfectly as long as you had your one day ticket for the Studios and then the special event ticket for MNSSHP.
Geeat. Thanks so much!
Stand alone…what has worked for us traveling with small kids. We plan the party in the middle of our trip…and have our Halloween party day as a sleep in relax around the resort / kids nap day with the party in the afternoon/evening. We do that with the Christmas party also. It works out real well that way
I know you said that Tuesday’s are the best for lower crowds. I’m going to be at Disney -October 7-13. Which party would you suggest for the lowest crowds this week with Columbus Day being on Monday? Would you still suggest Tuesday? I was thinking Thursday…but you know a lot more about his than I do.
Thanks!
Slightly off-topic but related…if I am visiting in September, but NOT going to MNSSHP, would it be ok to do Magic Kingdom in the morning on a party date or will it be more crowded than a non-party day?? I know the park will close earlier but I have children under age 5, so we likely will just to half days in the parks anyhow. Thanks!
Magic Kingdom is less crowded in the mornings of party days because many guests don’t want to visit Magic Kingdom for only two-thirds of the day, so they save their MK day for non-party days. If you have a Park Hopper or don’t care about leaving by 7 p.m., you should definitely go that day.
I am going in early September on a Tuesday night this year this is my first time going to MNSSHP I went to MVMCP for the first time this last November and I already have my ticket for this year in November, I’m going to go as an astronaut I have my spacesuit from Space Camp in Huntsville Alabama that I can still fit into.
Are Tuesday and Friday usually the only nights for MNSSHP? We are arriving on a Sunday (Sept. 30, 2018) and I think it would be fantastic way to start our trip! I know the dates haven’t been released yet and I subscribed to your emails so I can be alerted (since a lot of the other reservations we make/plans for which park on which day will depend on what day we attend the party). Your post here with reference to Tuesday/Friday is a nice ‘clue’ for us, at least, until we can get the actual dates–thank you–I thought I saw somewhere else that there are 3-4 parties per week in October, though?
I would like to know this as well! We will be there the last week in September! I have to start making dining reservations on the 23rd of this month so I’d like to know when Mickey’s not so scary Halloween party is going to be available. Any clue when the dates come out?
I don’t think the dates officially get released until May, but as the operating calendar gets updated(currently only shows dates/hours through first week of September), you can assume that the days where Magic Kingdom closes at 6pm will be the nights of MNSSHP.
Misty, you have probably already figured out there is a party on Sept. 30, and yes if that is your arrival date, you can actually save (a little) by not buying a regular park ticket that day and just attend the MNSSHP. My husband and I followed this strategy last year; but I will tell you after travelling all day and then attending the party, we were wiped out by the end of the fire works (but we are OLD 😉