Moonlight Magic – After Hours at Magic Kingdom DVC Party Recap
We recently had the chance to attend Moonlight Magic, the after hours Magic Kingdom party for Disney Vacation Club Members at Walt Disney World. We’ve previously done these events in Typhoon Lagoon, Disney California Adventure, and Animal Kingdom, and had enjoyed each of those events for their low crowds, “free” food, rare characters, and other special offerings.
For those who are unfamiliar with Moonlight Magic, it’s pretty similar to Disney After Hours, the $100/night hard ticket event. If you’re not a DVC Member, you might consider the Disney After Hours event as an alternative. Both are low-crowd “after hours” events that offer opportunities to experience attractions with minimal waits and enjoy unlimited food and refreshments.
We didn’t prioritize attractions during Moonlight Magic, but everything we saw was a walk-on or close to it–pretty comparable to what you’d encounter at Disney After Hours, I’m guessing. I think Seven Dwarfs Mine Train was the only thing we passed with any sort of appreciable wait time, and even that was a fraction of the time it’d normally be. As is the case with the Christmas and Halloween Parties, we don’t focus on attractions during these special events.
We’re abnormal in that regard (and so many), but we’d prefer to focus on the unique aspects of these special events, doing things we can’t in a normal day at Magic Kingdom. We come at this from the perspective of people who have done every attraction in Magic Kingdom more times than we can count, will spend several more days there each year, and really have no sense of urgency about attractions.
Special entertainment, rare characters, and really even differing ambiance are going to take priority for us at any Magic Kingdom event. Your mileage may vary depending upon how much you care about experiencing attractions. To this end, Moonlight Magic is a more appealing event to us than Disney After Hours (even setting aside the obvious cost upside of $0 v. $100), as the former has special fireworks, rare characters, random photo ops, and other random stuff.
You can even enjoy an awkward ‘meet and greet’ with DVC executives, making for a great opportunity to share your grievances about limited edition Tsum Tsum plushes. Who knows, could save you from having to make a trip to the annual shareholders meeting and asking Bob Iger about some very important issue. (I kid, but I can only imagine the conversations at these meet & greets are as much an unmitigated train wreck as that Q&A, with DVC execs mostly just patiently smiling and nodding.)
We’re making this comparison between Disney After Hours and Moonlight Magic because we’ve had a surprising number of people ask us about the After Hours event. This is all a long-winded way of saying Disney After Hours is “not for us” but could have appeal for serious ride junkies or those with minimal time to experience attractions. We didn’t double dip with both Disney After Hours and Moonlight Magic this trip for the sake of a head to head comparison, but easyWDW has a good write-up on the regular After Hours event here.
This long-winded comparison might be helpful to those of you considering that hard ticket event, but it’s also somewhat necessary filler, as I don’t have a ton to say about the evening. We met some rare characters, stood around, ate a ton of junk food, and saw an interesting fireworks show.
Aside from one exciting plot twist (gotta keep you reading), that’s really all that happened.
While we were in line for our first set of characters, Cast Members were walking around handing out Hot Chocolate and Peppermint Bark Cookies leftover from Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party.
Now, I don’t want to “ruin the magic” for you, as was done for me, so stop reading now if you don’t want the reality of the Christmas Party cookies. It turns out, these are individually pre-packaged cookies Disney orders in bulk. I didn’t realize this, mostly because it’s something I had never given any mind, but it was nonetheless a minor “oh” moment of disappointment.
The Cast Members were quite clearly trying to unload these cookies, and I couldn’t believe my luck. I’ve raved about these new cookies, and was honestly disappointed that we had missed out on them during the Christmas Parties. I grabbed a couple of handfuls, at which point the Cast Member responded, “you want the entire box? You can have the entire box.”
“Haha, no thanks, I don’t want that many” I nervously responded, when in reality that’s exactly what I wanted. For the next 10+ minutes, I talked about the cookies and how excited I was to have them, but also how upset I was that I missed my shot. If I had another chance at a box of cookies, I wouldn’t make the same mistake, I proclaimed. I don’t think anyone else really cared, but they humored me.
Anyway, I’m sure none of you care, either. Thanks to the cookies, our time in that character line flew by. Here are the characters we met there:
I have zero attachment to Fantasia (to be honest, it’s been so long I don’t really even remember it), but I’ve liked these characters since SpectroMagic.
To my knowledge, this was the first time I had seen them out for a meet & greet.
In many cases, the character lines were short, but the waits were more hit or miss. In the case of the Big Bad Wolf and Three Little Pigs, the line took forever. The interactions were long, mostly due to the foursome being pretty playful. Great news if you enjoy prolonged character interactions, not so good if you queued up because the line was short.
About 10 minutes after getting in line, we noticed it hadn’t moved yet, and we started doing ‘that dance’ when you debate between whether to cut your loses and get out of line, or ride it out since you’ve already invested X amount of time. We had that same conversation several times over, until 45 minutes later when we met the group.
I don’t know what’s going on here…
No one else in our group was really interested in fireworks, but there were my main priority. I headed up to Main Street, which was totally dead. I haven’t seen it that dead before fireworks in ages, if ever. It was a bit eerie. While I did this, Sarah continued to meet characters:
My original plan was to shoot from ‘the hump’ on Main Street since I haven’t done any straightforward fireworks photos for a while, but I couldn’t pass up such a low-crowd opportunity, so I headed to the Partners flowerbed. I used to love this spot, but in recent years I’ve found it almost impossible to shoot from here since people stand on the backside of the flowerbed (nothing like a scene with Walt & Mickey, Cinderella Castle, fireworks…and Random Dad from Ohio).
I was apprehensive that this would still happen (even though there was a ton of open space in that direction) or at the last minute a wayward giant would stumble into my frame, since that’s just my luck. However, even if it did happen, I could quickly move back. There was still a ton of empty space.
In the end, neither of those things happened. Sure, you can see some heads in my photo, but that’s part of any fireworks photo. I probably should’ve used a higher angle rather than a lower one to minimize that. Oh well.
The fireworks were…interesting? The music was largely pop remixes of Disney songs, which I felt ‘worked’ in a setting like this but not something I’d want in a regular Magic Kingdom fireworks show.
The arrangements of bursts was also pretty different. In some cases, the pyro seemed choreographed to the music in a meaningful way. In other spots, it seemed like a deluge of leftover fireworks from other shows. I ended up enjoying it quite a bit, probably in large part because it photographed well. Although I’ve only had time to edit these few photos, I have around a dozen more that I consider keepers.
After the fireworks, I raced back to find the rest of the group waiting in line for more characters in Fantasyland. With only 10 minutes left in the event, I had one last shot for more refreshments. I headed over to Pinocchio Village Haus, hoping they were still open.
Once at the counter, I asked for a few cookies. The Cast Member requested a specific number. I responded coyly, “eh..maybe 4? Actually, 6 or 8?” She looked back, staring deeply into my soul, knowing I really wanted many more cookies than 8. She returned with an entire box of cookies. A full, unopened case. “You should take the full box!”
I froze, a deer in headlights. Like a character in a Lin Manuel Miranda musical, I burst into song, hyping myself up about this opportunity, and how I wasn’t going to blow the chance. “I’m young, scrappy, and hungry” I kept repeating. “You don’t look that young,” retorted the Cast Member, probably a CP annoyed at having to endure my singing, and regretting ever having made the box of cookies offer in the first place.
Okay, maybe I didn’t actually sing, but I did stand there agonizing over the decision for an inordinate amount of time. After so much bluster, I was now debating whether to take the very thing I so desperately wanted just hours ago. As with any Monday morning quarterback, I’m only resolute with choices I can’t make. Once made a reality, I thought about the actual downsides. Namely, what eating an entire box of cookies (which I’d undoubtedly do if I had an entire box of cookies) would do to my body.
Ultimately, I chose not to take the entire box, instead grabbing several large handfuls and putting those into an empty cookie box. All told, I had about one-quarter of a case in the box. When our friends saw me walking back to the line with a case in hand, their faces swelled with pride. That instantly vanished once they saw that the box was not full.
I ended up giving away a lot of cookies after being reminded that I don’t even “need” a quarter of a case, but I still had enough to fill the bottom of my camera bag. (Thankfully, I recently broke my Nikon 70-200mm, so I had plenty of extra space for cookies–proof everything happens for a reason!)
Still a sufficient supply of cookies; I had them for breakfast every morning of the trip, and for many late night snacks.
As you might’ve surmised by now, this whole post was simply a ruse in order for me to boast about my cookie acquisition during the event.
Cookies or no, Moonlight Magic was a lot of fun. Aside from the AP discount and maybe the Imagination Lounge in Epcot, this is probably our favorite Disney Vacation Club perk. We schedule trips around these events every year, and while I wouldn’t recommend booking a flight to Florida just for one of these parties, I would time a flexible annual trip during a certain time of year to coincide with one of the Moonlight Magic events. They’re definitely fun, and if Disney After Hours is something you’d otherwise do, there’s arguably $100/person in value to Moonlight Magic. Personally, I wouldn’t pay that much to attend, but it’s definitely worth something.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know. If you’re considering joining DVC, first be sure to read our Ultimate Guide to Disney Vacation Club. If you still can’t decide whether membership is right for you, “try before you buy” and rent points from DVC Rental Store. If you are convinced a membership is for you, check out the discounted options at DVC Resale Market.
YOUR THOUGHTS…
Have you attended one of the Moonlight Magic events at Walt Disney World? What did you think of the experience? Take home a lot of free cookies? Would you recommend the event to others? Any questions or thoughts about anything in this party report? Hearing your feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts or questions below in the comments!
Love the Hamilton reference! Go see it if you haven’t already.
When we went for MVMCP in December my kids loved the snowman pretzels. My hubby kept getting in line with them to get another pretzel. The CM took pity and handed them quite a few. When we got around to Pinocchio’s village they were trying really hard to unload the cookies. They handed us each a stack of assorted cookies. I enjoyed the variety this year though.
A friend who is a DVC member took me to one last spring. We actually planned a trip to coincide with it. We had a lot of fun! We saw Ariel and Eric and Belle and the Beast, and the Country Bears. But otherwise we didn’t really see anyone we had to stand in line for. We rode a few rides and really just enjoyed being able to wander around MK with plenty of space! I enjoyed the fireworks, I thought they were unique and very well done. I would love to go back again!
A friend who is a DVC member took me to one last spring. We actually planned a trip to coincide with it. We had a lot of fun! We saw Ariel and Eric and Bell and the Beast, and the Country Bears. But otherwise we didn’t really see anyone we had to stand in line for. We rode a few rides and really just enjoyed being able to wander around MK with plenty of space! I enjoyed the fireworks, I thought they were unique and very well done. I would love to go back again!
Tom,
I love this entire blog and have trusted your judgement on many things. So far, I have had great results in doing so. But, knowing that you declined a box of cookies, not once, but twice, has caused me to re-evaluate my blind faith in your ability to think clearly. If, and only if, this is proven to be a one day lapse in mental capacity, I may be able to defend “the incident” (as I will forever call it) with a quote from Master Yoda : “The greatest teacher, failure is.”
Please don’t let this kind of personal oversight happen again, your legions beg of you.
Ha! Good one!
Don’t worry, I take my important responsibilities very seriously. Following THE INCIDENT, I have exiled myself to a remote island (that somehow has internet) off the coast of Ireland where I seek to gain the mental resolve to not make such a crucial error again.
Hey fellow Disney fans!
We attended 2 events at Magic Kingdom and Epcot last year! Being park raiders we are in it for little to no wait times but the characters and refreshments are cool too! I won’t get into all reasons why DVC is awesome but this is nice perk and one reason to buy some of your points direct from Disney!
Ok Tom here is the question!
Do you have to be staying at a Dvc resort to go to the party???
Like being a DVC member they won’t let you use free parking if staying off site.
Booking opened first for members with bookings (it didn’t matter whether it was a DVC resort or not), and then for members without bookings. I *think* the event didn’t ‘sell out’/run out of tickets.
Tom, you are hilarious. And now I want cookies.
Everyone always wants cookies.
Many months ago you referenced The Updside Down, and I was giddy. Now you reference Hamilton? Just when I think your blog can’t get any better!
And I would’ve done the EXACT same thing with the cookies: want, be offered, decline, regret, say I’ll never decline again if given the chance, be offered again, decline, and regret. Ugh! Why do we do that?!?!
Lastly, Sarah looks fabulous, as always. I think she and I would be friends! Or at least have fun shopping together!
Don’t get too excited about this reference. My Hamilton knowledge extends to about half the soundtrack, and that’s it. We played the lottery every day for months during the Los Angeles run, but never lucked out!
We saw Robin Hod and Friar Tuck at the “Long Lost Friends” event several years ago, but not Little John. Cool!
This sounds like a fun event, and if we owned DVC we’d try to make at least one of these.
Is this party available to DVC members who buy their points on the resale market? Also, are annual pass discounts available to DVC members who buy their points on the resale market?
No. You have to buy direct from Disney to attend. DVC members do not get AP discounts, unless you buy an AP. Or, do you mean can you get a discount when you purchase an AP? If that’s the case, again you need to have purchased points from Disney to be a ‘member’.
With new purchases, we recommend buying the bulk of your points via resale, and then doing a 50-point add-on via Disney directly. This gets you the best of both worlds. More info: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/buying-disney-vacation-club-directly-math/
I love seeing photos of rare characters. I haven’t seen Robin Hood in the parks since I was a little kid and NEVER Friar Tuck and Little John. Wow!
I remember seeing Robin once or twice outside of Country Bear Jamboree at Disneyland right around the time Splash Mountain opened and they first started calling the area “Critter Country.” I guess they figured he fit as a character there, but I haven’t seen him since at least circa 1990.
As for the others, I’ve never seen anything from Fantasia so that is incredibly cool. I seem to vaguely remember seeing The 3 Little Pigs once in Fantasyland near the Skyway loading platform when I was little as well. (So it must have been 25+ years ago)
At Walt Disney World, they also used to have random animals meet around Splash Mountain. I haven’t seen that in at least a few years, though. I’ve never seen anyone aside from Pooh and friends in Critter Country!
This was our first moonlight magic and we thought it was a GREAT TIME even though it rained (no thunder or lighting ) almost the entire time. We still had a lot of fun. Unfortunately we were on a ride during the fireworks, but heard they were awesome. Disney does know how to treat the vacation club members and recommend they continue the event. We only saw ice cream at one location in the MK and got some going thru to liberty square or we would have missed out.
I love the Robin Hood, Fantasia, and Three Little Pigs character greet photos. I wish Disney would bring these characters out more often during regular park hours. I also like the Mickey and Minnie in pajama photos.
We attended the January party. First time(DVC members since 1993). We had a fantastic time. We did the same as you-characters were more important than rides. We were also offered a box of the cookies-lol
We took 4 cookies. Also, 8 hot dogs(ate them for breakfast-an egg hot dog McMuffin), 12 nuggets, 2 Mickey Bars, 3 pretzels, & a lot of soda. This event was so much fun. So glad we were able to go to the Magic Kingdom Event.
I was bummed our last trip ended before Moonlight Magic, due to it having special entertainment and being free. (Ended up being fine, since the rain started on our out of MK for last time.) I was skeptical of Disney After Hours, but I loved it and would do it again.
PS. Jealous of those cookies, and was scrolling waiting for a photo of a box of them! I’ll settle for half a camera bag of cookies.
What camera bag are you using?
Ha! You must have been at the first party. We went to the Jan. 28th one and it POURED the whole time, until about 11, which was when we were leaving. Oddly enough, Disney did not seem to have a strategy for dealing with the rain, as the Dance Party was still held outside by the Country Bears, and who is going to dance in the rain? The characters all seemed to be tucked under awnings, not sure if that’s typical or not, and yes, they were still giving away the Christmas cookies! Will be interesting to see if they are still around at the last party tomorrow. We did enjoy the chicken nugget and veggie burger offerings, which were not an option at the Epcot Party in December. I am hoping they continue the trend of offering a little more variety than just hot dogs. The one thing I was most disappointed in was that all of the Mickey Bar carts were in one location, when at Epcot, you couldn’t walk 500 feet without running into a Mickey Bar cart.
I can’t believe you didn’t take the full box of cookies, haha! You were offered it – twice! – and the second chance was an amazing opportunity to make up for your mistake missing it the first time! 😛 Hahaha! Thanks for another great post.
Hey Tom
We are going to After Hours on 2/15. Hoping to eat a lot of snacks and ride many rides. It came out to $85 after AP discount. Call me a sucker but hoping we get some value out of it.
I don’t think you’re a sucker. If your time is limited or your party is big into rides, it can most definitely make sense. Just because it’s not for us does not mean we think it’s not for everyone. Have fun! 🙂
I bet you will love it! We just did a trip where we did both the After Hours and Moonlight Magic, and loved both. I’d book After Hours again without hesitation. The park was deserted, both cast members and guests were in awesome spirits, and we spent the whole night high on pixie dust after getting stuck at the top of BTMRR while HEA was showing.