Disney’s 24-Hour Party Planning Tips
During the annual 24-Hour Party, Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, Disneyland & Disney California Adventure are open for 24 consecutive hours from 6 am until 6 am! Despite being a holiday weekend, Memorial Day is not too busy. This 24-Hour Party 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. (Note: the 24-hour party has yet to be confirmed for 2016 as of April 3, 2016, and there’s some speculation that it’ll occur in June this year.)
We are biased. I’ve made trips to Disneyland and Walt Disney World for every one of these parties. I love them. Not everyone does. Several readers have written to us sharing their negative experiences, so your mileage may vary. This is not a hard ticket event, so a normal, single day ticket will entitle you to visit the parks for the full 24-hour party!
Based upon our experiences at the parties, 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 the “One More Disney Day” 24 hour event or last year’s Memorial Day Walt Disney World Trip Report. Even if you’re not going, there are some pretty photos from the events! This post was originally written for the first party, and it has been updated for each of the parties since.
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 24-Hour Party tips!
1. Take Photos!
This is probably a no-brainer, right? Well, more specifically, take photos of things most guests wouldn’t normally see. It’s rare for Disneyland and Walt Disney World guests to be able to photograph a sunrise, and most guests also aren’t in the parks at 3 or 4 am to take photos, either. Take advantage of these opportunities and grab some unique photos. Photograph the sunrise from the Tomorrowland Transit Authority or over the castle! Grab a photo of the clocks on Main Street at 5 am! Get shots you normally couldn’t get (for photo ideas from past events, check out my Disney photos).
If you’re using an iPhone or other camera phone to take your photos, I highly recommend downloading the free Snapseed App. It’s really the only app you need for editing photos on the fly at Walt Disney World or Disneyland.
If you want more tips, check out our Disney iPhoneography Guide for tips on using a smartphone to capture moments in the park. If you’re more serious about photography, check out my Photography Guide for tutorials, equipment recommendations, and more.
2. Dine-it-Up!
Many restaurants in the parks will be offering special menus, test items, and foods that were long-ago retired, and after the smash success of these special menus during One More Disney Day and Monstrous Summer, we expect even better (and more) options for the 24-Hour Party. With some many delicious menu items, you actually won’t have enough time to try everything!
Restaurants will be open until fairly unprecedented hours, so avail yourself of the opportunity to have a Dole Whip in the middle of the night and eat at a table service restaurant after midnight! We have so many different foods on our “want to try” list that I suspect if we eat them all, we’ll gain around 38 pounds each! For our restaurant suggestions, check out our Disney Dining Reviews Index.
3. Share!
I’m not big on constantly using social media when in the parks, as I already spend enough time taking photos, and I want to actually experience the moment I’m experiencing, not document and share it, but the 24-Hour Party should be a really fun opportunity to share the fun with others at home who weren’t crazy-enough to book a last minute trip to Walt Disney World or Disneyland when the event was announced on New Year’s Eve. I expect that a lot of people will be experiencing the events vicariously through Twitter, Facebook, and other social media (I know that’s what I’ve done for the past two D23 Expos!), so have some fun with them!
On Twitter and Instagram, Disney will have an official hastag (likely just #DisneySide or maybe #RockYourDisneySide), so find out what that will be and tag all of your posts with that hashtag. Some websites are even planning on covering the entire event in fun ways! Plenty of Fan Pages on Facebook also will likely be sharing, so try to determine in-advance who is going to be there, and subscribe to their updates or “Like” their fan page. We will be posting live updates during the party on Twitter @DisTouristBlog, on the Disney Tourist Blog Facebook page, and on Instagram. If you’re going to be posting updates from Disneyland or Walt Disney World, please feel free to post links to your blog or social media accounts in the comments to this post!
4. Bring the Right Supplies.
If you’re going to be Tweeting and Facebooking the day away, you’re going to need juice, or at least an outlet. During “One More Disney Day,” we saw a lot of people standing around just using outlets in the park. This looked absolutely no fun, but we didn’t have to do this, because we brought an external battery for charging our phone on the go. This is probably the best piece of advice in this article–spend the $20-40 on a nice external battery; it’s worth the money, as standing around charging your phone at Walt Disney World or Disneyland is no fun. Make sure you have plenty of memory cards and batteries for your camera, too. Beyond batteries, come prepared for all types of weather.
Why not throw a $.99 poncho in your bag for peace-of-mind? Bring some protein bars and vitamins to keep you energized. From what I’ve gathered from various television commercials, there is this amazing product on the market called 5-Hour Energy that gives you a boost without any “crash.” What a miraculous invention! 😉 For other things you should bring, check out our Disney packing list.
6. Experience the Un-experienced!
Ever done every ride in the Magic Kingdom in one day? Ever experienced Tomorrowland Transit Authority once every hour for twenty-four straight hours? Ever done Splash Mountain at 3:59 am? What about Haunted Mansion at 4:59 am? Have you seen Fantasmic at 1 am? What about Captain EO at…errr…let’s just skip that one all together. The point is that being in the park overnight affords you all sorts of crazy and unique opportunities to say “I did ________ at __ am!” The photo above is a pre-dawn photo I took of Sleeping Beauty Castle. One of my favorite experiences on “One More Disney Day” was just standing in this tranquil spot in the early morning after all the craziness had subsided, waiting for the park to close. When the clock finally hit 6 a.m., the remaining guests on Main Street cheered loudly, and it truly was one of those “chills” moments, as we had all managed to stay in Disneyland all night long.
Only crazy Disney fans would find joy in such bragging rights, but if you’re reading this, chances are that you’re a crazy Disney fan! So do some crazy-things about which you will someday be able to tell your kids or grand-kids. Even if you don’t plan on staying in the park for all 24 hours, there are a lot of fun things you can do that are unique to the 24-Hour Party. If you know you won’t be able to make it all 24 hours, we recommend going for the overnight portion, as it will be the most unique. Participate in the many meets taking place in Disneyland and Walt Disney World. Have fun!
7. Disneybound!
Unlike last year, this is not going to be to be a 24-hour version of Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t dress up. These parties draw Disney fans, making it the perfect time to Disneybound. When planning your outfit, remember that this event is occurring at the end of May, which in Florida is a notorious time for hot and humid weather. In other words, that heavy coat of fur that your Beast costume has may not be such a good idea.
A popular costume Sarah wore previously that we’ve shared on here is the “Cute Minnie Dress” costume (here’s more info about what she’s wearing). This is the type of thing we recommend going for: inexpensive, lightweight, and pretty conducive to a FULL day in the park. Thrift shops and eBay are great places to find inexpensive outfits.
A day when the Magic Kingdom, Disneyland, and Disney California Adventure are all open for 24-consecutive hours doesn’t happen very often, so if you’re considering going, DO IT! Trust us, it’s a lot of fun. You may experience heavier crowds than normal and longer waits, but the experience and ambiance of the parks more than makes up for the crowds. It’s something unique that you’ll remember for a long time.
I know that when I tell our kids about the 24-Hour Party sometime in the distant future, it won’t be a 24-hour event,” it’ll be “an epic 72 Hour Disney Party,” and we’ll have stayed in the park for all 72 of them, battling 0 degree temperatures, snow, sleet, hail, and rain, as we experienced every single attraction 48 times each. By the time I get a chance to tell my grandchildren the story, you better believe that it will include my fighting a T-Rex with my bare hands and riding Splash Mountain with ALF. Half the fun in these types of events is the memories and stories you can later tell, and like any sage adult, I will embellish the heck out of all my stories! 😉
Your Thoughts…
Did you do One More Disney Day or Monstrous Summer, and if so, did you enjoy them? Are you doing the 24-Hour Party this year? If so, please share your thoughts and plans in the comments!
Going to Disneyland for this event and just booked our hotel. This is the first time I have been able to go to one of these events and can’t wait.
Never got an answer, do you need any special ticket for the 24 hour party or just use a regular admission.
Only a regular ticket is needed – no special ticket. That is one thing that makes this event so special getting 24 hours on a regular day ticket.
Two weeks ago, I had already planned on going to Orlando Memorial Day wknd. My sister and I are huge Disney fans all the way from VA. I was at work doing my normal stroll through on twitter when I saw the trending twitter topic…and it made that much realer…that I had to go experience this 24hr event just because! Super excited. Flying in May 23rd that morning, so I won’t get to magic kingdom until 1pm. Going to dress up and live the Disney dream lol.
The 24 hr. Day is May 22nd – May 23rd though, just so you know
So are you going the Disneyland Resort or WDW?
Who says we’re going anywhere?! 😉
We are booked at Disney World 5/21 to 5/26. We were planning to go to Magic Kingdom on 5/22 and 5/24, and on 5/23 to Hollywood Studios. Do you think the park crowds will be “lighter” for us if this event will be on 5/23?
Just curios Tom, how is it there is rarely a crowd in your pictures except when you want them to be there.
Patience and timing plus late nights when required.
We had already planned a vacation to WDW (my kids’ first) for that weekend-Tues. Luckily, my 4 kids are all 10 and up, because, we found out afterward we started planning that it will be Star Wars weekend, and now this. I am excited, but more that a little nervous that we will all be worn out for the rest of our vacation, with this on the first day :-p Lol, well, hope to see you there, love your blog and photos!
Quick tip-we were able to book rooms at Art of Animation under their 30% off spring vacation package-maybe there are still some available?
Yes, if anyone is interested, there are some rooms with the spring discount available. First thing I checked when I heard about the event! 🙂
Going to Disney Florida for March break can you tell me if anything is happening that week. March 8 to 14.
Will be with three of my grandsons no parents yippee
Thanks.
The flower and garden festival will be going on at Epcot, which also includes some special food kiosks and music. And at the Magic Kingdom a new daytime parade is debuting on the 9th. Have fun! Oh and if your grandsons are baseball fans, the Atlanta braves have spring training at Disney, that’s just another idea if you want a non park to relax.
Do you need special tickets to get in to this event?
Nope! As far as I’m concerned, a normal ticket will get you in for the full 24 hours
Why must I have important meetings scheduled on the exact day that Disney decides to stay open for 24 magical hours?? My Disney Side is going to be in Queens when it should be in Cars Land at 3 a.m. Ohhh well =)
On the plus side… do you know how cold it is in Cars Land at 3 am? I was FREEZING last year! Southern California nights, even in the summer, are not especially warm.
(Just trying to make you feel better–of course it’ll be awesome and well worth the cold.)
Haha okay I’ll keep that in mind when I’m feeling sorry for myself on May 24th
We will be there too tweeting away! I rented a lens for this trip so I am pretty excited to use it at off times. See you guys there, thanks for the tips!
Tom, what were the crowds like the day after OMDD? We’re booked at the GCH Saturday through Tuesday. We boked knowing it was a holiday weekend, and that Monstorous Summer was most likely happening, but we’re headed home from Aulani and I couldn’t resist extending our trip by a few days! I’m hoping the crowds will be lower on Saturday than they normally would be because so many locals and visitors will be exhauted from Friday. What do you think?
It was dead the day after OMDD. Completely dead. However, that was a weekday in February, and this will be a holiday weekend. I’d expect Magic Kingdom to be lighter than normal, but don’t expect everything to still be a walk-on. It’ll still be reasonably busy.
you lost me at #4 wen you recommended bringing 5 Hour Energy drinks. Energy drinks are dangerous to many and should be avoided.
I think that was a joke, hence the wink.
A joke? Who would joke about the medicinal benefits of 5 Hour Energy??!?!?!!?!
Now I have to convince my family to to do this for my birthday? Great. I dont think they’ll last the night.Thanks for writing the article cause without it, I wouldn’t have known it was happening. 🙂
Are you planning to attend, if so which park?
I booked a hotel room at Disneyland as soon as info about this leaked over a month ago (knowing prices would go up), but part of me wants to switch it to Florida…so not really sure at this point.
On kind of a side note, I really think it’d be cool if you added a calendar on this site to inform us of when you’ll be taking trips to Disney World and Disneyland. It’d add a layer of excitement if I knew that I was going on vacation the same time as you and Sarah and could bump into both at any moment on the TTA or just taking photos of Spaceship Earth!
We are going to be in Walt Disney World. Would love to run into you guys if you switch to FL, we love your pics and blog! Keep us posted on where you end up going!
You guys who are going should check out The Photographer’s Ephemeris. They have apps for android & iPhone and it tells you the direction and altitude of the sun and moon at any time of day. They also have a free desktop program you can use. Figure it might help plan out those sunrise shots at Disneyland.
http://photoephemeris.com/
(I also posted this comment on the ISO5571 page, but figured I’d post it here as well)
Michael, that’s a great site! Thanks for sharing. Will be posting pics shot in WDW from @planthemagic if you’re interested. Going to experiment shooting everything on my iPhone 4s to see how far I can push the technology. Should be interesting!
That should! Hopefully you have an external battery or something to keep charged all day long!
Yep, TPE is an excellent tool. It helped me plan some Disneyland shots for this trip!
We’ll be posting updates and periodic livestreaming beginning 2/28. Follow us on Twitter @planthemagic and on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/planthemagic
Looking forward to sharing the fun!!
Awesome; best of luck with the updates!
We will be live blogging One More Disney Day at http://www.mouseonthemind.com/liveblog/. We’ll have three+ bloggers in WDW, one in Disneyland and two aboard the Disney Fantasy!! Please follow along and share with your friends!!
Sounds exciting, best of luck with it!
Thanks, Tom!!
I’ll be in Disneyland and tweeting as much as I can (from my non-smartphone) @Belgarion42.
I read on touring plans that city hall @ MK has a free device check to charge all your batteries. Just bring the charger and they’ll give you a claim check!