I went to MNSSHP during my first trip in August 2017 — it was a literally washout, which made it a metaphorical washout for me.
I probably would have liked the parade, but I was too overwhelmed with disappointment by the time they finally ran it, not least because the headless horseman was missing (because of the damn rain).
And I thought the fireworks were pathetic compared with HEA. Well, I say fireworks, I mean projections. I’m all about projections.
Skip forward to 2019 and I’m seeing really positive reports from MNSSHP. They’ve got all new fireworks (i.e. all new projections, which look amazing) and a great new character in the parade, the floating bride.
And it got me thinking: maybe next year I plan my trip for late August / early September to catch low crowd and MNSSHP.
Has anyone done both “old” and “new” MNSSHP? Is the “new” really a lot better? Or is it all in my head?
Eat before the party, because it seemed like there was a rush for the Halloween specials between 7-8pm. i’m not sure that they were worth it
Get your rides in before or early in the party. Other than tea cups, I’m not sure the overlays were game changers on the rides I hit. Didn’t make it to POTC though.
Do the character greats during the first parade. Seemed like lots of people rushed right to the characters and the lines got shorter later.
Look for the wandering characters. They have some really fun interactions.
Unless you are planning on staying for the second fireworks show, get a parade spot by the front gate. There were some prime viewing spots on the bends open. Parade didn’t get there until about 30 mins after the headless horseman though. He moves a lot fast than the rest of the people.
We went last night and it was so hot and overcrowded that it was not an enjoyable experience. So many crying kids and lines for everything. I tried to follow the tips I had read but there were just people everywhere. We are 4 adults who can move quickly but we found it challenging. I wish we would have just paid for Magic morning or evening hours instead.
It might be different if you are a local who is just there for the party or if you hit one of the less crowded days in September, but adding it into an existing vacation was not a great value for my family, especially when we already had park tickets for the day.
While it wasn’t horrible, I definitely ended up feeling like I spent money to be in the crowd instead of away from it, the Halloween food items were the only unpleasant meal we had on the trip & the late night hours took the shine off the next day for my family. Final kick in the pants was I got stuck finding space to pack 5 lbs of ordinary candy into our suitcases for the ride home because my family wouldn’t let me throw out it out.
Avoiding the long early character lines, the first parade, cosmic rays, and the first fireworks would have improved the experience, but it was tough to keep DS7 and DS9 up that late without losing a lot of amicable uncrowded Disney time the next day.
Our parties were soaked with rain in August 2017 and 2018. The party last night was the first one we attended that it didn’t rain. The park felt more crowded in 2018 and even more so last night. The new projection show was really good. The new parade members were a small and almost un-noticeable addition with exception of the bride.
If you enjoyed the party I would say go again but expect bigger crowds. If you are only interested in the new additions I wouldn’t recommend it