Mickey’s Halloween Party at Disneyland
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In my experience, late August through the end of October is the best time to visit Disneyland. Not only have the temperatures finally cooled down a bit, but crowds have also diminished, especially if you can get to the park on a weekday. To top it off, this is when the annual Halloween festival takes place. So, in addition to enjoying the regular rides and festivities, you will also get to enjoy special holiday related attractions.
Several years ago, I attended the event at Disneyworld and loved it so jumped on the opportunity to check out how Disneyland does Halloween on a recent trip to L.A. There are some pros and cons of each park’s festival which I will cover later. Similar to WDW, the California park offers a Halloween themed fireworks show, parade, trick or treating stations, a Main Street Pumpkin festival, and various spooky versions of your favorite rides. As a big Halloween buff, I really enjoyed both events immensely. I highly recommend checking out both if you love the holiday as much as me.
Halloween Mickey style
The best part about visiting Disney this time of the year is enjoying the over-the-top displays. Really, the park looks so amazing and you can tell that the engineers put so much time, effort, and creativity into making this a fabulous event. No detail is left untouched – everywhere you look there is a special balloon, a jack o’ lantern, Mickey pumpkins on the light posts, etc. It’s just so over the top and amazing.
The best perk: next to no wait for most rides!
By far, the biggest perk of attending this special event, is reduced crowd traffic and almost no wait times for the majority of the rides. Because admission to this special event requires a separate admission ticket, any guests without the special party wristband are asked to leave as soon as the special event starts.
There are so many seasonal attractions & treats to enjoy that guests are more dispersed throughout the park, as opposed to everyone waiting for the same popular rides, as is the case during regular admission. And, only a limited number of tickets are available to this special event, so the park will never get too overcrowded. We got on so many great rides like Thunder Mountain multiple times in a row which was really fun.
8 Hours of over-the-top Disney fun!
Mickey’s Halloween Party (now Oogie Boogie Bash) runs for just 5 hours, so you will have limited time at this event versus visiting on a regular day. On the bright side, you can begin entering the park 3 hours prior to the event so you will get a bit more time at the park. On the downside, the park will be incredibly crowded until the event starts as regular daytime guests and special ticket holders will both be waiting for rides with no special events taking place yet to manage the crowds.
During this time, most ride wait times will be well over an hour. However, as soon as 6:00 rolls around, the wait times are so short that you will probably get on more rides during this short time period than if you paid for regular daytime admission!
Popular rides like Pirates of the Caribbean, Thunder Mountain Railroad, and Indiana Jones had under a 10 minute wait during the Halloween party. Thunder Mountain is the most fun ride in the park (and often a very long wait) and we happened to get on 3 times in a row in less than 20 minutes (that’s how under crowded the ride queues will be during this special event, especially if you plan on hopping on a few rides during one of the parades). Even the most popular rides of all – The Haunted Mansion and Space Mountain – only had a 20-30 min wait versus the typical hour plus wait time.
The tickets are quite pricey at $134 (current as of 2024), although worth it if you love all things Halloween. That being said, the tickets sell out fast. Even if you cannot score tickets, the park looks beautiful this time of the year and you will also get to enjoy the fabulous holiday version of the Haunted Mansion ride!
Spooky themed attractions
What makes this event so special are the many extras included with your ticket. There is so much to do here in a short period of time. We weren’t sure whether to focus more on the rides or special attractions. Overwhelming but a lot of fun too!
Trick or Treat Stations
Trick or Treating at the Magic Kingdom has no age limit! Kids and adults are both welcome to collect candy from a variety of stations set up throughout the park. You will be given a special bag to collect all your goodies at the admission booth.
They give out great candy here – all the good chocolates like Twix and M&Ms as opposed to cheap options like taffy and smarties. You really do not have to work hard to get a lot of candy – they give out more than enough at each station.
We didn’t really focus on purposefully going to any stations as we were paying to enjoy the rides and special events. That being said, we ran into a few near the rides by chance. This is the insane amount of candy we got from just 2 or 3 stations. So if your goal is to collect candy, you won’t be disappointed.
The stations are conveniently located right by the rides and barely have a wait – you will collect your candy and move on without much time wasted. You really do not have to seek them out – there are numerous locations throughout the grounds. This is a really fun opportunity for both kids and kids at heart to enjoy this nostalgic tradition in a one-of-a-kind Disney setting. They had special music and props by the stations too which was pretty fun.
Themed rides
3 rides are given makeover to make the ride experience even more festive for the season. Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy features special ghostly visions in the dark. The Haunted Mansion is completely decked out in frightening decor, both inside and out. They really did a nice job with the decor – standing in line here isn’t even a bother when you have so much to look at.
The entire ride features an over-the-top makeover inspired by Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas. The Tower of Terror features a few new surprises and is a must-do as the ride will only be operating until January. Not sure why they are taking this ride out as it is one of the best!
Update: Ghost Galaxy is retired and Tower of Terror has officially closed. However, there are a few new frightening rides. Check The Disney website for this year’s lineup of themed rides.
Themed fireworks show & parade
A special spooky fireworks show over the Magic Kingdom is one of the highlights of this event. Unfortunately, on our particular visit, this show was cancelled due to high winds. I have seen the show at the WDW resort and it is a spectacular production featuring spooky music and special projections over the castle. You definitely want to make room for this one!
The parade kicks off with the arrival of the headless horsemen. Jack Skellington leads the parade down Main Street, followed by a whole lineup of festive floats. The parade takes place at 2 times throughout the night, so you should have no problem catching at least one! During the other parade, take advantage of those low ride wait times!
Other special entertainment includes spooky songs by the Cadaver Dans (normally the Dapper Dans) of Main Street, special photo opportunities alongside your favorite Disney villains, and specialty themed treats. Some of the tasty treats you will find include: Pumpkin Lattes, Pumpkin Cheesecake, Pumpkin muffins, Halloween cake pops, Pumpkin Fudge, and so much more!
Main Street Pumpkin Festival
Main Street is transformed into a Jack O’Lantern Spectacular with festive pumpkin carvings and fall decor everywhere you look. At night time, you will find spooky projections on all the buildings. This is one of my favorite features of this event – I just wish I had more time to explore at night. It’s hard to enjoy all the festive lights at night with the parade and fireworks show.
During the day hours, there are so many great photo opportunities here, including a gigantic Mickey Mouse pumpkin as soon as you enter the park! Lots of great photos with the castle in the background! Really, it’s the picture-perfect setting for fall family or couple photos.
I would recommend this event over regular park admission if you are visiting this time of year. Even if you are not big on Halloween, you will still get to enjoy the benefits of shorter ride wait times for the rides, along with plenty of candy and treats.
Disneyland vs. Disney World? Which event is better?
Both parks are festively decorated for the season and feature festive extras such as a specialty seasonal themed fireworks show, a great parade, and more treats than you could ever imagine.
WDW’s Halloween celebration was a bit more festive with much more decor, better music, a better stage show (I love the Hocus Pocus spectacular!), and overall more of a vacation-y vibe versus the more local vibe of Disneyland in general. Plus, the castle is so much more spectacular at Disney World!
A few festive additions that Disneyland had over WDW included more elaborately themed rides, live scarecrows, and a spooky special fog covering the Rivers of America. In general, I find the Pirates of Caribbean, It’s a Small World, and The Haunted Mansion ride better at Disneyland. Also the amount of candy given out was astonishing – they really did not hold back at all!
Know before you go
*Guests are encouraged to wear costumes (check out special costume rules).
*Even though the event starts at 6, you can enter the park at 3. This extra 3 hours makes a big difference! During this time, crowds will be especially heavy, although you can still get on a few rides. Once the event begins, crowds disperse as festivities take center stage.
*Purchase tickets well in advance. This event sells out every year!
Tips for a smooth visit
*Save gift shop purchases until the end of the day. Don’t waste your pricey tickets spending all your time shopping! Guests of Disneyland hotels can send purchases directly to the hotel. This is a nice perk as you do not have to lug purchases around.
*Eat a big lunch before entering the park. This will buy you some time until you need to eat again.
*Save popular rides like The Haunted Mansion and Pirates for later in the evening when the lines will be shorter. Try to get on less popular rides from 3-6 as this is when the park will be incredibly overcrowded.
*Wear a camelbak so you do not have to waste any time and money searching for water bottles.
*Download the Disney Wait Times App. This convenient app allows you to plan your day around ride wait times so you can save more time for fun! I really love this app and use it constantly at both theme parks.
*Don’t skip around the park too much- try to concentrate on rides in the same area. Walking around too much really eats up time, plus wears down your feet!
*Have a basic plan in order. For example, decide which parade to see, plan 20 minutes out for the fireworks show, schedule an eating time, etc. Your day will run much smoother and you will have more time to see the shows and enjoy the rides you paid for!
*Plan some time during your L.A. vacation to enjoy the natural side of Socal. I really love hiking at the Griffith Observatory and within the beautiful Santa Mountains (Los Liones is amazing).
Dining in the Park
Check dining menus in advance so you do not have to waste valuable time searching every stand in the park and scanning endless menus. Keep in mind that a quick counter service restaurant will save you so much time over a sit down restaurant. I recommend saving the nice restaurant for before or after your park visit.
Galactic Grill is a nice quick service cafe in Tomorrowland with a diverse & affordable menu for everyone. The menu includes a great vegetarian wrap and also chicken salads and burgers for meat eaters. The food was delicious, especially the tasty fries!
What are the top rides?
You should have enough time to get on the majority of rides that are worthy of your time. In case you are limited on time, here are my top picks.
The winner for me is Big Thunder Mountain. It’s super scenic, fast, and fun. This is such a fun ride even if you are not big on rollercoasters as it is not super scary. It offers enough small drops, twists, and turns to make you want to ride this one over and over again! And you definitely can during the less crowded party. This is one of Disney’s top 3 rides in my opinion. The other two? Haunted Mansion and Pirates for sure!
More great rides to add to your itinerary
- Matterhorn Bobsleds
- Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters
- Indiana Jones Adventure
- Jungle Cruise
- It’s a Small World (you will have the song stuck in your head the whole day!)
- Alice in Wonderland
- Snow White’s Scary Advenetures
- Peter Pan’s Flight
Rides to Skip
- Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage – if you are at all claustrophobic, this is a definite skip!
- Autopia – This racetrack ride is a bit boring and outdated. There are many better rides to explore.
- Mark Twain Riverboat – A slow, boring ride that is not worth your time in my opinion.
- Pinocchio – similar to Peter Pan and Snow White, but not as entertaining.
- Astro Orbitor – the version at WDW is much better.
Event Info
Oogie Boogie Bash takes places on select nights from late September-through October. Prices vary based on the date. Check the Disneyland website for further details and a full lineup of times for all events.
