Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party Planning Guide | |||
General Info | Dates & Cost | Characters | Shows |
Rides | Dining |
Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party Guide
1. You can enter early!
The party festivities officially begin at 7pm sharp, but guests with a ticket to the party may enter using that ticket as early as 4:00pm. If you are using a regular Magic Way Ticket, you do NOT need to exit the park. There are locations that will allow you to scan your party ticket and receive your wristband while still in the park after 4pm. Some guests choose to relax at their resort and save a day on their park tickets. If you enter at 4:00, you might want to take in some headliner rides before the party starts.
2. Am I forced to leave the Magic Kingdom if I don’t have ticket?
Well, no one is going to grab your arm and pull you out, but once the party begins at 7pm, the Cast Members begin doing a sweep looking for those who don’t have wristbands. If you forgot to get your wristband, just go to the nearest station. If you wish to stay and attend the party, you can purchase a ticket at the front of the park, if it isn’t sold out.
3. I have dining reservations for 6:45 at Liberty Tree Tavern, can I eat, watch the parade and stay around?
NOPE. Once your meal is completed at a Table Service restaurant, you’ll be kindly escorted all the way to the front gate by and super nice Cast Member who will kindly remind you that you can purchase a ticket and stay around if you wish!
4. Make sure the little ones get an afternoon nap.
You feel like you can get them to soldier-on from 6:00am wake up to midnight, but you’re wrong. Your kids will become grumpy, demanding and even combative because they are tired! As a matter of fact, you probably will too! Don’t try to squeeze out every dollar of your vacation, get some rest!.
5. Don’t waste your precious party time.
You only get 5 hours of actual party time (8 hours total), so don’t waste that $15.00 per hour per person eating Table Service, riding things you can do anytime or waiting in line for cookies and hot cocoa. Get in line for 7 Dwarves or Princesses early! The line is usually pretty long for Dwarves by 6:15pm and the Princess with Prince line usually forms around 6:30pm.
6. Be prepared for cold weather!
It’s Florida, so you may feel safe with the weather forecast. My daughter and I attended the final party near Christmas last year and we were FREEZING. We had to purchase additional outer wear because it was so cold. The forecast low was 50 degrees, but it felt like the frozen tundra. Pack a coat in December, you might need it.
7. Bring a poncho
It has rained on at least half the parties I’ve attended. It’s often an hour or less, so they continue with the party. On rare occasions that both parades are cancelled, guest services may offer a refund or free park ticket. Be prepared for the fall monsoons, it is hurricane season in Florida during the early parties.

8. Watch the parade and fireworks.
These are two of the best entertainment options at Walt Disney World. I recommend seeing the SECOND parade because the crowds are lighter and view the fireworks between Casey’s Corner and the Tip Board on Main Street for the best view. The best spots always go early for these events. The schedules are on the Show schedule above.
9. Check out the Castle and Tomorrowland Shows
Both shows are well produced. The Castle show presents a more traditional Christmas type show, while the Tomorrowland version is far more comedic.
10. Dance the night away with Woody, Jessie & Bullseye or Stitch, Goofy, Pluto and Chip n Dale.
There are two great dance parties that allow you to dance with some of your favorite characters. They don’t sign autographs, but they are a lot of fun and may even pose for a photo.
Hello! We are hoping to attend December 9. We have six kids and we are trying to juggle the youngest seeing the parades/shows before she falls asleep. We also had hoped to visit the seven dwarves. What is the line like late at night if we just have the youngest asleep then? Also, do you think the Frozen hoopla willaffect the length of the dwarves’ line?
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I don’t chance the dwarfs late at night. It could be short, but it could also get cut early. Dwarfs will always be a really popular meet.
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Do you know when the snow starts on main street before the party?
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Typically as the party starts at 7:00pm
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Do you have a touring plan for the Christmas party or just the suggestions mentioned above? I’m a FL resident, but we’ve never been to Disney at Christmastime. I’m SO looking forward to surprising our 5 y.o. with an early Christmas present!
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I’ll be constructing touring plans for the parties this fall. In the meantime, check over the character information for priority characters.
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Have you ever gone to WDW in Nov? We are thinking about it but are scared its going to be super cold..I don’t know/what how to pack..lol
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Yes. I live here 🙂 Nov can have a little chilly nights, but days are pleasant. Bring a coat or hoodie. Weather outlooks are on my crowd calendar pages
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Hey Kenny, Have you heard any rumors about any new special characters for this year? I was thinking Olaf would be a cool (no pun intended) addition. Thanks!
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Too early to know who will appear. I doubt that Olaf will offer meet and greets
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Sorry if this is a really stupid question , but is this party require a totally different ticket than the regular park admission tickets? I’ve never been to DW and the more I read the more intimidating it becomes!
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Yes, MVMCP is a hard ticket event. http://kennythepirate.com/2013/05/01/mickeys-very-merry-christmas-party-dates-and-costs/
There’s links sort of near the top of the page with more info on the party too.
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So do I have to purchase a ticket to the park for that day even if I am only entering at 4pm for the party, or can I just purchase the ticket to the event if I plan to only enter the park at the time of the event at 4pm?
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Enter at 4pm or later with party ticket. If you attempt to enter earlier, you’ll need a regular day ticket.
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Do you know what time they stop allowing regular guests into the princess line at the new Fantasyland location on party nights? We will be in the Magic Kingdom on a few party nights (staying once for the actual party) and wanted to wait to see the princesses until the very end of our day so as not to loose valuable ride time. I’m wondering if people ever get lucky and catch the prince and princesses together because they got in line before it closed.
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No, people don’t get lucky and see the Princes without a wristband for a party. They can cut the line anytime from 6:00 to 6:45 depending upon how many people are in line.
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Are you being sarcastic when you mention the “super nice CM” escort out after a dinner reservation? Or in Disney-style, are they just really nice?
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They were very nice, just in a, direct sort of way
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Thank you for the reply. I am not at all trying to mooch any free party as we are attending it a different night. I completely intend to leave when we are done eating. I’m just trying to maximize our park time with the late dinner on an early-close night. I don’t want to be made to feel like I was doing anything wrong by being escorted out!
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No, not at all. That’s what we did that time too
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