Is Mickeys very merry christmas party worth the cost ?

[gueli]

Hi,
Going down at the end of november/start of december. I see that they have Mickeys very merry christmas party around that time.
For those of you have went, can you
1) tell me more about it
2) Did you have a good/ok/great time
3) Feel that it was worth the extra expense

Thank you in anticipation of your responses.

Mike
:mickey:

[DNS]

We went last November. We loved the special parade and fireworks. Also they give out Christmas cookies and hot chocolate. There is a snow machine on Main Street. That was pretty much it unless we missed something. We had a good time. I think it is worth doing once unless you are short on funds. I don't know that it is worth the extra cost more than once though. We probably won't do it again, but I'm glad we did it once.

[pokci]

We've done it twice in total. I'm not sure I would do it a third time. I liked the special shows and performances, the special fireworks, the Christmas parade and the fact that so many rides are open at night so it's a different way to see MK. They have regular and sugar free hot chocolate, regular and sugar free cookies and bags of apple slices. That's all included in the price. I would do it once, the snow effects are cool, but I'm not sure I would do it more than once, though we did!

[Strmchsr]

Check out the MVMCP page in Info Central for all the info and pictures.

It's worth it if you enjoy the special parade and shows, but not worth it just for riding rides.

It was definitely worth it once, but not sure we'd repeat the experience. Thought the MNSSHP was a much better party. You get most of the Christmas experience even without the party.

[last real pirate]

we did the christmas party on our last trip and i am really glad we did. we also got to walk on to almost any ride we wanted to while we were waiting for the fireworks. not sure if you are big into collecting mickey shirts but there are special shirts and trading pins that can only be bought during the party.

[markyv]

We have done the xmas party and the halloween party. The MNSSHP is definitely better. I am not going to say that we didn't have a good time at the xmas party, but it was a let down after attending the MNSSHP and we didn't feel we got our money's worth at all, and that was when the cost was only around $35.00.

[Lisa and Alan]

I've got to tell you we did the party last year for the first time and thought it was definitely not worth the $$. The attractions had short lines, the fireworks were nice and the parade with snow was beautiful. Our complaint is that there are limited special shows and if you didn't get to them early enough you didn't get in. For us it was a waste.

[deedeebee]

We have gone to both mnsshp and mvmcp and loved them both. It is well worth it. The parade was very good, they had "free" hot chocolate and cookies, dance parties at select locations and being in the park after dark was great. We also walked straight onto a couple of rides. it was a great time.:thumbsup:

[ryels]

My family of four went last November and thought it was great. We would definitely do it again some time. We loved the parade and fireworks. Unfortunately, we didn't get to see the other special shows, but that's because the ride lines were so short that we couldn't pass them up. I think next time we will ignore most of the rides and enjoy the other stuff instead.

[figgie]

DH and I love this and do it every year. It starts our holiday along with the Candlelight Processional at EPCOT and the Osbourn Lights at the Studios. I love the Mickey's Night Before Christmas show and the special holiday parade!

Count me a YES and pass the hot chocolate!

[Goes4FastPass]

If money is any sort of factor in your planning MVMCP is missable.

If you're on a WDW vacation with multi-day passes MVMCP is an expensive evening in the MK.

and I've never understood why people get so thrilled about those fahboo "free" cookies and hot chocolate.

[lightyearfan]

yes it's very worth the price, especially if this is your first time, me and dw loved it so much the first time that we had to go back a second year in a row, we would have done it again this year, but we're doing MNSSHP for the first time instead. they have 2 stage shows 1 in front of the castle, and 1 at the Galaxy Theater, the parade is tremoundos as is the fireworks.

you will enjoy it

Victor

[Goofy Pluto]

We went two years ago and we had a bad experience with MVMCP. It wasn't the fault of the party or the park or anything like that but we had two factors work against us: young children and rain.

The night we went to MVMCP it rained. Almost all night (or at least from about 9:00 to 11:00). It was the only time it rained during our whole trip. Really stunk.

On top of that, after spending the extra money to get in there, our two youngest, who were 1 and 2 1/2 at the time, both fell asleep around 8:30 which made it difficult for us to do any of the activities, show, or even the rides. One of us had to take our 5 yo to do things while the other stayed with the sleeping two and keep them out of the rain.

So, truth be told, I can't really tell you if you'd enjoy the party or not. Seemed like people were having fun and we did get to see the fun parade before the rain started (which is basically the same one you see on TV on Xmas morning). But the rained and sleeping kids damped the night for us.

BTW, did MNSSHP in 2001... HIGHLY recommend that. My wife and I had a blast doing that!

[jakeybake]

I think it's something that you have to experience at least once. I did it last December and was really happy that I did.

Would I go back and do it every year? Probably not but I am thrilled that I did it once.

There is a much more relaxed feel in the park once the non-MVMCP folks have left. like you are part of your own private party.

And if you have small kids then I think it's that much more enjoyable. The parade with almost every Disney character imaginable is a thrill a second for young kids. The looks on their faces when I was there was worth the price of admission alone, and I was on a solo trip without my kids so that should tell you something.

Definitely do it once and then judge for yourself if you would want to do it again.

Jay

[like2workout]

yes, yes, yes - definitely worth the extra ticket!! there are a lot of special events, but to me just being in that atmosphere with the park all decorated for Christmas, having it snow on main street, and having cookies and hot chocolate stops all throughout the part can't be beat!!!

[jakeybake]

Also, that cookies and cocoa thing, while a nice touch, is a short lived perk.

After 1 or 2 stops how many cookies can you eat and cocoa can you drink?

Now if they offered free Dole Whip stations then I'd never leave.................

Jay

[Giselle]

It was nice, but seems awfully expensive for a parade (very crowded to watch and it rained) and cookies and hot chocolate. We're going in Nov and I'm undecided as well.

[KODABEAR]

DH and I go every three years now our kids are grown. It's fun to get into the Christmas spirit watching the children enjoying themselves. Plus it's a great time to buy special gifts.:tree::santa2::snowman:

[mickeys_princess_mom]

There is a much more relaxed feel in the park once the non-MVMCP folks have left. like you are part of your own private party.
I love it! You feel like you are part of something special! :santa:

[gueli]

Thanks everyone. It seems like the majority say it is worth it ...many say just once.

I think we may try it, but I do not know if I should be flexible (by buying tickets when we are there) or wether the added expense (a think 5-10 $ per) is too much and we should book a soilid date.

I can see at least one advantage to buying when we are there- weather forcast.
any ideas ?
:mickey:

[Goes4FastPass]

...weather forcast.
any ideas ?
:mickey:

If going is really important to you waiting could put you in a sold out situation.

But MVMCP is anything but Merry in the rain.

The time we went in the rain was a night we would have stayed in our room had it not been a hard ticked event. It rained stedily all evening - not a summer cloudburst then it's over - it was a 'not tonight' evening.

[SueQ]

I say go!! I've been and probably would go again. I loved the parade, the cookies and hot chocolate and just the whole Christmasy feel to it. we had a blast when we went.

[Disneyglamour]

I went last year on December 18th which was the last night they offered it and WOW! is it worth it! If you're not in the Christmas spirit before you get there I guarantee you will be singing Christmas carols all the way home! There's just something about Christmas and Disney that go together so well! If you haven't been before, I encourage you to go. It's a great experience and well worth the money!

[swampfox28]

I did it once with my mom and my son who was 6 at the time.

The lines were still kind of long for us in that we were there in early December, so we had been used to short lines anyway; they didn't seem any shorter than they had been during the day - possibly a little longer.

It was also VERY warm, so instead of snow, they did bubbles during the parade. My son was really disappointed as he had never seen snow (we're from Louisiana) and even though we told him it was too warm for them to likely do snow, he still expected it and was sad when it didn't appear.

The parade route was REALLY crowded, but the parade was nice.

All in all I don't think we'd do it again for the price. It was nice to do once, I think, but if you're staying at WDW for a longer trip, I think the money would be better spent staying an extra day if that's feasible (as the daily admission tickets get cheaper per day the longer you stay).

I know a lot of people love it; perhaps you should try it once just to see...!


-Sarah

[DadTriton]

I'd say it depends if you a really into "deck the halls" or not. My family loves Christmas. It is our #1 holiday and we celebrate for a month. So we loved the MVMCP.
If you love special Christmas events - then you will think it is worth the price.

[Maleficent's Dad]

Wow, oh Wow, am I in the minority here...

MVMCP was completely not worth the money. And to be frank, we do not concern ourselves with expenses while in WDW. But this was a waste. Background - we were there in early December with a large family reunion group.

A few observations:
1. Lines for rides were shorter during the day
2. All "shows" were available for viewing during the day
3. The cookies were lame
4. The cocoa was water based (aka: lame)
5. Ealier parade was insanely crowded
6. Main Street, USA was insanely crowded
7. The younger set (kids) were not pleased, wanted to leave early, and didn't have the patience for the shows
8. Good luck trying to get to characters without waiting in line for 25+ minutes

The fireworks were great - excellent, really - but worth the price of admission? Nah.
The snow on Main Street was cool. The atmosphere was jolly. As the evening wore on, the crowds did diminish.

But was it over-rated? That would be a big fat resounding "yes!" And I, for one, was looking SO forward to the event.

Did it effect us financially? Not at all. But we just felt that Disney took some "extra money" from us to keep the park open later. Other days that same week, the Magic Kingdom was open late (EMH) and had Wishes. So for MVMCP, we felt ripped off.

I know I'm in the minority on this one, but I still long to find what the attraction is to this "party." The MK is just as festive during the day time in December. We won't attend MVMCP again on principle alone.

Should it be tried once? Probably! This way you could form your own opinion. But since you asked, this post gives you a pretty good idea of my opinion - which isn't overly positive. And it takes a lot for me to bash the Mouse! :mickey:

Now for "Christmas type events" that should put you in the mood, I would not miss the Candlelight Processional. That show is incredible!!!

[swampfox28]

Hehe

I wasn't quite as blunt (or as well-spoken), but I do agree with you.

But I've never seen the CP and now you've got me all curious...! Perhaps it'll be playing in November when we go (15-21)?! I need to go check!

_Sarah