We were at the FIRST night of Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party for 2023, and we learned and experienced a LOT!
Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party
We met characters, watched fireworks and parades, visited dance parties, shopped merchandise, and scoured the park for all the free cookies and cocoa we could find. So what do you need to know if you’re going to the party this year? We’re sharing some warnings after we attended the first night!
It Was CROWDED
The first thing you should know about night one of Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party (MVMCP) is that it was BUSY! The party was sold out, but our team agreed that it still felt busier than some other sold-out parties we’d been to in the past. The crowds were particularly evident when trying to watch entertainment.
Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party 2023!
We had to stake out spots for the fireworks and parade well in advance, and while we usually advise our readers to go to the second parade of the night for lower crowds, even THAT one was packed! Main Street, U.S.A., and the castle hub area were pretty busy throughout the whole night as well — definitely not empty like an After Hours event.
Character Waits Can Get Really Long
If you’re going to MVMCP with the hope of meeting rare characters, you’re definitely going to need a game plan. Many of the character lines can get quite long during the event, especially for rare meets like Jack and Sally from The Nightmare Before Christmas. Their line was 2 hours long before the party even started.
Santa Jack!
Other characters that had long waits throughout the night? Winnie the Pooh and friends in Fantasyland, the Disney Princesses meeting with their princes, and the characters in the Dumbo queue, which included Minnie, Daisy, Donald, and Scrooge McDuck. The Seven Dwarfs can also be very popular (they meet at Pete’s Silly Sideshow), but we managed to get them with just a 20-minute wait before the first parade.
Construction Was a Problem
During the first night of the party, there was a construction issue. Disney is getting ready to film the holiday special, which means they’ve got hedges blocking off the area in front of Cinderella Castle. The stage was still able to be used as normal, but it was a challenge to get a good view for Mickey’s Most Merriest Celebration!
Hedges up around the castle
This typically happens for a few parties every year, but it was especially a bummer that it was set up this way for the first night. Once filming is complete, things should go back to normal — however, Disney hasn’t shared when they’ll be done. So it looks like we’ll be stuck like this for a couple of days!
They Got Rid of an Entertainment Option
If you were a fan of the A Totally Tomorrowland Christmas stage show, we’ve got some sad news! Rockettower Plaza Stage isn’t hosting that show this year, instead replacing it with a boy band group called The Collective 5ive.
The Collective 5ive
We really enjoyed the boy band and their performances, but we definitely miss seeing Stitch, Mike, Buzz Lightyear, and others on the stage! In between shows for The Collective 5ive, you can still enjoy the Club Tinsel dance party over here.
So there you go — our biggest warnings for anyone going to Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party this year! We’ll keep you in the loop with any more tips that you need to know.
Click Here for Our Guide to the Party!
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Are you going to MVMCP this year? Tell us in the comments!
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And they didn’t decorate the castle which used to be stunningly beautiful with all the ‘ice’ lights.
Typical Disney. When they started the Christmas party years ago you got the benefit of low crowds and were able to get on many rides. Now, just like everything else they are overselling just to get more revenue and are taking away all of what was supposed to be a magical experience. We are going the first week of December I really hope it is better than you describe.
I would bet that the “first night really crowded” issue is because of locals or others who plan to go more than once. Many years ago the week between Christmas and New Years was a good time to go due to low attendence, but I suspect that is no longer true.