Halloween at Disneyland isn’t just for kids! Grown ups can enjoy it, too, and we think it is even more fun attending as an adult. There are no restrictions on how late you can stay up or how many trick or treating lines you can go through!
We visited Disneyland during Halloween season for the first time last year and had an amazing time. We even splurged and purchased tickets to Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. If you are thinking of going to Halloween, here are some of the things we loved about this time of year at Disneyland.
Decorations
Disneyland is always a magical place when it comes to how it is themed. It feels like you are in another world and not in the middle of one of the largest city areas in our country. Halloween takes the park to an entirely new level of amazing! The best part is that the decorations aren’t scary.
It starts with the big Mickey Pumpkin on Main Street. This is a great place to get a photo either with your camera or by the PhotoPass cast member.
The pumpkin alone makes the Halloween atmosphere, but there is so much more! The entire park is decked out in fall leaves, pumpkins, and lights.
Even Downtown Disney and the hotels are festive with pumpkins and singers.
To see all the decorations remember to look up! Disney does an amazing job at decorating even the higher spots in the parks.
Disneyland California Adventure also gets in on the spirited action now, and the entrance and Cars Land are the most notable. The entrance has Oogie Boogie overseeing all those who enter.
In Cars Land the various attractions have their own automobile themed Halloween decor.
Lightning McQueen, Mater, and Red join in the fun in their Halloween costumes. Photo opportunities with the Cars characters are available, but they are not PhotoPass. They use your camera, or phone camera, to take the pictures.
Disney covers nearly every inch of both parks with Halloween themed items, and that includes the food!
Themed Food
Halloween themed food at Disneyland has become much more popular with the rise of social media.
Disney now focuses on making food that is Instagram-able. Halloween is no exception.
Although specialty themed foods for Halloween vary by year, one can typically find both sweet and savory treats with a Halloween twist. One of the savory treats from 2018 was the Spicy Pepper Jack Dog with blackberry sauce, sweet pineapple salsa, pickled serranos, and crushed cheese puffs.
Even the drinks get in on the action, like this Supernatural Spirit made with Cotton Candy Vodka and Cotton Candy Lemonade.
To round out a Disneyland Halloween trip, if you feel like a splurge, the Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party (Or Oogie Boogie Bash if you go this year) is worth attending at least once.
Mickey’s Not So Scary Party!
The Halloween party to top all Halloween parties! It is fun. It is perfect for all ages. Adults can be kids again!
Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party is a special ticketed event. Disneyland, or this year California Adventure, is closed from about 7PM on to the general public on party evenings and only open to those who have tickets. We splurged in order to celebrate my husband’s birthday, which is in October.
Treat Trails
If you have a sweet tooth and love candy, this is the event for you! There are multiple trick or treating lines and you can easily fill the bag they give you full of yummy sweets. They have bins of candy ready for the eager trick or treaters.
This trick or treating line took us through The Golden Horseshoe where the customers that night were skeletons dressed in their best western attire.
Of course, there is much more to see, and special shows and lights for the event make it very festive.
Special Shows
Disney does an amazing job when it comes to spectacular, and different, shows. They are known for their incredible firework displays and light shows. Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party is no exception to the rule. Disney goes all out with lights and performances. Both Sleeping Beauty Castle and Small World get lit up.
The fireworks show is tremendous, and even though we watched from the other side of the castle and didn’t see the projected show on the castle, we still saw Zero fly through the sky.
The Cadaver Dans also make an appearance to the delight of everyone at the party. Viewing is best right up front, and party goers start to gather a good 30 minutes or prior to the show.
There is much more to the party, such as character meet and greets, shorter lines for rides, special food, and of course admiring costumes! The great thing about this party is that Disneyland does not allow gory costumes. They must be family friendly. Many come dressed as their favorite Disney character.
Thoughts
Halloween, next to Christmas, is my husband’s favorite time of year. It has a lot to do with the fact that his birthday is in October. Since this was our first time doing Halloween at Disneyland it was perfect for celebrating his birthday! Disney knows how to do Halloween. It is fun for all ages. As adults it was a scream…in a good way! Halloween abounds in everything in the park. We enjoyed the decorations, lights, shows, most of the food, and loved how even the characters get into the season with costumes. Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween party is worth every penny at least once. So, let your kid side out and enjoy Halloween the Disney way!
