Disney in late October

[Patsy Baloney]

I think...like...88.2% sure, that I have convinced my husband to take a 5-ish day trip to Disney at the end of October, just us, to celebrate our 10th anniversary. 

We went as a family a few years ago and had an absolute blast. H has been wanting to go back just us, I've always wanted to go around Halloween, so thank you for sitting through my PowerPoint presentation on why we should go to Disney in October 

Anyway, if you've been in October, tell me about it! 

We'd probably be there Oct. 20-25. We would do the MNSSHP, which I've read gets more crowded as the month goes on, but I'll punch someone out if I don't get a pic with Jack and Sally and see the Sanderson Sisters while we're there. I've also read October can get pretty crowded in general, but I'm thinking since we're 2 adults, crowds will be annoying but not horrendous since we won't be navigating with kids. 

I also know no Epcot on the weekends. We're not huge fans of that park beyond the major rides (ok, ok, Soarin') and I know major construction is coming, but my H is crazy about Ratatouille, so we'll be swinging by France at the very least. Is Food and Wine during the week a hellscape or fun? I think part of the reason why we don't love Epcot is because we just haven't found the right places to be. The world showcase turned into a big circle walk of nothing. What are we missing? Where are the rides?

The last time we went, Toy Story Land and Galaxy's Edge weren't open - Hollywood Studios is my favorite park (ToT + PB 4Ever) so I'm soooooooooo excited for all of that. I haven't done a lot of research on the Star Wars stuff, but I know we'll probably be all-in on it. This is the way. Any predictions on if boarding groups will still be around for Rise of the Resistance? Am I going to need to ask a family who was quick on the refresh to adopt me when I don't get in a boarding group? 

Animal Kingdom - when we went, Flight of Passage was impossible to get on. Is it still like that, or has the new stuff taken some of the crush off of that?

I dunno, man. Tell me everything you know so I can bump that 88.2% up!

[Patsy Baloney]

OH and I need costume inspiration for MNSSHP!

[mccallister84]

We were there 10/9-10/16 last year. My only really tidbit was that people started lining up for Jack and Sally hours before the Halloween party started.

[Patsy Baloney]

Feb 26, 2020 14:18:50 GMT -5 mccallister84 said:

We were there 10/9-10/16 last year. My only really tidbit was that people started lining up for Jack and Sally hours before the Halloween party started.

Hours? Looks like I may be punching someone out. Sorry, H. 

[mccallister84]

Feb 26, 2020 14:30:55 GMT -5 Patsy Baloney said:

Feb 26, 2020 14:18:50 GMT -5 mccallister84 said:

We were there 10/9-10/16 last year. My only really tidbit was that people started lining up for Jack and Sally hours before the Halloween party started.

Hours? Looks like I may be punching someone out. Sorry, H. 

Yes. We were in line for Tinker Bell around 2:30 and people were already lining up since the queue is right next to TB. The party didn’t start until 6 IIRC.

[Covergirl82]

Loved it! We went in 2016, the week where October and November overlapped. The weather was great. DH and I also went on a long weekend, just us, in late October the next year just to go to the F&WF, and it was my favorite trip the two of us have taken.

I would recommend checking out the concert schedule for Epcot, as they have some well known acts perform at the stage in the Worlds.

[nsl]

The weather was absolutely amazing during my trip from October 16-20 last fall. Seriously, I will never do Disney during the summer again after experiencing both fall and early spring there.

Re: MNSSHP, the one my BFF and I attended during our girls tri was sold out and uncomfortably crowded. We didn't want to meet any characters, but the ride lines were just as long as during a regular non-party evening. I was deeply unimpressed.

Food and Wine during the week wasn't bad at all. We stood in 5-10 minute lines max, even at the most popular booths. I think that if wandering World Showcase left you cold then Epcot may just not be the park for you in general. I absolutely love the atmosphere there--it's less about doing rides and more about enjoying ambiance.

You still need a fast pass for Flight of Passage unless you want to stand in an multi-hour line. I've never had trouble getting one at 7:00 am sixty days out, but if you're not staying on property it's probably much harder to get at thirty days.

[Patsy Baloney]

nsl did you do MNSSHP on the weekend or during the week? I was hoping that maybe if we did it during the week it would only be mildly nuts-to-butts, but maybe I should prepare for nuts and butts as far as the eye can see 😂

I feel like I surely must be missing something at Epcot, usually because we’ve gone with children. Maybe when I’m not hearing, “Moooom where’s Jasmiiiiine?” the whole way around the circle, it will be more enjoyable.

[Patsy Baloney]

Covergirl82 vaccinate yourself and your kids for the flu.

[nsl]

Feb 26, 2020 20:18:52 GMT -5 Patsy Baloney said:

nsl did you do MNSSHP on the weekend or during the week? I was hoping that maybe if we did it during the week it would only be mildly nuts-to-butts, but maybe I should prepare for nuts and butts as far as the eye can see 😂

I feel like I surely must be missing something at Epcot, usually because we’ve gone with children. Maybe when I’m not hearing, “Moooom where’s Jasmiiiiine?” the whole way around the circle, it will be more enjoyable.

We did it on a Friday night, which obviously did not help, but the Thursday party the night before sold out as well.  The Disney blogs I read all said the same things about last year's parties, namely that they were more crowded than previous years' had been and that they suspected that the attendance cap had increased by quite a bit.  Even so, it was an unpleasant surprise to wait in a 40 minute line for Haunted Mansion during the fireworks.  We wound up going back the next afternoon and had a much better time with low crowds during the 3 hours before the party started. 

[Patsy Baloney]

Hmm, thanks for the party input. We’ll wait and see what crowds are like this year. The more I google, the more I see people saying they’re way too crowded to be worth the cost. That’s a bummer that they’re not managing crowds well enough or appropriately capping the event.

Someday, Jack and Sally. Someday.

[alleinesein]

Patsy Baloney If you really want to meet Jack and Sally, skip WDW and go to Disneyland. They are normal meet and greet characters for us for a good portion of the year (Halloweentime-early January). Having Haunted Mansion Holiday gives them a reason to have them out more often.

World Showcase at EPCOT has never been about rides; its about dining and entertainment. So if you aren't into the entertainment offered, you aren't going to find much to do.

Galaxy's Edge- do your research before you go. Currently, they only offer FPs for Smugglers Run. Rise of the Resistance is boarding pass only and it might stay that way for awhile; if you dont get a boarding group, you dont get to ride and you cant piggy back onto another group. The boarding pass is linked to your park ticket and you can only add people to your boarding party if they are scanned into the park. I can answer general questions about Batuu/Black Spire Outpost; the lands are identical on each coast and I've been to the one at Disneyland 20+ times.

[Covergirl82]

Feb 26, 2020 20:24:36 GMT -5 Patsy Baloney said:

Covergirl82 vaccinate yourself and your kids for the flu.

Maybe I missed something, but how is this related to a comment on this thread??

[Patsy Baloney]

Covergirl82, a few things -

You posted in this thread and I remembered that it was you who was advising against, or at least saying it was silly to vaccinate for, the flu, due to 50% effectiveness (I'm paraphrasing, but I know you know what you said, so nbd). Conversations on message boards don't happen in a vacuum, and to my knowledge, you never went back to the thread to comment further, so I took the opportunity to follow-up.

Second, Disney World is a big place with lots of germs, and its California counterpart was involved in a measles case not too awfully long ago, due to low vaccination rates. Your insistence against the flu vaccine is a good reminder to wash hands a lot while we're in Disney during cold and flu season!

Third, I felt like once again encouraging you to vaccinate yourself and your children against the flu and stop pushing natural remedies as the only way to fight the flu. They aren't, and there are effective vaccines that can work in tandem with other remedies. Vaccinating doesn't just protect you, it protects others.

Anyway, here's Wonderwall.