Saturday, October 19, 2013

Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party

I have patiently waited 5 years to attend Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party (MNSSHP). My twins were only three years old when we moved to Orlando, and I did not want to take them to this special ticketed event until I thought they could stay up late enough and actually enjoy the festivities.  My girls did such a great job with the fireworks at the Magic Kingdom this summer, I decided this was the year to finally attend MNSSHP for the first time.  


We entertained ourselves taking selfies in the car on the drive to Walt Disney World.  I wore my cat ears and a black dress for MNSSHP.  I forced my girls to wear costumes, so I thought I should join in too.  MNSSHP starts at 7PM and ends at midnight, but you can use your ticket to get into the Magic Kingdom at 4PM.  We paid $62/adult and $57/child to attend the party.  On select nights, you can receive a military, DVC (Disney Vacation Club), or Annual Passholder Discount, but not the Friday night we chose to go. 


We used our MNSSHP ticket to get into the Magic Kingdom around 5:00 and headed straight to Columbia Harbour House for dinner.  This is the first time I have seen the new special diets menu.  I could choose from Amy's Mac & Cheese, Allergy Chicken Tenders, Grilled Salmon, or the Garden Harvest Salad with Chicken. I hope in the future that all Disney restaurants will have menus like this! 


When I go to Columbia Harbour House, I have to get the gluten free chicken tenders.  I have been enjoying this meal at the Magic Kingdom for the last 5 years.  I remember when they used to bake them for me and it took about 20 minutes to prepare.  Now, they are made in a dedicated fryer and only take an extra 5 minutes.  The chicken tenders and fries are also dairy, soy, and egg free.  They are the same price as the adult chicken nuggets we ordered for our daughters.  They had 8 nuggets compared to my 5 chicken tenders, but my gluten free chicken tenders were bigger.  I also ordered an OMG...It's Gluten Free Fudge Brownie.  I was a happy camper eating my delicious gluten free chicken tenders, fries, and brownie! 


After dinner, we headed over to the Haunted Mansion.  It has become a tradition to take a picture of my girls with the Haunted Mansion twins.  Only one of mine was cooperating with the frownie face I asked for.  Many of the cast members at the Haunted Mansion had on special make-up for MNSSHP. 


The only other attraction we rode before MNSSHP was Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.  I was hoping to ride it in the dark, but we were too busy trick-or-treating and watching the parade and fireworks.


I had to visit one of our favorite photo spots at the Magic Kingdom, the sleigh in front of Ye Olde Christmas Shoppe. 


After hitting some trick-or-treat locations and the trick-or-treat trails, we stopped in at Gaston's Tavern for some LeFou's Brew, which is gluten free and dairy free. 


Mickey's Boo-to-You Halloween Parade was so much fun!  We managed to snag some chairs at the top of the train station on Main Street to watch the parade and fireworks.  The parade starts off with the Headless Horseman, and he is amazing!!!  I was bummed I did not get a good picture of him!  


After the Celebrate the Magic show on Cinderella's Castle, the Happy HalloWishes fireworks spectacular started.  The fireworks rivaled Disney's 4th of July Concert in the Sky.  The music and the fireworks were amazing! I was shocked at how empty the park was at the point. 


There were long lines at City Hall on Main Street U.S.A. for most of the evening, but right before the fireworks started, I stopped in to ask about gluten free candy.  They provided me with a small bag of chocolate bats and pumpkins from Vermont Chocolates.  I was really impressed by the quality of the chocolate.  My daughters and I thought they were delicious!  


Here's a picture of the candy I received while trick-or-treating around the park.  Some of them appear on gluten free candy lists -- M&M's plain and peanut (I ate the peanut ones during the parade), Snickers, Laffy Taffy, Butterfinger, and Tootsie Rolls.  I was sad to see that the Peeps had a  "may contain wheat" statement on the package. 

So, is Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party worth it?  Absolutely!  I have been to the Christmas party twice, and this is by far the better event.  We loved the decorations, trick-or-treating, the parade, and the fireworks.  This is an event that should not be missed if you are in Orlando in September or October. 






1 comments:

  1. so glad to see this! i'll be going to mnsshp in a few weeks and was wondering if there were any gluten free options. thanks so much!

    ReplyDelete