What I love most about the MNSSHP is you get to see some of the characters that you otherwise wouldn't get to see on an average day in the park. Primarily, villains! Usually the only villain you're likely to see is Maleficent when she takes over the Dreams Come True! show on the Magic Kingdom stage everyday at noon, but at the MNSSHP they're everywhere, the Magic Mirror from Snow White even has it's own parade float complete with a "skeleton" band!
The MNSSHP starts off with a unique after-dark parade in Magic Kingdom theme park. Being as this was our first real parade viewing event (we usually skip them in order to get in the otherwise long lines), we scoped out our seats on the curb in front of the Liberty Tree Tavern about 45 minutes prior to the start time and trust me we were pushing it! I find that prime parade viewing spots are usually claimed about an hour or more before the parade starts, and special events are no exception and may even prove worse than a regular day. About 15 minutes later they began winding the rope around the curbs (the international sign to people without maps that a parade is about to begin!) to separate the crowd from the streets and after that you were lucky to get a spot 6 feet back, so long story short: get there early. Sidenote: at about this time a woman and her approximately two year old son began to maneuver their way towards us, stepping over about 2 dozen people in the process, and finally planting herself on top of my husbands foot. Now keep in mind we've been there for half an hour, and will continue to wait for at least another 40 minutes before the parade starts, we are the definition of the word "squished", and up until this point I have managed to coexist nicely with people that are so close to me I can see their dental fillings. ANYHOO, this woman has the nerve to knock several dozen people out of the way and plant herself right in front of the rope, using her 2 year old as a battering ram, and then to top it off she asks my husband to move his foot out of the place that it's been resting quite comfortably for the better half of an hour. We give each other a grimace and oblige, after all she has a little boy and we were more than happy to move out of the way for him. Then to my horror she pulls out one of the rainbow Mickey Mouse light sabers that they sell on the little street cars after the sun goes down and the little boy, just doing what kids do, begins to flail it around wildly, as though he's fighting off every Sith lord in the whole star system. Can you guess what happened next? I'll let you think about it. Ready? If your guess was that the light saber got introduced to my face, you were correct. It was a pretty sickening smack that caused the sequined Minne ears I was wearing to go flying off my head. I was astonished, and my husband looked on in horror with his mouth gaping open and a "Did that really just happen?" look on his face. So at this point I'm expecting Mom of The Year to apologize profusely or maybe tell Junior that swords aren't proper toys in super crowded areas, but no, instead I get a look that says "How dare your face scratch my precious little snowflakes $15.00 glow stick!" And so that was my first experience at a Disney parade! Luckily for me the kids dad was walking up as this happened and I'm not sure whether it was due to actual moral fortitude or my husband being 230 pounds of solid (315 pound bench pressing) muscle, but he politely told the little boy to put the sword away as the mother continued to scowl at me.
 |
| "Oh bother" |
Another great feature, with or without kids, is the trick or treating at the candy stations that are set up in specific places throughout the park. Most of the ones I went to were located inside shops that also featured larger portions of the free candy for sale, all of which was made by Goofy's Candy Company. This was convenient because if you happened upon a particularly delectable piece you could purchase it immediately without having to hunt it down. There is no limit to how many times you can visit each candy station, and they are just as generous to adults with no kids as they are to the little ones, which can actually save a pretty penny when it comes to having some extra snacks around. Usually my husband and I get a snack or two from the Confectionary every night to eat when we get back to our hotel room and after the NNSHP we are usually able to skip a day or two of this.
The Haunted Mansion is a must because they have all kinds of Halloween decorations, and it's such a special thing to see a classic Disney ride all dressed up for the season. During the MNSSHP they have actors outside the Mansion telling ghoulish tales or interacting with the audience atop the hearse that is stationed out front. If you're really not in to parades, then that is the time to get in line for the rides with the traditionally longer wait times. Only select rides are open during the MNSSHP so I would suggest making sure you know which ones they are so you avoid unnecessary walking. This might be the time to hop on Peter Pan's Flight, as the line for that ride always seems to be in triple digits especially if you're there during the summer.
 |
| Cinderella's Coach in Fantasyland |
We'll be back at WDW in 16 days and plan on attending not only one, but two MNSSHP's! I really look forward to seeing how much has changed in the last three years, what has been added, and what has been done away with. But one thing is for sure, it will be magical and wonderful, and something completely worth spending the extra scrapbooking money on!
