Halloweentime
 

I was pretty enthralled with this year's Halloweentime offerings.

The fireworks show is really fun. Pretty exploding sky things matched to often cheesy but enjoyably upbeat arrangements of appropriate Disney and Nightmare Before Christmas tunes. The groovy version of Poor Unfortunate Souls was an especial favorite.

I have really enjoyed the two short-run pyro follow-ups to the overlong-running Remember. Nice shells, with some cool new effects, good pyrography and entertainment have marked both Magical and the new show, Halloween Screams. The big Orb to the left of the Castle is an especially good element of the Halloween show. They don't have to be masterpieces if they run only a month or two. On that basis alone, Halloween Screams is a smashing success. It's totally fun and beautifully pretty.

Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy is fun as well. Also kinda cheesy, but good-humored and also fine for a month's run every year. Hopefully, some of the effects will be improved in years to come. It's basically just a series of projections, and some of them come off better than others. A few are really funny. None of it scary, I'd venture, to anyone tall enough to ride Space Mountain.

The outside sound and lighting treatment is a different story. Spooky, creepy, moody, and fantastic. Nightime only ... so view it after dark. There's a special "gag" about every 7 minutes or so. We watched for over half an hour without seeing any one of the them twice. I have no idea how many there are, but I intend to watch far longer next time. It's mesmerizing. And I plan to join the Standby Queue just to get the close-up view from the upper deck.

A total WIN.


Rounding out the entries ... new lighting on the big Mickey Pumpkin in Town Square that goes from Orange to Blue. The Main Street pumpkins are still cool. Nice intermittant lighting on Small World (but catch that quick -- it goes dark for Xmas overlay prep before Halloweentime ends).

And though the Haunted Mansion overlay has worn out its welcome with me, the exterior of the Mansion is always spectacular this time of year. I'd rather have HM Classic at Halloween, but the Nightmare version is another fun change for the season.

The new Disney Gallery located in the old Main Street Bank building is nicely done (though I don't like it nearly as much as the original locale). There's some wonderful Haunted Mansion artwork in there to complement the season.


Murphy the Dragon is really plussing Fantasmic. I saw her breathe fire for the first time. And while I knew that would make all the difference in the world, I was not prepared for how unbelievably AWESOME it was. A Fantasmic campout is needed in the nearish future.

All in all, a full evening's fun of one Halloween thing after another. I was delighted. And I intend to return for more.

I was enjoying all the Tweets over the weekend on this. It sounds like a must-see.

I'ma go cry now. SO jealous.

And yeah, the Tweets were killing me. Wanna go real bad.

With the exception of the GAWDAWFUL Jack Skellington voice in the fireworks, two thumbs up from me. BJ and I shall be hitting the park sometime next week after work just so he can see all of the stuff.

Yeah, lots of "WINS!" for Halloween this year. The show by Small World is fun also as an alternative to the Castle. Enjoyed it all.

Lemme know when you do! Be advised that the park closes earlyish M-F.

Agreed on the fireworks. So much fun! Plenty of new life in those reworked songs, plenty of fun new shapes in the sky. The fast pacing was genius, I thought. No sleepy middle section like you sometimes get. Poor Unfortunate Souls was hilarious - I've never heard "so sad" sung so happily. My fav was the reworking of GGG that sounded like the singing busts formed a boy band. :D Just this side of campy and "fun for the kids". Loved it.

I have a coworker who didn't like the fireworks. After I saw them I told her my opinion, and mentioned the projection balloon thing. She was confused and we realized that wherever she was standing, it must have been out of her view (she said Plaza Inn, so I guess a tree got in the way or something). Make sure you can see to the left of the castle, as Maynard warned us in our Gallery visit.

Love the Bank Gallery too, btw. The interior is gorgeous and the offerings are worth a look. The new locale needs something though....hmmm....perhaps a courtyard?

Must go back for Murphy, though we might have to wait until November, due to blockout days and Mickey's trick or treat thing, which I heard was so insane on last Friday night that they were parking people at the Anaheim Convention Center. :eek:

Does anyone know- have the fireworks been going last fri, sat, & sun? I haven't been hearing them and it's been windy.

I tried to make it all three days, but didn't. I'm going to try again this fri. (or sat or sun, depending).

And is sat usually busier than fri? Sounds like last ffri was so bad, makes me wonder.....

Yes, someone knows.

Yes, they ran Friday, Saturday and Sunday with no problems.

We'll be there Friday, Saturday and part of Sunday with friends. I hope we can catch fireworks one night. We're also scheduled for the Halloween tour on the 24th which should be fun.

The fireworks were awesome! We didn't get on Spooky Space Mt but we did get on Mansion thanks to some gifted fast passes. I hope we get to go back!

Heheh, we had nifty gifty Haunted Mansion fastpasses, too. Otherwise, we would never have done it. But it made the whole night so completely Halloween themed. Loved it. And I am certainly going back.

You MUST also. Spooky Space Mountain was the highlight. So simple, and yet the best thing of the Halloween offerings.

I agree so much with iSm's first post in this thread! A few other thoughts about Halloween Time:

-- The pumpkin carvers in Big Thunder Ranch are amazing. Definitely worth checking out in the daytime hours. Last weekend, there were some very creative pumpkin carvings of Cinderella, Monsters Inc., and other Disney characters.

-- Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy: The visuals of space entities following your rocket and reaching out to seemingly grab you are better than expected -- and a major improvement over the awful "Rockin' Space Mountain." But the lighting-and-sound effects outside the Space Mountain dome at night are truly a must-see, up close. Even if you do not plan to ride Space Mountain, it's worth the effort to enter the standby line just to get on top to truly experience the multiple effects, which are spread out over time.

-- Jack Skellington and Sally from "The Nightmare Before Christmas" appear occasionally around New Orleans Square for photo opps in the daytime. It's very cool, since we do not get a chance to see them throughout the year.

I wish I could make it before this goes away. Maybe they'll do something similar next year and I'll be able to visit while it's on.

Halloween Time at DL was awesome and make our Halloween stuff here in DLP very very bad . I miss DL already !!!!!!! Should i book another flight to LAX ? lol just kidding

I don't know, your Pumpkin people are pretty cool, and the Phantom Mannor is really extra creepy.

Thanks, you're a big help!

Thanks, that helps a lot!

I was worried that if the weather kept them from showing, then this weekend would be real crowded.

So, I'm doing a Halloweeny weekend. Friday, DL with HMH, fireworks, and all. Saturday seeing Zombieland. Sunday Knotts Halloween Haunt (with VIP dinner tickets). I'm gonna be a zombie come Monday morning, I tell ya!:eek: :eek:

Hey: he answered your question! What more do you want?


:D

Are you frelling kidding me?! Um, unless something drastic happened in the last 5 years, DLP has the best Halloween stuff EVER.

OMG, I'm so glad Isaac talked me into going. I was astounded and delighted and awed.

Yeah, we have fireworks now. But seriously, it would take decades of the incremental Halloween steps the original Disneyland is taking to catch up to where Disneyland Paris was half a decade ago.

What ISM said - tell me it hasn't changed please - there was no better theme park experience than Halloween at DLP

I THIRD the DLP Halloween experience. The Parade alone was pumpkinheads above anything we have here.

I only saw pics of DLP Halloween and will say it rocked - those pix alone made me want to go.

I also loved the Halloween at DLP, and hope things are still up to their higher standard.

It's Halloween-o-ween everybody.....

:(

My cheese is sad....

I couldn't get into to DL last night to see the fireworks because they closed the gates due to being "full". My Halloweeny weekend plans have been ruined...

:rolleyes:

I got turned away as well. But I waited, and right at 9 they started flipping the signs over from "Same Day Re-Entry" to "Entry." And so I entered.

I wanted to see the fireworks from IASW. Fun projections on the facade, but it doesn't at all live up to the front of the Castle view.

I was happy to find a new CD of the old Haunted Mansion Story Record at the music shop. I used up the last of my birthday "fun card" for that, and a replacement for my Nightmare Before Christmas CD. When I mixed my Halloween playlist for my iPod, I discovered that my NBC CD was all skippy-jumpy. So, thanks Disneyland, for 2 new T-shirts and 2 CDs for my birthday!

Yeah, Halloweentime is an understandable hit. I'm pleased at the response, and of course also dismayed. It means a convenient weekend re-visit is not gonna happen. But I WILL make one more stealth visit during the week in the hopes of avoiding summertime maximum hassles and turnaways.


Does anyone know what weekday hours are? :iSm:

We'd planned to go today, but apparently I needed to take the day to cough up a lung. Hopefully I'll manage to cough it up in its entirety today and we can go tomorrow, Sunday. Apparently I have Monday off, so it's a rare day of Sunday frivolity for me.

A word of advice: avoid nights that are also DCA Halloween party nights. And avoid Fridays.

24 per day: same as the weekends

I thought they were shorter now, 'cause of the time change. Wait, is this a leap year? Does that make a difference?

Yes, this is what I found out yesterday. My cheese is now happy as I went to see Zombieland (VERY funny!) and then we got in to see the fireworks (GREAT show!). Apparently, when DCA closes early for the party most of those people crowd into DL (those bastages!;) ). So watch which days DCA closes early and avoid the evenings at DL then. Particularly Fri. & Sat. nights.

So, my Halloweeny weekend was spared, and tonight is the Haunt at Knott's with the VIP Boo-fett before hand for some Mrs. Knott's chicket. :snap:

So I finally got to see the fireworks in their entirety while not working. Me likey.

Well if there are no late hours weeknights, my plan is to make my 2nd and final Halloweentime visit this coming Sunday the 18th

One of my friend's friends is coming down from SF to celebrate their b-day in the Park on Sunday. They invited me along. How could I say no?

Disneyland closing times through the end of October (thanks to this page):

• Mon-Thur: 9:00 p.m. except
  • Thursday 10/15 when it closes at 11:00 p.m.
  • Tuesday 10/27 when it closes at 5:00 p.m.)
• Fri-Sun: Midnight

DCA closing times through the end of October:

• Tue 10/13: 6:00 p.m.
• Wed 10/14: 6:00 p.m.
• Thur 10/15: 5:00 p.m.
• Fri 10/16: 6:00 p.m.
• Sat 10/17: 10:00 p.m.
• Sun 10/18: 9:00 p.m.
• Mon 10/19: 6:00 p.m.
• Tue 10/20: 6:00 p.m.
• Wed 10/21: 5:00 p.m.
• Thur 10/22: 5:00 p.m.
• Fri 10/23: 6:00 p.m.
• Sat 10/24: 10:00 p.m.
• Sun 10/25: 9:00 p.m.
• Mon 10/26: 6:00 p.m.
• Tue 10/27: 8:00 p.m.
• Wed 10/28: 5:00 p.m.
• Thur 10/29: 5:00 p.m.
• Fri 10/30: 6:00 p.m.
• Sat 10/31: 6:00 p.m.

Writing a holiday-themed MouseAdventure during HalloweenTime is proving to be... interesting.

Like trying to figure out if Nightmare Before Christmas fits better for Halloween, or Christmas?

Christmas.

Halloistmas

Thanksmasweenakah.

Yes