I am a big fan of Disney After Hours, and I am also a holiday person. When Walt Disney World announced that Disney Very Merriest After Hours would run instead of Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party this year, I knew that I wanted to go. I bought tickets for my daughter and myself the day that they became available.
We arrived right at 7:00 p.m., which is when you can enter with your ticket. The event itself runs from 9:00 p.m. until 1:00 a.m.
If you go, look for the turnstiles that are marked “Event Entrance”. There was a crowd waiting to enter the sold-out event, but things moved quickly.
Once inside we picked up a map and took a few pictures. A little while later we grabbed a spot for Disney Enchantment, which took place at 8:00. That’s one of the nice things about Very Merriest, you can see two different fireworks shows while you’re there.
Disney Very Merriest After Hours felt a lot like Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party, with a few elements missing. The lines for the rides were mostly short, although we did see a few Wait Times of 30 minutes or longer for some of the more popular rides.
It was much more crowded than the past Disney After Hours events, and it felt like more people than when we attended Disney Boo Bash After Hours. I don’t know if they sold more tickets or not. Even though there were more Guests there, the crowd was much smaller than a normal day in the Magic Kingdom.
We watched the trio Reindeer Wranglers and then found a spot for Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmastime Parade. The parade was wonderful to see, but I will admit that I think that the Character Cavalcades are much more convenient.
Mickey & Minnie’s Very Merry Memories is the stage show. It’s high energy, with great music. The show will not take place if the weather is bad. One of the shows during our event was canceled partway into it because it started to drizzle.
Ice cream novelties, popcorn, and bottled beverages are included in the price. There were plenty of kiosks set up to get treats.
There were also several spots where Guests could pick up Snickerdoodle Cookies and Hot Cocoa. There is an allergy-friendly version of the cookie available so that more people can enjoy an extra treat. There was no allergy-friendly cocoa.
My favorite part of Disney Very Merriest After Hours was the return of Minnie’s Wonderful Christmastime Fireworks Show. This debuted in 2019. I had only seen it once before, and it was even better than I remembered.
There are character sightings throughout the Magic Kingdom. It’s always fun to see characters, but the lighting left something to be desired. There are also extra MagicShots throughout the Park.
My daughter and I always try to end special events such as this with a ride on Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, and we continued our tradition. The posted time at 12:53 was 20 minutes, but we were off in ten. It was the perfect way to end a magical evening.
Disney Very Merriest After Hours is expensive, which is probably why there are still tickets available for several dates. Still, it’s four hours that are packed full of holiday cheer. We had a fantastic time, but only you can decide if it will be worth the price for your family.
