Here is my brief writeup of our party last night, 10/15. It was NOT sold out, which was a relief after the horrible time we had last year. I was fairly anxious about everything going as planned since this was the first and likely time the hubster could come down with us. Our costumes were Robyn, Steve and Dustin from Stranger Things. We did not want to focus on rides or characters.
I'll timestamp this report for ease of reading and for me remembering
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3:00pm: Entered and got wristbands (we are DVC). Headed straight to get Sorcerer's cards. Went to Emporium to look for magicband but it was sold out.
3:15pm to 6:00pm: Fast passes and walk-on Big Thunder and Under The Sea. Got another fast pass for Pooh for 5:25 so that rounded out our roster (we had FP for Space, Pirates and HM so we wouldn't spend time in line for those later if they were too long).
6:00pm: Mobile Order at Pecos Bills. It was BUSY.
6:35pm: Changed into costumes. Saw tripods set up by the gazebo in Liberty Square and were able to get the Hitchhiking Ghosts and Hatbox Ghost photos at that time.
6:45pm: Went to Main Street and went through the Bypass for the starter bag and a little "atmosphere". On our way down Main Street, we got the Cauldron and Pumpkin shots from a photographer on Main Street. Then, we headed straight to Tomorrowland via Bypass.
6:50pm: Monsters Inc TOT station as confirmed as active at the entrance, so we went in there. The CMs were VERY generous with the candy all night, with huge handfuls at each stop.
6:55pm: Checked out Space but the line was already at 35 minutes. Did Buzz instead.
7:00pm to 7:35pm: TOT, Tea Cups with overlay, checked out the dance party inside Cosmic Rays, more TOT, and still more TOT (a theme with our kid).
7:35pm: Good spot for Hocus Pocus near the Partner Statue. This was followed by another TOT line.
8:35pm: Booted it to Liberty Square with the intention of getting a front row spot wherever we could. We actually found one a few steps from the first Adventureland pass-through so stayed there for exit strategy purposes. Walked up and down all the way to the parade start area and all other front row seats were taken. Looking back, we were very lucky and should probably have headed there an hour or so before.
9:40: As soon as the last float passed and the ropes were wound up, we scurried to the grassy area in front of Casey's. There were maybe four other groups there and kids were lying down and doing cartwheels. By 10:00pm, this area was quite full. I was worried that we would not be able to stand because everyone behind us was sitting to the last minute, but all of the people in the area got up when the lights dimmed.
10:35pm: Swam upstream to Tomorrowland but missed the sweet spot for Space so we did People Mover instead and got to see the overlay a bit that way.
We headed home after getting the last TOT visit at Monsters Inc and the Headless Horseman shot at the front.
Overall, it was definitely not crowded and we were able to get everything done that we had wanted to. I wish we all had the stamina to stay up later and get that last hour in at the party, but I certainly cannot complain about any portion of the night. The costumes were amazing this year and CMs were in a good mood (maybe because the party was not as crowded!) so the atmosphere was perfect. My costume was a bit big for me and scratchy but if that's the only thing I can complain about this year- I'll take it
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