Bridget Waldman | @californiadisneybliss
Disneyland After Dark events are themed ticketed parties filled with quintessential Disney magic! These festive evenings are typically held in the springtime in either Disneyland or Disney California Adventure after the parks close to the general public. I love attending all of these fun celebrations and here are my top reasons why:
A Unique Experience
Each After Dark event is four hours long and is packed will unique offerings you won’t experience during a regular park visit. The event is closed to the general public. You also get into Disneyland three hours before the party begins and you don’t need to make a park reservation!
Going to a Disneyland After Dark event means you get to have fun in a nearly empty park. Tickets for the events go on sale on Disneyland’s website a few months before the event and are limited. These events usually sell out and offer a chance to enjoy the park with a very low crowd. Most attractions are open and have low wait times or you can just walk right on and experience the ride! There have been many After Dark I have attended where I got to ride an attraction over and over without even getting out of my seat!
Fun Themes
All Disneyland After Dark events are geared to a specific theme. Previous years have featured fun themes like Sweethearts Nite, Star Wars Nite, 80s Nite, and more. The park has themed décor displayed and Sleeping Beauty Castle even gets a new look for the night. Each guest receives a special themed park map and a lanyard which they can take home as a keepsake, and sometimes special themed merchandise is available too!
At these events adults are allowed to dress up in costume which makes the experience even more fun! For 80s Nite, my husband and I dressed up in ridiculous outfits and had such a blast dancing up a storm in our 80s gear!
Characters and Photo Ops
Disneyland After Dark parties feature characters that wear unique costumes and who are normally not in the parks. At Princess Nite, Princess Leia was greeting guests in Tomorrowland, her first time ever at a Disney park! Characters sometime interact with guests in magical ways, like during Sweetheart’s Nite Royal Ball where Rapunzel, Cinderella, Prince Eric, and Ryder Flynn danced with partygoers and taught the crowd how to tango!
There are themed photo ops scattered throughout the park where you can relive scenes from classic Disney films or pose with backdrops you can only find at these special events.
Exciting Entertainment
Ever dream of dancing the night away to DJ tunes on Main Street? Or listen to an R&B Capella group sing 90s hits while you float down the Rivers of America on the Mark Twain Riverboat? Or watch the sky light up from a Star Wars pyrotechnical spectacle above Sleeping Beauty Castle? These are just a few of the unique entertainment offerings at Disneyland After Dark events.
Tasty Party Treats
Forget the plain churro and turkey legs, these Disneyland After Dark events feature new foods you won’t ever find at a Disney park! Think Peanut Butter Pieces Churros, Spicy Huli Huli Loaded Tenders, Princess Trifles, and Monte Cristo Fritters! You can mobile order these treats on the Disneyland App before the party even begins to save time!
Maximum Value
Disneyland After Dark event tickets range in price of around $115-$145 for guests ages 3 and above. The ticket gives you three hours in the park with the general public, and then four at the event for a total of seven hours. During the event, a guest can experience incredibly low ride wait times, unique entertainment, live music, one-of-a-kind photo ops, interesting characters, and sometimes, a fireworks show. Unlimited PhotoPass downloads come with the ticket, and commemorative keepsakes to take home. If these themed parties interest you, then the value is definitely high for this opportunity to create memories you’ll treasure forever!
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