I'm all about maximizing the time at Disneyland Resort. I don't like to stand in lines, so I did research had created my game plan for my evening at the Oogie Boogie Bash after hours Halloween party at Disney California Adventure. The party starts at 6 pm but guests are allowed in at 3. This is the time to do any rides that are important to you, so you can dedicate your party time to the attractions and characters only available during the party. After hours parties often have "rare" characters that are not seen at other times. The rarest characters for the 2022 Bash are Minnie, Daisy, and Clarabelle dressed up as the Sanderson Sisters from the movie, Hocus Pocus. Other rare characters included Mickey, Donald, and Goofy as Kingdom Hearts characters; Bruno from Encanto; Carl from Up; Remy and Emile from Ratatouille; Merlin from Sword and the Stone; warrior Mulan; Blue Ferry from Pinocchio, and Hercules. My priorities were the Sanderson Sisters, Bruno, Merlin,
Before the party started, I did go to Hollywood backlot area (where the Sanderson sisters were meeting) to see how the line was growing. Guests got in line as soon as they entered at 3 pm, but on the day I was there, it was probably only about 20 minutes long by 4:30, but that still would've been about a 2 hours wait, That was also not acceptable to me.
My Strategy: I started with the Bruno meet and greet. I lined up at 5:40. He came out at 5:55, so I waited about 20 minutes, Next came some treat trails. In California Adventure, most of the treat trails are "hosted" by a villain, that makes it so much more fun, as these villains interact with the guests. They are a must do. The most popular were two of the new ones for this year: Ernesto de la Cruz from Encanto and Mother Gothel from Tangled. Madam Mimm from Sword and the Stone was also new this year, but she wasn't as popular--probably because a lot of people may not be as familiar with that movie. I started with Agatha Harkness from the MCU Wanda Vision. It took me less than 10 minutes to get through it, including stopping to interact with her and take a selfie. In fact, the longest treat trail I did all night was Sid at 12 minutes. The times all included the time taken to stop and interact withe the villain and or take pictures and selfies. My order, after Agatha, was Madam Mimm, live action Cruella from 2021 film, and Oogie Boogie ( I barely saw him, since he left just as I was rounding the corner to be right next to him).
I then headed to the Town Square/Circle, by the fountain, one of the character meet and greet spots, and waited to meet warrior Mulan. That was a 20 minute wait. Next was Sid's (from Toy Story) treat trail, which is my favorite. The way he interacts with guests is so fabulous! This treat trail is at Pixar Pier, so from there I got a spot in front of Goofy Sky School for the parade. It was about 7:35 pm.
The Frightfully Fun parade is scheduled to start at 7:45 with the Headless Horseman riding 5 minutes before th parade starts. On my night, it was kind of late, and the Headless Horseman didn't ride until after 7:45, and the parade started about 7:55,
As the parade finished, I went into the street and followed the parade to the Mermaid ride, where I turned and headed to Villain's Grove. I only waited 5 minutes, before I was admitted. As I waited, the line grew significantly.
By this time it was about 8:40, and I was close to Mother Gothel, so I did her treat trail, then Malificent, Ernesto de la Cruz, Cars Land (no character), and finally Dr Facilier. Doing the
Magic Key photo by Silly Swings took longer than I would have liked (about 20 minutes--not worth it), and then I headed back to the fountain for a meet and greet and picture with the Blue Fairy & Merlin. They closed the line for Hercules because the 2nd parade was about to start. As I headed to Hollywood for the Sanderson sisters, I went through Oogie Boogie's treat trail again, since I missed a picture with him. There was no line.
I then lined up for the Sanderson Sisters at 10:15 pm. They closed the line at 10:20, and I waited 30minutes for them finishing at 10:45. I finished the night with magic shots with headless horseman (Hercules line had been closed for the night). Fountain characters were generally a 10-20 min wait. with warrior Mulan as the longest.. The Sanderson sisters is the most difficult to see with lines extending 3 hours most the night,
Overall, I did everything I wanted, except getting a picture with Hercules (took a selfie, while he was meeting other guests), in the 5 hours of the party. I had a blast! Oogie Boogie Bash is, in my opinion, the only after hours Disneyland Resort party that is worth the money!
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