JoJo is attending a Disney After Hours event at Magic Kingdom, one that has not happened in over three years. It’s also JoJo’s first time at such an event. These exclusive events go from 10pm-1am when the park is only open to event ticket holders.
JoJo arrives at the Magic Kingdom early in the evening, not realizing that although you can enter the park at 7pm with the event ticket, the event doesn’t actually start until 10pm. With time to kill, JoJo goes to the Polynesian Resort to meet up with a “secret friend” and doesn’t leave there until 10:27pm to return to the park.
Taking the monorail back to Magic Kingdom, JoJo immediately notices that Christmas decorations are still up and Christmas music is playing, even though it’s early January. JoJo describes that as “very odd”.
The first thing JoJo does after entering the park at 10:50pm is go to meet Mickey Mouse, which has a posted 10 minute wait time. Typically the wait is 30-60 minutes during regular park hours. JoJo is excited, stating, “Wow, I’ve never seen such an empty queue to see Mickey Mouse. Literally, no one else is here. Usually there’s like kids running around screaming, crying, but right now it’s literally just me.”
Walking down Main Street, JoJo remarks how empty the park looks already. He was not expecting that. “You know what this is? It’s a Very Merry Christmas party without all of the events,” he comments. Strolling towards the castle, JoJo witnesses a couple getting engaged in front of it. He then talks to the newly-engaged couple and offers to send them the video footage.
JoJo heads to Princess Fairytale Hall, which he says usually has a wait time of 40 to 50 minutes during the day, but now is a walk-up. Inside, JoJo meets and chats with the Disney princesses Elena of Avalor, Cinderella, Rapunzel and Tiana, with no wait at all. However, JoJo notes that if viewers like meeting characters, this may not be the ideal event, since the only characters available are the ones he just met. “It’d be nice to have at least maybe one rare character or maybe just a couple more options for characters,” JoJo remarks.
One major perk of the event ticket is that guests get free snacks like popcorn, ice cream and soda throughout the night. JoJo gets one of each treat, saying “Honestly, I’m so content right now. I got some popcorn, I got a Sprite and a Mickey bar.” He then sits comfortably on the ground next to Gaston’s Tavern, just enjoying the atmosphere.
In Storybook Circus, JoJo sees the Tron ride construction and provides an update: “A really, really important update for all of y’all, when you get on this ride, they are going to install a locker system, AKA you won’t be able to bring your phones onto the ride, which makes sense because this ride at some points will be going over people. Like there’s a whole walkway right there. I mean we got the train path right there.” JoJo then rides The Barnstormer rollercoaster, which he declares is “the best roller coaster at Magic Kingdom”.
Strolling through Tomorrowland, JoJo discusses the short 5-10 minute wait times posted for all the attractions. With 20 minutes left in the event, JoJo moves to Adventureland. The wait time signboard shows that all the rides had 5-10 minute waits, except for the popular Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, which was listed as 25 minutes. JoJo casually walks through Frontierland and Liberty Square, taking in the atmosphere. In Fantasyland by the Tangled restrooms, he stops to get a rare photo opportunity with the Tangled lantern, as there is no line at all.
At 12:55am, with just five minutes remaining for the event, JoJo gets in line for the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. The wait time in the queue ends up being about 15 minutes to get aboard.
As he leaves the park, JoJo notes that most entertainment like shows and fireworks do not run during the exclusive event. In summary, he recommends the event for rides with low wait times, but not for shows and character interactions. However, JoJo says he would do this event again.
[/]
Leave a Reply