The Halloween season is underway, and there are a few new things this year at Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party. On the whole, the party is very similar to last year, but there are a few new entertainment offerings that might tip the scales when it comes to deciding whether or not to visit. From new costumes for Mickey and Minnie, to a new DescenDANCE Party to an enhanced villains presence at the park, there’s just enough new this year where we can’t copy and paste from 2023.
Princess Scarytale Hall
The “enhanced villain presence” is not as widespread as we were hoping, and we’ll have an entire article coming up soon with more details, but we wanted to focus in on one of the off-the-map character opportunities that we simply couldn’t get enough of.
Actually, this needs to come with a giant caveat: this was a test. On our Friday, August 16th visit to Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, we were on the lookout for one of the final pairs of villains that we needed to photograph to complete our search. We had already found the Hitchhiking Ghosts and more villains, but Maleficent and the Evil Queen were not at the Main Street Railroad Station as they had been in previous events.
We stood near the train station for probably 30-45 minutes, asking around whenever we spotted a manager to speak with, but nobody knew where they were. Technically, they are surprise and delight characters, so they could pop up anywhere. Finally, a wonderful manager got a tip that they were testing a new meet and greet location in Fantasyland. As it turns out, Disney wanted to put Maleficent and the Evil Queen in Princess Fairytale Hall – this I had to see!
New this year is that Princess Fairytale Hall is not a meet and greet location for the princesses, but rather simply a treat trail. During my first visit to Not-So-Scary this year on August 13th, it was just a treat trail, but by the very next event, it was something else.
Because the surprise and delight character experience is an unannounced thing, there was no signage outside of the meet and greet venue, and we only knew we were in the right place because we asked Cast Members at the location.
Maleficent & Evil Queen at Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party
While the location still operates as a treat trail where guests of all ages can enjoy some good old-fashioned trick-or-treating, you can also interact with Maleficent and the Evil Queen. While they are technically different lines, you really don’t have to twist my arm to get me to get back in line for candy and an interaction with a villain.
Each villain is perfectly placed in front of a portrait of their story’s “hero”, and they talk with guests and pose for selfies. It was a wonderful interaction and one that didn’t have more than a 3-minute wait due to the inconspicuous nature of their presence. In terms of ROI during a limited-time event, this character interaction is second to none. Yes, you can wait for 2 hours to meet Jack Skellington, but for those guests who have been there and done that, this Scarytale Hall meet and greet is this year’s must-do.
The other meet and greet just steps away features the Evil Queen positioned in front of Snow White’s portrait. We hope that the entertainment team keeps the villains in this location for the rest of the year, but keep in mind that this was a test and your mileage may vary when you visit. If you find yourself in Fantasyland, it’s worth asking around to see if the Evil Queen and Maleficent are visiting Princess Fairytale Hall!
As always, keep checking back with us here at BlogMickey.com as we continue to bring you the latest news, photos, and info from around the Disney Parks!
I was wondering if the Evil Queen and Maleficent sign autographs thanks