Walt Disney World is a favorite holiday destination for families around the world, and this year doesn’t look to be any different! With the return of Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party in Magic Kingdom and some tempting Disney hotel discounts, many of you are eyeing a trip to Orlando this fall. Add in the newest Hollywood Studios Christmas party, Jollywood Nights, and you might be thinking “SOLD!”. Not so fast. Here are 3 reasons not to buy tickets to Jollywood Nights Disney Christmas Party in 2023.
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Walt Disney World Christmas Parties
The Disney holiday experience is like no other!
If you are a big Christmas person and a Disney person, spending the holidays at Walt Disney World or Disneyland is on your bucket list.
Walt Disney World Christmas parties are impressive and offer a ton of great memory-making moments for the whole family.
But what about the newest party, Jollywood Nights? Is this Hollywood Studios Christmas Party on your “must-do” list?
While we think this party holds some promise of magic for some parkgoers, we also don’t think it’s going to be for everyone.
Here are 3 reasons you may NOT want to buy tickets to Jollywood Nights Disney Christmas Party in 2023.
3 Reasons NOT To Buy Tickets To Jollywood Nights, Hollywood Studios Christmas Party (2023)
It’s super easy to get caught up in the shiny new thing, especially when we’re talking about Disney World events.
But is Jollywood Nights worth it?
The event sure sounds promising, but we dug into the logistics a bit to help you decide if this is actually going to work for your family.
The Hollywood Studios Christmas Party may not be a fit for everyone!
1. Reason NOT To Buy Jollywood Nights Tickets: Costs
And you’re thinking, sure sure, it’s going to cost a lot. We know this!
But something to point out: there are no kids tickets for this event.
Unlike all the other Disney after-hours events and special event tickets (Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party for one) this party does NOT distinguish between a child ticket and an adult ticket.
The tickets are going to cost the same for everyone and that price is fairly high at $159 to $179 per ticket, plus tax (prices vary by event date).
We also noted that this event doesn’t allow *as* early entry as other specially priced ticketed events.
Tickets for Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party allow entry to Magic Kingdom starting at 4 pm on the party date. The party does not officially kick off until 7 pm, so this gives you 3 full hours of unfettered access to the Magic Kingdom rides, shows and attractions.
This adds some additional value to the cost of those tickets if you’re breaking cost down per hour.
Jollywood Nights, on the other hand, will not allow entry to Hollywood Studios until 7 pm with the special ticket. This event officially kicks off at 8:30 pm, which means you only have 1.5 extra hours inside the park.
2. Jollywood Nights Announced Events Skews For An Older Crowd
We think Jollywood Nights could be absolutely fabulous- for the right guest.
And based on the announced events and entertainment, we think the Hollywood Studios Christmas Party is leaning toward older teen and adult enjoyment more than young children.
If you have little kids (say 12 and under), this may be a reason to SKIP Jollywood Nights in 2023.
As we noted, it’s going to be an expensive party to begin with. And the entertainment value may just not go as far with younger children.
Yes, there will be character meet and greets- with long lines.
And yes, there is going to be a Muppet Show (also with long lines).
But we think the jazz lounge and piano bar located at The Hollywood Brown Derby and the “other-worldly” soiree at The Hollywood Tower Hotel Courtyard are going to be more suited for adults.
Disney is encouraging guests to Dress to Impress, leading to a feeling of Dapper Days for us. Which is awesome for all ages, but tends to bring out an older crowd.
There’s also easily accessible alcohol at this park which you won’t find at Magic Kingdom on party nights.
There won’t be free snacks (at least at this writing) for kids to enjoy nor will there be a special holiday parade. And Jingle Bell Jam, while super cute and fun for kids, may not be the big WOW your youngest kids are looking for.
If you have younger kiddos, we think Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party is likely the better option.
3. Reasons NOT To Buy Tickets To Jollywood Nights, Hollywood Studios Christmas Party: The Unknowns In 2023
There are some concerns about this party since it’s brand new for 2023.
With only 10 nights on the calendar, there’s a good chance Disney doesn’t have enough time to course correct should early party feedback be a bust.
Be cautious about those early party dates and tickets!
Some concerns we see:
- Will there be too many people at the party without enough to do? The big “people eater” events at other special event parties are not happening here (no parades, no big fireworks to line up for and Rise of the Resistance will be Virtual Queue only on party nights).
- Will the timing of party entry conflict with non-party goers exiting after Fantasmic every night, making transportation a nightmare?
- Will the character lines be incredibly long? (um, yes, yes they will)
- How will entry to The Hollywood Brown Derby piano lounge and Tower of Terror Courtyard be handled? Will enough guests get to truly enjoy these aspects of the Jollywood Nights party?
- If people can’t get into the special events (Oogie Boogie sing-a-long, Muppets show, Brown Derby and Tower of Terror) will the lines get crazy long for the popular rides?
With this being an inaugural year, we just can’t say jumping right into the Hollywood Studios Christmas Party is going to be worth it for everyone.
But we also know that there’s a chance Disney doesn’t bring this back for 2024 (see the Disneyland Christmas Party that only happened in 2021 for example).
We did buy our tickets to go, but we aren’t taking kids with us and plan to divide and conquer if needed to try everything out.
If you want to talk more about this party or anything Disney related, head over to the Facebook group for more discussion.
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Patty Holliday has been running Disney since 2011. She knows just about every tip, trick, and hack there is to cover the runDisney Magical Miles at Disney World and Disneyland. She knows every mile isn’t *always* magical- but with training, tips, and a little bit of pixie dust, they can be a lot of fun! You can also find her at noguiltlife.com and noguiltfangirl.com