As you all know, I LOVE holidays. No really, I love them. Christmas, Halloween, Easter, heck even Arbor Day! I just love celebrating. And no one does the holidays quite like the Disney Parks. With Halloween right around the corner, you might be wondering “Which is better during Halloween time, Disneyland or Disney World?”. Well, today I’m here to answer that question.
I’m going to be rating the parks based on five categorizes: Halloween Parties, Ride Layovers, Other Offerings Nearby, Treats and Decor. Each category will have a “winner”. In the end, the park with the most wins…wins!
Also, this post is essentially comparing Magic Kingdom (located in Walt Disney World Resort) and Disneyland (located within Disneyland Resort) during Halloween time.
So….. yeah.
Halloween Parties: Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party vs. Mickey’s Halloween Party
Both Disneyland and Disney World have special ticketed Halloween Parties during late summer/fall. There’s Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party at Disney World. And the now retired Mickey’s Halloween Party at Disneyland.
(As of 2019, Mickey’s Halloween Party has been replaced with the Oogie Boogie Bash. However, since I’ve never attended, I can only talk about my experience at Mickey’s Halloween Party).
As of 2019, I’ve attended both parties twice. While both parties are super fun, one definitely reigns supreme: Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party! MNSSHP (Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party) features the iconic Boo to You Parade, exclusive treats, trick or treating and, the highlight of the whole event, the Hocus Pocus Villain Spectacular!
Holiday Party Winner: Disney World
Ride Overlays
I’m not even going to go into a big, WDW vs. Disneyland comparison for this one. Disneyland is the clear winner, no question. While Disney World does offer a Halloween overlay for Pirates of the Caribbean and Space Mountain during MNSSHP, nothing can compare to Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion Holiday. (Note that Disneyland also offers a Halloween overlay to Space Mountain as well!).
Nightmare Before Christmas fan or not, I think everyone should experience Haunted Mansion Holiday at some point.
Ride Layover Winner: Disneyland
Other Offers Nearby
If you’re visiting Disney World or Disneyland during Halloween time, there’s a possibility that you might want to do a few “Non-Disney” Halloween things while on vacation. Both Disneyland and Disney World have other “events” and attractions nearby during fall/Halloween that you can check out during your trip.
Visiting Halloween Horror Nights at Universal can be a fun addition to your fall Disney vacation since Universal Orlando is about 20 minutes from Disney World. And Universal Hollywood is about an hour (depending on LA traffic) from Disneyland. However….
The added bonus of being able to swing over to Epcot for the Food & Wine Festival (which runs during fall) gives Disney World the clear advantage this round!
Other Offers Nearby Winner: Disney World
Halloween Treats
One of my favorite things about Disney is all the yummy food! And the only thing better than Disney treats are holiday themed Disney treats. Mickey pumpkin cupcakes? Yes please!
Both Disneyland and Disney World offer a variety of yummy Halloween themed treats during fall. Can we just take a moment to admire all those Halloween candy apples?! So festive (and delicious!).
But Disneyland takes it a step further with their Día de Muertos themed snacks!
Note to Disney World: Please start making Día de Muertos treats! They’re my favorite.
Halloween Treats Winner: Disneyland
Decor
Insert dramatic music. It all comes down to this! The score is tied right now. Two for Disneyland (treats + ride overlays) and two for Disney World (Halloween Party + Other Offers Nearby). Don’t get me wrong, Disneyland and Magic Kingdom (Disney World) are both fully decked out with festive Halloween decor during fall.
Disney really does know how to do the holidays! However, I do need to pick ONE. And which ever park (either Disneyland or Disney World) wins this round will be the clear winner.
So…when it comes to Disney during Halloween time, which park does it better? Disney World or Disneyland?
DISNEYLAND!
The awesome Disney character themed pumpkin display around the Partners statue alone is enough to solidify Disneyland’s win!
STOP! How freaking cute?!
Back in 2015 I even wrote a blog post on 10 reasons to visit Disneyland during Halloween time. You can check out that post HERE.
While Disneyland did beat Disney World in the end, both parks are a MUST visit during Halloween time!
Have you ever visited Disneyland and/or Disney World during Halloween time? Which was your favorite?