Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party is fast approaching, and more dates for the Magic Kingdom special event are now sold out, including both the first night (August 15, 2025), final night (October 31, 2025), and a handful in between. This trend is likely to accelerate in the weeks to come, as there’s usually a “run” on tickets once MNSSHP season starts.
If you’re new to the Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party scene, the hard ticket event has sold out every single night for each of the last 3 years. If you count Boo Bash, every single spook season event has completely sold out from 2021 through 2024 (and counting). This is the ‘new normal’ for Walt Disney World events, even after revenge travel and elevated pent-up demand spending have run their course. It’s not unique to MNSSHP, either. Most special events sell better now despite most also suffering from staleness and higher prices.
This is quite the reversal from pre-COVID. It now seems like an eternity ago, but back in 2019, Walt Disney World offered the Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party Pass. This was essentially an Annual Pass for the Halloween Party that allowed access to 35 nights–every party night in August, September, October, and November except for Halloween itself for $299.
This was literally a last-minute offering that rolled out the day of the first MNSSHP, as Walt Disney World scrambled to buoy ticket sales for August and September due to a lack of demand. It now seems like ancient history, but that was the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge and many people steered clear of the parks during that land’s opening months out of fears that it would be chaotic.
Concerns about the “crowdpocalypse” kept many Walt Disney World fans away who would normally visit during the late summer or early fall. Normal factors did, too. mid August through September are school season, storm season, and the heart of what’s typically off-season in Florida.
Amusingly, August through October 2025 will almost certainly be less busy than their counterparts in 2019. That was true last year, and it’s likely to be the case once again this year given the general trajectory of attendance.
And yet, there are single nights of the 2025 Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party that are priced over $200 (versus $299 for the 2019 MNSSHP ‘Annual Pass’). One of those–October 31–sold out in record time on the day that tickets first went on sale. Like we said, it’s a totally different dynamic than 2019 and earlier. But I digress.
Let’s look at sold out dates thus far for this year’s Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party. Let’s start with this month:
Pretty easy–the first three parties of August 2025 have sold out.
It hasn’t always been the case that the earlier event dates sell out fastest, but that is the recent trend. Across all events, what we’ve noticed is that cheaper dates tend to be in highest demand. This is likely a result of budget-conscious consumers seeking out dates that offer better value for money.
That might not seem like profound insight, and it really isn’t. However, August dates have historically always been the cheapest and they’ve also been least likely to sell out. In 2019 and earlier, August dates (except for opening night) seldom sold out, whereas pricier October dates did so with regularity.
This tracks with general crowd patterns, which trend lower in August and September than October despite cheaper prices in August and September. The big difference is that MNSSHP ticket prices have skyrocketed since, and there are growing populations of local fans and Disney Vacation Club members, both of which might actively seek out less expensive party dates.
No dates have sold out yet in September 2025.
Our expectation is that the next dates to sell out will continue to be the cheaper ones. This also isn’t really profound insight, as the cheapest dates are also the earlier ones, and there’s less time between today and those dates. So of course it would make sense that they sell out sooner!
That wasn’t always the case, but again, it has been trending that way in the last few years. As for when this will happen, once content from the first night of the event floods social media, there’s usually a “run” on tickets for subsequent events–and several more parties sell out around then.
Those last two factors would explain why October 2025 is largely not sold out.
Once October rolls around, there are only a handful of dates that are under $199. On top of that, the AP and DVC discounts end with the September 26 party. Everything after that is not discounted.
There’s a reason for that: the October parties are historically the most popular ones and don’t need discounts to sell out, even at higher prices. The main explanation for October being fully available at this point is simple: people have not begun planning that far ahead.
This might sound like heresy to WDW diehards, but most people start planning a few weeks to a few days in advance of their trips. Night before and day-of research are incredibly common! This is also why there’s usually a “run” on tickets once the first MNSSHP happens and photos & video start flooding social media. Even if there aren’t any exciting new additions (and there probably won’t be), it’s all about awareness for infrequent visitors.
If you’re wondering when to expect this “run” on tickets, last year it occurred on the weekdays after the first party.
Adjusted for the later start date this year, that would mean we can expect multiple dates–probably the remainder of August through Labor Day weekend in September 2025–to sell out by August 19, 2025.
Several more September 2025 dates are likely to sell out after that, likely by August 25, 2025. It is also likely that October dates around Columbus Day (10/9-10/14) will start selling out around this time. If last year is any indication, the entire month of September will be sold out by the Tuesday after Labor Day (September 2, 2025).
Other dates in October 2025 will probably start selling out by the first or second week in September. Last year, half of the MNSSHP dates in October sold out on September 10. The remainder sold out on or around September 22. That’s when the season fully sold out–before October even started, there was nothing left.
There’s no reason to believe the 2025 Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party will sell out any differently. Last year’s trends were consistent with the previous year, which were similar to the year before that. Some specific nights will sell out slightly earlier or later, but the overarching trend is pretty well established. With the exception of October 31 (which keeps selling out faster), the trend is for slightly slower sales–but not by much.
We’d still be (pleasantly!) surprised if any dates are still available for purchase by the time October 1, 2025 arrives. At the risk of stating the obvious, all of the above concerns past precedent. If you really want to attend the September 2, 2025 (or any specific date), don’t assume you have until August 19, 2025. Historical patterns are good predictors, but they’re not conclusive. We’d expect the 10/23 party to sell out around 9/22 based on past precedent, but there’s nothing to say it won’t actually sell out tomorrow! Same goes for all other dates.
No conclusions about daytime crowds or overarching attendance trends should be drawn from Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party dates selling out–or not selling out.
As we’ve explained elsewhere, there are a lot of reasons for MNSSHP selling out faster than before. At this point, it’s fairly well-established that the popularity of the party is divorced from overall crowd levels. To that point, in each of the last 3 years, the first MNSSHP has been among the 5 slowest days of the year up to that point.
“Up to that point” is an important asterisk because crowds don’t truly bottom out until later in August and September, so dates inevitably surpass that first party. The only concrete conclusion that can be drawn from sold out MNSSHP nights is that the mix-in window from 4 pm to 6 pm will be busier. It is utterly meaningless for attendance before 4 pm. See Best & Worst 2025 Dates in Magic Kingdom for more insight.
The reverse is also true for October 2025. Those nights largely not being sold out does not mean that month won’t be busy.
The only conclusion we can draw from those parties not being sold out is that October is further into the future than September. I’d hope that’s a conclusion that would only require a basic grasp of the calendar or months of the year and their ordering.
Our expectation remains that October 2025 will be busier than this month or next, and that those parties will all sell out. We would also expect this October to be busier than last, barring any hurricane scares. On a positive note, the trend for October has been lower crowds in the last few years as contrasted with 2016-2019, but it’s still not on par with August or September.
On a positive note, crowds for the last few years have been more manageable. Along with significantly higher prices, Walt Disney World has very obviously lowered the attendance cap. This is part of the reason more dates sell out. (See Is Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party Less Crowded?! Although that obviously concerns MVMCP, the exact same sentiment applies to MNSSHP.)
Point being, crowds are not nearly as bad as they were in 2018-2019. If you last experienced MNSSHP in October 2019 when this problem peak, you should notice the difference. (See “Is Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party Too Crowded?” for more on how busy that last month of the event was.)
This is no guarantee that Walt Disney World will stick with the lower attendance cap for the 2025 Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party. They could determine that, on balance, guest satisfaction is higher if the events don’t sell out as easily. (Obviously, guest satisfaction is higher among attendees with a lower cap, but that doesn’t account for guests who get shut out.)
We suspect that’s not the case, though. Walt Disney World has hit the goldilocks zone for crowds–not too light or too heavy–at both MNSSHP and MVMCP. This doesn’t mean there’s zero congestion or lines–you’ll still encounter both, especially for rare characters and in front of Cinderella Castle between the parade and fireworks, but there’s no solving for that.
Ultimately, if you’re thinking about attending the 2025 Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party and haven’t already bought tickets, we’d encourage you to make a decision ASAP. There’s really no reason to wait at this point. No new information is going to be released that should influence your choice. Every party will almost certainly sell out–it’s a matter of when, not if.
If you’re leaning towards going, we’d encourage buying sooner rather than later. Although we hate paying these ever-increasing prices and also think the events have gotten a bit stale and offer less bang for buck than a decade ago, there’s a reason we continue to attend Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party and Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party on an annual basis. Despite all of that, they’re still excellent and “worth it.” Clearly, enough guests agree with us and are voting with their wallets accordingly, given the 3+ year stretch of sold out dates for both MNSSHP and MVMCP!
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? If you’re interested in learning more about hotels, our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page is a good place to start. For where to eat, try out our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews page. If you want to save money on tickets or determine which type you should get, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at unconventional things you should take on your trip. Once you arrive at the parks, our Walt Disney World “Ride Guides” are great for determining what to do and when to do it. For overviews of all of these topics and so much more, the best place to start is our comprehensive Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide to make the most of your experience!
YOUR THOUGHTS
Have you attended Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party at Walt Disney World in the last few years? What did you think of the ‘sold out’ crowds? Think it was worth the high ticket price? Thoughts on the Boo to You Parade, Not So Spooky Spectacular Fireworks, Hocus Pocus Villain Spelltacular, or any other entertainment? Any other tips, likes or dislikes? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!