As we begin the first full week of May, many guests are wondering when Walt Disney World will announce 2025 Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party dates. If you’re feeling a bit anxious about booking a fall visit to Walt Disney World for the Halloween season, you’re not alone. Over the past decade, Walt Disney World has consistently announced the Halloween season dates by now. The only exception was last year when they waited until May 6th to announce the 2024 party season dates. Here’s a breakdown of what we know, and what we think we know about the 2025 Not-So-Scary Halloween Party dates announcement.
Disney Delays Not-So-Scary Halloween Party Schedule Announcement
Last year, we were quite confused when the calendar turned from April to May without a peep about Halloween Party dates. At the time, it was the latest in the year that Disney had announced the Not-So-Scary schedule in a decade. Here’s a rundown of the dates that Walt Disney World had announced Not-So-Scary Halloween Party dates in the past:
- 2024: May 6th
- 2023: April 20th
- 2022: April 28th
- 2021: no party (Boo Bash announced May 7th)
- 2020: no party
- 2019: January 15
- 2018: March 19
- 2017: April 6
- 2016: March 23
- 2015: February 25
- 2014: May 16
- 2013: May 8
- 2012: May 2
- 2011: April 30
- 2010: May 21
As you can see, a May announcement isn’t completely unprecedented, but it does break with tradition over the past decade or so. That said, we think we’re able to read some tea leaves as to why the announcement has been delayed for two years in a row now.
In short, Summers simply aren’t as crowded as they used to be. Inevitably, I’ll have someone who reads this and disagrees based on their 2-hour wait in 90+ degree heat for Slinky Dog Dash, but the general trend has been that Summers simply aren’t as crowded as they used to be for Walt Disney World. When you look at that general trend, it makes sense that Disney would want to try and capture as much Summer visitation as possible before moving on to the Fall season with announcements.
Specifically, this Summer looks to be trending even softer than normal, with Walt Disney World rolling out a flurry of discounts and some new shows to try and entice visitation. Of course, it would make sense that any theme park operator would want to create reasons for guests to visit, but with no major new attractions on the docket until 2027, Disney World is facing a bit of a lull. There are outside factors as well, such as the economy at large starting to appear to soften, so Disney isn’t necessarily alone in this.
Beyond that, there is still some stuff to announce for the Summer season. The biggest (and final?) announcement to be made is the official start date for the Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away nighttime parade. Rumors suggest that the nighttime parade will debut in the second week of July, but Walt Disney World has not announced an official date, so it’s possible that the parade could debut before that or after that rumored timeframe.
Beyond all of the “Summer” factors, there’s also the fact that Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party pretty much sells out no matter what Walt Disney World does. There haven’t been any substantial updates to the party in years, and yet, every date continues to sell out. The sellouts may not be happening as quickly as they had in the past, but they do continue to sell out consistently.
In terms of an announcement timeframe for the 2025 version of Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, it would be nearly unprecedented if Walt Disney World didn’t announce dates by the end of this week. To that end, we’d expect an announcement any day now.
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!
