Halloweentime at Disneyland 2017 - What to Expect

By Jennifer Stuart

Halloweentime is scheduled to run from September 15 to October 31 for 2017.  Read on to find out what to expect this season at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure.

Decorations

Disneyland does a great job of decorating for Halloweentime and there are several areas where you can expect to see seasonal decorations.

• The Entrance and Railway Station - - Look for giant-sized pumpkin versions of Minnie, Donald and Goofy over the entrance gates to welcome you into Disneyland.  The large floral Mickey outside the train station will be switched over to a Halloween Mickey.  This is where the signage and bunting will start and continue into Town Square and down Main Street U.S.A.  Main Street U.S.A. will once again have the pumpkin festival decorating signs, windows and window ledges.    Right in the Town Square is the iconic giant Mickey jack o'lantern.  This is a very popular spot for photos both day and night, when it is lit up.  ​

Insider Tip: Note that there are photopass photographers on both sides to take your picture so check out which line is shorter (they are always happy to take a picture on your camera or phone for you as well).
Insider Tip:  Make sure to peer into the windows as you walk down Main Street to see all the great seasonal details inside. Also take the time to ride the Omnibus.  Sit on the top floor and you can get a great view of the jack o'lanterns that decorate the upper levels of the shops.

• The Hub around the Partners statue. - - Look for jack o'lanterns representing each one of the lands of Disneyland.
• Frontierland - -The Halloween Tree and the Día de Muertos area near Big Thunder Mountain are highlights.  Look for face painting in this area as well.
• New Orleans Square - - The highlight here is the Haunted Mansion and the rest of the area is themed to match the Mansion - lots of black and white and skulls.

​

New this year:

Other than some light themeing in the stores on Buena Vista Street, Halloween has been noticeably absent from Disney California Adventure in the past.  That will change in a big way this year. Oogie Boogie will be taking over the entrance and bats and the Headless Horseman will be adding to the themeing on Carthay Circle and Buena Vista Street.  Look for Carsland to be decked out for Halloween too! In the Paradise Garden Grill area of Paradise Pier look for decorations connected to the new pixar movie Coco and the Mexican holiday of ​Día de Muertos.
​

Rides

Back again this season are the very popular overlays for Haunted Mansion and Space Mountain.  Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy will open Sept 15 and run until Oct 31. Haunted Mansion Holiday will open Sept 15 and run until early January.  
​Insider Tip: These rides are very popular and you will want to grab a fastpass for them as early in the day as possible as they often run out of fastpasses well before the end of the day.
​

New this year:

In Carsland both Mater's Junkyard Jamboree and Luigi's Rollicking Roadsters will both get Halloween overlays this year including new themed music.  Also, after dark, Guardians of the Galaxy Mission Breakout will change to a new limited time ride to help Rocket save  Groot.
​

Characters

I am a sucker for meeting characters, especially when they are wearing special outfits. What can I say -- it just makes me happy.  Look for Mickey and friends to appear in Halloween costumes.  Also at this time it is more common to find famous villains.  Consult the Disneyland App for when and where you can meet characters on the day of your visit or ask a cast member for information at City Hall or one of the information kiosks. You may be interested in reading our post about why we think you should download the Disneyland App before you visit ​​here.
​

New this year:

As part of the Halloween re-themeing of Carsland look for your favourite Cars characters in Halloween costumes. (Rumour has it that Mater will be dressed as a vampire). 
​

Food:

Fall treats at Disneyland tend to fall heavily into the pumpkin friendly category.  This is fine with us as we love pumpkin and spice flavoured treats!  The pumpkin cheesecake above has been one of our favourites and seems to have been on the menu for several years now. Disneyland is famous for its caramel apples and there are some great Halloween  or  villain  inspired ones that appear at Halloweentime.  Look for seasonal treats throughout the parks but notable locations include Jolly Holiday Bakery Cafe on Main Street, French Market in New Orleans Square, Rancho del Zocalo in Frontierland and the Candy Palace on Main Street or Pooh Corner in Critter Country.
​

New this year:

Every year there are new treats available for the season.  A list of some items to look for  this year can be found on the Disney Parks Blog here.  Look for us to post updates to Facebook as well.  Consider following our Facebook page for the latest Disneyland information.
​

Mickey's Halloween Party

Mickey's Halloween Party is a hard-ticketed event that runs on select nights from Sept 20 to Oct 31. It features special entertainment such as a Halloween Parade and the party exclusive Halloween Screams fireworks.  This is your chance to trick or treat inside Disneyland! Read our post on What to Expect at Mickey's Halloween Party at Disneyland for more information if you are planning on attending this event.  Note that at the time of writing several nights were already sold out.
​

New this year:

New this year for Mickey’s Halloween Party guests, Disney California Adventure park will be featured for the first time as part of the pre-party mix-in. Early arrivals will be able to visit both theme parks for three hours prior to the party launch in Disneyland park. Also new this year, admission to Mickey’s Halloween Party will include complimentary Disney PhotoPass downloads.

Día de Muertos

Experience a traditional Dia de los Muertos skeleton display, face painting and deliciously spirited Mexican treats in Frontierland near Big Thunder Mountain.  This colourful area is full of great photo opportunities! 

New this year:

Inspired by the up-comming Disney Pixar short film Coco, Disney California Adventure will also be celebrating the Mexican Holiday Día de los Muertos. From Sept. 15 through Nov. 2, look for special entertainment featuring musicians and dancers, and activities and food located in the Paradise Garden Grill area of Paradise Pier.  Select elements of the celebration will move to  Bugs Land beginning Sunday, Nov. 5, where they will be presented alongside a special sneak peek of the movie Coco which will be in the It's Tough to be a Bug Theatre.  This preview should be offered through the holiday season until early January, 2018.
​

And Even More....

Over the summer several attractions have re-opened after long closures.  If it has been awhile since you have been to Disneyland  look for the return of the Disneyland Railroad, Mark Twain Riverboat and Sailingship Columbia all with slightly different routes.  Also back are the Davy Crocket Canoes, access to Tom Sawyer's Island and an updated version of the nighttime spectacular Fantasmic! If you have not been to Disneyland since last fall look for the Guardians of the Galaxy Mission Breakout that replaced Tower of Terror in Disney California Adventure and the new Luigi's in Carsland.

For more about Halloweentime at Disneyland read our other Halloweentime related posts 10 Reasons Why Fall is Fabulous at Disneyland and What You Need to Know About Mickey's Halloween Party at Disneyland

Photos by Jennifer Stuart and Kim Stuart

Question? Comments? We Would love to hear from you!