Once upon a Christmastime this Christmas… Ah, truer words have never been spoken.
Don’t get me wrong; I love me some Boo-To-You Halloween Parade. It’s got everything: a catchy theme song, Hitchhiking Ghosts, one massive Chernabog, the Headless Horseman (well, not during my event night…), and ethereal Haunted Mansion Ballroom Dancers. But that Once Upon a Christmastime parade? I was grinning ear-to-ear basically the entire time. It’s a true Christmas treat for the senses, (but seriously, why aren’t there MORE scents exuding from the floats during Boo-To-You?)
We attended Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party this weekend and enjoyed Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmastime Parade from Frontierland. While Main Street U.S.A. and Cinderella Castle views are perfect for picturesque parade viewing, I personally recommend enjoying it from Frontierland. We walked up to our viewing spot 10 minutes before start time, had pretty good vantage points of each float and character segment, and it wasn’t nearly as hectic as those more popular viewing areas.
Fast Facts | Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmastime Parade
- Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmastime Parade runs nightly at MVMCP at 8:30 PM and 11 PM.
- The parade steps off in Frontierland, just next to Tiana’s Bayou Adventure, before traveling through Liberty Square, circling in front of Cinderella Castle, before ultimately heading down Main Street, U.S.A.
- This year’s soundtrack and choreography has been slightly updated, including portions of the Nutcracker Suite between the parade’s theme song.
- Wintery scents of Christmas trees, gingerbread, and candy fill the air while some floats pass by.
Don’t Miss It!
Each segment is packed with colorfully-dressed characters and stuff made from wintery wonderland dreams. This parade has just about every character you’d expect, starting with favorites like Mary Poppins, Bert, Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Alice, the Mad Hatter, Peter Pan & Wendy dancing around. Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse lead the way atop a giant Christmas Tree float, Vanellope Von Schweetz races around in her candy car, classic jingle-belled reindeer and click-clacking toy soldiers march along, popular princesses and the Fairy Godmother wave from the castle turret float that’s been around way too long (but we still love it), and [QUEEN] Clarabelle is baking cookies atop a kitchen-themed float… all before Santa Claus himself wishes everyone a merry Christmas at the finish.
After all was said and done post-party, we all agreed the parade was a highlight of the night. Don’t miss it! You can watch the full 2024 parade HERE!
Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party is happening now on select nights at Magic Kingdom through December 20th. Select dates are still available to purchase — after our experience from Friday night, I can’t recommend this instant-classic of a Magic Kingdom event enough!
Theme Park Correspondent for The DIS | Chloé loves kitschy dark rides, roller coasters, a good background area music loop, hot Butterbeer, and all things Halloween. You’ll mostly find her wandering around Orlando’s biggest theme parks snapping pics and sharing tips… or probably talking about The Great Movie Ride.
