Day 6: Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party
Disney Springs / Lunch at Planet Hollywood
December 12, 2017


Regular readers of my trip reports know that I take a lot of photos, and that I can't possibly include them all!
You will be able to find all of the photos from Hibiscus & Holly At The Poly 2017 in my Flickr Collection of albums from this trip.
To see just today’s extra photos, you can view this Flickr Album.
You can find my Hibiscus & Holly At The Poly 2017 Trip Index here.



There were only two thing’s on today’s agenda: Disney Springs for lunch at Planet Hollywood, then Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party (MVMCP) in the evening. These were both firsts for us, and we were particularly excited about MVMCP!

Our reservation at Planet Hollywood was around 1pm, so we didn’t surface until late that morning.


The weather was several degrees warmer today: 24°C compared with 17°C yesterday – which was so nice. Although it did turn rather chilly in the evening.

The weather in particular threw me completely off kilter on this trip. We are so used to roaring heat, high humidity, and lots of sunshine – and wearing as minimal clothing as possible! So to be decked out in jumpers, coats (and more!) while at Walt Disney World was so strange. As we entered our second week we were back in our usual Orlando attire.

In short, pack for all weather when coming in December as it changes a LOT!


We were a bit early for our ADR, so we took a bit of a wander around. I still can’t believe how much Disney Springs has changed from the old Downtown Disney. The older section really looks out of place now – I wonder if they’ll spruce that up too?

Priority of course was to see all the Christmas decorations – starting with the huge Christmas tree which was very pretty with huge swags of gold tinsel, gold and silver baubles – including some that looked very much like jewellery, and topped off with a sparkling silver star.

(There is also the Disney Springs Christmas Tree Trail, which we came back to look at on another day.)


Some of the decor had a steam punk type of vibe to it which was pretty cool, and some was more traditional. I particularly liked the penguins (as they’re one of my favourite animals!) and the bejewelled reindeer which were gorgeous.


I’m still trying to figure out what these peanut reindeer with pasta bows and cereal hoop eyes are all about!

We popped into World of Disney and had a quick look in a few shops before heading back to Planet Hollywood.


Full disclosure before I write this part; as you know, I’m a blogger, and I was invited to visit Planet Hollywood during our stay.

When I was asked, we were thinking about buying the dining plan, so I informed the PR, and she said to leave it with her. I didn’t hear back from her, and we went on our merry way to our reservation regardless. It wasn’t until the end that the Manager came out and told us that we were their special guests and the meal was on them. Which was a lovely surprise as I had assumed the visit via the PR was off the table so to speak.

I always write the truth in my trip reports – and it will be the same again for Planet Hollywood – I just won’t be able to give you a bill breakdown as we didn’t even see it!

We haven’t dined at Planet Hollywood before so this was a new place for us. It has seen a huge refurbishment, and a menu designed by Guy Fieri (of TV show, Diners, Drive-Ins, & Dives fame). So unfortunately we don’t know what it was like inside before, or what the food was like either.

You do have to go upstairs to the restaurant, but there are lifts too.

There was some seasonal decor, and we also popped into the restaurant’s store to buy a souvenir fridge magnet, which is a standard purchase whenever we go somewhere!


Planet Hollywood

The space inside is huge, with the restaurant being split over different floors. There was a gigantic screen which was showing music videos, and there was some movie memorabilia on the walls. From reading online, there are also a couple of bars, as well as an outdoor terrace.

We were sat in a both with a huge round table and looked through the menu. The offerings are quite standard for that type of restaurant – think Hard Rock Cafe, TGI Friday’s etc., with pasta, salads, burgers, sandwiches, steak, chicken and fish. Plus appetizers and desserts.

We quite often buy starters or appetizers to share, and so we decided to order the High Roller Platter which comes served on a Ferris Wheel, which has to be the most random way I’ve ever had food presented! Sadly, the wheel doesn’t move around, so whilst it is a fun way to serve the sharing appetizer, you either have to stand up to take from the dishes, or just take the dishes off and place them on the table and get rid of the Ferris Wheel via your server… which is what we did after I took a photo.


Starters...

Us: High Roller Platter – Our famous Chicken Crunch, Texas Tostados, Buffalo Wings, Five Cheese Dip, and Peri-Peri Shrimp ($35.99)


The Chicken Crunch is described as All-natural chicken tenders hand-breaded with a crunchy sweet coating, served with our signature Creole mustard sauce. These were yummy, and the dipping sauce was a nice change from the usual barbecue or sour cream that you tend to get on platters like this.


The Texas Tostados are Crispy gyoza skins topped with BBQ chicken, sautéed onions, blend of cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses, pico de gallo and drizzled with sour cream and BBQ Sauce. We all love a bit of Tex-Mex food so this went down well.


The Buffalo Wings are Chicken wings baked and then fried to perfection and tossed in buffalo sauce, served with celery, carrots, and blue cheese dressing, and were your run of the mill chicken wings. The side veggies were on the dry side, like that had been sat out for a bit – and we are all a hard pass on anything with blue cheese!


What is there not to love about a cheese dip? The one on the Planet Hollywood menu is a flavorful, gooey dip made of Swiss, mozzarella, provolone, Parmesan, and Asiago cheeses with spinach, artichoke hearts and roasted tomato, served with corn tortilla chips and toasted herb flatbread.

It was delicious. Spinach and artichoke dip seems to be very popular over in Orlando (maybe the rest of the USA, I don’t know!) so we’ve tried variations of this at several different restaurants over the years.


And finally, the Peri-Peri Shrimp – Six large shrimp fried and tossed in a spicy sauce of chilies, garlic, herbs, and spices served on cabbage slaw. There were originally four pieces of shrimp on this plate, but Liam pinched one before I took a photo! They were crisp and had a nice spicy kick to them.

At this point we were all feeling rather full already – maybe it wasn’t the best idea to order such a huge starter! It is quite pricey at $35.99, but it works out to around $7 a dish, and if you were to order the apps individually, they are $13-$14 a plate, it doesn’t feel so bad.

For the main course, Steve and I both had a burger, and Liam decided on steak. I should also mention we all had fountain drinks – either Coca-Cola or Sprite.


Main Course...

All of our richly marbled Certified Angus Beef® is smash-grilled so each burger is juicy and cooked to perfection. All Big Bite Burgers are served with triple fries. Add a side house salad or side Caesar salad for 6.99.

Me: Bacon Mac-N-Cheese – Guy’s award-winning burger – Winner of NYC Wine and Food Festival Burger Bash! Applewood-smoked bacon, six cheese mac-n- cheese cheddar, LTOP, crispy onion straws and donkey sauce on a garlic-buttered brioche bun ($19.99)

This burger lured me in with its topping of mac-n-cheese (and bacon, duh!) but was nigh on impossible to eat, so I had to cut it into quarters and stuff it into my face that way!

The fries were regular fries, waffle style, and I can’t remember the third… It also had a half a pickle served on the side.

Not anticipating how full we would be after the starter, nor the amount of lettuce I got in my burger, I did order a Caesar Salad on the side, which was just a bog standard Caesar (but my favourite salad when on hols in Florida!)


Him: The Original Ringer – Crispy rojo onion ring, Guy’s signature bourbon- brown sugar BBQ sauce, SMC, cheddar, LTOP, and donkey sauce on a garlic-buttered brioche bun ($18.99)

Okay, so SMC = Super Melty Cheese; and LTOP = Lettuce, Tomato, Onion, Pickle. I have no clue what donkey sauce is, but it sounds hilarious! Another stacked high burger, which Steve didn’t have to cut to eat! Although, to be fair, I think he may have done in the end, just so he didn’t make too much of a mess!


The Boy: Bistro Sirloin Steak – 10 oz. USDA Choice steak topped with classic herb butter, served with hand-cut steak fries ($27.99)

You can’t go wrong with steak, and so, there wasn’t anything wrong with this one which Liam enjoyed.


By this point we were pretty much full to the brim, but you know when you can squeeze just a little bit more in, in the form of dessert? That was us – especially after we saw the franken-shakes – it was a case of our eyes were bigger than bellies!


Dessert...

Me: Strawberry Big Bang Milkshake – Start with a classic hand-dipped strawberry, add sprinkles & top it off with a slice of birthday cake – it’s the latest thing in party food from a frozen planet ($14.00)


Him: Cosmic Cotton Candy Milkshake – Start with a hand-dipped cotton candy milkshake, add rainbow sprinkles, white chocolate covered pretzels, & top it off with cotton candy, a lollipop, and a smile as big as the universe ($14.00)


The Boy: Chocolate Comet Milkshake – Take our classic hand-dipped chocolate milkshake & bombard it with all manner of chocolate yumminess & our double chocolate brownie frosting, candy, brownies, & a cookie straw – tell your taste buds that they’ve landed on the good planet chocolate ($14.00)


We really struggled with these! I think it’s probably worth sharing one between two of you; or not have a huge dinner first… like I said, eyes bigger than our bellies!

We asked for the bill, and our server went away and returned with the manager who told us that it was on them, which was an awesome surprise – we did still leave a tip for our server though.

We enjoyed our meal at Planet Hollywood – the service and the food was good. I will warn you that it is loud in there, so do bear that in mind if you decide to visit!

By now it was late afternoon, so we headed back Home to Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort to chill out for a bit and get ready for Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party (MVMCP)!

This was going to be our first MVMVP ever, and we were looking forward to it. We had hoped to go to one in 2015, when I booked our holiday straddling Halloween and the start of Christmas, but we left a day early for the first party because they changed the dates slightly… I was so frustrated!

But, coming in December, when all of the decorations are up at the Disney Parks and Resorts definitely feels a lot more festive than back at the start of November (us in 2015) when it’s quite minimal. The only saving grace we had back then was that we did get to see the final Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights. But that’s all by the by, let’s get on with MVMCP…


Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party is s a family friendly special event, separate from regular Magic Kingdom Park admission.It requires the purchase of a ticket for the party which runs on selected nights during November and December. The party officially starts at 7pm till midnight, but you can usually enter the park from 4pm. Theme park admission is not included in the price of the ticket, the ticket only covers your party entry. When you go through the turnstiles your ticket (or Magic Band) will be scanned and you will be given a special wrist band to wear.

Much like Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party (MNSSHP), there are Disney Characters decked out in seasonal costumes to meet; a special seasonal parade, and fireworks; seasonal stage show in front of Cinderella Castle; party merchandise, and complimentary treats around the park, as well as special party foods to buy at locations around the park.

Also much like MNSSHP, at Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party there is so much to do, you can’t possibly see and do it all! Lines for characters will run to a couple of hours easily. If you really want to see a character, get to the party as early as you can and start lining up to meet them. We did this at MNSSHP to meet Jack and Sally, and we still waited 2-3 hours! This may then have a knock on effect for other things like the parade (which does run twice at MVMCP) and the fireworks.

My advice for either party is to have some sort of game plan – what are your priorities for the night? Like I said you can’t do it all! For us, it was to see the parade both times (because: photos for my trip report!) and to watch the fireworks. We also wanted to go around and try out the complimentary treats. We were not too fussed about meeting the characters – but would probably do that in the future.

With all that out of the way, let me tell you about our experience at our first Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party!


We got to Magic Kingdom around 6pm, and were given our party wristbands once scanned through the turnstile. You won’t get very far without these as they’re required to go on the rides, to meet the characters, or buy party merch.

Cast Members do check you are wearing bands – very often throughout the parade while people are sat on the kerb waiting for it to start. So if you’re ever wondering how they can clear out the park of non-party guests, that’s pretty much how they do it. They sweep guests and check for party bands – I have seen people trying to sneak a place for the parade, but have been asked to leave! And rightly so, a party ticket isn’t cheap and fair is fair…

Enough of that rant… once in the park we were directed to the right, just past the Christmas Tree, and through a gate (that is usually closed) next to Tony’s Town Square Restaurant. There are some decorations up, and you are given you first free treat of the night – a wrapped cookie! Ours was a Santa Claus sugar cookie. You can see how big it is compared with the park map! This walkway eventually leads out near Cinderella Castle.


Unlike MNSSHP where a lot of people dress up, not so many do so at the Christmas party. I wore a (long sleeve, because it was quite cold by now!) Christmas dress, and also brought a Christmas jumper to put on later in the evening. Instead of Mickey Ears, I wore my Minnie Earmuffs from Disneyland Paris.

We wanted to make sure we watched the switch on of the Cinderella Castle lights – we were going to see this back in 2015, but got rained off – so we staked out a spot and waited.

Elsa, Anna, and some of their friends light up the Castle, and this happens every evening during the he Holiday season, not just at Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. It is absolutely gorgeous, and to see the Castle suddenly light up took my breath away and brought a tear to my eye! It continues to sparkle and twinkle during the night.


We then took the walkway into Tomorrowland where we stopped by Cosmic Ray’s Starlight Cafe for our first gratis treat of the night – a Snickerdoodle Cookie and a cup of Hot Cocoa.


Storybook Circus was next so that we could go into Big Top Souvenirs to buy some merch! I bought a few Disney Pins, some of those big fairy lights that you can hang around your neck, and a MVMCP ornament for our Christmas tree.

And while in the vicinity, we stopped by Pete’s Silly Sideshow for a Peppermint Crunch Cookie and a bottle of Nesquik® Chocolate Milk.

Carrying on around Fantasyland, we stopped near The Friar’s Nook to pick up the treat at that location which was a few pieces of Dove® Chocolate and a glass of Sparkling Apple Cider (not to be confused with the alcohol cider here in the UK, which is called hard cider in the US).


The final free treat we picked up was the Giant Molasses Cookie & Eggnog at Liberty Square Ticket Office. We did miss going to Tortuga Tavern for a Snowman Soft Pretzel and Sno-Cone, and Auntie Gravity’s Galactic Goodies which was a Santa Claus Cookie and Sno-Cone. Quite likely because we were freezing and a Sno-Cone wasn’t going to hit the spot!

We had already got the Santa Claus cookie on entry (it’s the same one) so we don’t feel like we missed out on too much!


After our treat gathering haul, we made our way back down Main Street USA to grab a spot for the first running of Mickey’s Once Upon A Christmastime Parade.

On the way down, we stopped in the Emporium to buy a blanket because I was absolutely freezing! I already had my long sleeve dress and jumper on, as well as gloves, but there was a nip in the air, and I really feel the cold! So I wrapped the blanket around me and we waited for the parade to roll around to us!

Mickey’s Once Upon a Christmastime Parade starts at 8.30pm in Frontierland, and it gets to the bottom of Main Street USA at around 9pm. This is one of my new favourite spots for watching the parades – especially at night as there is a bit more light from the buildings to help me taking photos. That said, some do look like I took them on a potato, but I’ve included them as they’re all I have! I need to continue to improve on figuring out the best way to photograph nighttime parades!

The photos of the parade kinda tell the story themselves – it was a cute parade, but I think I prefer the Christmas Parade at Disneyland Paris more! I also prefer the Halloween Parade over the Christmas one – but all my personal opinion! At the end of the day, Disney know how to do a parade!


Not long after the parade finishes, it’s all about staking out a spot for the fireworks – Holiday Wishes! Of course, you don’t have to do this, but I wanted a decent spot to set up my tripod and get some half decent photos, which I just about managed to do.

Not know when the fireworks are coming – as this was our first time seeing Holiday Wishes – it makes taking photos a bit trickier. With regular Wishes I knew it inside and out and could second guess the best time to start photographing!

Disney do fireworks REALLY well – like amazingly well. They always go so well with the musical score, and take you on a journey. Holiday Wishes was amazing, and by the end of it I was in tears, especially when they sang out wishes… from the now ended fireworks show at Magic Kingdom.

Before the fireworks started I took some photos around Main Street USA which are below, in addition to the pictures of the fireworks.


The soundtrack was very festive, and Jiminy Cricket narrates as he does in the original Wishes. Tinkerbell flies across the sky too – so it feels all very familiar and like you’re home. Which sound so silly, but I get so emotional at times when on hols in Walt Disney World!

Oh, and at the end, they do have the 180° (or is it 360°?) firework bursts which you may not actually see if you’re not in the right position. We saw them when we watched Holiday Wishes from Poly beach, and they were amazing!


After the fireworks, we stopped by Casey’s Corner as we were all a bit peckish. Lunch at Planet Hollywood was ages ago, and the cookies only did so much!

I didn’t take photos at the time, as we ordered our regular eats – Corn Dog Nuggets ($8.49) for Steve and I to share, and Liam had a Hot Dog and Fries ($9.49) The total was $19.15 with tax.

Here are photos of the food from previous visits!


One thing we did miss, (and I’m not sure how, but it may have been due to the times of it) was Mickey’s Most Merriest Celebration on the Castle Stage.

Mickey and his pals invite their friends over for an unforgettable Christmas party filled with classic and contemporary holiday music, seasonal festivities and fun!

It ran several times during the evening – 7:40pm, 9:25pm, 10:30pm, and 11:55pm.

I figure we must have been grabbing treats during the earliest show, then for the next showing we were waiting for the parade. For the 10:30 show we would have been grabbing a parade spot again, and we left straight afterwards as we were right by the exit. Will watch next time around!

And finally, my photos from the second viewing of Mickey’s Once Upon A Christmastime Parade!


A host of characters are lead the parade – Pluto, Peter Pan and Wendy, Pinocchio and Gepetto, Tigger and Winnie the Pooh, Donald Duck and Daisy Duck, Alice and The Mad Hatter, and Mary Poppins and Burt.

They are followed by Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse on a float which has stacks of presents and a traditional Christmas tree with candy canes, bright ornaments and big red bows.

Next in the parade is a horse drawn open carriage with Anna and Else – they’re followed by a couple of floats – one with Olaf, and another with Kristoff.

The guys from Frozen were followed by Venelope in her candy racer, and Ralph on a float.


Chip ‘n’ Dale led the way for a team of bakers and gingerbread men (so cute!) along with a baking themed float which Clarabelle the Cow was busy making cookies on!

Then came Goofy atop the bubblegum machine bike – which I think is exactly the same one they use for the Halloween Parade!


I always get really happy when I see the Seven Dwarfs – maybe because they’re from the first ever Disney movie – but they’re just such classic characters and I love them!

This section of the parade can only be described as the fairy tale part with Snow White and The Prince on their own float, following the Seven Dwarfs.

They’re followed by a horse drawn pumpkin carriage with Cinderella and Prince Charming tucked inside. Then a huge float with the Fairy God Mother, Beauty and The Beast, Prince Eric and Ariel, Flynn Rider and Rapunzel.


The final sections were Toyland with a bunch of elves – some on on scooters, and some on rocking horses – as well as Woody, Jesse, Bullseye, and Bo Peep from Toy Story.

Quite frankly, Bo Beep terrified me with her scary mask face! And as for the Toy Soldiers which came marching through, they just reminded me of Cybermen from Doctor Who!

Closing the parade was of course Santa Claus on his sleigh, led out by his band of reindeer. I really don’t like to compare different Disney parks around the world, but we were really underwhelmed by the Santa float in comparison to the one in Disneyland Paris. That said, it was ever so Christmassy and seeing Santa wave down made you feel all warm and fuzzy!


All in all, we had a good time at Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party – it felt very festive, and all the free cookies and drinks were fab! The fireworks were amazing, and the parade was lovely.

If we went back at Christmastime again in the future, we would consider going to MVMCP again, but if we didn’t I would feel like we missed out. I’m a Halloween girl at heart, so naturally prefer MNSSHP over the Christmas one!

If you do visit at Christmas, after the final party of the season, the Christmas parade comes to Magic Kingdom (during the day) and Holiday Wishes fireworks in the evening – so you can avoid going to MVMCP if your dates tie up (and you can handle the crazy Christmas crowds!)

Don’t forget you can watch fireworks from outside the park at several locations – and they pipe the music in too. These are Polynesian Beach, the boat dock at Grand Floridian (near Narcoosees), and from the Ferryboat dock at the Transportation & Ticket Center.

You can also watch them from California Grill – but you have to have had a reservation there that evening. And if you are a DVC Member there is the Top of the World lounge at Bay Lake Towers (next to Disney’s Contemporary) that you can view from.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t go to the Christmas Party, but if you didn’t and could do the above instead you would save some money! No free cookies though…!


And that is day 6 done, and done! Tomorrow is another Disney Resort Christmas Tree Trail, along with a spot of shopping, and Thanksgiving dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern in Magic Kingdom.



Read about the day after:
Day 7: Disney Resort Christmas Tree Trail Part 2
Polynesian / Breakfast at Kona Cafe / Shopping at Super Target / All Star Sports / All Star Music / Dinner at Liberty Tree Tavern / Happily Ever After Fireworks « Coming Soon

Read about the day before:
Day 5: Festival of The Holidays
Epcot / Epcot International Festival Of The Holidays / Happily Ever After Fireworks from Poly

Read ALL the days!

All your lovely pictures have got me in a very festive mood! Perfect time of year to read this

Thanks for sharing.

Another fab day, with fab photos. Thx.
Haven’t been to the Xmas party for years. The freebies seem to have improved though. Used to be just weak Hot Chocolate & dry sugar cookies.lol.

We prefer the Halloween parade too. Just more interesting...

Lovely pictures! Looks like you had a fab day.

The pictures were great! The Christmas party looked really good, we always go in May so don't get the opportunity to go to any of them, maybe one year!

Great photos as ever. I'm glad I had a plate of cheese and biscuits to snack on as I was reading as the food looks delicious!

Another great place to watch the fireworks from is the beach at Fort Wilderness Campgrounds - we usually eat at Trail's End and then wander down to the beach, sit on a sunbed, and watch first of all the electrical water pageant go past, followed by whatever firework show is on at MK. They pipe the soundtrack in to the beach, too! Although you would miss all the castle projections and any lower-level fireworks I guess.

Really enjoying your trip report, as usual - keep up the good work!

Have loved reading your trip report and your photos are lovely