Disneyland Resort’s After-Hours Events: Are They Worth the Price?

When it comes to the Disneyland Resort, who doesn’t want to get some exclusive, after-hours time in the parks? Luckily for us, the resort hosts several after-hours events each year, which inevitably sell out due to their high popularity.

Sleeping Beauty Castle

While these event tickets are highly coveted, not every event guest walks away satisfied–in fact, these after-hours events are subject to quite a bit of scrutiny every year. So, before you drop some money on an after-hours event ticket, we’re helping you decide if they’re worth the price for you. 

Disneyland’s After-Hours Events

Guests have the opportunity to attend a variety of after-hours events at the Disneyland Resort throughout the year–if they’re able to secure a ticket before they sell out. Here’s the list of this year’s after-hours events:

• Disneyland After Dark: Sweethearts’ Nite – Disneyland Park
• Disneyland After Dark: 90s Nite – Disneyland Park
• Disneyland After Dark: Star Wars Nite – Disneyland Park
• Disneyland After Dark: Pride Nite – Disneyland Park
• Oogie Boogie Bash – Disney California Adventure (DCA)

We’ve already experienced this year’s Sweethearts’ Nite and 90s Nite events, with only Star Wars Nite, Pride Nite, and the Oogie Boogie Bash left to attend. Tickets are currently still available for Star Wars Nite, but Pride Nite and Oogie Boogie Bash ticket sales haven’t started quite yet.

Disneyland After Hours: 90s Nite

Before you purchase a ticket to any of the remaining after-hours events, let’s discuss their common critiques.

Not Enough Time

This is one of the main critiques–many guests feel that there’s not nearly enough time to experience the events. This year’s Disneyland After Dark events, for example, run from 9PM to 1AM with mix-in starting at 6PM. That gives guests only 4 hours to experience everything at the event–special eats and drinks, exclusive merchandise, unique character meet-and-greets, event-themed entertainment, cavalcades, activities, and shorter wait times for attractions. (Phew, we’ll be needing more than 4 hours just list out everything there is to do.)

Disneyland After Dark: 90s Nite

From my personal experience, this is a valid critique. It’s important to keep in mind that, while these separately ticketed events have fewer guests than normal park hours, there are still a lot of guests. And with lots of guests comes lots of waits–especially when everyone is there with the same goal–to experience all the event’s offerings in only 4 hours. 

Oogie Boogie Bash typically gives guests 5 hours to experience the event, running from 6PM to 11PM with mix-in starting at 3PM. However, there’s even more to do at these events. On top of the regular offerings listed above for the Disneyland After Dark events, Oogie Boogie Bash also has treat trails with special character experiences, the Frightfully Fun Parade, and a villainous grove trail. 

Mother Gothel at Oogie Boogie

Mix-in allows event guests to enter the park before the event’s kick-off, and sometimes, select event experiences will be available at that time. For example, at the last Disneyland After Dark event, 90s Nite, Disneyland actually allowed event guests to start meeting the characters at 4:30PM.

Disneyland After Dark: 90s Nite

I’ve attended a few of these separately ticketed events and have never been able to experience everything there is to do. While some may find that critique gluttonous, the counterargument is that, with the price attached to these event tickets, guests should be able to experience everything.

Too Expensive

That leads us to the next critique–price. Disneyland After Dark event tickets range from $149 to $179–pricing fluctuates depending on the event series and date. While we don’t have prices for this year’s Oogie Boogie Bash tickets yet, last year’s tickets ran from $134 to $189, depending on the date. 

Disneyland After Dark: Sweethearts’ Nite

For that price, the assumption is that the event will be full of exclusive offerings with plenty of time to experience it all. However, some critics have found that there’s not nearly enough time to take advantage of it all, while others have said the exclusive event offerings aren’t even worth the price. 

2025 Disneyland Resort Disneyland After Dark Sweethearts Nite

With that said, if you’re only visiting for the day (and don’t already have access to the park), this ticket could actually be a great deal for you. Since the ticket allows you to enter the park 3 hours early, you’re able to have some fun in the park before the event and experience the entire event for almost the same price as a standard day ticket. 

Too Many Attendees

Some of these issues stem from another critique–there are too many attendees. Some offerings–like the special character meet-and-greets–have hour(s)-long waits, making it nearly impossible to experience that specific offering and much else.

Oogie Boogie Bash

At 90s Nite, some of the character experiences were so popular that Disneyland had to hand out wristbands with return times on the first night, and then shift the experience to “wave and play” on the second night, where the characters would just walk through the area and casually take photos.

Disneyland After Dark: 90s Nite

With there being so many attendees who all want to experience the same event offerings within the same short window of time, lines are inevitable. However, while they’re inevitable, they still make it difficult for guests to actually experience everything. 

Not-So-Exclusive Offerings

The last critique is that the “exclusive” merchandise and food offerings aren’t always as exclusive as advertised. The Powerline Max Bucket, for example, was an “exclusive” 90s Nite item that will be available to everyone else this spring. 

Disneyland After Dark: 90s Nite

Attendees hoping to access truly exclusive items have been frustrated by the general re-release of these offerings following the events. Sometimes these not-so-exclusive items are even sold while the events are still going–Oogie Boogie Bash, for example, tends to sell their event merchandise during normal park hours, so everyone can access it.

2024 Oogie Boogie Bash Merchandise

Those are the main critiques that are commonly voiced. Hopefully, they’ll help you decide if these after-hours events are worth the price for you!

And we’ll keep bringing you the latest in all things Disney, so stay tuned to MickeyBlog.com. 

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