Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam! Holiday Dessert Party Review

Hi everyone!

Last week, we attended the second Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam! Holiday Party. When we booked it, we thought it was just a dessert party – but we were pleasantly suprised that there were other offerings as well. I was hoping to post this review earlier, but we’ve been on the go every day and I’m finally getting to catch up on my writing.

So….before going any further, this might be the first time I’m not really recommending a Disney dessert/food event. I enjoy Disney special events, but we’ve become pretty choosy about which ones we book and review as far as our budget allows. However, the Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam! Holiday Party sounded interesting and having a reserved spot for a show can be a bonus – especially when the show doesn’t have a lot of good sightlines. From November 14 through December 17, 2016, tickets are $69 per adult and $39 for children ages 3 to 9 (tax and gratuity included). From December 18 through December 31, 2016, tickets can be purchased for $79 per adult and $45 for children ages 3 to 9 (tax and gratuity included). Here is our review, though we personally recommend Minnie’s Holiday Dine instead and I’ll post about that at the end.

The check-in area was easy to find. The app said to arrive 15 minutes early, we arrived about 30 minutes early and there was already a long line. There were actually two lines – one to check in, and one to stand in after checked in. That was a little confusing, but it didn’t take long to figure it out.

Unlike dessert parties we’ve booked in the past at Disney’s Hollywood Studios (including for Frozen Summer Fun), the dining area was separate from the viewing area. That for me is not a plus, I enjoyed being able to watch fireworks from my table while enjoying a drink. Plus having tables in the viewing area allowed everyone to spread out comfortably. This area also can get very loud from the pyrotechnics if the Star Wars show is happening.

I decided to try my first sample from a food station with no line. The Liquid Nitro Frost Bites was like a chocolate mousse. It was a tiny portion, but that was good considering that I was trying other things.

I’ll show the ingredients from the Gingerbread Martini lower in the article, but it is very sweet – it was too sweet for me, which is saying something. I didn’t care for either specialty drink, another first for me at a Disney Parks dessert type party.

The lines for the drinks actually weren’t ever bad while we were there. Usually not more than a couple of guests per bartender.

Prep and Landing is the theme here, to match the show. Not all guests apparently know what Prep & Landing is, but I prefer the holiday theme to more Frozen or Star Wars.

Here are the desserts, including Holiday Crispy Bon Bons (I never eat these at dessert parties, they are like Rice Krispie Treats).

I never eat these anymore either, the Lemon Meringue Tart. These two items tend to be at most dessert parties.

This is the Gingerbread Almond Chocolate Cookie. I heard good reviews of this cookie after the party, but it didn’t look appealing to me. Jeff liked it, although he felt a little “gingerbreaded out” from the party.

The Chocolate Cupcake with Mint Frosting and Peppermint Bark is delicious, though I don’t really understand the cupcake wrappers that are always so hard to unfold. I make a mess of it (and me) every time.

This is a Salted Caramel Cottage Pudding and I don’t have the sign, but to the left was a warm chocolate cake. I did not care for the caramel pudding but did like the cake and there was vanilla ice cream that could be added.

There were a number of savory items. Jeff liked the Winter Spiced Party Mix.

Jeff liked the Kale Collard and Pomegranate Onion Slaw enough to have one, but he didn’t like it enough to have two.

I went back two or three times for the Grilled Flatbread, I liked it quite a bit. I am not hard to please when it comes to bread. There was a Warm Spinach Artichoke Dip that paired well with it.

Grilled Flatbread with the Pineapple Sweet and Sour Mixed Grill Meatballs. I don’t recall a particularly sweet nor sour taste to the meatballs, they were kind of non-descript but definitely passeable for the party. Here I also have the artichoke dip.

This is the drink menu for the party. The Gingerbread Martini was very popular, and guests seemed to like it. I like gingerbread, but I didn’t care for this. The Apple Cinnamon Cocktail was very strong, definitely not for me either. I ended up with a little of the Beringer White Zinfandel. Jeff had a Yeungling.

Here is a look at the Apple Cinnamon Cocktail.

Jeff enjoyed the drinks more than I did.

Looking up from our spot at the Chinese Theater.

When the Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam! Holiday Party was announced, there was a VIP character mentioned. It was Santa Goofy, who we have met a lot. So not too much of a VIP. I was hoping for someone from Prep & Landing, even though I’m not sure they’ve ever been in the parks.

It went from day to night very quickly at the party.

I mentioned the drink lines never seemed long, and that continued.

There was tea, coffee, hot chocolate. I was hoping for iced tea, but that was not available. There wasn’t really a lot that I was interested in as far as beverages.

Sprite, Coca-Cola and Diet Coke were available.

So during the Party, you can decide if you want to stay at the Party or leave early to get better viewing of Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam! I think the party was about an hour long, and Jeff left about 15 minutes early and secured a good viewing location. I waited until closer to the party end and stood in the back. There was no announcement that guests could leave early, but guests realized they could go and did. There was a gingerbread cookie handed out to guests on the way out. That was a nice added touch.

Bottled water was available.

I mentioned that I took a back spot. That is really what I wanted, since I could move about more. It wasn’t a great view, but I could put my camera over my head a little and take photos. Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam! does not have great sightlines for guests – not even from this spot, with the stage and palm trees blocking some of the view. It’s not like watching a Cinderella Castle show, which allows for great viewing for most guests.

We do talk about the Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam! Holiday Party & show in our Mousesteps Weekly show #207. Keep reading for more photos and our recommendation!

Here is the full Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam! projection show in our video.

The overall theme is Prep & Landing.

Mickey Mouse can be seen here, along with so many lasers. I guess if you can’t see the Chinese Theater, at least you have the lasers – I’ve never seen so many in a show.

The Chinese Theater looks wrapped as a gift. Not all stories on the theater are Prep & Landing, there are a number of them including Nightmare Before Christmas.

Fireworks could be seen easily from my spot.

Here is a better view of my location.

Eventually snow fell.

I really enjoy all the projections being used lately in shows.

A Christmas tree is projected on the Chinese Theater.

Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam! may be the worst name for a Disney show ever, not even the tram driver could remember it (he said Jingle Jam, Jingle Bam). I forget it easily too. But it was fun, I look forward to seeing it again this season.

The garland at Disney’s Hollywood Studios reminds me of Cars Land in California.

Personally, I would skip the Jingle Bell, Jingle Bam! Holiday Party in the future and would be more interested in Minnie’s Holiday Dine (we did the Halloween version this year). While the food isn’t all great, some of it was very good and there was so much character interaction. Plus it is less expensive, on the Disney Dining Plan and I think offers an Annual Passholder discount as well. But there isn’t alcohol included in Minnie’s Holiday Dine, so your mileage may vary.