11 Things to See and Do at Disneyland Resort Halloweentime 2017 (Including New Cars Land Haul-O-Ween!)

Hi everyone!

HalloweenTime at the Disneyland Resort is in full swing, including the newest offering at Disney California Adventure – Cars Land Haul-O-Ween! The latter was the reason I wanted to visit this year for Halloween, and of course the usual favorites of Haunted Mansion Holiday, Ghost Galaxy and more. Here are 11 reasons to visit the Disneyland Resort for HalloweenTime! We will also have at least one Mousesteps Weekly show talking all about Halloween! (We did not participate in any media event and paid our own way – all views are ours all the time!)

I have photos and video added to the article, I am still adding a few of each as time permits.

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1 – Cars Land Haul-O-Ween – Cars Land debuts it’s Haul-O-Ween this year, and there is so much to see and do for it! Cars Land impressed during its first year overlay of Christmas decorations, and Haul-O-Ween not only has decorations, but Cars characters dressed in costume and two attractions with their own Halloween twist. Make sure to see the lighting moment!

2 – Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission Breakout: Monsters After Dark – During the day, guests can ride the regular Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission Breakout! But come 6:00 p.m., the attraction becomes Monsters After Dark with a new ride experience – and it is so much fun! If you have Disney Maxpass, you can book this online starting around 3:00 p.m. (I booked it at about 2:50 p.m. yesterday). There is also regular Fastpass, get in line for that before 3:00 p.m. The song will stick in your head!

3 – Haunted Mansion Holiday – This classic overlay features Nightmare Before Christmas characters. I first rode it in 2001 and it is one of my favorite aspects of Halloween in the Disney parks (and Christmas, since it spans both).

4 – Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy – Still a fun attraction, Space Mountain Ghost Galaxy does pale in technology to Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Breakout!. Hopefully we’ll see some updates in the next couple of years.

5 – Disney Characters in Halloween Costumes: From Cars Land to Buena Vista Street and Town Square at Disneyland, there are many characters to meet – Halloween characters and other usual walk-around characters.

6 – Plaza de la Familia is “A Musical Celebration of Coco”: Head to Paradise Gardens for a lively show with activities, a Pixar Coco display and special food items for purchase celebrating the movie and Día de los Muertos. There are no character meet and greets here, but it’s a nice family location with great live music and guests can even leave a memory of a loved one. Day of the Dead is also celebrated in Frontierland but on a smaller scale.

7 – Mickey’s Halloween Party – This hard-ticket event sold out before the first one started (though tickets were available for the second party on the day-of, so you never know if you can snag them!) and is the icing on a very large Halloween cake. Whether you go to the Party or not, there is a LOT of Halloween to enjoy in both parks.

Here is our Mousesteps Weekly YouTube Show where we talk all about Mickey’s Halloween Party!

8 – Treats and Eats: There is a plethora of Halloween themed food and snack items to purchase, more than I have seen at any Disney park for a Halloween holiday. Even if you are at the parks for a week, you won’t likely get to everything unless with a group. There are some big winners as far as treats, including the Mickey Mummy Macaron at Jolly Holiday Bakery and the Oogie Boogie dessert at the French Market (the latter is deceptively delicious).

9 – Disney Halloween Merchandise – The regular Halloween merchandise isn’t too exciting, but some Haul-O-Ween merchandise is slowly arriving – and it’s well worth looking for. I am hoping there will be Monsters After Dark merchandise too. Oogie Boogie popcorn buckets have also been very popular.

10 – Buena Vista Street – I already mentioned characters, but Buena Vista Street comes alive in a more spooky way at night. The Headless Horseman statue lights up and smokes, and Oogie Boogie sounds like he is taking it over. I love this area both at day and night!

11 – Disneyland Pumpkin Festival – Take a stroll down Main Street, there are fun pumpkins including themed ones – even an Abraham Lincoln pumpkin!

There is even more to see than I mentioned, but that is a lot of the big stuff to look for. I know a lot of my East Coast friends and followers are booking trips here after seeing all of the offerings online – I definitely recommend 2017 at Disneyland and DCA if you can swing a trip!