Is the Oogie Boogie Bash at Disneyland Worth It?

Sharing is caring!

Planning a trip to Disneyland in the fall and wondering whether or not to get tickets to the Oogie Boogie Bash? We’ve been 3 times and break down why it may (or may not) be a good fit for your family.

This review of the Oogie Boogie Bash at Disneyland was written by Disneyland travel expert Marcie Cheung and contains affiliate links which means if you purchase something from one of my affiliate links, I may earn a small commission that goes back into maintaining this blog.

My family LOVES to visit Disneyland during Halloween! It’s such a festive environment and they go all-out on spooky decorations and themed treats.

This is also when they host their annual Oogie Boogie Bash (formerly Mickey’s Halloween Party). It’s a nighttime ticketed event with exclusive Disney villain characters, activities, trick-or-treating, and other surprises.

We’ve gone 3 times and have some strong opinions about this Disneyland event. Keep scrolling to figure out whether or not it’s worth the splurge.

What is the Oogie Boogie Bash at Disneyland?

The Oogie Boogie Bash is the Disneyland Halloween party that happens on select nights during September and October at Disney California Adventure Park.

It is a separately ticketed event apart from normal park tickets. Tickets range from $134 to $189 for anyone ages 3 and older.

The event is kid-friendly and includes trick-or-treating, photo opportunities with special characters (including Disney villains), a special parade, entertainment, and after-hours rides.

Your ticket also gets you into Disney California Adventure Park up to 3 hours before the Oogie Boogie Bash.

Oogie Boogie Bash Costumes

One of the big reasons why people love the Oogie Boogie Bash is that it’s one of the few times that adults can wear costumes in the parks.

It’s trendy to pick a Disney family costume to wear during the party. People usually choose a Disney movie, a Disneyland ride, or a set of Disney characters to dress up as a group.

You can find cool costumes on ShopDisney, Amazon, Etsy, or even make your own.

I tried to get my family to dress up as our favorite Disney snacks, Snow White and a few of her dwarfs, characters from Peter Pan, or classic Disney characters, but my kids weren’t on board.

We ended up wearing matching glow-in-the-dark skeleton onesies that I figured would keep us warm as we walked around at night.

Honest Oogie Boogie Bash Review

So, usually, I’d recommend not buying park tickets for the same day. That’s because it’s a late night with kids and they can get overly tired/cranky.

Plus, one of the perks of getting a party ticket is that you can enter the park a few hours before the party.

But, since this was a short trip for us, we figured we’d try to maximize our day. Oh, and my kids begged us to rope drop this day.

Our kids are 9yo and 7yo and it was a total gamble. I will say, it did NOT work out for us.

We ended up putting both boys in a double stroller that we rented from Disneyland and they mostly zoned out on their Nintendo Switches while my husband and I enjoyed the party.

What Did We Do During the Halloween Party?

Since this was our 3rd time at the Oogie Boogie Bash, we didn’t feel like we needed to do everything.

We had a Magic Key (annual pass) this year so we got a free gift and a special photo opportunity.

Our kids were tired and they mostly wanted to do trick-or-treating, see some of the villains, eat dinner, and then go back to the hotel.

Trick-or-Treating

There are a ton of opportunities to go trick-or-treating at Disneyland.

When you check into the event, they will give you a map as well as a small plastic bag for treats. Use the map to find out where all the trick-or-treat trails are.

We tried to focus on the trails that also had characters, but the non-character trails were pretty quick to go through.

There were a bunch of bins of treats with cast members handing them out on each of the trails. It was a mix of candy (like Skittles, M&Ms, etc), Rice Krispie Treats, graham crackers, Sun Chips, carrots, apple slices, and grapes.

Disney Villains

My husband and I were pretty stoked about the Disney villains and didn’t mind having to go through the trick-or-treat trails to get to them.

The cool thing about the immersive trails is that the Disney villains are usually pretty entertaining and it makes the line not feel so slow.

My kids totally perked up when we went to see Mister Oogie Boogie in an indoor area. He was pretty funny and he moved all over the stage interacting with guests.

We also got to listen to a mini-concert by Ernesto from Coco. That was pretty cute and there was lots of room to be in the audience.

Most of the trails didn’t have official photo ops. You could take photos or video as you walked past but couldn’t pose with the characters.

There were a handful of photo ops available, so we took advantage of a few of them.

Were There Things We Didn’t Like?

While I loved getting healthy options (carrots, apples, and grapes), we ended up leaving most of them in our hotel fridge. But, they would be great to bring on the airplane home.

Oogie Boogie Bash Party Tips

Don’t Spend the Day in the Park

If you really want to make the most of your time at the party, I wouldn’t recommend using a park ticket that day.

The only caveat is if you are Magic Key holders and want to roll into the parks around lunchtime.

I suggest having an easy morning so you don’t fade once the party starts.

Head into DCA a Few Hours Before the Party

With our Oogie Boogie Bash ticket, we also got access to Disney California Adventure at 3 p.m.

If you do a slow morning, that timing is perfect. You can head into the park, do a few rides, and enjoy some snacks before the party starts.

Consider Staying at Disney Grand Californian Hotel & Spa

One of the reasons why we booked the Disney Grand Californian Hotel is that it has a private entrance to Disney California Adventure.

Part of that entails its own security and ticket lines, which are usually much shorter than the park entrances.

This means that it was easy to head back to our hotel before the party started and it made for a short walk back to our room when we were all pretty wiped.

Think About Your Costumes

As a Seattle girl, I find SoCal weather completely confusing. The temperature change is so drastic from the afternoon to the evening.

We saw a lot of warm onesies (like what we wore) and I still needed a sweatshirt under mine to stay comfortable.

But there were also a lot of chilly-looking families who were just wearing the flimsy store-bought costumes.

There were also a large number of family costumes for the Incredibles and Toy Story.

Get Dinner Before the Party

If at all possible, try to make a dining reservation between 4 p.m.-5:30 p.m. That will give your family a chance to sit down and fuel up before the party.

I knew I should have figured out dinner before the party but we weren’t hungry. So, I ended up mobile ordering and the wait time was 2 hours.

It worked out for us because we did some trick-or-treat trails first, saw some villains, and then sat and ate our food for a bit before doing more party stuff.

Check Ride Times

One of the big perks of the party is that the ride lines are usually pretty short. My 9yo was able to do the Incredicoaster with only a 15-minute wait.

We took a peek at other ride waits as we walked around and a lot of them were pretty short. That’s the beauty of having special characters and treats available: it means less people in line for rides!

Bring Extra Bags

If you’re planning on trick-or-treating at Disneyland, you’ll fill up the free bags they give you after about 3 trails.

We saw a lot of pros who brought big reusable bags and I wish we would have done that.

Instead, we were able to buy a bag for $1.50 in Cars Land so we could dump all our bags of treats into it.

Oogie Boogie Bash FAQs

When is the Oogie Boogie Bash and how long does it run?

This Disneyland Halloween party runs on select nights in September and October 2023. It starts at 6 p.m. and ends at 11 p.m.

How much does it cost and where can I buy tickets?

Oogie Boogie Bash tickets are sold out for 2023 (they were sold out almost as soon as they were released and there were a bunch of technical issues).

You’ll want to start keeping your eye out in July as that’s when tickets are usually released.

What special events, shows, or attractions are exclusive to the Oogie Boogie Bash?

A few things that you will only find at the Disneyland Oogie Boogie Bash include the Frightfully Fun Parade, Disney villains, immersive treat trails, Mickey’s Trick or Treat show, Villains Grove, and Disney PhotoPass photos.

Are there any costume guidelines or rules?

So, normally people older than 14 years old aren’t allowed to wear costumes in the parks. However, this changes for the Oogie Boogie Bash!

There are still some rules, so you’ll want to check out the Oogie Boogie Bash costume guidelines to make sure your costumes work.

Was the Oogie Boogie Bash Worth the Money?

Honestly, I don’t think it was worth it for our family this year. We went on October 22 and tickets were $169 each for a total of $676 for our family of four.

Even if we hadn’t spent the day in the parks, I don’t think my kids would have had much energy for this nighttime event.

That was unfortunate because my husband and I had a great time seeing all the Disney villains that we normally never see in the parks.

Now that I’m thinking about it, we should have spent that money on a sitter in our hotel room and my husband and I could have had a date night in the parks!

Our kids really just wanted to do the trick-or-treating so we ended up packing home a huge bag of candy (even after we gave a bunch to our hotel security staff).

We also saw a LOT of overly tired/cranky kids early in the evening.

If you are already doing long days on your Disneyland vacation, it’s really hard to expect your kids to rally on another long night.

What about for teens/tweens?

I think this event would totally be worth it for teens and tweens who like to sleep in and have a later start to their park day. Don’t buy them a regular ticket that day, just do the event ticket.

Looking for more travel resources for visiting Disneyland in the fall? Check out Disneyland Halloween Festivities, Rainy Day Magic: How to Make the Most of Disneyland in the Rain, 17 Things to Know Before Your First Trip to Disneyland, and How to Save Money at Disneyland: 20 Must Know Tips!