If you’ve ever been to Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party — Walt Disney World’s tickets-only, after-hours, month-long Christmas bash — then you think you’ve seen it all. While that’s not entirely untrue – most of the major elements of the party don’t change from year to year – visitors in 2012 can expect to see something a little bit different this year. Disney Parks site Inside the Magic has, well, the insider’s details on the new things you can expect to see at this year’s Very Merry Christmas Party.
Of course the biggest thing on everyone’s minds is the brand new Fantasyland expansion. While it won’t have a special role in the proceedings, it will be open during the party. That means that new areas, attractions, rides, and restaurants are there to explore during the party.
Gracing Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party once again with his presence is Scrooge McDuck. Last year, he perhaps took his name too seriously and skipped attending the event, but this year he’s back in style. The brand new attendee at the party, however, is Mickey’s older brother: Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. Oswald isn’t yet available for any meet-and-greets at the parks outside of this party, but if he’s popular then he might get more of a showcase in the future.
The crowning new event of the party is the Kringle Krew. They’re a hip-hop Christmassy street act that sings and dances Christmas songs, inviting the crowd to join in. Some might find that a bit obnoxious, especially given that the Kringle Krew replaces the ever-popular Dapper Dans and their barbershop-style tunes. If you’re fans of the Krew then this is a good year for you, and if not, then perhaps they won’t be back next year. I say that the Magic Kingdom is big enough to accommodate both, which is what they should do in future years.
The other “new” elements to the Christmas party are familiar: Cinderella’s Castle has a new projection show (replacing The Magic, The Memories, and You!). This one’s called Celebrate the Magic, and along with projections from Disney films, it will have holiday images as well. The Holiday Wishes fireworks show also contains a few new twists.
That’s it for the new events at Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. I’d say it’s not that exciting, but then I’d go to the party for the atmosphere, not the specific events. Perhaps those who haven’t been in a while will be swayed back, or loyal attendees will be rewarded with a few new goodies.
*(The above image by jared422_80 is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 License.)