The Paint the Night Parade is one of our all-time favorite Disney parades. It's the parade to make you love Disney parades. It combines all the nostalgia of the Main Street Electrical Parade with modern technology and upbeat music. The "When Can We Do This Again" music comes from Owl City's "When Can I See You Again?" from the "Wreck-It Ralph soundtrack. It also samples a bit of "Baroque Hoedown" from the Main Street Electrical Parade. It's a nice nod to the original nighttime parade.
Paint the Night features more than one million sparkling lights, giving the audience an exciting and electrifying light show. Plus, it's full of Disneyt and Pixar characters and electrifyingly lit-up dancers! So we're very hoppy to report that our favorite parade is returning to Disneyland Park for the Disneyland 70th Celebration! Read on to find out, "when can we do this again?"
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When Does Paint the Night Parade Return to Disneyland?
Paint the Night returns to Disneyland park on May 16, 2025, and runs through summer 2026! It's part of the Disneyland 70th Anniversary Celebration. There's also a daytime parade at Disney California Adventure, the Better Together Parade: A Pixar Pals Celebration. (Plus Wondrous Journeys fireworks, World of Color Happiness!, projection shows, a cavalcade and so much more!)
The parade was a hit at Disneyland Park in 2015 and 2016 when it debuted for the Diamond Anniversary Celebration. Then in April 2018, Paint the Night returned for the Pixar Fest at Disney California Adventure. Our frog family has been singing the song from the parade ever since! Now it returns to Disneyland! We cannot wait to see Tinker Bell wave her wand and lead the way when it returns. If you have smaller tadpoles or get tired early, this parade is worth staying up for! Get those naps in midday so you don;t miss it.
The parade lost the tall "Frozen" float when it hopped to Disney California Adventure due to the low Red Car Trolley cables in Hollywood Land. But it gained the "Incredibles" float. Disney has not announced which of those floats will be in the parade at Disneyland. Disney did confirm that we will see characters and stories from films such as “Monsters, Inc.,” “Cars,” “Toy Story,” “The Little Mermaid,” “Beauty and the Beast” and more. 
We did watch the parade many times at Disneyland, so we are brining old solid strategies out of the vault. We'll update this post after opening night! We'll likely be singing our little frog hearts out:
When can we do this again?
Whoa-oh-oh-oh
I never want this to end
Whoa-oh-oh-oh
Tips for the Best Viewing of Paint the Night at Disneyland
Plan Ahead and Consult the Schedule
This parade is a popular attraction for tourists and annual pass holders alike. It’s like a rock concert on wheels, and groupies of all ages come for it. Make sure to check the Entertainment Schedule for show times before visiting. The parade time can vary each night.
Know the Parade Route and Viewing Locations
Last time Paint the Night was in Disneyland Park, the first parade ran just before fireworks, let's say about 8:30 p.m. (Actual parade times vary per night and season.) The parade ended at Town Square minutes before the 9:30 p.m. fireworks started. That meant if you watched the parade on Main Street U.S.A., then you could stand up, move into the street and see the fireworks show.
The second show was about 10:30 p.m. It was a lot less crowded. You could sit on the curb after fireworks and rest while you waited for the second parade.
Know Which Direction the Parade Travels
It’s always a good idea to know which direction the parade is flowing and where. There is usually only one parade each night. Here is the expected parade direction for each show (subject to change):
- The first parade usually travels the parade route from "it's a small world" to Town Square near the park entrance.
- The second parade travels in the opposite direction.
Assess the crowds during your visit to make a plan for getting your spot. A less-crowded day makes it easier to get a good spot. Knowing where to sit and when to claim your spot can be the most anxiety-provoking part of the night. The best viewing of Paint the Night Parade at Disneyland is a spot in which you can see the parade coming for a while. That will give you the best viewing pleasure and a chance to watch the many dancers and sparkling floats for the longest amount of time. So know which direction the parade is coming toward you.
Cast members will start preparing about two hours before the parade (you’ll see them coming out with white ropes), and they may discourage you from camping out too early. If you want a front-row view, start keeping your eye on the situation about two to two-and-a-half hours before show time.
Location location location … You can sit along the entire parade route with the exception of pedestrian crossings/walkways and reserved areas. Avoid sitting in a spot that may not be a viewing location. You may think it's a front row spot only for a cast member to come by and ask you to move because it's actually a walkway. Avoid the frustration by confirming your viewing spot with a cast member.
Avoid sitting behind a crossing area. People walking between you and the oncoming parade could be distracting. They could also get in the way of your photos and videos. Tad, our family videographer, always makes sure to position us for better photos and videos away from crossings and blind corners. Of course, there are many more locations along the route.
We have found that the raised area across from "it's a small world" can have good sight lines as long as you are mindful of the parade direction and light poles. Since there is a projection show on "its'a small world" as well as fireworks projections, you might be able to time it to see the parade and multiple shows from that spot.
Near the train station in Town Square makes for an easy exit after the parade. Most of the parade route is ground seating — so no curbs. If you can find a spot to sit that allows you to lean against a light pole or wall, your back will thank you.
Consider a Reserved Viewing Area or Dining Packages
If you are not one to camp out on a curb or the cement for a few hours — hey, we toadally get the desire to maximize your time — you might consider an option that gives you a reserved viewing area. You can reserve a Paint the Night dining package at Plaza Inn up to 60 days in advance as of March 25, 2025. Enjoy a scrumptious lunch and reserved viewing for the parade! We review all the Disneyland Dining Packages in a blog post. We will update it once we have more details for 2025.
Plan Your Parade Viewing Around Other Nighttime Entertainment
We look forward to hopping off the curb after the parade to watch the fireworks show if the timing works out this time around. If seeing Paint the Night, Fantasmic! and the Disneyland fireworks are on your must-do list, it will take some planning to pull this off. Both parks offer amazing nighttime entertainment, but it can be challenging and even impossible to get it all in on the same night, so we recommend taking at least two or three nights to enjoy the shows — spend at least one night at Disney California Adventure to see World of Color Happiness! Any of these shows offer a great way to put a grand finale on your day, but many of the shows overlap or are scheduled pretty tightly together. It becomes extremely challenging to move before, during and after the nighttime entertainment due to crowds.
If you're a quick walker who is not laden down by strollers, you just may be able to pull off seeing more than one show. Remember that a plan that looks good on paper may not play out in reality. The parks are moving large masses of people in the evening, so any movement takes much longer than usual.
If you have a Park Hopper ticket and only one night to do it all, we have advice. Our frog family loves park hopping. We do this many times in a single day because the entrances are right across from each other. However nighttime movement slows us down. You can catch two or three nighttime shows on a night where the show times work out — that means seeing Paint the Night followed by the fireworks and maybe even the second Fantasmic! show. Fantasmic usually has two shows, but there is almost never more than one fireworks show. The fireworks and Fantasmic! won’t be running every night during most seasons. They may only be available on weekends an in summer and during Holiday Time, so check the entertainment calendar.
If visiting on a night with all the nighttime entertainment, view Paint the Night first, followed by fireworks. Then you can race to either the second showing of Fantasmic! in Disneyland Park or to World of Color Happiness! in Disney California Adventure. Plan ahead. We recommend a Fantasmic! dining package to reserve a spot that is pretty much front and center. For Fantasmic! you can join a virtual queue at noon that day.
Plan your parade viewing area near the direction you want to head after the fireworks.
Parent Tips for Waiting
Many young children may find it difficult to sit still and wait for a parade. Parents must plan ahead by bringing a blanket or lily pad to sit on, and provide food and maybe some activities. For us, we like to enjoy snacks from our favorite quick-service restaurants and stands nearby. Mobile order is a life-saver. But order well in advance from Main Street U.S.A. locations. One parent might take Tad and Lily to do some souvenir shopping at the light-up toy souvenir kiosks. We also entertain the kiddos with the bubble wands and light-up toys. Just before the parade, the crowd is usually very entertaining and excited. Other ideas include people watching or napping. One parent can even take kids on some rides while the other holds the spot, but try to be in place at least 30 minutes before the show.
Cast members might play some crowd games to get people excited or even teach people a Paint the Night dance. Photographers might come by to take some fun shots. This is always a great opportunity to ask for Magic Shots, especially if you have Lighting Lane Multi Pass, which includes unlimited photo downloads for the day.
After experiencing Paint the Night parade, your entire family will be asking, “When can we do this again?” Our frog family just can't get enough of this awesome parade!
We're always happy to give you advice for the best viewing of Paint the Night Parade. We'll continue to share as we discover more tips. Have a tip of your own? Share them below. If you have questions about the parade, let us know those too.
Related: Fantastic Tips for Viewing Fantasmic! at Disneyland
Related: Best Places to View Disneyland Fireworks
Keep hopping!
