A note from Mommy Frog: After a temporary closure due to COVID-19, Walt Disney World Resort is slowly beginning to reopen! Disney Springs began a phased reopening May 20. Walt Disney World Resort will reopen its theme parks in phases, as well, starting July 11 for the general public! Magic Kingdom and Disney's Animal Kingdom will be the first parks to open, followed by EPCOT and Disney's Hollywood Studios July 15. For more details about park openings and procedures, read our blog post, which we will continue to update with the latest news. Guests who have purchased tickets for Disney Villains After Hours from March 16, 2020, through the end of the closure period will be automatically refunded.
'Sup! Tad here. Are you ready to take a walk on the sinister side? On select nights, you can stay past park hours and party with your favorite Disney villains! This specially themed After Hours event debuted last summer, and we're excited that it's now back for revenge. It kicked off Feb. 7, 2020, and will run for 24 select nights until July 10. Those Disney villains deserve this extra recognition!
Magic Kingdom is transformed at night thanks to special lighting and music throughout the park, creating a foreboding atmosphere before Hades, Jafar, The Queen, Dr. Facilier and Maleficent take over the universe in the "Villains Unite the Night" stage show.
More villains join Maleficent the Dragon in the brand-new Villains' Cursed Caravan parade that features your favorites and their henchmen. You may even see some surprise villains before you leave. (Just know that the villains aren't available for meet-and-greets.)
With special merchandise and food offerings and an after-hours atmosphere fitting of the most vile villains, there's fun for every froggy at Villains After Hours events. Let's hop into all of the dastardly deets — including our tips and thoughts on whether the After Hours events are worth it!
Guide to Villains After Hours Events
Overview and Dates | Arriving at Villains After Hours | Attractions and Entertainment | Food and Merchandise | Tips and Strategies | Is It Worth It?
Villains After Dark Overview and Dates
When my parents told me I'd get to experience yet another After Hours event, I was already stoked. When they told me it had a special villains theme, I leapt with excitement! (I also practiced my best evil laugh. When in Rome, y'know?)
Just like regular After Hours events at Disney's Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom Park, guests get to stick around long after the park has closed, making lines super short, and unlimited ice cream, soda and popcorn are all included with your admission. At Villains After Hours, though, the villains take over Magic Kingdom with special entertainment, ride overlays, food and merch.
In 2020, the Disney Villains After Hours events are taking place on 24 select nights, starting Feb. 7 through July 10. Party guests can enter Magic Kingdom as early as 7 p.m. (extra ride time, oh yeah!)
Tickets are limited for each date and can sell out, so be sure to plan ahead and buy them in advance. Villains After Hours tickets can be purchased in advance for $145 per adult or child (plus tax), or $155 per adult or child (plus tax) for same-day admission. Annual Passholders and Disney Vacation Club Members can take advantage of a $30 per ticket discount. Or, you can save some extra green and purchase through your favorite theme park frogs!
Disney Villains After Hours at Magic Kingdom (10 p.m. to 1 a.m. unless noted below)
- Friday, Feb. 7, 2020*
- Friday, Feb. 14, 2020
- Friday, Feb. 21, 2020*
- Friday, Feb. 28, 2020
- Friday, March 6, 2020*
- Wednesday, March 11, 2020
- Wednesday, March 18, 2020 - No Longer Available
- Friday, March 27, 2020 - No Longer Available
- Friday, April 3, 2020 - No Longer Available
- Friday, April 10, 2020 - No Longer Available
- Friday, April 17, 2020 - No Longer Available
- Friday, April 24, 2020 - No Longer Available
- Friday, May 1, 2020 - No Longer Available
- Friday, May 8, 2020 - No Longer Available
- Thursday, May 14, 2020 - No Longer Available
- Friday, May 22, 2020 - No Longer Available
- Friday, May 29, 2020 - No Longer Available
- Friday, June 5, 2020 - No Longer Available
- Friday, June 12, 2020 - No Longer Available
- Friday, June 19, 2020
- Friday, June 26, 2020
- Monday, June 29, 2020
- Monday, July 6, 2020
- Friday, July 10, 2020
*Event takes place 9 p.m. - 12 a.m.
Arriving at Villains After Hours
Villains After Hours guests are able to enter Magic Kingdom as early as 7 p.m. You'll see cast members directing party-goers to a specific entry lane with an After Hours sign; once you scan your MagicBand or ticket, you'll also receive a wristband. If you'll already be at Magic Kingdom during the day, there are wristband stations set up around the park, as well. No need to exit and re-enter!
Your wristband is your golden ticket, as once the park closes, you'll need to show your wristband at each ride or land that you'd like to access, while guests without wristbands will be corralled toward the exit.
Once the park officially closes, the castle will change to more creepy colors and malevolent music will fill the park. The villains have arrived!
Attractions and Entertainment at Villains After Hours
Attractions and Wait Times
Pirates of the Caribbean and Space Mountain each get a slightly wicked makeover with special enhancements. We thought the Pirates of the Caribbean overlay with live actors was super cool. The actors somehow still looked like they were animatronics on the ride! There are no jump scares, so this is safe for tadpoles, though the live actors do issue some warnings in the queue that can be a little foreboding. (This ride overlay is similar to what happens during Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party.)
If you're a Space Mountain fan like me, make sure you hop on that rocket ship! Riding in complete darkness — and not knowing what would come next — was so rad! (Lily sat that one out with Mommy Frog.)
In total, we were able to hit about 10 attractions during this event! You could definitely do more if you hop to it, but we took our time to enjoy the entertainment and treats, as well as the decor, so we weren't the speediest frogs at the event. We also rode Pirates four times in a row, but that's besides the point. A Pirate's life for me! Over 20 attractions are open during Villains After Hours, including:
- Haunted Mansion
- Swiss Family Treehouse
- The Magic Carpets of Aladdin
- Jungle Cruise
- Enchanted Tiki Room
- Pirates of the Caribbean*
- Splash Mountain
- Big Thunder Mountain Railroad
- Country Bear Jamboree
- Seven Dwarfs Mine Train
- Prince Charming Regal Carrousel
- Mickey's PhilharMagic
- Peter Pan's Flight
- "it's a small world"
- Under the Sea - Journey of the Little Mermaid
- The Barnstormer
- Dumbo the Flying Elephant
- Mad Tea Party
- The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh
- Tomorrowland Speedway
- Space Mountain*
- Astro Oribiter
- PeopleMover
- Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin
*Villainous Adventure Overlays
Wait times were minimal. For some of them, such as Mad Tea Party and The Magic Carpets of Aladdin, we just hopped right on. Most wait times were 5 to 20 minutes, with the longest at 35 minutes for Seven Dwarfs Mine Train and Space Mountain. The lines also waned as the night went on.
Villains Unite the Night Stage Show and Villains' Cursed Caravan
You can catch Hades, Meg, Jafar, The Queen, Dr. Facilier and the original baddie herself, Maleficent, for the Villains Unite the Night stage show at Cinderella Castle. The show hoppens twice throughout the night. The planets have aligned and Hades is ready to take over the universe! Too bad the other villains feel their evil calling, too. Who will reign as the ultimate villain? For parents of tadpoles, Lily was toadally fine with this show. While the villains are present and their nature is a little, well, evil, there's nothing overtly scary hoppening. (In fact, you may even find yourself chuckling at Hades' rapid-fire one-liners.) The stage show itself is nothing to write home about, but the fireworks and projections on the castle are worth catching!
Last year, Maleficent stalked the night in her dragon form for the first time. This year, she is back with some of her fiendish friends for the new Villains' Cursed Caravan parade. Gaston leads the procession on horseback. Lady Tremaine sits in a horse-drawn carriage, followed by Anastasia and Drizella on foot. The Queen of Hearts gives orders to her troop of Playing Cards along the route. Dressed in her fur coat, Cruella de Vil rides stylishly in a car driven by Jasper and Horace. Ursula floats menacingly with her glowing tentacles and magical contract in hand, along with her eel minions, Flotsam and Jetsam. Oogie Boogie, the Bowler Hat Guy, Captain Hook and the Big Bad Wolf share a float before Maleficent the Dragon's grand finale.
The route begins and ends in Frontierland during the first parade. But If you really want to make every minute of your night count, attend the second parade, during which it ends at Town Square Center instead so that the villains can escort you out.
The times for the stage show and parade may vary depending on the event hours. When we attended, Villains After Hours ended at midnight, so the stage show performances were at 10 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. and the parade started at 10:30 p.m. and 11:45 p.m.
Face Painting ($)
Throughout the night, for an additional charge, you can show off your sinister side with face painting designs at Fantasy Faire. Lily thought it was a fun way to enhance her Descendants-inspired outfit!
Food and Merchandise at Villains After Hours
Unlimited popcorn, ice cream bars and drinks (bottled water and Coke products) are included with your admission. But you can also find some specialty themed food and drinks around the park at the following locations:
Main Street, U.S.A.
- Main Street Bakery - Locked Away Maiden (loaded grilled cheese sandwich with pepper jack cheese, provolone cheese, bacon jam and tomatoes)
- Casey's Corner - Hades Hot Dog and Hades Temptation (frozen non-alcoholic purple cosmo topped with a gummy worm)
Adventureland
- Tortuga Tavern - The Diamond in the Rough (mango slush with nutmeg and cinnamon topped with whipped cream and garnished with a sugar diamond)
Liberty Square
- Sleepy Hollow - Just Take Three beignets and Voodoo Magic (lemonade, green apple syrup garnished with a rock candy straw)
Fantasyland
- Storybook Treats - Body Language (cookies and cream mousse with chocolate cake) and Poor Unfortunate Soul (black raspberry soft-serve over Cherry Coke)
- Gaston's Tavern - Five Dozen Eggs Slush (frozen custard with brown sugar topped with whipped cream and a cinnamon stick)
- Cheshire Cafe - Painting the Roses Red (cheesecake mousse with raspberry gelee, red cocoa butter and buttercream leaves), Royal Majesty (strawberry cake pop) and Hearts on Fire (fruit punch, Coke and strawberry popping candy)
We found some of the drinks a little sweet for our taste (even that sugar-fiend Lily), but our fave treat was the Body Language cake. On a hoppy note, most portions are large enough to share (if you're in a giving mood, that is).
Villains After Dark Merchandise
A super hopful cast member let us know that some of the villainous merchandise is available anytime. If you want merchandise exclusive to the event, look for the Oogie Boogie light-up tumbler, tank tops, pocket tees or T-shirts that feature the event logo. Stop by the Emporium, Fantasy Faire and Star Traders for the full event collection. Other Disney Villain-inspired merchandise can be found at Fantasy Faire. Plaza del Sol Caribe Bazaar and Tomorrowland Light & Power Co. also have select event merchandise available.
Villains After Hours Tips and Strategies
- We really loved the DJ at Cinderella Castle! He played some songs that made Mommy Frog groove, but also some jams for Lily and me. There are treat carts all around the hub, which meant it was a great place to get our sugar fix in and then dance it off (or so Mommy Frog said!) If you time it right, you can watch Villains Unite the Night and the Villains' Cursed Caravan back-to-back as you enjoy the DJ's grooves in between. (We caught the early showings just in case Lily was too tired later, but for big frogs, you can also catch the parade at the very end of the night!)
- While Lily came with us and stuck around because, well, vacation, this event runs later than the other After Hours events, so it might not be right for some little ones with early bedtimes. (Mommy Frog was ready to hop back to the hotel with Lily just in case.) If this is the case, we'd suggest hitting your top priority rides first, and then head to the hub for the earlier stage show performance and parade.
- However, if you'll be partying it up for as long as you can, go on the popular rides, such as Mine Train, during the earlier Villains Unite the Night show and Cursed Caravan parade. Adventureland was practically a ghost town while everyone was at the hub.
- If you aren't into the stage show, skip it. Seeing the castle lit up in villainous colors was toadally awesome, but if rides are your priority, hop to those instead.
- Be sure to take advantage of early admission, and grab some dinner before the party starts to maximize your in-park time ... and to save room for treats!
- Speaking of treats, it's smart to plan what you want ahead of time. Just wanting to fill up on Mickey Bars? Cool! Looking to get a couple of villainous extras? Go easy on the Mickey bars! Pick up a special event map at the entrance. Knowing where to find your faves helps make sure you don't miss it amid all of the fiendish fun going on. (Mommy Frog took notes ... she's serious about snacks!)
- If you don't care about catching Happily Ever After, it's a great time to hop on some rides! (Just know that parts of Fantasyland will be closed off for safety purposes, so be sure to plan your route accordingly.)
- Keep an eye out for special decor and photo-ops, such as this new Scar display, throughout the park!
- You won't bump into any villains outside of the stage show, though. There are no meet-and-greets available at this event.
- Stick around after the Villains' Cursed Caravan finishes in Town Square. A surprise ensemble of villains say farewell from the train station upstairs. We saw the Queen of Hearts, Gaston, Lady Tremaine, Anastasia, Drizella and Cruella de Vil. Some of them even had microphones and were bantering with guests!
- If you plan on attending Villains After Hours, consider not visiting with your regular park admission during the day. Instead, sleep in, enjoy your resort or Disney Springs, and then head to the park at 7 p.m. to get the party started. That way, you aren't paying two admission prices and will also be well-rested for the festivities.
- Be sure to double-check your resort transportation home! While limited buses will be running, other modes of transportation may not be. For example, we were staying at Disney's Fort Wilderness and were told the ferryboat would be around to take us home (spoiler: it wasn't). Especially if you have littles like Lily, it may be worth getting an Uber or Lyft (Minnie Vans may not be running that late) to avoid tacking on extra travel time at the end of a long night.
- Dress your worst (or best)! Feel free to Disneybound for this event, but keep Disney costume guidelines in mind.
Is Villains After Hours Worth It?
This question is always tough to answer, as it varies by family. For us, since we had another day at Magic Kingdom to get our "daytime" park fix in, we thought this was a great enhancement. Of all of the After Hours events, Villains has wicked fun theming, the most rides open (with special overlays on a couple) and villainous extras like sweets and treats to make things extra enjoyable. Who could say no to staying in Magic Kingdom after it closes?! We think you'll enjoy it, too, if:
- The rides offered are on your must-dos and you're ready for low wait times.
- You don't mind missing some of the daytime park features, such as Festival of Fantasy or Move It, Shake It, Mouskedance It. If you've got another full Magic Kingdom day, this is a great fit for you.
- You're a villain at heart! The themed aspects you can't find on other nights, including the atmosphere and specialty food and beverage, are calling your name.
- You're a night owl looking to beat the heat AND the crowds.
Have you attended Villains After Hours? What did you think? Be sure to let us know in the comments below!
Related: How to Make the Most Out of Disney After Hours Events
Stay cool!