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Ever wanted to attend a Disney After Dark event at Disneyland? Here are 3 tips and tricks based on my experience from Princess Nite.

Disney After Dark Tips and Tricks

Disney After Dark: How To Use Disney Photopass

Your ticket to a Disney After Dark event includes unlimited Photopass photographs from the event. When I attended the Disney Princess Nite in March 2023, I was given a wristband that had a QR code for Photopass photographers to scan. Later, when I had a spare moment during the evening I had to manually enter the Photopass ID number into the My Disneyland app so that I could see my photographs.

Disney After Dark Photopass

At the Princess Nite event, the photographers were strict about rules and allowed only 3 solo photos or 3 group photos but you were not allowed to do a combination of the two.

In fact, at the Princess Ariel meet and greet, my friend and I planned on taking photographs solo and we’d take video of each other. I took video of my friend’s meet and greet first and when I went to get my photos (as the next person in line) I was told rather harshly that I wasn’t able to get photos because they only allowed group photos. After some back and forth, I was finally allowed to get a couple pictures with Ariel but it was extremely awkward.

Be sure to know the rules and regulations at each meet and greet so you can have a smooth and enjoyable experience.

Disney After Dark: Meet and Greet Lines

For the Disney Princess Nite, party guests were allowed to start lining up for the meet and greets as well as the photo ops at the time of park closing. Some of the photo op photographers started taking pictures prior to the official party start time but from what I gathered, that was abnormal.

Disney after Dark Princess Nite

Most lines were at least 1 hour long. Lines for the most popular characters such as Princess Leia stretched out to 3+ hours long.

It is important to know that there were no Disability Access Service return times offered. So for long lines when I needed some space and the ability to step out of line to rest, I was grateful to my girlfriends who held my spot in line and let me come back and forth as my body allowed. There were an ample number of benches around the park that I was able to sit at to rest without being surrounded by too many guests.

Disney After Dark: Food Allergies

Do you have allergies? Perhaps you have unusual allergies, such as I do, that cannot be addressed by the standard allergy menus?

Lines for the food carts were almost as long as some of the meet and greet lines. The idea of having to wait for the specialty churros and other treats without knowing if you could even enjoy them, is discouraging. Feel free to try to approach the cast member at the cart and ask them if they have an ingredient list. You can also ask them if they can call the chef to verify the list of ingredients in case they don’t have a list.

Granted, you might have some other guests grumble and complain that you are cutting the line but a kind word and explanation can go a long way.

Disney After Dark Princess Nite Tea Service

Also, there are specialty meals provided such as the Princess Nite Tea I attended at Cafe Orleans Restaurant. I was grateful to the waitress and chef who helped me customize the menu allowing for my allergies. Primarily due to my allergies to natural gums and gelatin, I was unable to enjoy any of the desserts and they brought out some delicious seasonal fruits and a sorbet.

Upcoming Disney After Dark Events

 

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3 tips and tricks for disney after dark events