How to Maximize Your Time at Disney Jollywood Nights 2024: A Step-by-Step Guide

Dec 11, 2024 in "Disney Jollywood Nights"

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Disney Jollywood Nights 2024

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Posted: Wednesday December 11, 2024 11:20am ET by WDWMAGIC Staff

Disney Jollywood Nights is back for its second year in 2024 and brings a unique mix of holiday magic and nighttime entertainment to Disney's Hollywood Studios.

This guide is designed to hit all the exclusive party entertainments and the park's most popular rides. With limited-time shows, festive character encounters, and thrilling rides, careful planning will help you get the most out of your evening.

Here's a step-by-step guide to ensure you hit the highlights.

6:00 pm – Enter the Park

Your Jollywood Nights ticket grants you access to the park starting at 6:00 pm, although the party does not actually start until 7:30 pm. Arrive early and head straight to the park entrance to maximize your time. Once inside, make your way directly to the Fantasmic! amphitheater.

Disney Jollywood Nights 2024

6:30 pm – Fantasmic!

Kick off your evening with the 6:30 pm showing of Fantasmic!

7:00 pm – Thrill Rides and Twilight Soirée at the Tip Top Club

Disney Jollywood Nights 2024

After Fantasmic!, start your ride circuit:

Rock' n' Roller Coaster
Tower of Terror
Twilight Soirée at the Tip Top Club (8:10 pm Live Band)
Mickey and Minnie's Runaway Railway
Millennium Falcon: Smugglers Run

Keep an eye on wait times using My Disney Experience and adjust as needed.

9:30 pm – 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' Show

Head to the Hyperion Theater for the 9:30 pm showing of the special What's This? Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas Sing-Along stage show.

What's This? Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas Sing-Along show

10:15 pm – Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM!

Exit the Nightmare Before Christmas show and position yourself to watch the Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM! fireworks and projection show.

10:30 pm – Glisten! Skating Show

Stay in the same area to catch the all-new Glisten! skating show at 10:30 pm.

Glisten! Skating Show

11:15 pm – Holidays in Hollywood

Make your way to the Theater of the Stars on Sunset Boulevard for the 11:15 pm showing of Holidays in Hollywood.

Disney Holidays in Hollywood

11:45 pm – Character Greetings in Echo Lake

Visit Echo Lake to meet some of the event's exclusive characters in their holiday best.

Disney Jollywood Nights 2024

12:15 am – Back to Batuu and Toy Story Land

Ride Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance

Head to Toy Story Land for some final fun before the event ends:

Slinky Dog Dash
Toy Story Mania
While in the area, look out for character meet-and-greets in Pixar Place and Toy Story Land.

Pixar Disco

Seasonal Food and Drink

As you move between activities, take the opportunity to try some of the seasonal food and drink options available during Jollywood Nights. Disney Jollywood Nights 2024: Festive Food and Drink Guide

Disney Jollywood Nights 2024

Additional Tips

Stay Hydrated: Grab water between activities to keep your energy up.
Event-Specific Treats: Try holiday-themed snacks and drinks that are available exclusively during Jollywood Nights.
Merchandise: Browse for limited-edition items that make great souvenirs.
Plan for Photos: Many areas feature holiday decor perfect for quick pictures.
Parting Gift: Look out for gourmet Wondermade Marshmellow treats on the way out.

Disney Jollywood Nights 2024

Discuss on the Forums

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TheMaxRebo11 days ago

The 7am can still go really fast and definitely not guaranteed but the 1pm one usually is open for quite a while Other then when they forget to do it I rarely hear of anyone shut out of the 1pm nowadays for Guardians, etc

TheMaxRebo11 days ago

As long as it is a near certainty you get one as long as you are even remotely aware of it/the system I am fine with it and in some ways prefer it - which is how it is for things like Guardians now When Rise first opened and the VQ was done at 6am and you had to be in the park and it did feel like a true lottery and lots of people didn't get one, then I was not a fan

Fido Chuckwagon12 days ago

Yeah, I guarantee he didnt have a VQ at all. Even if they were “enforcing” they probably would have backed down if he had a VQ and missed it for whatever reason.

Starship82412 days ago

You can always try the 1 PM drop, it's almost always easier to get.

Cliff12 days ago

Wow,...for me, when I do get denied, it's usually really fast...no joke 3-5 seconds tops. I have two phones and I use the app on Version and AT&T (iPhone and S23 Ultra) Seems to be no difference. Strange. Again, my last try was Feb 2024 and it goes backwards from there (2023 all the way to first app roll-out) I'm always on International Drive and always on Saturday and Sunday mornings (never on week days) and I have maybe had a 1 out of 5 success rate over the years? I dunno, maybe my hit rate is an unlucky statistical outlier number that is not normal? There were many days when I was at Epcot and tried to ride Guardians but struck out on the 7am lottery but was determined to NOT pay extra to ride it. Fascinating...

Mr. Sullivan12 days ago

Just because you didn’t get a boarding group doesn’t make it a scam. It’s you vs. on average 45,000 other people. Not to mention the phones and wifi connections and all that play a part in it. Those odds aren’t always going to be in your favor. It’s just the way it is. I personally rather enjoy VQ. I wouldn’t be gutted if it went away, but it’s an easy system to make use of when you’ve taken the time to understand the quirks and particulars.

THEMEPARKPIONEER12 days ago

It would be a disaster or the shell size would have to be compromised, I’m used to here on Long Island they’ll launch large fireworks 100 feet from the crowd 😂😂😂😂

brideck12 days ago

I will say that it's pretty dependent on the responsiveness of your phone. On my old phone, the VQ refresh button came back promptly, so I was my group's designated VQ getter -- I would routinely get single-digit boarding party numbers at the 7 AM drop. My new phone is actually a little less responsive, so I can't reliably get through the refresh sequence in a timely manner, but other people in my group can, so we use their phones now instead. Try different phones ahead of time, see which one is the quickest to refresh, and stick with that.

networkpro12 days ago

They use to be geo location and turnstile locked, but now it's just limited to park reservation .

bmr159112 days ago

Nope. I consistently get them sitting on an airplane in New Orleans about to fly down.

Cliff12 days ago

Does VQ capture your GPS location and weight your lottery shot based on if you are staying inside the park or not? I never stay in the parks, I'm always out on International Drive. When refreshing, does the app favor certain hotels inside the property? How can 80 boarding groups be filled instantly on a constant basis at 7:00 & 3 seconds? It only takes less 3 seconds to fill 80 groups? Question for others: When staying "outside" the parks, are your VQ attempts also immediately rejected at the stroke of 7:00am? (on a regular basis)

JMcMahonEsq12 days ago

How stupid do you have to be to not be able to click a button on an app? 10-20 VQ seats? You realize with every VQ going back to Rise, each day there are usually at least 80 boarding group, with each boarding group being full of people that managed to work their phone and get into the VQ. I mean your either just talking out your butt, or purposefully being stupid as to how VQ works

DisneyFanatic1212 days ago

I need to get out to Tokyo Disneyland! I’ll make it there someday, heard so many good things about it and they got Splash which is awesome. As for VQs in 2024, they went up and down in terms of availability, but I even snagged a few GotG VQs at 7/8pm (from the 1pm drop)! I refuse to buy Genie+, so VQs are the closest I’ll get to “skipping the line” nowadays

Cliff12 days ago

I don't know the metrics but I think they vary by ride and by park attendance (or expected attendance). In the past, I have tried to get Tron maybe 7 or 8 times and I hit it once in the morning. I have tried Guardians maybe 15 times and I have gotten a total of 2 morning lottery hits and 1 afternoon hit. Of all the virtual que's I have ever tried,...I dunno, 90% were failures only 3 seconds of availability. Granted, I stopped going to WDW as of Feb of 2024. So I can't speak for almost all of 2024. Maybe Virtual Que was MUCH better in 2024 then before that time. My entire 2024 WDW budget went to Tokyo Disneyland & Disney Seas this year. (I flew there specifically to ride "Splash Mountain" again) My entire 2025 WDW annual pass and hotel/food budget has now moved to Universal for the first time ever. So,..no WDW for me in 2025. (No reservations, no lightning lane, no virtual ques, no more headache) and I think I'm back to Tokyo in 2026 because I had so much fun in "their" Disney! (I think it's cheaper too! Single day park ticket is $65 dollars and those parks are stunning)