Planning to visit Disney Jollywood Nights 2024? We’re sharing the reason the party is better than ever in Disney World.

Disney Jollywood Nights is back this year and it’s bigger, brighter, and more dazzling than ever before! Building on last year’s event debut, this year’s celebration brings even more immersive experiences, delicious and creative food and beverage offerings, and an expanded lineup of shows that captures the Disney magic of the season. 

Disney Jollywood Nights 2024 vs 2023

From an enhanced, festive atmosphere to brand-new shows and added rare character appearances, Jollywood Nights has truly leveled up, offering guests a more immersive and complete specially ticketed event. Whether you’re a returning visitor or coming for the first time, there is so much that has improved at Disney Jollywood Nights, and we can’t wait to share our swanky opening-night experience!

New and Expanded Live Entertainment Offerings

One of the crowning glories of last season’s Disney Jollywood Nights was the debut of two fantastic, fully-stage productions, performed exclusively during the after-hours event. ‘Disney’s Holidays in Hollywood’ and ‘What’s This: A Nightmare Before Christmas Singalong’ was created specifically for Jollywood Nights, and highlight some of Disney Creative’s most imaginative staging, live singers, actors and dancers, beloved Disney characters, and of course appearances by two of The Muppets’ most dazzling stars, Kermit The Frog and Miss Piggy. 

Holidays in Hollywood at Theater of the Stars, What’s This?, and Soiree at the Tip-Top Hotel. Photos by Laurie Sapp

While both of these fantastic, full-fledged productions are back at this year’s event, Disney truly listened to the feedback of guests who attended last years’ Jollywood Nights and debuted a third, all-new ice-skating show, ‘Glisten’. Taking place at the foot of the Chinese Theater, ‘Glisten’ features professional ice skaters decked in gorgeous, sparkling white holiday costumes as they glide, twirl, and perform some pretty incredible stunts, all set to upbeat Holiday (and even some classic Disney)! music. 

Twilight Soiree and Fiesta en La Calle Updates

While ‘The Twilight Soiree’ and ‘Fiesta en La Calle’ are returning atmospheric entertainment offerings this year, both have received some pretty significant updates! Latin dancers have been added to ‘Fiesta en La Calle’, who were on hand to both show off their Latin dance moves and also encourage guests to join in on the upbeat celebration. 

A truly stunning addition came at ‘The Twilight Soiree’, where two ghostly dancers have been added to dance around the 1930’s band that plays in the courtyard. These dancers began their performance on the balcony of the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror attraction building, then made their way down the staircase and into the courtyard, where they danced along with the jazzy, 1930’s renditions of Christmas tunes supplied by the quartet. The addition of these dancers made this particular offering feel much more like a show, and instead of simply enjoying the music while walking by, many guests fully stopped in their tracks this year to drink in the hauntingly beautiful atmosphere at The Tip Top Club.

Purposeful, Rare Character Encounters

The chance to meet and greet with rare Disney characters has been a staple of Jollywood Nights since last year’s inception, but several significant changes were made that improved the overall character experience at this year’s event!

First off, while several of the popular rare characters returned from last year’s event, more than a few new faces were on hand to meet and greet with guests this year! We loved that Duffy (meeting in his Santa costume!), was factored into the character lineup from night #1. He is also meeting at an inside location this year that offers the Disney PhotoPass photographers the chance to snap studio-lit photos, professional looking photos of Duffy.

Photos by Laurie Sapp

We were more than surprised to find upgrades like a gyro-arm PhotoPass opportunity that offered props and a fantastically-themed backdrop featuring The Muppets Christmas Carol set. 

We noticed that lines to meet the characters throughout the Park had significantly lower wait times than they did at last years’ event. For example, Duffy’s meet and greet was quoted at over an hour when I attended last year, whereas his line hovered around the 30-40 minute mark each time we checked throughout opening night.

Expanded Food Offerings, Less Lines

Another standout improvement at this year’s Jollywood Nights is the expanded food offerings, with a diverse array of holiday-themed treats and beverages that cater to every taste. From savory snacks to indulgent desserts, there’s something for everyone. What makes this year’s culinary experience even more enjoyable is the significant reduction in wait times. Mobile Order is not available during Jollywood Nights, and I was concerned that attending a sold-out event would once again mean queueing for what felt like forever during a timed, specially-ticketed event. I am so pleased to report that I hardly encountered any wait times for the specialty food items I purchased, with my longest wait time coming in at 7 minutes!

The quality of the food has remained as high-caliber as ever! I tasted a variety of the food and beverage offerings this year, and I can honestly state that each and every item I tried was served fresh and was prepared with care. Even the food dishes that I thought could lack in flavor, like The Cauliflower Taco, were packed with flavor and were clearly made by knowledgeable and well-trained culinary Cast Members. All of the offerings felt even more thought-out than last years’, making Jollywod Nights a must-attend event for guests who consider themselves true Disney foodies. 

A Fabulous Cast Makes for an Unforgettable Night in Hollywood

This year, the incredible event Cast Members truly elevated the overall guest experience at Jollywood Nights. Disney has clearly invested in providing its Jollywood Night Cast Members with the appropriate training they need to ensure they are not only familiar with the holiday-themed attractions, entertainment, and food offerings but also able to answer any and all questions thrown their way!

Whether guiding guests to the best photo spots, explaining the story behind the seasonal decorations, or helping to navigate the event’s many offerings, the cast members on opening night were much more knowledgeable and confident in answering any questions I had throughout the night. Every Cast Member I asked was able to point me in the direction of the specific character meet and greets, merchandise, and food offerings I was looking for, and their enthusiasm and positivity really helped enhance my night, and saved me time in searching for the things I wanted to experience at the event. 

Disney Jollywood Nights 2024

In addition to adding these brand-new experiences and expanding the food offerings, Disney extended the entirety of Jollywood Nights, which now lasts a total of 5 hours! With the time extension also came the addition of extra showtimes, giving guests more time to experience everything that Jollywood Nights has to offer. 

Jollywood Nights has truly outdone itself this year, offering an even more immersive and dazzling after-hours experience than before. Disney did a wonderful job of ensuring that the event was not over-sold this year. Everything from simply enjoying the atmosphere, through to reduced queues for the shows and food kiosks is so much more pleasurable in this years’ iteration, making me feel as though I could really take my time and truly relax into the event.

From the expanded food options with shorter wait times to the expertly trained and enthusiastic Cast Members, every detail has been fine-tuned to create a holiday celebration that’s both magical and seamless. With enhanced entertainment, stunning décor, and an overall more streamlined experience, this year’s event captures the festive spirit of the season in a way that feels both fresh and exciting. Whether you’re a returning guest or experiencing it for the first time, Jollywood Nights 2024 is a must-do holiday event at Walt Disney World Resort this season!

Thank you to Disney for hosting us during the opening evening of Jollywood Nights.