Jollywood Nights Costs $20 to $30 Less Than Very Merry This Year, and Is the Only One of the Two Left After December 22

Disney World runs two separately ticketed Christmas parties this year, and they start a night apart. Disney Jollywood Nights opens at Hollywood Studios on Saturday, November 7, and Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party follows at Magic Kingdom on Sunday, November 8. If you can only do one, here is how they compare on price, hours, entertainment and what is still on sale.

The short version: Jollywood Nights is the cheaper ticket, $169 to $199 against Very Merry's $189 to $229, and its Annual Passholder discount works every night. Very Merry has more nights, an earlier entry time, a parade and complimentary cookies and drinks, which Jollywood does not offer. It is also far more sold out. After December 22, Jollywood Nights is the only one left.

Side by side

• Park: Jollywood Nights is at Disney's Hollywood Studios. Very Merry is at Magic Kingdom.
• Nights: Jollywood has 15, from November 7 to January 5, its first season running into January. Very Merry has 25, from November 8 to December 22.
• Hours: Both parties run five hours. Jollywood goes from 7:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., with entry from 5:30 p.m. Very Merry runs 7 p.m. to midnight, with entry from 4 p.m., so a Very Merry ticket buys an extra hour in the park before the party starts.
• Price: Jollywood runs $169 to $199 per ticket, plus tax. Very Merry runs $189 to $229. That is $20 less at the cheap end and $30 less at the top.
• Annual Passholder and DVC discount: $10 off at both, but Jollywood offers it on every night, while Disney's Very Merry page offers it only on select nights, 11 of the 25, between November 8 and 20 and between November 29 and December 3.
• Kids: Ages 3 to 9 pay $10 less at both parties.
• Included food: Very Merry includes complimentary cookies and festive drinks at select locations, according to BlogMickey. Jollywood has no free food or drink, though Disney Tourist Blog says the ticket includes PhotoPass downloads from the event.

What you actually see

Very Merry is built around Magic Kingdom's big set pieces: Mickey's Once Upon a Christmastime Parade, Minnie's Wonderful Christmastime Fireworks over Cinderella Castle and Mickey's Most Merriest Celebration on the castle stage.

Jollywood Nights has no parade. Disney's event page lists these instead:

• Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM! at the Chinese Theater, a fireworks, laser and projection show with Wayne and Lanny from Prep & Landing and "snowfall" on Hollywood Boulevard.
• Disney Holidays in Hollywood at Theater of the Stars, hosted by Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy, with Mickey, Minnie, Belle and Tiana.
• Glisten!, the skating show in front of the Chinese Theater, where Donald Duck, Daisy Duck and Genie join the cast this year.
• The Nightmare Before Christmas sing-along with Jack Skellington at Hyperion Theater.
• Party spaces: the Twilight Soirée at the Tip Top Club outside the Hollywood Tower Hotel, Pixar Disco in Pixar Plaza and the new Checkin' It Twice Lounge with a live DJ in Animation Courtyard.
• Jazzy Holidays at The Hollywood Brown Derby, which Disney describes as adult-oriented and recommends reserving ahead.

Disney lists nine rides open during Jollywood Nights, including Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance, The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror, Slinky Dog Dash, Mickey & Minnie's Runaway Railway and Rock 'n' Roller Coaster Starring The Muppets. Disney adds that ride availability can change. The coaster's holiday soundtrack starts on November 4, as we reported, so it will already be running on the first party night.

Disney has not posted official showtimes yet. Disney Tourist Blog's guide lists expected times, with Jingle Bell, Jingle BAM! at 10 p.m., but check the My Disney Experience app on the night.

Disney Tourist Blog's planning guide makes the family case plainly: it calls Jollywood Nights a tough sell for young families and names Very Merry as the party for first-timers. With a lounge, a Brown Derby dinner party and a 12:30 a.m. finish, Jollywood leans toward adults. Very Merry has the parade, the castle and the free treats.

What is still on sale

Very Merry is more than half gone. As of October 24, BlogMickey counted 13 of 25 nights sold out, including all of Thanksgiving week. The cheapest nights left were November 15 and 19 at $194. Last year every Very Merry night had sold out by November 19, BlogMickey reported, 12 days after that season's first party.

Jollywood Nights had sold out only its November 7 opening night as of the last reports we found, on October 11, when every other date was still on sale. The cheapest night then was Monday, November 16, at $169. BlogMickey counted six sold-out nights in 2023, four in 2024 and eight in 2025, the event's best year.

How to choose

Pick Very Merry if you have kids under 10, want the parade and the castle fireworks, or like the idea of free cookies on the way round. Book soon, because more than half the nights are already gone.

Pick Jollywood Nights if you want the cheaper ticket, if you are a Passholder who wants the discount on a December night, or if your trip falls after December 22, when Very Merry is over and Jollywood is still running. Its last three nights are December 23 and January 3 and 5.

Tickets for both are sold at DisneyWorld.com or through Disney Central at 407-934-7639. Disney calls Jollywood Nights a limited capacity event and says Very Merry tickets are limited and may not be available on the day.

Which one are you booking this year, the parade at Magic Kingdom or the late night at Hollywood Studios?

Sources

• Disney Parks Blog, Disney Jollywood Nights 2026 Dates, Tickets, and Sneak Preview (October 6, 2026)
• BlogMickey, Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party date-based ticket prices (July 2026)
• Disney Tourist Blog, Guide to 2026 Disney Jollywood Nights
• BlogMickey, Disney Jollywood Nights 2026 Opening Night Now Sold Out (October 11, 2026)
• Parks Magic, Very Merry is now more than half sold out (October 24, 2026)
• Parks Magic, Jollywood Nights opening night sells out (October 11, 2026)

Image credits: All images by Disney, via the Disney Parks Blog.