Hi there, Laura! First, congratulations on your ticket for
Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party! You are going to love everything about the joyous evening at Magic Kingdom Park! There’s nothing quite like celebrating the most wonderful time of the year with St. Nick and “St. Mick.”
Guests with tickets for Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party do not need to make a Disney Park Pass Reservation to attend the party. Your party ticket is all that you need for admittance to the party. Now, while the party technically begins at 7:00 PM, Guests with party tickets are allowed to enter Magic Kingdom Park as early as 4:00 PM! Again, you don’t need a Disney Park Pass Reservation if you intend to take advantage of early arrival (which I absolutely recommend)!
You mentioned that you might park hop to Magic Kingdom beginning at 2:00 PM. If you choose to park hop, you must have a valid theme park ticket with
park hopper pass (which sounds like you already have). You must have also entered your first park of the day prior to hopping to your next park of the day. You must have a Disney Park Pass Reservation for the first park that you enter for the day.
For example, if you are choosing to begin your day at EPCOT, you must have a Disney Park Pass Reservation for EPCOT and theme park admission to enter. Once you’ve entered EPCOT (scanned your ticket or band) you can then park hop to Magic Kingdom Park beginning at 2:00 PM and remain for the party.
Laura, you might consider simply saving that day just for the Christmas party. The party runs until 12:00 AM, which technically means you can get in line for an attraction at 11:59 PM and remain in the park until you’ve completed the attraction. At that point, it could be well after midnight before you leave the park. The party is amazing, but it makes for a long night (which I love). So, it might be a good day to sleep in and spend time relaxing and resting by the pool until you head over to Magic Kingdom Park for the big party!
Happy Planning!
Jonathan