UPDATED November 2, 2025
A brand new nighttime parade is NOW SHOWING in Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom as of July 20th, 2025. It’s time for Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away!
Disney Starlight
In August 2024 at the D23 Ultimate Fan Event in Anaheim, California, Disney shared the big news about this new nighttime spectacular, revealing that Disney Starlight would be “using the latest technology to tell new stories about the characters you love.”
Disney Starlight follows in the footsteps of previous iconic nighttime parades like the Main Street Electrical Parade and SpectroMagic.
Main Street Electrical Parade at Disneyland
Disney Starlight — Showtimes, Run Time, and Parade Route
Disney Starlight is currently presented nightly at 8PM and 10PM.
The parade begins on Main Street, U.S.A., and travel towards Frontierland for its parade route (in a reverse of the Festival of Fantasy daytime parade route).
Disney Starlight
Please be aware that Disney Starlight will not be presented on the nights when Magic Kingdom hosts Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. The Party has its own exclusive nighttime parade.
Disney Starlight in its entirety takes 40 minutes to complete the full parade route. The parade lasts approximately 12 minutes in any given viewing area.
Disney Starlight — The Characters and Floats
Disney Starlight features beloved characters from Walt Disney Animation Studios and Disney Pixar films, and some have made their nighttime parade debut in Disney Starlight! As it begins, Disney Starlight is “brought to life by the magic of the Blue Fairy” from the Disney animated classic, Pinocchio.
The Blue Fairy
In fact, the star on the Blue Fairy’s wand is the “first star you’ll see tonight” and viewers are invited to wish upon that very star to kick off the parade.
Disney Starlight
Parade viewers see Disney characters from more recent Walt Disney Animation Studios films such as Encanto.
Encanto Float
Isabela swings on vines on the Encanto float, just like she does in the beloved film.
Disney Starlight has its own Frozen moment.
Disney Starlight — Frozen Float
A Moana float is also part of the parade!
Moana Float
Accompanying Moana are Pua, HeiHei, and, Disney shares, “a manta ray representing Gramma Tala.”
Mariachi music introduces the arrival of the colorful Coco float!
Disney Starlight — Coco Float
Asha, Star, and Valentino are all featured on the whimsical Wish float.
Disney Starlight — Wish Float
Classic featured animated films include Peter Pan. You’ll see Wendy, too…
Disney Starlight — Peter Pan Float
… as well as a certain sassy fairy!
Tinker Bell
Disney Princesses and their Prince (and Beast!) Charmings include Aurora and Phillip, Tiana and Naveen, Cinderella and Prince Charming, and Belle and the Beast!
Disney Royalty Float
Royal court dancers bookend the stunning Princess Float, as one of many nods to the iconic Main Street Electrical Parade.
Disney Starlight — Princess Float
And the grand finale float (which is inspired by the classic Main Street Electrical Parade float) features some very special friends…
Disney Starlight
Among them are Goofy, Mickey, and Minnie… all in their NEW Disney Starlight costumes!
Mickey, Minnie, and Goofy reveal their new looks for Disney Starlight!
Disney shares that “Together, the duo [of Mickey and Minnie] sends us off, reminding us to believe in the power of wishing upon a star.” And with that sentiment in mind, who else should end the parade other than Jiminy Cricket himself?
Disney Starlight — Jiminy Cricket
But that’s not all… July 2025, Disney released a new YouTube video revealing that a brand-new character has been created for Disney Starlight. Meet Whimsy!
Disney Starlight — Whimsy!
Whimsy is made of starlight, and appears on the new train finale float!
Disney Imagineers describe him as “childlike, youthful, and happy.” An episode of “We Call It Imagineering” on the Disney Imagineering YouTube channel gives us a glimpse into Whimsy — we learn he was inspired by vintage Disney animation — specifically Silly Symphonies.
Whimsy
Disney has shared that the focus of the parade is “a nod to the past with our eyes firmly set on the future.”
Disney Starlight — The Music
Disney shared a “First Listen” and a behind the scenes look at the making of the music for Disney Starlight! According to Disney, “For Disney fans, this new theme may have some surprises that sound familiar – be sure to listen closely for some Disney Parks favorites woven into the score.”
P.S. You can also now stream the Disney Starlight music on Spotify!
Disney Starlight — The Inspiration
The parade’s show director describes the Disney Starlight as a “constellation of Disney Dreams.” The team that worked on the parade looked at past Disney nighttime parades, promising “more than a few Easter eggs.” However, they also looked to some of Disney’s earliest animated movies for inspiration.
©Mary Blair and the Walt Disney Animation Research Library
For example, the Princesses float is inspired by Disney Legend and artist Mary Blair’s original concept artwork for Cinderella.
Disney Starlight — The Costumes
Disney Live Entertainment Costuming designed costumes that use “a blend of innovative lighting techniques and whimsical custom fabrics” (featuring a “galaxy print”) to create an experience that looks to be “kissed by starlight.” Here’s a prototype costume piece for the parade:
©Disney
The idea is that it swirls down the parade route as the fabric picks up lighting from the floats with each light synchronized to the music. WOW.
Disney Starlight — Viewing Tips
Wondering about the BEST spots to catch Disney Starlight? First things first: The Disney Starlight follows the same parade route as all the other Magic Kingdom parades, but in reverse! It starts on Main Street, U.S.A., and end in Frontierland. We have some thoughts on some of the best vantage points.
Magic Kingdom
Watching a parade on Main Street, U.S.A., feels so classic and makes for the best pictures with Cinderella Castle in the background. One of our go-to spots is standing in the middle area of Main Street, the Castle hub (grassy areas in front of the Castle surrounding the Partners statue), and looking down towards the train station.
Hub grass area
You can also stand and face the castle! The floats pass right by the castle, creating that perfect magical moment. We’re leaning towards any spots along Main Street (though any Frontierland spots certainly allow for terrific views of the floats and characters, so you will not be missing out on any of the actual parade should you opt to enjoy it in Frontierland).
If you have your heart set on a specific area from which to view Disney Starlight, we advise that you arrive at least an hour early, if not more, to ensure you get the desired view.
Main Street U.S.A. clock
Don’t forget there are two viewings with Happily Ever After — the fireworks show — presented in between. It is often the case that the later showing is less crowded than the first when nighttime parades are shown twice.
Disney Starlight — The Merchandise
Merchandise commemorating the new parade is available in Magic Kingdom (specifically, check the Emporium for a good selection). Pieces include a “Disney Starlight” logo tee shirt, a blanket, and a collectible pin.
Disney Starlight Wand — it DANCES with the parade!
You can also find a light-up bubble wand that DANCES along with the parade!
Be sure to keep it on during the show!
Oh, and of course there are Disney Starlight EARS!
Disney Starlight LIGHT UP Ears
The Disney Starlight Ears light up, and also feature a removable bow.
Additionally, you can find a Disney Starlight Refillable Popcorn Bucket in Magic Kingdom!
The NEW Disney Starlight Popcorn Bucket
Look for it at Popcorn Carts all around the park.
Disney Starlight — The Popcorn (Yes! Starlight Popcorn!)
A NEW Disney Starlight Popcorn Mix has made its debut right along with the parade! The Disney Starlight Popcorn Mix is with Bubble Gum and Blue Raspberry Candy Popcorn, M&M’S® Milk Chocolate Candies, mini-marshmallows, and white chocolatey drizzle.
Disney Starlight popcorn mix
It is available exclusively at the Main Street Confectionery.
The NEW Disney Starlight promises to change the face of nighttime entertainment at Walt Disney World for the foreseeable future. Make sure you catch it on your next Magic Kingdom visit!
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