Schedule Changes Coming to Both Day and Evening Parades at Magic Kingdom in January 2026
Magic Kingdom’s parade schedule will see some changes as we head into the New Year. Disney’s five-day calendar reflects that the Festival of Fantasy Parade, which returns to the park on January 1st, will be offered twice daily on Thursday (1st), Friday (2nd), and Saturday (3rd). The parade will run at both 12:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. on those days. It returns to its normal 3:00 p.m. schedule on Sunday, January 4th.
Additionally, Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away, the nighttime parade, will be offered at both 7:45 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. on January 1st-3rd. It then drops back to a 7:45 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. offering on Sunday, January 4th. Here is a screenshot from the Walt Disney World website that shows both parade schedules over the long New Year’s weekend.
You may notice that the screenshot above shows the last Christmas Parade of the year will be offered on December 31st. We have a separate article discussing the 2025 Christmas week parade schedule if you would like to learn more.
Nighttime Parade Schedule Changes
Now, if you’re planning to visit a little later in January with hopes of seeing the nighttime parade, you’re going to want to keep an eye on the schedule. This next screenshot shows that Disney Starlight: Dream the Night Away will run on a reduced schedule with only one offering on Tuesday, January 6th, through Thursday, January 8th. It returns to a two-night offering for the 9th and 10th. As of publish time, the parade’s showtimes have not been added to the schedule past Saturday, the 10th.
Whether or not the parade will be offered on a reduced schedule moving forward remains to be seen. Since its debut last July, the parade has run twice nightly except for evenings when Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party and Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party were offered. With the seasonal parties behind us, the nighttime parade will run twice a night between now and January 5th.
The main point is that if you’re visiting between now and early January that you’re aware of the schedule changes for both parades and plan accordingly to see them. As an example, you would not want to plan to see the 2nd nighttime parade on a night it was only offered once. Our best advice is to always check the My Disney Experience app on the day of your visit to confirm performance times for the entertainment offerings most important to your travel party.
For other entertainment changes at Magic Kingdom, see our overview of the upcoming holiday firework schedule changes for Christmas and New Year’s. You might also want to be aware of the added showtimes for Fantasmic! this holiday season at Disney’s Hollywood Studios.
Are you planning a visit to Walt Disney World in January? Don’t miss our complete overview of the month:
Disney World in January 2026 (Dates, Weather, and Crowds)
In the Comments
Will you be visiting Magic Kingdom in early January? Will these changes to the parade schedule affect your plans? Let us know in the comments below.
