By In addition to its amazing daily offerings, Disneyland Resort frequently hosts exhibitions, events, and festivals.
Some of them, like Disneyland After Dark, have achieved a level of celebrity that makes them recognizable in their own right.
Others, such as Anaheim Duck Days, are a bit more for the locals and those who keep up with the less publicized theme park celebrations.
Here’s a list of the events Disneyland has hosted recently, along with dates when we have them or general calendar estimates when we don’t.
Disneyland 70 – Start of 2026 through August 9th
Here’s a continuing event from 2025. On July 17th, Disneyland Resort turned 70 years old.
To commemorate this staggering achievement, park officials did what they always do for major milestones. They threw a party!
Disneyland 70 technically started in May 2025, and it’ll last through the summer of 2026. So, you’ve still got plenty of time to participate in the various activities.
What can you do during Disneyland 70? The parks are currently hosting special shows such as World of Color Happiness!, Wondrous Journeys, and the Paint the Night Parade.
Disney California Adventure has brought back Better Together: A Pixar Pals Celebration!, while Disneyland Park hosts the Tapestry of Happiness, a “visual love letter to Disneyland.”
I don’t want to spoil all the surprises, but it’s a remarkable, limited-time event the likes of which we’ll never see again at Disneyland. You’ll want to experience it.
Lunar New Year — January 23rd through February 22nd
Disney California Adventure hosts this celebration of the Lunar New Year. The activities last for a month, with Disney honoring holiday traditions from China, Korea, and Vietnam.
Signature events include Mulan’s Lunar New Year Processional, a vibrant parade, and the Lunar New Year Wishing Wall, hosted at the Paradise Gardens Park.
Of course, the true highlight of this event is the food. The Lunar New Year marketplaces function the same way as EPCOT’s food booths.
During the holiday event, guests can approach these kiosks and order unique foods and beverages. The legendary Sip & Savor Pass is available at these events.
So, guests can sample countless Chinese-, Korean- and Vietnamese-style dishes with a Disney twist.
Disneyland After Dark – Starting January 22nd, Lasting through June 18th
Generally, Disneyland After Dark events begin right after the Lunar New Year celebration, and every party is a big deal. In fact, almost all of them sell out, often well in advance.
So, what’s Disneyland After Dark? Well, it’s an after-hours party featuring a unique theme. Three of them are quite famous, while others tend to come and go over time.
For example, I waxed poetic about Disney Channel Nite in 2024, which Disney promptly skipped in 2025. We never really know what park officials have in mind until they announce the events.
Still, we can count on three Disneyland After Dark events for sure. Those are Pride Nite, Sweethearts’ Nite, and Star Wars Nite.
Since these parties have proven the most popular, Disney offers multiple dates of each one, all of which book almost immediately.
You can expect Sweethearts’ Nite to begin in late January each year and typically occur multiple times through Valentine’s Day.
This brings up an important point. Disneyland will throw this party more than once, but it won’t be every night.
The company has adopted this approach because the park must close early to regular guests. Then, the partygoers arrive for the event.
In 2025, Disneyland closed at 8 p.m. to guests with regular theme park admission and reopened at 9 p.m. for party ticketholders. Then, these guests laughed and played until 1 a.m.
We’ll post specific listings for each party so that you can know what to expect. Generally, Disneyland After Dark features character interactions and live shows.
More than anything, we’re just talking about a fun celebration of all things Disney and the assigned theme for the evening’s party. A good time WILL be had by all.
Anaheim Duck Days – February 22nd
This particular event is *ahem* specific. It’s for fans of the National Hockey League’s Anaheim Ducks, the local team at Disneyland.
You may not know this, but Disney once owned the team. The film studio’s Mighty Ducks franchise also inspired the team’s creation. So, Disney throws a party every year.
Disney hosts special events like an Anaheim Ducks Cavalcade and a meet-and-greet with some current Anaheim Ducks players. It’s great for hockey fans and an intriguing curiosity for everyone else.
Celebrate Gospel – February 20th, 21st, 27th, 28th
Each year, Disney devotes a couple of days in February to Celebrate Gospel, which is exactly what it sounds like.
Disney throws a party celebrating black culture and heritage, and there is tons of gospel music as part of the festivities.
Disneyland Park has hosted this event for more than a decade, and it’s extremely popular. The inspirational music will have you humming for weeks afterward, too.
Season of the Force – Late March through Mid-May
Disneyland After Dark: Star Wars Nite isn’t the only Force-related activity on the annual calendar. In fact, Season of the Force overlaps with the after-hours event.
So, Star Wars fans can overlap their enjoyment of Jedis, Sith, The First Order, and The Resistance. As part of this offering, Star Wars receives a seasonal overlay.
Hyperspace Mountain transforms the ride into one with a specific Star Wars story, albeit one that can be a bit challenging to follow during the chaotic roller coaster ride.
You’ll notice more Storm Troopers and Darth Vaders strolling around the parks at this time of the year, thankfully offset by lots of Chewbaccas and Reys.
The event reaches a crescendo on May the 4th, the unofficial Star Wars holiday, although Season of the Force usually lasts at least another week afterward.
Disney California Adventure Food & Wine Festival – March 6th Through April 27th
Here’s the Disneyland Resort equivalent to the EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival. This one doesn’t last quite as long, typically around two months, but it does have a more focused menu.
That’s because this event champions California cuisine more than anything else. As with Lunar New Year, you’ll dine by visiting the various limited-time food booths.
Once again, Disney offers an exclusive menu available only as long as the festival is running. Most of these festivals feature local live bands playing on stage as well.
Food & Wine adds culinary demonstrations, ones I highly recommend that you take time to watch. Some of the best chefs in the world appear and show off their prowess while providing you with a few cooking tips.
Halloween Season – August 21st through October 31st
Halloween starts early at Disneyland Park. The unofficial start date arrives when Haunted Mansion Holiday debuts. It’s also the explanation for the asterisk listed above.
Technically, the Haunted Mansion ride overlay lasts through the Christmas season as well, giving you about 15 weeks to catch it. Importantly, every year’s version is different.
Also, Haunted Mansion is but one of several Halloween ride overlays, most of which are at Disney California Adventure. The biggie is the Guardians of the Galaxy ride, which turns into Monsters After Dark.
Disneyland also throws the Oogie Boogie Bash – A Disney Halloween Party. This is the must-do event of the second half of the year, and fans know it.
Tickets sell out almost immediately after going on sale. So, you’ll want to plan for this one and buy party tickets at first opportunity.
Thankfully, Disneyland will host an unprecedented 33 dates in 2026, which may slow down the sellouts.
Note that the first Oogie Boogie Bash arrives on August 18th, three days before the official start of Halloween season.
Disney California Adventure also overlaps Plaza de la Familia, a celebration of Día de Muertos, aka the Day of the Dead. Since the movie Coco is set during this holiday, it features a strong presence during the event.
I’m not going to gush about Halloween, but I feel strongly it’s the best time of the year at Disneyland. The only thing that’s even close is…
Disneyland Holiday Season – November 18th through End of Year
Nobody does holiday magic quite like Disney, a point made abundantly clear when you enter the parks in mid-November.
You’ll immediately identify all the unique touches, starting with snow falling on Sleeping Beauty Castle. That’s no small feat in the state of California.
Disney hosts an Ornament Trail, casts Yuletide projections on It’s a Small World, and hosts several character greetings.
You can meet Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, and Santa Claus himself, all of whom are dressed for the occasion.
Disneyland fans reverse A Christmas Fantasy Parade, the Wintertime Enchantment will take your breath away, and Believe…In Holiday Magic sends everyone home with a smile.
At Disney California Adventure, you can experience the Festival of the Holidays as well. You can guess what happens there.
Simply stated, there’s no better place to be than Disneyland during the Christmas season. Every day feels special and unforgettable.
Then again, that’s true of any visit to Disneyland. It’s why people call this The Happiest Place on Earth.
Feature Image: (Disney/Omark Reyes) NICOLE SCHERZINGER