Mickey Mouse Leaves Florida, Makes Official Move to the Midwest

Mickey Mouse and his friends packed their bags on Saturday, leaving sunny Florida for the chilly Midwest and bringing the Walt Disney World Resort magic to Chicago, Illinois. Each year, the Central Florida Disney park sponsors the Magnificent Mile Lights Festival, including the largest nighttime parade in the United States.

Before getting into the parade, there’s something important to note: Walt Disney World Resort was an official sponsor of the festival, which meant the real Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, and several of their friends traveled from Central Florida to Chicago, Illinois.

We all know that there’s only one Mickey Mouse, who uses magical mouse holes to travel quickly around Magic Kingdom Park, EPCOT, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park… Fortunately, all of the characters were able to use the same magic to keep greeting Disney Park guests while making their grand appearance on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile.

Inside the Magic was on the scene on Saturday evening, watching and waving as Mickey and Minnie kicked off the parade with sparkling pyrotechnics. On each city block, the pair counted down until, all at once, the trees lining Chicago’s iconic Michigan Avenue were glowing with strands of holiday lights.

Luckily, the Walt Disney World Resort magic didn’t end with Mickey and Minnie Mouse. Between high school band performances and floats from other businesses and organizations, several familiar Disney characters added to the Midwestern holiday magic.

With Toy Story 5 (2026) less than a year away, bringing Buzz Lightyear and Woody to greet their Chicagoan fans was a no-brainer. The pair appeared in their Christmas attire on a float decorated with the Pixar ball, presents, blocks, and, of course, their alien friends.

Following the worldwide success of the live-action Lilo & Stitch (2025), Stitch donned his Santa gear and shared a gazebo-like float with Goofy. The two mischievous characters had fake snowball fights and danced the night away as they paraded down Michigan Avenue.

Finally, to the delight of thousands of children waving snowflake-shaped wands, the royal ladies from Frozen (2013) appeared in a grand horse-drawn carriage. Princess Anna stayed warm with a cozy lap blanket; fortunately, the chilly Chicago weather was no match for Queen Elsa!

Walt Disney World Resort also brought the iconic Voices of Liberty, from EPCOT’s American Adventure World Showcase Pavilion, for a live performance at Lights Festival Lane, the pre-parade festival activities area at the base of Chicago’s iconic Tribune Tower.

 

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Disney Parks fans in the United States and Canada can watch the Wintrust Magnificent Mile Lights Festival Parade on their local ABC station at 7:00 p.m. ET (6:00 p.m. CT) on Sunday, November 23. It will also be available to stream on demand on abc7chicago.com from November 24 to December 31, 2025.

Have you ever watched the Magnificent Mile Lights Festival and Parade? Share your favorite memories with Inside the Magic in the comments!