WDW Christmas week tips?

flopnut2112

flopnut2112

Earning My Ears
Joined
Feb 16, 2015
We will be visiting WDW Christmas week 2015 and are looking for tips. We are DW 45, DH 48, DS'S 17,19 and DD 14. It will be our 4th visit and are finally in a deluxe! (AKL) My active 71 year old mother in law will be joining us and it will be her first visit. I will book ADR's and FP at the earliest opportunity and have the ADR's figured out. It is a 6 night 7 day trip ending on Dec. 26th and 2 day USO Hard Rock Dec. 27th and 28th. I definitely want to experience as many shows and parades as possible with my wife and her mom. (All previous trips I did everything I wanted to) The FP area for fireworks, Castle lighting and parades are intriguing. Any information would be an asset in planning this trip!
 
My family uses the unofficial guide to dw...when we went at christmas, my brother chose to split from us, and we got through 6 rides in the time they got thru 2...buy the book, and you get on line free, or you can get online for about $9...my family used to call me the Disney nazi, until we went without the touring plan, and got about half as much done.

I buy a. New version about every 2 years, especially with the renovations. I call it my Disney bible.

IT is not sponsored by disney...has location suggestions for show viewing, touring plans, resort info, website suggestions, crowd calendars (go to least crowded parks),weather average charts, restaurant info/menus, phone numbers, lost child info, ride ratings (age appropriate ratings and reason such as too dark, or noise factor, content, etc...) and reader insights.
 
I will definitely purchase the guide! Thanks for the insight. I have my plans laid out in the google calendar right now. Lots of flexibility built in our days. I will definitely take advantage of evening EMH to get my wish list accomplished
 
Best advice is don't do it, nothing can prepare you for the mayhem that is Christmas week, we have been many times to the world and the only bad trip we ever had was that holiday week, do know how you could think of doing much beyond your 3 fast passes no matter what a book says, the extra expense to going that week and the crowds to me is a deal breaker. Remember all 4 parks are crowded beyond belief and some close due to being full during that week. Good luck.
 


We'll also be there 12/20->12/26, group of 17 people. Really wish we could go the first two weeks of December but Texas frowns at taking kids out of school so if we want to do WDW during the holidays it's then or never.
 
understood taking my grandson 12/12-12/19 but this will be that last year he will be able to get out of school. 17 wow maybe you should have a flag like the south american groups carry around but with the lone star on it.
 
We were just there this past Christmas week. I went with pre-conceived negative thoughts about Magic Bands and new Fast Pass. After only the first day, I had a complete change of heart! We had no issues. Everyday we were able to schedule additional Fastpaases. We knew what to expect crowd level wise, went early stayed as long as we wanted, then back to the resort. We even managed an open to close at Epcot one day. Just plan and have a great time! We are headed back this coming Christmas, staying at Fort Wilderness!!
It's definitely hit or miss, depending on how you like to experience WDW.
 


We are definitely going to focus on enjoying the seasonal activities, dining and the World Showcase. After 3 previous trips we have still not visited all of the pavilions. Fantasmic dinner, Candlelight Processional dinner, Pirates and Pals cruise and Castle lighting are definitely on the list. Hearing that additional FP was possible last Christmas is welcome news!
 
flopnut2112 said:
We are definitely going to focus on enjoying the seasonal activities, dining and the World Showcase. After 3 previous trips we have still not visited all of the pavilions. Fantasmic dinner, Candlelight Processional dinner, Pirates and Pals cruise and Castle lighting are definitely on the list. Hearing that additional FP was possible last Christmas is welcome news!
Click to expand...
Two of those additional Fast Pass were on Christmas Day! I had forgotten we stayed open to close at MK
 
Following this thread :). We've not booked yet (waiting on our TA)....but reading and researching has me discouraged and almost ready to cancel the booking before it's even been made. We will get all of our rides and such done during our fall trip....so going during the Holidays is just for the lights and atmosphere. I keep telling myself it'll be great, as long as we plan accordingly.
 
Get to the parks early, MK at rope drop. This past Christmas MK closed to capacity almost everyday of Christmas week. MK runs the Once Upon a Christmastime Parade twice a day the week of Christmas...it's a must see! It is usually at noon and 3pm. Have fun!
 
We love going to WDW Christmas week. It is crowded, and you have to adjust your expectations, but well worth it.

Candlelight processional is our favorite, and I see you plan to go. I would definitely get the dining package and wait until narrators are announced (as early as June). You may find that you prefer one over another, and the narrator makes the show.

You may want to check crowd calendars for recommended parks each day. It's one way to better navigate the crowds.

On the most crowded days, try to make your ADRs in the parks. Leaving and coming back takes a lot of extra time when it's so crowded. On the worst days like Christmas, plan to stay in the park from RD until you want to leave for the day.

Be sure to leave time to see the resort holiday decorations. There's a life sized gingerbread house at GF, gingerbread carousel at YC, and people decorate campsites at FW.
 
flopnut2112 said:
We are definitely going to focus on enjoying the seasonal activities, dining and the World Showcase. After 3 previous trips we have still not visited all of the pavilions. Fantasmic dinner, Candlelight Processional dinner, Pirates and Pals cruise and Castle lighting are definitely on the list. Hearing that additional FP was possible last Christmas is welcome news!
Click to expand...
Don't let negative posts influence you if you are going with the focus of enjoying seasonal activities.

Get there at rope drop at MK (7am) at least one day to enjoy rides with little to no waits. We were there Dec. 20-30 and spent Christmas Day at the MK. There was literally no one in Tomorrowland the first hour. It was awesome! :thumbsup2
 
I also want to add, I'm not a fan of FP+ during low/moderate crowds, but it was amazing during Christmas week. I was surprised at the availability and ease of changing popular rides around the day before or early the day of. It helps that the hours are extended at MK over the holidays. MK opened at 7am each day and was open until usually 1 am.
 
I'm so happy at seeing all the positive post.....I had just about decided to cancel my surprise family trip. I think I'll stick with it though.....do everything at least once, right? :)
 
We stayed at the AKL for Christmas week a few years ago. Best advice is to limit the amount of times you need to take the bus because it can be very time consuming. My mom and sister waited over an hour for the bus at the hotel one day and were almost late meeting my dad and I for a meal because of it. It is VERY crowded but can still be an enjoyable trip if you plan your days without too much back and forth between parks and different hotels, etc. We did dedicate some time to going to all of the deluxe resorts to check out their holiday decor and gingerbread houses which were so impressive. The one at the Grand Floridian is amazing!
 
Great info on the bus situation! I was concerned about travel time for our ADR's. We are driving down from Canada so our vehicle can be utilized to ensure less wasted time. We plan on doing RD Magic Kingdom on Christmas day and staying throughout if possible. We will have already viewed Castle lighting, Wishes and parades earlier in the week (if our plan works out) HDDR and Ohana are high on our list of outside park dinner dining.
 
Adjusting your visit to account for crowds is necessary. Adjusting your expectations in necessary too. We just came back from 2 weeks at CHristmas and had a wonderful time. We did not expect to spend lots of time in the parks other than for our scheduled FPs. We ate wonderful meals, drank at wonderful locations, and had some great family time. You are doing the right things. Planning helps lots. Enjoy.
 
We have been to WDW 2 times over the Christmas Holidays, most recently last year. It is wonderful!! Here are my tips...

  • Get to the park at opening when you can. Hit the "absolutely want to dos!" Then take advantage of your FP's.
  • When things get out of control and you are feeling overwhelmed with the amount of people, head back to the hotel for a rest and a shower and go back for the evening.
  • Go KNOWING there are going to be a tons of people and make it an adventure rather than a deterrent.
  • Enjoy the special holiday things they have that you can't see any other time of the year.
  • Don't do Magic Kingdom on Christmas day!!!!! We like Epcot and love booking a Candlelight Processional to celebrate!
 
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