if you HAD to brave a park on xmas day....

[Minxe]

which park would you choose?

i'm going to the happiest place on earth with my fiance and my parents this dec.. and i think our trip will most likely coincide with the busiest time in the happiest place. i guess the crowds are going to give us all a headache, but i've been wanting to go to WDW for the longest time and i guess at least we'll be together on that special day. (:

so the thing is: if you had to suck it up and deal with the crowds, which disney park would you go to? i'm still trying to decide (since i'm unofficially in charge of itinerary planning, being the most regimental under my roof) and here's a list i came up with:

magic kingdom:

probably the most obvious choice since it *is* the definitive park. and the magic kingdom is just that.. magic. still, my fiance isn't a pure disney fan and i'm not too sure if the magic kingdom would be *that* magical for him, especially with the crowds. also, i'm guessing that this will be the most packed park.

epcot:

it's the biggest park, so hopefully there'll be more room to breathe! it's also my mum's favourite park (because of the free coca cola - she jokingly admitted in one of her more mercenary moments). however, my dad's the opposite of my fiance and loves disney magic to the bone.. i'm not sure if he's going to get so much of that from the "most grown-up" park.

dhs:

i'm kinda neutral about this park... if i recall correctly from my dazed memory, this is the smallest disney park? however, if fantasmic is going to be playing, i can't think of anything nicer than to watch fantasmic on my favourite day of the year, even if it means i have to get there hours in advance.

animal kingdom:

my fiance and i both love animals, so i'm guessing that he's going to love the animal kingdom. also, there's seemingly a lot to see in the animal kingdom that doesn't necessitate standing in line for hours.



i'm really on the fence, but i'm interested to know what you guys think! if you had to spend xmas in a disney park, crowds and magic and all, where would you be?

[tinkbyday]

If it were me, I would go with Epcot - mostly for the reasons you stated - it being the most spread out park and such.

Plus, most folks will head to MK to get the "magic" feel.

Epcot has the CP and Christmas around the World - I think it could be a great place to spend the day. Book an ADR at a restaurant that serves their favorite type of cousine, stroll through WS.....I would just not plan on being able to experience any attractions that day.

[DisneyGerry]

esp Epcot and the World Showcase

[WeLuvDiz]

I would go with DHS

[DVC~OKW~96]

EPCOT all the way. It's much more capable of handling capacity crowds. The world showcase countries are all festive and each has a story that you can listen to.

The park is beautifully decorated, although without the lighted arches it will be less so than in years past.

MK will be shoulder to shoulder. Seriously. Been there done that and will NEVER do it again on Christmas day!

[duffy]

Epcot and the Magic Kingdom with be PACKED, so I'd avoid them. I'd go to either the Studios or the Animal Kingdom.

[WDWisOurHappyPlace]

We will be at DW for Christmas. We are not going to a park on Christmas Eve. We will be up early on Christmas Day and head to Magic Kingdom before the park opens. We will stick it out for as long as we can. If it gets too insane, we will head to Epcot later in the day. MK will be crazy busy, we know that, but we don't plan on doing much but soaking in the atmosphere. Can't wait!

[Robo]

MK is actually the smallest park at WDW and Animal
Kingdom is the largest (5 TIMES larger than MK!)

I'll just list approx. round numbers.

MK = 100+ Acres.
DHS = 135+ Acres.
Epcot = 300+ Acres.
DAK = 500+ Acres.

Guests can't WALK thru much of the larger area of DHS, as it has the
huge Safari and backstage area that takes up a lot of that extra space.

[Minxe]

thank you all very much for your replies!! as it is, i'm still really rather undecided as to where to go on xmas day.. but i'll definitely take what you guys said into consideration. and Robo, thanks for posting about the sizes of the different parks! i never knew that AK was that HUGE. O.O

[RMulieri]

Epcot. Mk closes for capacity on Christmas and makes getting there a hassle ( unless you are there for rope drop) and then it is wall to wall people.

[wdwmickey]

Minxe--my family has been at WDW for Christmas Day twice and both times we went to Epcot. We loved it Enjoyed the story tellers in the different counties and of course Candlelight Processional!! We also got to ride several rides (using fastpass) and loved touring the aquarium. Have fun whatever you decide.

[tinkatheart111]

We went to Epcot last year and had a fabulous time. Get there at rope drop and do the rides you want then relax in WS and soak up the "Christmas Around the World" atmosphere.

[memphismovin]

I'm going to be there Christmas weekend as well. In the past we have braved MK. It was bad, now I'm a Disney veteran with 40+ trips and thought no big deal, but I've never before and never since actually been scared by a crowd of people. It was the kind of thing where if you had to get away from where you were quickly, there would be no way out. Now that being said, this year I do have ADR inside MK for Christmas morning. In the end the important question is this...Which park offers you the most "non-ride" experiences? Lines will be long at best, impossible in most cases. So if you want to go to a park that day, its a matter of having the holiday experience not the normal theme park, ride hopping fun. jmo

[Withacy]

The AK IS the largest of the parks, but that's sort of misleading because most of AK (far more than any other park) is off limits to guests. Sure, you can ride through KS, but it's not like all that land can absorb large crowds.

But that's beside the point. Go to the one that means the most to you, based on your OWN priorities. If eating/drinking is important to you - go to Epcot (or whichever park has the food you like best). If crowds ruin your day....stay at the resort. Or figure out which park has the least crowds/can deal with crowds best (UG crowd calendar says EP). If it's about sentiment or Magic for you, go to the one that makes you feel that way.

Personally, I'm sentimental, so I'd probably go to the Magic Kingdom. That's always the first park I go to, regardless of who I'm with. But that's just ME. Heck, I once went to Disneyland on the 4th of July! (1988) What can I say - I was young and foolish. And we were there from RD through fireworks (AFTER having done pre-dawn fireworks at SM Peer). I can't even remember having that much energy.

[Minxe]

yay, more replies, thank you all so much!! (:

i think the difficulty of deciding which part to go to is probably because i have to consider the opinions and interests of the different people in my group. presently, i think it's a fight between MK, epcot and AK, where my dad would be for MK, my mum for epcot and my fiance for AK. which leaves me with the task of weeding out the best possible solution, wheehee.

i do see the point that as far as non-ride related entertainment goes, Epcot with its world showcase and also its huge park area is something to consider. plus, i'd imagine that world showcase would look beautiful on xmas time. can you tell that i'm leaning towards epcot? (:

probably, we'd do epcot in the day and then maybe head on to watch wishes from a less crowded area ie the beach at one of the resorts (i suddenly can't remember its name, what sacrilege!). i don't know.. i'll probably sharpen my plans after we actually get there and refresh our memory of the parks. (:

did i mention that we may actually be there for new year's day as well?? i know i couldn't have picked a less busy time to go. rarr.

PS: i'm so sorry that i'm not doing personal replies, but i'm currently oscillating between the DISboards and my final essay for the term. but i have read and appreciated everything posted so far, thanks guys!!