Anyone just back?

[tnkrbell]

ANyone just back????? How are the crowds? Thanks!

 

[JulesMom]

We got back Monday.

We had a great time. It was crowded, but with EE and the longer hours--it seemed less crowded

We always left the parks about 1 pm or 2 pm, when it really started getting crowded.

 

[GSLand]

just back New Years Day from a Christmas week visit.
This was our first Christmas visit and most likely our last. It was way too crowded for us.
I also have to admit we spent 3 days at USF/IOA with front-of-the-line access for every ride (with our HRH room card) and it was mighty hard to have to have 3-4 hour Past Pass delays and hour long waits on stand-by after that at WDW parks.

 

[mowsearz]

We just got back last night. Stayed 12/29 thru 01/02. It was very crowded. Yesterday at MK was even more crowded than NYE was there. I will put it this way, the wait for Small World was 40 min...and I can't remeber the last time I saw that. AK was also very crowded yesterday. We were at Epcot on Jan. 1 Wed...It was nice but a little crowded...didn't wait long though. Test track was down all day, I think it tried to open a couple of times and kept breaking down...that was disappointing.

 

[tnkrbell]

YIKES!!!!!!!!

 

[lindsey]

We were there from 12/23 - 12/30 and YES, very crowded. But we got fastpass when possible and had a great time. I have to admit, 12/27 in AK was soooo crowded you could barely move.

 

[tnkrbell]

Oh no!! I really hope that all the crowds were due to schools being out!!!!
Well got my fingers crossed that this weekend will be much less crowded! Ill fill everyone in next week!!

 

[PirateFan]

We just returned this evening. It was our first Christmas trip and probably our last. It was way too crowded. We expected the crowds so it was still a good trip. Thank goodness for EE and extended park hours. It started raining New Year's Eve after dinner, so we went back to the Dolphin and napped, then woke up in time to watch the fireworks at MGM from our balcony room. New Year's Day morning at AK was terrific. The park didn't fill up until noon.

As someone on the boards said, "The crowds start building on Christmas to critical mass New Year's Eve." This was so true.

I'm sure that next week will be pleasantly uncrowded.

Have a wonderful time.

 

[jaguar9748]

We were there 12/25-12/30. Crowds were pretty good until 12/27. From that point on the crowds started to build. If crowds are not your thing, this is not the time of year for you to go. However, it is one of the most beautiful and special times to go to WDW because of the decorations and the many special shows. We think that the Disney CM's were really "ON" during the visit - nary a one of them in a bad mood. In addition, the parks were opened long hours which was nice to see and they had multiple parade and show times at MK and MGM. Considering there are only 287 buses, they did pretty well with the crowds and didn't exceed their 20 minute time (that we experienced). It was a most magical Christmas - with expectations that we would and did leave parks when they got too crowded and we would and did not ride rides that had long waits (Peter Pan was 70 minutes one day and R&R was 120 minutes for standby and 30 minutes for Fast Pass!).

 

[fl]

Crowed. But, not as much as other similar occasions when the crow move you in the direction that you don’t want to go. Having spent NYE at WDW more than once (i.e. last one in ’99 when the economy was much better and people traveled a lot more). The early evening rain on 12/31 played a major roll on making the event less enjoyable, it started rained around 6:30pm and poured until 1:30am. We thought we could make it all the way to midnight with our sweaters and ponchos, but after three hours of rain and dancing we had enough and headed home. My hats are off to the very few band players that were brave enough to attempt playing some live music despite the conditions. But the time we left, at 10:00pm when the temperature started to drop quite a bit, all band stands along EPCOT were empty (some never had live music at all) and crowds were definitely leaving the park. My gratitude to those unsung heroes that did not allowed us to wait in line one last time and safely rushed to our hotels; they are, of course, the bus drivers. Virtually, every bus was out and nobody waited more than twenty minutes for a bus. The MK was delightfully empty on 1/1 evening, my toddler rode the Small World ride at least four times back to back, the Dumbo and Aladin ride at least twice (also back to back) to the point of almost loosing my dinner. The crowds were back on Friday, it felt as crowed as NYE in late afternoon, and looked like everyone agreed to head to MK at the very same time. It must be that this year everyone is having a five days holiday weekend.

 

[AMClvsMKY]

We went for the first time for new years day & Jan 2nd. We went to Animal Kingdom and MGM on new years day and it wasn't bad. Then we went to Magic Kingdom on the 2nd and will never go again at this time of the year. MK was soooo jam packed that the walkways were often at standstills - nobody could get thru either way. Every ride we were by was at least a 60 minute wait. We tried to get a fast pass for Space MOuntain around 11:30am and the return time was 5-6pm!! It just wasn't any fun for us - we gave up around 2pm and drove home.

 

[Geoff_M]

We were in the parks 12/31, 1/1, and 1/3. We found with some planning, and a little reverse psych, we were able to do a lot. All the major attractions, often more than once!

 

[Bete]

We were there from 12/19 to 01/03. I never saw a day that it wasn't crowded. We parked hopped and it made no difference. The only time it lightened up a bit was late at night on the cold evenings.

I will say I enjoyed all the special holiday features from beginning to end. I will treasure those memories but once is enough. We were satisfied with the rides we could do early in the morning but we were not able to accomplish as much as I would have liked to do after 11am. We did see every parade, alot of fireworks, and many resorts for their decorations. I did every country for their holiday feature in Epcot. Candlelight Processional was wonderful and so was MVMCP.

We are going back in the Spring; so, I will catch up then on the rides, etc.

I heard word that the parks (including non-Disney) did not expect it to be crowded after NYE. They all had extended hours; so, that helped a little.

I don't think you have to be concerned about park crowds now. I really believe it was a holiday issue.

 

[BuzzMe]

We found the parks(especially MK) to be very crowded 12/25-12/30, but we managed to avoid the throngs of people by getting to the parks early, by 7 or 8am, and using fast passes. We rarely had to wait for rides and were able to leave the parks by 12pm or earlier, having ridden all our favorites multiple times. We love being in WDW during the holidays but find that you must get there early to enjoy it.

 

[AMClvsMKY]

We went to MK again today and what a difference a couple of days makes!! The longest wait we saw was 25 minutes for Space Mountain. Buzz Lightyear was posted to be a 15 minute wait and we got in line and walked at a slow pace continually until we boarded. Much better.

 

[welovemickey]

We just got back yesterday from our trip. The week before Christmas was great. No lines, no crowds. However, by the Saturday before Christmas, I heard a CM talking at FW, the crowds were unbearable. Glad we got all our park hopping done by the Friday before Christmas. We'd definately go that week again and spend Christmas week resort hopping and relaxing.

 

[Geoff_M]

Just got back home so I can elaborate more on my previous post. Here's what we were able to accomplish:

12/31
MGM: ToT, RnR (w/ baby swap), Indiana Jones, Muppets, GMR. After that park reached "bug out" crowd levels, so we left for AK.
AK: KS, TTBAB, Jungle Parade, Primal Hurl, Spin, Dinosuar (w/ baby swap), and Festival of the Lion King. We went out for supper and then back to the hotel (HIFS) and went to bed around 11 PM.

1/1:
MK: Dumbo, Pooh, Small World, Space, Buzz (twice), Speedway, Barnstormer, Pirates, (Liberty Tree for lunch), Splash (w/ baby swap), COP, and TTA. At 3 we went back to the Poly and I took the kids swimming. We then took a bus over to MGM and ate at the commissary and did the Osbourne lights. Took a bus back to the Poly. My wife stayed behind with our 3 YO, and I took the older two back to MK until midnight. There we did: fireworks, BTMRR, Splash, Spectromagic, Haunted Mansion, Buzz (I scored 999999!!!), and Space one more time!

1/2:
Down day. Slept in, ate breakfast at Ohana's, transferred to the YC, swam at SAB, went to Belz, and watched Illuminations from our balcony.

1/3:
Epcot: TT (w/ baby swap and a second time with FP), did some serious shopping at Mouse Gear, and ate some Key Lime pie and Mickey Bars at the Land. We took 2 hours out to go to the DVC Open House. Ate a late lunch at Japan. Went back to FW and did The Land, Spaceship Earth, Universe of Energy, and Body Wars. Grabbed supper at the Electronic Umbrella. Went to WS and did Mexico, Norway, America, and watched Illuminations.

All in all, I think we made out just fine. We made sure we were there when the parks opened, used FP, and ended up at AK on NYE after MGM got too busy. If we'd had to do it all over again, I'd still do it in a heartbeat.

 

[G's mommy]

Just back last night, arrived on New Year's Day and stayed through yesterday, January 5th. We checked in at the Movies on the 1st around 10:00 (longest line of the week) and then headed to MGM. Crowds were starting to get heavy, but we were able to walk right on the Great Movie Ride and then head over to Indiana Jones and get a seat down front 10 minutes before showtime. After lunch, things started to get hopping, but we saw the Muppet movie with just a 15 minute wait or so and then had lunch at Pizza Planet. My son decided to skip Star Tours this year (it makes him dizzy, me too!) so we headed over to the Backlot tour and were on in 10 minutes. After getting off, we walked down and were able to see Mickey for a picture with a 5 minute wait and then on to Little Mermaid. The posted wait was 40 minutes, but we were in within 15 or so. After that, it was about 5:00 and people were starting to pour into the theater for Fantasmic. We decided to claim our seats down front in the center and get snacks and wait it out. The show started at 6:30 and it was completely full. You could have gotten seats on the far sides up until about 6:10. The weather was warm New Years Day, so it was a great night to sit out for this show, which was fantastic as usual. We headed back to the hotel to see if the luggage was delivered and to eat a quick bit. We decided to head to MK since they were open till midnight. Got over there about 9:45 and the place had really cleared out. We did probably 10 rides or attractions by midnight and headed back. A great first day.

Jan 2

Went to Epcot on Thursday, another warm day in the 70's. Got to the park late since we had stayed up so late the night before. Went straight in and got Fast pass for Test Track for 1:45 I believe, this was at 11:00 or so, which is not bad. My son just had to go back and ride Spaceship Earth, we waited about 15 minutes. Then on to Norway for Maelstrom, got there right at 11:00 and were on in 5 minutes. Next, lunch in Mexico and the little boat ride there, then on to Journey into Imagination which was a walk-on. We could have seen the Honey I Shrunk the Audience movie, but I don't care for it so decided to skip it. Headed for the Land pavillion, which was pretty crowded by this time with lunchers. We had about 30 minutes to kill before Test Track, so waited for the boat ride. This was a slow line, it seems like it should move faster than it does. They have added Fast pass to this attraction by the way.
Then on to Test Track which was now posting 75-90 minute wait times. We were on with Fast pass in about 15 or 20 minutes. We decided to head out, it was about 2:00 or 2:30 by now. As we came by Spaceship Earth, there was no line, so my son wanted to go again and we did. Back to the hotel for some rest time and then on to MK for our PS at Liberty Tree. ( I made the PS that morning from the hotel by the way). MK was packed on Thursday night, I don't know what the difference in Wed night and Thursday night, besides Thursday was an EE day. We were seated right away and the food was good. They said they were full and were turning people away. The crowds did not clear out after either parade, the lines were long right up until closing at midnight. We were able to do some things like Hall of Presidents, COP, TTA, Goofy's Barnstormer, and my son and I waited for Big Thunder and were on in about 30 minutes. All Fast passes were long sold out on this day and wait times at Peter Pan and Pooh were 45-50 minutes. Even Small World had a line on Thursday evening.

Jan 3

Went to AK on Friday, got there late in the morning around 11:00. Went straight to the safari and were able to get a Fast pass for 11:30, so just hung around there and had some breakfast. Saw the Lion King show at 12:15 and then over to Dinosaur for a fast pass. While waiting for time, my son and I rode Primeival Whirl with about a 20 minute wait. This ride isn't much, it has a 48 inch height requirement due to the restraining system, not due to the thrill! Even my 6 year old thought it was pretty lame. Definitely not worth waiting more than 30 minutes for, get a Fast pass for this one if the line is long. Skipped the Triceratop Spin, we'd already done Aladdin several times and Dumbo, so didn't want to wait. Headed over to Dinosaur and were on in 10 mintues. Then on to the Bone Yard for my son to have some playtime and then back to the hotel. We did not see the parade, we saw it last trip so opted for Bone Yard time instead. It is a good parade though, so see it if you haven't. Friday night, my son and I decided to give MK another try. They were staying open till 11:00. We got there at 8:45 and were able to walk straight down Main Street and stand in front of the castle for the fireworks! What a difference a day makes, the MK was pretty clear. We were able to do BTR several times, Buzz, Tea Cups, Snow White, and several other rides with no wait. Still there were long lines for Peter Pan and Pooh! Skipped those and left at closing.

Jan 4

Back to MGM on Saturday to see Beauty and the Beast and for me to ride RNR coaster. Got 2 Fast passes and was able to ride twice within 35 mintues using those. Stayed for the parade at MGM and then headed back to hotel for some rest time. Saturday night, we had PS at Rose and Crown for 7:00 and found Epcot to be pretty empty and were able to walk right in and be seated on time. Stayed for Illuminations, not much of a crowd on Saturday night. Got a great viewing place at 8:45, right between England and Canada. It was cold, but not windy so it was actually not too bad. Back to the hotel for a decent bed time and to pack the suitcases.

Jan 5

Checked out early and decided to go back to MK for our last day. It was a pretty warm day, getting into the mid 60's. Headed straight to Splash and Big Thunder and were able to do both twice before the lines picked up. Last year, Sunday was empty, but this year a different story. The rides in Fantasyland and Tomorrowland had long lines by lunchtime. We skipped Fantasyland and headed for Toontown and rode Barnstormer. We let my son play for awhile and then rode the train around and found us a curbside seat for the 3:00 parade. Headed for home after that.

All in all, it was a good trip. We had 3 good weather days and 2 cold days, much better than the previous two January trips. Crowds were heavier than in 2002, but we were still able to do most everything we wanted to do with minimal waiting. The key to MK is either get there very early, or go very late and use Fast pass when you can.

 

[WDWfanatic288]

like my mom said...we just got back a week ago

crowds weren't bad at all! we never waited longer than 10 minutes for anything!

you just HAVE to do EE(some start at 7 in the morning!)AK was BARE the morning we did EE...we did everything before the park opened and left around 1 when it was getting busy. the 7 oclock EE were just like we had EE when we would go in September! and get out late at the parks b/c they are open pretty late

we are going again at Christmas next year and maybe even the year after that!

MK is horrible...we only spent like 2 half days there...as long as you stay away from MK crowds were fine!

the days before christmas were really nice...as christmas came it got busier but it wasn't horrible by any means

 

[bobcat]

Just got back. Were in the parks the 2nd-5th. I don't know if I will go back this time of year again. MK on the 2nd was wall to wall people and it started to wear on my nerves. I'll take the heat and low crowds of August anytime.