Christmas and 3 kids

[DisVillianMomma]

Ok we have been to the World several Time, but I wanna take my kids down for Christmas and do and the christmas things, see the fireworks on New Year's Eve.

What are the best strategies for going this crazy crowded time of the year.

We don't need to do all the rides just a few a day and the parades & fireworks

I have 2 girls and 1 boy. We are thinking of stay at Fort Wilderness during our stay

 

[buffettgirl]

about a few rides a day are all you're going to get done LOL

honestly, I would never ever ever ever go back to Disney the week after christmas again. It was so crowded, it was cold *until it got hot* and we saw just about nothing because literally, we were shoulder to shoulder no matter where we went. I've told the story before, but we waited in a line for HM one time that snaked DOWN to where the old Keel Boats used to load, around, back up some stairs, all before we even got into the main entry walkway. Every line in every park was hours. Every bus to every park was jammed and we routinely waited for 2 or 3 buses every time.

If you wanted to do the christmas things, you'd be better off going earlier - before christmas. The new years fireworks were fun, but you also run the risk that the park (MK) will close early and you won't get in.

 

[DisVillianMomma]

I would love to go early, but I can't take the kids out of school and I get the last week of the year of from work and the kids have no school. So we are kinda stuck going anytime between the 23 til the 3.

Because of our School and Work Schedule.

I just wanna go down and have a little fun and the decorations

thanks for the input though

 

[Spunky946]

it is a mad house. We went this past Christmas. Go early, take your time and know that you will probably not get as much done as you would at a slower time. I thing magic kingdom closed three times this past year and one day magic, animal and Hollywood closed at the same time.

We had a great time, but we will not go back for a long time at that time. We are pulling ds out next year and going in feb.

 

[Eventer98]

When we went in 2008 the crowds seem to come around 12/23. It's too bad you can't go the week before. I would take advantage of the Early Morning Hours and get there 30m before the park opens for that! If you can do this you may be able to get some of the rides done quickly before lunch. Then you can figure out the rest of your day based on the crowd levels

 

[2girlsmomma]

I had a friend that said the days before Christmas weren't as bad. That being said, are you sure you couldn't get the kids out of school? I thought that until I heard about parents at my daughter's school going to DW and missing school. Turns out I had to turn in a form to the principal. So my daughter is excused from school for 4 days next week for a "family reunion". (hey, the whole family is going right?

 

[AB6876]

We just went with 8 (two kids age 8 and 6) people this past Christmas season. The crowds did not get unmanageable until a day before Christmas. Even after that if you go early in the morning (they had EMH at 7:00 AM a few of the days) and very late at night (after the fireworks) we did not have a problem. We found other things to do during the day. One day we did parasailing another day we just hung out at the pool etc. We went to Animal Kingdom the day after Christmas first thing in the morning and rode Everest 6 times (Different occasions), the safari, dinosaur 2 times, played the games in Dinoland, my son rode that spinning coaster, traded tons of pins had lunch walked through the animal exhibits and were done by 4:30 PM. We also went to Magic Kingdom two days after Christmas just before lunch and it was a ZOO but honestly we had lunch and still rode 2 rides (Jungle Cruise and Splash Mountain) before dinner.…
It was not ideal, but it was the only time we could go.
I used the LINES app which I recommend it worked great for ride times and what parks to stay away from and which would be the best. We had dinner reservations, but with the crowds and having to modify our schedule around it, I found that the ADR’s were a pain in the neck to try to get to, so I cancelled most of them after the first two nights.
Go have fun. As long as you set your expectations correctly and use tools that are available, you will have fun.

 

[luvmy2sams]

We've done Disney for Christmas/New Years since 2009. The first year we went the kids were 10 and 6. The parks are definitely crowded, but it's entirely possible to do everything you want and not go crazy (or stand in 3 hours lines) in the process.

Our strategy is to either get to the parks within the first 30 minutes of park opening or not go into a park until early evening hours (6pm at the earliest). The parks don't really pick up until closer to 11am, and then they become wall-to-wall until the evening hours.

If there is a park we definitely wanted to be in for most of the day, we make sure to schedule an ADR. It's nice to have a guaranteed spot to sit and escape for awhile.

We haven't encountered many transportation issues. Our only struggle was NYE 2009 when we stayed in the MK until after midnight and had a 2 hour wait in lines to get back to Pop. Our solution? We stay at the Poly now and watch the MK fireworks from the beach. Taxis are also plentiful, so if it's in your budget, you can drop $20 and bypass the lines to/from your resort to the parks. We've done this a few times as well. Since you're planning on Ft. Wilderness, I wouldn't worry too much about transportation to the MK. The boat service from WL/FW/MK is excellent.

The decorations are gorgeous! If you go into the vacation with the right attitude, it can be a wonderful trip. We wouldn't keep going back every year if that wasn't the case. Happy planning!

 

[DisVillianMomma]

I just wanna say thanks for all the helpful tips and advice. I think we will do mostly what you guys suggested.

Head to the park bright and early in the morning and leave before noon. their is plenty of resort hopping and christmas decoration i wanna see. Then after dinner we can head back to our park of the day.

the kids love to swim so hopefully it will be warm enough that they can swim and do lots of the fun stuff at Fort Wilderness mid day.

I already download the Touring plans Lines app to my phone that and a few other disney apps so hopefully i will be ahead of the game!!

 

[buffettgirl]

I just wanna say thanks for all the helpful tips and advice. I think we will do mostly what you guys suggested.

Head to the park bright and early in the morning and leave before noon. their is plenty of resort hopping and christmas decoration i wanna see. Then after dinner we can head back to our park of the day.

the kids love to swim so hopefully it will be warm enough that they can swim and do lots of the fun stuff at Fort Wilderness mid day.

I already download the Touring plans Lines app to my phone that and a few other disney apps so hopefully i will be ahead of the game!!

hopefully they have gingerbread houses at every hotel - I'm not sure if this is something they always do - but it was fun to see them the year we went.

 

[DisneyMom0709]

i would love to go for christmas I was figuring 23-27 but not sure how the crowds are on christmas day I have to small kids so I was thinking going last week of november or right before christmas

 

[pookybean]

We went over christmas in 2007, it was BUSY! that being said, so wasnt this past 4th of july. i didnt think i would ever see anything worse than christmas! lol

however, we are going back this christmas, for a variety of reasons we have to go 12/21-1/1. i know it will be busy, but we go to disney every year and dont have to rush rush rush anymore. we will take in what we can and be thrilled that we are in the world again for christmas.

i plan on being at the parks early and leaving when i realize im heading for a meltdown! lol we will not do any park on christmas day, just tour some different resorts to check out their decorations. the kids said it would be neat to do hddr for christmas dinner!

i think you can definitly have a great trip. head into it knowing what your getting into and itll be great!

oh and it will be just me and my 3 kids!

 

[JustCallMeMommy]

We really enjoyed Christmas week in 2010 - we're doing it again this year. It was busy, but not completely unmanageable. Get to the parks early, plan to stay late, and come up with things to do while you wait in line. In cooler weather, we feel like we can go all day, whereas we are tired by about 2:00 in hot weather. It takes longer to do everything, but the parks are open longer each day. As long as you pack your patience, you will be fine.

 

[DisVillianMomma]

i plan on being at the parks early and leaving when i realize im heading for a meltdown! lol we will not do any park on christmas day, just tour some different resorts to check out their decorations. the kids said it would be neat to do hddr for christmas dinner!

i think you can definitly have a great trip. head into it knowing what your getting into and itll be great!

oh and it will be just me and my 3 kids!

Sounds alot like my plan is shaping up to be, But it will be Me, my Sister and three kids!

A soon i we have a melt down in the park or noon hit we will be leaving for some chillin out time at the fort or the pool!!

I am already getting excited for my christmas at wdw with my kids!!