early Dec too crowded!!

[Shannon4Al]

We went on our first trip last year during this week and had the best time! I wish we were going back, it was such a magical trip with the Christmas decorations and nice weather.

I'm sure it will be amazing!

 

[Rockmtn]

You have to remember that while dis resorts might be full or close to it due to promotions, this is a slow time of the year and off site resorts/hotels are not that busy so you do not have the crowds you do at busy times of the year.

 

[goofy4tink]

I arrive on Nov 29 and leave on Dec 13...this is about the 6th year I have been to WDW during this time frame. Yes, the parks have gotten a bit more crowded, but it isn't all that bad.
I really think that most of the resorts are booked simply because of the promotions Disney offered. First, there was free dining...if you were planning on a trip to Orlando, but had booked an offsite resort, you might very well have changed your plans when you saw that you could get free dining and be onsite at WDW for the same price....more people in the resorts but the same number in the parks.
Same thing with that buy 4, get 3 free promo...people had already booked offsite resorts but changed over to Disney resorts to get that deal. They already planned on going to the parks, but were now staying at a WDW resort..again, more people in the resorts but the same number in the parks.
Disney filled up their resorts which was their prime interest.

 

[quantumottle]

Starting to freak out! I thought I picked a reasonably slow week, Dec 9-13th, on a whim I checked the hotel we are staying at & it is SOLD OUT! I checked several other hotels and they are SOLD OUT too!! So bummed it might be very crowded for our trip.

I know how you feel. My family will be there Dec 3-13 and we've been unable to get dining ressies due to free dining being offered most restaurants are full, as you mentioned several the resorts are reported to be full, and today I see they have added 6 new Fantasmic! showing during our stay. Ya' think the first 2 weeks of December may be a little busier than usual this year? Yep, me too...

 

[JenniD44]

I know how you feel. My family will be there Dec 3-13 and we've been unable to get dining ressies due to free dining being offered most restaurants are full, as you mentioned several the resorts are reported to be full, and today I see they have added 6 new Fantasmic! showing during our stay. Ya' think the first 2 weeks of December may be a little busier than usual this year? Yep, me too...

Since they added the Fantasmic! shows it does seem it may be more crowded. I have to say this though, we have gone the beginning of Dec in the past and they always had Fantasmic! every night. They shows may not have been to capacity, but they were pretty full. I was wondering how they could do it with the moderate crowds I've seen in the past and only show it 3 times during the 8 days I'm there. I'm so happy to see more shows added, and I'm not overly concered (any more than I already was) that the crowds will be too out of control. It does seem busier each time I go, but I think more people discover that early Dec. is a wonderful time to be there.

 

[CocosMeme]

Also remember there are a lot of us going without kids to see all of the Christmas decorations and take in the special holiday offerings. I doubt that we will be riding many of the rides - we can do that at other times. The Christmas special events (Christmas Processional, Osbourne Lights, MVMCP, etc.) as well as the different decorations at the resorts. It is a very unique time to be there.

 

[ElementCamper]

You have to remember that while dis resorts might be full or close to it due to promotions, this is a slow time of the year and off site resorts/hotels are not that busy so you do not have the crowds you do at busy times of the year.

Ditto on this! I will be there 12/5-12/12 myself and not worried about crowds at all. Been the last couple of years during this time and I love it! Decorations up, all kinds of special holiday things going on. I found the ride wait times very tolerable except the biggies (anyone say Soarin'?).

Use some common sense and follow the advice given on this board, rope drop, fast pass etc. and have a good time!

 

[EvilQueenT]

i have to agree... the parks are getting more crowded each year but the off seasons are still the most reasonable. we usually do one summer trip and one winter off season and the summer is always more crowded with the exception of christmas through new years of course. i booked this year from dec 5-8th and tried about a week and a half ago to add an additional day to our trip and was told they were booked on both ends of our trip and was a little suprised as this has never happened before but if it's mainly from pop warner being there then we don't have a lot to worry about... my daughter did allstars for ten years and when we're there in april for worlds we get soooooo little time in the park and the only real time we do get is the after hours party they give in animal kingdom just for them. i just don't think early december will be at all like it is during the summer months so if you survived that time ok you'll be fine in december... so here is some pixie dust for good luck (just in case)

 

[spodie]

This is all great to hear! We won't be arriving at WDW until December 11, but our trip this time is short (only 4 full days), so I was really hoping that the parks wouldn't be too crowded so we could get a lot of things done (this is also our last trip with APs). I saw that all of the Value and Moderate resorts were booked when we made our reservations in late September so we sprung for the Beach Club Villas.

 

[dolphindan1]

Starting to freak out! I thought I picked a reasonably slow week, Dec 9-13th, on a whim I checked the hotel we are staying at & it is SOLD OUT!
I checked several other hotels and they are SOLD OUT too!!

So bummed it might be very crowded for our trip.

Keep in mind if you checked online and if one day was unavailable it will show as the whole time being unavaliable....You may have to stay a couple nights at another resort...then the rest at the resort you wanted

 

[jaysmom4285]

As others have noted, full Disney resorts don't necessarily translate to crowded parks. A substantial number of park visitors still stay offsite. Disney has worked hard with free dining and the 4/3 deal to draw people into its resorts. I read a news item on this site that noted that offsite hotels are currently running an occupancy rate of only a little above 50%. The free dining does make ADRs harder to come by, but that's because the restaurants can only accommodate a few thousand people at any one time. Full restaurants don't come anywhere near equating to full parks.

 

[katrocity]

Early December is full of Pop Warner and other conferences - none of which spend time in the parks but all of which take up many resort rooms. You won't see them in the parks, only at the resorts (with rare exceptions). Don't stress. I'll go in your place, if you'd like, so you don't have to suffer through the light crowds, good weather (usually), and awesome decorations...

Can someone please tell me what the "Pop Warner" thing is? I see on the listings that this is happening the week we are there, but what the heck is it? How does it effect the parks?

Thanks for the 411

Kate

 

[Spikekc1]

It's pop warner football for children . . .I think cheerleading too? The moderate and value resorts are usually crowded with the children and their families but most of them have activities during the day so they are not always in the parks. (I didn't know what this was at first either. . . the CM on the phone told me about it and I thought she said "popcorn" football!)

 

[fupresti]

I would certainly be upset if there are people in the park! How dare Disney try and attract people and earn a profit so that they can pay for things like Fantasyland refurbishments and new experiences!

[/sarcasm]

Seriously people, just relax. I know it's awesome when there are low crowds, but we should all be hoping for higher attendance. The more people in the park and resorts and restaurants, the better chance that money turns into the things we all expect. Keep some perspective. Plus, it's vacation at WDW, you should have a great time regardless of wait times and crowd levels.

 

[sunburnin]

Can someone please tell me what the "Pop Warner" thing is? I see on the listings that this is happening the week we are there, but what the heck is it? How does it effect the parks?

Thanks for the 411

Kate

As stated above, its a kids football league. Basically they are finishing up their seasons now and then go through playoffs. The regional winners of the different age groups (9-13????) get a trip to WDW for the championships. Very cool for them! The cheerleaders come too for their competition.

Their days are very busy with practice and games, so the parks aren't supposed to be bad during the days. People will give you various reports about the evenings, but I think it depends on the park, the team, and the flexibility of the person reporting it.

 

[DebbieB]

Ages 5 to 16, although I have heard the ones that travel to WDW are 8 to 16.

Pop Warner Little Scholars, Inc. (PWLS) is a non-profit organization that provides youth football and cheer & dance programs for participants in 42 states and several countries around the world. Consisting of approximately 400,000 young people ranging from ages 5 to 16 years old, PWLS is the largest youth football, cheer and dance program in the United States.

Pop Warner was founded in 1929, continues to grow and serves as the only youth football, cheerleading & dance organization that requires its participants to maintain academic standards in order to participate. Pop Warner's commitment to academics is what separates the program from other youth sports around the world.

As the only national youth sports organization that requires scholastic aptitude to participate, Pop Warner is committed to developing America's young people on the field and off. Each year Pop Warner continues to expand its efforts in team and activity participation, as well as visibility and outreach in the community.

Since 1929, the Pop Warner Programs Philosophy has been that athletics and scholastics go hand in hand. At every level, Pop Warner programs seek to develop well-rounded young men and women who learn not only the fundamentals of football, cheerleading, and dance but also the importance of education in an atmosphere conducive to developing sound character while having a good time.

Each year, Pop Warner Little Scholars, Inc. hosts the Pop Warner Super Bowl and National Cheer and Dance Championships. For the past ten year, the event has taken place at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex ™ in Lake Buena Vista, FL during the second week of December.

The Pop Warner Football Championships (referred to as the Pop Warner Super Bowl) are divided into teams competing in Division I and Division II. 64 football teams compete for National Championships in 4 different age/weight ranges (Jr. Pee Wee, Pee Wee, Jr. Midget & Midget).

In order to advance to the Pop Warner Super Bowl, a team must win its respective League Championship as well as the Regional Championship. Each advancing team is guarenteed to play two games at the Super Bowl, with a Tomlin and Warner Champion being crowned in each age-weight division and competition level.

The Cheer & Dance championships feature over 500 cheer/dance squads who compete at the five-day long event. Competitions take place at the Milk House at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex ™. Cheer & Dance Squads compete in 4 different age ranges (Jr. Pee Wee, Pee Wee, Jr. Midget & Midget), as well as two squad sizes (Small and Large) and three competition categories (Novice, Intermediate and Advanced).

The 2009 Pop Warner Super Bowl and National Cheer & Dance Championships will take place from Saturday, December 5th through Saturday, December 12th at Disney’s Wide World of Sports™ Complex.

 

[katrocity]

Thanks that is a relief that the days are not crowded. Our kids go to be early, so I'm not worried about the night time being crowded.

THanks!

kate

 

[Missytara]

Katrokity - I would be concerned about the evenings if you are staying in one of the resorts they are staying at......especially if your kids go to bed early.

 

[mickeysaver]

Have you looked at the updated crowd calendar on touringplans.com? We are looking at days with crowd level scores of a 3. It just doesn't get any better than that!

ETA: Well, that's odd. I had logged in about 1/2 an hour ago and found some of my dates during Pop Warner week were listed as 3's, now they are 4's again. Bad cookies? Not enough meds? I swear, I saw 3's.

 

[WLodgeLizard]

YOU DID SEE 3'S! I saw the 3's earlier today too. I actually had not refreshed and still had the 3's on my screen. After I saw your message about the 3's disappearing, I refreshed and they turned into 4's.

We should hold Touring Plans to the 3's! Are there any legal precedents to back us up?