Planning crazy in advance-Christmas season 2016

[littlejen22]

I am talking with a friend about planning a trip with both of our families to WdW in December 2016. What date do you think the crowds will pick up for Christmas that year? I want to go the 10th to the 17th which is over both my kids birthdays by don't know if the crowds would start to pick up that we or if we would still be ok.

 

[Stephandy03]

I would think that week would still be slow because school is still in session for most elementary levels. Probably the last few days would start to pick up.

 

[Farps]

I would think that week would still be slow because school is still in session for most elementary levels. Probably the last few days would start to pick up.

this is exactly what we experienced a few years back. We went the week before all of the schools let out, and low crowds all week but picked up a bit on our last couple of days.

 

[illinidp]

In our experiences the crowds haven't picked up until after the 21st.

 

[MinnieGi]

You will have low crowds with those dates. When school is still mostly in session the big crowds will not be around. We have done Christmas week twice but usually arrive around the 20th or 21st and find the really big crowds don't start until Christmas day. But that day through New Years is packed!!

 

[BDL]

We just got back from WDW with those exact dates. And it wasn't bad. You will always find a big line with the premier rides. But the only 2 rides where the wait was intolerable were 7 Dwarfs roller coaster and Toy Story Mania.

But with the addition of FP+, you can try to get in on the rides. Or you can use MVMCP or extra magic hours to help offset the crowds.

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

We are already planning a Nov/Dec 2016 trip. Certainly not too early.

Crowd predictors are based on historic levels.

Generally, if there isn't something special planned at Disney and schools are in session, crowds will be low.

 

[lake queen]

We just went from Dec. 13-20.

The waits for rides didn't seem that bad, except all the headliners. It was difficult to get a "good" 4th FP, and we really did a lot each day.

It was more crowded than we expected, but mainly in the walkways of the parks. It was super helpful for us to be at Rope drop, we did so much in the first 2 hours, then really had to slow down due to crowds.

We also found that the last hour the parks were open were also a great time, but we traveled with teens, so we could keep the candle burning at both ends. For us Disney is not for sleeping! We can do that at home.

It really was a magical time, we LOVED all the Christmas activities. CP, Light at HS and MVMCP. The trees and decorations were beautiful, and the castle is breathtaking!

 

[Aurora0427]

I am talking with a friend about planning a trip with both of our families to WdW in December 2016. What date do you think the crowds will pick up for Christmas that year? I want to go the 10th to the 17th which is over both my kids birthdays by don't know if the crowds would start to pick up that we or if we would still be ok.

We went on those exact dates this year. The 10th and 11th were pretty quiet. The crowds were definitely higher on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, but perfectly manageable, especially if you did rope drop. Monday and Tuesday were fine, but Wednesday the 17th was pretty crazy. MK was packed, although not like this week has been. But it was pretty hard to move and the lines were pretty bad. I think as long as you leave by 12/17 or avoid MK that day, it'll be great!

The crowds will not be low. Low crowds are in late January, early February, and early September. It was definitely busy, especially Friday 12/12-12/17. But it wasn't like being there in July and definitely not like the week between Christmas and NY! I just wouldn't go with the expectation that you'll be able to walk on rides all day.