Advice needed for July 4th!

[DisneyMama27]

We are arriving this year on July 4th - one of the few holidays we have missed at WDW. I'm wondering what the best way to celebrate is...I have heard MK is pretty crowded.

Also...we have a bday on the 4th. My cousin's DD is turning 14 that day. This is her 2nd trip (they came with us last year). They are staying at SSR and we will be at THV. Total of 10 in our group. We should be arriving mid-morning to lunch time, and we will be on DDP.

I am making ADRs next week and I know it will be pretty booked already since we are not arriving until the 4th. Here are some options I have come up with - PLEASE tell me which you think would be best!!

* Dinner at 50's Prime Time, watch Fantasmic and see special fireworks there (they missed Fantasmic last year)

* Dinner at Liberty Tree or Crystal Palace, watch MK fireworks and fight crowds (is it worth it though? is it worse than Christmas?)

* Dinner at Whispering Canyon, then watch fireworks on beach at WL. Can we see them from there? Do they rent the boats to go out in the lagoon after dark? Is it as fun without the music, and will they let other resort guests even use the beaches that night? Is there a better beach to watch from?

I want it to be a fun dinner, since it is her b-day! Yes, she will be 14, but she is not overly sophisticated and she is the oldest of all the kids. She has a great sense of humor and 50's or WCC would be my first picks because they have fun with guests. I do want to see some awesome fireworks, though, since this is our one night to see July 4th fireworks.

Please tell me if any of my plans will work, or what you recommend...we are veterans of WDW, but this will be a new experience for us, and we want it to be magical for our cousins' family as well!

TIA!!

 

[Sandisw]

I would go with WCC at WL. I am not sure about the beach but we stayed at FW one year for 4th of July. MK was packed and we had a little one with us (18 months).

So, we decided to head back right before the fireworks. We were on the boat and the driver stopped when they started. We go to watch them from there and they were wonderful (and it wasn't crowded).

You can also take the boat over to the CR, catch the monorail to the Poly, and then watch them from that beach.

Good luck!

 

[5forDiz]

Boats are not available to rent after dark. But the boats Disney operates for guest transportation do run but they will be very crowded just prior to fireworks and for good amount of time afterward when most people head out of park.

If you are planning on travelling from any park or another resort you visit by bus or car after fireworks my best advice is to wait at least an hour to do so ( waiting even more time is all the better ) because traffic on property is absolutely a total nightmare on July 4th after fireworks are done whether it be MK, Epcot or DHS. If you decide to go with MK or WL Resort this may be the most crowded area overall so definitely plan to linger at MK or do some resort hopping to allow time for the roads to clear.

You might want to also try Boardwalk or start off at DHS or Epcot and then walk over to BW at night and view fireworks from there. We spent July 4 2008 at Boardwalk and skipped parks altogether and it was a really fun evening for our teens & entire family. We could see MK fireworks in distance and high Epcot & DHS fireworks were virtually overhead. There was a dj on BW's Village Green with many kids & people of all ages dancing,all BW entertainers were out and about and surrey bikes were available to rent for riding around Crescent Lake, carnival game booths were open. We ate at ESPN and later strolled to other resorts, got ice cream, etc. Our kids were kind of disappointed at first to hear that we weren't going to a park that night but they ended up having a great time & agreed that spending it at BW was alot of fun.

Best wishes on your planning

 

[danielle782001]

First, it very difficult...To almost impossible to see the fireworks from the beach at the WL...There are tree obstructing the view...The beach at the Poly is better for that....

With that said, I would go with the DHS option...That is where we spent July 4th 2009 in the PM...We also had dinner at 50s Prime Time...The park was not crowded...Yes, there were the usual lines at the popular rides so FP is required but there was not wall-to-wall people...We actually spent the AM in the AK which also was not crowded...They are the only park without fireworks and people that want to see firework withour park hoppers do not go there...So we had a very pleasant day all around...

We watched the special MK fireworks on the 3rd from the Dessert Party location...Main Street and the rest of the park was not bad most of the day but it got REALLY crowded about an hour before the display...Main Street was a mob sceen...So crowded that they led us behind the Main Street shops to exist the park...The dessert party is so worth the extra money on crowded nights....We had a great view of the display and we were very comfortable and filled with yummy treats! So if you go the 4th I suggest you try to book that the first day the booking opens!!!