One piece of advice....get yourself to
www.tourguidemike.com and get signed up for the AVP!!!! He publishes a "Holiday Survival Guide" that is like nothing else you will read anywhere. We went last year from 12/27 to 1/2 and I started planning about this time. You mentioned the possibility of big crowds...it's not a possibility, it's a DEFINITE. The week between Christmas and New Years is THE SINGLE BUSIEST week all year. We still had a fabulous time and saw everything we wanted to thanks to TourGuideMIKE, so much so that we're doing it again this year.
Seriously, I can not say enough how much this helped me! The survival guide will give you recommendations for which parks will be the least crowded for each day and evening as well as an explanation as to WHY. All 4 parks are ranked as "least crowded," "go with caution" and "most crowded." That info combined with the touring plans worked like a charm for us. We saw everything we wanted to and we did not wait more than 15 minutes for anything. The longest line I stood in all week was to buy an early lunch at Epcot! We did wait 20 minutes for the safari but we were not going at the recommended time...but we were at the park on a day it was "least crowded."
Go to
http://tourguidemike.com/tour/index.asp to see a preview. If you are interested in it, you can use code "HE7KD-8GA" in the Promotional Code section of the purchase page to save $3 off the normal purchase price.
Yes, it's buying something else but honestly, when you look at what your trip will cost overall, ask yourself if it's worth less than the cost of one counter service meal to get expert advice on avoiding the crowds. For us it absolutely was! There are people who will say you can get the same info here for free but I respectfully disagree. I think these boards are a phenomenal source of info and definitely helped a lot with planning but especially during a holiday week, the advice found in TGM's AVP (automated vacation planner) is MORE than worth the price. As a matter of fact the best advice we had for our Christmas week planning last year was in direct contradiction from a lot of the advice here.
He is getting ready to release a new version of the AVP. Hopefully it will be up on the 15th and it sounds like it will have some really great changes!
The crowds aside, the holidays at the parks seem to have an extra dose of magic! Hope your trip is wonderful!
