Am I wasting my time and money?

[rileyroosmom]

We are leaving for the world on 11/23 and planning on doing the MK on the 24, Epcot on 25 (Thanksgiving) and MGM and MK again on Friday and Saturday and DTD on Sunday and hitting the road Sunday afternoon. After reading many threads about the crowd levels at this time I'm getting concerned we aren't going to get too much out of this trip!! Can anyone honestly give me their opinions about visiting this time of year? I almost feel like cancelling the whole trip if we aren't going to get to do too much. We were there the beginning of May and it was great!! Longest walk on line was about 20 minutes and we fastpassed the big rides. I'm not expecting the place to myself, but I think we can all agree standing in line all day with 3 kids won't be too much fun. I'd love it if anyone could make me feel better about my trip! Thanks!!!

 

[flyball]

If I were you I'd:

poll my family and make a list of "must do's" for each park

use fastpass wisely and as much as possible

keep in mind that there is a ton to experience at Disney and that it doesn't all involve being on a line or a ride (and it's not possible or necessary to do it all in one visit)

go with the attitude that you'll get a lot out of the trip simply by being together, enjoying quality family time

make PSs, if necessary

enjoy the beautiful Christmas decorations, and last but not least

GO, GO, GO!!!

 

[OhMari]

I think going to Epcot on Thanksgiving is a very good idea. If you want to ride Mission Space and Test Track get fast-pass. At test-track you will probably get a bonus pass for Honey I Shrunk the Kids. Epcot tends to be the less busiest of parks and on a Holiday it will be your best park to be at.

Also get to the parks early and ride your top picks. Take a rest and come back after 3 and many parks will be cleared out.

 

[Chicago526]

If you really want to do a lot of the rides in the parks, then I suggest you invest in buying the Unofficial Guide to Disney World. This book has step by step park plans designed to minimize your wait in lines. On a busy day, the book estimates it can save you up to 3 hours of standing in line. I've not tried these plans myself, but other's have said that they work very well. But you must follow them to the letter, the most important part is to follow their instructions about when to get to the parks (at least 40 minutes prior to opening in most cases). The book has other wonderful information as well, and is all around a great source of info about WDW.

Otherwise, I'd do what Flyball suggested and have everyone in your family pick one or two rides/shows that they really want to see and do those, then do other rides/shows as time permitts. Since you've been before, hopfully you won't feel the need to "do and see it all" which isn't even possible in the off season for a stay as short as this one is going to be.

I'd also like to make a suggestion with your itinerary, if I may. Personally, I'd do DTD in the middle of your stay, and do AK on your last day before driving home. This will give you a nice break away from the parks durring the middle of a jam-packed vacation. The day off will let you recharge your batteries to hit two more parks full tilt and ready to go! AK is a small enough park that you should be done by mid-afternoon so you can start to head home. But that's just me, you may have other good reasons to plan it the way you have.

Good luck!

 

[rileyroosmom]

thanks everyone for their suggestions. I will definetly keep them in mind when touring. As my dh says, "a crowded day at Disney is better than a day at home"

 

[Lollipop Mom]

I'd recommend looking in to TourGuideMike's automated vacation planner. He publishes a "holiday survival guide" that will include one for Thanksgiving week. In it you will find a breakdown of the least crowded parks per day broken down into day and evening (each park is ranked and rated either green - lowest crowds, yellow - crowded but OK if you use a good plan, and red - expect the heaviest crowds so have a REALLY good plan and expect to do just the must dos or as he puts it "the best of the best and skip the rest"). He'll also let you know if there are any modifications to the touring plans he recommends. You also get parade and fireworks viewing tips, lots of inside info and he even participates on the boards on the site. THe thing I like the best is that for whatever he recommends, he explains WHY that is the case. Makes it easier to modify any plans to your specific wants. FWIW, no, the least crowded parks on a holiday week aren't the same as they are during the rest of the year and no, it's not just "go the day after each park's EMH day."

I can't tell you how invaluable that info is. We used his advice for the first time last Christmas for our trip that was the week between Christmas and New Years. We didn't wait longer than 15 minutes for anything following his advice. We were able to see everything we wanted to see. Yes, it was still crowded but the crowds didn't bother us one bit. We had just as much fun and got just as much done as our Spring (but not Spring Break) trip.

Yes, it's something else to buy but it's only $18 (go to http://tourguidemike.com/tour/index.asp for a preview and use code HE7KD-8GA for $3 off the regular price). Think of the total cost of your vacation. Is it worth spending less than the cost of 1 counter service meal for the family for expert advice on avoiding the crowds and making the most of your time? We thought so. I know there are people who say you can get the same info for free on the boards but I respectfully disagree, especially for holiday weeks. The very best tips we found for our holiday trip were in direct contradiction to things recommended on these boards. I personally still like TGM for "regular season" too but then you can get advice that will save you almost as much wait time (almost...but not quite as good of advice) but for a holiday week, TGM's survival guides can not be beat!