At the world over New Years

[momz]

We made our reservations for Dec 27-Jan 2. I must be crazy. But, I expect there will be extra staff in the parks to handle the crowds.

Any past experience going at this time of year?

 

[Disneylover99]

Busy. But fun. Love the energy and vibe that week! Yes, there are lots of cm's working, trying to keep things organized and crowds moving. We find bus transportation awesome that time of year.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

We did 12/30-1/3 this past year. Loved it, had a great time. Not so sure that time period would be my choice if we were infrequent WDW travelers, but we had a lot of fun and it was perfect for the way we tour.

Totally agree with @Disneylover99 - the vibe leading up to New Years was great.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s crowded (especially NYE), but with the exception of NYE itself I found conditions on the ground weren’t nearly as “bad” as it can sometimes seem from reading reports around here.

But you definitely need to adjust expectations accordingly.

 

[kniquy]

Any past experience going at this time of year?

My first trip (husbands 4th or 5th) with at the time 9 yo twin boys was for NYE. It was very crowded BUT with a good plan you should still be able to see and do stuff. I highly recommend ARD just for the break from the crowds ( you can book ADR's and just do apps and dessert without breaking the bank). We chose epcot for NYE - it is a larger more spread out park so we were able to move around. Later in the evening the area around WS will be packed so you do have to claim a spot early if you want to hang around for fireworks. I think MK does fireworks both on NYE and 12/30 so maybe plan your arrival day to go to MK.

When going at any busy time you must adjust your expectations to be very low so that you don't leave being disappointed.

 

[bopper]

We did NYE of 2000....SOOOO CROWDED. We arrived at 7:00am and they were only letting people staying on site into Epcot and turning people back.

 

[FastPasser.]

We made our reservations for Dec 27-Jan 2. I must be crazy.

I guess it's better to know that you're crazy, which I agree btw, as opposed to being told.

 

[BarbieGal457]

We did this 2014 into 2015 and had a blast! It was CROWDED however if you are able to go with the flow, you will have a great time! We made our FPs and were actually able to get a lot day-of as well. We also made ADRs a priority so we knew we had somewhere to rest our heineys. When the crowd zigs, you zag. Every time we saw a mass of people going one way we turned and went the other unless we had a FP. My other big tip is to get to the parks early! The days were long but super fun, and honestly every CM we encountered was so pleasant even with the giant crowds who seemed not to be listening well! Overall it was an awesome time and we still love talking about it, and would do it again.

 

[isabellea]

We did this 2014 into 2015 and had a blast! It was CROWDED however if you are able to go with the flow, you will have a great time! We made our FPs and were actually able to get a lot day-of as well. We also made ADRs a priority so we knew we had somewhere to rest our heineys. When the crowd zigs, you zag. Every time we saw a mass of people going one way we turned and went the other unless we had a FP. My other big tip is to get to the parks early! The days were long but super fun, and honestly every CM we encountered was so pleasant even with the giant crowds who seemed not to be listening well! Overall it was an awesome time and we still love talking about it, and would do it again.

That's our plan for our first NY trip this year. We never buy the dining plan but for this trip I did since I'm planning TS meals everyday not to have to fight for a table at QS, especially on NYE and NY day. Now I need to decide which dessert party to prioritize, the one for the special NYE fireworks at MK on Dec 30 or for HEA later during our trip...

 

[PrincessBelle39]

That's our plan for our first NY trip this year. We never buy the dining plan but for this trip I did since I'm planning TS meals everyday not to have to fight for a table at QS, especially on NYE and NY day. Now I need to decide which dessert party to prioritize, the one for the special NYE fireworks at MK on Dec 30 or for HEA later during our trip...

This was something we were deciding on. After much discussion we decided on HEA. We've done the Plaza Garden Dessert Party before and found it was the perfect location to see HEA with all the projections. We want to make the most of this again especially with two 1st timers who are coming along. We've had a look at the NYE ones on Youtube, and if they are the same or similar, feel that we can afford to watch them from another position.

 

[PlutoTheDog89]

We go almost every year for 12/24-1/1. You’re far from crazy. You will, unfortunately, hit Nye crowds directly followed by runners, but nothing a little planning can’t solve.

I’m writing from my phone right now, so can’t get everything out, but ask away...

Off the top of my head:
- when booking ADRs you’ll wanna book 12/31, followed by the most popular ADRs, then go in date order. So for instance, book 12/31, followed by Ohana on 1/1, then Nine Dragons on 12/28.

- push the popular dates later in your trip. Most people go until 1/1 then head home. By booking Ohana on, say, 1/2, you’ll be competing against far less guests

- same rule goes for FP+. Book by popularity/day. FOP should be your number 1 target

- we usually avoid the parks on 12/31 but there really is nothing like Epcot. It’s insanely crowded, but the ground usually rumbles at midnight

-MK does a New Years show on 12/30. Usually far less crowded and there will often be late-night EMH until 2 or 3 am

- take the afternoons off. Believe It or not, It doesn’t get overwhelmingly crowded until the afternoon. Go for morning EMH, stay till 12ish, then go. Leaving the afternoon open also comes in handy w the pool. I can’t tell you how many times we ran into a conflict bc we had FP+ and finally got a nice day to sit by the pool. Now we book FP+ on the morning

All i can think of for now... my train stop is coming up.. but feel free to ask away!

 

[Monykalyn]

We did 12/30-1/3 this past year. Loved it, had a great time. Not so sure that time period would be my choice if we were infrequent WDW travelers, but we had a lot of fun and it was perfect for the way we tour.

Totally agree with @Disneylover99 - the vibe leading up to New Years was great.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s crowded (especially NYE), but with the exception of NYE itself I found conditions on the ground weren’t nearly as “bad” as it can sometimes seem from reading reports around here.

But you definitely need to adjust expectations accordingly.

That was time frame we were there too! Just DH and I (oldest kids DCP ended Jan 4 so we went to pick her up). I felt it was much more crowded than Thanksgiving week. But like you said-we expected this and planned accordingly. The parks are so pretty at night all decorated.

We chose epcot for NYE - it is a larger more spread out park so we were able to move around. Later in the evening the area around WS will be packed so you do have to claim a spot early if you want to hang around for fireworks. I think MK does fireworks both on NYE and 12/30 so maybe plan your arrival day to go to MK.

This is what we did. MK was extremely crowded on the 30th. So worth it to see Fireworks though. And the festive atmosphere at Epcot NYE was so fun!

the one for the special NYE fireworks at MK on Dec 30

I lucked into a last minute dessert party reservation for MK on the 30th. Best decision ever-was so nice to have a place to sit, and since the fireworks are different than HEA there isn't as much of a need to be in the garden viewing area. We did the terrace party. It was pretty chilly this past new years weekend so it was nice to sit with hot chocolate and watch the show. Our table was directly under the wire Tinkerbell flies on!

We also winged it alot of the time. I did have FP made (only FOP was done at 60 day mark though). Got some nice ADR's pretty last minute (LTT in MK, HBD day of on the 1st). And got a same day FP for FEA on 31st. However it was just the 2 of us so I suspect that made it much easier.

I do recommend making you top request ADR for the 31st as soon as you can. Most places in Epcot were booked pretty quickly.

We also went late to parks and stayed late, then slept in. No way were we getting up early after being out after midnight