Christmas 2016?

[nicolej92]

We JUST booked our trip for Christmas of this year. I know it's not an ideal time to travel crowd wise, but it has always been a dream of mine to visit MK on Christmas Day, so we are going for it! My fiancé is graduating our state police academy on the 23rd, and we are checking in on Christmas Eve. We are doing 2 days at MK and one at the rest of the parks. We did buy park hoppers just in case we wanted to hop around at all.

All of our dining reservations are made (yay- I was worried about this since it's such a busy time, but we got everything we wanted!). I did have some questions for doing Christmas in Disney, though:

I added on Memory Maker- is this worth it with the crowds? My friend and I loved it the last trip we took, but I am wondering if photographers will be plentiful or if we are wasting our money. I am a huge picture person and of course will be bringing my own camera to capture the decorations and so on.

I know the parades are taped ahead of time, but what times do they do them on Christmas Day? I'm assuming there will be Christmas fireworks as well?

I booked the Coral Reef with the Candlelight Processional package during our Epcot day- is this something worth seeing?

Any other tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated! I can't wait to experience Disney on Christmas. I'm not anticipating doing a whole lot while we are there, but I really want to take in the atmosphere and do as much Christmas-related things as we possibly can while we are there.

 

[monique5]

We JUST booked our trip for Christmas of this year. I know it's not an ideal time to travel crowd wise, but it has always been a dream of mine to visit MK on Christmas Day, so we are going for it! My fiancé is graduating our state police academy on the 23rd, and we are checking in on Christmas Eve. We are doing 2 days at MK and one at the rest of the parks. We did buy park hoppers just in case we wanted to hop around at all.

All of our dining reservations are made (yay- I was worried about this since it's such a busy time, but we got everything we wanted!). I did have some questions for doing Christmas in Disney, though:

I added on Memory Maker- is this worth it with the crowds? My friend and I loved it the last trip we took, but I am wondering if photographers will be plentiful or if we are wasting our money. I am a huge picture person and of course will be bringing my own camera to capture the decorations and so on.

I know the parades are taped ahead of time, but what times do they do them on Christmas Day? I'm assuming there will be Christmas fireworks as well?

I booked the Coral Reef with the Candlelight Processional package during our Epcot day- is this something worth seeing?

Any other tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated! I can't wait to experience Disney on Christmas. I'm not anticipating doing a whole lot while we are there, but I really want to take in the atmosphere and do as much Christmas-related things as we possibly can while we are there.

I added on Memory Maker- is this worth it with the crowds? Yes, it's worth it! PP photographers are around & noticeable around Christmas. And great for rides.

I know the parades are taped ahead of time, but what times do they do them on Christmas Day? I'm assuming there will be Christmas fireworks as well? Only Disney Christmas parade/show that's televised on Christmas Day is tapped in advance. The MVMCP parade & fireworks is offered in MK daily after the last MVMCP, December 22nd, so will be in MK starting on the 23rd.

I booked the Coral Reef with the Candlelight Processional package during our Epcot day- is this something worth seeing? Yes, the CP is awesome IMO. Choir, orchestra & celebrity narrator telling the story of Christmas.

Any other tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated! On Christmas Day make sure you arrive early to the parks, before 9am, especially MK. The earlier the better, parks go through various closures on Christmas. Visit the Deluxe Resorts for Christmas decorations. Highly recommend seeing the Gingerbread house @ the GF. The Contemporary has an awesome display as well. Get a photo with Santa Goofy. Check out IllumiNations holiday fireworks @ EP. Book your FP+ in advance. Have patience! Enjoy your trip. Christmas @ Disney is magical.

 

[AussieNSW]

If you want a fantastic photo with the lights still on at the castle see if you can get an ADR for a breakfast at MK first thing in the morning. We had one for I think it was 7:00am and they let us in a little bit before the crowds. We walked straight up Main Street to the photo pass photographer and got beautiful photos of the castle twinkling with lights and no other guests in the photos. It took us 5 minutes and then we went to breakfast. We had breakfast at Crystal Palace and there was not that many people there. I think they staggered people a little bit. We got to visit with all the characters, have a nice meal and get great photos.
When you visit GF there will sometimes be a memory maker photographer there to take photos in front of the tree and ginger bread house.

 

[PlutoTheDog89]

Hey there! Fellow Christmas traveler, here! We've been celebrating Christmas and the New Year at Disney World for the past 6 out of 7 years. We love it! We were skeptical our first year and worried about the crowds, but once we got there we fell in love. I think every year we toss around the idea of trying something new or making it our last year. Then we go and during our last few days we find ourselves planning our next trip.

I actually have a free ebook and a blog dedicated to Christmas at Disney. You can find it at survivedisxmas.com. Let's take a look at your questions, though.

I added on Memory Maker- is this worth it with the crowds? My friend and I loved it the last trip we took, but I am wondering if photographers will be plentiful or if we are wasting our money. I am a huge picture person and of course will be bringing my own camera to capture the decorations and so on.

You shouldn't have a problem finding photographers and I definitely think it's worth it. I invested in a really good camera last year and brought it with us. Even with my camera (and me going overboard with the photos) we used the Memory Maker on plenty of occasions. It's worth it for the ride photos alone. There may be a wait for character photos and popular ones, like by the castle, in front of Spaceship Earth, etc. - but you won't regret buying it.

I know the parades are taped ahead of time, but what times do they do them on Christmas Day? I'm assuming there will be Christmas fireworks as well?

Disney hasn't released all the park hours just yet - only the tentative, base times. You'll see the hours extended as the trip grows closer. You may even see them extend park hours or add EMH during the week. In past years, the Wishes show at MK was 8 and 10pm. Last year they only did one showing at 8pm. These show times aren't definite, but using last year as a guide, here's what you can expect:

Magic Kingdom
Daytime Christmas parade*: 12pm & 3:30pm
*Not the televised Christmas parade. This is a Christmas themed parade that is similar (or the same) as the one they do during Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party.
Frozen Castle Show: 7:30pm
Castle Projection Show: 7:45pm & 10:30pm (it's AWESOME)
Wishes Fireworks: 8pm
Electrical Parade: 9:30pm & 11:30pm

EPCOT
Illuminations: 10:30pm

Hollywood Studios
Fantasmic: 7pm, 8:30pm, 10:30pm

Of course, these depend on the park hours, etc. It wouldn't surprise me if Disney cuts Fantasmic back to two shows.

I booked the Coral Reef with the Candlelight Processional package during our Epcot day- is this something worth seeing?

I've heard the Candlelight Processional is beautiful. We've never done it, but we've been at the World Showcase during the show. It always looks very nice.

Any other tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated! I can't wait to experience Disney on Christmas. I'm not anticipating doing a whole lot while we are there, but I really want to take in the atmosphere and do as much Christmas-related things as we possibly can while we are there.

1) Get to the parks early, take a break in the afternoon, and go back at night. Many people will tell you that you'll have a hard time getting back in b/c it'll be so crowded. If you're staying onsite, you should be fine. We've been doing it for years and we've never been turned away

2) Take time to tour the resorts. The monorail resorts (Contemporary, Poly and GF) are the best. Poly isn't too decorated, but the GF lobby is not to be missed. Also, head over to the Wilderness Lodge and Fort Wilderness. The Wilderness Lodge feels like a ski lodge—along with a towering Christmas tree and fireplace. Many campers decorate at Fort Wilderness. They offer a carriage ride for ~$80 which is worth it. It's romantic and a fun way to see all the decorations.

3) Use FP+. Kind of obvious, I know, but it's especially important during Xmas.

4) Tailor your expectations. Don't expect to ride and see everything, but do enjoy what you can.

5) Eat around the world. It's not quite the F&W festival, but many pavilions do offer cultural food and drinks for the holiday. Also check out the storytellers. They're very cool.

 

[thptrek]

We did NYE last year and had a ball. All of the suggestions of the early posters are great. The main thing to remember is that everything will be crowded and you just need to relax and enjoy. Get your FP+, your ADRs, etc and then just have fun!