Christmas Party, Park Day, or Resort Day Before Cruise

[aebeauregard]

We booked a 4-night cruise on the Disney Wish from December 1–5 (me, my husband, DD (11), and DS (8)). I’m planning to stay at Disney from November 29 to December 1 before the cruise. On the 29th, we’ll take advantage of the free water park day.


I'm not sure what to do on the 30th. I’m debating between relaxing in the morning and buying tickets for the Christmas party in the evening. I’m a little worried that staying up so late the night before the cruise might make us too tired to enjoy the first day on board.


Another option would be to buy a one-day ticket for a different park, but it doesn’t feel quite right to go to Disney and not visit Magic Kingdom—especially if we’re only doing one park. That said, I don’t love the idea of paying for a full ticket when the park closes early.


I’m also considering skipping the parks entirely and just enjoying the resort. We could check out the holiday decorations at other resorts, visit Disney Springs, and hang out at the pool. This would be cheaper, which is appealing since my husband is already feeling how quickly the extra costs are adding up for the days before the cruise.

If I go with a resort day I feel like I need to maybe pick something nicer that our current All-Star Sports, but an upgrade to a moderate is going to be roughly $100/night.

Any opinions or suggestions from past experiences?

 

[Skippyboo]

How are you getting to PC for your cruise? If you’re not using Disney transport, you don’t have to get up super early since your PAT is going to be around noon.

Christmas party is probably close to one day in price , you can get in a couple of hours early with party ticket.

 

[aebeauregard]

How are you getting to PC for your cruise? If you’re not using Disney transport, you don’t have to get up super early since your PAT is going to be around noon.

Christmas party is probably close to one day in price , you can get in a couple of hours early with party ticket.

I haven't decided on our port arrival yet. I was tempted to try the Disney transportation to get an earlier arrival time but taking a separate Uber is cheaper and a would allow for a slower morning.

 

[IzzyAslan]

Hi ! We are sailing on the same cruise and will also be at WDW for the weekend before.
It all depends on how busy you want to be. We travel to WDW every Christmas season and for the first time, we opted not to do the Party because we always stay until the last possible minute and are wiped out the next morning lol.
For us, this trip, we don't want to feel rushed or tired prior to the cruise so we are opting to check out the other resorts on property and enjoy the holiday decorations. We will also go over to Disney Springs to do some shopping.
On the 1st, we will get up and enjoy a nice breakfast, taking our time to get to the port since there's no point in getting there too early.
Whatever you choose, enjoy your vacation, be happy, don't stress and spend quality time with your family!!

See you on board!

 

[justafigment27]

We flew in 2 days before our 4 night Wish and just enjoyed the resort. We arrived in the late afternoon on Day 1, ate a quick service dinner and went to bed early. Day 2 was a pool day with a table service dinner at Steakhouse 71.

My whole family agreed that it was nice to just have a day to chill and get into vacation mode. Of course, my “kids” were 19 and 21 and had just finished college finals and were ready to sleep in and relax.

We took Disney transportation the morning of the cruise. I was up early to hand off our luggage, but the kids were still snoozing. It was a leisurely morning and a great way to start the vacation.

 

[MamaMermaid]

I'd do the party!

 

[Drfate102]

You could take the day and resort hop seeing all of the Christmas decorations.

 

[Sleepyluke]

My vote would be to save the money and keep the All Star reservation, use that "savings" to book the party night and DCL transportation. Yes it will add some costs, but you are in the bubble of Christmas and you will feel like you are one big vacation. Yes the DCL buses come earlier than they used to, but with kids, at least mine were up pretty close to that time anyway with excitement and a little bit earlier knowing it is the get to the ship has its own incentives. Go downstairs get some overpriced semi crappy coffee and then enjoy the excitement while the bus driver gets you to the terminal not having to worry if you are too early or late for your PAT.

 

[Marthasor]

We booked a 4-night cruise on the Disney Wish from December 1–5 (me, my husband, DD (11), and DS (8)). I’m planning to stay at Disney from November 29 to December 1 before the cruise. On the 29th, we’ll take advantage of the free water park day.


I'm not sure what to do on the 30th. I’m debating between relaxing in the morning and buying tickets for the Christmas party in the evening. I’m a little worried that staying up so late the night before the cruise might make us too tired to enjoy the first day on board.


Another option would be to buy a one-day ticket for a different park, but it doesn’t feel quite right to go to Disney and not visit Magic Kingdom—especially if we’re only doing one park. That said, I don’t love the idea of paying for a full ticket when the park closes early.


I’m also considering skipping the parks entirely and just enjoying the resort. We could check out the holiday decorations at other resorts, visit Disney Springs, and hang out at the pool. This would be cheaper, which is appealing since my husband is already feeling how quickly the extra costs are adding up for the days before the cruise.

If I go with a resort day I feel like I need to maybe pick something nicer that our current All-Star Sports, but an upgrade to a moderate is going to be roughly $100/night.

Any opinions or suggestions from past experiences?

You could take the day and resort hop seeing all of the Christmas decorations.

This is what I would do. No party tickets, no park tickets! Go on a deluxe resort tour and get some holiday snacks. If you want to "plus" it, but not spend as much as a party or parks ticket, consider going to Hoop Dee Doo Revue at Ft. W where they have a holiday overlay on the show and then booking a horse sleigh ride either before or after the show. The show plus the sleigh ride should cost less than 2 party tickets and is substantially cheaper than the MK tickets and you get a full meal to boot. I wouldn't upgrade your hotel if you plan to tour the resorts, DS or do a special meal - you can make a whole day out of those activities and perhaps wouldn't need upgraded resort amenities.