Christmas visit

[TaraMM84]

We leave for Orlando in 8 days. Yikes! It was a last minute trip, kids don’t even know we’re going. We’re staying off-site, group of 8 people. I had zero concept of how packed Christmas time is when I booked tickets just before Thanksgiving. But, it is what it is....we wanted everyone there and this works.

Our plans as of now (I’d love any advice)

12/23- Arrive
12/24- Universal Studios

12/25- Magic Kingdom- 6am park opening, we plan to be there around 4:30. Too early/too late? What should we expect in terms of crowds that early?
FP 8:20 Buzz and Space Mountain (group splits)
FP 9:45- Tomorrowland Speedway
FP 12:30 Pirates of the Caribbean
6:00 dinner reservation
(Not my favorites, but it’s what was available)
My biggest concern is no idea what to expect for Christmas Day crowds in the early hours— I know it will get intense later and I’ve been told they’ll close the park, but is an hour or two of light crowds wishful thinking?

12/27 Hollywood Studios- another 6am park opening. I’ve been following the boards and will continue, but as of now we’re looking at 4:30am arrival. We’ll get our RotR passes hopefully, then we have fast passes for Indiana Jones, TSM/ToT (split), and Star Tours. Again, nothing amazing.

Oh, and I’ve been able to get four of us in at Oga’s. Is there any walk in? And the guys have lightsaber and droid reservations.

Any suggestions on strategy for other stuff? I know the whole park is going to be packed early- is it worth trying slinky dog, or is there a better use of time after getting kids registered for Jedi training?

Thanks for any suggestions to navigate the holiday craziness!

 

[Robo]

1. Yikes!

12/25- Magic Kingdom- 6am park opening,
we plan to be there around 4:30.
2. Too early/too late?
3. What should we expect in terms of crowds that early?

1. Yup.
2. Too early.
3. Others will eventually come wandering up in increasing numbers by 5:15-on.
Gates will open at 5:45, give or take.
Hub should open to attractions about 6:00, straight up.

 

[PlutoTheDog89]

Hey there... My family spent the last ten years at Walt Disney World for Christmas and New Year's Eve.

Love that you're arriving on 12/23 and making time for Universal. My family always wanted to do that, but never did.

We always do MK for Christmas Day, so I can offer some feedback.

As Robo called out... don't arrive at 430. For one, we did this once for Animal Kingdom to get on Pandora and we sat there for an hour or so until it opened, only for about 50 people to cut in front of us at the bag check line. Also... you don't need to arrive that early.

The park opened at 6am last year and I wanna say we arrived around 6:30am, as we missed the bus and the ladies in my family were slow to get out of the room. Space Mountain was packed - foiling our usual plan of going there first; so we did Buzz Lightyear and PeopleMover, then Space Mountain went down to a 20-minute wait.

Side note: Just realized you're off-site, so obviously parking is a factor. I still think 430 is way too early, but would push to get there earlier than 630. Maybe 515-530? I'd tell the collective group earlier. Having planned for a group of 10, I know how difficult it is to corral everyone.

As far as the crowds - you'll see peak crowds around 11am-3pm. Most on-site guests get their fill then leave. That used to be our game plan. By 11am, the area near Small World, New Fantasyland, and Main Street will be flooded with people. It's not horrible, just keep that in mind. Get as many rides as possible done before 11am.

More tips:
- Line up for the parade in Frontierland, around Country Bear Jamboree. This is where the parade starts. Get a spot ~1 hour in advance. After the parade passes, head to a ride.
- Pre-order if you get food from a quick service.
- Rides like Carousel of Progress, PeopleMover, and Presidents are your friend during the mid-to-late afternoon when all rides have long waits and you need to get off your feet.
- Jungle Cruise will have a longer wait this year, as it has the holiday overlay.

My biggest tip:
We've been going since 2009. Christmas 2018 was going to be our last year for a little while. It was growing a little stale (I say that, but we'd go in a heartbeat again) and it was time to see new places for Christmas break. My father passed unexpectedly in January. We get a lot of funny looks as an older family going to Disney all the time, but it was our happy place. I'd only change one thing: I would have appreciated the moment more. Take less photos, text and post to instagram less, worry less about capturing the moment and more about living it. It's so cliché but I look back on videos with my dad and I was so swept up in capturing content for my blog and I didn't appreciate the moment enough... Even if it's just stopping to enjoy the fact that it's snowing on Main Street. Or stopping to watch the Tower of Terror holiday show. Don't worry about rushing to Space Mountain for the umpteenth moment. Enjoy Christmas Day with the ones you love in the happiest place on earth. Everything else will sort itself out.

 

[NELDEE]

We spent Christmas Day 2011 at Magic Kingdom. We were there early had a lovely morning but left early afternoon to go to Typhoon Lagoon as the crowds were too much. We had a lovely relaxing afternoon in the sun and then went to Downtown Disney for our evening meal. Not everybody’s perfect Disney Christmas but it was certainly ours

 

[kiford]

12/25- Magic Kingdom- 6am park opening, we plan to be there around 4:30. Too early/too late? What should we expect in terms of crowds that early?

Last year we left the BC at about 5:15 am and were parking at TTC at about 5:30. We were able to park so close, we just walked to the security line. The line had already started forming but they didn't open it until about 5:45. We were in MK a few minutes after 6. It's busy but we were able to get great photos in front of the castle. We stayed until about 11:30 or so when it really started to get crowded. We left and headed to AK. The lineup of cars to get into the parking lot was miles long so you really don't want to be there much after noon. The other parks weren't that crowded. Arriving at 4:30 is way too early. If you're there about 5:30 you'll be able to get a great parking spot and still make it in for 6.