Christmas week warriors - Stick to Plan or go with the flow?

[CowboyCO]

We're going for free dining December 21 - Jan 1 at CBR.

We have all our TS reservations, including Cinderella's Castle on Christmas Evening and Be Our Guest on New Year's eve.

We've got all our FP+ scheduled for mid afternoon on the busiest days, planning to hit rope drop and hit standby in the mornings and have guaranteed slots in the afternoon when busiest, with latest FP's at around 3:00.

Normally, before FP+ we would be go with the flow, hit a park early and if it gets crazy busy, hop to another park, working fastpasses the whole way.

With FP+, it looks like it is designed to keep you in one park and reduce park hopping. it is my understanding that if you make FP+ for MK and then hop to any other park, you won't be able to get FP for the new park, is that correct?

We've been very calculated about our FP+ ressies and dinner ressies. Normally we'd make a reservation and if our plan that day changes, we'd make a new dinner ressie and cancel the old one. With Christmas week, there likely will be few reservations available, so we'll be stuck with our plan.

For those that have done Christmas and that have done FP+ when it's crowded, what is your opinion?

 

[LSUfan4444]

it is my understanding that if you make FP+ for MK and then hop to any other park, you won't be able to get FP for the new park, is that correct?

No. You are able to book FP+ when you arrive to your second park by visiting any of one of the kiosks aroung the park.

For those that have done Christmas and that have done FP+ when it's crowded, what is your opinion?

Have a plan, but keep it flexible. You'll be best served it are you are able to scrap it and adjust on the fly. Things like unexpected crowds, attraction closings, bad weather etc can all alter a schedule so it's best to have an idea of what you want to do and an ideal plan A, but always remain flexible for a plan B.

 

[CowboyCO]

Thanks - that is helpful information. I had not even considered bad weather. lol The first time we went to WDW in in January years ago, we threw our coats in teh trunk at the airport and dramatically exclaimed, "We're going to Florida!!!" It SNOWED in Florida that week with freeze warnings for the orchards. In Denver it was 60. This year, we're bringing it all. lol

When using the kiosk, can one person make FP+ for the whole linked party?

 

[LSUfan4444]

Yes. It works well at Magic Kingdom because they have so many options available for FP+. Most of the time at other parks, the attractions with FP+ availability after 12 pm are for things that you wouldn't really need a FP+ for anyway.

 

[iheartglaciers]

No. You are able to book FP+ when you arrive to your second park by visiting any of one of the kiosks aroung the park.

Another way of using FP+ with park hopping is to book three FPs for the park you'll be visiting in the afternoon and do standby for rides at another park in the morning after RD. This will likely prevent you from being able to book 4th,5th,etc FPs, but you may not be able to do so for popular rides even around lunch time during busy Christmas week.

 

[Disneylover99]

Another way of using FP+ with park hopping is to book three FPs for the park you'll be visiting in the afternoon and do standby for rides at another park in the morning after RD. This will likely prevent you from being able to book 4th,5th,etc FPs, but you may not be able to do so for popular rides even around lunch time during busy Christmas week.

And who knows what those lines will be like at the kiosks when you try to book a fourth FP during the Christmas week.

 

[PlutoTheDog89]

You need a little of both.

You'll be there December 21-24. It's gonna be a much less crowded on these days. This is a solid opportunity to hop on some rides and experience things that will be too crowded the following days.

When it comes to FP... You book three ahead of time. Once you've used those three FP+s, you can book a 4th.. Once you use the 4th, you can book the fifth and so on. But, do know that the chances of getting these 4th, 5th FP+s will be very difficult during Christmas week, so I wouldn't rely on them.

Make a plan and stick to it, but be prepared to mix things up.

So for example, we typically plan out our itinerary right around now. We have our FP+s reserved, our dining reservations, etc. Then we check out the EMHs.

You're gonna be there for a long trip. I recommend getting there early in the mornings, leaving and taking a break in the afternoon and heading back to the parks at night. I didn't see if you're staying on-site or off-site, but if you're staying on-site, you shouldn't have a problem getting into the parks. They will have phased closures and you DO face the chance of getting turned away, but we've never had it happen.

For more info, check out my free Disney Christmas Guide at survivedisxmas.com

 

[RnbwSktles]

We've been very calculated about our FP+ ressies and dinner ressies. Normally we'd make a reservation and if our plan that day changes, we'd make a new dinner ressie and cancel the old one. With Christmas week, there likely will be few reservations available, so we'll be stuck with our plan.

Since no one else has mentioned this, I just want to make sure you are aware of the new restaurant cancellation policies. If you cancel on the same day of the reservation, you might be charged a fee of $10 per person!

 

[Redarrow5150]

Sticking with plans. Going to a lot of RD and heading back to resort late mornings. Have FP+ for mid afternoons and then dinner. Plan on doing some late night hours after 10PM.

 

[MulanMom]

Never did FP+ during Xmas week, but did use it during a busy 4th of July week. We spent a busy July 3rd in MK to see the fireworks. I liked the way FP+ worked for us. We used the time in between FPs by taking in attractions normally not fast passed. We knew we were in the park all day, so we didn't feel like we were wasting time. If anything, were relaxed.

Not sure if the same will be true for us during Xmas week. I haven't tightly planned a WDW vacation in years. I plan a few things for the day and work around them. But we have APs which allow us to park hop, giving us a lot of flexibility.

So, while I plan on using my FP+s and ADRs, I'm always open to adjusting the plan on the fly.

Not sure if my response has offered a whole lot of help! Enjoy your Xmas vacation.

 

[LSUfan4444]

Another way of using FP+ with park hopping is to book three FPs for the park you'll be visiting in the afternoon and do standby for rides at another park in the morning after RD. This will likely prevent you from being able to book 4th,5th,etc FPs, but you may not be able to do so for popular rides even around lunch time during busy Christmas week.

Agreed. This is pretty much how we set up our days as well.

Mornings via standby starting at rope drop than our FP+ awaits us in the evening.

 

[csm101]

By all means try to do what you wish but be very flexible and "Let it Go", Gawd why did I just sing that....

 

[diskids2]

Sticking with plans. Going to a lot of RD and heading back to resort late mornings. Have FP+ for mid afternoons and then dinner. Plan on doing some late night hours after 10PM.

This is what we are doing!