Christmastime Trip Advice Needed! :o)

[*NikkiBell*]

Hi All,

We (boyfriend of four years and I) are going to begin planning a trip for December 26th-January 1st. We will depart either late on the 1st or on the 2nd. I am locked into these dates as I am a fifth grade teacher and have few other options.

Will this be more crowded, as crowded, or less crowded than Easter time? We went for Easter/Spring Break week last year and found things pretty managable with the use of EMH at night and Fast Pass. Thoughts?

Also, my ultimate gameplan is to hit all of the Christmas stuff first being that it is a rarity for us to go then. This is our first Holiday trip and I want to make sure the special things are experienced and then go for the rest. Is this a good mindset?

Thanks for all of your help! We are so excited!

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

You have picked one of the busiest weeks of the year to go. Be prepared for HUGE crowds everyday. Personally, if this were the only time I could visit, I wouldn't go.

 

[Aurora63]

You have picked one of the busiest weeks of the year to go. Be prepared for HUGE crowds everyday. Personally, if this were the only time I could visit, I wouldn't go.

I've been on NYE before, it is extremely crowded, so crowded that we could do very few attractions. We did survive, but I don't think I'll ever do it again.

 

[allshookup]

If you go early, you will have a chance of getting fast passes for the more popular rides like Soarin. If you arrive after 11am forget about getting on because the fast passes will be gone for the day & the wait will be 2-3 hrs. The crowds are much more manageble in the early mornings at later in the evenings, but if you are in the parks during the afternoon, be prepared to not even be able to walk at times due to the traffic jams. Rides like El Rio del Tiempo, which is usually walk-on at the end of August, had huge lines. On NYE we waited 1 hour just to get churros in Mexico & people were eating standing up along the walls.

On a more positive note, the parks are open late, they have 3 Fantasmic shows per nt & by the third seating, half the stadium was empty, the decorations are beautiful, my kids loved the Christmas parade in MK & the snow, & the fireworks on NYE are something to behold. We ended up heading back to POP early NYE & I watched the fireworks at the end of one of the buildings. The rest of the family was already fast asleep since we had been up at 6am, but the noise drew me outside & the whole horizon was lit up with color. So it's not necessary to fight the crowds to enjoy the show. I will definitely remember that next time we attempt the holiday season. Have fun!

 

[domestic goddess]

You definitely have the right outlook. Do the Christmas things first and then anything else you get to do will be a bonus. We have been at Christmas time a few times and it is a madhouse as far as the crowds go. Use fastpass and EMH and you will be fine. If you go with the right expectations, and it sounds like you are, you will have a great time! Don't forget to make ADR's for the Candlelight Processional. It is a great show. I have 3 children and I'm not sure that they would enjoy sitting for all of that time so I haven't seen the whole thing yet. When my DH and I can go by ourselves then I'll get to see the whole thing. As for now we just grab a snack and sit at the American Pavillion and enjoy the music and what we can hear.

Have a wonderful trip! There is nothing like WDW at Christmas time!!!

 

[lovethattink]

Nikkibell, as you said you are there to enjoy the Christmas things and everything else is 2nd. It really is the most magical time of the year at Disney. The hours are extended. There are different shows and parades. It's my all time favorite time of the year at Disney. From the day after Thanksgiving until just after New Years Day I'm in heaven there. I will PM you my secret strategies as I am too selfish to share them publicly. It really is crowded then. It's very comparable to Easter, crowd-wise. You should be able to cover all the Christmas things. Not sure how much else you will be able to cover. We have gone Christmas Day every year to the Magic Kingdom except the last two years. Those years I think we only rode about 3 rides. But we had a blast, ate a great dinner at the Crystal Palace, and enjoyed the Christmas atmosphere!

 

[*NikkiBell*]

Thank you so much! We really are expecting the crowds we saw around Spring Break and Easter week of last year. This is what we should do right? How are EMH at night during Christmas-time?

 

[Florida_Mom]

Not sure about EMH at Christmastime, but my advice is to plan ahead, get your ADRs, and think about non-theme park things that you can do that would be fun. For example, a carriage ride at FW at night with hot chocolate to see the Christmas decorations the campers put up is a lot of fun, and with reservations there would be no wait. You can also rent boats on the lagoon, check out the Christmas decorations at the resorts, enjoy the hot tub at your resort at night (if you're staying at a resort that has one). Go in with the right expectations and with lots of planning, reservations for different things, and ADRs and you will have a blast!

 

[lovethattink]

Thank you so much! We really are expecting the crowds we saw around Spring Break and Easter week of last year. This is what we should do right? How are EMH at night during Christmas-time?

EMH are a mess, especially last year when the MK evening EMH were on a Friday night. The last hour of EMH was great! By then, most of the people were beat and heading back to their rooms. The 1st hour of morning EMH were great if you were at the turnstile at opening. By the start of the 2nd hour it was crowded.

A resort walk through is a must. Disney goes all out with each resort, especially those on the monorail loop. I love hitting all the resorts with gingerbread displays. I did the kid's Christmas pic for our Christmas cards at the American Pavillion's gingerbread house. The display at the Grand Floridian is much more detailed than that.

Epcot has Christmas around the world and the candlelight processional that are must sees.

 

[Danauk]

We went to WDW last Christmas (December 21st - January 2nd) and stayed at the BCV. We had a great time and it wasn't any where near as bad as people had made out IMHO. But I really believe this was the case as I had done a lot of research and planning. Yes it was busy at some points, but we avoided the EMH parks, got to our park of choice early and rode what we wanted straight away and then got fast passes for later in the afternoon. Then once the crowds got bigger at around lunch time we went back to our room for a relax or swim and then went back to the park later to use our fastpasses at the times we secured them for.

We made sure we toured the resorts as they were all beautiful. We did the CP package and viewed the Osborne lights during Fantasmic so it was not as crowded. We booked all our evening ADR's as soon as we could but also walked up to spme places for lunch (Concourse Steakhouse and Chef de France.) We spent NYE in MGM as we were told this would be the least crowded (which it was as Epcot and MK both closed.) Although it was busy it was set up for the crowds and we had an amazing night. We made sure when we left the park we walked through the shops to avoid the crowds which worked and we walked back to our room so we were back in our room 30 minutes after the fireworks finished.

We avoided the parks on Christmas day and instead opted to go to SSR for a massage which was nice, then we spent the evening swimming as the weather was nice. I would definately go again at this time of year. Like yourself DH and I are teachers so are also tied to school holidays, but to me Christmas week was a great time to go.

I hope you have a great trip.

 

[Vavasmon]

Thank you so much! We really are expecting the crowds we saw around Spring Break and Easter week of last year. This is what we should do right? How are EMH at night during Christmas-time?

We have both Spring Break and recient Christmas experience.

The week between Christmas and New Years is at least as busy (I personally think busier) than Spring Break. We only experienced I night EMH and it was busier than I expected. People had clearly built thse into the plan - I felt sorry for some of the exhausted Kids and grown-ups dragging themselves around the park.

That being said WDW is beautiful at the holidays. See all the holiday festivities first - the major rides will be there when you go back any time of year - but the seasonal displays, parades, and shows will not. Go with realistic expectations and have a blast.