CM party? Oh no!

[vincev33]

I am planning a surprise trip to DL and Vegas for DW 40th. We are going to be in DL 12/5-12/7 and I read a post that indicated cast member parties can make the parks crowded and they close early. This has me really worried as posters have indicated that it may be the dates we are there. Any hints on where I can keep watch on the dates? What should I do if they are on our dates? Is it at both parks? Thank you!

 

[skiingfast]

Keep watching on here or another site, to see what happens when the dates are reported.

Also look at the calendar on dl.com it should show the hours about 60 days out and if they close earlier than normal you will know.

 

[Sherry E]

I am planning a surprise trip to DL and Vegas for DW 40th. We are going to be in DL 12/5-12/7 and I read a post that indicated cast member parties can make the parks crowded and they close early. This has me really worried as posters have indicated that it may be the dates we are there. Any hints on where I can keep watch on the dates? What should I do if they are on our dates? Is it at both parks? Thank you!

I think you're possibly talking about my post regarding the CM parties and the crowds. To clarify, I said that it was very crowded on the CM party days when I was there last year. However, keep in mind that the parties were moved to one week later than when they normally happen, and that could have had something to do with crowds. If they had happened at their usual time in December, perhaps the crowds would be lower. It's hard to say. All I know is that DL was very, very crowded on the CM party days in 2010.

So far, this year we do not know if the CM parties will be held on 12/5 & 12/6 or on 12/12 & 12/13. That info will probably not be shown on the DLR calendar for quite some time (like November-ish). If you'd like, you can periodically check in with us in the Disneyland at Christmas Time Superthread for updates, as we will definitely post it there and discuss it when the info becomes available. I'm sure the December Check-In Thread will have the CM party dates posted somewhere too, when the info is released.

Yes, Disneyland will close early - at 6 p.m. - on CM party nights, but DCA will remain open. There will still be fireworks, the nighttime Winter Castle lighting and snow falling on Main Street, right before DL closes. And IASW Holiday will light up in colors in the 5 p.m. hour.

So if the CM parties fall on your dates - which would mean that they are reverting back to their usual schedule - you can go into DCA, hang out in Downtown Disney or maybe spend some time in the Grand Californian Hotel lobby area, with a beverage, enjoying the carolers, holiday music and atmosphere.

I found things to do when DL closed. It was not my preference to have to leave DL at 6 p.m. and I would still likely avoid that scenario if I could in the future, but it worked out okay. If that's what ends up happening when you are at DLR, it will be okay. For all we know, the CM parties may happen in the second week in December again, but we just wont find out for sure for a while.

 

[Sleepless Knight]

I was there last year during the CM holiday parties. It was actually kind of cool with the fireworks happening around 6:00pm. In early December, the parks aren't very crowded during weekdays anyways.

The bigger issue is the CM parties causing Disneyland to close early. I ended up leaving on Thursday instead of Tuesday because I wanted one last evening in Disneyland during Christmastime.

 

[vincev33]

Thank you for the information! I am a little more at ease, but since I am a WDW regular I like to plan far in advance. This puts a wrench in my plans.

 

[Sherry E]

Thank you for the information! I am a little more at ease, but since I am a WDW regular I like to plan far in advance. This puts a wrench in my plans.

Remember, the CM parties may not happen during your trip. If they follow last year's lead, they will happen the following week. So don't give up hope! I wish we could find out in advance when the CM parties will be - it would make even the non-WDW regulars happy - but according to most of the CM's, they supposedly don't know yet (which may or may not be true).

 

[liesel]

I was there during the CM parties-first week of December 09 and it was not crowded. Most rides were about a 10-15 minute wait. The first night we park hopped to DCA around 4:30 and it was pretty empty. It started filling more quickly after DL closed at 6, but was still very manageable. The second night we left DL at 6 after the fireworks and there was a mass exodus into DCA and DTD.

If you are there during CM parties, I would recommend leaving DL before this mass exodus (unless this is your only shot at seeing the fireworks), especially if you want to have dinner in DTD. Leaving just a few minutes before everyone else will mean much less time slowly making your way out of the park in a large crowd and waiting in a long line stretching across the esplande to get into DCA. DCA was open until 9. After being at DL since 8AM, its still a pretty full day and I believe we rode at least 20 rides each day without rushing. Have fun, I love the Christmas season!

 

[Sherry E]

I was there during the CM parties-first week of December 09 and it was not crowded. Most rides were about a 10-15 minute wait. The first night we park hopped to DCA around 4:30 and it was pretty empty. It started filling more quickly after DL closed at 6, but was still very manageable. The second night we left DL at 6 after the fireworks and there was a mass exodus into DCA and DTD.

If you are there during CM parties, I would recommend leaving DL before this mass exodus (unless this is your only shot at seeing the fireworks), especially if you want to have dinner in DTD. Leaving just a few minutes before everyone else will mean much less time slowly making your way out of the park in a large crowd and waiting in a long line stretching across the esplande to get into DCA. DCA was open until 9. After being at DL since 8AM, its still a pretty full day and I believe we rode at least 20 rides each day without rushing. Have fun, I love the Christmas season!

Lisa -

Hearing about previous years' CM party days was why I thought last year would be uncrowded. But it wasn't. You should have seen the line for POTC! Even though the POTC line moves fast, just the fact that it stretched out to where it did was a good indicator of the day being quite crowded. I did not notice a discernible drop in crowds until Wednesday.

It's quite possible that it was more crowded last year because the CM party dates were later than normal. If they had taken place at their usual time, immediately after the CP, perhaps the crowds would have been lighter.

I watched the fireworks and the snow fall on Main Street. The exodus had not begun yet, but I had a feeling it was going to begin any second. Maybe I got out before everyone turned around to leave.

However, there were tons of people hanging around the DCA letters, which were still up at that point, and piling into DCA.

 

[liesel]

Lisa -

Hearing about previous years' CM party days was why I thought last year would be uncrowded. But it wasn't. You should have seen the line for POTC! Even though the POTC line moves fast, just the fact that it stretched out to where it did was a good indicator of the day being quite crowded. I did not notice a discernible drop in crowds until Wednesday.

It's quite possible that it was more crowded last year because the CM party dates were later than normal. If they had taken place at their usual time, immediately after the CP, perhaps the crowds would have been lighter.

I watched the fireworks and the snow fall on Main Street. The exodus had not begun yet, but I had a feeling it was going to begin any second. Maybe I got out before everyone turned around to leave.

However, there were tons of people hanging around the DCA letters, which were still up at that point, and piling into DCA.

Wow, it sounds like Christmas time is just getting busier and busier! Hopefully the first week of December will still have slightly lighter crowds than the rest of the month.