CP vs BOG during the holidays

[d0naldduck123]

Hello,

I'm planning a trip for December (most likely 12/24-12/28) for me and my BF, and am trying to figure out how to go about MK at one of the busiest times of the year.

It's going to be a relatively short trip, so we'll only be at MK for one day.

I was going to do rope drop then go in a big circle starting from Tomorrowland to the Fantasyland direction, but now I have CP in the picture. I've never been to CP and am really looking forward to the character dining! But my BF hasn't been to BOG either so ideally I want to do both - one for breakfast and one for a late lunch....but I don't know which restaurant to do for which meal.

Since CP will take longer, would it be better to do it for lunch and do a BOG breakfast and the popular Fantasyland rides in the morning while the park is less crowded?

On the other hand if we do CP for breakfast and BOG for a late lunch, it will be cheaper, but then I'm worried about the ride lines growing super long after spending a part of the morning at CP.

Is it even possible to do both in one day It's just that I want to make the most of the day we have at MK and since I finally convinced my BF to go to Disney, I also want him to have a memorable experience too

 

[uccats97]

I'd do BOG lunch and CP dinner. Just grab something quick for breakfast on the go so you don't miss the opportunity to ride a few things before crowds get crazy. Plus BOG breakfast is like $24 for eggs!

 

[FelisLachesis]

Which meal you do decide for BoG and CP, the best advice, especially during the Christmas week, is to try to go against the flow. Don't try for a noon lunch and a 5:30-6:00 pm dinner. Try Lunch around 2-2:30 and dinner closer to 8. Snack a little bit before you eat. I know it's hard, but when everyone's trying to eat, take advantage of the (slightly) shorter lines.

Whatever it is everyone is doing, especially during Christmas, do something else. Unless you really want to see the parades, use that time to jump on something. More people on the streets means fewer people in line.

 

[Nancyg56]

I would not book breakfast at that time of year unless you book that meal very late in the morning or before park opens. I am not sure what the dining schedule is during Christmas week though. Since you only have one MK day I would not book two TS meals so that leaves CP. I would book a late BOG breakfast because that is QS and you can control the time you are there, and then CP so that you can be out for fireworks. So maybe 10 or 10:30 AM for breakfast and CP around 6:30 or 7.

 

[sharonabe]

It's just that I want to make the most of the day we have at MK and since I finally convinced my BF to go to Disney, I also want him to have a memorable experience too

I'm going to agree with those saying you don't want to do any breakfast ADR that morning. MK will most likely have a 7:00 a.m. EMH, and you want to be in the park doing attractions from 7:00 -10:00 a.m.

What you end up doing is probably going to depend on the ADR(s) you're able to snag. Choose one as your first priority, the one you want to do no matter what time you get, and start there. Then try to get the other one at a time that makes sense. If you can get the BoG ADR during breakfast or lunch hours, even if you're not hungry, you could go in and just get a cupcake and be able to take a look around. Personally, I would do the same with a dinner ADR if I wasn't too hungry. Order some soup and dessert, but be sure to tip on the heavy side for the wait staff.

 

[Nancyg56]

I'm going to agree with those saying you don't want to do any breakfast ADR that morning. MK will most likely have a 7:00 a.m. EMH, and you want to be in the park doing attractions from 7:00 -10:00 a.m.

What you end up doing is probably going to depend on the ADR(s) you're able to snag. Choose one as your first priority, the one you want to do no matter what time you get, and start there. Then try to get the other one at a time that makes sense. If you can get the BoG ADR during breakfast or lunch hours, even if you're not hungry, you could go in and just get a cupcake and be able to take a look around. Personally, I would do the same with a dinner ADR if I wasn't too hungry. Order some soup and dessert, but be sure to tip on the heavy side for the wait staff.

The only issue is that the OP wants a buffet character meal for one of her choices. That limits how she proceeds that day in regard to ADR's. If she can choose lunch, then BOG for dessert and coffee would work, but she still might need dinner somewhere. With one day in the MK I would want to limit how much time I spent in restaurants.

 

[Epcot82Guy]

I agree with the general sentiment here. Things get a bit (a lot) crazy that time of year. I would definitely maximize the morning at MK, arriving at rope drop and hitting attractions quickly while you can (with morning Fast Passes right after). With that, you can likely knock out a lot in the AM. I would actually suggest BTMRR, Splash and Pirates in the first hour (especially with EMH). Go right to either Jungle Cruise or HM from there. Then start using Fast Passes back to back - especially for Seven Dwarfs, Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, Pooh and Jungle Cruise or HM (whichever you didn't do) - assuming those are all on your list!

Now back to your original question! A big issue here will be availability. Crystal Palace at the holidays is actually quite fun, inside and looking out onto the Hub. (Sadly, it's even better at night, but it seems that may not be an option for you.) BOG is just fine at lunch - but nothing special per se. And, while expensive, I think the atmosphere is better suited for dinner at BOG.

Could you do a very quick breakfast on the go pre-park, lunch at BOG (after the FP times) and then dinner at CP? You would need to get both (starting with BOG) immediately when your 6 month window opens most likely. But, it would be a way to get both!

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I know it will be more expensive, but I would book a late BOG lunch (and definitely pre-order!) and a late CP dinner. You will want those early morning hours to tour the parks as the lines get really long and the crowds really big. We've done MK that week and had to ditch MK by 1 pm as we could barely walk through the park. If you are committed to staying the entire day, I would keep the morning completely free of ADR's.

 

[Lisa F]

This would be my touring plan for you:
either 7am if EMH or 8am if rope drop, get your butt in the park
Go directly Frontierland
BTMRR
Splash (only issue is it might be cool in the morning)
go to Adventureland
Jingle Cruise
Pirates
Magic Carpet if the line is not too long and you want to do this
go to Liberty Square
Haunted Mansion (if time, if not go right to breakfast)
10:00AM Crystal Palace breakfast
Head directly to fantasyland after breakfast, beat the noon parade
do all of the non fastpassed fantasyland stuff in the bit of a lull while people are waiting for/watching the parade
(pooh, small world, tea cups, dumbo, barnstormer... by this time of day you need to be flexible)
12-1pm FP+ Peter Pan's flight
1pm - 2pm FP+ 7DMT
do a bit more fantasyland, leave by 2pm to stake out a spot for the parade (I love it on main street even though you have to stake out a spot earlier)
stake out a spot near the ice cream place and have some ice cream while you wait
3:30 - 4:30 parade
4:30-5:30 FP+ space mountain
by this time tomorrowland will have long lines, no two ways about it, but it will really only be an issue with buzz and speedway (I could skip that personally)... things like Carousel of Progress and TTC and Monsters Inc won't have very long waits comparatively
6:30pm-ish BoG dinner. If you're concerned about money just think about how much this trip is costing you to begin with to go at christmas time and seriously think about how much it will hurt to spend $30-40 more on dinner than lunch.

after dinner I'd take the train around then stake out a great place for fireworks on main street. Have more ice cream (lol). then I'd start picking up some of the secondary stuff like the tiki room, country bears etc. I think crowds will start to thin a bit the closer to midnight you get so if you missed haunted mansion, you'll probably be able to do that between 11pm and midnight. Tomorrowland is great at night too, better than during the day. But I think starting in frontierland and adventureland and the FP+ the majors in tomorrowland and fantasyland and trying to do the minors in fantasyland during a parade should get you most of the rides.

 

[sharonabe]

This would be my touring plan for you:
either 7am if EMH or 8am if rope drop, get your butt in the park
Go directly Frontierland
BTMRR
Splash (only issue is it might be cool in the morning)
go to Adventureland
Jingle Cruise
Pirates
Magic Carpet if the line is not too long and you want to do this
go to Liberty Square
Haunted Mansion (if time, if not go right to breakfast)

For a regular opening this will work, but if there is an EMH none of this will be open during that hour.

 

[d0naldduck123]

Thank you for all the detailed replies! It definitely helps my planning. I guess I should definitely stay away from doing ADRs in the morning! As I was reading the comments it occurred to me that CP is the same for lunch and dinner, so dinner could also be an option too. I'm hoping for a late breakfast/early lunch at BOG and/or dinner at CP. Hopefully I'll be able to get the ADRs!