Crowds the week before Christmas...

[LovnMickey]

Hi!

Me, DH, and DD (6) will be go to Disney for another magical trip December 16-24, 2005. I've never been this time of year so I'm not sure what the crowds will be like. I've traveled in the summer before and we were down there this past April. Can someone fill me in on past experiences of crowds at this time of year.

Thanks!

 

[bytheblood]

They are very light. We have been there Dec 19th-26th and the crowds were very bearable and actually quite nice.

 

[micksterlee]

We are booked at POP Dec 17th thru the 24th and when I made the ressies the CM told me the crowds should be pretty light the first part of the visit and start picking up as we get closer to Christmas.She suggested that we hit the parks harder during the first of the week.

 

[MrShiny]

Yes, the crowds don't really build until right before Christmas. In fact, many seem to arrive Christmas day itself. Also, as the crowds build, Animal Kingdom is a good chjoice as it is the least Christmasy of the parks.

 

[JoannaOhio]

I sure hope this holds true for this December. We were there in 2000 during the week before Christmas. The dates were almost the same as this year - 12/18/00 was on Monday, and this year 12/19/05 will be that Monday. We went to MK on Monday in 2000, and it wasn't crowded at all. When we went back later in the week, it was more crowded, but still quite doable.

 

[stm61]

we were there the 15th thru the 19th in 2003, Mon-Fri. I agree with the other posters, it was dead most of the wk. Don't think we really waited in lines most of the wk. Fri a lot of people started coming in for the holidays and it got croweded. The only bad part of the whole trip was the weather. We froze the entire wk! Thank God we drove down and the kids had their winter coats in the car, I would never have thought to have them bring them if we'd flown.

 

[cmbsmom]

Are any of the water parks open that week or is it too cold? I am going to book that week also. It's time for a trip!

 

[Swimnoid]

We always go that week and we LOVE IT! Not only are the parks not that crowded but, of course, you have all the Christmas decorations, the special shows and extended fireworks etc and GREAT weather! We ususally leave Christmas eve day all the while wishing we could stay for more.

 

[raider93]

I hope you guys are right about the parks not being that crowded until Christmas Day. We go Dec. 16th thru 22nd. Here's hoping for the best.

 

[Dcat2u]

We will also be going the 18-24th of Dec staying at Pop, we are going to go to MVMCP the 18th. We will be a party of 10 - Me, DH, DD14, DD12, my mom, brother-17, brother-15, my friend, her DD13 (DD14's bestfriend who went with us last year), and her other DD2 (first trip).

 

[wilsonjen]

Thanks for starting this post!
We're there Dec 17-21. No MVMCP yet, but we're considering 12/18.

I've read mixed reviews on crowds for this week. Some people say the third week in December is much busier than the first two, while others claim it's dead until Christmas Day. When I made our ressies, the CM said it'll be slow early in the week and gradually build up until Christmas Day.

I guess it's all relative depending on what people consider "slow." We've gone in the less busy season in years past, so we try to avoid crowds at all costs!

If you take a look at the crowd predictions on the UG site, they are 5s & 6s all week (used to be 2s & 3s before they changed their rating scale ). Christmas Day and the week following is predicted at 10.

Here's hoping the crowds are low, the weather fair, and the pixie dust plentiful that week!

 

[TammyAlphabet]

I went last year from 12/16-12-24 and found that the crowds built steadily up to Christmas Eve. I am on the waitlist at the VWL for 12/18-12/23. Boy would that be fun, I might even make it a solo trip. Ha!!

 

[raider93]

Thanks for the response. I hope we are right about the crowds. Who knows what to expect. After all it is Disney