December 20, 21--bad idea?

[cab0ad]

My family is planning a "quickie" trip to CA to see Disneyland over the holidays but we don't have flexibility with the days. Dec. 20 and 21 (mon and tues) are the only options for us since we want to drive home before Christmas Eve. Will it be too crowded to do anything? I'd hate for our first trip to be a bust because of crowds. I know its close to Christmas but on a Mon, Tues I was hoping it wouldn't be AS bad since some people may be working. Opinions?

 

[NewbieMouse]

Thank you for asking this question. I am very interested to hear people's responses as we are in the exact same boat for December 21 and 22 (Tuesday and Wednesday of the same week). I'm debating buying the 3-day parkhopper to get the magic morning.

 

[gatorfreud]

I posted a similar answer on someone else's thread with pictures.. I'll see if I can find it.

We were there Dec 19-22 last year and it was unbelievably crowded. We have been quite a few times, get there early, use FP etc... but it was really pretty hard even to walk around mid-day. I didn't mind so much, because we really didn't have any agenda - but I kept thinking to myself how I would never recommend to anyone to visit during that time - especially first timers. So I won't recommend it. Does that mean not to go? Of course not, but I just can't endorse it.

Kim

 

[gatorfreud]

Here is the thread...

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2503966

 

[NewbieMouse]

Yikes. I think I'll get the 3 day parkhopper and then we can use the MM and spread the visit out a bit. Maybe we'll do the parks first thing in the morning, go off and do our other LA stuff, and go back with our fast passes in the evening. We'll still have to navigate the crowds but our line waiting will be minimized.

I still think it will be better than after Christmas, so I hope we'll be OK.

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

Before Xmas is definitely better than after. We were there Dec. 18-23 last year. It was busy and I guess they reached capacity a few times during our visit. It didn't effect us at all (only knew it happened thanks to the Dis) because it occurred during our afternoon breaks and was back open by the time we returned to the park around 5 pm. Take advantage of MMs if you have it and go with a plan. You won't see everything in 2-3 days during this time of year (or any time of year) so enjoy what you can. It's a magical time of year at DLR!!!

 

[longtimedisneylurker]

We have done Dec. 18-22 and Dec. 26-Jan. 2 (different years). The before Christmas dates were definitely less crowded.

 

[NewbieMouse]

Thank you both for your insight and advice. I hadn't thought about closing due to capacity. We were just there for 5 days in June, so in December it will definitely be a "targeted" trip where we will be doing our favourite things rather than trying to see it all.