December Trip Do's and Don't

[CAJUNWDWFAN]

Hello all!

My family and I might be planning a trip to WDW in December (11th to 19th). This would be our first trip during this time. Usually we go in the summer time.

We know about MVMCP, the Osbourne Lights, and Candlelight Procession.

1.) What are some of the do's and don'ts?

2.) What are some tips that we should know about?

3.) What clothes should we pack?

4.) Do they still have early entry for people staying on Disney property?

5.) Does it rain a lot?

6.) And one of my most important questions: Do they offer AP rates for this time and when are they usually released?

Any help, info, tips, and suggestions would be appreciated.

thanks,

 

[k_hase]

DO bring warm clothes!!! Learned that one the hard way. You will wear long pants, long sleeves and jackets at night.

December is fairly dry.

It won't be terribly busy during your stay as it is before the schools are on break for Christmas.

I used a room only code when we went in December, and I assume there was an AP code at the same time. The room only code was issued toward the end of October I beleive. We had already booked the room we wanted and applied the discount later.

And I can't stress it enough, bring warm clothes!!!! On several nights I wore a wool sweater and jeans and would have been very happy to have gloves.

 

[JudithM]

I have been to WDW several years in a row between Thanksgiving & mid-December. The weather can vary tremendously. You could be swimming one day & wearing your winter clothes the next day. Pack clothes for all types of weather. Enjoy the holiday decoration!

 

[ktglads]

DO pack gloves - the strech ones are tiny and keep hands warm at night

DO take time to see all the cool decorations

DO bring lots of film and autograph books. With cooler temperatures, the characters are out in full force for much longer than summer months! Plus, most have some sort of holiday costume, at least a scarf.

DO plan to spend a lot of time at Downtown Disney. The parks close early and that is one of the few things open later than 9.

DO pack for 2 different seasons. You can wear shorts and tank tops during the day, but you will need jeans and sweatshirts at night. There was only 1 day where it was too cold to wear shorts last year.

DON'T be afraid of lines and crowds - they are practically non-existent!

There was an AP rate at that time last year. We stayed at a value for less than $60 a night. Early entry is available to resort guests all year 'round. This is a good thing since the parks can close before 9 so you can add on to your touring this way. We didn't find it necessary since the crowds were so small and the weather nice that we could tour from open to close and not miss anything since no afternoon breaks were needed.

 

[ChuckGA]

DO bring sunscreen as strong as you would in the summer and use it. The biggest danger is a cloudy day in the mid 70's and you figure why use it, it is not that hot and the sun isn't shining directly.

Chuck

 

[Goingtodisneyworld]

We did our first winter trip that week last year, sorry to say we did not have any of the rare swimming days (although I did see a few in the pool), did use snowsuit in the stroller for DD 6mos. only at night, one day we were able to wear shorts the rest of the time long pants & long sleeves during the day & jackets at night, other DD 2 ½ did wear her winter hat & mittens too!!

We are from the south so kids don’t see much snow one night we strolled around the Disney town of Celebration ~ I would highly recommend this as they had a “Snowfall” about every hour that lasted about 15min.s each time the “kids” loved it, everyone age 1 to 75 was running/dancing in the street!! The town was also beautifully decorated, they sold hot coco on the street, and I believe there were sleigh rides & carolers also. A big 10 out of 10 for our family!!!

 

[wannabee princess]

As far as the weather - Out of our 8 days last Dec we had rain on one. The temps were all over the board - gloves, jeans, jackets at night and shorts and tshirts most days (my ds's even went swimming).

Sightseeing - Definitely use the early closings at the parks to take advantage of seeing the "sights" - go to the different resorts for a late meal or dessert, so you can see the decorations. Also, at the parks allow time to just see the decorations.

Shopping - Don't wait until a Saturday to spend time at DD - the crowds were worse then in our opinion. The Christmas store itself was wall-to-wall people that day too!

Pins - (hopefully this is annual) If you collect pins or like an "adventure" there is a type of "scavenger" hunt to get a stamp from all 4 parks and some of the other Disney spots like resorts and DD. Once you get all of the stamps, you can get a free pin. This was called Mickey's Christmas List, and it was a fun way to spend a day and end up with a free (small) pin.

If you like hats - there are Santa Mickey, Santa Minnie, Christmas Tree and I think a couple of other choices specific to the Holiday time.

At Epcot - Plan time to see the various storytellers! The stories are very interesting and fun to hear.

If you can, the MK and Epcot have a tree lighting ceremony at night.

Get a picture taken with Santa Goofy at AK! I had ours framed and it sits in our living room!

Go to LTT for dinner with the characters in their Christmas garb.

Visit the Country Bear Christmas show