disney at christmas

[NewbieMouse]

I wasn't prepared for the crowds. I thought "sure, it'll be busier than normal, but we can handle it". I'm not exagerating when I say we were sholder to sholder with strangers. I held on to my DD's hand like she was falling off a cliff while trying to get through AL & TL. On top of that it was wicked cold and rainy.

Never again will I go to Disneyland on Xmas

I sincerly hope the crowd level will be more manageable for you.

Oh, my! Were you there any other days around Christmas, and was it just as crazy?

 

[GoofyontheHiSeas]

I posted some pictures back in January on page 17 so maybe I should add some more.

 

[GoofyontheHiSeas]

Some from IASW Holiday

 

[tksbaskets]

WOW your pictures are stunning. Especially the night ones and the IASW.

Thanks for sharing!

TK

 

[Goofy_Mom]

Oh, my! Were you there any other days around Christmas, and was it just as crazy?

We were there the two days before Christmas, the crowds were actully pretty light. We were able to walk onto a lot rides. However, there were NO characters out. I'm all most positive it was because of the weather. It had rained the two days before Christmas. It wasn't even "normal" rain. First it would rain really hard for about 5 min, then the sky would open up and the sun would be out. 5 min later the clouds rolled back in like they were there the entire time and would poor down on us.

If I were by myself, or even with my DD, I would have stuck out the rain and enjoyed the very short lines. But we had a not-yet-one-year-old in a stroller with us. I wasn't about to make him suffer the rains and possibly sit in a wet stroller with wet cloths all day.

It actully worked out pretty good for my DS. On Chritmas eve and day, he stayed in the hotel with DH while me and DD went to the parks, that way at least some of the money we spent for this vacation wouldn't be waisted. (DH is not a big fan of the magic but goes along for the ride to make the rest of us happy). According to my DH, DS had an absolute blast in the hotel.

 

[funatdisney]

Some from IASW Holiday

Awesome pictures, as usual, GoofyontheHiSeas. The colors are stunning and I admire your skill with the camera. We are neighbors of a sort. I head into Thousand Oaks quite a bit, since I like your mall better than mine and we have close friends that live in the area.

 

[NewbieMouse]

GoofyontheHiSeas, beautiful pictures!

Goofy_Mom, thanks for sharing your crowds experience. Like you, DH is not a huge fan, so I'm hoping that the crowds won't be too crazy as that will turn him right off the whole thing. We'll be there for 2 days somewhere in Dec. 22-24, so now I have my fingers crossed it will RAIN!

 

[Sherry E]

Roger - yes, we definitely always need more photos!! Show us whatever you have! Your pictures are absolutely stunning. Those IASW Holiday photos make me realize how excited I am to get back to DLR and ride that again during the holidays. The colors are so vibrant and crisp!



I'm actually surprised at the course this thread has taken. It was very popular for a while last year. Then there were times early this year where I was bumping it a lot to try to keep it visible. Then we picked up some new thread followers along the way and it kind of picked up steam again and was really popular for a while. This thread was way, way, way ahead of the Halloween thread (Part 1 of the Halloween thread) in terms of number of views. But then the Halloween thread (Part 1) exploded and left this Christmas thread in its dust!! Now the first Halloween thread is so popular I had to start a Part 2. Meanwhile, this thread is still drifting to page 2 on occasion!

I really expected that this Christmas thread would start picking up steam again as the holidays get closer (and 1-1/2 months away is pretty darn close!). It doesn't help matters any that there seems to be such a lack of info. There have been no new Park Blogs posts about the holidays. Disneyland News hasn't posted anything. There's nothing from Disney. Heck - at this rate, we don't even know if the candy cane letters will be be back in December for one last appearance! And what will be in DCA as far as decorations this year? Halloween was all but removed from DCA and everything in DCA is all about WoC. Will Christmas be the same way?

In any case, until we can pick up steam again in the coming weeks leading up to the holiday season at DLR, we need photos, photos and more photos to keep this thread alive!!

 

[Goofy_Mom]

I really expected that this Christmas thread would start picking up steam again as the holidays get closer (and 1-1/2 months away is pretty darn close!). It doesn't help matters any that there seems to be such a lack of info. There have been no new Park Blogs posts about the holidays. Disneyland News hasn't posted anything. There's nothing from Disney. Heck - at this rate, we don't even know if the candy cane letters will be be back in December for one last appearance! And what will be in DCA as far as decorations this year? Halloween was all but removed from DCA and everything in DCA is all about WoC. Will Christmas be the same way?

In any case, until we can pick up steam again in the coming weeks leading up to the holiday season at DLR, we need photos, photos and more photos to keep this thread alive!!

I agree!! We need more pictures. I would also love to hear more stories about previous holiday visits. The last time I went during the holiday, it was on "The Holiday" and major busy and wet. I'ld like to hear some happy stories please.
My DD looks less than pleased.

 

[where's_my_prince]

yeah i agree sherry. as soon as my Halloween trip is done on the 15th i'm moving over to this thread to get prepared for my holiday trip(s)
before you know it you'll be having to make a Part 2 for this thread

 

[Disneyland1084]

Hello everyone,
hubby and I are thinking of suprising the crumb catchers with a trip to disneyland over christmas, never having traveled over christmas at all, I just wanted some opinions what is the park like, is it worth it that kinda thing

thanks

-worse than summer crowds IMO. I was there during Christmas 5 years ago, never again. ...BUT if BIG crowds don't bother you, I say go for it. All of the Christmas decorations were so beautiful!

 

[Sherry E]

I agree!! We need more pictures. I would also love to hear more stories about previous holiday visits. The last time I went during the holiday, it was on "The Holiday" and major busy and wet. I'ld like to hear some happy stories please.
My DD looks less than pleased.

Goofy_Mom - you probably mentioned this and I overlooked it. The rainy trip you made to DLR - was that in 2008, by any chance? I ask because the last day of my December 2008 trip was when it started to rain (and in fact, that sped up the process of my camera dying). Fortunately, I had a few days of no rain in DLR leading up to it. But this was the Monday before Christmas when it started to rain. And as I recall, it was raining off and on for the next few days at least, over the holiday.

I know a lot of folks love DLR in the rain. I guess I prefer the rain to extreme heat, but honestly, it makes it so difficult to take photos because either the camera gets wet or the friends/family you are with don't want to stand in the rain to pose and they go running for cover. I was struggling with my umbrella, which stabbed my hand. I was trying to get photos despite water getting on the camera. I was trying to make sure that the inner contents of my bag didn't get wet when I had to open it up to look for something. It was just a mess, really!! Temperature-wise, I love it. The cooler, the better for me.

yeah i agree sherry. as soon as my Halloween trip is done on the 15th i'm moving over to this thread to get prepared for my holiday trip(s)
before you know it you'll be having to make a Part 2 for this thread

Woo hoo, where's_my_prince!! I suspect that we will have a few people moving back over here to this thread along with you when October ends. Actually, those who are going to DLR at the very end of October may even begin to see some early traces of Christmas. I know that certain merchandise starts appearing really early.

It would be great if it were time for Part 2 of this thread! That would mean we suddenly had a huge wave of activity. I would love to be able to do the same thing in Part 2 of the Christmas thread that I did with the Halloween thread and make a Table of Contents for the photos, so it makes it easy to find certain things in a pinch!

Oh, and by the way, congratulations on getting hired by DLR sooner than you expected!! I know you didn't think they would call you until October or so. But at least you know when you'll be starting and where exactly you will be working!! I can't wait to hear about the training and what that entails - well, as much as you are allowed to reveal, that is.

 

[Halloweenqueen]

Are there any special meal offerings during the holidays? Any restaurant that is particularily pretty during the holiday decorations?

 

[PHXscuba]

OK, so how's this for ironic? I just found out DS14 will get a day at DLR while on a band trip in November ... after the Christmas stuff goes up. Sadly, he'll probably be like I was as a teen and completely ignore the holiday magic in favor of riding himself silly on anything with "Mountain" in the title.

I originally wanted to go with him on this band trip but I think I'd rather go in December with my friend than just for one day and getting to ride buses with 150 teenagers.

Hmmm ... maybe I can convince him to bring me back something peppermint, just as a DLR "appetizer."

PHXscuba

 

[funatdisney]

Actually, those who are going to DLR at the very end of October may even begin to see some early traces of Christmas. I know that certain merchandise starts appearing really early.

I am going a the end of Oct. I will keep an eye out for any signs of xmas while I am there.

 

[JustAKid]

Do all the characters get wintery touches, such as Winnie's hat, or Tinkerbell's longer, more snow-friendly wear that Goofy_Mom's photos depict?

 

[jemilah]

I will try to get on the home comp and upload more pictures too! Its not that far off!

 

[Sherry E]

Do all the characters get wintery touches, such as Winnie's hat, or Tinkerbell's longer, more snow-friendly wear that Goofy_Mom's photos depict?

Yep! Usually in Critter Country, Pooh, Tigger and Eeyore are all wearing either Santa hats or neck scarves (sometimes both) at their photo spot. Last year, we were waiting in line for Christmas Pooh, Christmas Tigger and Christmas Eeyore, but Tigger and Eeyore took a break while we were in line and only Christmas Pooh remained.

Around Main Street, you will find what I always call the "Winter Sweater Army" or the "Winter Sweater Congregation," which generally consists of Minnie, Mickey, Goofy, Donald, Daisy and Pluto. You'll know it's the Army when you see the mobs of people around them. Often times Chip and Dale come out in their sweaters too. Sometimes the 'Winter Sweater" characters will appear in ToonTown as well, but you are almost sure to see them on Main Street.

In DCA, however, it's different. Stitch or Sulley might be out, but they have no holiday touches that I've seen, really. Even the Pluto that appears in DCA is not dressed for the holidays.

In the old days, all the characters at Goofy's Kitchen used to appear in their holiday gear but that stopped over the years.

 

[Goofy_Mom]

Goofy_Mom - you probably mentioned this and I overlooked it. The rainy trip you made to DLR - was that in 2008, by any chance? I ask because the last day of my December 2008 trip was when it started to rain (and in fact, that sped up the process of my camera dying). Fortunately, I had a few days of no rain in DLR leading up to it. But this was the Monday before Christmas when it started to rain. And as I recall, it was raining off and on for the next few days at least, over the holiday.

I know a lot of folks love DLR in the rain. I guess I prefer the rain to extreme heat, but honestly, it makes it so difficult to take photos because either the camera gets wet or the friends/family you are with don't want to stand in the rain to pose and they go running for cover. I was struggling with my umbrella, which stabbed my hand. I was trying to get photos despite water getting on the camera. I was trying to make sure that the inner contents of my bag didn't get wet when I had to open it up to look for something. It was just a mess, really!! Temperature-wise, I love it. The cooler, the better for me.

As a matter of fact, it was 2008. Normaly, I love the rain. I love the sound it makes and the smell it produces. I would take cold over hot anyday, especially if I have to wait in lines. It's so much easier to put on cloths to keep warm than to remove cloths to stay cool, you can only take off so much, ya know But with really little ones, and a DH who's not really into the magic, the rain doesn't do us any favors.

 

[Goofy_Mom]

OK, so how's this for ironic? I just found out DS14 will get a day at DLR while on a band trip in November ... after the Christmas stuff goes up. Sadly, he'll probably be like I was as a teen and completely ignore the holiday magic in favor of riding himself silly on anything with "Mountain" in the title.

I originally wanted to go with him on this band trip but I think I'd rather go in December with my friend than just for one day and getting to ride buses with 150 teenagers.

Hmmm ... maybe I can convince him to bring me back something peppermint, just as a DLR "appetizer."

PHXscuba

OMG!! My little sister is going in November with her band/colorguard.
She says her dates are around the 15th-ish, but she says her school is getting two days in the parks. I remember when I went with my band, I think we got three parcial days and we got to see Beauty and the Beast on Broadway. Being a dancer and a Disney geek, I was on cloud nine.