Disneyland at Christmas/Holiday Season Superthread #3!- HOLIDAYS BEGIN 11/12/13!!

[Sherry E]

Thanks for the advice on the restaurants. It is good to hear what everyone thinks about the different places.

Looking at the tour information. Would the Holiday Tour at Disneyland be a good tour for people who have never been to Disney? Also, any idea what ride they take you on? Any reviews on it would be great. My parents are coming with us and have never been to Disneyland before.

blue888 -

The holiday tour includes Haunted Mansion Holiday and It's a Small World Holiday.

Go to page 1 of this thread. In the Seasonal Events/Activities section of page 1, you will find a whole category for the Holiday tour. Under that category you will find links to reviews/photos by tksbaskets and DizNee Luver. Don't be put off by the years of the reviews -- the tour does not really change from year to year (other than the design of the collectible pin you get and the design of the gingerbread cookie).

If those reviews are not enough for you, go to the Trip Reports section (also on page 1 of this thread). There you will find 2012 Trip Reports from DizNee Luver and also danimaroo, who both wrote about their tour experiences last year.

I don't think this tour would be bad for first-timers, but it is holiday-centered as opposed to just a general intro to Disneyland so whether it's a good choice probably depends on how much everyone loves the holidays!

 

[Mickeybell]

I have a question regarding the crowds in the rest of the park during the CP.

We were in Disneyland for of our Christmas trip in 2010 during the CP. I remember main street being wall to wall people, so we spent the evening in California. But this time our last night of our trip with be on Saturday Dec 7. We always spend the last night of our trip in Disneyland doing all our favorite rides one last time.

My question is, will the rest of the park be crazy or will it be OK because everyone will be on main street. I am hoping that if we can just avoid the front of the park in the evening it wont be too bad.

Either way we will be in Disneyland on our last night! Just trying to prepare myself for the crowds.

 

[tksbaskets]

I am back *hugs all friends and new friends*
I have been busy this past year. I got my ged, I am enrolled for some classes in spring. My son has been busy in school.

This year our family trip was the grand canyon, however next year trip planing has started.

My first part of planing is Dec 7th-to dec 11th 2014 (a late 30th b-day gift to my self) (nov 30th is just to close to thanksgiving for good price at desert inn so the 7th it is)

We are thinking about doing the city pass because my son wants to do sea world again.
We may be 3 (just us or 5 with my parents) Since my dad was sick and didn't see cars land last year)

It is early stages of planing but I love looking at this thread. It gets my juices flowing.

TY for all the wonderful pictures and all the info. I plan to be back on the boards again more often and try and help answer some questions too.

Congrats on your accomplishments!

Thanks for the advice on the restaurants. It is good to hear what everyone thinks about the different places.

Looking at the tour information. Would the Holiday Tour at Disneyland be a good tour for people who have never been to Disney? Also, any idea what ride they take you on? Any reviews on it would be great. My parents are coming with us and have never been to Disneyland before.

I think the Holiday Tour is GREAT for people who have never been to DL. I enjoyed the bit of history, getting right on HMH and IASWH, and the PRIMO parade seats. We've done it twice. The second time really for the parade seats.

TK

 

[Lucrezia]

Thanks for the advice on the restaurants. It is good to hear what everyone thinks about the different places.

Looking at the tour information. Would the Holiday Tour at Disneyland be a good tour for people who have never been to Disney? Also, any idea what ride they take you on? Any reviews on it would be great. My parents are coming with us and have never been to Disneyland before.

I've never actually done the tour myself, but I plan on doing it when I visit the parks this December, and a close friend of mine who went last year told me about it the other day when I politely asked for details (or I guess you could say "grilled her for the details persistently," lol). It sounds like it'd be quite fun for Disneyland first-timers (though the tour you should really look into is the Welcome to Disneyland tour, which isn't holiday-related but I believe is cheaper and gives you access to both rides and FastPasses). I believe she said the attractions included are it's a small world holiday and Haunted Mansion Holiday. But what she liked the best was that you get actual CHAIRS (gasp!) for the Christmas parade, as well as hot chocolate and a gingerbread cookie (she says both were delicious). You also learn some fun facts about the holidays, and get to sample some kind of sweet on BVS, I think. At least that's how it went last year. If you want to see the parade, though, you should definitely do the tour just for the prime viewing spot alone! Good luck!!

 

[kirstie101]

When we went in 2011 we attended the Holiday Tour and LOVED it! It was myself, my mom, DD (almost 5 at the time) and my son who was not quite at the time. The information was more about Christmas around the world than Disney itself so there were some Disney related holiday facts thrown in. We were there the weekend before Christmas so it was extremely busy. For us it was worth the price of the tour simply to ride IASWH, HMH and the fabulous parade seating! Our tour guide was a doll and we really enjoyed it.

The only reason we are not doing the tour again this year is because DS is now 2.5, and well, we all know how 2 year olds can be Especially one who doesn't like rides.

 

[Sherry E]

So no one took photos of the Mad T Party's holiday show last year? I ask because it's also Hollywood Land week (not just Buena Vista Street week), and their show is part of that section of the park.

I have a question regarding the crowds in the rest of the park during the CP.

We were in Disneyland for of our Christmas trip in 2010 during the CP. I remember main street being wall to wall people, so we spent the evening in California. But this time our last night of our trip with be on Saturday Dec 7. We always spend the last night of our trip in Disneyland doing all our favorite rides one last time.

My question is, will the rest of the park be crazy or will it be OK because everyone will be on main street. I am hoping that if we can just avoid the front of the park in the evening it wont be too bad.

Either way we will be in Disneyland on our last night! Just trying to prepare myself for the crowds.

Mickeybell --

You may have missed the recent discussions on the CP in this thread, but I have been saying to a couple of different people that the Saturday of the CP weekend is said to be very, very crowded each year. I have a feeling that a large part of the reason it is so crowded for the whole day is because people are trying to avoid what they anticipate the CP crowds will be like later in the evening. So, essentially, it's another 'crowds are caused by crowds trying to avoid crowds' situation! People who have no interest in the CP are packing into DL earlier in the day because they want to get in all of their Disneyland activities before the CP people arrive, and they end up causing the park to be very crowded all day.

As for what happens in the rest of the park during the actual CP/Ceremony, that's another mystery. I've been saying that it could go either way -- either the people who have no interest in the CP will pack into other areas of DL while the Ceremony is happening or they could escape DL and go to DCA, which could leave the other areas of DL relatively manageable during the Ceremony.

Last year I saw the Ceremony twice, but there was also another time when I walked through Town Square to exit while the CP was happening. I've also been to DL on a Sunday CP day and I didn't notice the crowds to be necessarily worse than a usual holiday season weekend until maybe mid-to-late afternoon. I have a feeling that Saturdays are worse than Sundays in terms of all-day crowds on that specific CP weekend.

So I would just mentally prepare for really large crowds and if it turns out to be less or better than you imagine, that will be a relief!

 

[mvf-m11c]

Here are some pics from Mad T Party from last year.

 

[Sherry E]

Bret --

I'm glad you posted those pictures, because I completely forgot that you had any pictures from the Mad T Party holiday area. I don't even remember seeing them in your TR. Thank you for being quick to post them.

I would have to imagine that the Mad T Party will have the same holiday show again this year, with snow at the end of the night.

​

In about 2 weeks we can expect to start seeing a lot of holiday-related blogs and articles coming our way, on the Parks Blog and on Disneyland News, Disney Insider, etc. The Disneyland Resort website said that more holiday season details/info will be coming after 11/1.

Honestly, I guess this happens as we get old but I can't believe that Halloween Time will already be over in 2 weeks and the holiday season will be right on its heels! This is exactly why I don't mind little signs of Halloween or Autumn popping up in July or August, and it's why I don't mind little signs of the holiday season popping up in September or October -- because the actual holidays (or, let's say, the period of time between October 1st and January 1st) seem to fly by so quickly now (which is great for some folks, I suppose), and the early signs-decorations-treats help to extend the celebration for me.

Time seems to pass in the blink of an eye. It seems like there is barely a chance to really enjoy the holidays (whichever holidays you participate in) and savor all of the fun things about them because they whip past us at lightning speed. The weather hasn't even cooled down long enough in L.A. to feel Fall-like for more than a day or two, and it's been hard to get in a real Halloween-ish frame of mind...and now Halloween will be gone in 2 weeks! Tomorrow I am going to the Harvest Festival at the Farmers Market and it is supposed to be well over 86 degrees! By the time it finally cools down and stays cool, it will be the end of the whole holiday season!

To many people it may seem like glimpses of Halloween appear too early, and Christmas appears way too early, but in a shockingly short span of time you will be taking down the decorations and putting them away in storage, and the sidewalks in my neighborhood will be lined with dried-up trees, waiting to be collected and carried away.

 

[Phoenixrising]

If you want cooler temps, then head up my way.Temps in the mid 40's and thick fog the pea soup kind that never really burns off during the day. I agree that the holdays go far faster than you expect. Even though I love Halloween, our male greyhound hates the sound of fireworks so it's a challenge to keep him calm on Halloween night. Fireworks are banned here, but there are always people who buy them illegally to set them off in the park across the street from us. Despite this the we are looking forward to to Halloween.

 

[JadeDarkstar]

Thank you tksbaskets, I worked hard and took my test. Couldn't believe i passed the first time. Start Creative writing , Art, Mythology ,and a magic and religion class in Jan. I am excited and also believe Ill deserve my trip to Disney after my first year of college.

Can any one tell me how well the parade seats were last year if you did the tour? I ask because I do want to go on the tour next year no matter what but i admit i am looking forward to the seats for the parade, and of course iasw and hmh rides.

I had no idea the mad tea party had a holiday thing. Ohh i so can not wait. only 13 months away Lol

 

[blue888]

Thanks for the great info on the tour! It sounds fabulous.

 

[rentayenta]

Sherry, Love Actually is on Netflix. I'm watching it again. Best thing to happen to my Friday nights.

 

[Sherry E]

Sherry, Love Actually is on Netflix. I'm watching it again. Best thing to happen to my Friday nights.

Hi, Jenny!

The fact that Love Actually is on Netflix (which I don't have) probably explains why it suddenly disappeared from my cable lineup!

For the better part of this year, I'd say, Love Actually has been running on some channel or another. I don't recall a year in recent history in which LA was airing so much. It ran on HBO for a long time, then went to Cinemax, then came back to HBO. Then, it made its way to -- of all places -- the Sundance Channel!? Then it made the rounds on the TV Guide channel (TVGN), and it even aired once or twice on TV Land. I think it ran once early in the year on Oxygen and even Bravo too. All of a sudden, it disappeared from all channels, so I am guessing that there is some sort of contract with Netflix to run LA for a designated period of time before it comes back to cable.

 

[rentayenta]

Hi, Jenny!

The fact that Love Actually is on Netflix (which I don't have) probably explains why it suddenly disappeared from my cable lineup!

For the better part of this year, I'd say, Love Actually has been running on some channel or another. I don't recall a year in recent history in which LA was airing so much. It ran on HBO for a long time, then went to Cinemax, then came back to HBO. Then, it made its way to -- of all places -- the Sundance Channel!? Then it made the rounds on the TV Guide channel (TVGN), and it even aired once or twice on TV Land. I think it ran once early in the year on Oxygen and even Bravo too. All of a sudden, it disappeared from all channels, so I am guessing that there is some sort of contract with Netflix to run LA for a designated period of time before it comes back to cable.

I only have AppleTV in my bedroom so being able to curl up with the dogs and my favorite movie cannot be beat. Do you have Netflix?


No Disney this Christmas but I'm following along. This is one of my favorite threads.

 

[Sherry E]

I only have AppleTV in my bedroom so being able to curl up with the dogs and my favorite movie cannot be beat. Do you have Netflix?


No Disney this Christmas but I'm following along. This is one of my favorite threads.

In my first sentence above I said "...on Netflix (which I don't have)..." Paying close attention, I see!

We've been doing Theme Weeks since early August. You should have posted pictures for any of the themes -- you would have been entered to win a $25 Disney gift card!

 

[DisneyJamieCA]

Sorry, no Mad T Party pictures from me. We went back there once (non holiday time) and it was too loud for my kids. I didn't even realize there was a holiday overlay to it until this thread!

 

[JediMasterNerd]

JediMasterNerd --

Did your friend (the one you referred) ever make it to this thread when planning the trip?

I don't know if you're aware, but I have referenced your Christmas trip and your detailed recap of your Christmas trip (which is in this thread) several times on this board! So many people want to know about specific Christmas Eve and Christmas Day info (as opposed to holiday season info) -- crowds, weather, food, etc. The recap you gave us towards the beginning of this thread has helped a lot (along with the recap from Mickey&JoshNut). I have linked it out quite a bit. So I am delighted that you are checking back in with us and also referring friends here!

My friend (or his wife) has probably lurked in the forums --- I hope so as there so much great info here!!

And you made my day! I'm so glad that what I posted last year has helped out at least little bit after benefitting from everything here last year!

Does the Pixar Parade in DCA go by the Buena Vista tree? I think we'll only have one evening we'll be able to be in DCA and would like to see both the parade (5:15) & tree lighting (5:00), but the parade is the priority for DD2. It is actually a "must-do"/camp out for a spot for this trip.

I know others have already answered this, but I'll add my confirmation as well... The tree is there in front of Elias & Co, across the street from the Carthay Circle Restaurant --- and when we had dinner at CCR the parade passed right off the balcony... We didn't catch the tree lighting ceremony so I cannot confirm how everything pieces together with the two events, but the tree is there and the parade passed right by it.

Looking at the tour information. Would the Holiday Tour at Disneyland be a good tour for people who have never been to Disney? Also, any idea what ride they take you on? Any reviews on it would be great. My parents are coming with us and have never been to Disneyland before.

Last year we did a family trip that included my parents, and I insisted that we all take the Holiday Tour, there were 7 of us and I thought it was completely worth it. To this day we continue to use the hot chocolate souvenir cups!! But the BIG BIG reason I really thought it hit the mark --- hearing my mom say that she feels like such a VIP as they unclipped the rope at the parade and walked us through the crowds over to our cushioned front-row seats right in front of IASW... Even now I get a warm feeling when I think of how special she felt. That alone was worth any price - Absolutely priceless!!

Can any one tell me how well the parade seats were last year if you did the tour? I ask because I do want to go on the tour next year no matter what but i admit i am looking forward to the seats for the parade, and of course iasw and hmh rides.

The seats, as mentioned above, are right in front of IASW, there are two rows of seats. Cushioned, etc... You get your hot chocolate right before heading to your seats and then once in your seats they bring you a gingerbread cookie and pins.



J.

 

[blue888]

Woohoo. Called our hotel and they automatically entered a 20% discount on our rooms. Excellent!

Getting excited!

Another question on tours. I'm getting conflicting information. Are kids free for the Holiday tour?

 

[DisneyJamieCA]

Woohoo. Called our hotel and they automatically entered a 20% discount on our rooms. Excellent! Getting excited! Another question on tours. I'm getting conflicting information. Are kids free for the Holiday tour?

I don't think they are (well under 3 probably is, but maybe then a lap sitter during the parade?) May I ask where you heard they were free?

 

[blue888]

The pricing on the website only shows adult prices, so I was wondering if that meant kids were free for the tour.