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

[rentayenta]

You forgot a 4th option:

4. You're Jewish and you think about Christmas in April. That's me. I love love love the holiday season. I do draw the line at holiday sweaters but I'm in full holiday planning mode. Conspiring to take a trip to Disneyland over the holidays doesn't hurt either.

 

[tksbaskets]

I'm pretty much a traditional Christmas Holiday person. I think Christmas starts that day after Thanksgiving and ends on Epiphany in January. During which time I love listening to holiday music and watching holiday movies.

I must confess I do enjoy planning for our Disney Christmas vacations all year. No surprise that this is one of my favorite threads? My other fess up is that I just got done last week watching the Christmas movies I had taped on my DVR.

SO perhaps I'm totally in #1.

TK

 

[Phoenixrising]

I fall somewhere between category 1 and 2 (probably 1 1/2). I do think about Christmas all the time, but do so to find bargains and plan ahead what to give all our friends so that I can create a timeline to get it all done before the Christmas crazies as I call them hit, which for us is usually after our Rememberance day Nov 11th. After that point the malls become crazy until Christmas is over. I also plan ahead so that I can get the kids gag Christmas gifts done in time, as they take a great deal of time to do, and think of the engineering involved in building them. We are a weird family that the kids look forward how I take their Christmas gifts and turn them into a challenge and artistic creation. The kids are miffed, as this year with the trip coming up I may not have time to do it this Christmas. They have threatened revenge (something about coal), so I'm going to have to find the time somehow to do them. I've got in requests for a Christmas tree, and a truck, so more large gifts to create and take up huge spaces in my office again. Last year I could barely get them through my office door Christmas Eve, so will have to scale down this year. Knowing me I'll underestimate the size once I start to assemble and end up with something far larger than I intended, which is what happened last year....ooops!

 

[Sherry E]

You forgot a 4th option:

4. You're Jewish and you think about Christmas in April. That's me. I love love love the holiday season. I do draw the line at holiday sweaters but I'm in full holiday planning mode. Conspiring to take a trip to Disneyland over the holidays doesn't hurt either.

Jenny -

Very true! Planning a holiday trip seems to feed into the holiday celebration even more than if there were no trip planned at all.

So it sounds like you're a mix of Level 1 and Level 2. All of the Level 3 folks seem to be on Facebook!

You know, the people I went with in December 2011 (the disaster trip) are Jewish, and my childhood friend from that family used to be much more receptive to the Christmas holiday festivities in general, but specifically at Disneyland, when we were younger. Over the years and with time, she seems to have become more resistant. It's not like she was ever playing Christmas songs at home or decorating trees or anything like that, but she used to not mind posing in front of Christmas trees or in Santa photo spots at DLR, or even wearing Santa Mickey ears. (Plus, she loves "Love Actually"!) That all seems to have changed, which is too bad.

Basically, I think that everyone from all faiths/beliefs should be able to enjoy the holiday season. There are so many things to enjoy. My Wiccan friend puts up Christmas trees and lights, as well as candy cane and snowman decorations in the front yard. She also watches the Rankin-Bass clay puppet specials like "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and all of that. She doesn't call it Christmas - she calls it Xmas - but she still enjoys all the festivities. She was rocking a Santa Minnie hat when she came with us to DLR back in 2007.

I think I had some holiday sweaters back in the '80s. I can't fully remember if I did or not. They may have been more like 'Winter pattern sweaters' with fuzzy polar bears romping in the snow on them and not holiday sweaters. So even though I firmly plant myself in the Level 1 category of Christmas love, I don't wear holiday sweaters as a rule.

However, I would totally throw on a holiday sweater for one of those fun "Ugly Christmas Sweater" parties that seem to be popping up more and more these days. The sweaters have gotten more and more elaborate over the decades!

I'm pretty much a traditional Christmas Holiday person. I think Christmas starts that day after Thanksgiving and ends on Epiphany in January. During which time I love listening to holiday music and watching holiday movies.

I must confess I do enjoy planning for our Disney Christmas vacations all year. No surprise that this is one of my favorite threads? My other fess up is that I just got done last week watching the Christmas movies I had taped on my DVR.

SO perhaps I'm totally in #1.

TK

TK -

Your first paragraph made me think you were mostly a Level 2 Christmas fan. But the second paragraph showed traces of Level 1-ness! If you are watching Hallmark Christmas movies in April (I assume those were the Hallmark movies you just watched?), that definitely falls a little bit in the Level 1 category!

Which movies did you just watch, by the way? I still have 4 Hallmark movies saved on the DVR, and 1 Lifetime Christmas movie. I almost deleted a couple of them the other day to free up some space, but I couldn't bring myself to do it because I never know what will run this year on Hallmark during the Countdown to Christmas! They will undoubtedly air another 8 or 12 brand new holiday movies, so some of the ones they typically show may fall off of the schedule/line-up. I can't have a year without "Farewell, Mr. Kringle," after all!

I won't even admit to how many times I have watched "Love Actually" this year, since it was running a lot on HBO for a while. Same with "Elf" - it's been running on (I think) Starz, so I've been watching!

And I also won't even admit to how many of those "Crazy Christmas Lights"/"Dazzling Christmas Lights"/"Invasion of the Christmas Lights"/"Extreme Christmas Trees"/"Christmas to the Extreme"/"Most Christmasy Places in America" types of shows (from various channels) I have saved (taking up tons of space) on the DVR.

I fall somewhere between category 1 and 2 (probably 1 1/2). I do think about Christmas all the time, but do so to find bargains and plan ahead what to give all our friends so that I can create a timeline to get it all done before the Christmas crazies as I call them hit, which for us is usually after our Rememberance day Nov 11th. After that point the malls become crazy until Christmas is over. I also plan ahead so that I can get the kids gag Christmas gifts done in time, as they take a great deal of time to do, and think of the engineering involved in building them. We are a weird family that the kids look forward how I take their Christmas gifts and turn them into a challenge and artistic creation. The kids are miffed, as this year with the trip coming up I may not have time to do it this Christmas. They have threatened revenge (something about coal), so I'm going to have to find the time somehow to do them. I've got in requests for a Christmas tree, and a truck, so more large gifts to create and take up huge spaces in my office again. Last year I could barely get them through my office door Christmas Eve, so will have to scale down this year. Knowing me I'll underestimate the size once I start to assemble and end up with something far larger than I intended, which is what happened last year....ooops!

Trish -

Level 1-1/2 sounds good!

What a wonderful thing to do, in turning the gag gifts into art projects! The kids must love them -- especially if they are threatening revenge if you skip those gag gifts this year!

That's interesting - so in Canada the malls get crazy after 11/11? Out here it starts getting crazy the day after Thanksgiving, which will be much later this year (leaving less time to shop for many people). You guys will have a whole couple of weeks of mall madness this year before our malls get crazy because of this incredibly late Thanksgiving we're having (which also coincides with the start of Hanukkah, it seems).

People could technically shop before Thanksgiving, but all of the best sales start right after Thanksgiving so there is a mass shopping frenzy at most stores! People wake up in the wee hours of the morning or even spend the night outside certain stores/malls, just to get those coveted Black Friday deals.

​

Keep 'em coming, folks! I'm fascinated to hear everyone else's choices for where they fall on the 'Christmas/Holiday Season Love' scale - are you a Level 1, Level 2 or a Level 3 (see previous page for explanations of all 3), and does it affect your Disneyland holiday plans/planning at all??!!

​

 

[DarthMole]

I hate to admit this but I'm probably between a level 2 & 3, closer to a level 3. The holidays seem to get overly complicated which is one reason we're planning our trip to DL the week of Christmas this year. Last year we hosted three consecutive nights (24th, 25th & 26th). The final night we had 5 overnight guests and my wife & I were on an Aerobed on the living room floor of our own house. Now this was my suggestion as I didn't feel right telling in-laws to go stay in a motel, but we quickly formed our plans to escape this year if you know what I mean. My wife has always wanted to see DL all decorated so while no DL trip is a relaxing vacation, for me I invite the stress of getting up early and managing crowds at DL & DCA over the stress of cooking big meals and trying to make sure everyone is satisfied. I expect to be firmly in the level 2 camp this year because of our destination and the amount of planning we'll put in ahead of time.

 

[AZlady]

Oh, this is fun to admit. I'm a 3!

I have never been to DL at Christmas, but thinking of going the week before Thanksgiving. ( I actually hope it will put me in the holiday mood and get me out of the 3 zone).
I have 2 kids- 13&10. My hubby is great and is a solid 2
With that said, my work gets crazy busy from from about mid-Oct till Feb. And having 3 holidays in 6 weeks makes that time of year hard.

 

[Autty40]

Here is a question for everyone - I'll be interested to hear the different opinions and thoughts!!

Who out there really enjoys the holiday season in general (in or out of Disneyland)? And when I say "enjoys the holiday season," I think it can be broken down into different categories or levels. Which level or category is closest to YOU, and does it affect or impact your Disneyland holiday trip planning at all? For example:

Level 1. You love Christmas so much that you think about it in non-holiday months (like April!). You might sneak in a viewing of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" in the middle of July, and you love it if Christmas-y things pop up at unexpected times of year. You can't wait for Christmas to get here. You mentally start planning out what you're going to do and eat, how you're going to decorate, and where you're going to go for the holiday season waaaaay in advance (like now). When Christmas finally arrives, you are totally reveling in the holiday TV shows, music & movies, the holiday food, the holiday lights, the Christmas sweaters, etc.;

Level 2. You don't think about Christmas at all anytime before Fall or Halloween, but you really love it when it finally arrives. You love the celebration when it's here, but not a second sooner. You love the seasonal offerings and soaking in the beauty of it all, but as soon as January hits you are relieved Christmas/the holiday season is behind you and that you don't have to worry about it for another 11 months; and

Level 3. You merely tolerate the holiday season because you have to (for the kids, for the spouse, for the whomever) and you plan out what to do for the season because it's expected. You may even dread the season's arrival a little bit because it's stressful in terms of shopping, money, entertaining, cooking/baking, traveling, etc. But, you roll with it and eagerly await January.

I am a level 2 for sure. I am normally anti-Christmas until after Thanksgiving...but because I work in retail we can only enjoy Disneyland during the holidays before Thanksgiving. So I have surprised a few friends and family by booking a Christmas trip before Thanksgiving!

 

[AZlady]

Oh, this is fun to admit. I'm a 3!

I have never been to DL at Christmas, but thinking of going the week before Thanksgiving. ( I actually hope it will put me in the holiday mood and get me out of the 3 zone).
I have 2 kids- 13&10. My hubby is great and is a solid 2
With that said, my work gets crazy busy from from about mid-Oct till Feb. And having 3 holidays in 6 weeks makes that time of year hard.

Let me ask~ I do want to see DL in all its holiday spirit...would it be better to go Nov 15/16 or 22/23? I read it may be busier the first weekend it's up? Advise for a bah-humbug gal

 

[aidensmom31]

Does anyone know how busy Christmas morning is? I know during the day will be busy but I am wondering what the morning has been like on the past.

 

[larina]

Does anyone know how busy Christmas morning is? I know during the day will be busy but I am wondering what the morning has been like on the past.

We did not go last year, but Christmas morning 2011 was nice. The parks starts to get crowded early, but those first few hours, while not empty, were pretty light compared to the days leading up to Christmas.

 

[larina]

I am between a one and a two, closer to a one, if I tell the truth. I have always loved Christmas, for as long as I can remember. I have a reputation with my fiends and family. I could receive Christmas ornaments, or other Christmas stuff, any time of the year and nobody would find it odd at all. I don't wear Christmas sweaters in July, but you can find me in holiday T's and/or hats on most days from the day after Thanksgiving until the 2nd or 3rd of January (oh, that's not normal?). I decorate the bar between our kitchen and dining room, as well as the play room, and some in my bedroom and the kids bedroom (my parents won't let me at their room) in addition to the living room. I have Santa night lights and reindeer hand towels for the bathrooms and several sets of holiday dish towels in the kitchen. I used to be a bit ashamed of my Christmas addiction, and being a good hippie kid from San Francisco, plenty of people tried to convince me it was wrong, but now I embrace it and wear my Christmas Freak label proudly!

 

[Sherry E]

I want to comment on the latest (very insightful!) "Level 1, 2 or 3" posts but I'm in the middle of something at the moment and pressed for time, so I will come back later to do it (hopefully we will have even more contributions to the discussion by that time, as I am finding this all extremely interesting!). In the meantime, just a few quick planning-related replies below:

Let me ask~ I do want to see DL in all its holiday spirit...would it be better to go Nov 15/16 or 22/23? I read it may be busier the first weekend it's up? Advise for a bah-humbug gal

AZlady -

Welcome! Thank you for joining us!

About your choice of dates - either set of dates is a weekend, so it will automatically be crowded.

I tend to think that the second set of dates (11/22 & 11/23) will be a bit more crowded because that weekend is closer to Thanksgiving and a lot of folks arrive at DLR during the week and on the weekend before Thanksgiving to enjoy their breaks.

But, otherwise, yes - if it's the first weekend of the season or close to the official season opening date, that will attract a lot of people. At this point I don't think we're sure what the actual start date will be, but it will be somewhere between 11/8 and 11/15. I tend to think that 11/15 is a more likely season opening date, but I could be wrong. Disney could surprise us and start the season earlier.

Does anyone know how busy Christmas morning is? I know during the day will be busy but I am wondering what the morning has been like on the past.

aidensmom31 -

What I've heard echoes what larina said. Christmas morning is supposedly fairly reasonable in terms of crowds, but the crowds pick up within a few hours (I guess after people open presents or have special breakfasts or whatever).

 

[tksbaskets]

Putting myself firmly in level #1 I watched ALL the Hallmark Christmas movies.

Christmas Song (2012) - OK
The Wishing Tree (2012) - good with a message
Matchmaker Santa (2012) - very cute
It's Christmas, Carol! (2012) - featured Carrie Fisher, this was a twist on a Christmas Carol.
Naughty or Nice (2012) - Loved it. She gets a book that lets her know who is on the naught or nice list .... or does it?
Hitched for the Holidays (2012) - OK
A Bride for Christmas (2012) - MY FAVORITE!
The Christmas Heart (2012) - OK
Come Dance With Me (2012) - Cute
Christmas with Holly (2012) - Cute
Help For The Holidays (2012) - Cute
Baby's First Christmas (2012) - Cute

Counting down to next year.

 

[Phoenixrising]

It used to be that Santa arrived at the malls the week after Rememberance Day, now it's usually the first week of November, 5 years ago it was the 3rd week of Nov. Once Santa hits the malls the crowds really start to build, and will continue to do so until Christmas. Now I live within a 7 mins walk to a major mall, so I'll walk, weather co-operating the closer to Christmas. Last Christmas I made DS8 a Head Hunting Snowman (hunts other snowman that is) that was 6 feet tall, 4 feet wide that barely fit through my office door. My DS9 at the time wanted a hamster for Christmas, so I got him royally with not only a Mutant hamster (mutant for the 6 legs to stabilize it), that was 4 feet long, 2 1/2 feet wide and 2 1/2 feet tall. Add to this the "Bomb" for DS9 I made that was close to the height of the Mutant Snowman, and DH was ready to kill me trying to get it all up the stairs Christmas Eve. I don't get mad, I get even, and the bomb was my response to DS9 changing his mind about what he wanted 2 weeks after I had bought what he claimed he wanted, and had bugged me for 6 weeks about it. He ended up getting what he wanted for Christmas (a hamster), and got the other items for his birthday 3 months later. These gifts take alot of thought, creativity and time on my part. But the kids love it, as it makes it a challenge to open them, and I get to hide their gifts in plain sight without them attempting to find the gifts and take a peek before Christmas.

 

[summer0407]

I usually go to the parks the second week of December but this year my schedule will not work. We are thinking of going Nov 13-15 or Nov 14-16. I know we are not sure when holiday season starts but I am wondering is there an early close or is the transition to Christmas after hours? We would like to go when crowds are not to crazy is this a bad time? We would love to have at least one day to experience the holiday decorations. Does anyone know if it opens the 15th when would they possible do the filming for Christmas? We want to avoid that for sure. Any info or thoughts would be great! Thanks

 

[Sherry E]

I usually go to the parks the second week of December but this year my schedule will not work. We are thinking of going Nov 13-15 or Nov 14-16. I know we are not sure when holiday season starts but I am wondering is there an early close or is the transition to Christmas after hours? We would like to go when crowds are not to crazy is this a bad time? We would love to have at least one day to experience the holiday decorations. Does anyone know if it opens the 15th when would they possible do the filming for Christmas? We want to avoid that for sure. Any info or thoughts would be great! Thanks

Hi, summer0407!

Off the top of my head (without going back to check any blogs or other sources of info), I think that the taping for the Christmas parade takes place on the first weekend in November. I don't think it will take place on the weekend leading up to Veteran Day, though I could be wrong.

Crowd-wise, the earlier in November you go, the better. If you go from 11/14 - 11/16, you might encounter more crowds but you will have less of a chance of encountering shorter hours, and the season will have certainly started by 11/15 (if not before then). I would go with the 11/14 - 11/16 dates so - in case the season begins on 11/15 - you can at least get in a full couple of days of the official season, with the longer weekend hours.

As for decorations, there is no question that you will see some decorations when you go. The decorations begin to slowly go up even before Halloween hits. The question is, how much of the decor will be up in the parks when you are there, and will the season have officially begun (meaning, will all the holiday entertainment have begun)? You will miss the hotels' Santas and decorations, but the parks will be decorated.

 

[tksbaskets]

Such happy holiday thoughts! If we can get the reservation we are going to aim for 12/16 - 12/22!! We can't book our DVC until 7 months before our arrival date. Keep your fingers crossed

 

[Sherry E]

Such happy holiday thoughts! If we can get the reservation we are going to aim for 12/16 - 12/22!! We can't book our DVC until 7 months before our arrival date. Keep your fingers crossed

TK -

They're crossed! I hope you're able to get in! You don't have much longer to wait until the 7-month point but I know you have to act fast and jump on it if you can get in!

I meant to comment on your list of Hallmark Christmas movies that you said you had saved and watched. I think I agreed with your comments on all of them (which ones were okay, which ones were good, etc.), and I remember that I especially loved "Naughty or Nice" too! That one was fun!

All those movies you mentioned were the specific new movies that debuted on Hallmark in 2012. Hopefully you caught some of the movies from previous years that they were also running during the countdown, like "Most Wonderful Time of Year," "Trading Christmas," etc. They are all of the same feel-good ilk, but with a good, hearty dose of Christmas romance!

We have slightly over 6 months to go until the next Hallmark Christmas countdown at the beginning of November, with some of the old favorites returning and all new movies debuting as well! Plus, they will probably do another Christmas in Summer marathon, so stay tuned for that in July.

Check around the Internet for movies called "12 Wishes of Christmas," "Christmas Town" and "Christmas Angel." Those were all movies that I caught on other channels last year -- but they totally seemed like they were Hallmark-esque movies; like maybe they had run on Hallmark to begin with and then got bumped off the channel to make room for others. I especially liked "12 Wishes...," but "Christmas Town" was cute too. "Christmas Angel" was a bit more serious in its tone.

​

I wish that Disneyland would hurry and let us know exactly what the dates for the holiday season will be. I really wonder if they will start the season on a Monday again - which would be Veterans Day this year - or if they will wait until Friday, 11/15. After all, it's only been the last couple of years that have had Monday season start dates. The seasons always used to begin on Fridays in the past, so 11/15 wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility. I think that 11/8 might be a tad too early for the official season to have begun, but...stranger things have happened so one never knows.

And...the BIG question is, will there be a party this year -- and if so, will it be held in Disneyland or California Adventure, and how will it affect the holiday entertainment??? I hope that Disney doesn't wait until September (after the summer season has ended) to tell us if there will be a party. I don't think they would wait that long to break that kind of big news -- I don't even think they would wait until August to tell us about a brand new Christmas party -- but I don't fully trust them and their sneaky ways! They are trying to emulate WDW in terms of behaving as more of a "vacation destination," so they should follow the WDW lead and let us know about parties, Candlelight narrators, etc. way in advance!

 

[AZlady]

What party?

Please explain. I got AP for the first time and thinking of trying to visit 11/15 or so ( I have never been at holiday time )

 

[Sherry E]

What party?

Please explain. I got AP for the first time and thinking of trying to visit 11/15 or so ( I have never been at holiday time )

Hi there, AZlady!

So far, there's no party. There has been buzz (or rumors and speculation, really) that Disneyland Resort will eventually follow Walt Disney World's lead and have a Christmas party (with a separate paid ticket to the event). Disneyland already has a Halloween party during Halloween Time so it would make sense if they added in a Christmas party too.

The thing is, to have a Christmas party in Disneyland would inevitably impact some of the existing, longstanding holiday entertainment (like the Christmas Fantasy Parade, the Believe in Holiday Magic Fireworks, the snow on Main Street, Candlelight Ceremony, etc.). So I have wondered if a Christmas party could possibly begin in California Adventure. That would not have been a possibility prior to Cars Land and Buena Vista Street opening last year, but now it could be.

It is pretty much a given that we will get a party at some point -- but the question is, will it be this year or next year or some other year? In which park will it be held? Would it begin in November or December? How will it affect entertainment in the parks and park hours? What would be the "hook" to get us to buy tickets (any party exclusives, etc.)? And so on and so on...

So far, there is no confirmation or announcement of any kind about a party. I tend to think that IF a party is going to take place, the Disney Parks Blog and Disneyland News would probably announce it early on (soon) because it would be a big development for the holiday season and they would want to entice people to plan their trips around this party. The possible debut of a party has been one of the things we are waiting to hear in this thread, because it could affect a lot of people's plans!