ESPN Zone on Thanksgiving

[Brer Kevin]

Hey All,

Will be arriving to WDW with the family (3 adults) on the night of Wednesday 11/26. Have already mapped out our itinerary and plan to have a pretty busy first day on Thanksgiving, and wanted to know if you guys think it sounds realistic.

That morning we plan to rope drop DHS and hit up the major attractions we want to see during the day/early afternoon (as we will be returning to DHS again later in our trip). We already have our FP+ lined up for the day and have an ADR there at Sci-Fi for lunch.

Being big Cowboys fans, we have a lot of interest in catching the 4:30 Thanksgiving game against the Eagles. So the plan was to head out of DHS at about 3:30 and heading back to the hotel to catch the first half there and for a quick shower/change.

Afterwards we were thinking it would be fun to try and catch the second half of the game (probably around 6:00 or so) at ESPN Zone at the Boardwalk. My main concern here is what type of crowds to expect at the restaurant on Thanksgiving. Maybe others know from prior years and visits, but our plans are to simply sit at the bar and ordering a few drinks in an exciting atmosphere to catch the game.

My thought process is that the parks and other restaurants with a more traditional Thanksgiving feel to it would be more crowded, thus enabling us to get seats easily. But football on Thanksgiving can be a big draw, so who knows lol. Nonetheless, we have our own "traditional" Thanksgiving dinner ADR at Trail's End at Fort Wilderness to cap the night at 8:30.

Nonetheless, just wanted to know if you guys thought that this Thanksgiving plan sounds feasible? We are definitely going to do DHS during the morning and end the night Fort Wilderness, but specifically wanted to know if squeezing in ESPN Zone on the Boardwalk sounds manageable. Otherwise, we will probably just hang in the hotel until dinner time.

Thanks!

 

[Hopefully]

Hey All,

Will be arriving to WDW with the family (3 adults) on the night of Wednesday 11/26. Have already mapped out our itinerary and plan to have a pretty busy first day on Thanksgiving, and wanted to know if you guys think it sounds realistic.

That morning we plan to rope drop DHS and hit up the major attractions we want to see during the day/early afternoon (as we will be returning to DHS again later in our trip). We already have our FP+ lined up for the day and have an ADR there at Sci-Fi for lunch.

Being big Cowboys fans, we have a lot of interest in catching the 4:30 Thanksgiving game against the Eagles. So the plan was to head out of DHS at about 3:30 and heading back to the hotel to catch the first half there and for a quick shower/change.

Afterwards we were thinking it would be fun to try and catch the second half of the game (probably around 6:00 or so) at ESPN Zone at the Boardwalk. My main concern here is what type of crowds to expect at the restaurant on Thanksgiving. Maybe others know from prior years and visits, but our plans are to simply sit at the bar and ordering a few drinks in an exciting atmosphere to catch the game.

My thought process is that the parks and other restaurants with a more traditional Thanksgiving feel to it would be more crowded, thus enabling us to get seats easily. But football on Thanksgiving can be a big draw, so who knows lol. Nonetheless, we have our own "traditional" Thanksgiving dinner ADR at Trail's End at Fort Wilderness to cap the night at 8:30.

Nonetheless, just wanted to know if you guys thought that this Thanksgiving plan sounds feasible? We are definitely going to do DHS during the morning and end the night Fort Wilderness, but specifically wanted to know if squeezing in ESPN Zone on the Boardwalk sounds manageable. Otherwise, we will probably just hang in the hotel until dinner time.

Thanks!

I agree that the restaurants with traditional Thanksgiving menus will be busy. But so will ESPN. Thanksgiving Day is very busy. NFL football is a big draw, all season. There are more people wanting to eat, and there are more people wanting to watch the game.
Generally lines start forming for NFL games 60 - 90 minutes before kickoff. I think your idea to find a seat at the bar at 6:00 is unrealistic. You very well may be standing in line waiting for someone to leave before you can get in.
Plus getting to Fort Wilderness will take quite a while. Disney recommends 90 minutes if using internal transportation.
I am thinking you are staying at the Boardwalk. Your best bet to get to Fort Wilderness from there will be to take a bus to the MK and then a ferry to FW. You need to build in time to wait for the bus, travel time to the MK, time to wait for the ferry and travel time to Fort Wilderness by ferry. Plus they ask you to check in 15 minutes before your ADR. That doesn't leave much time at ESPN, even if you could get in
Good Luck

 

[nkereina]

We've been to ESPN Club on a Sunday during September - a slow time of year at WDW, and also during the beginning of football season when games aren't as crucial necessarily. We arrived almost two hours before kick-off and got one of the last tables in the bar area.

With Thanksgiving being a crowd level 10, I would suspect ESPN Club will be packed. Along with every other restaurant in WDW. If people are choosing to spend their Thanksgiving at WDW, they may not necessarily be in search of those "traditional" type of Thanksgiving foods either. I would either plan to get there a few hours before kick-off, or try to reserve the VIP package. It may be booked up by now but if you can reserve it, it has a $55 food & beverage minimum per person but guarantees you a table.

 

[RyMickey]

While walking around WDW two weeks ago, the sports "region" that I saw best represented was the Philly market. Considering that the game is Eagles/Dallas -- both with large fan bases and a heated rivalry -- I'd assume you'd be out of luck despite the fact that it's Thanksgiving.

On another note: Go Eagles!

 

[Doofenschmirz Evil]

I assume you were talking about the ESPN restaurant on the boardwalk, but one thing I thought I'd mention. We've gone to the Old Spice Classic in ESPN's Wide World of Sports Complex a couple of times. And both times we ate at the ESPN restaurant across from the stadium in WWoS. It has lots of TVs and it has a nice Turkey dinner meal you can order on Thanksgiving. And that restaurant was not busy at all on Thanksgiving in the time window you are mentioning. Lots of free tables.

In general, many of the Disney Food courts have special thanksgiving related meals on that day, so if you can find someplace with TVs, you can often have the best of both worlds and still be at DW.

 

[disnut8]

Hey All,

Will be arriving to WDW with the family (3 adults) on the night of Wednesday 11/26. Have already mapped out our itinerary and plan to have a pretty busy first day on Thanksgiving, and wanted to know if you guys think it sounds realistic.

That morning we plan to rope drop DHS and hit up the major attractions we want to see during the day/early afternoon (as we will be returning to DHS again later in our trip). We already have our FP+ lined up for the day and have an ADR there at Sci-Fi for lunch.

Being big Cowboys fans, we have a lot of interest in catching the 4:30 Thanksgiving game against the Eagles. So the plan was to head out of DHS at about 3:30 and heading back to the hotel to catch the first half there and for a quick shower/change.

Afterwards we were thinking it would be fun to try and catch the second half of the game (probably around 6:00 or so) at ESPN Zone at the Boardwalk. My main concern here is what type of crowds to expect at the restaurant on Thanksgiving. Maybe others know from prior years and visits, but our plans are to simply sit at the bar and ordering a few drinks in an exciting atmosphere to catch the game.

My thought process is that the parks and other restaurants with a more traditional Thanksgiving feel to it would be more crowded, thus enabling us to get seats easily. But football on Thanksgiving can be a big draw, so who knows lol. Nonetheless, we have our own "traditional" Thanksgiving dinner ADR at Trail's End at Fort Wilderness to cap the night at 8:30.

Nonetheless, just wanted to know if you guys thought that this Thanksgiving plan sounds feasible? We are definitely going to do DHS during the morning and end the night Fort Wilderness, but specifically wanted to know if squeezing in ESPN Zone on the Boardwalk sounds manageable. Otherwise, we will probably just hang in the hotel until dinner time.

Thanks!

Honestly, with the "big Cowboys fan" comment, I would suggest you just stay at your resort and watch the game. You probably could get into ESPN and feel the vibe from the crowd there but would you want to maybe miss the second half of the game?

If the game is important to you, stay at the resort. If the atmosphere is important, then go to ESPN. That's your decision.

Philly girl here and giving some advice to a Cowboy. UGH!