First ever Holiday Season trip to Disneyland... need advice!

[overlyexcitedMEX]

Hello, maybe some of you remember my old thread about going back to disneyland after 20 years (link to that thread: http://www.disboards.com/threads/20-years-later-im-going-back-to-disneyland.3416624/ ), so we did that trip back in June, and was amazing! An overall great experience, DW and I got a lot done, and really thought it was going to probably be a couple years before we will go back to disneyland... The thing is my wife is the best! and yesterday out of the blue she just fowarded me the email confirmation for airplane and hotel reservations to go on my birthday!! My birthday is on December 17th, and i am again super excited!! We are going to do a three day visit with park hoppers (15th, 16th and finally Dec 17th) so i have a few questions about what to expect from holiday season at DLR.

First... the crowds... I think that we managed th crowds very well last time around (that trip was from june 29th through july 1st) what level of crowds should i expect this time around? same level? more? less?

Second, what are total must do on holiday season? I know about the Haunted Mansion overlay so that is at the top of my list, but what else? i've heard something about snow falling on mainstreet... what is that all about?

Three, Any recomendations would be gladly taken! I felt last time we covered most of the parks rides, but i feel we lacked a little (or maybe a lot) on the shows and food department. I am seriously considering reservations at the blue bayou for my birthday, so i was wondering about the dining packages for fantasmic, how do these work? would you recommend? We didn't catch fantasmic last time around, we got fast passes, but where a little put off by the crowds being herd into "viewing areas" with people blocking the pass with strollers and what not... we got out of there after 10minute waiting, and used that time to do rides with little wait time.

So there you go, any input would be amazing!!! Thanks!!

 

[figment_jii]

I'm glad to hear you had a good trip last time!

Crowds this year have been a bit difficult to predict; what was historically quieter times haven't really been as quiet as in the past. The 60th Anniversary Celebration has seemed to really increase the crowds in the park. December is a very popular month (historically) and crowds tend to build throughout the month. You'll be there on a Tue, Wed, and Thu, which should help with the crowds. It's still before most school districts are out, but it is also the last few days before the AP blockouts go into effect. So you might see a slight uptick in crowds in the evenings as the local AP holders go into the parks for one last time until January.

Along with Haunted Mansion Holiday, I would also go check out It's A Small World Holiday and Jingle Cruise for holiday-themed overlays. Hyper Space Mountain should also be open, as will Star Wars Launch Bay (though, I don't think either have anything holiday-ish about them). In the past, it would snow periodically on Main Street (as part of the Castle Lightning Ceremony and Believe...In Holiday Magic fireworks). This year, they aren't presenting the holiday fireworks, but the Disneyland Forever fireworks show includes the Frozen-sequence which includes snow. So it'll still snow as part of fireworks! There is also the A Christmas Fantasy parade that should be presented daily (as the afternoon parade), along with other seasonal entertainment (e.g., the Dapper Dans usually sing some holiday songs). There is also the Viva Navidad area over in DCA, lots of decorations throughout both parks (they should be sparkly this year as DLR merges the holidays with the 60th anniversary!), and seasonal foods (e.g., holiday-themed cupcakes, candies, treats, etc.) and merchandise.

The F! Dining Package at the Blue Bayou is a prix fixe meal. It includes three courses, a souvenir seating cushion, and a "FP" for the reserved (ground seating) viewing area for F!. Most Dis'ers that have done the F! dining packages for Blue Bayou and/or RBT have seemed to enjoy the experience. The common complaint is that it's pricey, but most liked having a good view of F!.

 

[TrySomethingNew]

Happy December Birthday! My bday is Dec 15 and I'll be there 14-17! I'll be traveling with a 9yo, though, so I'll be on a different pace.

 

[overlyexcitedMEX]

I'm glad to hear you had a good trip last time!

Crowds this year have been a bit difficult to predict; what was historically quieter times haven't really been as quiet as in the past. The 60th Anniversary Celebration has seemed to really increase the crowds in the park. December is a very popular month (historically) and crowds tend to build throughout the month. You'll be there on a Tue, Wed, and Thu, which should help with the crowds. It's still before most school districts are out, but it is also the last few days before the AP blockouts go into effect. So you might see a slight uptick in crowds in the evenings as the local AP holders go into the parks for one last time until January.

Along with Haunted Mansion Holiday, I would also go check out It's A Small World Holiday and Jingle Cruise for holiday-themed overlays. Hyper Space Mountain should also be open, as will Star Wars Launch Bay (though, I don't think either have anything holiday-ish about them). In the past, it would snow periodically on Main Street (as part of the Castle Lightning Ceremony and Believe...In Holiday Magic fireworks). This year, they aren't presenting the holiday fireworks, but the Disneyland Forever fireworks show includes the Frozen-sequence which includes snow. So it'll still snow as part of fireworks! There is also the A Christmas Fantasy parade that should be presented daily (as the afternoon parade), along with other seasonal entertainment (e.g., the Dapper Dans usually sing some holiday songs). There is also the Viva Navidad area over in DCA, lots of decorations throughout both parks (they should be sparkly this year as DLR merges the holidays with the 60th anniversary!), and seasonal foods (e.g., holiday-themed cupcakes, candies, treats, etc.) and merchandise.

The F! Dining Package at the Blue Bayou is a prix fixe meal. It includes three courses, a souvenir seating cushion, and a "FP" for the reserved (ground seating) viewing area for F!. Most Dis'ers that have done the F! dining packages for Blue Bayou and/or RBT have seemed to enjoy the experience. The common complaint is that it's pricey, but most liked having a good view of F!.

Thannk you for you reply! So i should expect a fairly packed park then... ok... we can handle it. I didn't know about space mountain having an overlay, that's exciting, also star wars launch bay sounds preetty cool too, but probably will be swarmed with being recently open, maybe on Magic Morning Day would be less of a hassle.

About the F! Dinning Package, how does it work? you eat at the restaurant, at whatever time you reserved and then come back to the viewing area for F!? or does it require to eat right before fantasmic and head straight after the meal to the viewing area??

Thank you for your input!

 

[overlyexcitedMEX]

Happy December Birthday! My bday is Dec 15 and I'll be there 14-17! I'll be traveling with a 9yo, though, so I'll be on a different pace.

Thank you! Happy Decenmber Birthday to you too!! Hope you have an amazing time at the park! I know what you mean about the pace, last time DW and I where totally comando, walking past large groups and strollers like lightning mcqueen, it is nice to be able to move around so easily, but we also know that this might be our last trip in a long time we can do that (we plan on getting prenant on 2016), of course it must be a wonderful trade off, to be able to see your little ones reaction to all the disney magic... Hopefully DW and I will get to experience that in a few years...

 

[TrySomethingNew]

Thank you! Happy Decenmber Birthday to you too!! Hope you have an amazing time at the park! I know what you mean about the pace, last time DW and I where totally comando, walking past large groups and strollers like lightning mcqueen, it is nice to be able to move around so easily, but we also know that this might be our last trip in a long time we can do that (we plan on getting prenant on 2016), of course it must be a wonderful trade off, to be able to see your little ones reaction to all the disney magic... Hopefully DW and I will get to experience that in a few years...

That's exciting to think about (babies, kids..)!!! Good luck and have fun this trip. This child I'm taking is at least not in a stroller, so hopefully we can maneuver through the crowds a bit. Downside is she needs more sleep than I do!

 

[ADLFAN]

We loved the F! Package at Blue Bayou! We had the best meal of the trip and great seats right at the front and center! I would book that as soon as you can so you get the time you want. We had a later dinner and got tickets to the second showing of F!. P.S. we have totally ditched our regular FP'S for F! Because the line ups looked so scary! I totally know what you mean! The Blue Bayou line up area was closest to the HM and once the appropriate time was reached, a CM led us to the waterfront seating right in front of the island where the action happens.

I know there are lots of holiday specific treats to enjoy, so definitely spend some time treating yourselves!

I would spend some time enjoying the Aladdin musical in DCA because it is going to be ousted soon, and it is an awesome show with cool theatre seating and certainly a nice air conditioned break. I'm not sure if Mickey and the Magical Map is going to end up being affected by the Star Wars Land construction or not, but it is also a good show with some lesser seen characters and a unique set. Grab a frozen apple juice and a treat to enjoy during the show!

Enjoy the atmosphere of Holiday Time and take many, many adorable pictures!

When you make it back in a few more years, baby in tow, Star Wars Land should be just about ready!

Have fun planning!

 

[theluckyrabbit]

You might want to look into the Holiday Tour. We do it every year and love it!

 

[overlyexcitedMEX]

We loved the F! Package at Blue Bayou! We had the best meal of the trip and great seats right at the front and center! I would book that as soon as you can so you get the time you want. We had a later dinner and got tickets to the second showing of F!. P.S. we have totally ditched our regular FP'S for F! Because the line ups looked so scary! I totally know what you mean! The Blue Bayou line up area was closest to the HM and once the appropriate time was reached, a CM led us to the waterfront seating right in front of the island where the action happens.

I know there are lots of holiday specific treats to enjoy, so definitely spend some time treating yourselves!

I would spend some time enjoying the Aladdin musical in DCA because it is going to be ousted soon, and it is an awesome show with cool theatre seating and certainly a nice air conditioned break. I'm not sure if Mickey and the Magical Map is going to end up being affected by the Star Wars Land construction or not, but it is also a good show with some lesser seen characters and a unique set. Grab a frozen apple juice and a treat to enjoy during the show!

Enjoy the atmosphere of Holiday Time and take many, many adorable pictures!

When you make it back in a few more years, baby in tow, Star Wars Land should be just about ready!

Have fun planning!

Thank you for your input! Your post made me decide to make reservations for the F! dinning package for the blue bayou! I think i read somewhere that besides the three course meal you get a snack platter or something like that at the time of the show as part of the dinning package, am i correct or this is something you have to pay extra for?

How dialogue heavy is the aladdin musical? i ask becouse DW doesn´t speak english, she loves aladdin and she will surely enjoy the musical part of the show, but since i heard that most of the show's greatness comes from the genie improv jokes i am a little concerned that DW wouldn't be able to apreciate it. That being said, we did get to see Mickey and the Magical Map last time around and she totally enjoyed it, precisely becouse of the songs and choreography involved.

About taking lots of pictures we sure will!! A side from the pictures wee took with our own camera, last trip we found the photopass+ to be one of the best spend money on the trip, we ended up with 10 ride photos and over 200 photographer pictures, maybe not all of them where winners, but there are quite a few amazing pictures that we wouldn't had taken if it weren't becouse of photopass+, so that's a must buy for us this trip.

 

[overlyexcitedMEX]

You might want to look into the Holiday Tour. We do it every year and love it!

I'm sure i would probably love it, but DW doesn't speak english and if i try to translate the whole thing to her i wouldn't be able to enjoy it propperly. But thanks for the tip! i might try to find some videos of the tour on youtube and try give a lite version of it to DW.

 

[707MickeyGirl]

I think i read somewhere that besides the three course meal you get a snack platter or something like that at the time of the show as part of the dinning package, am i correct or this is something you have to pay extra for?

Before they went to FastPass for Fantasmic! there was a package you could get that included a wonderful dessert sampler and unlimited beverages, and an actual chair to sit on. That's no longer available. The BB package does include a foam cushion that is yours to keep. It's really nice not to have to sit on the hard ground.

 

[overlyexcitedMEX]

Before they went to FastPass for Fantasmic! there was a package you could get that included a wonderful dessert sampler and unlimited beverages, and an actual chair to sit on. That's no longer available. The BB package does include a foam cushion that is yours to keep. It's really nice not to have to sit on the hard ground.

Ohh too bad the dessert sampler it's not longer a part of the F!DP, can't win them all can you, I already made my reservation anyway. Really looking foward to this, first ever eating at the blue bayou and first ever Fantasmic! it's going to be great!

The cushion sounds great, i am guessing that on december that hard pavement must get pretty chilly... thanks for the info!

 

[ADLFAN]

Thank you for your input! Your post made me decide to make reservations for the F! dinning package for the blue bayou! I think i read somewhere that besides the three course meal you get a snack platter or something like that at the time of the show as part of the dinning package, am i correct or this is something you have to pay extra for?

How dialogue heavy is the aladdin musical? i ask becouse DW doesn´t speak english, she loves aladdin and she will surely enjoy the musical part of the show, but since i heard that most of the show's greatness comes from the genie improv jokes i am a little concerned that DW wouldn't be able to apreciate it. That being said, we did get to see Mickey and the Magical Map last time around and she totally enjoyed it, precisely becouse of the songs and choreography involved.

About taking lots of pictures we sure will!! A side from the pictures wee took with our own camera, last trip we found the photopass+ to be one of the best spend money on the trip, we ended up with 10 ride photos and over 200 photographer pictures, maybe not all of them where winners, but there are quite a few amazing pictures that we wouldn't had taken if it weren't becouse of photopass+, so that's a must buy for us this trip.

We were so stuffed that we ended up getting the deserts packaged to go, and nibbled on them during the show! There is also that cinnamon roll cart by the HM...

I'd say that the Genies humor is a pretty big part of the Aladdin show, but maybe you could translate the funnier jokes for her? The sets and the costumes and the songs are all very worth checking out - super high quality! It is a longer show at 45 minutes, so kind of a time commitment. Maybe you could sit on an aisle and if she wasn't feeling it halfway through, you could exit and move on.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

I'm sure i would probably love it, but DW doesn't speak english and if i try to translate the whole thing to her i wouldn't be able to enjoy it propperly. But thanks for the tip! i might try to find some videos of the tour on youtube and try give a lite version of it to DW.

Some of the tour guides speak Spanish, so you might want to contact Disney to ask about requesting a bilingual guide. Then your guide could quickly translate the most important parts for your DW (mostly a little of the history of Holiday Time at DL and some things worth noting on Main Street; the taped parts on the headset loop are not crucial to the tour). The tour includes a few rides (e.g. HMH, IASWH) and VIP seats for the Holiday Parade. You also get free cocoa, a cookie, and a pin.

As for Aladdin, definitely try to see it because it is going away in January. This would be your last chance!

 

[ladybugg661]

Will F! have a week day showing Dec 14 to the 17th?

 

[overlyexcitedMEX]

We were so stuffed that we ended up getting the deserts packaged to go, and nibbled on them during the show! There is also that cinnamon roll cart by the HM...

I'd say that the Genies humor is a pretty big part of the Aladdin show, but maybe you could translate the funnier jokes for her? The sets and the costumes and the songs are all very worth checking out - super high quality! It is a longer show at 45 minutes, so kind of a time commitment. Maybe you could sit on an aisle and if she wasn't feeling it halfway through, you could exit and move on.

That's a good idea, we'll surely check it out! Thanks!

 

[overlyexcitedMEX]

Some of the tour guides speak Spanish, so you might want to contact Disney to ask about requesting a bilingual guide. Then your guide could quickly translate the most important parts for your DW (mostly a little of the history of Holiday Time at DL and some things worth noting on Main Street; the taped parts on the headset loop are not crucial to the tour). The tour includes a few rides (e.g. HMH, IASWH) and VIP seats for the Holiday Parade. You also get free cocoa, a cookie, and a pin.

As for Aladdin, definitely try to see it because it is going away in January. This would be your last chance!

Hmm... good i didn't know about the other perks that came with the tour... i'll might just check it out, thanks!

 

[overlyexcitedMEX]

Will F! have a week day showing Dec 14 to the 17th?

Well... they surely took my reservation for the F! dinner package so i am taking that as a confirmation for it... however i think that park hours for that week are from 8:00am to 12:00am so i am guessing that that week is considered "high season" by DLR, so i am hoping F! shows during the week like in summer time.

 

[overlyexcitedMEX]

Ok... Just bought 4day park Hoppers, got a sweet 14dllr discount on each ticket from parksavers.com, so the question is what to do with this extra day at the park? staying another day on the hotel is off the equation becouse of my travel schedule so the 4th day is going to to be just half day, i can use it on Monday 14th, we'll be arriving to Anaheim around 1pm so i could just check in and head straitght to the park. Or i could use it on Friday 18th morning, from rope drop to about 1pm to head north to valencia becouse we are going to Six Flags on Saturday.

If i use it on Monday i get more hours at the park (from 1pm to 12pm) if i use it on friday i get another ropedrop so, i can ride stuff with less wait time, but i only get to be at the parks from 8am to 1pm.

So what would you recommend? More hours at the park on monday afternoon or another ropedrop morning and beeing at the park when is less crowded?

 

[ADLFAN]

I think Monday would be best so that you can get there and go play right away! I can't be that close to Disneyland and stay out of the parks!

Sounds like your Friday will be a travel day, so I would be tempted to sleep in a bit and have a un-rushed breakfast before starting the drive. A bit of a break before your next theme park experience!