Hello All!!!!! My family and I are BEYOND excited about our FIRST upcoming trip to Disney in December!! The only time we are able to go is Christmas Week (20-26th) I know this is one of the busiest times of the year but with this being the only time we are able to go, I am looking for ANY type of help, tips, tricks that we can use so we can hopefully have the best time on our first visit!! I am hoping someone who has visited that same week can tell me what to expect. I already have all our ADR's booked and have our FP rides lined up when it is time for me to book them in October. I'm trying my hardest to make sure my family has the time of our lives, but at the same time i'm worried that we will not be able to get the full "joy" of Disney with the crowds at their highest!!!
First timers!! Need some advice!!! December 2015!!!
- Thread starter HC2015
- Start date
Aliceacc
DIS Legend
- Joined
- Jul 2, 2007
- Messages
- 13,463
Welcome!!
OK, a few points to ponder:
- Know that you can't possibly see it all and do it all. So take a deep breath and let go of that idea, as we've all done. Your aim is to have a fabulous family vacation. If there's something wonderful that you can't see this trip, it goes to the top of the list for next time.
- Your vacation is only as pleasant as the least happy person in your group. So if your youngest is falling asleep on his/her feet, you're ALL going to be miserable until he/she gets to bed. Who that person is will shift from one moment to the next. That's OK. Your job as vacation planner/parent is to keep that person as happy as you can.
-No one show/ride/attraction/meal is worth making everyone miserable. So if you really, really want to see ___, but it's in 2 hours and you need to get back to the resort NOW, get back to the resort. You've got to keep the greater good in mind, not the Disney tourbook. You would much prefer the summary of the trip to be "Although we never got to see __, we had such a good time!!!" rather than "Yeah, we saw __ but we were too tired/hot/cold/hungry to enjoy it."
- Have everyone name one or two "must sees/must dos" and try your hardest to get them all checked off your list. Anything beyond that is extra.
- We only go over the summer. So the crowd levels are high, but not as high as you'll be seeing. What works best for us (though not everyone) is getting to the parks for rope drop (translation: about 20 minutes or so before the parks open.) We do the bulk of our "hard core" touring during those early hours when so many other people are sleeping in or enjoying their Mickey Pancakes. By the time the parks get crazy busy at around lunchtime, we've done most of the real big attractions. We have lunch, then use those FP+'s, then head back to the resort for a swim. It works well for us.
-We always stock up on gift cards in the time leading up to the trip. Birthdays, Halloween, you name it... any occasion will justify a gift card. That's our spending money.
- Make sure shoes are well broken in, that you bring a power strip so you can charge all the electronics. You'll probably want to bring layers of clothing, since I understand the weather that time of year can be variable.
Have fun!!
OK, a few points to ponder:
- Know that you can't possibly see it all and do it all. So take a deep breath and let go of that idea, as we've all done. Your aim is to have a fabulous family vacation. If there's something wonderful that you can't see this trip, it goes to the top of the list for next time.
- Your vacation is only as pleasant as the least happy person in your group. So if your youngest is falling asleep on his/her feet, you're ALL going to be miserable until he/she gets to bed. Who that person is will shift from one moment to the next. That's OK. Your job as vacation planner/parent is to keep that person as happy as you can.
-No one show/ride/attraction/meal is worth making everyone miserable. So if you really, really want to see ___, but it's in 2 hours and you need to get back to the resort NOW, get back to the resort. You've got to keep the greater good in mind, not the Disney tourbook. You would much prefer the summary of the trip to be "Although we never got to see __, we had such a good time!!!" rather than "Yeah, we saw __ but we were too tired/hot/cold/hungry to enjoy it."
- Have everyone name one or two "must sees/must dos" and try your hardest to get them all checked off your list. Anything beyond that is extra.
- We only go over the summer. So the crowd levels are high, but not as high as you'll be seeing. What works best for us (though not everyone) is getting to the parks for rope drop (translation: about 20 minutes or so before the parks open.) We do the bulk of our "hard core" touring during those early hours when so many other people are sleeping in or enjoying their Mickey Pancakes. By the time the parks get crazy busy at around lunchtime, we've done most of the real big attractions. We have lunch, then use those FP+'s, then head back to the resort for a swim. It works well for us.
-We always stock up on gift cards in the time leading up to the trip. Birthdays, Halloween, you name it... any occasion will justify a gift card. That's our spending money.
- Make sure shoes are well broken in, that you bring a power strip so you can charge all the electronics. You'll probably want to bring layers of clothing, since I understand the weather that time of year can be variable.
Have fun!!
bridgetbriarrose
aspiring mouseketeer
- Joined
- Apr 29, 2015
- Messages
- 52
Congrats on your upcoming disney trip, I'm so excited for yall to experience the magical, albeit busy Christmas atmosphere of Disney. 
The best advice is to begin researching info on wdwinfo.com as well as other websites like wdwprepschool, touringplans blog, and easywdw (they have great touring plans, cheatsheets, and maps).
Set aside a bit of time to schedule out your trip because especially in the busy seasons, an Excel spreadsheet of ADRS, meals, fastpasses, and must do character meet & greets or rides will simplify and allow you to visualize your trip.
Despite being a teenager, I'm the dis fanatic in my house so I take charge of all the booking and planning for our disney trips and now my first disney family reunion! (Luckily that's not happening during the holidays).
Don't be afraid to plan, extensively or just the basics, as you can always be spontaneous -but without some idea of a touring plan, you'll be aimless in the crowds.
I recommend easywdw because they have cheatsheets with touring plans to easily go through the parks, and easily-read maps of the parks.
Touringplans.com is also great because with a small subscription fee, they have a mobile app with actually accurate wait times (the disney app is notoriously slow and glitchy & the posted waittimes aren't accurate/updated that often). They also have plans that you can customize, even if you never us them, to organize your rides, meals, and breaks.
Finally (sorry for the info overload, I could go on for days) wdwinfo and the dis is a great info source for news updates and the aspects of the parks and resorts.
Beyond planning, here are some must dos:
-Florida winter is very iffy so it can get quite cold up to mild weather so pack lots of layers.
-
-Rope drop is the best way to get a jump on the crowds, but don't try to be at the park that early if the kids are too tired.
-
-Same goes for Extra magic hours: unless you can allow an hour from wake up to be at the bus stop and an hour for transit and getting through the turnstiles, the extra crowds that come along with the EMHs make waits even worse. So, just know your family and if they can be up a 6 for an 8 am open or better served sleeping more and skipping the extra busy EMH park.
-
-Moleskin is perfect to put on sore blisters.
-
-The second parade/show of the night is always less busy.
-
-Still drink lots of that free ice water you can get at any counter service restaurant and take an afternoon break for relaxation, naps, etc to avoid total meltdown.
There's probably an encyclopedia more I could write but just remember to relax and enjoy the experience.
The best advice is to begin researching info on wdwinfo.com as well as other websites like wdwprepschool, touringplans blog, and easywdw (they have great touring plans, cheatsheets, and maps).
Set aside a bit of time to schedule out your trip because especially in the busy seasons, an Excel spreadsheet of ADRS, meals, fastpasses, and must do character meet & greets or rides will simplify and allow you to visualize your trip.
Despite being a teenager, I'm the dis fanatic in my house so I take charge of all the booking and planning for our disney trips and now my first disney family reunion! (Luckily that's not happening during the holidays).
Don't be afraid to plan, extensively or just the basics, as you can always be spontaneous -but without some idea of a touring plan, you'll be aimless in the crowds.
I recommend easywdw because they have cheatsheets with touring plans to easily go through the parks, and easily-read maps of the parks.
Touringplans.com is also great because with a small subscription fee, they have a mobile app with actually accurate wait times (the disney app is notoriously slow and glitchy & the posted waittimes aren't accurate/updated that often). They also have plans that you can customize, even if you never us them, to organize your rides, meals, and breaks.
Finally (sorry for the info overload, I could go on for days) wdwinfo and the dis is a great info source for news updates and the aspects of the parks and resorts.
Beyond planning, here are some must dos:
-Florida winter is very iffy so it can get quite cold up to mild weather so pack lots of layers.
-
-Rope drop is the best way to get a jump on the crowds, but don't try to be at the park that early if the kids are too tired.
-
-Same goes for Extra magic hours: unless you can allow an hour from wake up to be at the bus stop and an hour for transit and getting through the turnstiles, the extra crowds that come along with the EMHs make waits even worse. So, just know your family and if they can be up a 6 for an 8 am open or better served sleeping more and skipping the extra busy EMH park.
-
-Moleskin is perfect to put on sore blisters.
-
-The second parade/show of the night is always less busy.
-
-Still drink lots of that free ice water you can get at any counter service restaurant and take an afternoon break for relaxation, naps, etc to avoid total meltdown.
There's probably an encyclopedia more I could write but just remember to relax and enjoy the experience.
Sytrace
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2015
- Messages
- 2,324
Hi!
How exciting for you and your family to be visiting WDW diring the holidays. Every park has awesome holiday decor and atmosphere. And yes, it will be busy but the good news is the weather won't be "middle of July you can't breathe hot. " trust me, this is a big bonus.
Pack a light jacket/hoody with jeans, ling pants and light sweaters or long sleeves and you should be good to go for weather. Cold to Floridians is 60 degrees but you will see flip flops and shorts even at the end of December.
As noted above, take advantage of Extra Magic Hours at all the parks as a resort guest. I highly recommend the Candleight Processional at EPCOT as well as the magical parades at MK and the fireworks at Hollywood Studios, EPCOT and MK are amazing.
Here are some highlights from each park. I don't know the ages of your party, so this wil be general. If you would like to share specific ages, I can narrow it down for you.
MK: The Mountains... Space, Splash and Big Thunder. Splash might be chilly as you will get wet, so a rain poncho will be a good thing to have handy.
Fantasyland has Peter Pan(refurbished recently) , Small world, Ariels grotto, Snow White Mine train ( book FP as early as you can) and Winnie the Pooh. Elsa and Anna meet and greets book fast so if you have kids who will want to see them, book FP for them.
EPCOT: Test Track, Mission Space, Soarin and The Land attractions are usually packed so book FP as early as you can.
*** note on FP **** you can only book 3 per day for one park. Once you use your 3, you can book additional one by one but must do so at the park kiosk. This is hard sometimes because one might want to park hop. If you do park hop and have used all your passes, you can go to another park and book them one by one.
Animal Kingdom: Kilimanjaro Safari attraction is a must see. In December you can go anytime and the animals will be more active than during hotter times of the year. ( another bonus to December visits) also check out Kali river rapids (bring the ponchos) Dinosaur and various attractions in Dinoland. Nemo's show, The Lion King show and Camp Mickey Minnie are pretty fun too! The Tree of Life and It's Tough to be a Bug are popular and must sees.
Hollywood Studios: Rock and Roller coaster, Tower of Terror and the Beauty and the Beast show. Indiana Jones stunt spectacular....I can get a closing date for you, but I think that will happen in 2016.
I am sorry to write so much, but these are big hits in my family and cover a wide range of ages.
I can also share thoughts on Downtown Disney and various Disney resorts if you would like. We have stayed at the majority of them.
I am so excited for you! You will have an amazing time and earn the best Mom in the Universe award for sure. Planning is fun but can be challenging.
Tracey
How exciting for you and your family to be visiting WDW diring the holidays. Every park has awesome holiday decor and atmosphere. And yes, it will be busy but the good news is the weather won't be "middle of July you can't breathe hot. " trust me, this is a big bonus.
Pack a light jacket/hoody with jeans, ling pants and light sweaters or long sleeves and you should be good to go for weather. Cold to Floridians is 60 degrees but you will see flip flops and shorts even at the end of December.
As noted above, take advantage of Extra Magic Hours at all the parks as a resort guest. I highly recommend the Candleight Processional at EPCOT as well as the magical parades at MK and the fireworks at Hollywood Studios, EPCOT and MK are amazing.
Here are some highlights from each park. I don't know the ages of your party, so this wil be general. If you would like to share specific ages, I can narrow it down for you.
MK: The Mountains... Space, Splash and Big Thunder. Splash might be chilly as you will get wet, so a rain poncho will be a good thing to have handy.
Fantasyland has Peter Pan(refurbished recently) , Small world, Ariels grotto, Snow White Mine train ( book FP as early as you can) and Winnie the Pooh. Elsa and Anna meet and greets book fast so if you have kids who will want to see them, book FP for them.
EPCOT: Test Track, Mission Space, Soarin and The Land attractions are usually packed so book FP as early as you can.
*** note on FP **** you can only book 3 per day for one park. Once you use your 3, you can book additional one by one but must do so at the park kiosk. This is hard sometimes because one might want to park hop. If you do park hop and have used all your passes, you can go to another park and book them one by one.
Animal Kingdom: Kilimanjaro Safari attraction is a must see. In December you can go anytime and the animals will be more active than during hotter times of the year. ( another bonus to December visits) also check out Kali river rapids (bring the ponchos) Dinosaur and various attractions in Dinoland. Nemo's show, The Lion King show and Camp Mickey Minnie are pretty fun too! The Tree of Life and It's Tough to be a Bug are popular and must sees.
Hollywood Studios: Rock and Roller coaster, Tower of Terror and the Beauty and the Beast show. Indiana Jones stunt spectacular....I can get a closing date for you, but I think that will happen in 2016.
I am sorry to write so much, but these are big hits in my family and cover a wide range of ages.
I can also share thoughts on Downtown Disney and various Disney resorts if you would like. We have stayed at the majority of them.
I am so excited for you! You will have an amazing time and earn the best Mom in the Universe award for sure. Planning is fun but can be challenging.
Tracey
littleblackegg
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Sep 6, 2014
- Messages
- 1,159
I agree with all of the above!! You will see so many overwhelmed families exhausted from trying to make everything perfect. These are the people who get to the park at rope drop and don't leave until after the fireworks. They eat everything from counter service and on the run because they don't want to miss one second of their perfect vacation. They stand in endless lines to get photos with every character, even if it is one the kids have never heard of. Everything is about the photos, the perfect matching outfits, the scripted "magical moments" that they have seen online or in another families' album. The children are exhausted. Hungry. Overwhelmed. In need of real human contact. Deeeeeeeep breattthhhhhh. The trip is about you. Your real, squishy moments with each other. Tearing up. Laughing your heads off. Wearing what is comfortable. Eating things that are totally yummy in a great environment. Sleeping in a little and ordering room service. Having the cast members in Epcot teaching you to say, "I love you" in six different languages and saying it all day. Milk and cookies at bedtime. Hugs and kisses all day long. I mean, anybody can do a commando vacation so they don't "miss anything." Any extraordinary family can have an extraordinary Christmas full of joy and love and family bonding that can last decades. Nothing is perfect. Love is amazing. My wish for you is for a perfect Disney Christmas full of togetherness. "The most fantastic, magical things can happen, and it all starts with a wish."
Sounds like a great trip! I have always wanted to have my kids wake up on Chriestmas morning in Disney World. Our family has visited several times during the holiday season and in addition to the great tips listed above, I would also recommend taking some time (especially if crowds are crazy) to see some of the amazing decorations at the resorts. Also enjoy some of the holiday performers at Epcot-my kids loved seeing all of the holiday traditions from around the world. Osborne lights at Hollywood Studios are fantastic. Definitely plan your Fastpasses for your must-do attractions, but definitely take time to enjoy the atmosphere. Disney is always amazing, but around the holidays it is even more magical!
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