Fourth of July at Disney - What did you do? Would you go again?

[CampbellzSoup]

Happy belated independence day to my favorite people in the world!

I just wanted to ask my DISers a few questions about the Fouth of July at Disney, and what did you guys do?

• Is it SUPER duper packed?
• Did you get reserved seating anywhere - and how far out did you book this?
• Would you do it again - or was it that crazy?
• How were the fireworks?
• Any special photo ops / character meet and greets?

Thank you all as always - as I might be going there next year for the fourth, and just thought I'd toss my line in and see what the experts have to say!

 

[cindyfan]

We have gone several times for July 4th!!! We loved it and would definitely go at that time again! Let me see if I can answer your questions...
*yes, but not as bad as spring break or Christmas... if you plan right it's manageable.
*Yes, we booked a few ADRs but we don't normally do sit-down everyday. And we stay away from the over-priced overly popular ones like Be Our Guest, So we made our ADRs probably 90 days in advance.
*Yes, absolutely go again over July 4, just make sure to leave by like the 6th or 7th as the South American tour groups show up then!!
*Fireworks are phenomenal!!!! Best ever anywhere!! We saw MK fireworks on the 3rd and then DHS on the 4th, next time we plan Epcot on the 4th instead.
*no real special photo ops or meet and greets, but they do decorate in all red, white and blue!! It's really nice!!

 

[hiroMYhero]

In Epcot, Mickey, Goofy, and Donald appear in their Patriotic/Revolutionary War uniform attire for meet and greets. The 3 characters can be seen playing the fife and drums while taking part in the 4th of July stage show with the Voices of Liberty.

 

[CampbellzSoup]

We have gone several times for July 4th!!! We loved it and would definitely go at that time again! Let me see if I can answer your questions...
*yes, but not as bad as spring break or Christmas... if you plan right it's manageable.
*Yes, we booked a few ADRs but we don't normally do sit-down everyday. And we stay away from the over-priced overly popular ones like Be Our Guest, So we made our ADRs probably 90 days in advance.
*Yes, absolutely go again over July 4, just make sure to leave by like the 6th or 7th as the South American tour groups show up then!!
*Fireworks are phenomenal!!!! Best ever anywhere!! We saw MK fireworks on the 3rd and then DHS on the 4th, next time we plan Epcot on the 4th instead.
*no real special photo ops or meet and greets, but they do decorate in all red, white and blue!! It's really nice!!

Thanks for the awesome reply!!!!

Did you have a problem getting a spot for the fireworks??

 

[hakepb]

I wish I could go back in time and do the week of July 4, 2016.
It appears crowds and ride lines were historically low this year (I imagine it won't happen again)

 

[photo_chick]

We like to go the week of July 4th. Our last two trips have been during that time, and our next one in 2018 will be as well. We do MK on the 3rd and Epcot on the 4th. My experience has been that parks seem less crowded on the 5th and 6th. I've never looked at data to prove this, it just feels that way to me.

**Is it super packed? It only felt that way at fireworks time to me. Use FP's wisely and a good app to help you find the shortest wait time for rides and you'll stay so busy you won't notice the crowd. Those places that don't usually have long lines, like Hall of Presidents, still don't have long lines. Use the 3rd and 4th for the less sought out attractions if you don't like long waits. We did DHS the first time we were there on the 4th and the crowd at the fireworks show was the only bad experience we had. And even that wasn't really that bad. FWIW, my son is Autistic and doesn't do heavy crowds or long waits well. We only had to pull him out of the situation to refocus once during our last trip.
** Did we get reserved seating? For ADR's? Yep. We eat our way around the world. Booked as soon as the system would let me which i think was 183 days out because of our arrival date. Chef Mickey on the 3rd and Princess Storybook Breakfast on the 4th. I know, not very patriotic food.
** Would I do it again? Absolutely. nobody does July 4th fireworks like Disney does.
** Are there special photo ops? Yes in Epcot. Epcot seems to have more going on for the 4th, and only on the 4th, which is why we spend the day there. With MK doing it's show the 3rd and 4th we get to see everything we want to that way.

 

[cindyfan]

Thanks for the awesome reply!!!!

Did you have a problem getting a spot for the fireworks??

No. Not too bad. The cast members are very strict about keeping the walkways clear so if you pick a spot early keep that in mind. We easily grabbed a spot on Main Street about an hour to hour and half before.

 

[MidgeD79]

We usually go over the4th of July. Our best time was going to Blizzard Beach for the day and the Luau at the Polynesian for dinner. After dinner they let us on the beach to watch the fireworks from the Magic Kingdom.

 

[Klayfish]

Thanks for the awesome reply!!!!

Did you have a problem getting a spot for the fireworks??

We've done several 4th of July holidays at WDW, including the past two years (though this year we drove home on July 4th). Yes, I'd do it again, and we will do it again in 2017. Yes, it's super busy, but if you plan your day right, you can manage it.

If you've never done it before, then I'd suggest staying in MK for fireworks. Once you do it once, then another year try something else. It's awesome in front of the castle, but the crowd is nuts. You definitely need to be there early and be prepared to be packed like sardines, with always that last minute straggler who wants to cut in front of you or your kids. So for us, we'll go to MK in the morning on 4th of July, but somewhere else at night.

 

[PrincessV]

• Is it SUPER duper packed?
• Did you get reserved seating anywhere - and how far out did you book this?
• Would you do it again - or was it that crazy?
• How were the fireworks?
• Any special photo ops / character meet and greets?

I spend every July 4th at WDW!

Yes and no... I've done early morning at AK and MK and both were nearly empty until around 11am. I've never set foot in MK, AK or HS later in the day on the 4th, but I've seen pics fo MK: PACKED like sardines. I've gone to EP for the evening the past few years and it's busy, but totally manageable.

I almost alwyas book dinner when ADRs open. And then I change it several times over the ensuing months, lol! My final booking this year was about a month out. I used FP for rides, not fireworks.

Absolutely, I plan to go back every year! It's our family tradition.

Fireworks are absolutely amazing; nothing else will ever compare now. We used to watch the MK fireworks from the Poly beach, but made the switch to EP a few years ago. This year we saw the special Independence Day MK fireworks on the 3rd and the special EP show on the 4th... I prefer EP's, but really enjoyed doing both.

We don't do photo ops/character meets, so I cant say.