Going in November or December

[PrincessJen09]

I was wondering if anyone had ever been to Disney World over Thanksgiving break. This would be perfect for my family because of school, but my dad refuses to go if there are crowds. We were also considering going right before Thanksgiving or right after it. What are everyone's suggestions? Also, we want to see the Christmas decorations. Thanks for any advice.

 

[CTillberg]

I have not been there over Thanksgiving myself, but I have heard it is very crowded. You can bet that whenever schools are out, Disney is crowded. We like to go shortly after Thanksgiving. The holiday decorations are out and just beautiful. I don't know how much before Thanksgiving the holiday decorations are out, so if that is a priority, I would go after Thanksgiving.

 

[01Sweetpea]

We are looking at the week of Thanksgiving for the exact same reason...the kids vacation. I will pull them out of school for 2 days. I expect it to be very crowded, but with the right planning and ADRs we should be OK.

Right now I am deciding between 1 GV room at the Poly or 2 rooms at POFQ. I'm thinking being at the Poly during the holiday time MIGHT make it easier to get around.

 

[Maleficents_Revenge]

We went last year the week before Christmas. The last two days of the trip (22nd and 23rd) were very crowded. Other than that, it was great. Little to no waits everywhere. I would go back every year at that time if it worked with my daughters school. As it is now, we are going the second week in November this year.

 

[Feralpeg]

The week of Thanksgiving and the week directly following are very crowded. The next week was relatively light this past year. The decorations are usually up during Thanksgiving or immediately after.

 

[2giddy4wdw]

We go the Friday after Thanksgiving through the following Saturday. That weekend is busy!!!! But starting Sunday afternoon the crowds drop right off. I mean like 5-10 minute waits. MVMCP starts that week and all the christmas decorations are up. The Osborne lights are on. It's the greatest time to go. The following week starts Pop Warner. And I heard that can be crowded, but not that crowded. We have always taken the kids out of school, just because it's less crowded, decorated for christmas, and starting that sunday or monday(can't remember which) is value season. I think this is the best time to go!!! It's still warm enough to swim, but not to hot that you are sweaty all the time. We usually wear tshirts and shorts during the day and grab a sweatshirt for night. Only a few times have we worn pants at night. But...we are also from upstate NY!!! That makes a big difference!!! Good luck deciding!!! We will be there Nov 25 - Dec 2.

 

[Hugpug]

We go the Friday after Thanksgiving through the following Saturday. That weekend is busy!!!! But starting Sunday afternoon the crowds drop right off. I mean like 5-10 minute waits. MVMCP starts that week and all the christmas decorations are up. The Osborne lights are on. It's the greatest time to go. The following week starts Pop Warner. And I heard that can be crowded, but not that crowded. We have always taken the kids out of school, just because it's less crowded, decorated for christmas, and starting that sunday or monday(can't remember which) is value season. I think this is the best time to go!!! It's still warm enough to swim, but not to hot that you are sweaty all the time. We usually wear tshirts and shorts during the day and grab a sweatshirt for night. Only a few times have we worn pants at night. But...we are also from upstate NY!!! That makes a big difference!!! Good luck deciding!!! We will be there Nov 25 - Dec 2.

I'll be there that week two leaving on the 24 Nov. 2 nights POP 5 WL

 

[2giddy4wdw]

I'll be there that week two leaving on the 24 Nov. 2 nights POP 5 WL

Right now we are at SSR and hoping for VWL!!! I can't wait to go!!!!

 

[GlennI]

We visited during Thanksgiving of 2005. We arrived the Saturday before Thanksgiving and stayed till the Saturday after.

Saturday and Sunday before Thanksgiving, I would say it was your normal Themepark crowd, not out of this world, but crowded. Monday and Tuesday were nice, it was busy but nothing crazy. Wednesday it started to get VERY busy and stayed that way till we left.

Now, on a positive note, we hit all the major attractions Monday and tuesday with not too long of a wait, so we could avoid some of the major stuff when the crowds hit.

Hope this helped you a bit.

 

[shelleybell]

We also were there 2005. The Saturday before until the Monday after. Kept the DS out of school 1 day, so we could do MVMCP. I honestly did not think it was that bad, but I am used to the summer crowds. Just plan, and it is very do-able. The decorations are up, and Osborne Lights are up as well. Yes, the Sunday after is a ghost town. I remember being in MK at 2:30 and thinking, WOW, so this is what it is like in the slow season! We are hoping to go back at that time again this year! Good Luck and if you get to go......Have Fun!!!!


Shelley

 

[jann1033]

we have gone the first week of Dec by that i mean arriving like the 4 -6 and it is pretty quiet( well always was, others say not now) but i have heard earlier in the month is is busy starting right before Thanksgiving. then Dec is quieter till around the 18th or so...at least anytime we went you could count pretty much on low crowds if it was value season, high crowds if it was peak season

 

[KyCruisinSusan]

We checked in the Wednesday after Thanksgiving in 2005 and stayed for 11 days. We had a great time with short ride lines, even though Pop Warner people started showing up on that first Saturday. Crowds were better then than they were the first part of November 2004.

 

[lizanne]

We go the Friday after Thanksgiving through the following Saturday. That weekend is busy!!!! But starting Sunday afternoon the crowds drop right off. I mean like 5-10 minute waits. MVMCP starts that week and all the christmas decorations are up. The Osborne lights are on. It's the greatest time to go.

That's the same time we were there in '05 and you described it perfectly. My husband reads all the books and said that supposedly that is a week with lowest amount of people.

 

[shellynn24]

We are thinking of going in Dec, what is the weather like? I don't want it to be cold. Not that I think it will get too cold in FL! I would just like to be prepared.

 

[lizanne]

Like I said before we were there the beginning of December. I was not prepared for how warm it was. I don't know if we experienced typical Dec weather, but it was in the 70's and sunny most days. I wore jeans and short sleeve shirts most of the time, but I wish I had brought some summerlike clothing. My husband wore shorts every day and most nights. There was only one night when you needed more than a sweater.

My sister was there 3 weeks ago and couldn't believe how warm it was.

 

[blessedby3]

We checked in the day after Thanksgiving this past year and stayed for 8 nights. We didnt go into the parks until the Sunday after Thanksgiving. We had NO wait times to speak of. Some rides we didnt even have to get off of, because there was no one waiting to get on (BTMRR, SM). It was a great time to go. Schools were back in session and the crowds were nonexhistant. The only crowds we had were on our last day, Dec. 3rd, at Epcot. Lots of school age teens. Maybe they were with Pop Warner or maybe school field trips. It is a GREAT time to go the week after Thanksgiving!!

 

[ricka47]

We've gone the Sunday after Thanksgiving for a number of years now. The Holiday crowds are mostly gone and all the Christmas decorations are up. We do the Candlelight Processional, MVMCP, and view the Osborne lights.

The crowds are light and the weather is usually good. You may get some chilly mornings yet can often swim by afternoon. But, we've done Splash Mountain just before midnight at MVMCP and weren't cold! But, that won't always be true.