Halloween or Christmas??

[takemetothemouse]

Backstory: I’m a huge fan of Halloween & my daughter fears nothing. Her favorite character is maleficent, which would scare most other 3 year olds. My son is 5 months so he may be scared to death of everything at Halloween time next year.

My husband & I are trying to decide if we want to do Christmas or Halloween. My kids will roughly be 4.5 & 18 months. We went last January & the weather was chaotic. I’m not a huge fan of that..
& when it comes go holiday celebrations would you recommend DL over DW?

 

[Brett Wyman]

Its all about personal tastes, but if I had to choose one it would be Christmas. On a slower week of course.

 

[siren0119]

I will always put my vote in for Halloween We have been to Mickeys Not so Scary every year for the last 3 years, and love it every time! Late Sept/Early October is pretty great weather, and if you choose a weekday party the crowds will be a little lower due to kids in school and locals needing to work the next day.

 

[KayaWildfire]

Depending on when you are planning to go in the Christmas season, the chaotic weather may follow. We went Christmas week last year and it was 55 degrees the first night we got there. By the end of the trip, it was 85.

 

[Shellyred8]

I would recommend trying sometime during the first two weeks of Dec. Since you don't know how your son will react yet, it might be safer to do Christmas stuff first. If he handles that ok, then plan for Halloween at a later date.

Our experience with the weather during this time has been mixed. A few trips have been absolutely glorious. A couple of other trips were not as great. But I love WDW at Christmas time, so I don't mind taking the risk of less-than-perfect weather. We just make sure to pack accordingly so we are prepared when we get there. I will say that, in my experience, the weather has been better in early December than it is in January.

Happy planning!

 

[MouseMama11]

I would say since it's a possibility your son would be scared of the "spooky" stuff, to go to Christmas this time around. It's so magical during that time! We went about 5 years ago the week leading into Thanksgiving and the crowds were moderate to low the 5 days we were there! The only days it was packed were the day before Thanksgiving and Thanksgiving Day. So Thanksgiving day we made a pool/resort day and the day before, we just did Fast Passes and took our time through the park that day. Our departure date was the day after Thanksgiving. It was one of our favorite WDW trips!

 

[Eoywin]

We've been at Halloween time several trips - partly because my daughter's birthday is in the middle of October. It's a great time to go!

We are going in December this year but next trip will be back in October.

 

[Nick6300]

Most people seem to enjoy MNSHP over MVMCP. I’ve not done the latter personally but enjoy the Halloween party.

We prefer the Christmas celebration at WDW: the storytelling at EP, CP- this yr we have a CP package to see Neil Patrick Harris, the decorations... that aspect appeals to us much more than the Halloween decor.

But in general we also prefer lower crowds as the biggest factor and in general Fall stays are less crowded, esp Sept.

We are going thanksgiving thru first week dec. This yr, Which is the first week of the Christmas celebration, typically lower crowds relative to Christmas/NY week. But we’re hitting RotR opening and Pop Warner (and staying at Sports). We’re probably going to see some crowds.

 

[MrsDuck]

It depends on if you're a Halloween or Christmas person!

I'd do Christmas but that's just me.

 

[yorkieteacher]

We had our first MNSSHP this year during a slower park time, and the party was still very crowded. we loved the parade, the fireworks were good but not as good as I expected. We weren't interested in the rarer character greetings that took so long in line, and the candy givers were rather stingy after waiting in line 15-20 minutes to get candy-most just gave two-three pieces, not the "handfuls" I read about. I don't think I will cry if I don't get to go back to another Halloween party, but I do want to try a Christmas party now. I hear they usually don't have as big a crowds? No first hand experience though-

 

[Nick6300]

We had our first MNSSHP this year during a slower park time, and the party was still very crowded. we loved the parade, the fireworks were good but not as good as I expected. We weren't interested in the rarer character greetings that took so long in line, and the candy givers were rather stingy after waiting in line 15-20 minutes to get candy-most just gave two-three pieces, not the "handfuls" I read about. I don't think I will cry if I don't get to go back to another Halloween party, but I do want to try a Christmas party now. I hear they usually don't have as big a crowds? No first hand experience though-

We keep hearing that the MNSSHP are getting more crowded for rides than in the past. And really, that would be one of my top reasons for going, along with the fireworks and such. But not so much the candy - because if you think about it - you're paying nearly $100/person. You can buy a ton of candy at that price. So for me, the other aspects are more important and I don't like to take up as much time to do much treat or treating. Do see people with 3+ bags full of candy each, and I also don't want to lug that stuff around or eat that much candy. But that's just my opinion. It would be great to try one of the Christmas parties. You still see some of the party events/parade after a certain date though, I think? We debated and instead chose CP package instead of Neil Patrick Harris - first time at CP for half of us.

 

[yorkieteacher]

We keep hearing that the MNSSHP are getting more crowded for rides than in the past. And really, that would be one of my top reasons for going, along with the fireworks and such. But not so much the candy - because if you think about it - you're paying nearly $100/person.

Totally agree! But with two little grandsons, guess what their priority was!!!! I even offered to just but some candy later! But for littles, Halloween is all about that candy!!!!

 

[ofcabbagesandkings]

Christmas, and I'm saying that as someone who loves Halloween more. MNSSHP is great but runs really late for little ones. After leaving two parties before 10pm because my kids were asleep I decided never again until they are older. Depending on what resort you stay at, the decorations during the holidays are really lovely as well.