Is all of December completely crowded?

[MommySiobhan]

Or does it just get busier as the month progresses?

Is it insane over Christmas week?

 

[Bob P]

It's usually the weekend before Christmas when the crowds start to build. And yes, Christmas week is insane. Check this thread:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1490464

 

[MommySiobhan]

Thank you!

 

[MommySiobhan]

That helped alot. I think I'd rather avoid the craziness.

How about the first week? Say Dec 1st through the 8th?

Thanks again

 

[goodferry]

Yikes! Where are you staying? I believe that is Pop Warner week, they infiltrate all the resorts, but the value resorts take the biggest hit.

 

[pilferk]

That helped alot. I think I'd rather avoid the craziness.

How about the first week? Say Dec 1st through the 8th?

Thanks again

The first week of December tends to be the "slowest" week of the holiday period, and one of the slowest (traditionally, though it's picked up more recently) weeks of the year. It steadily (and quickly) picks up from there.

DVC traffic tends to be high, because our points charts peg that as a low point cost time to go...and you get the Xmas decorations and festivities.

 

[raven69david]

That helped alot. I think I'd rather avoid the craziness.

How about the first week? Say Dec 1st through the 8th?

Thanks again

The safest best is 2nd week of December. This is the week we always go because it's after Pop Warner week and a few days before the kids get out of school and their families start arriving in Orlando.

Unfortunately, most people are catching on and it's become less of a popular time to go, but it still beats going first week of December and a week prior to Xmas.

 

[Minnie&Nana]

We've gone the last 4 years the 1st week of December. Have not been bothered by POP Warner, even when staying at POP - where a lot of the overflow stays (they overflow to CBR/FQ/POR as well) - though we were glad to have a top floor room overlooking the lake. The next yr we did not notice them at all. MGM does close early on the Friday night at the end of their stay, so must plan around that, but it was not bad at all. Oh, and we are adults traveling without children, so the teens would really have bothered us if they'd been all over the place!

Second week is a great idea - too close to Christmas for us.

It is definitely no longer a truly slow season, but the decorations are so pretty and it is much nicer than the practiclly no crowds and cold weather of early to late January!

 

[cobbler]

The first week is pretty busy. Mousefest is going on, Pop Warner takes over the values, the taping of the Xmas parade, DVC members.

While it isn't crazy like Xmas week (actually far from it) it isn't dead.

I went over Xmas week in 98 and I will NEVER go during that week again.

 

[disneymomof2boyz]

We went last year during the 2nd wk of Dec, and we LOVED it!! We will be returning this year around that same time. We have friends who went the following week(before Christmas) and they said the wait for the lines were BAD. So we are =) to go in the beginning of Dec.

 

[mjy]

It is definitely no longer a truly slow season, but the decorations are so pretty and it is much nicer than the practiclly no crowds and cold weather of early to late January!

One of the weeks that I go to WDW is New Year's week, which is a trip in itself!

The past few years, it hasn't really be that cold. Two years ago they set a record day for heat (it got up to 86, I think) and last year was very mild/warm as well.

But we've been told it's not global warming. Must be something else!

 

[MommySiobhan]

Yikes! Where are you staying? I believe that is Pop Warner week, they infiltrate all the resorts, but the value resorts take the biggest hit.

I haven't booked anything yet.
I'm shopping around. I do not want to go for the crazy Christmas crowds, but I love the Magic of the Christmas season. This year we are going after thanksgiving, so we'll get to experience the Christmas season.

What is Pop warner week exactly? And that takes place on the first week?.

 

[gwb]

Went to WDW from mid of 1st week of Dec til mid 2nd week in 2000 and 2005 for our 25th and 30th anniversaries. Had great time each time and it's not crowded at all. Stayed at WL both times. 1st time we went we didn't know anything about Pop Warner and we went to Epcot, AK and MGM and had no problems with kids anywhere. Matter of fact in Epcot we walked from Norway to China and didn't meet any body on the walk! NO lie!!!!
In 2005 we knew about Pop Warner and the taping of the Christmas parades so we avoided MK and again we had no problems with kids. But we could tell word was out about going in Dec because there was a slight increase in people at Epcot. We went to Mk the 2nd week and it was fine didn't have to wait long in lines and could walk down streets with no problem.
Dec is best time to go due to great decorations all over.

 

[MommySiobhan]

When do they do the taping of the christmas parades?

How does this affect the parks?

 

[CanadianGuy]

As noted in another thread.. several resorts are already sold out for early December...

Anecdotal evidence would indicate this may be one of the busiest December's on record for Disney parks and resorts in Florida.

I'd brace myself for decent sized crowds no matter when I chose to travel in December.

Knox

 

[pilferk]

As noted in another thread.. several resorts are already sold out for early December...

Anecdotal evidence would indicate this may be one of the busiest December's on record for Disney parks and resorts in Florida.

I'd brace myself for decent sized crowds no matter when I chose to travel in December.

Knox

I think it's time for us all to get used to the fact the term "slow" just means "slower than most other times of year". Because I don't think we're going to see, for awhile anyway, what we all used to term "slow" at WDW.

Given that WDW is, reportedly, doing record business with HUGE attendance, I agree with an earlier poster: There really is no such thing as "slow season" anymore. It's simply "slow-ER".