happyatdisney
Wants to retire at WDW
- Joined
- Oct 27, 2004
- Messages
- 101
Although this is my first post, I don't exactly feel like a newbie, since I have been hiding in "lurkdom" for the better part of 18 months, planning our first Disney cruise, and then recently our Christmas break trip. 
What brings me out of hiding at long last however, is wanting to say a huge THANK YOU to so many of you for your wonderful suggestions on ways to make a Christmas/New Years trip truly magical. You really have no idea how much you helped people you have never met. My DD would regularly ask: "That was great Mom, did you learn that from the DIS?" Yup, sure did!
So, in an effort to "pay it forward", here are some things that we experienced this past week. Hopefully some of you, especially those of you who are thinking about a Christmas week trip next year, will find something helpful for you.
1. If this is your first time ever, think twice about this week.....unless you have older kids who are understanding, or are a very flexible, laid back family. You're not gonna see everything. Don't try. We picked our top 3 things for each park (this was our 4th trip in 7 years, so we weren't neophytes), and even at that, in some cases, did not get to all. When that happened though, it was because we decided, as a family, to do something else: pin trading, talking to cast members etc. We are a family of 3, and DD is 14, so not seeing or doing something is not the end of the world to her. We had a marvelous time, because, after reading this board, I knew what to expect. We set our expectations low, and went with the flow. I have read some sad posts today from people who did not have a magical time, and I feel bad for them. The vast majority of people we met had no idea that this was the busiest week of the year. Glad we knew.
2. The weather: oh my heavens, thank you to the wonderful soul who suggested hand warmers and gloves! I really like warm weather, and while I knew (from the DIS!) what to expect from the weather, I gotta tell ya, it was cold at night! Layers were the name of the game, and we even brought a lightweight blanket for the backpack for Fantasmic. We used it.
3. Priority seating: don't leave home without it. I was amazed at how many people were trying, on New Years Eve, no less, to walk into restaurants. The time I spent on hold at the end of Sept. and early Oct. getting those priority seatings was well worth it.
4. Don't miss the Candlelight processional, Osbourne lights (we had never seen the old ones, so thought these were great). Speaking of Osbourne, going late, around 10, meant we could wander through, almost alone! We heard earlier, when they were first lit, it was wall to wall people.
5. We switched hotels the last 2 nights (WL to Swan) to be closer to Epcot for NYE. While I hated switching, the convenience was worth it. NYE we casually walked back to the Swan and were in our room by 12:30....where we watched the line of cars from our window for hours........
6. Photopass was great. Highly recommend it. It was great fun seeing the pictures when we got back.
7. NYE: Epcot is fun, but definitely NOT for little ones. My 14 year old loved all the bands, while her old fogie parents were a bit taken aback.
It was loud, and definitely geared towards the those without little kids. The fireworks however were magnificent, and well worth waiting for. We felt like we started the New Year right!
Sorry this is so long, but we had a great time, and I thank you all for your tips and suggestions. If anyone has questions, just let me know! Now that I am out of hiding, I am feeling rather bold!
What brings me out of hiding at long last however, is wanting to say a huge THANK YOU to so many of you for your wonderful suggestions on ways to make a Christmas/New Years trip truly magical. You really have no idea how much you helped people you have never met. My DD would regularly ask: "That was great Mom, did you learn that from the DIS?" Yup, sure did!
So, in an effort to "pay it forward", here are some things that we experienced this past week. Hopefully some of you, especially those of you who are thinking about a Christmas week trip next year, will find something helpful for you.
1. If this is your first time ever, think twice about this week.....unless you have older kids who are understanding, or are a very flexible, laid back family. You're not gonna see everything. Don't try. We picked our top 3 things for each park (this was our 4th trip in 7 years, so we weren't neophytes), and even at that, in some cases, did not get to all. When that happened though, it was because we decided, as a family, to do something else: pin trading, talking to cast members etc. We are a family of 3, and DD is 14, so not seeing or doing something is not the end of the world to her. We had a marvelous time, because, after reading this board, I knew what to expect. We set our expectations low, and went with the flow. I have read some sad posts today from people who did not have a magical time, and I feel bad for them. The vast majority of people we met had no idea that this was the busiest week of the year. Glad we knew.
2. The weather: oh my heavens, thank you to the wonderful soul who suggested hand warmers and gloves! I really like warm weather, and while I knew (from the DIS!) what to expect from the weather, I gotta tell ya, it was cold at night! Layers were the name of the game, and we even brought a lightweight blanket for the backpack for Fantasmic. We used it.
3. Priority seating: don't leave home without it. I was amazed at how many people were trying, on New Years Eve, no less, to walk into restaurants. The time I spent on hold at the end of Sept. and early Oct. getting those priority seatings was well worth it.
4. Don't miss the Candlelight processional, Osbourne lights (we had never seen the old ones, so thought these were great). Speaking of Osbourne, going late, around 10, meant we could wander through, almost alone! We heard earlier, when they were first lit, it was wall to wall people.
5. We switched hotels the last 2 nights (WL to Swan) to be closer to Epcot for NYE. While I hated switching, the convenience was worth it. NYE we casually walked back to the Swan and were in our room by 12:30....where we watched the line of cars from our window for hours........
6. Photopass was great. Highly recommend it. It was great fun seeing the pictures when we got back.
7. NYE: Epcot is fun, but definitely NOT for little ones. My 14 year old loved all the bands, while her old fogie parents were a bit taken aback.
It was loud, and definitely geared towards the those without little kids. The fireworks however were magnificent, and well worth waiting for. We felt like we started the New Year right!Sorry this is so long, but we had a great time, and I thank you all for your tips and suggestions. If anyone has questions, just let me know! Now that I am out of hiding, I am feeling rather bold!
I don't know if I could handle all those people in the parks and stay in a happy mood. 
