Looking for Trip Reports from week of Christmas thru New Years

[Disney Mama 2 Two]

Hi all...we are planning our first Christmas Disney trip this December and I'd love to read some trip reports from this last year at the same time...just to get some 'real' ideas about crowds what can & can't be done..etc.

Please post or point me in the direction of some...THANKS!!!

Dawn

 

[mickeymousemommy]

We've been to Disney at Christmas the past three years. The second year we only attended the Christmas Party and went to Universal. The two years we have been in the parks the lines are pretty good. Many of the rides were a very short wait. We usually arrive in mid-December and stay for a week. This past year we stayed at Coronado Springs (12-11 until 12-18). It was practically a ghost town until the week before Christmas. Then it really filled up. I was glad to be on our way out! It seems to me that arriving about two weeks before Christmas is the time to be there. The week before and of look to be pretty crazy.

 

[Taqwus]

Hi all...we are planning our first Christmas Disney trip this December and I'd love to read some trip reports from this last year at the same time...just to get some 'real' ideas about crowds what can & can't be done..etc.

Please post or point me in the direction of some...THANKS!!!

Dawn

I was there from the 22nd to the 30th
There will be 3 days when MK will be packed, Christmass day, and the day after teh 2 bowl games that are played near there
You will need to make use of the extra magic hours to be able to see everything really
One bit of advice, book any meals you want now, they sell up fast
Also when you go to see Fantasmic go to the last show no one goes to this one
During the first show go see the lights camera car show, during the second showing go see the christmass light area
Finally if you want to take a nap at MGM go see the Drew Carry show, there was 10 people who fell asleep in it when I went

 

[Disney Mama 2 Two]

Thanks..we are actually looking at Dec 23rd through Jan 3rd so it will be more the week after Christmas through to New Years.

I'd love to hear from more who have been there during that time or anyone who has a trip report posted I could read.

Thanks again!
Dawn

 

[bellelinus]

My three girls and I were at the BC from Dec 25-Jan. 3 this past Christmas. The crowds are large, but if you get up early and take a break in the afternoon before heading back to the parks at night, you can get plenty done. The worst for us was having to get to the MK by 7 AM because they were early entry every morning that week! We loved being at WDW and keeping the feeling of Christmas going after the day itself -- everything was so well decorated and there were still the Epcot Holiday storytellers, Candlelight Processional, Christmas parade at MK, MGM, and Ak, etc., when we first got there. We love spending New Year's eve at Epcot, too. Even though the crowds are large, the space there is large enough to handle everyone.

I don't know if it would be a good time to select for your first time at WDW, but we have been many times and really enjoyed our trip between Christmas and New Year's.

 

[Disney Mama 2 Two]

Thanks...keep those reports coming! This will actually be our 2nd trip to WDW just our 1st at a holiday. We were there this past June and it was quite busy then too so I have some idea of the crowds.

About taking an afternoon break...I've read numerous posts about MK closing around 11 am due to capacity the week after Christmas. Did you run into any of that? I'm concerned if we leave the MK for a break we may not get back in that night to enjoy the evening shows/fireworks?

More suggestions - reports - ideas would be great!!!

Dawn

 

[Partridge4ever]

We were there this past New Years. I haven't found time to write a trip report yet. We're not early risers, so what worked for us was sleeping in and taking advantage of the late hours. MK was open til 1 or 2 am several nights. On EMH night, it was open til 4 am! We might have been able to do more if we'd arrived at 7 am, but that just wasn't happening.

We arrived Tue. Dec. 27. I don't recall hearing that the parks ever closed to capacity while we were there except for MK on NYE. We were at MGM on NYE. We arrived at one in the afternoon, but I think we would've been OK arriving later.

Plan to make use of fast passes. Get in position for parades early. Make ADRs for sure. Oh, the late Spectromagic was nearly empty in Frontierland. See Osborne Lights while Fantasmic is going on. We focused on seeing all the special Christmas stuff...all the holiday storytellers, special parades, shows, fireworks, decorations. We succeeded in doing that but it ate into our ride time. We still rode everything we really wanted to at least once and our top favorites twice. We missed some of the minor attractions. We're used to riding most everything at least a couple of times.

All in all, I'd definitely do it again. My DH feels otherwise though!

 

[brack]

We went during Christmas week one year. It was the busiest I have ever seen WDW. Three of the days they closed the MK and EPCOT because they were full. New Year's Eve was packed at the MK.

If we go at this time of year it is early December and leave before Christmas Day. In 2005 we spent 15 days there and left on the 23rd. It was really great.

 

[Disney Mama 2 Two]

Yes, we are going with it in mind that things will be super busy. I want to do the "Christmas" stuff since we are there at that time but we plan on doing a couple of days at MK in hopes that will give us time to do a lot of the things we'd like.

Is it as busy at AK & MGM Christmas week? I know with Evp. Everest things will be busier around that at AK but I haven't really heard that those two parks were unmanagable.

Keep those reports coming...it helps so much to hear from people who were actually there during that time frame.

Thanks again!
Dawn

 

[disnut8]

Thanks...keep those reports coming!

PM me and I'll send you my last two years of reports. Went for a big family thing in 2004 and then just the weekend in 2005. Don't mind sharing. It's the good and the bad.

 

[TSM1993]

Parks are crowded. Went to MK New Years Eve picked a spot for 1st fireworks and were basically stuck there for 5 hrs. Take a blanket so you have a place to sit on the ground. They do close the parks down when they get to capacity. They did this a couple of days down there. 1/1 had hardly anybody in the park.

Christmas day was busy also.


STandby times were up over 90 mins. ALot of fastpass were out by midday

 

[TammyAlphabet]

It is absolutely doable! We went from 12/21-12/30 last year and the crowds were heavy just about the whole time. It was nippy too!! But, if you make ADR's (Don't forget!!) and use the fastpass, you can have a great time. We never got to the parks early, used the fastpass system and took it easy. Our expectations were that it would be busy and we might not get to do everything that we wanted WHEN we wanted. With this attitude, it was a great time.