Mickeys Very Merry Christmas party. 1st timer, will this work, few???

[LovesTimone]

This year my DD and DGS and SIL will be spending Christmas with his parents. So we are going to have our Christmas a few days before.

I guess I should say that we are local's and AP holders and all of us have been more than a bunch of times. It will be my parents, DD, DGS(2 will be almost 3 by then) SIL, DH and me.

We are planning right now to for everyone to come over to our house around 9:00ish. I will do something simple to snack on while we open presents, then I was thinking of going the ham and a couple of simple sides for the main meal, no dessert.

Then heading over to MK around 3:00.

1st question - is this enough time to park and get into the park by 4 ish, it only takes us about 10 to 15 minutes to get to Epcot.

2nd question - would it be worth it to pay for priority parking? My parents are both in their mid to late 70's but in good health overall, my mom does have some heart issues not really bad but still wanting to be mindful.

3rd question - QS options open? and a side question do they close early?

4th question - Are all the rides open? my friend said all the coasters are closed?

5th question - Watching the parade and fireworks are high on the list, any tips here would greatly be appreciated. We don't normally stop to watch them... So really need some help here.

Any other tip or suggestion would be great.

 

[kmb584]

You should be okay time-wise. I've noticed that the monorail tends to get super busy a little bit before 4:00 pm on party nights. However, take into consideration that you'll be parking at the TTC and stand a good chance of having to park in the back half of the lot. For that reason alone, I would probably go ahead and purchase priority parking, just to make things easier for everyone. It's also nice to not have a long hike to the car at the end of the night too.

As of right now, 7DMT and BTMRR are going to be closed during MNSSHP. I haven't noticed any announcement for MVMCP, but I wouldn't be surprised if they were closed for those parties too. It's a bit of a bummer as BMTRR is our absolute favorite. SM will still be open.

Cosmic Ray's is almost always open until the end of the night. Pecos Bill is open until 11:00 pm, Pinnochio Village Haus usually closes around 10 pm, CHH around 8:00 pm. Casey's and Starbucks will be open too.

This year my DD and DGS and SIL will be spending Christmas with his parents. So we are going to have our Christmas a few days before.

I guess I should say that we are local's and AP holders and all of us have been more than a bunch of times. It will be my parents, DD, DGS(2 will be almost 3 by then) SIL, DH and me.

We are planning right now to for everyone to come over to our house around 9:00ish. I will do something simple to snack on while we open presents, then I was thinking of going the ham and a couple of simple sides for the main meal, no dessert.

Then heading over to MK around 3:00.

1st question - is this enough time to park and get into the park by 4 ish, it only takes us about 10 to 15 minutes to get to Epcot.

2nd question - would it be worth it to pay for priority parking? My parents are both in their mid to late 70's but in good health overall, my mom does have some heart issues not really bad but still wanting to be mindful.

3rd question - QS options open? and a side question do they close early?

4th question - Are all the rides open? my friend said all the coasters are closed?

5th question - Watching the parade and fireworks are high on the list, any tips here would greatly be appreciated. We don't normally stop to watch them... So really need some help here.

Any other tip or suggestion would be great.

 

[LovesTimone]

You should be okay time-wise. I've noticed that the monorail tends to get super busy a little bit before 4:00 pm on party nights. However, take into consideration that you'll be parking at the TTC and stand a good chance of having to park in the back half of the lot. For that reason alone, I would probably go ahead and purchase priority parking, just to make things easier for everyone. It's also nice to not have a long hike to the car at the end of the night too.

As of right now, 7DMT and BTMRR are going to be closed during MNSSHP. I haven't noticed any announcement for MVMCP, but I wouldn't be surprised if they were closed for those parties too. It's a bit of a bummer as BMTRR is our absolute favorite. SM will still be open.

Cosmic Ray's is almost always open until the end of the night. Pecos Bill is open until 11:00 pm, Pinnochio Village Haus usually closes around 10 pm, CHH around 8:00 pm. Casey's and Starbucks will be open too.

We love BTMRR too, so here's to finger crossing it will be open for the Christmas party. DD, my mom, & I will ride SM.. the guys won't ride it.. How do you purchase the priority parking ahead of time? and do AP holders get a discount? we will be in 2 vehicles so DD's family can leave earlier if they need to with the little guy. DD just texted me with another question, saying that they might want to TS character buffet like at 6 at CP or the dessert party? I really don't know about if this would be worth it, and the cost, will the dessert party be the same price as it normally is?

 

[kmb584]

We love BTMRR too, so here's to finger crossing it will be open for the Christmas party. DD, my mom, & I will ride SM.. the guys won't ride it.. How do you purchase the priority parking ahead of time? and do AP holders get a discount? we will be in 2 vehicles so DD's family can leave earlier if they need to with the little guy. DD just texted me with another question, saying that they might want to TS character buffet like at 6 at CP or the dessert party? I really don't know about if this would be worth it, and the cost, will the dessert party be the same price as it normally is?

A character meal at 6:00 isn't a bad idea. It's an hour before the party actually starts and a good way to fill up beforehand. Our MVMCP tradition is dinner at Chef Mickey's at 5:30 and it's always worked well. We'll stop for maybe once snack that night (CS restaurants can get really busy!). We've never done the dessert party but at $79/pp, it seems a bit much to me. A lot of people do enjoy it though, so it's all about preference. I'm happy to watch the fireworks from the front of the castle.

Preferred parking is $40/day and, as far as I know as an AP holder myself, there is no discount for that nor an option to purchase ahead of time. It seems like it's luck of the draw -- if you're there, and there's a spot open, you'll be able to purchase it. I have no idea how many parking spots they've allocated for that.

 

[Figmentmommy]

We love BTMRR too, so here's to finger crossing it will be open for the Christmas party. DD, my mom, & I will ride SM.. the guys won't ride it.. How do you purchase the priority parking ahead of time? and do AP holders get a discount? we will be in 2 vehicles so DD's family can leave earlier if they need to with the little guy. DD just texted me with another question, saying that they might want to TS character buffet like at 6 at CP or the dessert party? I really don't know about if this would be worth it, and the cost, will the dessert party be the same price as it normally is?

We always have a sit down meal within the park on our party night. I would suggest dining a little earlier though -we make our ADR for no later than 5 but have found 4-4:30 to be better for us, even dining at 3:30 one year. This gives us plenty of time in case the restaurant is running late. I've never done the dessert party but I can't imagine booking another event within the party time.

 

[sharonabe]

As of right now, 7DMT and BTMRR are going to be closed during MNSSHP. I haven't noticed any announcement for MVMCP, but I wouldn't be surprised if they were closed for those parties too. It's a bit of a bummer as BMTRR is our absolute favorite. SM will still be open.

An updated list now has 7DMT open during MNSSHP, but BTMRR is still not on the list.

HMMMM....just had a thought. Disney has been having all kinds of problems with the copy on their material this year. I wonder if this is another one. BTMRR was closed last year for refurbishment, so it would not have been on the list for the parties. Perhaps, the copy people just used last year's list and forgot to put it back on???? Fingers crossed!

 

[kmb584]

An updated list now has 7DMT open during MNSSHP, but BTMRR is still not on the list.

HMMMM....just had a thought. Disney has been having all kinds of problems with the copy on their material this year. I wonder if this is another one. BTMRR was closed last year for refurbishment, so it would not have been on the list for the parties. Perhaps, the copy people just used last year's list and forgot to put it back on???? Fingers crossed!

Good to know! As far as BTMRR is concerned, that's a very plausible scenario. I don't see any reason why it would be closed during the parties.

 

[LovesTimone]

We always have a sit down meal within the park on our party night. I would suggest dining a little earlier though -we make our ADR for no later than 5 but have found 4-4:30 to be better for us, even dining at 3:30 one year. This gives us plenty of time in case the restaurant is running late. I've never done the dessert party but I can't imagine booking another event within the party time.

Now you given more to think about... now I might rethink making lunch and going more like breakfast, then a character linner at CM, then into the park and grabbing a snack if needed.... Oh NO..... what to do.... what to do... or maybe I should just keep it simple....

 

[sharonabe]

Now you given more to think about... now I might rethink making lunch and going more like breakfast, then a character linner at CM, then into the park and grabbing a snack if needed.... Oh NO..... what to do.... what to do... or maybe I should just keep it simple....

Keep it simple. It sounds like you'll be at one of the last parties, if not THE last one. The last one WILL sell out and some of the others just before it probably will too. You are paying a premium price for those tickets, and I would want to make sure I was IN the park no later than 6:00 and ready to party. If meeting any of the specialty characters is on anyone's list, you need to be in line for them around 6 pm.

If a character meal is a big draw, then I would try doing that as a late lunch. Have a little more than snacks for breakfast. It's an easier meal to prepare ahead of time too.

 

[Figmentmommy]

Now you given more to think about... now I might rethink making lunch and going more like breakfast, then a character linner at CM, then into the park and grabbing a snack if needed.... Oh NO..... what to do.... what to do... or maybe I should just keep it simple....

Consider doing a character meal at Crystal Palace for a late lunch - maybe 3:30. You'll be in the park plenty early before the 4:00 crowds start entering for the party and you'll still have time before the party starts.
Or do the same at Chef Mickey's park at TTC first and then walk back and forth between the Contemporary.
As for your question about parade viewing - we like to get a spot in Frontierland and watch from there. It's much less crowded than Main Street and we usually dont wait longer than 45 min unless we feel like just hanging out longer before the parade. We also often watch the fireworks from one of the bridges of Frontierland/Liberty Square.

 

[Figmentmommy]

Sorry double posted - my phone was freaking out for a minute.

 

[sharonabe]

As for your question about parade viewing - we like to get a spot in Frontierland and watch from there. It's much less crowded than Main Street and we usually dont wait longer than 45 min unless we feel like just hanging out longer before the parade.

Sorry, just one more thing to think about. While I would normally agree with everyone watching the parade from Frontierland, the MVMCP parade is different, because it SNOWS on Main St during the parade. For that reason alone, I would try to find a spot somewhere on Main St.

 

[Figmentmommy]

Sorry, just one more thing to think about. While I would normally agree with everyone watching the parade from Frontierland, the MVMCP parade is different, because it SNOWS on Main St during the parade. For that reason alone, I would try to find a spot somewhere on Main St.

I see your point - that is definitely something to consider. We've always found viewing the parade more enjoyable from Frontierland than Main Street even given the snow falling. For our family we appreciate the falling snow along with the Christmas music more on Main Street as we exit after the party.

 

[MrsHull]

I would do a big breakfast and then eat at Chef Mickeys around 4. The QS is very busy even during the earlier parties, in my experience, and the character meals are a time waster once the party starts.

 

[LovesTimone]

Op Here

I am really leaning toward a brunch menu, and then Linner somewhere over at the world...then grabbing a snack for the parade and fireworks. If I go with brunch I will have leftover for DH and I to snack on over the weekend. But then I go back and forth on fruit, and bagels for breakfast, then a heartier lunch, then QS at the park.

My friend said there are 2 firework shows?? is that right.

Then I need to think about a few other things..... we might head out of town the next day to see our youngest DD who lives in GA, but she is expecting another baby at the beginning of November( Yep that will make 4 grandbabies for us), She wants to come here for Christmas, but with a brand new baby I really don't know if that is going to work out. But we would be sharing her with her mom and that is always a sticky issue, as her mom only wants her to visit her and her husband. Then DH is like we could just take off and go somewhere. He always takes the last week of the year off so normally a few day before Christmas, till after the new year.

DD is bring DGS over shortly, and we are going to figure out what we want to do.

I will let you know what we decide.. Then I will have more questions...