MVMCP - is this normal?

[PIRATEGIRL007]

We went to the November 28th party which ended up being sold out and had the same experience.

It is a waste of time for over $50 a person, they offer the same parade and fireworks over Christmas week for free.

We do make a special trip each year for MNSSHP, the parade and costumes are fantastic.

If you think the parties are crowded with what maybe 50K MAX guests (and I'm giving a 5-10K higher number than normally reported) then I don't think you would enjoyr it or that it would be worth it to see the parade and fireworks on week when MK closes due to capacity? Thats another 30-40K people, almost double the crowd.

We find the parties worth it even if they are crowded, but to each thier own. We also like to park hop, stay on property, and use the resort busses (and of course love DME).

 

[PRmamiDEdos]

I'm going to MVMCP to see the "Christmas week only" stuff b/c I'm not able to be there during Christmas week for this trip. I think it's silly to go on the rides b/c I can do that during the day. From everyone who has gone, how is the party as a character, dance party, parade and fireworks only point of view?

 

[walkdmc]

We attended MVMCP the second week in November and had a great experience. We rode nearly empty rides all night and saw the second parade in Fronteirland. The crowd in Frontierland to view the parade never even got to two people deep. There were plenty of viewing spots still open when the parade started. There was plenty of cocoa and cookies all night.

From the sounds of your experience, I wouldn't attend a December MVMCP. That would be rotten, to attend a special event you paid a lot for, then find the parks as crowded as they are on a regular day. I like to think you pay for a little exclusivity when you buy a ticket to an event like this.

 

[RMulieri]

I'm going to MVMCP to see the "Christmas week only" stuff b/c I'm not able to be there during Christmas week for this trip. I think it's silly to go on the rides b/c I can do that during the day. From everyone who has gone, how is the party as a character, dance party, parade and fireworks only point of view?

We never reallywent for the rides at any of the parties...The dance parties are packed, the parades and fireworks PACKED and we waited in ridiculous lines for the some of the characters..I have said it before and I still say it...When you have 20,000+ people all trying to do the same major draws , it gets really frustrating and overwhelmingly crowded. I don't think we will ever Do MVMCP again..We might not even do MNSSHP again if the crowds continue to be as bad

 

[seelyt2]

We went on 11/30, and I saw some of the worse crowds I have ever seen at any party- Christmas, Halloween, or Princess and the Pirates. It was a Tuesday night- early in December- off season, suposively durring one of the lowest periods of the year. They have got to be selling more tickets than normal. I also can't recall any party selling out that is not close to the actual holiday.
I don't know what is going on, but last week the parks were just horrendously crowded. We didn't go to any Fantasmic nights, we didn't go to any Extra Magic Hours, we went to the reccomended parks (from easywdw). We didn't even seen the Main Street Electrical Parade. I know it's free dining, but we have been there other times when it was in effect, but never has it been this crowded. I know the MK was crowded around the parade taping- which was taped on Thursday, and Friday while we were there. They were also directing people backstage- which I have never seen.
We managed to have fun despite the crowds. We had some plans that worked, but we wasted a lot of time waiting in lines, particularly for the characters.
Good luck to anyone else trying to face the masses!!

I ditto this entire comment 99% (because we did do Fantasmic and it wasn't packed ). Other than that - we shared the same exact experiences from last week. The two best parts of the MVMCP were the parade and fireworks. Other than that - our time management was better spent on rope drops. We're glad we went, but agreed that we wouldn't do it again.

On the other hand - I just loved the Candlelight Processional!

 

[woz1971]

We attended the 12/2 party and although before we left home I was so sure we were not going to the MVMCP that we ended paying more by deciding to go that day. It was my husband's birthday and the end of our vacation was coming quickly and our kids could just not get enough of MK and MK was closing early the remainder of our stay plus parade taping in the day.

We had found out earlier in the week that Jessie my daughter's favorite character is no longer out in the parks for meet and greets. When we walked passed the building where they have the Woody Dance Party I explained to my daughter that the dance opens after we go home because they were having a special Christmas Party after 7pm. She said "could we stay for the party if Jessie is at the dance party."

Well I found a cast member and she confirmed that Jessie and Bullseye would be at the dance party so I was on my way to get tickets. The entire week was a little more crowded than I expected and I had anticipated that it would be worse than when we normally go in January. However, I found ride wait times were not horrible you just had to pick and choose sometimes.

At the MVMCP we were able to see Jasamine/Aladin/Abu and Geni almost right away with almost no wait and my husband said right away that alone was worth the extra cost. My daughters played a game with Captain Hook, we attended Woody's dance party and danced with Jessie and Bullseye we did skip the Dwarfs as we were on a mission to see Tinkerbell and the line was 30 minutes when it had been 75 most other times we met Rapunzel and Flynn and I saw that line was quite long Saturday morning as well. We rode only a few rides but less than 20 min. wait.

My original decision to skip the party was based on attending the Pirate Princess Party which turned out to be the opening week on a Friday night. It was more crowded than I expected we did not ride much but we did see some characters. Our kids were younger so stay out until Midnight did not work so well but we were sort of forced to do it as we were only at the parks for like 4 days. Since we were staying longer this time I did not think we needed to do party. However it ended up being a highlight of the trip for my family and well worth the price. We close the place down and got back to our room at like 1am

 

[MarieA]

I ditto this entire comment 99% (because we did do Fantasmic and it wasn't packed ). Other than that - we shared the same exact experiences from last week. The two best parts of the MVMCP were the parade and fireworks. Other than that - our time management was better spent on rope drops. We're glad we went, but agreed that we wouldn't do it again.

On the other hand - I just loved the Candlelight Processional!

My DH and I loved the Candlelight Processional and will definitely return to see it. We also loved the Osbourne Spectacle of Lights, the decorations at the resorts and the Ice Castle. MVMCP is something we will never do again. There are so many other things to see at WDW during Christmas so I don't think we would miss MVMCP.

 

[lugnut33]

A couple of years ago they were limiting tickets to 25K. However, it sounds like they have increased that number again from all the reports. Remember, the MK will hold around 75K before they start closing the gates, but with reduced staffing 30K could feel like 75K.

 

[DZNEE4US]

We only attend the parties to see what we can not see durring the day. We were there on 11-30, and I think everyone else came to see those things as well! We only see the characters, the parades and shows. We missed all of the shows, most of the fireworks (because we were in the princess line), and only saw the last parade of the night. The lines to see the characters took hours! We saw the princesses and princes, Tiana and Naveen, Lilo and Stitch, and Donald Duck. That isn't much. The princess line said 70 minutes, but ended up being 90. When you add up all of those minutes- there's your party. You spent it waiting in line. I hope Disney realizes that if you are spending all of your time in line, you are unable to shop or buy food!!!

 

[disneynutsss]

My DH and I loved the Candlelight Processional and will definitely return to see it. We also loved the Osbourne Spectacle of Lights, the decorations at the resorts and the Ice Castle.

oh i just had tears in my eyes the entire time during the candlelight processional - it was completely awesome!! and the osborne lights were just spectacular! i completely fell in love with the castle too!!

 

[minnie74]

OP - I'm sorry you did not have a magical experience! I was there that same night, and it was my first time. The park was much less crowded than it had been earlier in the day, and I did not find it crowded at all. I was able to visit with and get photos with most of the characters, see the parade and the fireworks without much of a wait. The rides I walked past did not have waits posted that exceeded 30 minutes, and most of those were slow loading (i.e. Peter Pan, Dumbo, etc). There was no wait at the snack stops I made. I watched the fireworks from the front of the castle with much less crowding than an average summer night. Sorry you didn't get to enjoy it!

 

[dawgsgirl]

It's really hard to know exactly what would solve the problem w/o konwing the costs of operating the event, but, I for one, would pay more for MUCH more limited crowds. But I'd want utter assurance that thse numbers have indeed been limited enough to keep it from feeling opperssive.

I know personally, I'm going to keep mentioning how bad the crowds are on sold out nights to help others make more informed decisions. Keeping quiet about it isn't helping anyone but Disney and though I love Disney, I own DVC, but I'm not going to help in this respect. If enough people complain and speak w/ their pocketbooks, maybe something will change. I'd be interested to see if the party operates at a loss on the nights where crowds feel relativly low and wonderful. If they don't lose money then gosh, why not up the price a LITTLE and limit it to that number?!?? They are still making money, but they are not ticking off guests.

I'm going to be writing a letter of extreme compliments to Disney about a few things on our last visit, perhaps I'll just embed this issue in there. Maybe it might be taken a little better if couched with a LOT of good things. All one can do is try.

Better be careful with your complaints. I complained about the 2007 MVMCP crowds and spoke with a gentleman twice about the problems I had. In 2008, they added MORE party nights. The MK is closed too many nights as is. Keeping out those guests who have not paid would be a good start. It seems that is a BIG problem. Those without wristbands just kinda hang around and wait for the parade and fireworks. It happens a lot!! Needless to say, 2007 was the last time I went to the party. I have perfectly magical Christmas visits to WDW without the party!!

 

[Satchmo128]

Good to know that it can be so crowded and not worth the price! We are thinking about heading to WDW for my birthday in December 2011 and we will make sure not to pay the extra $$ for the party.

 

[dsneygirl]

Me too. I had no issues with the crowds at the party. We had a blast and I am still surprised my two girls made it all the way to midnight without losing it.

We were also at the 11/30 party and I didn't think it was busy at all. We walked on to several attractions and only waited about 20min for Mickey right at 7pm. Got a great parade spot by Pecos Bills and the weather was the best part.

 

[momtotwoteens]

Better be careful with your complaints. I complained about the 2007 MVMCP crowds and spoke with a gentleman twice about the problems I had. In 2008, they added MORE party nights. The MK is closed too many nights as is. Keeping out those guests who have not paid would be a good start. It seems that is a BIG problem. Those without wristbands just kinda hang around and wait for the parade and fireworks. It happens a lot!! Needless to say, 2007 was the last time I went to the party. I have perfectly magical Christmas visits to WDW without the party!!

I will not be happy to see people without wristbands when I have paid! I'm sort of worried about being caught in the crowds because I am very claustrophobic, but from what I've gathered on here if I stay away from Main St. we should be okay.

 

[Glenn]

I stopped going the the Christmas party when they started packing them in & reduced what you got. My suggestion is to complain to disney & say you wont be back for another party. For $50 you dont want to feel your there packed in like sardines & because of the long lines you certainly dont buy much ( tell disney theyre losing your $ in sales). And mention how many youve seen without wrist bands. There will always be some but the numbers have gotten way out of hand. Yes they want to make money but it's certainly not that intimate party they advertise for many dates.

 

[MeanestMomEver]

We attended in 2008. I think it was the Saturday after Thanksgiving. It was packed when we first arrived so we just went to a show, some of the slower attractions and the parade. Then the park started to clear out and for the last hour or two almost everything was walk-on. I have older kids so we always take advantage of the last couple hours before closing when all the younger families have thrown in the towel and headed for their hotels.

Anyway, I am glad we tried MVMCP but we won't do it again despite the fact that my entire family agrees that Christmas time is our favorite time to visit.

Sorry you had a bad experience.

 

[jthelman]

Couple points to make on the thread:

1) You can't argue with me about what I experienced. Yes, some other parts of the park may have been less busy. We arrived at 7:30 and bailed out at 8:30 and yes, later in the night might it also have been less busy, but that doesn't discount what I experienced. I'm happy some people didn't see the mass of humanity I got stuck in

2) For those that argue that it's not always packed, keep in mind that you don't know ahead of time which nights will be packed -- why should this be a gamble?

Thanks for the input, it certainly sounds like it's just a hit or miss deal.

 

[CTNancy]

I went to MVMCP last night and the crowds were mild. We walked onto Splash, Big Thunder and Space Mountains. There were lines for Peter Pan and IaSW, but those claimed to be 20 minutes.

I guess everyones experience with MVMCP will be different. I thought it was good value for the money.

Happy Holidays everyone.

 

[ktaggie]

We are another family that will never do it again. It was just not worth the month. We found the crowds worse than during the day.