Need Help Deciding on dates for December trip

[DisneyCosmo]

Hi Everyone,

I'm planning my family's first trip to WDW in December of this year. I'm completely overwhelmed with all the information out there!

The first thing I need to do is decide on the dates. We are flexible but I would like to try and stay as close to December 19th as possible - its my daughter's 5th birthday.

My question to all you veterans is this - when do the holiday crowds start showing up? I'm assuming that it will be the weekend of the 17th. Should we try to get out of there before then or do you think I'll be able to get her breakfast with Cinderella on the 19th?

Thanks for your help!

 

[travelin' tigger]

I'm planning my family's first trip to WDW in December of this year. I'm completely overwhelmed with all the information out there!

The first thing I need to do is decide on the dates. We are flexible but I would like to try and stay as close to December 19th as possible - its my daughter's 5th birthday.

My question to all you veterans is this - when do the holiday crowds start showing up? I'm assuming that it will be the weekend of the 17th. Should we try to get out of there before then or do you think I'll be able to get her breakfast with Cinderella on the 19th?

I think you should be OK with your dates. Obviously, the closer to Christmas, the more crowded it gets, but the really busy week is the following week. I was at WDW for 1 day last year (Dec. 23) and it wasn't as crowded at I expected it to be.

If you're planning to stay on-site, value season ends Dec. 19, so as long as you checkin before then you'll get value-season rates (the cheapest there is). As far as breakfast with Cindy, make sure you start calling WDW Dining at EXACTLY the 90 day mark (Sept. 20??) starting at 6:55am to try and get a ressie - they go extremely fast!!!

Feel free to ask anything else - we're here to help!!!

 

[kev97rach]

I don't know how you are booking your trip, but here is a suggestion. This is what we did last year.

We booked our trip through Dreams Unlimited, the sponser of this site and when you do that, they will make all of your priority seatings at restuarants for you!! So, I requested the Cinderella breakfast at the castle on the exact date I wanted it, and that was it! On exactly the 90 day mark, I checked my reservations on the website and there it was!! All done for me! Got to the castle on that day and my PS was there and I didn't have to worry about getting up on the 90 day mark at 6:55 a.m. and calling and re-calling. They booked all of our PS at every restuarant we wanted, Cinderella, Crystal Palace, Rain Forest Cafe, Sci-Fi Dine-In.

It was great!!

 

[disney-princess]

The week leading up to the 19th is a great time to go. I went a year ago and never had to wait more then five to ten minutes in lines. And I heard that the week of Christmas starting on the 19th the parks will be so crowded they close the gates by 10:30am. Also the week before, is value season and you can save a ton of money.

 

[Cruise04]

In 1999 we went December 19 through the 26th. Up until the 23rd it was fine as far as crowds. It was busy but not like it was on the 24th through the 26th. The 23rd was crowded but still not as much as after the 24th.

If you go toward the beginning of the month, the crowds are very minimal which does make it a bit more enjoyable.

 

[Geubux]

We always go one of the first two weeks in December. The parks are absolutely low volume. I know you would like to be there on your daughters b-day, but at 5 it's to make you more happy than her. She will celebrate whichever day you say is her birthday, and you'll be able to do more in a shorter amount of time. It Should be easier to get PS. We have always been able to get them the first two weeks, but we start calling for mon, tues, wed, thurs, etc until we get them. Good luck!

 

[purplebelle]

Forget the exact birthdate and go when it's least crowded (about the first 15 days of December). We have late December birthdays in our family but we visit when the crowds are lowest and merely state we're celebrating bdays early. It's a lot more rewarding having more of Disney to yourself than seeing Cinderella on your b-day. What kid doesn't like more than 1 b-day celebration?

 

[Robundrh2o]

Thanks to everybody that posted in here. I already have reservations from the 20th - 23rd (staying at POP) without realizing it was a 'Peak' time. I checked on changing them to start the 19th, and voila saved a total of $50.00 on the room and get an extra day in WDW. Thanks for the input.