New Years at WDW

[toyasu91]

Hi,
We are going to be in WDW for New Years. We decided to go to EPCOT on New Years Eve. I know it will be very crowded. We have lunch & Dinner reservations.

Any tips on how to deal with the crowds New Years Eve? Any experiences?

Thanks.

 

[TG4AKV]

We will be there for New Year's as well. We have visited WDW at just about every other time of the year but never for New Years Eve. Any words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated. If anyone out there has done this before, please let us know what the "must do's" and "must avoids" are.

 

[jillybeene71]

OMG....do not go to Epcot for New Years Eve unless you want to be shoulder to shoulder with everyone...we checked out of the Royal Pacific on Dec 31 last year and the bellhop told us to go to epcot cause it was the biggest park...wrong!! We couldnt move, Somewhere past Canada there was a people jam and no one could move either way for like 15 minutes. Although there are DJ's and the atmosphere is awesome, I didnt think it was worth it. here is a couple of pics of what we were stuck in...

Unless you are dead set on going to epcot, I wouldnt go. We did get around future world ok, but the lines for rides were like 2+ hours. the only thing we rode that night was Nemo.
Just something for you to think about before you make up your mind

 

[maidenfairy]

I'm avoiding Epcot and Mk on New Years Eve like the plague. You will find us at Animal Kingdom. I'm hoping it will be the least popular of the parks.

 

[jillybeene71]

yep...Animal Kingdom is where we'll be also. Then maybe Boardwalk for a little while when AK closes.

 

[mecllap]

We were at the Studios a couple of years ago for NYE -- once they started out handing out hats, etc. the noise from noisemakers got really intense (6 p.m. maybe?). We left shortly after as the crowds were building, and went back to the hotel for a quiet evening! We ended up turning in early -- but we'd been in the Parks for several days already, and were just tired overall.
Be prepared for parking hassles, CROWDS, NOISE, overwhelming intensity, exhaustion, etc. I would hazard a guess that it might be hard to find someone who truly enjoyed NYE at WDW, after they've actually done it. (It really costs a lot there to get a good alcohol buzz going, also).

But, hey -- once in a lifetime "been there - done that" -- have a great time!

 

[TG4AKV]

Would MK be a better choice for New Year's than Epcot or Hollywood Studios??? I thought about Animal Kingdom but don't they close early? It didn't sound like they were doing anything very special for New Year's. The Epcot pictures are kind of scaring me. We may need a new plan.

 

[jillybeene71]

Your right...animal kingdom does close early. But we "been there done that" last year at epcot and have no plans on being smushed at any park. Dont get me wrong...I would love to be at MK on new years eve, but its just me and ds 7 going by ourselves this year and I doubt either of us will make it to 12 regardless of where we go.
I do know for a fact Epcot and MK will be extremely crowded, Hollywood studios would probably be the best choice if you were looking for fireworks. Just my opinion though.
Good Luck and if you make it out of there alive...come back and write a trip report... (kidding)

 

[maidenfairy]

Mk is going to be a mad house. AK does close early, but we plan on taking the night easy and if the kiddies are still up at midnight, then we will watch MK fireworks from our hotel, the poly. I didn't think 2 kids would enjoy being in the mess of MK and Epcot. I don't want to ring in the new year packed like sardines.

 

[zulemara]

I'm gonna go against the grain here and say AWESOME! EPCOT is a GREAT place to be on New years! The dancing, the lights, the booze, and the FIREWORKS! I've been there twice on New Years and had a great time!

Simply put, do not plan on doing any rides. New Years is not a day for rides, it's the day for eating and drinking! The crowds in world showcase get really bad as evening approaches but are completely manageable during the day. DBF and I drank half way around the world, took a nap between france and...germany? I forget which one, but it was by France in the grass, and then we finished drinking then had dinner at the special New Years Eve dinner thing by Canada. After dinner we basically staked out our spot for the fireworks and waited for 4 hours. In hindsight, I probably wouldn't have done that again and would be much more in favor of drinking for that 4 hours, but oh well, live and learn!

Once nightfall comes, you really have to pick your movements carefully. It is most crowded in Canada and Mexico but not as bad as you get toward the UK and France. Find a general area and stick to it for the most part. If you go anywhere near the end of the world showcase, it will literally take you 20 minutes to get through...at least! Also make sure you get a free New Years hat and party favor as soon as they start handing them out. They go quick!

New Years really is like xmas day at MK. You just have to accept there will be crowds, don't plan on rushing at all, and enjoy the day. Being in a hurry or trying to rush from point A to B will get you nowhere fast and ruin the night.

Hopefully that helps. My first time at EPCOT on new years was when I was a CP and I went after work, found a spot for the fireworks, and fell asleep cuz I was tired from work LOL. I don't think they had all the DJs and stuff that year. Hopefully they continue that!

 

[brittsmum1998]

Ah Crap! We planned on spending New Years Eve at Epcot. Now I'm scared. I'm thinking we may end up leaving before midnight now.

 

[jillybeene71]

We got to epcot at around 7 or so new years eve...hung out in future world for a little while rode Nemo started walking to world showcase...got stuck somewhere after canada and took their detour out of the park somewhere, couldve been around mexico, and ended up behind test track following CM's to the bus stops. We were back at all star music for 10 pm...We did hear fireworks at 12 though...

 

[jdvinson]

Sounds like the entire place is crazy for New Year's. We will also be there that night. We are staying at the CSR in AK, so maybe we will just take it easy that night and stay in with the kids.

Thanks for all the input. I had no idea what to expect that night.

 

[brittsmum1998]

Sounds like the entire place is crazy for New Year's. We will also be there that night. We are staying at the CSR in AK, so maybe we will just take it easy that night and stay in with the kids.

Thanks for all the input. I had no idea what to expect that night.

The whole idea of our impromptu trip (just made ressies 3 wks ago) was to "experience" New Years in Disney. Holy carp is he going to be surprised

 

[bjeannep]

I've spent NYE at the Studios, and you couldn't move there either. I think WDW is just generally packed that night

 

[auntyaba]

No matter where you are for New Years at Disney you can bet you will be shoulder to shoulder. A few days before all the CM's will be advising you to pick a park and stay there. If you leave or wait to late to get there they may close the park and not allow you in. Last year DD and I changed our plans so that we would be at MK and not risk not getting in, I am not sure if they park officially closed but I can tell you I don't see how they could have gotten 10 more people in. As someone else said don't plan on riding much, the lines for everything are huge. We stuck it out until almost 11:00 p.m. and then just could not take it anymore, no where to sit and rest so we both decided we could not stay another hour for the fireworks and returned to our hotel. Keep in mind too that the buses getting back are going to be very long waits as well although Disney does have certain "perks" to entice you into staying later to allow the bus lines to shorten. Wherever you decide to go, we prepared, we had heard about the crowds but truly had NO CLUE what we were in for.

 

[chrisd596]

We've done Epcot for the last 3 years, I recommend sit back enjoy the music, the fireworks, forget the rides and have a great time w/ the special 12mid fireworks.

Chris

 

[PJAY]

Did NYE at MK in 1999 and it was packed. general consensus is that every park is busy. It was a waste of a day because people were staking out spots for the midnight fireworks in the morning and you just couldn't move anywhere. It was worth seeing but I wouldn't wait around all day like I did last time, I would go and have fun then wherever we were I would just watch the show. Do not intend to park hop!

 

[rillsung]

We do Epcot every year. Lunch and dinner ressies are a great way to escape the crowds for a couple of hours. We do dinner at Germany since we can catch their celebration at about 6 when it hits midnight in Germany. The midnight fireworks show is awesome though! It feels like you're floating with all the big booms. They first show the regular fireworks show, then the holiday add-on, then a NYE special countdown. I think the last few years, they have closed Epcot to everyone but resort guests and annual passholders. But this normally happens sometime mid-afternoon and only for a few hours.

I would imagine the MK would also be a crazy madhouse. A few years ago, we actually caught the NYE fireworks show the night before. Guess they were trying to get people to pick another park for NYE. I would imagine that the AK would be pretty unpopulated since they do close early and as far as I know no NYE celebrations at all.

 

[brittsmum1998]

We do Epcot every year. Lunch and dinner ressies are a great way to escape the crowds for a couple of hours. We do dinner at Germany since we can catch their celebration at about 6 when it hits midnight in Germany. The midnight fireworks show is awesome though! It feels like you're floating with all the big booms. They first show the regular fireworks show, then the holiday add-on, then a NYE special countdown. I think the last few years, they have closed Epcot to everyone but resort guests and annual passholders. But this normally happens sometime mid-afternoon and only for a few hours.

I would imagine the MK would also be a crazy madhouse. A few years ago, we actually caught the NYE fireworks show the night before. Guess they were trying to get people to pick another park for NYE. I would imagine that the AK would be pretty unpopulated since they do close early and as far as I know no NYE celebrations at all.

A CM on the phone a couple of weeks ago said that they would be doing the NYE fireworks at MK on Dec 30th also. He suggested going to MK on the 30th and hitting HS or Epcot on the 31st.