***Official Planning Thread -DECEMBER 2024 - Welcome all!***

[cattycat2]

Hi!! Haven't been to Disney since 2013 and a lot has changed!! We are so excited because it will be the first trip in December!! We will be staying at the Contemporary Dec. 9-14.


June 2009-WL
June 2011-POFQ
October 2013-CR
December 2024-CR

 

[japanese maple]

Hi!! Haven't been to Disney since 2013 and a lot has changed!! We are so excited because it will be the first trip in December!! We will be staying at the Contemporary Dec. 9-14.


June 2009-WL
June 2011-POFQ
October 2013-CR
December 2024-CR

Welcome! You are on list. Our first December trip also!

 

[Disturbia]

Hi!! Haven't been to Disney since 2013 and a lot has changed!! We are so excited because it will be the first trip in December!! We will be staying at the Contemporary Dec. 9-14.


June 2009-WL
June 2011-POFQ
October 2013-CR
December 2024-CR

I think the second week of Dec is one of the best times to go. One of our friends went for the first time and they loved it. Genie+ was $15 that week and then $25-29 the week after. There was an unexpected rain shower which emptied the hub and they saw the fireworks from up front.

We went the week of 12/28 and We walked up maybe 15-20 mins before Christmas fireworks and stood at the white line beside the ice cream parlor and it was a great view and the walkway was kept clear (breathing room, great visibility for kids even with light up hats, kids on shoulders up front etc).

 

[Nikkimouse44]

Planning our park days for our trip is worse than putting together a 1,000 piece puzzle! I have to make park reservations so I want to nail this down soon. I wish they put out the park ours and extra even ours earlier so I knew more in advance however here is our current plan:

Dec 8 - arrival
Dec 9 - AK / hop to Epcot and hop for evening hours
Dec 10 - MK / hop to Epcot
Dec 11 - Epcot / hop to MK
Dec 12 - HS
Dec 13 - resort day / Christmas party night
Dec 14 - breakfast and then drive home

 

[Disturbia]

Planning our park days for our trip is worse than putting together a 1,000 piece puzzle! I have to make park reservations so I want to nail this down soon. I wish they put out the park ours and extra even ours earlier so I knew more in advance however here is our current plan:

Dec 8 - arrival
Dec 9 - AK / hop to Epcot and hop for evening hours
Dec 10 - MK / hop to Epcot
Dec 11 - Epcot / hop to MK
Dec 12 - HS
Dec 13 - resort day / Christmas party night
Dec 14 - breakfast and then drive home

You can use last year as a guide combined with MVMCP nights (use the day of the week as a guide except Christmas Day and NYE where they’re trying to divert crowds away from MK); from what I remember hours were added to most parks 2 weeks prior so it will be a moving target

Extra hours were added on Dec 2:

https://blogmickey.com/2023/12/ever...urs-in-december-including-1am-close-at-epcot/

Extended evening hours will move with extra hours making some not so useful

https://blogmickey.com/2023/10/delu...-january-2024-following-epcot-heavy-december/

 

[Disturbia]

I’m thinking this year Epcot extended evenings might be on Thursdays Dec 5, 12, 19 (and 20?) matching MVMCP like the year prior), but also on Wed Dec 25? And AK Dec 26 (Thur where Epcot should have been?). I don’t understand why they can’t release ALL park hours at least 70 days in advance to assist in planning vs on ADR day.

Hollywood studios got extended hours mid Dec 2022 but now we have Jollywood nights instead.

 

[Nikkimouse44]

I’m thinking this year Epcot extended evenings might be on Thursdays Dec 5, 12, 19 (matching MVMCP like year prior), but on Wed Dec 25? And AK Dec 26 (Thur where Epcot should have been?). I don’t understand why they can’t release park hours at least 70 days in advance to assist in planning.

Hollywood studios got extended hours mid Dec

Would there not be any on Monday like normal? I wish they would release it so I know where to hop and can make dining reservations!!

 

[Disturbia]

It’s so disappointing for them to change hours/event dates. We were hoping for our first MVMCP on 12/21. We might consider changing our trip to post Christmas (Christmas parade and fireworks are shown daily in till 12/29 at Mk).

 

[Disturbia]

Would there not be any on Monday like normal? I wish they would release it so I know where to hop and can make dining reservations!!

Magic kingdom doesn’t get any hours as those are sold as MVMCP and they change the day for Epcot to match the MVMCP days (that’s the trend I’ve noticed. Maybe someone else can chime in).

The week of Christmas and NYE the park hours are so long (not released/changed until early Dec) that you don’t need extended evenings.

 

[Disturbia]

Last year was the first time there were AK extended evening hours in Dec and HS got none due to those (and other nights) being sold as Jollywood

 

[Nikkimouse44]

Magic kingdom doesn’t get any hours as those are sold as MVMCP and they change the day for Epcot to match the MVMCP days (that’s the trend I’ve noticed. Maybe someone else can chime in).

The week of Christmas and NYE the park hours are so long (not released/changed until early Dec) that you don’t need extended evenings.

Epcot evening hours are usually on Mondays, at least now they are so I was thinking they would have kept that into December - but it’s Disney and they do what they want lol

 

[Disturbia]

Would there not be any on Monday like normal? I wish they would release it so I know where to hop and can make dining reservations!!

I just noticed they did Mon and Thur in Nov and early Dec. I would think they would follow the same pattern throwing AK on some days.

 

[Nikkimouse44]

I just noticed they did Mon and Thur in Nov and early Dec. I would think they would follow the same pattern throwing AK on some days.

Thank you!!!! So my Monday plan should still *hopefully* work out

 

[Disturbia]

Thank you!!!! So my Monday plan should still *hopefully* work out

I believe so. You will get at least one day at Epcot. The MVMCP days are all over the place during that week so hard to predict


Maybe we need to see if Jollywood nights and Epcot extended hours coincide so they can send people who don’t have Jollywood tickets over to Epcot instead?

So they sent deluxe guests on Mondays that had Jollywood nights to different parks: Dec 4 to AK and Dec 18 to Epcot (just looking at early to mid Dec Jollywood nights 2023).

 

[Disturbia]

This year it’s up in the air with Jollywood nights. They can’t do Wed and Thur extended evening so I don’t see a trend

 

[japanese maple]

The first week of December there is no Jollywood Nights on Wednesday, so I'm hoping they at least do an Epcot deluxe extra hours that night so we can take advantage!

 

[Disturbia]

Thank you!!!! So my Monday plan should still *hopefully* work out

That Monday Dec 9 may be AK extended evening, but they will have to offer an Epcot EE hopefully Dec 12; you have MVMCP booked on Dec 13 so it would all still work out.

 

[Disturbia]

Planning our park days for our trip is worse than putting together a 1,000 piece puzzle! I have to make park reservations so I want to nail this down soon. I wish they put out the park ours and extra even ours earlier so I knew more in advance however here is our current plan:

Dec 8 - arrival
Dec 9 - AK / hop to Epcot and hop for evening hours
Dec 10 - MK / hop to Epcot
Dec 11 - Epcot / hop to MK
Dec 12 - HS
Dec 13 - resort day / Christmas party night
Dec 14 - breakfast and then drive home

You mean breakfast at Topolinos on your morning back!

 

[Nikkimouse44]

You mean breakfast at Topolinos on your morning back!

That is our plan, we have never been there before and it’s next on the list to try! We did cape May last trip and Ohana the time before that

 

[DenaRox]

So i think i have my trip all planned out. Did i mention that this will be my very 1st solo trip

Sat Nov 30 - Arrive, hit hotel then Disney Springs (no, i did not type out Downtown Disney first because i can not grasp the Disney Springs lol)
Sun Dec 1- Magic Kingdom. Will do EE and LLMP
Mon Dec 2- Animal Kingdom. Will do EE but not LLMP
Wed Dec 4 - Hollywood Studios. Will do EE and LLMP
Thurs Dec 5- rest day, check out some hotels, swim etc
Fri Dec 6 - Epcot. Will do EE BUT not LLMP, try for VQ for GOG and if needed purchase LLSP
Sat Dec 7 - ridiculously early (being picked up by mears at 330AM!! Why do i do this!!) flight Home
I hope that this is a nice itinerary with some rest days to sleep in (all those early entry days lol). My general plan is to go hard in the AM park hours then slow down after lunch. I'm too old for hardcore go go go! lol