Thanksgiving 2014 in WDW. Good idea or Bad?

[DadLightyear]

Hey everyone. My wife and I are contemplating a Disney World vacation for our family for Thanksgiving 2014. We will be traveling with our kids (5 and 3). My wife is a teacher, so we have to travel during busy times of the year. My question is for those of you who've traveled to Disney for Thanksgiving. Is it possible to enjoy the parks this week? Are the crowds just too much? I realize we will have to get to the parks early, tour until mid day and return at night, but I'm thinking that we can still have an enjoyable time. Also, is there always typically a Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party the Sunday night after Thanksgiving?

 

[sheboz]

Yes it is busy, according to touringplans.com most of the crowds were an 8 out of 10. Not spring break or Christmas numbers but definitely doable with a good touring plan.
We are possibly flying in on Thanksgiving day and staying a week. The crowds numbers drop dramatically on the Sunday so if you can stay past the weekend you could take advantage of 3 out of 10 crowds for the week.

 

[timandjanl]

I went in 2012 and didn't think the crowds were unbearable. We didn't spend thanksgiving at MK though. Also the weather was great. We were at the parks early and then took naps in the afternoon.

 

[Dallas_Lady]

We went that week in 2009 (also a teacher) and I'm debating it for next year. Crowds reminded me of June, busy doable with some planning. And since it's not hot like summer we didn't get so run down and worn out each day. The weather makes the crowds much easier to handle!

 

[spectrecat]

It's doable! Even if the crowds are high, it won't be as bad as other times of the year, and the weather is generally MUCH nicer than summer! We went that week years ago, and we had a wonderful time.

In 2009, we went the week after Thanksgiving, and the crowds were way lower. We went to MVMCP, and again, the weather was better than summer.

 

[missycourteau]

We are also looking at going the Friday before Thanksgiving and leaving the Sunday after, interested in what others have to say. Also, we are wanting to visit Sea World and Universal are they are busy?

 

[annacali]

We were there Nov 22-29, 2013--the Friday before to the Friday after Thanksgiving. The only MVMCP during our trip was on our arrival night, the 22nd. We went and my girls (ages 9, 11) had fun but we didn't get full enjoyment from it because we had been up since 4am for our 6am flight. Wouldn't do it again on arrival day.

We enjoyed low crowds on the first weekend but by Monday, yes, the crowds arrived. Not Christmas crowds but more than July crowds. Between the crowds and the FP+ rollout (we were offsite so had no access) and the very limited supply of legacy FP, we basically toured only at ropedrop for a few hours and when it got crowded we left. We did the Osborne Lights one night and loved it, but other than that we ended up spending only 4-5 hours a day in the parks. We did spend a day at Sea World and honestly we totally enjoyed it. No crowds, no lines, we saw all the shows and rode all the rides we wanted with no long waits and no need for a FP! We stayed all day and enjoyed it immensely.

The weather was another issue---we had temps from the 30's to the 80's during our week. We wore shorts once, no swimming. On Thanksgiving morning it was in the 30's at 8am rope drop for AK. We made a Target run for extra sweatshirts and were wearing our Northface jackets and gloves! It was chilly. It was also in the 40's the night we did the Osborne lights. Only one brief downpour for the week though. You do have to pack for everything that time of year.

All in all---we were glad we went and got to see the Christmas decorations. It was worth it for that. The FP+ rollout was a major downer on our actual touring and made it much harder for us to manage the crowds that were there. For this reason we aren't looking to book a return trip any time soon (and we have been yearly visitors for a number of years) so I am glad we did our "Christmas" trip.