Me too! I'll be at the Beach Club Villas Dec. 12-16. (It's a shorter trip because I'll sneek to WDW during a business trip & again in Jan. for my friend's Ph.D. celebration Land/Sea cruise!) Anyway, this will be our 3rd trip during the holiday and our third trip to BCV. However, this will be our first Christmas trip to BCV
So what you want to know? We've done
MVMCP twice, but decided to skip it this time. Since we've done it before and will get to take advantage of Extra Magic Hours, we are saving the $ this time. However, I would recommend it. (Get your FREE photos taken first, then find a FREE cookie & cocoa station! The cocoa is awesome!) Make sure to be somewhere around the castle when they do Wishes because it has a special ending for MVMCP!
Osborne Lights are NOT to be missed. It is definitely my mom's favorite part. That and the "snow"!
Definitely call and get some dining booked NOW. NOW. NOW. The holiday season really brings out the crazies, like me! So far we have only booked Liberty Tree Tavern in the Magic Kingdom (& Trails End at FW). We are doing lunch to purposefully skip the characters at dinner. However, the characters are great there. The food is awesome (think big Thanksgiving spread) and the atmosphere is very calm, especially compared to the chaos just outside in the park! I called on the evening of the day my "window" opened and still got a later seating than expected.
A will concur with the recommendation of Chef Mickey's. To me that place is all about the Characters because I think the food is just ok. But the kids will love it! My best friend (who is about to turn 31)... it's about the only character dining she has ever done and it is her primary DEMAND for our Jan. trip.
Also, take advantage of the character dining at Cape May at the Beach Club. We've never done the breakfast (as I don't have any kids), but it always looks like a blast! Definitely review the menus at allearsnet.com. They are invaluable. Just MAKE SOME RESERVATIONS. I would recommend one for each park day. The last thing you want is to waste precious time looking for a place to get in and eat! You can try to change or easily cancel them later, but once they're full....
What else? Definitely take some down-time to stroll the resorts - if your kids will allow. We did this by accident one year when we had an extra day and needed to stop "running". Every resort is themed differently, not only throughout the year, but especially for the Christmas holiday. I came home with photos of nearly every resort Christmas tree and cherish those memories. That being said...
Don't forget about Downtown Disney! It is the shopping mecca! You may want to set a budget and ground rules before you go. The kids will go nuts in World of Disney and Once upon a Toy. If you are into the holidays make sure to get to Disney's Days of Christmas (preferrable without the kids per all the breakables); it's all things Christmas decoration! The first couple of stops there my mom spent about $200 each trip! Did you know you can have all of your shopping shipped back to your resort? It's SO much easier to spend $ when you don't have all of those bags dragging you down!
Finally, make sure you get shirts right away at MVMCP - they go fast! But my favorite are the Santa hats with Mickey ears! It's been cold enough that I actually wore mine!
Wow- I didn't know I had all that in me! Now I'm ready to go! I wonder if I'll run into you?!
P.S. DD=Disney Daughter, DS=Disney son, DH=Disney Husband, DW=Disney Wife, etc.
Gayle