what are the must reservations for during my dec 11 - dec 18th trip

[fflmaster]

hello all,

i am not an expert enough to know all the activities that must be reserved well in advance, so i am asking if you all could help me.

i will be traveling to disney beach club on dec 11th -dec 18th, 2005.

i have four adults and two children (both 8 years old)

beside the very merry christmas party and the osborne lights what other attractions are considered must sees.

and what activities do i need to make reservations for..

i just realized my 90 day window has just passed, so i want to call for anything i need to now

thanks in advance

 

[misslissa]

You have never been to Disney before? My fiancee and I just had our first trip last year and I'll tell you things that I wished I had done! Now, we plan to go back and get it right!

We also went during the same time as you... the second week of December.

I felt that the most important thing to make was dinner reservations! The one we DID make was at the Sci Fi Theatre in MGM Studios... it was great. You sit in cars that make it look like you are in a Drive in Theatre. Also, we wanted to go to Chef Mickey's but couldn't get a reservation. Those kind of things, including dinner shows and character meals, I would start planning now.

One of our most agonizing times of the trip was at Epcot, it is filled with amazing restaurants which were ALL booked at the end of our long day. We ended up eating at our hotel food court when we knew there were all kinds of neat places out there waiting for us.

The best information source (I THINK) would be "all ears net dot com"
(Only all one word... it won't let me post the site for some reason)
They have all of the restaurants, menus and prices.

It might seem kind of silly to start planning out every meal that you are going to eat, or at least every dinner, but you'll be glad that you did.

 

[RichAyers]

Hi fflmaster,
We (DW, DS3, DD7) are staying at the BCV from the 11-18th of Dec. Maybe we'll run into each other!!

Here are a few things we are doing. Although we are kind of "taking it easy" this trip, if that is even possible . We have reservations to MVMCP and have ADR's at Liberty Tree Tavern around 5pm or so. We usually don't overdo the priority seating thing, but it does make sense to have a few strategically placed thru-out your trip

We also plan to take in the Osborne lights in MGM. We hope to hit a few of the resorts to look at the decorations themselves. They are decorated to the hilts for the Holidays. EPCOT has the Candlelight Processional. If you do a search on this website you can learn all about it.

Not too sure of other "ticketed" events, but the decorations themselves are out of this World - both in the parks and in the resorts.

Oh yeah, check out the gingerbread house in the lobby of the Grand Floridian. Life-size gingerbread house where they actually sell gingerbread treats baked right there in the hotel. I would definitely recommend searching on the word "Christmas" on the Dis and see what comes up. There is always something neat going on somewhere!
Hope to see you around the hotel!

Rich Ayers

 

[tclowe]

The kids may like the pirate cruise sailing from the Beach Club marina. The albatross cruise. You have to pay for this activity (around $30 per child). I think they only do it twice a week and you need to book right away. My 6 year old went in May and had a great time.

 

[jekjones1558]

Last year there was a special finale to Illuminations fireworks each night. Definitely worth seeing.
You will love the life-size chocolate horses on the carousel in BC lobby. BW also has a special display made of candy and the garland in BW lobby is spectacular (How do they get so MANY ornaments on that garland!!)

 

[44disney]

Your kids should like a character meal -- I recommend Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary Resort. You can take the monorail from the MK to get there. They serve breakfast (last reservation time is 11:20) and also dinner. We always make the latest breakfast reservation and treat it as a lunch (it is a substantial buffet and they continue to put food out well past 11:20), and then return to the park.

My son is 8 and loves Chef Mickey's -- we are eating there twice (free dining plan!) on our October trip.

Also-- bring t-shirts (buy ahead of time at the disney store or online to save a bunch of $) and a sharpie so the characters can sign the shirt and your kids end up with a cool souvenir!

Have fun!!!!

 

[DizneyNutz]

Not too sure if the 8 year olds will be intrigued, but you certainly need to try to visit the different resorts at this magical time of the year if possible even if just for a few moments (esp. Wilderness, Poly, Grand Flor., Animal King. Pay close attention to any of the special decorations around the lobbies, because almost all have some sort of confectionary treat built to resemble something else. We walked right by a real life carousel made of chocolate at one of the resorts on the Boardwalk. We also love the Gingerbread house in the Grand Floridian where they will also provide you with roasted Chestnutts to eat while touring. You will see more poinsettias here than anywhere else I hve visited. The Candlelight Processional is a not to be misssed also. We love this time of year there and often try to plan our trips around it. It just seems that much more magical when everything is decorated for Christmas!!! Hope you all have a great trip. P.S. Don't skip a visit to the Wilderness Lodge!!! It will really put you in the mood!!!! I know you will love the Osborne lights. Try to do the park stuff early in the day so when all of the spectacular night stuff is really lit up you can walk and enjoy without trying hit the attractions. They also did do a special EPCOT Illuminations at Christmas. I am already wishing we would be there this year but work prohibits it, so maybe next year. Here is to wishing you and yours a very grand holiday experience!!!!!!!

 

[DizneyNutz]

Sounds like you and yours needs to join DVC like the rest of us Disney Junkies. We shyed away from the kiosks like most people, but it really is worth a visit if you two have not done this yet. My DW and I can't stay away and we just joined. Best wishes to you and yours!!!!!

 

[fflmaster]

Hi fflmaster,
We (DW, DS3, DD7) are staying at the BCV from the 11-18th of Dec. Maybe we'll run into each other!!

Here are a few things we are doing. Although we are kind of "taking it easy" this trip, if that is even possible . We have reservations to MVMCP and have ADR's at Liberty Tree Tavern around 5pm or so. We usually don't overdo the priority seating thing, but it does make sense to have a few strategically placed thru-out your trip

We also plan to take in the Osborne lights in MGM. We hope to hit a few of the resorts to look at the decorations themselves. They are decorated to the hilts for the Holidays. EPCOT has the Candlelight Processional. If you do a search on this website you can learn all about it.

Not too sure of other "ticketed" events, but the decorations themselves are out of this World - both in the parks and in the resorts.

Oh yeah, check out the gingerbread house in the lobby of the Grand Floridian. Life-size gingerbread house where they actually sell gingerbread treats baked right there in the hotel. I would definitely recommend searching on the word "Christmas" on the Dis and see what comes up. There is always something neat going on somewhere!
Hope to see you around the hotel!

Rich Ayers

maybe we will run in to each other. could someone tell me what dw, ds, dd mean.. my guess is darling wife, darling son but no idea what dd means.. maybe darling dad

thanks for all the comments i can not wait and i look forward to spending this magical time with my wife and children

 

[GuardMusic]

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