What to do in the evenings?

[aimb]

We (myself, DH, 2 yo DS, & my mom) will be at WDW in December (staying off-site). Since the parks close early, I'm looking for fun things to do in the evenings. I don't want to count on swimming since I'm not sure it will be warm enough in December - especially in the evenings. We're going to MVMCP one night and Chef Mickey's one night, but that's all we have planned so far.

 

[jerseydizdreamer]

December is SUCH a great time of year to go! You should be able to swim (I'm usually there the first week in December, and even in the evenings it's warm enough for a swim). Heck, if you can get mom to watch your child, you and DH could always get a little private swim in (especially if your hotel has a hot tub!). For the whole family, I'd say that one nice way to spend the evening is heading over to The Boardwalk. If you happen to be in Epcot that day, when the park closes you can walk over (it's a very pretty walk). There are restaurants and places to grab a snack, arcade-style games, shopping venues. Plus, you can go into the Boarwalk hotel and look at the decorations, which are beautiful. Another idea might be to head over to Downtown Disney for some shopping, sightseeing, snacking, etc. Finally, depending on how late they're open during that time of year, while at Downtown Disney you could also head over to Disneyquest (especially if you have the ParkHOpper Plus, or other ticket which includes admission to this HUMONGOUS arcade). It might be pricey if you have to pay for separate admission, but if it's included, it's a fun way to spend some time!

Richard

 

[athena's mommy]

I agree with Richard. We love have the evenings free in December. Here is what we do. We attend MVMCP at least once. We head to DTD to do some Christmas shopping and spend a few hours at DisneyQuest. We go to the Boardwalk area and have dinner at Beaches & Cream and tour the resorts there. We always have dinner at O'hana's. Epcot is usually open until 9:30 so we spend a few nights there watching Illuminations and see the CP. We may go to a local dinner show like Pirates or Capone's. You can also take your son over the Fort Wilderness. They have a great canmpfire and sing-along going on every night. There are so many wonderful things to do, I can't think of them all!

 

[disneysteve]

Definitely go hotel-hopping to see all the holiday decorations.

Shopping at Downtown Disney. Walking around the lagoon from Boardwalk to Yacht and Beach is very nice. Stop for a snack or late meal at Beaches and Cream.

If you have a car (we won't do Disney without one), hop over to Old Town to browse the shops and do some rides. Also, spending an evening in Celebration is very nice. Cafe D'Antonio's is one of our favorite restaurants in the area.

Have fun.

Steve

 

[crisi]

It depends on how your two year old holds up and naps.

We often finish our evenings with a meal at Epcot on one of the hotels around 6:00 pm. By the time we finish eating, its 7 or better, and by the time we get back to the hotel, there is time for a little down time in the room before lights out.

But we don't leave the parks for extensive naps. We will nap on a bus or inside the Hall of Presidents or maybe in the stroller. Scheduled naps have not been successful for our kids - when we try them we head out at noon and have the kids bounce around the hotel until three when they fall asleep exhausted and sleep until 6:00 - and then what are we going to do - drag them off to Pleasure Island? Its worked much better for us to let them cat nap through the day on Disney Transportation as we park hop and then work from early bedtimes.