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[ToddfromCanada]

My family, (myself, my wife and our 4 yr. old girl and 6 yr. old boy) are thinking of coming down around the 29th of Dec. until the second or third of Jan. Could people please provide feedback about whether the crowds are unbearable, and whether or not the holiday extras make it worthwhile. Also, we are hoping to stay in one of the mid range resorts on site. Any advice about which one we should choose? Thanks in advance.
todd

 

[Britt]

I've heard the week OF Christmas and the week after (New Years time frame) are horrible for crowds. Im not sure about unbearable or not, but from the crowd calendar...it's all blocked out in red...lol

http://www.undercovertourist.com/pl...endar_december-2012.html#disney-opening-hours

 

[OswaldTheRabbit]

From what I have read I believe it is actually the busiest week of the whole year. I can't mention crowds but another site did say that this is a time when a park can reach capacity and turn people away. If you go it may be best to get to the parks earlier rather than later so you can get into where you want to go!

I will say though it is amazing to see the parks decorated for the holidays!

 

[boopuff]

We went with our teenage children the crowds were something to behold! Since we had older kids we burned the midnight oil and stayed late. Make dining reservations well in advance. That alone was a blessing. (plus it felt kinda good to walk in wait a few minutes and get seated before the crowds!)

 

[ToddfromCanada]

Thanks all for the feedback. My wife and I are teachers so we are limited to when we can travel. So dinner reservations now eh? wow. I dont even know what I want for supper tommorow let alone in December.

 

[maryszhi]

its going to be crowded because of the holidays. this is technically considered one of the most busiest and most crowed season. it is, however, gorgeous and a lot of fun. also if you are considering going, i would make reservations asap.

 

[Pepe195]

We've stayed onsite at christmas time around 5 times now, the first time being back in 2000/2001 we stayed from around the 21st Dec to around the 4th Jan, the youngest member of the party being 2yrs old! So as you can tell we had a stroller all through the xmas period and had no trouble. We have since been without strollers and due to there being limits in the amount of people in the parks we have never felt it to be unbearable this includes being in MK on NYE! Because it's the holidays to don't get people pushing and shoving and people are more concerned about looking at the decorations and taking photos of their families!

Also a note about resorts, we have stayed at all of the moderate resorts, numerous times for each at different times of the year, including xmas, our family favourite at christmas/new year is probably POFQ, because it's a small resort it's very homely, especially around the holidays, plus if i recall Santa and Mickey & Minnie have photo ops in the lobby at certain times which is always useful if you want to spend more time going on the attractions rather than queuing for photos and autographs
Plus we've had a number of encounters with Chip & Dale and Mickey & Minnie walking along behind us and linking arms and walking around the resort with us, a nice touch i feel

 

[GoochDSA]

Crowds can be rediculous from the day after Christmas until a day or 2 after NYE. With the little ones, don't expect to get on more than a couple of rides a day, unless you plan on taking them back for naps mid day and plan on utilizing EMH. As long as you don't go in expecting to get everything done and you pack a whole lot of patience the holiday atmosphere is worth checking out at least once.

 

[coltow]

Is there ANY other time of year you can go?

 

[disneygirl76]

My family, (myself, my wife and our 4 yr. old girl and 6 yr. old boy) are thinking of coming down around the 29th of Dec. until the second or third of Jan. Could people please provide feedback about whether the crowds are unbearable, and whether or not the holiday extras make it worthwhile. Also, we are hoping to stay in one of the mid range resorts on site. Any advice about which one we should choose? Thanks in advance.
todd

Yes, the crowds are pretty intense. Its a very popular time to travel b/c so many people are off of work and kids are out of school. Not to mention, cooler temps and the magic of Disney during the holidays! But as much as I love Disney, and the magic during the holidays, we wouldn't go during this week because the crowds are so heavy. Is there any other time you can go? If not, then recommendations for a resort would be a Moderate Resort. I have not stayed at any (I can recommend WL, YC, and GF) but this September, we are staying at POR in a Royal Room. I have heard great things about it so I recommend that one.

 

[Samanthabrown3]

Thanks all for the feedback. My wife and I are teachers so we are limited to when we can travel. So dinner reservations now eh? wow. I dont even know what I want for supper tommorow let alone in December.

My sister and I are teachers, too. We've gone after August 15 or so, when the Floridians are back at school, and that was not terribly crowded. Lots of folks from other countries, though. But this year we're going back in December. Go figure.

It's easier to decide what you want for supper in December than tomorrow. ;-) Pick a restaurant and let Disney offer you a choice of lovely meals. But yeah, seriously, make reservations now, especially if you want Le Cellier.

 

[disneygirl76]

Thanks all for the feedback. My wife and I are teachers so we are limited to when we can travel. So dinner reservations now eh? wow. I dont even know what I want for supper tommorow let alone in December.

Yep! Dinner Reservations...aka ADR's. They can be made 180 days out. And the popular places do book up.