early december wait times

[bears163]

we are going the 2nd week of december. anyone know of past wait times?

 

[shoppingnut]

Wait times are very minimal. We always go in the beginning of december and we are able to do each park in one day. Don't forget to do Mickey's Very Merry xmas party, it's lots of fun. There is the Osborne lights at MGM and Holiday's Around the World at Epcot. Check out www.allearsnet.com they list all the details on the special holiday happenings, as well as the dates for the very merry which are now out, but I don't believe on sale yet.

Also be aware that the weather in Florida at that time can be cold. The year before last it was incredibly cold, I mean jeans, sweatshirts, gloves, scarf & coats. Last year wasn't so bad, but only wore shorts one day. Go on line to the weather channel website and do a 10 day projection, it will help with packing the proper clothing. I've seen many, many people freezing in shorts because they thought "oh we're going to FL, it's going to be hot." Don't be one of those people, otherwise, you will be buying the $40 sweatshirt at one of WDW's stores.

 

[foldmama]

Hi - I was at WDW the second week of December, 2002. The waits for most attractions were under 20 minutes (except for the major ones and they were only 30 to 40 minutes) and it's a beautiful time of year. Ecopt is just wonderful in December. My nephew was 4 at the time and he just loved all the little stage shows in ECOPT. I hope to get back in December some time in the future.

 

[dvcnut39]

As posted by shoppingnut, it's a great time to go and do not miss MVMCP. MVMCP is one of the main reasons that were are going 2DEC-11DEC05. The only thing I can tell you is that during the 2nd week of DEC02, we could not figure out why MK was so busy on a Wednesday, then we figured out that Monday and Tuesday were rain-outs so Wednesday was everyones' Monday. We left MK and went to MGM and all the rides were walk-ons. Hopefully this helps.

 

[bears163]

thanks for all the tips. i just made our reservation for dec 6-11 and plan on doing mvmcp

 

[lscott933]

we were there from dec 1st to the 5th last year. the waits were mod to say. i went the the aniamal kingdom and it was really crowded. i didnt think that it would be that crowded. it was like a 45 minute wait to ride that. to ride test track it was about the same at epcot too. i think it is becoming more and more popular with all the christmas stuff going on.

 

[Christina]

Usually wait times in early December are very low to almost none-exsistant. WDW experts say its the best time to go, so congratulations you picked a fabulous time and shouldn't experience a lot of waiting in line at all.

 

[shoppingnut]

i went the the aniamal kingdom and it was really crowded. i didnt think that it would be that crowded. it was like a 45 minute wait to ride that. to ride test track it was about the same at epcot too.

If it was on a weekend that you went, yes it will be a bit more crowded at any of the parks. We waited 20 mins for the Safari and 15 for Dinosaur. Test Track at 45 mins is considered minimal, since at busier times it's usually 90-120 min. wait. We used FP's ocassionally, but there was not real need to use them often.

 

[Vernonpush]

As others have said wait times are short, but the parks close earlier then usual also ( Evening Extra Magic Hours will be valuable then). The parks have a special magic with all the Holiday decorations. Be sure to check out some of the resort decorations too (if you have the time). Have fun!

 

[Pioneer Hall]

Wait times are minimal this time of year, but the park hours are shorter on most days. I still consider it one of the better times of year to go because people are not down there for the holidays yet, but you get everything the holidays have to offer. All the decorations are up and the special events are going on (MVMCP, Osborne, etc.). The weather is also pretty nice, it just gets colder at night.

 

[Robert O]

We were at the parks this past Dec at the same time you plan on going and found the wait times to be short. We didnt hit MK on a weekened day but hit other parks on weekends. The longest line we enocuntered was for Test Track at Epcot which was over a hour long at times in the standy lane but it you use single rider/fastpass then you shouldnt have alot of problems. The only other wait we found as long was Rockin n roller coaster at mgm, but if you hit the line early/late in the day or use single rider/fastpass you again should be ok. We did find the line for Fantasmic starting up early son i would hit that line early and just get something to eat while you wait.
And Mickeys x-mas party is a great time for all, and dont miss the Osborne Lights at mgm and the Candlelight Processional at epcot and the lights that change to the music(dont rememeber what it is called canopy of lights??).
I have found this to be the best time of the year to visit WDW, and if you have time also visit Unviersal Studios!!

 

[shoppingnut]

The canopy of lights is called the Gate and between world showcase and future world (whatever it is called nowadays). They also do a tree lighting ceremony in EPCOT and I think MK does one too, which is pretty neat.

Universal at IOA does Grinchmas, where you can meet the Grinch and they have the cat in the hat land all deck out like whooville and they have a stage show several times a day called the whoovilation. It's really neat. Over in UO they have the Macy's Day Parade ballons and do a small parade, but that is usually a bit later in the month around the 14th.

We use the single rider line at Test Track all the time, it's great.