Old Pros, I need your Help for Christmas

[Sharon1026]

Be prepared for massive crowds, so be patient and go with the flow.

Don't miss the osbourne lights at the studios, and epcot does a great job with santas around the world.

All of Disney is decked out - every hotel, etc. so it's really something to see.

have fun!

[Jim&AngieMarriner]

The responses I have received here have been more than I could have hoped for. Thanks for your support both to me specificlly and to our vacation. I guess I should have mentioned this earlier but we have rented a house about 8 miles from the parks so we wont be staying in any of the resort hotels but we do plan on going around and checking out thier decorations. Ive seen the shows on the travel channel by Samantha Brown and cant wait to see them myself.

If someone else has good tips and or adice about how to survive the parks durring Christmas week, please add your two cents in. I am deffinately taking notes.

[WeLuvBuzz]

I also would like to express my gratitude for service of our country. God bless you and your family.

As a veteran of multiple trips to the world during the Christmas holidays it is a wonderful time to go. Yes, it will be crowded, but that is not a problem at all if you manage your days. Since you are doing each park one day for a full day that is really easy to plan. I am not sure of the ages of your party, but I will give you a basic plan for each park. The key is to study the rides, shows, and activities at each park and know which ones are must do for your party and the times they are offered. Verify which ones have a fast pass and the order in which you plan to obtain passes. For parades and shows you should plan getting in line/claim a seat about an hour ahead of time, slightly less if you attend the first show of the day, but slightly more for the late evening ones. This is also a great time for snacks. Also, plan on leaving your accommodation one hour before the park opens each day. That will get you in line to get in about ½ an hour before park opening. You should also plan on staying all day. I will list good attractions for rest during the day.

AK – Upon entering send one member of your party to get passes for EE and the rest head to KS. Once everyone is together ride KS. Next do ITTBAB. Try an attend the first Lion King show so your wait is short. Get your next fast pass for Dinosaur before you ride EE. Have a leisurely lunch to rest and work in TS, PW, and the Nemo Show early in the afternoon. When possible get more fast passes for rides you enjoy as soon as you can. Later in the afternoon enjoy the conservation station and PFT. I would only ride KRR if it is really warm as you will get wet. A great place to relax is in the Dino dig area while any younger kids play as well as waiting for the parade.

Epcot – Upon entering head toward Soari. Ride and get a fastpass. I would then do Nemo and friends and Turtle Talk. Get your next fast pass for TT. Ride MS and SE in standby (MS has a large through put). Use your soarin fast pass and then go to HISTA. Spend the rest of the day leisurely touring the countries and obtain fastpasses when you can for the rides you enjoy. Ellen’s Energy Adventure and the American Adventure are great rest rides. There are also resting rides in the Land Pavillion as well as good eats. Get a spot for Illuminations.

Hollywood Studios – Fast Pass TSM and ride it first thing. Head over to TOT and RNRC. Go back to TSMM and get another fast pass as soon as you can, or use if on another ride. Go over and do Star Tours, Muppets, and then head back in for GMR. Good afternoon rests can be found in LMA, IJ, the Animation Tour as well as the parades and shows. You can actually eat dinner in the Hollywood Hills Ampitheatre and wait for Fantaxmic.

MK – One person goes to get fast passes for Space while everyone else heads for Fantasyland. Ride Dumbo, Peter Pan, Snow White, and Pooh. Get a fast pass for Buzz before you use your Space one. Ride the Speedway and Stitch. Someone now needs to cross the park and get fastpasses for Splash before you ride Buss. After Buzz do toontown and then ride the train to Frontierland. Fast pass Thunder and then ride Splash, now you can do HM, Pirates, CMJ, etc. Fast pass JC. Relax time can be had by resting on Tom Sawyer Island while the kids run around, or by waiting for the parade. With the HOP closed you loose a good rest spot and the riverboat has minimal seating. Be sure to hit SW and Philharmagic sometime in the afternoon or early evening.

The key to the holidays is knowing which rides you are going to next and efficiently using our fast passes. Leaving the parks for a break and coming back will be very difficult for you, so I recommend taking in the park breaks during the afternoon. We usually allow an hour and ½ for dinner to recharge our batteries.

Have a great trip. Unfortunately as our next Christmas trip is not until 09.