***Official December 2022 Thread***

[momof2gr8kids]

We're there Christmas week as well - 24th to January 5th, 7 day tickets. Our first Christmas week. We know it will be crazy packed, but we plan to make use of early entry and extended evening at MK and Epcot. Lots of downtime and just enjoying being there and away from work and not catering to extended family over the holidays for once! lol First time back since 2017 and lots of new stuff to fit in!
We're booked for MK on the 30th and Epcot for 31st. Do they show the fireworks twice on the 30th? Or are they different ones? Wondering if we watch early ones and leave if we miss anything. Do they have dance parties on the 30th too at MK?

 

[Justrose]

If you're willing to pay for ILL, I'd do 7dmt, Rise & FoP and GotG (but try for a virtual queue first then buy it, your daughter will want to do it twice.)

So on Epcot day at 7am - what is the order in which I should do stuff in terms of Virtual Queue, G+ and ILL? (she doesn't care about Frozen but GotG, Remy, TT and Soarin are priorities).

 

[JJ2017]

So on Epcot day at 7am - what is the order in which I should do stuff in terms of Virtual Queue, G+ and ILL? (she doesn't care about Frozen but GotG, Remy, TT and Soarin are priorities).

We recently did:
GotG VQ
G+ LL for Remy
Rope dropped TT
Soarin was still walk on

 

[lorileahb]

Alright - my Disney anxiety is kicking in and I would love feedback/help on how to best use Genie+ and ILL on my trip. @lorileahb or anyone else - please help!

Background: it's myself and my daughter, who is almost 11. She is a thrill seeker who loves the most intense rides at every park. We are staying onsite at Pop. We are rope drop, mid-day rest at resort, then back to parks people. She isn't interested in characters and we both love shows (me more than her, but she will have to deal!) and parades. I am willing to pay for ILL once per day. We only have 5 days of park tickets with no hopper and we are going to the MVMCP after our MK day. Our last day, we have a ressie at MK for now but we will decide if there's another park we'd rather go to on the last day based on what we were able to do previously. I have dining packages for CP and Fantasmic.

Thoughts on what to book first at 7am and how to best stack?

I'm headed out, but I'll send you my thoughts (for what they are worth) this week. You sound like you Disney similar to the way we do. . You are going in December? Any plans to do MCMCP?

 

[mickey916]

So on Epcot day at 7am - what is the order in which I should do stuff in terms of Virtual Queue, G+ and ILL? (she doesn't care about Frozen but GotG, Remy, TT and Soarin are priorities).

I would do VQ for GotG then LL for TT then ILL for GotG and rope drop Remy. You'll be able to get a Soarin' LL later once you use the TT.

 

[DerekColling]

What is happening with December 5th-9th? Both parks are unavailable for reservations.

 

[Disturbia]

What is happening with December 5th-9th? Both parks are unavailable for reservations.

The company party (Dec 2-4) guests are extending their trips. The TAs are keeping park assignments, the musician (hoping for Taylor Swift) and the Disney Event (probably HS) a secret.

Our schedule is jam packed. On Dec 2nd we arrive at MCO at 2 pm. Pool and poolside dining. Complimentary Spa for 1 at 5:30 pm (hopefully flights are on time). Welcome party 6-10; Disney event 10-1 am (HS?).

Dec 3rd character breakfast, maybe Disney parks 9-11:30 am (Mk?) and then Complimentary Spa for 2 at 1 pm; block spa appts only go until 2 pm and the person who I spoke to to move my original online appt over was a bit rude. Main Celebration party (concert) offsite 6 pm - 12 am.

Dec 4th character breakfast (special for corp guests only). Hopefully US/IOA with unlimited express passes. Flight back 6 pm

 

[skellinton]

What is happening with December 5th-9th? Both parks are unavailable for reservations.

Which parks are unavailable? And for all 4 days? Dang, who ever this company is they are really cramping my style! I am hoping it won't be as bad as I am now expecting.

 

[Disturbia]

I do see all parks passes available first week of Dec.

 

[DerekColling]

I do see all parks passes available first week of Dec.

If you go look at the calendar for single day pass, both parks are unavailable.

 

[DerekColling]

I do see all parks passes available first week of Dec.

 

[DerekColling]

Which parks are unavailable? And for all 4 days? Dang, who ever this company is they are really cramping my style! I am hoping it won't be as bad as I am now expecting.

 

[DerekColling]

The company party (Dec 2-4) guests are extending their trips. The TAs are keeping park assignments, the musician (hoping for Taylor Swift) and the Disney Event (probably HS) a secret.

Our schedule is jam packed. On Dec 2nd we arrive at MCO at 2 pm. Pool and poolside dining. Complimentary Spa for 1 at 5:30 pm (hopefully flights are on time). Welcome party 6-10; Disney event 10-1 am (HS?).

Dec 3rd character breakfast, maybe Disney parks 9-11:30 am (Mk?) and then Complimentary Spa for 2 at 1 pm; block spa appts only go until 2 pm and the person who I spoke to to move my original online appt over was a bit rude. Main Celebration party (concert) offsite 6 pm - 12 am.

Dec 4th character breakfast (special for corp guests only). Hopefully US/IOA with unlimited express passes. Flight back 6 pm

What is "the company party"?

 

[rum0007]

Fairly sure that this thread is for WDW. You are showing park reservation availability for Disneyland in California. Also, the "company party" is going to be at WDW/Orlando not Disneyland.

 

[skellinton]

Oh, that is for DL,.that does seem odd. But this is a WDW thread.

 

[elaine amj]

Yep. December is still wide open for reservations until Dec 24 when only some parks have availability. I did see MK is solidly booked for the entire Christmas week. MK is also booked for Dec 19.

I am so glad I worked on all my park reservations for my Christmas trip this weekend. I did have to switch parks some days because the park I wanted was sold out but overall, my detailed itinerary is flowing smoothly. Only missing a couple of dining reservations but they are not must-dos so I am not too bothered and will hope for walkups. (I remember getting a walkup to Le Cellier at opening despite it being solidly booked back during Christmas 2014).

 

[elaine amj]

I need some help. I was looking for a dinner reservation at Steakhouse71 or Grand Floridian Cafe on Dec 30. My plan is to park there, have dinner, and then head to MK to party all night. After NYE Eve fireworks and more rides, we plan to walk back to the car and drive on back to our offsite resort.

HOWEVER - in my search, a reservation for Cinderella's Royal Table popped up for 4:25pm on Dec 30. I couldn't resist and booked it. I also booked a 6:30pm Grand Floridian Cafe to do my original plan.

Which should I keep?!!!

On the one hand, eating at CRT means I would have to park in the madness of the MK parking lot and take the ferry (prob 30+ min line) + tram after park close back to my car. But how cool would it be to eat in the Castle for NYE Eve?

On the other hand, it's $$$ - $67 each for DH, myself, DD21 and DS20. OUCH! We don't do signature dining often as we find we are usually happier with regular table service. Also, we've eaten at CRT once before in the days of free dining. We had breakfast back when they allowed us to order as many entrees as we wanted. Good thing as I was horrified at the tiny amount of food they served my kids. Once we were able to order a full plate of bacon for them, I felt a bit better about the price.

It's about $15 cheaper than normal because only Cinderella is there. Which is fine by us as we are odd enough that we don;t really like meeting characters at meals (and we have done a lot of character meals over the years). We're not big character people and when I do want to meet characters, I prefer to do it at their meet and greet for photos without half eaten food in the background.

The food for dinner does look good. Just don't know if it is worth $67pp (Christmas upcharge). I already limit the number of times we eat at Le Cellier where we are obsessed enough to pay $50+ for our fave filet mignon (what?! It's $62 now??!! I think they finally outpriced me).

Decisions, decisions. Keep this or stick to Grand Floridian Cafe and my lovely parking plan?

 

[elaine amj]

By the way, while I debate over my options on Dec 30, I am thrilled to report that I scored a reservation on OpenTable at Big River Grill at the Boardwalk on Dec 31 for 4:45pm! It's going to be crazy getting out of the Epcot parking lot and leaving from the Boardwalk will be a million times more sane. Especially since I am headed to Sherbert Rd behind AK, which should hopefully be less busy than the other major roads leading out of Epcot and MK that night.

The last time we did NYE, we were staying at Fort Wilderness and I was shocked how quickly we drove back to the campground from the Epcot parking lot. Studying Google Maps, we were headed in a less popular direction so we didn't get caught for 1+ hours on World Drive.

 

[Smugpugmug]

I need some help. I was looking for a dinner reservation at Steakhouse71 or Grand Floridian Cafe on Dec 30. My plan is to park there, have dinner, and then head to MK to party all night. After NYE Eve fireworks and more rides, we plan to walk back to the car and drive on back to our offsite resort.

HOWEVER - in my search, a reservation for Cinderella's Royal Table popped up for 4:25pm on Dec 30. I couldn't resist and booked it. I also booked a 6:30pm Grand Floridian Cafe to do my original plan.

Which should I keep?!!!

On the one hand, eating at CRT means I would have to park in the madness of the MK parking lot and take the ferry (prob 30+ min line) + tram after park close back to my car. But how cool would it be to eat in the Castle for NYE Eve?

On the other hand, it's $$$ - $67 each for DH, myself, DD21 and DS20. OUCH! We don't do signature dining often as we find we are usually happier with regular table service. Also, we've eaten at CRT once before in the days of free dining. We had breakfast back when they allowed us to order as many entrees as we wanted. Good thing as I was horrified at the tiny amount of food they served my kids. Once we were able to order a full plate of bacon for them, I felt a bit better about the price.

It's about $15 cheaper than normal because only Cinderella is there. Which is fine by us as we are odd enough that we don;t really like meeting characters at meals (and we have done a lot of character meals over the years). We're not big character people and when I do want to meet characters, I prefer to do it at their meet and greet for photos without half eaten food in the background.

The food for dinner does look good. Just don't know if it is worth $67pp (Christmas upcharge). I already limit the number of times we eat at Le Cellier where we are obsessed enough to pay $50+ for our fave filet mignon (what?! It's $62 now??!! I think they finally outpriced me).

Decisions, decisions. Keep this or stick to Grand Floridian Cafe and my lovely parking plan?

You would not be able to leave your car at the Contemporary or the Grand Floridian all day unless you valet it (which costs money. Unsure of the price). You only have a 3 hour limit to park for an ADR. After that, you have the risk of your car being towed. The risk will be even higher for NYE as many people will try to do the same thing.

 

[elaine amj]

You would not be able to leave your car at the Contemporary or the Grand Floridian all day unless you valet it (which costs money. Unsure of the price). You only have a 3 hour limit to park for an ADR. After that, you have the risk of your car being towed. The risk will be even higher for NYE as many people will try to do the same thing.

Good point. I’ll give it a shot. If they insist I leave after 3 hours, I’ll just send DS to repark the car in the Epcot parking lot while the rest of us go through the IG. Should be after 6:30pm fireworks by then so there’ll be a stream of people leaving and he can get a closer parking spot. We have free parking with our APs so not a big deal either way.

My DH is battling cancer so stamina not as great so I do try to find ways to shorten his days. Which is why we are not even planning to enter the park on NYE until the evening. And we’ll have a wheelchair so he can rest when he needs. But at worst it means he naps in the van while we slowly get outta there.