Disneyland over Xmas break? Am I nuts?

[kboo]

We are WDW veterans but have only gone to DL on a day trip back in 2015. Due to my parents' declining health and mobility, they may be moving to SoCal by year's end, and we will likely visit them over our Xmas-New Year's break. (My sister and her family live in Pasadena) Does anyone have any tips or suggestions for a 1-2 day trip to DL either just our family (6yo and 2yo) or with my parents (less likely, but they're in their mid-70s, my mom has pretty serious dementia so it would likely be a last minute call - she is ok waiting in lines and walking around with us now but we'd have to see how she is in 6 mo)

Are crowds impossible? Should I just not attempt it? Stay over 1 night? 2 nights? Thanks for your tips!

 

[Rabb it]

It's no secret that X-mas time is the busiest time of the year at the Happiest Place on Earth, but around that time frame there's only one annual pass that will be valid, and a majority of typical pass holders have the 2nd best pass, like myself. So we will have to go towards the beginning of December if we want to hit up the parks, the last two weeks of the month are off limits. So that's SOMETHING.

Other than that, it's prime time, during parade/fireworks time it will be shoulder to shoulder busy trying to get form here to there. If you do go I would just resign yourself to knowing the wait times will be hectic, maybe see if you can do dining packages for World of Color/Fantasmic to ensure you get good seats. Make sure to maximize your fastpasses, and get to the parks at opening to take advantage of the "slow time" in the morning.

 

[kboo]

It's no secret that X-mas time is the busiest time of the year at the Happiest Place on Earth, but around that time frame there's only one annual pass that will be valid, and a majority of typical pass holders have the 2nd best pass, like myself. So we will have to go towards the beginning of December if we want to hit up the parks, the last two weeks of the month are off limits. So that's SOMETHING.

Other than that, it's prime time, during parade/fireworks time it will be shoulder to shoulder busy trying to get form here to there. If you do go I would just resign yourself to knowing the wait times will be hectic, maybe see if you can do dining packages for World of Color/Fantasmic to ensure you get good seats. Make sure to maximize your fastpasses, and get to the parks at opening to take advantage of the "slow time" in the morning.

Are there any days of the week that are better, or does it just not matter at that point?

Also - would you recommend staying over and doing more than a 1-day trip? We likely would not stay at any DL resorts since prices are very high already.

 

[PHXscuba]

If this holiday season is like last (unknown) the days that all of the APs are blocked out were actually less busy than the days right before and after the blackouts. The only day DL closed to capacity was the day in the first week of January that the APS were all suddenly valid.

If your mother may need extra help you could get a DAS pass, which might help manage some of the waits and standing.

One other thought: the one-day peak parkhopper tickets are currently $174. A 2-day one-park ticket is $199. So for an extra $25 per person you could have two days and a more relaxed pace. If you got a nearby off-sute hotel vs. driving back to Pasadena.

PHXscuba

 

[PaintsWithAllTheColors]

I don't have a ton of time to respond, but yes please come!! I can say hi to my DVC-buying buddy!

 

[Malcon10t]

Are there any days of the week that are better, or does it just not matter at that point?

Also - would you recommend staying over and doing more than a 1-day trip? We likely would not stay at any DL resorts since prices are very high already.

Avoid the 26th, they do the introductions of the Rose Bowl teams and the teams, families, bands, cheerleaders, et al are all in the park that day. It is a turnstile closure almost every year. 27th is almost as bad. Both had short closures last year. (We go from Dec 22-Jan 4 every year since 1998.) If I had to pick 2 days, it would be 28/29. But that doesn't mean it will be light. It will be wall to wall people. Be prepared to eat at off times to avoid lines for food. Get reservations for any meals you really want to do. There will not be same day availability at most table service restaurants.

As of now, there are 2 passes that will have access during that time frame, Signature Plus and Premier passes. But even with that, the majority of visitors has always been 80%+ touring visitors during Christmas. Last year, it went to 85% tourists and 15% APs. It was quieter the 22-23 compared to the 24-31. If you can go prior to Christmas it will be a little lighter.

 

[avalovesminnie]

In 2015 the week before Xmas it was very crowded and raining. A sea of ponchos at 7 am for extra magic hour. That was what surprised me most- waiting 20-30 min to get through security at 7 in the morning!! But wait times weren't impossible with FP and rider switch and park hopping. We weren't willing to wait for parades and ended up missing most of them.

 

[basketballmom]

We went this past Christmas. The days before Christmas were nice. I couldn't believe the lack of crowds on Christmas Eve! Christmas Day was much busier. We left the day after Christmas.

 

[disneychrista]

It is all about attitude and expectations when you go during busy times. Go in with good attitude and don't expect to see & do everything with little wait.

I've been during this time (6+ years ago) and yes it was crowded. Get there early to get the most done during the slower early hours. Plan on doing shopping or shows during the busier mid-day. And if you want to see a parade or other evening shows if possible see the second showing for lower crowds/less waiting.

 

[gottalovepluto]

If your family's heart is set on going to Disneyland do it. Yes, it will be insane. And the area is so small it feels much more crowded than WDW (at least to me). You won't get to ride much (as your parents have health issues I don't see them being able to fight the biggest crowds of the year from 8am to midnight non-stop, they'd need a break & I imagine your kids would too) but sometimes a trip to disneyland isn't about the rides so much as the time spent together in the parks (please note that's an honest opinion- I'm NOT being sarcastic).

Honestly I would absolutely not take my parents with health issues like described that time of year. Just the 2yo & 6yo would be a bit more manageable if you don't have to juggle managing your parents as well but even that I would not want to try. FWIW, a few people on this board have successful trips to DLR during that time every year but my crowd tolerance maxes out during summer so I have not personally attempted Xmas - New Years.

 

[Robinjay]

The AP structures changed this past year and it did make a difference in the parks. Christmas Eve was lighter than I expected and I did not feel Christmas was too bad. The week after was very busy but with good utilization of fast passes and planning it cans be a positive experience. Many people who were in the parks had no idea how to use fast passes and were just waiting in lines, so patience was quite thin.

Max pass is coming soon too, so keep on the lookout for that as well.

I love the magic of the holidays in the parks. Just pack your patience.

 

[gottalovepluto]

Saw something about dining packages and good seats. Please realize WOC & Famtasmic are standing, not sitting shows! Dining packages get you prime STANDING locations. (Personally that's a very important distinction so wanted to pass that along.)

 

[disneychrista]

Saw something about dining packages and good seats. Please realize WOC & Famtasmic are standing, not sitting shows!

Fantasmic is (or at least was) both. There is a seated sections (even get seat "cushions" with the Blue Bayou package) and then a standing section behind.

 

[gottalovepluto]

Fantasmic is (or at least was) both. There is a seated sections (even get seat "cushions" with the Blue Bayou package) and then a standing section behind.

True. I forgot about the seat cushion and sitting on the ground option. (The member of my party with mobility issues has an awful time getting up & down from the ground so my mind had written that option off.)

 

[PoohsFan1]

The AP structures changed this past year and it did make a difference in the parks. Christmas Eve was lighter than I expected and I did not feel Christmas was too bad. The week after was very busy but with good utilization of fast passes and planning it cans be a positive experience. Many people who were in the parks had no idea how to use fast passes and were just waiting in lines, so patience was quite thin.

Max pass is coming soon too, so keep on the lookout for that as well.

I love the magic of the holidays in the parks. Just pack your patience.

This is exactly how we are going to go at it when we are there during Christmas this year, we will be there from 12/24-1/1. We know we more then likely won't be doing any of the headliners, (hoping to get FPs plus we are staying at PPH so we will be doing EMH each time we are in the parks). We more or less are going this time of the year to experience DLR at Christmas time...we too are WDW vets (have been to DLR twice now) and have gone during the Christmas season to WDW once. This is something on our Disney bucket list that we can check off, and we are very excited to do so. I just can't wait to experience everything that DLR has to offer during the Holiday season .

 

[Robinjay]

This is exactly how we are going to go at it when we are there during Christmas this year, we will be there from 12/24-1/1. We know we more then likely won't be doing any of the headliners, (hoping to get FPs plus we are staying at PPH so we will be doing EMH each time we are in the parks). We more or less are going this time of the year to experience DLR at Christmas time...we too are WDW vets (have been to DLR twice now) and have gone during the Christmas season to WDW once. This is something on our Disney bucket list that we can check off, and we are very excited to do so. I just can't wait to experience everything that DLR has to offer during the Holiday season .

We did all of the headliners at Disneyland on Christmas this past year. We ate at Blue Bayou. Christmas Eve we rode Tower of Terror 13 times and rode all of the headliners as well. We did the Carthay Circle World of Color dining package (I thought it was well worth it). I hope the parks are similar those two days as well as we plan to do it all again. After the 25th it got a lot more crowded lat year.

 

[PoohsFan1]

We did all of the headliners at Disneyland on Christmas this past year. We ate at Blue Bayou. Christmas Eve we rode Tower of Terror 13 times and rode all of the headliners as well. We did the Carthay Circle World of Color dining package (I thought it was well worth it). I hope the parks are similar those two days as well as we plan to do it all again. After the 25th it got a lot more crowded lat year.

Wow that is definitely something I didn't expect to be done, I hope that it is like that again this year....I'm not expecting it but, it would be nice, thanks for the heads up . Note, we are hoping to get a reservation to Blue Bayou for our Christmas dinner, glad to hear that you ate there.

 

[WonkaKid]

... but around that time frame there's only one annual pass that will be valid, and a majority of typical pass holders have the 2nd best pass, like myself. So we will have to go towards the beginning of December if we want to hit up the parks, the last two weeks of the month are off limits. So that's SOMETHING.

I was going to say the same thing. To upgrade/add those two weeks at Xmas costs something like $200. That's not worth it to me and not just because I'm always back in Chicago at/for the holidays. Fresh Baked posted vids last year of the park at Christmas and attendance was relatively light, as I recall. So visiting at Christmas might not be so crazy.

 

[Susie63]

I have friends who have been going to DL and WDW for 30 years. They only go for one or two days and until I told them about fast pass last year, they had no idea it existed. Some people think you need to pay for fp's. A little knowledge will go a long way at Christmas. Make reservations for dinner if there is a specific place you want to eat. Go early and hit the rides most important to you. If you decide to go, come join our Christmas & New Years thread.

 

[kboo]

If your family's heart is set on going to Disneyland do it. Yes, it will be insane. And the area is so small it feels much more crowded than WDW (at least to me). You won't get to ride much (as your parents have health issues I don't see them being able to fight the biggest crowds of the year from 8am to midnight non-stop, they'd need a break & I imagine your kids would too) but sometimes a trip to disneyland isn't about the rides so much as the time spent together in the parks (please note that's an honest opinion- I'm NOT being sarcastic).

Honestly I would absolutely not take my parents with health issues like described that time of year. Just the 2yo & 6yo would be a bit more manageable if you don't have to juggle managing your parents as well but even that I would not want to try. FWIW, a few people on this board have successful trips to DLR during that time every year but my crowd tolerance maxes out during summer so I have not personally attempted Xmas - New Years.

This is exactly why I'm questioning it. My dad is pretty fit, physically, but my mom had a big step down in her dementia recently. Oddly (or maybe not, since they are the ones who got me loving Disney as a kid), WDW and DL (to a lesser extent) are our happy place and still recognizable to my mom as such. We've gone to WDW 2x with my mom since her diagnosis, most recently Feb/Mar 2016, and she was fine waiting in most of the lines and going on a lot of the rides. Granted, neither time was max capacity at the parks, but she was pretty content just to be walking around at the various parks and going on whatever rides we took her on. I'm not sure if it's still possible to recreate the smiles, but it's good to have all the relevant information in case we think it's doable.