December crowds throughout the month

[LuvMy3Monkeys]

Talk to me about the crowds in December. We are tentatively staying the 1st through 15th... but it could change.

When can I expect it to go from less crowded to super busy? The week OF christmas? The week before?

Any thoughts?

 

[harpinjean]

From what I have read, things will get crazy busy after December 18. The first few weeks of December are some the of the best weeks to go.

 

[BradyBz12]

Depends on what day of the week Christmas falls on, but the crowds generally start rolling in the weekend before Christmas - so this year about the 18th. The real insanity comes the week between Christmas-New Years.

The rest of December isn't bad. It used to be a really "low" time of the year to go (we've been in early Dec several times in recent years), but each year gets more and more busy. I'd say it's closer to "moderate" now - but how many promotions Disney offers that time of year can play into that too.

 

[g-dad66]

Yes, the huge crowds will begin arriving on Saturday, December 18.

Prior to that, the crowds will be low to moderate.

 

[larryz]

Well, so far, all the promotions seem to die between mid-August and the end of September, so maybe early December will fade back to its former glory...!

Here's hoping, anyway...

 

[suebedo]

We were there Dec 12-19th 2009> The crowds during the week were great. The weekends were busy...Saturdays were the worst. we got there on a Saturday and the mob at MK was CRAZY. Same thing the Saturday 12/19. Crazy crazy busy at the MK. I think a lot of locals come in on the weekends in December to see the xmas happenings/decorations. The weekdays were AWESOME!

Keep in mind, the first week of December is Pop Warner week. You can do a search to get more info on that group. Apparently they are more of a problem at the Value/Mod resorts than in the parks...something to keep in mind.

 

[LuvMy3Monkeys]

We were there Dec 12-19th 2009> The crowds during the week were great. The weekends were busy...Saturdays were the worst. we got there on a Saturday and the mob at MK was CRAZY. Same thing the Saturday 12/19. Crazy crazy busy at the MK. I think a lot of locals come in on the weekends in December to see the xmas happenings/decorations. The weekdays were AWESOME!

Keep in mind, the first week of December is Pop Warner week. You can do a search to get more info on that group. Apparently they are more of a problem at the Value/Mod resorts than in the parks...something to keep in mind.

Who is "they"? I thought that was when they filmed the parade... but I didn't know about having crowded hotels too. Urgh! We're staying at POP. Guess I need to go find out more about this.

 

[siskaren]

"They" are the Pop Warner people. Pop Warner is an organization for youth football and cheer and dance programs, and every year they have their championships at Disney World during the first week of December. (You can learn more about them here.) Since the competitions are during the day, they shouldn't be too much of an issue at the parks, but they can be an issue at the hotels (they usually stay at the values (I believe they stick to the All Stars), and I think overflow is usually at POR.) The Christmas parade films the first Saturday in December, with stage shows being filmed on Thursday and Friday.

 

[holcomb-mania]

We went Dec 9-12, 2006 and thought the crowds were OUTSTANDING. Our other trips have been in June and Oct (around Columbus Day). I have read that early Dec is becoming more crowded, though. Even with moderate crowds 15 days should be plenty of time to do everything. Three or four times.