Here Now - How are You Enjoying NYE at WDW?

[RememberWhoYouAre]

We celebrated NYE at MK last night (and the 29th too). Crowds were definitely lower than years past. Had an awesome time and warm weather. Did all the Christmas highlights - parade, stage shows. FP for Tomorrowland speedway and space mountain to see the holiday effects both nights, which was fun.
This pic is from last night’s midnight NYE fireworks at MK.
Happy New Year!

 

[TeresaWen]

Stuck in Missouri. Is anyone live streaming the night festivities?

I think the MK fireworks are being live streamed tonight

 

[AMB1]

We had a fantastic day at MK. We slept in (because yesterday was our crazy 5:00am HS day). Got to MK at 9:30am via Disney transportation (saw crazy car lines trying to enter).
We rode Haunted Mansion, Jingle Cruise and the People Mover. We then did some shopping until our ADR at Tony’s Townsquare for the parade reserved seating dining package. We ate a leisurely lunch and then did some more shopping (how come I never knew there was a glass blowing studio on Main Street???). At 2:00pm we had the best seats in the park for the Christmas parade. We were right in front of the Christmas tree at the flag pole. Our kids were able to sit. The floats came right towards us and then circled around. It was amazing. I would definitely do that package again.

After the parade we rode the carousel, went to Mickey’s Phiharmagic and rode Seven Dwarfs Mine Train. At 4:30 I had choices for 4th Fastpasses at Small World, Aladdin and a few others I can’t remember.

At 5:00 pm we checked in for our fireworks dessert party. We’ve never booked a dessert party before, but tonight it was worth every penny. We nibbled some munchies, took advantage of restrooms in the restaurant with minimal wait times and then had an awesome spot in the Plaza Garden (back fence, far left) for an incredible show.
We fought insane crowds getting out of the park, but got back to our resort by 7:30.

Kids are getting into bed. DH has gone over to HS and is on his second ride tonight of Smugglers’ Run as a single rider.

Fabulous day. Happy New Year’s everyone!

 

[RememberWhoYouAre]

I think the MK fireworks are being live streamed tonight

Yes, the disneyparksblog will be livestreaming the MK fireworks. Fireworks start at 11:50pm, but they'll start the livestream a little earlier.
https://disneyparks.disney.go.com/blog/latest-stories/

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Some things always remain the same... no matter the decade.

 

[LindyWebb]

We went to MK last night and Epcot today. Crowds were crazy but expected. Last night got 4 extra FP and kids had a blast going from ride to ride. Music was fun and blasting . Epcot today was not as great. The construction really makes walking around a pain. We have reservations at Nine Dragons (had never been there before) great service and everyone loved their meal. Did our FP and now are back at Beach Club. Not sure if we will venture back in for fireworks we can see a lot of it from the balcony here! The atmosphere at MK last night was way more fun but I would not want to be that far from my resort with these crowds!

 

[elaine amj]

At about 8ishpm we made it to France. My dH only had a 10-15 min wait for food at the Boulengerie while my DD and I walked out to the bathrooms outside the Intl Gateway to no wait. Inside the Boulangerie, there were at least 20ppl in a long snaking line for the bathroom. I saw similarly long lines everywhere else.

It is 9:30pm and made it to Silent Groove. Waited about 10-15 mins for headphones and it was worth the wait - awesome music and so much fun switching between two different DJs.

 

[yulilin3]

At about 8ishpm we made it to France. My dH only had a 10-15 min wait for food at the Boulengerie while my DD and I walked out to the bathrooms outside the Intl Gateway to no wait. Inside the Boulangerie, there were at least 20ppl in a long snaking line for the bathroom. I saw similarly long lines everywhere else.

It is 9:30pm and made it to Silent Groove. Waited about 10-15 mins for headphones and it was worth the wait - awesome music and so much fun switching between two different DJs.

DJ Elliott is my favorite Disney DJ. Im glad you're having fun

 

[deedubb]

Spent the day at EPCOT, then to MK for the early show with a dessert party. The monorail was blocked off and they checked our MagicBands before allowing us on so I guess MK was still closed to guests. Back to EPCOT after that for the midnight show. The Skyliner line after the midnight fireworks was insane. So glad we were staying at Boardwalk and were able to avoid using car/bus/Skyliner. All in all, it was a great day!

 

[elaine amj]

The NYE tag was loads of fun! We decided to leave the park immediately from our location at China after the fireworks. So we followed the crowd at a slow stroll with a couple of bottlenecks. Did not use any bypass (never figured out where they were even when we asked) and just followed the masses. After a 30min slow stroll, we were finally at the D parking lot (Epcot is BIG!).

We hopped in our rental, had zero issues leaving the parking lot and it was a smooth drive back to Fort Wilderness - we were at our campsite before 1am. No backed up traffic whatsoever despite my months of worries and agonizing.

My mom and my friends spent NYE in Disney Springs. They took the bus from Fort Wilderness at around 7pm and it was smooth traffic. Got a walkup to Rainforest Cafe where they had a GREAT meal and enjoyed themselves strolling around. Then a smooth and easy bus ride back to the Fort about 11pm. They watched the fireworks from our campsite at midnight

Overall, we all had a great NYE. Epcot was easy to navigate with no overcrowding issues. We got food from the Kringla bakery in Norway (10 mins wait at 6:15pm) and got a table pretty quick with a nice view of the 6:30pm fireworks.

Then strolled around World Showcase. Super easy to walk with plenty of space on the walkways in most parts (only a few short bottlenecks).

Really enjoyed the party in China. The dragon and the fire was amazing! My teens loved the music. We also checked out the Rave in Italy but didn't like the music so much. The band at America Gardens was fun to me, but did not appeal to DS17. We skipped the UK. There was also another party near Test Track but my DS said it was more for younger kids lol. The music was louder and the lights wilder at Epcot than the parties at the Magic Kingdom the night before.

Got another meal from the Boulangerie in France with less than 15 min wait. Got a table for 4 with only a few mins wait. Used the bathrooms outside International Gateway with no wait.

Only a 10-15 min wait for headphones at the Silent Groove Disco. Line looked long but whole experience was fun.

Got a spot to watch the 11:40 fireworks at 11:35pm close to the Australian outpost (past China). We stood with the fence at our backs and had a pretty good view with not much obstruction from trees. We did walk a bit to find a spot with no trees by the water.

Surprisingly easy experience. All that worry about overcrowding was for nothing. The only problem was we were tired out after MK on dec 30 (stayed till 2:30am) so didn't last as long as we would have liked. I wanted to stay and dance until 1am but we were all wiped out.

We also managed Soarin' with FPs and Test Track with a same day FP. Walked onto Pixar Short Film Festival (wow....surprise hit with us. we LOVED it and the whole audience clapped after every short).

Really glad we did this

 

[TeresaWen]

One thing I learned is the worst time in Epcot is the hour after the 6:30 Epcot forever show. That was by far the most crowded with people coming into the park & leaving the park. We left for a break at the beach club and came back around 9. The cast members did an outstanding job organizing the crowded. Fabulous night!!

 

[pwmitch237]

Epcot seemed less crowded than previous years, but was still wonderful. Missed Illuminations very much last night, but was a wonderful experience all around. Somehow made it from the World Showcase Lagoon to I-4 in 15 minutes after the fireworks, which beats last year's 3 hour Escape from Epcot. Hollywood Studios looked like a lot of fun yesterday too.

Shout out to all the cast members who make the New Year celebrations work wonderfully.

 

[elaine amj]

One thing I learned is the worst time in Epcot is the hour after the 6:30 Epcot forever show. That was by far the most crowded with people coming into the park & leaving the park. We left for a break at the beach club and came back around 9. The cast members did an outstanding job organizing the crowded. Fabulous night!!

You know, we didn't find it so bad. But we hung out for 10 mins at a table at the Kringla bakery and then set off for the dance party in China. Hung out there for half an hour and then set off for the party in Italy. Very clear walkways at the back of the park. The CMs do a fabulous job in keeping those walkways open and moving. But yes, there is always some crowding immediately after the fireworks as the masses move out.

I have spent the last year reading reports of intense crowds and honestly, found it no big deal. Especially since we were not focused on rides. I was worried about taking my mother in a wheelchair as reports were that the crowds were so thick it would be hard to navigate the walkways. I found the walkways easy to navigate and other than post fireworks at a couple of bottlenecks, it would have been easy to manage a wheelchair as there was generally enough space in the walkways. (My mother ultimately decided not to go and worry about crowds was a factor).

The construction walls were a pain though. Very disorienting. Oh well.

 

[TeresaWen]

You know, we didn't find it so bad. But we hung out for 10 mins at a table at the Kringla bakery and then set off for the dance party in China. Hung out there for half an hour and then set off for the party in Italy. Very clear walkways at the back of the park. The CMs do a fabulous job in keeping those walkways open and moving. But yes, there is always some crowding immediately after the fireworks as the masses move out.

I have spent the last year reading reports of intense crowds and honestly, found it no big deal. Especially since we were not focused on rides. I was worried about taking my mother in a wheelchair as reports were that the crowds were so thick it would be hard to navigate the walkways. I found the walkways easy to navigate and other than post fireworks at a couple of bottlenecks, it would have been easy to manage a wheelchair as there was generally enough space in the walkways. (My mother ultimately decided not to go and worry about crowds was a factor).

The construction walls were a pain though. Very disorienting. Oh well.

Agree! Except for that hour we were pleasantly surprised at the crowd level. Very enjoyable day and night! What a way to kick off the new year.

 

[AngiTN]

It was way less crowded at Epcot last night compared to past few years
The lines for the bathrooms were less than half what I’ve waited in before. Basically no lines for drinks
It was really shocking to me

Epcot seemed less crowded than previous years, but was still wonderful. Missed Illuminations very much last night, but was a wonderful experience all around. Somehow made it from the World Showcase Lagoon to I-4 in 15 minutes after the fireworks, which beats last year's 3 hour Escape from Epcot. Hollywood Studios looked like a lot of fun yesterday too.

Shout out to all the cast members who make the New Year celebrations work wonderfully.

years

 

[BobbidieBoo]

MK on 30th and Epcot on 31st.

Great DJ in Frontierland, fireworks were amazing. Worked the FPs.

Crowds very manageable, Disney was well prepared and everything went smoothly. Lots of people looking for ways to pass the day at Epcot due to multihour lines everywhere, lots of folks focused on drinking around the world.

Stood on channel bridge to watch, used Skyliner to return to Pop, got back about 12:45, not as bad as feared dispite the huge crowd, very efficient. Line was growing considerably though so I’m sure others further from park exit had a longer time.

 

[pwmitch237]

It was way less crowded at Epcot last night compared to past few years
The lines for the bathrooms were less than half what I’ve waited in before. Basically no lines for drinks
It was really shocking to me


years

Agreed. I remember last year barely being able to move around World Showcase, and this year I could see the promenade! No Norway/Mexico Squeeze either where the promenade significantly shrinks.

 

[elaine amj]

Hmmm..maybe this time the crowds spread more evenly throughout the 4 parks. I'm sure MK was busy as always but perhaps more ppl went to AK or DHS instead of Epcot. Worked out well for us to come this year

 

[AngiTN]

Hmmm..maybe this time the crowds spread more evenly throughout the 4 parks. I'm sure MK was busy as always but perhaps more ppl went to AK or DHS instead of Epcot. Worked out well for us to come this year

I think you may be on to something.
HS has had stuff at midnight for a few years but AK added on theirs for the first time, I think. Folks who wanted to ride RotR but didn’t have hoppers would have gone to HS.