runnintink
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- Jul 14, 2012
Hello all,
I posted frequently on this board before I went to WDW last year during the busiest week of the year.. I'm back prepping for a Disneyland trip, but I wanted to share some tidbits - as a WDW vet (30? trips)... nothing prepared me for the craziness of the week!
We arrived on the 28th and departed on the 4th. Spending New Year's at the World was on my bucket list. We were really smart with touring plans (and believe me, they definitely help) but I just wanted to share a few things:
New Year's Eve
~~We spent New Year's Eve at Epcot. I knew it was crowded, but I didn't know how crowded. Just to give you an idea: 4.5 hour wait for Test Track/Soarin'.. and for the ladies, bathroom visits were a 30 minute wait each time. This was something I did not anticipate. IF YOU HAVE ADRs, USE THEIR BATHROOM BEFORE YOU LEAVE. Seriously!
~~We got there really early because we heard the parks filled to capacity. Well, maybe they do, but people were still coming in at lunchtime. On one hand, it was nice that we rode things before it got too wild - on the other, we were nodding off before the countdown.
~~The countdown: Despite the above... so worth it~ we stood in Germany and we could see the fireworks from HS, MK, and Epcot does fireworks for each country... it was phenomenal! We grabbed a spot at 10pm and waited for 2 hours.. normally, I consider that a time waste (just me personally, I hate sitting for hours!) but everything was so crowded, it made sense.
~~We got a GREAT deal at the Dolphin. We looked at the Beach Club ($500-600/night for that week)... for the Dolphin? I believe it was $130/nt. Walking back from Epcot (and a few times, Hollywood Studios.. that boat got crowded!) was totally worth it!
Now for the REAL magic ....
On New Year's Day, MK was open until 3am. We expected it to be packed - after all, wait times were 4 hours the day before at Epcot. After 11, it died down, and by 1, the park was deserted. From 12:30 to 2:00, we rode Space Mountain 20 times. It was so much fun!!! For the last hour, we tried to do as much as possible - we rode everything in Fantasyland, and then we did BTMRR until close.
As we were walking out (around 3:15am at this point-- we stopped to take unobstructed pics with the castle!), the street sweepers were drawing Mickeys with water and entertaining guests. Something about that was so touching to me - they weren't herding us out of there or anything. It was honestly the most incredible night ever. I will never forget it.
The crowds were a little heavy on the 2nd (heavier than the 1st, we felt like), not too bad on the 3rd, and nonexistent by the 4th.
If I had to do it over again, I don't know if I'd hit up a park on NYE, but the late New Year's Day at MK was just worth the entire trip.
Anyway, I really agonized over things because of how busy I heard things were but it was wonderful overall! And DEFINITELY get ADRs during that week if that's something that matters to you! Even if it's not your favorite place - since there are lines for everything!
Hope this helps someone.. just wanted to share
I posted frequently on this board before I went to WDW last year during the busiest week of the year.. I'm back prepping for a Disneyland trip, but I wanted to share some tidbits - as a WDW vet (30? trips)... nothing prepared me for the craziness of the week!
We arrived on the 28th and departed on the 4th. Spending New Year's at the World was on my bucket list. We were really smart with touring plans (and believe me, they definitely help) but I just wanted to share a few things:
New Year's Eve
~~We spent New Year's Eve at Epcot. I knew it was crowded, but I didn't know how crowded. Just to give you an idea: 4.5 hour wait for Test Track/Soarin'.. and for the ladies, bathroom visits were a 30 minute wait each time. This was something I did not anticipate. IF YOU HAVE ADRs, USE THEIR BATHROOM BEFORE YOU LEAVE. Seriously!
~~We got there really early because we heard the parks filled to capacity. Well, maybe they do, but people were still coming in at lunchtime. On one hand, it was nice that we rode things before it got too wild - on the other, we were nodding off before the countdown.
~~The countdown: Despite the above... so worth it~ we stood in Germany and we could see the fireworks from HS, MK, and Epcot does fireworks for each country... it was phenomenal! We grabbed a spot at 10pm and waited for 2 hours.. normally, I consider that a time waste (just me personally, I hate sitting for hours!) but everything was so crowded, it made sense.
~~We got a GREAT deal at the Dolphin. We looked at the Beach Club ($500-600/night for that week)... for the Dolphin? I believe it was $130/nt. Walking back from Epcot (and a few times, Hollywood Studios.. that boat got crowded!) was totally worth it!
Now for the REAL magic ....
On New Year's Day, MK was open until 3am. We expected it to be packed - after all, wait times were 4 hours the day before at Epcot. After 11, it died down, and by 1, the park was deserted. From 12:30 to 2:00, we rode Space Mountain 20 times. It was so much fun!!! For the last hour, we tried to do as much as possible - we rode everything in Fantasyland, and then we did BTMRR until close.
As we were walking out (around 3:15am at this point-- we stopped to take unobstructed pics with the castle!), the street sweepers were drawing Mickeys with water and entertaining guests. Something about that was so touching to me - they weren't herding us out of there or anything. It was honestly the most incredible night ever. I will never forget it.
The crowds were a little heavy on the 2nd (heavier than the 1st, we felt like), not too bad on the 3rd, and nonexistent by the 4th.
If I had to do it over again, I don't know if I'd hit up a park on NYE, but the late New Year's Day at MK was just worth the entire trip.
Anyway, I really agonized over things because of how busy I heard things were but it was wonderful overall! And DEFINITELY get ADRs during that week if that's something that matters to you! Even if it's not your favorite place - since there are lines for everything!
Hope this helps someone.. just wanted to share
