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Sislers
08-06-2004, 08:07 AM
Hey all...

I'm planning a trip to Disneyland in December and wanting to know a few things:

*Is the 1st or 2nd week the best (I'm wanting to avoid huge Christmas crowds)?
*What's the weather usually like?
*Do they do the fireworks show?
*Are the Christmas lights all up (I've never seem Disneyland at Christmas)?

Any information you can give would be much appreciated, thanks :)

stan4d_steph
08-06-2004, 08:14 AM
I would suggest searching this forum for "December" or "Christmas" and you will get a wealth of previous threads and posts.

Weather in December can cool in evenings, may get some rain. Decorations will definitely all be up by December.

SteveK
08-06-2004, 08:35 AM
Hey all...

I'm planning a trip to Disneyland in December and wanting to know a few things:

*Is the 1st or 2nd week the best (I'm wanting to avoid huge Christmas crowds)?
*What's the weather usually like?
*Do they do the fireworks show?
*Are the Christmas lights all up (I've never seem Disneyland at Christmas)?

Any information you can give would be much appreciated, thanks :)

We go alot during the holiday's so hopefully I can answer your questions.

1) Either of the first two weeks in December is good. Most people don't take their vacations until closer to Christmast so the few days before Christmas and the week after through New Years gets much more crowded.

2) Cold, but that makes the whole Christmas in Disneyland experience that much better. Rain is impossible to predict in CA...it just doesn't rain very often. That being said, I read today that they're predicting the El Nino will return this winter which could result in alot of rain.

3) I would assume that Believe in Holiday Magic (or something similar) will return this year. It's a big draw and crowd pleaser. They even make it snow (ok, it's actually Mickey shaped bubbles) on Main Street.

4) Yes, the Christmas lights and decorations will be up. I believe they are up sometime in November. The park really comes alive at night with all the lights, especially the lights on Small World.

Anytime at Disneyland is a great experience but the Holidays are easily my favorite time to be there.

Dlandmom
08-06-2004, 08:36 AM
Crowd-wise, the first two weeks of December will be fine, but the first week will probably be slightly better than the second.

The weather in the evening can be cool, in the 60's and possibly the 50's, but then this is Southern Cal, and the days could be in the 80's. You just never know, so pack accordingly.

The lights will definitely be up...they're usually up by Thanksgiving weekend.

Don't know about the fireworks schedule, but hopefully they'll have "snow" on Main Street again!

SCUBAbe
08-06-2004, 08:40 AM
the first two weeks used to be pretyy good, but now that the info is out I ahve noticed larger crowds the last couple of years. Nothing like summer crowds though..:)

Sislers
08-06-2004, 08:41 AM
Thanks so much for the responses!! It just makes me that much more excited to go. I've heard about the "snow" and can't wait to see that!!

Walt'sbirthdaygirl
08-06-2004, 02:18 PM
first week is about twice as busy as it was three or four years ago, everyone seems to have caught on to our little "secret" but it is still a fabulous time to go

sediment
08-06-2004, 02:20 PM
first week is about twice as busy as it was three or four years ago, everyone seems to have caught on to our little "secret" but it is still a fabulous time to go
Oh, you're just trying to scare away folks so it stays less crowded.

Walt'sbirthdaygirl
08-06-2004, 02:26 PM
Oh, you're just trying to scare away folks so it stays less crowded.

hey, you can't blame a girl for trying.........................

Seriously, we have noticed an increase in the crowds, used to be a December wednesday no ride had a line over 10 minutes. The last two years we have actually had to wait around 30 minutes for Splash and the MAtterhorn. Still and all, not bad.

missm
08-06-2004, 02:42 PM
I'll be in DL Dec. 2-8 and was wondering about entertainment. I was in DL last March and there was a great show at Club Buzz. Does anyone know if they have shows year round? In another thread I was informed that Fantasmic won't be going while I'm there. Oh well I'll still be in DL! Also does anyone know when they will post what nights they will be closing early or at least where they will post the info. Thanks.

SCUBAbe
08-06-2004, 04:50 PM
Thanks so much for the responses!! It just makes me that much more excited to go. I've heard about the "snow" and can't wait to see that!!
thry just blow down sticky bubbles now...I miss the "real" snow...:(

sierranevada
08-15-2004, 09:18 AM
We went the third week of December last year and thought it was our best trip ever! A few comments on the first week. I believe I have read on this board that DL closes early (around 6 pm) a few nights that week for parties and towards the end of that week, it gets really busy since the Candlelight ceremony is that weekend.

As far as going during that time in December, we found the crowds were pretty light and we never felt like we had to wait long (we also really used Fastpass alot). The decorations were spectacular!!!! It really made the whole trip special! We had extremely good luck on the weather - in fact only needed a light sweatshirt at night! Again, as one posted said, it usually doesn't rain in SoCal in December but weather is never constant!
The fireworks were showing every night during the week but since we missed EP and Fantasmic! since they were only on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays until the week before Christmas.

It is a great time to go - truly magical!

Walt'sbirthdaygirl
08-15-2004, 09:21 AM
the early closings are a negative, but it does give you time to enjoy the hotels and DTD in their holiday finery.