Best timing to see Christmas decor when you have lots of obligations around Christmas?

[Artygal90]

Here's my dilemma. I'd love to get APs for our upcoming fall Disney trip and then take a short trip to see Disney at Christmastime. Everyone says it's so magical, and I would never consider going during the holidays unless our tickets were already taken care of with APs.

The fly in the ointment is that DH works in church music, so vacationing anytime between Thanksgiving and Christmas Day is totally out. The week between Christmas and New Year's is usually spent with our families, either in town or on a road trip to Pensacola. We don't live close enough to drive to Disney, unfortunately. Flights and hotels are cheaper after New Year's and we like to travel together to celebrate our anniversary on January 7th.

With all that in mind, when would be the best time to go to Disneyworld and still be able to see the Christmas decorations? Will the weekend around January 7th be too late?

 

[dachsie]

Things will start being taken down on Jan 2. I would try to go just before Thanksgiving. You wont be able to see the Candelight processional but the decorations will be mostly up because the MVMCP starts in early Nov

 

[Mome Rath]

Yeah... that's not going to be easy and you wouldn't get to see some of the main decor/events everyone talks about. Before reading your details I would have recommended the weekend/week after Thanksgiving.

 

[BraveLittleToaster2]

We had one trip in October/November and the holiday decorations were up before we left. So I would say before Thanksgiving in November.

Though I have been in December (2nd week) and it was so much more magical then early November.

 

[KSR0330]

We were there for Veteran's Day weekend last year (Nov. 10-13). The parks were fully decorated and the resorts were in the process. I was concerned that being so early, I wouldn't be in the holiday spirit, but it was wonderful and we loved it!

 

[mom22boys]

We were there last year December 31-January 6. Our resort (AKL), other deluxe resorts (Poly and CR) and the parks were decorated the whole time we were there. It felt very magical to me, and we loved that it extended our Christmas holiday. I am not sure what may have already been taken down, but if we did miss seeing something "big," we clearly didn't notice it! Sunset Seasons Greetings was still going at HS and we all enjoyed that. And, at MK Jungle Cruise was still Jingle Cruise. As for entertainment JBJB at HS was over, and I am pretty sure the Candlelight Processional at EP was over, but that didn't bother us. Also, by the end of the week, the decorations were taken down at POR (I am not sure if that would be the case with all moderates and value resorts).

 

[RolloTomasi]

Mid-November is your best bet. If you go in early to mid-November, you'll see the decorations at Magic Kingdom, you'll have MVMCP, and the beginnings of decorations at the other parks and maybe a couple of resorts. Unfortunately, the holiday storytelling at Epcot doesn't start until late November and the resorts won't be fully decorated (they're staggered, so you don't know which ones will be decorated until they are).