Changed to Xmas any tips !

Disney45 · 30 Dec 20, 10:39 AM

Well finally took the plunge and changed our June trip till xmas we will arrive on the 23/24 depending what I get when BA release the dates in a few weeks.

So any tips would be great. As we have only ever been in July or October.

Do all the restaurants open on Xmas day ?

Is Walmart/ publix open Xmas eve or day ?

Staying on Emerald Island for the first time looks like a decent enough area.

munmun · 30 Dec 20, 11:38 AM

Not been in Orlando but have been on the coast several years at Xmas, everything stays open. Some restaurants require reservations but others not. Supermarkets stay open as usual.

Be prepared for a price increase I would say, going by Avios bookings outbound running up to Xmas they do seem to be going fast. I have already booked our Tampa avios Xmas outbound!

emmabrown68 · 30 Dec 20, 11:47 AM

Hi. We spent last Christmas in Orlando and it was amazing. We were booked for this Christmas too but obviously that didn't happen! We arrived on 23rd and did lots of shopping on Christmas Eve. Everything was open and there were some great sales on. Everywhere seemed to close earlier on Christmas Eve though. We went to Celebration at about 4pm and spend the whole evening there. Celebration is amazing at Christmas time and a trip around Jeater Bend is a must! (look on YouTube!). Christmas Day everything seemed to be closed other than Walgreens that we saw but Walmart and Publix were definitely closed. We went to the Gaylord Center for the Elf on the Shelf Breakfast (which I can't recommend enough) and then into ICE and around all the other Christmas activities that they had on. It was really really good and not at all crammed like the parks are on Christmas Day. Other than the Breakfast at Gaylord Center, we planned to eat at the villa for the rest of the day but I know that you can book at lots of restaurants for Christmas Day. Places like Dennys and Perkins were closed though.

Disney45 · 30 Dec 20, 11:58 AM

Sounds great will have a look at your suggestion. We love a trip to Celebration anyway so can�t wait to see it at Christmas.

captain-codeye · 30 Dec 20, 04:53 PM

If I was to only give one tip it would be get up early and do everything early.

The parks are great at opening for a few hours and you can get more done in the first 3 hours than the rest of the day.

Dom and Sarah · 4 Jan 21, 09:52 PM

We have just moved our holiday to Christmas 2021 as well. We originally booked this for April 2020, then October 2020, then April 2021 and now Crimbo 2021. I wasn�t ever keen on Christmas in Florida as I heard it is crazy busy and didn�t want it to ruin the experience. We got a great deal (I thought it would be extortionate), got a great Villa upgrade to a 5 bed Westhaven Villa and managed to blag an extra car as we now have an extra person tagging along.

We would also be keen to hear any hints and tips for Xmas in Orlando. Loving the tips about Jeater Bend, defo put that on the list...

**stanleycamel** · 4 Jan 21, 10:02 PM

Originally Posted by Dom and Sarah

We have just moved our holiday to Christmas 2021 as well. We originally booked this for April 2020, then October 2020, then April 2021 and now Crimbo 2021. I wasn�t ever keen on Christmas in Florida as I heard it is crazy busy and didn�t want it to ruin the experience. We got a great deal (I thought it would be extortionate), got a great Villa upgrade to a 5 bed Westhaven Villa and managed to blag an extra car as we now have an extra person tagging along.

We would also be keen to hear any hints and tips for Xmas in Orlando. Loving the tips about Jeater Bend, defo put that on the list...

Worth following the Lights on Jeater Bend on Facebook as this year they were forced to stop the displays for a couple of weekends due to overcrowding and safety concerns due to traffic.

DinkySlinky · 7 Jan 21, 01:49 PM

We have been twice at Christmas and loved it. We done all the parks, yes they are busy but with a little bit of planning and plenty pit stops totally manageable and all are magical at Christmas. We did MK on Christmas Day and Epcot on New Years Eve.

Top things that we really enjoy doing is:

Visiting the Disney hotels to see there decorations
Visit Gaylord Palms for ICE and all the other Christmas attractions at the hotel
Celebration and Jeater Bend for the Christmas Decorations
Sleigh rides at Fort Wilderness
Shopping, although get there early as the car parks are manic
Christmas tree trail at Disney Springs
Enjoy Christmas treats in the Parks

We also done the Christmas Party at MK which was great.

Shops are full of Christmas stuff and there is generally good offers on to to take advantage off.

Take some warm clothes too as the weather changed dramatically over the time we were there. Some days the temperature was the same as the UK.

30 Dec 20, 11:38 AM	#2
	30 Dec 20, 11:38 AM munmun Imagineer
munmun Imagineer Join Date: May 10	Not been in Orlando but have been on the coast several years at Xmas, everything stays open. Some restaurants require reservations but others not. Supermarkets stay open as usual. Be prepared for a price increase I would say, going by Avios bookings outbound running up to Xmas they do seem to be going fast. I have already booked our Tampa avios Xmas outbound! Edited at 11:40 AM.