New Years Eve

[motherof4]

Going to disney world for new yrs eve I was wondering which park is the best one to be in to ring in the new year magic kingdom sounds fun but so does epcot

[DizneyRox]

You wouldn't catch me in MK on NYE! Too much of a zoo, Epcot holds crowd much better.

In any case, you need to arrive at park opening and plan on staying all day. Leaving the park assuming you'll be able to re-enter later in the day is foolish. You have a very good chance of being locked out due to capacity. In years past, it wasn't unusual to reach capacity by early afternoon..

[hubbyofadisneyholic]

MK is awesome on NYE.
Extremely crowded, but a great time.
The countdown at midnight has to be experienced, describing it just doesn't do it justice.

We chose to stay away from EPCOT when our daughter was younger because we elected not to spend the evening surrounded by people that had been inbibing a bit too much all day.:marg:

Now she's a young adult and we would still prefer MK because it is just so much fun. :mickey:

[cetacean01]

be in MK for NYE.....I did EPCOT on the turn of the Millenium and it was a zoo.....even cast members were out of control. My kids are 9 and 5 and we want to be in the heart of Disney for this.....even have dinner ressie's for crystal palace that night.:mickey:

[JROriole8Fan]

You cannot explain the crowds, but I will try with two examples. At MK the parade route was lined with people 10 deep, 90 minutes before the parade. Last year lines for food went out of every place to eat, tables were never available. Christmas day seems like a rainy day in February compred to New Years Eve. I won't do it again, but if I had to, I would recommend EPCOT, with alcohol to dull the pain.

[DizneyRox]

To give you an ide of the crowds, the entire loop around World Showcase is FULL of people, except for a two way walkway they try to keep open for traffic. All bets are off though once the fireworks start.

I'e neer seen that meny people in all my life, and I mean that. I think EVERYONE I EVER SAW IN MY LIFE WAS AT EPCOT THAT DAY!

Epcot holds crowds better than any other park. MK and MGM can't compare with that. ALthough you'll hae some drunks, I would feel "safer" at Epcot.

[#1donaldfan]

Seriously, I'd go to MK that day, play, eat, ride, and have fun, then about 11:30 pm start out of the park and be near the busses before midnight....the fireworks are a complete 360° around you at that vantage point and I have to say what a superb show, plus, there was hardly anyone around us, we were virtually alone, then when it's all said and done, jump on your bus, plenty of seats avail, and wait to roll out....we did this once, and it worked GREAT !! MK was INSANELY busy, we arrived 8 am that morning and didn't leave till 11:30 pm, stood in line for over 2 hrs for splash, cause what else were we gonna do, why not stand in a line to ride something....I'd do it again, just the way I described..!!!:thumbsup:

[Goofy Fan]

Excellent tips so far!

We will also be venturing to the World over New Year's this year and REALLY looking forward to it! I think we already decided to do MK on New Year's Eve, so I guess I better go ahead and relay the information that was posted here! :thumbsup:

And just a question about the parks reaching capacity - I thought they always allowed access to guests staying at Disney resorts? I take it from what was posted here that I was misinformed?

[DizneyRox]

Excellent tips so far!

We will also be venturing to the World over New Year's this year and REALLY looking forward to it! I think we already decided to do MK on New Year's Eve, so I guess I better go ahead and relay the information that was posted here! :thumbsup:

And just a question about the parks reaching capacity - I thought they always allowed access to guests staying at Disney resorts? I take it from what was posted here that I was misinformed?
Yep, misinformed...

At phase 4, NO GUESTS are allowed into a particular park. The wording on the "guarantee" is admission to A park. This means, as long as you are granted admission to any park that's enough. It may not be the park of your choosing, and if you hae already been granted admission, they can deny re-entry as you hae already been granted admission once.

For any major holiday, get to the park you want to end at EARLY and plan on staying all day. Try as I might, lately, most holidays I give up, and take my chances on re-entry. I hane't had a problem, but that's considering considerably lower crowds the past three or so years (they ARE much lower) and never on NYE.

[Ms. Mode]

We are going to MK on New Year's Eve this year also...:thumbsup: However, we are driving down and will not reach the park until after 8pm. We know it will be a zoo, but we have never done anything like this at NY and thought it would be a good way to kick off our 2011 vacation. :mickey:

[DizneyRox]

We are going to MK on New Year's Eve this year also...:thumbsup: However, we are driving down and will not reach the park until after 8pm. We know it will be a zoo, but we have never done anything like this at NY and thought it would be a good way to kick off our 2011 vacation. :mickey:
Have a backup plan... At 8pm, your chances of actually getting anywhere near MK will probably be pretty slim. One of the phases shuts down the toll booth to the parking area.

[goofy-4-disney]

I was in MK several years ago for NYE...as previous posters have stated, the crowds are insane. The people were all well behaved, just that there tons of people everywhere. Lines for everything will be very long (snack carts, restrooms, rides, restaurants). Still was a very cool experience though, and I would definitely do it again. This time though I'd go in with the mindset that I won't be able to accomplish many things that day, just to enjoy what you do get done that much more.