This is SO tinsel! A Christmas at Walt Disney World Trip Report...Dec 18-28 @ AKL & CSR

[TinkerBelle_325]

THIS IS SO TINSEL!
A Christmas at Walt Disney World Trip Report

The Backstory
Every year at Christmas we wake up, open our gifts, make breakfast and watch the Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade. A few years ago we made our first December visit and fell in love with the overwhelming explosion of Christmas cheer that is the Walt Disney World Resort during the holidays. It was then we decided that spending Christmas at Disney was one of our bucket list items!

Our original trip was scheduled for September 11th - 21st. As we saw early reports about Hurricane Irma we changed those dates to September 14th - 23rd. We figured that a few days grace after the impact would be fine. After all we rode out Hurricane Matthew at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge in October 2016. However, as we monitored the NHC forecasts it became clear that Irma was stronger than anything we had encountered. We came to the difficult decision to cancel our trip.

The silver lining was that this cancellation led us to decide that this is the year we will spend Christmas at Disney!

TRIP DETAILS

When?
Monday, December 18th - Thursday, December 28th

Where?
4 nights at Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge & 6 nights at Disney's Coronado Springs Resort

Who?
Megan
That's me! I am the planner of the family...and while I often take months getting the plan "just right" I inevitably attempt to change things up a few weeks out. My favourite parks are Magic Kingdom and Epcot. My favourite attractions are The Haunted Mansion, Splash Mountain and Tower of Terror.
Mom
She is the organizer of our family and we would be lost without her. I can't tell you the number of times in a trip that my Dad or I asked "Where is x, y, z item?" and without fail she will know where it is #moms6thsense. Mom loves spending time relaxing by the pool. Her favourite park is Epcot and her favourite attraction is Impressions de France.
Dad
He is the travel junkie of the family. If it were up to him, we would travel just about every other month. Dad will rarely allow us to leave Walt Disney World without booking our next vacation. His favourite park is Epcot. His favourite attractions are Pirates of the Caribbean and Soarin'.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Pre-trip & New Experiences
Dining Plans

Monday, December 18th
Check-in AKL
Magic Kingdom
Happily Ever After Tomorrowland Fireworks Dessert Party
Tuesday, December 19th
Animal Kingdom & Pandora - The World of Avatar
Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party
Wednesday, December 20th
Epcot
5pm Performance with Neil Patrick Harris
Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge
Thursday, December 21st
Magic Kingdom
Epcot International Festival of the Holidays
Friday, December 22nd
Check-in CSR
Disney's Hollywood Studios
Sunset Season's Greetings
Saturday, December 23rd
Epcot
Sunday, December 24th
Animal Kingdom Lodge
Epcot
Monday, December 25th
Magic Kingdom
Animal Kingdom Lodge
Tuesday, December 26th
Disney Springs
Animal Kingdom
Wednesday, December 27th
Magic Kingdom
Epcot
Thursday, December 28th
Departure Day

Follow Along!
I'll be doing live updates on my Instagram and Instagram Story starting on December 18th. Please feel free to follow along. I also plan to post weekly vlogs after I return. The links to my social media accounts are in my signature.​

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

PRE-TRIP
After months of planning and countless changes my September itinerary was near perfect. That is when a storm called Irma emerged off the coast of Africa and across the Atlantic ocean. I spent says monitoring the National Hurricane Centre and any hurricane model I could lock eyes on. I called JetBlue to shift our Sept 11th flights forward to the 14th. I switched Disney hotel reservations, extended by a few days, rebooked dining and even managed to snag new Flight of Passage FastPasses after having to give up our original set from Sept 12th.

But as Irma drew nearer we decided that we couldn't in good conscience proceed with our trip. Now, I want to make it clear that I pass absolutely no judgement on anyone that opts to ride out the storm on Disney property (we did that for Matthew!) or anyone that has decided to keep their post-Irma vacations. Every family has to do what is best for their particular situation and this was best for us.

We mulled over dates and tossed out ideas until I suggested something just a little bit crazy....why don't we go to Walt Disney World for CHRISTMAS? We have always wanted to. What better way to cheer ourselves up about having to cancel than by giving our family the best Christmas gift possible!

So I've spent the last few days booking new resort reservations, new ADRs and new experiences. I've got the Disney excitement back, which has replaced the stress, anxiety, frustration and sadness we were facing as we watch Irma's path.

I've also spent time looking through photos from past trips so I thought I'd share a few of my favourites.

There's a million things I haven't done, just you wait...

I can't resist a good reference from Hamilton: An American Musical. So what exactly are the "million things I haven't done"? A million might be a bit of an exaggeration, but we are trying a good number of new experiences this trip. Considering the number of times we've been to Walt Disney World it's amazing that we always find new things to try!

NEW EXPERIENCES

1. Christmas Eve & Christmas Day at Walt Disney World
2. Christmas morning at The Magic Kingdom (including lunch at Liberty Tree!)
2. Tomorrowland Fireworks Dessert Party AND Happily Ever After
3. Pandora - The World of Avatar
4. Sunset Season's Greetings @ Disney's Hollywood Studios
5. Epcot's International Festival of the Holidays
6. Renovated Room at Disney's Coronado Springs (Fingers crossed on this one)

Next up: Dining Plans​

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

DINING PLANS

Not talking about the Disney Dining Plan here, but rather our restaurant & snack plans for the trip. We are Tables in Wonderland cardholders because we often prefer to order a bunch of appetizers and share!

Monday, December 18th
BREAKFAST: Inflight (Business Class)
LUNCH: The Mara
DINNER: Columbia Harbour House
DESSERT: Tomorrowland Terrace Fireworks Dessert Party

Tuesday, December 19th
BREAKFAST: The Mara
LUNCH: Flame Tree BBQ
DINNER: Liberty Tree Tavern

Wednesday, December 20th
BREAKFAST: The Mara
LUNCH: Teppan Edo (Candlelight Processional Package)
DINNER: Boma

Thursday, December 21st
BREAKFAST: Main Street Bakery
BRUNCH: Columbia Harbour House
DINNER: Rose & Crown Dining Room

Friday, December 22nd
BRUNCH: Boma
DINNER: 50's Primetime Cafe

Saturday, December 23rd
BREAKFAST: Les Halles
LUNCH: Holiday Kitchens
DINNER: Via Napoli

Sunday, September 24th
BRUNCH: Boma
DINNER: Monsieur Paul

Monday, December 25th
BREAKFAST: Be Our Guest
LUNCH: Liberty Tree Tavern
DINNER: Jiko

Tuesday, December 26th
BREAKFAST: Amorette's
LUNCH: Raglan Road
DINNER: California Grill

Wednesday, December 27th
BREAKFAST: Cracker Barrel
LUNCH: Garden View Afternoon Tea
DINNER: Jiko

Thursday, December 28th
BREAKFAST: Orlando International Airport
LUNCH: Inflight (Business Class)

Next up: The Holidays at Walt Disney World​

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

HOLIDAYS AT THE WALT DISNEY WORLD RESORT

It's been 5 years since we last saw the Christmas decorations at Walt Disney World! There are so many things that we are looking forward to seeing. Here's the preliminary list:

MAGIC KINGDOM​

• Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party - We've attended twice in the past and the sight of snow on Main Street basically turned all of us into 5 year olds squealing with glee! The atmosphere of the park during the party is incredible. There are also so many fun treats this year!
• Jingle Cruise - I was so worried that this overlay wasn't going to return. The standard Jungle Cruise is a Disney classic, but then adding Christmas Cheer and more fantastically punny jokes makes it even better.
• Christmas Morning @ Magic Kingdom - I'm sure we're a little bit crazy to attempt this, but we feel we just have to be in the Magic Kingdom on Christmas morning.
• Liberty Tree Tavern on Christmas Day - Yes...that's right...I scored the holy grail of holiday season dining reservations! We'll be having lunch at Liberty Tree Tavern on Christmas Day
• Mickey's Once Upon a Christmastime on Christmas Day - Every Christmas morning after we've opened our gifts we have breakfast and watch the Disney Christmas Parade. I'm almost tearing up just at the idea that we will be able to watch the parade inside the park on Christmas Day.

EPCOT​

• Candlelight Processional - We've booked the dining package and are so excited that we get Neil Patrick Harris as our narrator! I know that he is particularly popular.​
• Epcot's International Festival of the Holidays - or as we are calling it "Winter Food & Wine". Let me tell you, I'm a BIG fan of the festival movement at Epcot. Bring on the booths. Now that the menus have been released I'll be doing another post about the items I'm most excited to try.​
• Peace on Earth Finale to Illuminations - I always cry during Illuminations in it's normal state, add inspiring Christmas music and messages and I'm bound to bawl like a baby in the best way possible ​

DISNEY'S HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS​

• Echo Lake Decorations - These new decorations look so beautiful. I love the vintage feel as many of our family decorations have that same 50's feeling.
• Sunset Season's Greetings - As I said, we are suckers for Disney snow so seeing it on Sunset Boulevard is really exciting. The projections on the Tower of Terror look pretty cool as well.

DISNEY SPRINGS & RESORT HOTELS​

• Christmas Tree Trail - Tons of Christmas Trees inspired by classic Disney movies? Yes please!
• Animal Kingdom Lodge - I would never have thought that the decorations at Animal Kingdom Lodge would be among my favourites, but it was the first hotel we stayed at during the holiday season. As a result it holds a special place in our hearts at this time of year so we'll start our trip with a stay here!
• Coronado Springs - Our favourite and most frequent Disney Resort, yet we've never seen the decorations here!
• Wilderness Lodge - Perhaps the most traditional decorations on property and a stunning tree
• Grand Floridian - Life. Size. Gingerbread. House.
• Contemporary - The new Cinderella Castle gingerbread display looks so cute
• Beach Club - If I recall correctly the lobby has a beautiful gingerbread carrousel
• Yacht Club - Christmas villages have a special significance in our family and the one at the Yacht Club is expansive and impressive

 

[Tracy161]

I'm in!!! You had me at your title... big Hamilton fan here!

while listening to Disney park audio loops

Where do you go for area loops? I used to be addicted to Live365 before they went out, and I really miss those audio "tours" through Disney

1. Pandora - The World of Avatar at Disney's Animal Kingdom

YOU WILL LOVE THIS, OMG.

Excited to follow along!

 

[shannie102]

Very excited to join in early on- looks like this will be a great trip!! Looking forward to your reviews on some of the new food at FWF

 

[cinderaimee]

I'm here for the Hamilton references

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

Last night we came to the difficult decision to cancel our September 2017 trip as a result of Hurricane Irma. But, as you'll see we've rebooked for the most wonderful time of the year....We're going to Disney for Christmas!!

 

[dnllmz]

Following along! We went last December and really enjoyed seeing the park all decorated for Christmas. We're going again this year too. We plan on taking our time this year instead of rushing around. Also we stayed in a refurbished Coronado room in July and it was really nice. FX you get one too!

 

[Chris B.]

Following along. Counting down till we leave on December 10th.

 

[CanuckGirl78]

We're going from Dec 18-22 before heading for a 7-day cruise! And we are planning on doing AK on the 19th too (including lunch at Flame Tree but doing dinner at Boma).

You ready to do FP+ bookings in ~36 hours??

Our schedule & meal plan is
Dec 18:
Leave Toronto (breakfast at McDonald's at the airport)
DHS (ABC Comissary & Minnie's Seasonal Dine @ Hollywood & Vine)

Dec 19:
AK (Flame Tree & Boma)

Dec 20:
MK (Columbia harbour house & Pecos Bill)

Dec 21:
Epcot (Tangierine & Akershus)

Dec 22:
MK (Be Our Guest & 'Ohana)
Leave WDW & drive to Miami

Dec 23-30
Caribbean cruise

We have a 2yo & 5yo & it's their (& mine!) first time, & we're so excited!!

Let's hope we both get all our FP+ & the lineups aren't too crazy when we're there!!!

PS: splash mountain will be open when we're there! It reopens mid-November before closing again early January.

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

I'm in!!! You had me at your title... big Hamilton fan here!


Where do you go for area loops? I used to be addicted to Live365 before they went out, and I really miss those audio "tours" through Disney


YOU WILL LOVE THIS, OMG.

Excited to follow along!

Welcome! I tend to listen of YouTube. There are lots of channels that have area loops and the resort tv loops too!

Very excited to join in early on- looks like this will be a great trip!! Looking forward to your reviews on some of the new food at FWF

Thanks for reading! We're super excited for our trip even though it's no longer F&W. Can't wait to experience Christmas at Disney.

I'm here for the Hamilton references

I'm a HUGE Hamilton fan. I went to see it on Broadway in April 2017 AND I managed to snag tickets again for August 2018. There will definitely be more references.

Following along! We went last December and really enjoyed seeing the park all decorated for Christmas. We're going again this year too. We plan on taking our time this year instead of rushing around. Also we stayed in a refurbished Coronado room in July and it was really nice. FX you get one too!

Awesome! We've been twice in December and adore the decorations.

Following along. Counting down till we leave on December 10th.

Woohoo! Enjoy your trip

We're going from Dec 18-22 before heading for a 7-day cruise! And we are planning on doing AK on the 19th too (including lunch at Flame Tree but doing dinner at Boma).

You ready to do FP+ bookings in ~36 hours??

Our schedule & meal plan is
Dec 18:
Leave Toronto (breakfast at McDonald's at the airport)
DHS (ABC Comissary & Minnie's Seasonal Dine @ Hollywood & Vine)

Dec 19:
AK (Flame Tree & Boma)

Dec 20:
MK (Columbia harbour house & Pecos Bill)

Dec 21:
Epcot (Tangierine & Akershus)

Dec 22:
MK (Be Our Guest & 'Ohana)
Leave WDW & drive to Miami

Dec 23-30
Caribbean cruise

We have a 2yo & 5yo & it's their (& mine!) first time, & we're so excited!!

Let's hope we both get all our FP+ & the lineups aren't too crazy when we're there!!!

PS: splash mountain will be open when we're there! It reopens mid-November before closing again early January.

Hi! Thanks for the Splash heads up. My original trip was in September which is why I wrote what I did about Splash lol. I thought I edited it out when I updated to December. I got everything I wanted in terms of FastPasses (yay!) I hope you were able to as well!

 

[CanuckGirl78]

Hi! Thanks for the Splash heads up. My original trip was in September which is why I wrote what I did about Splash lol. I thought I edited it out when I updated to December. I got everything I wanted in terms of FastPasses (yay!) I hope you were able to as well!

I got everything but FOP, but I knew that walking in as I made our AK day 60+1 (silly mistake I didn’t realize until I got closer to our FP day!) and all FOP FPs we’re gone for days 60 through 60+2. But we’ll try RD’ing it. I got everything else at the times I wanted, so I can’t complain!

How crazy was it the morning of when MDE went down?!! I thought I was going to cry when I thought something wasn’t working on my end before I realized no one could get in the system.

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

I got everything but FOP, but I knew that walking in as I made our AK day 60+1 (silly mistake I didn’t realize until I got closer to our FP day!) and all FOP FPs we’re gone for days 60 through 60+2. But we’ll try RD’ing it. I got everything else at the times I wanted, so I can’t complain!

How crazy was it the morning of when MDE went down?!! I thought I was going to cry when I thought something wasn’t working on my end before I realized no one could get in the system.

Oh god I know! Absolutely nuts! I've heard FOP is quite doable at RD now

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

EPCOT'S INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF THE HOLIDAYS

Whew! That really is a mouthful. Don't get me wrong, I am a big fan of all the festivals at Epcot. We frequent the Flower & Garden Festival and the Food & Wine Festival. We haven't tried the Festival of the Arts yet, but we will get the opportunity to try the International Festival of the Holidays!

Even more exciting is that the menus were released this week!

Here they are, with the items I'm most interested in trying bolded.
​

Alsace Holiday Kitchen (FRANCE) *NEW*

• Napoleon de Saumon Fume, Brioche a l'aneth: Smoked Salmon Napoleon in Dill Brioche
• Le Réveillon de Noel: Turkey Breast stuffed with Mushrooms and Chestnuts with Sweet Potato Puree
• Buche de Noel: Slice of Chocolate Christmas Yule Log
• Spiced Rum Punch Slush: Spiced Rum, Rhum Clement V.S.O.P., Orange and Pineapple Juice, Cinnamon
• Merlot & Cabernet Blend, Chateau de Bechaud, Saint Emilion
• Holiday Kir: Sparkling Wine and Monin's Cranberry Syrup
• Champagne Brut, Nicholas Feuillatte

American Holiday Table (AMERICAN ADVENTURE)

• Slow roasted Turkey with Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans and Cranberry Sauce
• Seared Pork Tenderloin with Holiday Accompaniments: Green Bean Casserole, Roasted Sweet Potato Wedges and Champagne Demi-Glace
• Chocolate Pecan Tart with Whipped Cream and Caramel Sauce
• Orange Blossom Brewing Company Cranberry Kringle Pilsner
• Shipyard Eggnog White Porter
• JDub's Season's Greetings Peppermint Milk Stout
• Holiday Beer Flight
• Kurt Russell's GoGi Wines "Goldie" Chardonnay
• Kurt Russell's GoGi Wines Pinot Noir
• Chocolate Apple Shake
• Cocoa Candy Cane
• Firenog

Bavaria Holiday Kitchen (GERMANY)

• German Artisan Cheese Plate: ButterKase with Ham, Mushroom Brie with Pretzel Crostini and Tilamook Cheddar
• Sauerbraten, Red Cabbage and Spatzle
• Cheese fondue in a bread bowl
• Stollen
• Possmann Pure Hard Apple Cider
• Possmann Pure Hard Black Currant Cider
• Shofferhofer Grapefruit
• Cider Flight
• Gluhwein: House-made Hot Spiced Wine
• Specialty Riesling

The Cookie Nook *NEW* (FESTIVE CENTRE)

• Warm Apple Fritter with Cinnamon Ice Cream
• Snowflake Sugar Cookie
• Snickerdoodle Cookie
• Double Chocolate Peppermint Cookie
• Gingersnap Cookie with Cream Cheese Icing and Cranberry Jam
• Sachertorte
• Holiday Tree Decorated Cookie
• Chocolate Chunk Cookie
• Brew Hub Pumpkin Spice Dunkelweiss
• Playalinda Brewing Company Sparkling Christmas Coffee Blonde
• Central 28 Beer Company Joy from the World Holiday Dubble
• Holiday Beer Flight
• Speciality Red Wine
• Speciality White Wine
• Florida Orange Groves Sparkling Cranberry Wine

Feast of Three Kings

• Shredded Beef Tamale with Avocado Crema and Cilantro Rice
• Roasted Pork with Smashed Yuca and Pickled Green Bananas
• Three Kings Bread
• Presidente Pilsner
• Coquette with Bacardi

Hokkaido Holiday Kitchen (JAPAN) *NEW*

• New Year Celebration Soba: Buckwheat Soba Noodle with Spinach in Hot Soup with Shrimp Tempura or Chicken
• Cinnamon Mochi Cake
• Strawberry Nigori Sake Cocktail
• Iced Strawberry Milk

Los Posadas Holiday Kitchen (MEXICO) *NEW*

• Tostada de Tinga: Crispy Corn Tortilla smothered with Black Beans, topped with Chipotle Chicken and garnished with Crema Mexicana, Queso Fresco, Avocado and Tomatillo Salsa
• Tamal de Chilorio: Slow-roasted Pork Shoulder, marinated in Ancho Paste and stuffed in Corn Masa. Served with Salsa tres Chile and garnished with Crema Mexicana and Queso Fresco
• Bunuelo Navideno: A thin round fried pastry, drizzled with Honey and dusted with Cinnamon sugar
• Pomegranate Margarita
• Frozen Coffee Margarita
• Horchata Margarita
• Bohemia Pilsner

Shanghai Holiday Kitchen (CHINA) *NEW*

• Mongolian Beef Bao with a Fortune Cookie
• Chinese BBQ Pork Rice Bowl with a Fortune Cookie
• Pork and Vegetable Egg Rolls
• Mango Wine
• Tsingtao Lager

Tuscany Holiday Kitchen (ITALY) *NEW*

• Fusili di Gragnano alla Carbonara: Fusili Pasta in a Creamy Parmesan Sauce with Pancetta and Onions
• Cotechino con Lenticchie: Fresh Italian Salami sliced with lentils
• Crespelle di Mele: Cinnamon Apple Fritters with Vanilla and Caramel Sauce
• Panettone alla Milanese: Warm Italian Fruit Cake with Vanilla Sauce and Cherry Syrup
• Panettone Mignon
• Pinot Grigio
• Chianti
• Prosecco
• Corbinello
• Moscato
• Moretti
• Moretti La Rossa

Tarabaki Holiday Kitchen (MOROCCO) *NEW*

• Grilled Lamb Kefta and Grapes with julienned euro cucumber, red pepper, pickled pearl onions and Harissa
• Confit of Chermoula Chicken Drum with Cinnamon Granny Smith Apple, Toasted Almonds, Brussel Sprouts and Pinot Noir Syrup
• Triangle Honey Briwat with Almond Paste, Rose Water and Toasted Sesame Seeds
• The Andalusian Poinsettia: Sparkling Wine, Orange Liqueur, Cranberry Juice and Orange Blossom Water
• Walnut Spiced Coffee with Walnut Liqueur
• Casa Beer

Yukon Holiday Kitchen (CANADA) *NEW*

• Seared Salmon with Crown Royal Whisky Glaze, Parsnip Silk, Apple Chutney and Hazelnut Croquet
• Traditional French Canadian Tourtiere with Canadian Ketchup
• Maple Buche de Noel: Maple Mousse rolled in Gingerbread Chiffon Cake with Cranberry Sauce and Pecan Crumble
• Chateau des Charmes Riesling Ice Wine
• Neige Apple Ice Wine
• Red Stone Cabernet Franc Ice Wine
• Ice Wine Flight
• Fielding Estate Pinot Grigio
• Fielding Estate Red Conception
• Frozen Coffee with Tap 357 Whisky
• Unibroue Ephemere Elderberry

 

[MommyMissy]

Following along! We have a Christmas trip in the works for 2018 so I can’t wait to hear more.

 

[Lynne G]

Following. We'll be there 21 to 28. My kids are a teen and college kid, so when I am paying, they come along. We did the Christmas party last year, as our only Disney day, and we all agreed, not this year. Us too, going to MK when we arrive, then over to Epcot to end the night. Since my kids started HS sports, we have to vacation during the holidays. So, we've vacationed at DL, did the Busch parks a few times, San Diego one year, and now, DW. Of course, we will be in Orlando until New Year's Eve, so, will round out our visit with Harry Potter.

I so enjoy all the decorations and events during the happiest time of year.

Follow on.