Thursday, December 22, 2011

Disneyland and Holiday Crowds

Disneyland and Holiday Crowds



It use to be if asked when the best days of the year to go to Disneyland I'd have said, Mother's Day, Father's Day, Superbowl  Sunday, Thanksgiving and Christmas Days were the best days to visit Disneyland. The crowds would be light because all but one of those days are days for families to spend together. In the case of Superbowl Sunday it is a day not for families but for dad to park himself in front of the TV. That was eight to ten years ago.

Today those days are some of the busiest and Christmas Day has one of the heaviest crows of the year. It is even busier than most summer days! The weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas were light in years past but even that has become more crowed.

Mother's Day was considered the best day because most families took dear mom out to dinner and spent time with her. Now it is "take mom to Disneyland to celebrate". Father's Day quickly followed suit.

Thanksgiving Day ten years ago the park had fairly light crowds. Today many families choose to celebrate at the park together and forgo the traditional home cooked meal. People are making choices for an unusual way to celebrate.

Christmas Day has become one of the most crowded days of the year at the park. The only days busier are the 4th of July and New Years Eve. People seem to chose to open their gifts the night before or early before coming to the park. The lines are hours long for everything but the spirits are high and the magic of the season is everywhere. For many this is a Christmas gift for the family. For some it is a single day or maybe a several day visit. For others it is the start of their annual pass. What a magical gift to find in your stocking!

Superbowl Sunday has always been a light day for the park because many people stay home to watch the game. With the advent of small portable palm size TVs and smart phones that you can watch TV on the go people come to the park and don't miss the game. It is getting more crowded but still not as heavy as the other dates I've mentioned.

So if you chose to come on any of these holidays be aware you will not be the only one! There will be crowds. Use the tips I gave for dealing with summer crowds. Don't fret and don’t have unreasonable expatiations for the number for rides/attractions you will get to. Just enjoy what you can do and let it be enough. If you start to feel pressured by the crowds find a semi quiet place to sit for a few moments. Plan your day. Make choices before getting there on what is important for you to see. If it is the fireworks or a parade and getting a GREAT view is important to you make sure you get there early. To make waiting for the parade or firework more do able bring something to do. Bring books to read, crafts to do and take turns waiting. If you have kids with you, mom and dad can take turns taking them on rides.




My Christmas book, An Angel Remembers 25 Voices of Christmas is out!!

You can find for all formats at

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/94784

And for the Nook at

http://www.barnesandnoble.com

It is also available at the ITunes store for IPod, IPad and IPhone

It soon will be up at other sites such as Amazon


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