MVMCP - possible to do first parade AND 7 Dwarfs?

Hello! My group of 10 (5 adults, 5 young kids) will be heading to our first MVMCP in early December. My group would like to try to watch the first parade, even though we know it will be more crowded, because there’s a good chance that some of the kids could fall asleep & miss the parade entirely if we only do the second, later parade.

However, I’m reading reports on various blogs & forums that people suggest getting a spot on the curb on Main Street for the Once Upon a Christmastime Parade at least 2 hours early! And that would mean being on the curb at 630pm for an 830 parade! Not only am I concerned that our kids (6, 6, 5, 4, 20 months) won’t have the patience for that, but also we were hoping to get one large group photo with the 7 Dwarfs, and our original plan was to do that first, before the parade. But now I’m worried accomplishing both won’t happen - if we focus on good parade seating & watch the first parade, that flows right into the fireworks show at 10pm, meaning we couldn’t line up for 7 Dwarfs until after that was over - likely having asleep kiddos!

But if we do the Dwarfs first, even if we managed to be among the first in line, we might not be finished that until 730 or after, and will that put us out of contention for a curb spot on Main Street for the first parade?

I’d appreciate any feedback on parade curb seating or trying to accomplish multiple popular events at MVMCP! Thanks!

When I did the party last November, we got in line for the Dwarfs at about 5:30. We were probably the 10th or 12th group at that time. They came out SUPER EARLY at about 6:15 or so and we were done with our pictures at around 6:40ish. You can find good parade spots closer to the parade time. I don’t have little kids but DH and I waited until they closed a walkway from Tomorrowland and got front row seating that way. Other people seemed to be milling around the area as well with the same intention. It worked really great for us but, like I said, we were just 2 people so you may have other results.

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Have you checked to see what time the Dwarves come out for the MVMCP? We were first in line to see them on 10/22, got in line about 4ish I think. One of our group stayed the entire time, so the other 3 could do other things. Worked perfectly. Every group there switched out people during the wait. They came out at 6:15, we were done by 6:20 as we took individual and group shots. This is really your best bet on seeing the Dwarves without interfering with other party activities. Also, head to the front of the park to watch the parade. We watched the first parade at MNSSHP on 10/20 from the upper level of the train station, and found our front row area only 15 minutes before the parade started. There was plenty of space in the square. After the parade we headed toward the Hub to watch the fireworks. We were able to get all the way to the Partners statue for an amazing view. On 10/24 we watched the first parade again, from a bench in the square. We got that spot maybe 30 minutes before parade. I would not spend 2 hours camping out for a spot. Your kids will mutiny if you try to do that! If you do, have one or two people save the space with stroller and blankets, while others leave to do other things. Good luck!

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Yes, most of the “unofficial” reports I’ve read have them coming out about 6:15. We were hoping that one or two adults could hold the place in line for all 10 of us for the Dwarfs - we truly only want one large group photo, not any breakdowns. It is good to know that most people switch out a bit while waiting in the line - hopefully we won’t get people feeling frustrated with us if we do that, although I’m happy to explain to anyone in line with us that we won’t be taking lots of time up with multiple photos.

I am relieved to see that both of you, who got in line very early for the Dwarfs, were out by 7pm - that is really what I’m hoping for too! We can definitely get in line for the Dwarfs by 5-530pm so hopefully this time frame will work for us too.

Thanks for the parade seating tips too! I’m writing all this down! :smile:

This is considered the norm with these meets. Just make sure you all go there first, in order to have an appropriate amount of room. You will need blankets or something to hold the spots. We just had our 4 bags, worked just fine but only needed space for 4, not 10.

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