Hi everyone,
We’re planning a trip Dec 17, during what I understand is the most crowded week of the year at wdw (23 Dec- 2 Jan). We (myself, hubby, and 2 boys, 11 and 10) are coming from Australia, have never done anything Disney (cause we just don’t have it here) and none of us have ever even left the country. Needless to say, it’s a bit daunting!
I’ve read the guide, I’m sorting out my rough, skeleton plan for days/parks etc to start figuring out what restaurants to book next year. Yes, it’s a bit early. I take a long time to plan things, think them through and then change my mind ten times before coming back to my original plan. Mostly. We’re planning on having 3-4 hour nap breaks in the middle of the day and then park hop for the evening. There are probably 3 days that we wont have breaks and just have an earlier night.
What are you tips for someone coming for their one and only visit ever?
Apart from the obvious rides, parades and shows, what are your favourite and must-see/do things?
My kids are into quirky bits like the umbrella in Hollywood studios, so anything like that would be handy to know. They don’t seem to be into the hidden mickeys… but we’ll see if that holds when we arrive 
thanks in advance!
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Pack your patience for that time of year!!
I would highly suggest getting to the parks FIRST THING in the morning and then take a break and then go back at night.
I assume you are staying on site. You MAY want to rent a car for convenience and if you want to see anything else in the area.
If your kids are into Harry Potter at all I HIGHLY suggest you spending some time at Universal Studios which is about 30 minutes away
Just enjoy it - you WILL NOT see everything so don’t try - don’t drive yourself mad in trying to fit EVERY LAST THING in.
Take time to enjoy the shops, try on hats, watch people etc - have a plan but go with the flow.
Some of my most favorite memories are just being with the kids while we doing stuff and not rides.
Take advantage of the adventures they have in the parks. Epcot has Fineous and Ferb (or something like it) and kid stations at every country. MK has a card game where you interact with displays throughout MK. Animal Kingdom has something similar
The food as a whole is nothing special - yes there are some good things here and there - but don’t think anyone has written home “I JUST HAD THE BEST BURGER EVER IN THE MK” The hotels do have some nice restaurants.
Just enjoy. Plan but be flexible. I once rode Winnie the Pooh 5 times in a row because my daughter wanted to - why not
Dave
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Be aware that parks do sometimes close for capacity - it’s rare but Christmas Day is definitely one of the likely days. I’m not sure if there are others during your trip. The parks will probably open very early (7am sometimes) and you’ll want to be there before the park opens. 7am-9am you can probably see as much as you will the whole rest of the day.
I’ve never been at Xmas, but I’m sure someone will have more detailed advice for you.
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Thank you!
We are going to work off a loose plan with a few must do things each day. Thanks for the info on early mornings, I’m sure that’s going to be super helpful. For us, it’s more about the fact that we actually get there. The kids seemed more excited about watching people and listening to American accents than anything else initially. Yeah… their kinda special
I’m not overly fussy with the food… but for some reason, everyone here says your food is sweeter because of the oil you use there? I’m not big on the idea of spending 10 days eating sweet-oily take-out style food for breakfast lunch and dinner, and it seems that unless you book the restaurants at the first available moment, you won’t be sitting down for dinner that week!
Thanks for the car tip- we will rent one because the disney transportation sounds nightmarish during the holidays.
Thanks for your help!
@davidtyost has given some great info.
We have been at Christmas before and yes it will be busy, but you will have a fab time, especially for you do your ADR’s and FPP’s.
We stayed at our resort for Christmas Day, leisurely breakfast, opening prezzies, swimming and a Christmas meal at the resort in the evening. But that’s just us!
I don’t know where you are staying but visiting the resorts to see their different decorations is a lovely thing to do. And I know a couple of resorts do Christmas carriage rides, and meetings with Father Christmas.
You can also put some decorations in your room, we had a small tree with battery lights, and decorated the balcony.
It’s never too early to plan! Even if you are over a year out! We are going next October and I’ve been planning since I booked in the summer 
Your in the right place!