November 2012 at Walt Disney World

Posted:  Events

Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party

November is an interesting month to visit Walt Disney World. In the real world, Halloween and Christmas are nearly two months apart, but in the magical world of Disney only a few days separate these two holidays! In November, if you time it right, you can experience both Halloween and Christmas during the same vacation. Watch as Magic Kingdom Park transforms from Halloween to Christmas. For those of you visiting Walt Disney World this month, here is some information for your trip.

Weather

Weather-wise, November is one of the best times to visit Florida. The humidity is pretty much gone. The temperature will be moderate, with highs in the mid to upper 70s and lows in the mid 50s. The average precipitation is just 2.32 inches. Although hurricane season goes through the end of the month, most hurricane activity has passed.

Crowds

Two busy times this month occur around Veterans Day weekend and Thanksgiving week. Jersey week and the Wine & Dine Half Marathon contribute to the crowds over Veterans Day (11/11) weekend. That is also the final weekend of the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival, the opening of the Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights, and the first Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party of the season – all of which are likely to bring more people than normal into the parks. Tuesday through Saturday of Thanksgiving (11/22) week will see crowd levels at their highest for the month. A good resource for knowing which park is likely to be the least crowded on a particular day is Touring Plans.

Events and Activities

November 2 is your last chance to attend Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party this year. If you do plan to attend, be sure to read Tips for Making the Most of Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party before going.

The Epcot International Food & Wine Festival comes to a close this month as well, ending on November 12. You can learn more about it here. One of the dearly loved activities of the Epcot International Food & Wine Festival is the Eat to the Beat Concert Series. The concerts are included in your Epcot admission and are performed at the America Gardens Theatre nightly at 5:30, 6:45 and 8pm. Here’s the schedule for November (subject to change, of course):

  • November 1-2: .38 Special
  • November 3-4: Howard Jones LIVE
  • November 5-6: Blues Traveler
  • November 7-8: Dennis DeYoung (original member of STYX)
  • November 9-12: Big Bad Voodoo Daddy

The annual Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals Classic brings 100 world-class golfers together at Disney’s Magnolia and Palm Golf Courses for 4 days of competition, November 8-11.

The 37th Festival of the Masters, an open-air fine arts festival, will be held in the Downtown Disney area November 9 – November 11.

Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party at the Magic Kingdom begins this month. The dates are November 9 (sold out), 12, 15, 16, 25, 27, 29, and 30.

The Osborne Family Spectacle of Dancing Lights occurs nightly on the Streets of America at Disney’s Hollywood Studios beginning November 9. This amazing display features millions of glittering lights perfectly synchronized to holiday music.

Mickey’s Jammin’ Jungle Parade at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Park transforms into Mickey’s Jingle Jungle Parade on November 9.

Starting at 10 pm on November 10, the Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon will wind its way through 3 parks, finishing with an Epcot International Food & Wine Festival after-hours party.

Beginning on November 16, guests can get their picture taken with Santa Claus during Festival of the Seasons at Downtown Disney.

Candlelight Processional is a special holiday event held nightly at the America Gardens Theatre in Epcot as part of Holidays Around the World, beginning November 23. The Candlelight Processional occurs three times each evening at 5:00 pm, 6:45 pm, 8:15 pm. November’s celebrity narrators are:

  • November 23 to November 25, 2012 – Geena Davis
  • November 26 to November 29, 2012 – Neil Patrick Harris
  • November 30 to December 1, 2012 – Whoopi Goldberg

Closures and Refurbishments

Here is a list of the closures that you may encounter in the parks when visiting in November. The AllEars website has a comprehensive listing of closures and rehabs at Walt Disney World. Rather than reinvent the wheel, I’ll direct you there for detailed information.

Magic Kingdom

  • Previews of the New Fantasyland will begin November 6 and the soft opening will be on November 19.
  • The Magic, Memories and You castle projection show ended in September. A new projection show will be opening in November – exact dates have not yet been released by Disney.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios

  • Studio Backlot Tour and the American Film Institute Showcase will be closed through November 16.
  • Due to a private event, Disney’s Hollywood Studios will close at 4 p.m. on November 8 and there will be no Fantasmic! show that evening.

Epcot

  • Test Track is currently closed and is will reopen on December 6.
  • Bistro de Paris is also currently closed and not expected to open until the end of November.
  • The Character Spot located in Epcot’s Future World closed on October 21 for refurbishment and is scheduled to reopen in February. Mickey, Minnie and Pluto can be seen temporarily near the Fountain View Ice Cream shop and Goofy can be found at Epcot’s main entrance, near Spaceship Earth.

Water Parks

  • Typhoon Lagoon closed on October 28 for its annual refurbishment, reopening on January 5, 2013.

That wraps up my preview for November. Watch for what to expect in December to be posted at the end of this month.

~ Barrie Brewer, Social Media Director

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