Hi Jonathon!
Thanks for bringing this question to planDisney!
The holidays are my absolute favorite time to visit Disney World!
While the timing of the holiday decor varies from year to year, here’s how it all happened this year. On November 2, decorations began to go up at the Magic Kingdom. Soon after that, decorations went up in Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom.
Epcot usually decorates a bit later since the
Food & Wine Festival is still in full force throughout most of November, but the Christmas tree was up when I visited on November 15. Once the
Festival of the Holidays begins, there is much more decor in the park. This year, the Festival of the Holidays began on November 28.
As far as the holiday parties go (offered on select nights), Magic Kingdom began hosting
Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party on November 7, and Hollywood Studios began hosting
Jollywood Nights on November 8.
Now, let’s chat about the resorts! The
Disney World resorts tend to decorate after the parks. This year, when I visited from November 11-16, I didn’t see any holiday decorations at the resorts I visited. I found out that the Christmas tree went up at the Grand Floridian on November 18…I missed it by just a couple of days! Usually, the resorts are decorated by Thanksgiving (subject to change).
If you’re hoping to see all the holiday decor and experience all of the festivities, but you’re also hoping for fewer crowds, the first week of December is usually a great time to visit. Of course, we can never fully predict the crowd levels, though!
I hope that gives you some guidance as you start to plan your trip! If you have any other questions, feel free to come back and visit us. We’re always happy to help!
Jenn J.