Should You Go To Disney World For Thanksgiving?

We give thanks for the Disney Parks every day, but should you visit them on Turkey Day?

Thanksgiving usually involves a few days off from work and/or school, so you may have considered planning a trip to Disney World or Disneyland the week of Thanksgiving, or on Turkey Day itself.

Holidays are ideal times to plan trips, but they definitely involve more planning than just an average day.

So is it that crowded? Can you get a turkey dinner? Is there a special parade? We did the research so you can decide if Thanksgiving should also be a day to visit the Mouse.

Credit: Mariah Wild/Disney

Crowds

One may think that Disney on major holidays is less crowded. Everyone is at home with their families, or likely has other plans that keep them from traveling. However, it’s a fun tradition of mine to watch the alerts for crowd capacity go up throughout the day.

Any crowd calendar will show a red, 10/10, or “extremely crowded” on the day of Thanksgiving with a slight decrease in the days before or after.

Tips

• Try to plan your trip so you’re NOT doing a park day on the holiday. Maybe that is your arrival or departure day, or you decide to take a mid-trip pool day instead.

• If it happens to fall where you are in the parks on Thanksgiving, be strategic about the park you choose to go to and where you choose to eat (see below).

Parks

Sadly, if you’re an appreciator of Thanksgiving, there aren’t any scheduled parades, cavalcades, meet-and-greets, decorations, or fireworks specific to Thanksgiving anymore. Like a lot of us, on November 1, at 12:01 a.m., Disney goes from Halloween straight to the December holidays.

However, you can use this to your advantage. For example, Animal Kingdom has a lot of food offerings that are more typical of Thanksgiving, and it will be less crowded than the other parks.

Tips

• At Magic Kingdom, there are several Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Parties around a Thanksgiving trip. In 2024, the Christmas Party is on November 24, 26, 27, and 29, as well as December 1, 3, 5, and 6.

  • Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas parties are ticketed events outside of regular-day admissions. Entering the after-hours party has an additional, separate cost.

• At Hollywood Studios, there are a few Disney Jollywood Nights events to look out for. In 2024, the after-hours event is on November 25 and 30, as well as December 2.

  • Jollywood Nights at Hollywood Studios is a ticketed event outside of regular-day admissions. Entering the after-hours party has an additional, separate cost.

Food

Disney food is on another level, so you have quite a few options for dining. If you plan to just go about the day enjoying Dole Whips and other non-traditional Thanksgiving foods, you shouldn’t have any problems. But more traditional feasts require advanced reservations.

Those sit-down dining experiences from Thanksgiving 2023 included:

Tiffins (Animal Kingdom)

• Thanksgiving Plate – Turkey Roulade, Fine Herbs Whipped Potatoes, Maple-Glazed Carrots, Sweet Potato Pavé, Wild Mushrooms, Green Bean Casserole, Cornbread Dressing, Cranberry Gel, and Turkey Gravy.

Tusker House (Animal Kingdom)

• Thanksgiving Buffet: Spit-Roasted Turkey, Turkey Gravy, Mashed Potatoes, Stuffing, Cranberry Sauce, and Pumpkin Tarts.

Coral Reef Restaurant (Epcot)

• Holiday Plate: Turkey, Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes, and Pumpkin Pie Tart.

Garden Grill (Epcot)

• Chip ‘n’ Dale’s Harvest Feast: Cornbread, Harvest-Inspired Garden Salad, Rotisserie-Roasted Turkey, Backyard Grilled Steak, Carrots & Celery, Home-Style Mashed Potatoes, Farm Fresh Green Beans, Seasonal Vegetables, Macaroni & Cheese, Farmer’s Seasonal Pie, and Farmer Mickey Cupcake.

• Chip ‘n’ Dale Plant-Based Harvest Feast: Smoked “Sausage," Pulled “Pork” with Southern BBQ Sauce, Harvest Garden Salad, Carrots & Celery, Home-Style Mashed Potatoes, Farm Fresh Green Beans, Seasonal Vegetables, and Farmer's Seasonal Crumble.

50's Prime Time Café (Hollywood Studios)

• Holiday Plate: Oven-Roasted Turkey Breast with Gravy, Cornbread Stuffing, Cranberry Relish, Green Beans, and Mashed Potatoes.

Hollywood Brown Derby (Hollywood Studios)

• Holiday Plate: Oven-Roasted Turkey Breast with Gravy, Cornbread Stuffing, Cranberry Relish, Green Beans, and Mashed Potatoes.

Hollywood & Vine (Hollywood Studios)

• Thanksgiving Buffet: Assorted Bread, Beet Salad, Oven-Roasted Turkey Breast, Oven-Roasted Herbed Chicken, Sour Cream and Chive Whipped Potato, Olive Oil Herbed-Crushed Potatoes, and Caramelized Brussels Sprouts.

The Diamond Horseshoe (Magic Kingdom)

• Frontier Feast: Roasted Turkey, Pot Roast, and Oven-Roasted Pork with Mashed Potatoes, Seasonal Vegetables, Herbed Stuffing, and House-made Macaroni & Cheese; served with Diamond Horseshoe Salad and Oooey Gooey Toffee Cake.

• Plant-Based Cowpoke Platter: Plant-Based Meatloaf with Mashed Potatoes, Mushroom Gravy, and Seasonal Vegetables; served with Cowpoke Salad and Johnny Appleseed's Warm Apple Cake.

Liberty Tree Tavern (Magic Kingdom)

• Patriot’s Platter: Roasted Turkey Breast, Pot Roast, and Oven-Roasted Pork with Mashed Potatoes, Seasonal Vegetables, Herb Stuffing, and House-Made Macaroni & Cheese; served with Declaration Salad and Ooey Gooey Toffee Cake.

• Plant-Based Tavern Keeper’s Feast: Plant-Based Meatloaf with Mashed Potatoes, Mushroom Gravy, and Seasonal Vegetables; served with Declaration Salad and Johnny Appleseed’s Warm Apple Cake.

  
  

Some quick-service restaurants offering turkey from Thanksgiving 2023 included:

Restaurantosaurus (Animal Kingdom)

• Open-Faced Thanksgiving Turkey Sandwich: Grilled Multigrain Bread with Roasted Garlic Mayonnaise, Cornbread Stuffing Waffle, Sliced Smoked Turkey Breast, Herb Gravy, Cranberry Sauce, and a Fried Sage Leaf.

Satuli Canteen (Animal Kingdom)

• Thanksgiving Bowl: Turkey Breast, Gravy, Potatoes, Vegetables, and Pumpkin Mousse

American Holiday Table (Epcot)

• Slow-roasted Turkey with Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans, and Cranberry Sauce

Sunshine Seasons (Epcot)

• Turkey, Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans, Turkey Gravy, Cranberry Sauce, and Caramel Crèmeux with Apple Compote.

Tips

• The quick-service experiences do NOT require reservations and offer a plethora of the same kinds of foods. So no worries if you can’t snag a reservation at a sit-down dinner. Check to see if either the quick-service or sit-down restaurant at your resort is offering a Thanksgiving special if you don’t want to head off-property or into the parks. Most of the value resorts offer something in their cafeterias and moderate and deluxe resorts sometimes have special offerings for the holidays. If all else fails, you can always grab a Turkey leg.

So that’s it! While Thanksgiving Day at Disney World can be chaotic, if you plan ahead it’s not much more chaotic than a usual day.

Have you ever been to Disney on Thanksgiving? Let us know what you thought!