Christmas Vacation Time

The Orlando Sentinel writes:

Data from the U.S. Department of Transportation show that December has been the worst month for airline delays in each of the past four years. Last December, for instance, more than one out of every four flights -- 26 percent in all -- arrived at least 15 minutes late. Another one out of every 33 flights was canceled.

Snowstorms in the Northeast and Midwest contributed to 34 canceled flights at OIA last Sunday alone.

Still, the crowds might not be as big as they could be this year thanks to $3-a-gallon gasoline and rising airfares. AAA says airfares, for instance, are averaging 16 percent more than they were a year ago.

That's part of the reason AAA's prediction of 8.9 million airline travelers is down 0.3 percent from a year ago, though its prediction for travel by car is up 0.9 percent. The agency's prediction of 639,000 air travelers in Florida is also slightly below last year's 650,000 total.

"Airfares averaging 16 percent more than last Christmas means that bargains may be hard to find for those looking to fly to their destinations," AAA President and Chief Executive Officer Robert Darbelnet said.

Local officials are more optimistic. OIA, for instance, projects a 2.1 percent increase in overall holiday traffic this year.


Vital crowds

The holidays are vital to Central Florida's tourism industry in general and its theme parks in particular -- a point on the calendar when they count on some of their biggest crowds and when they annually stage additional shows, stay open later and run all of their attractions, even the ones they don't open the rest of the year.

December crowds can get so thick that Walt Disney World is forced to close the gates, or at least the parking lots, at some of its theme parks, particularly Magic Kingdom. That happened three times between Christmas and Dec. 29 last year. On one of those days, Dec. 28, the gates to Magic Kingdom and Disney's Animal Kingdom and the parking lot to Disney-MGM Studios all were closed for at least a couple of hours.

Disney executives have expressed optimism that Christmas season attendance this year could be even better. The same is true at SeaWorld Orlando, which has added the Polar Express Experience ride for the holidays, and at Universal Orlando, which has added the Grinch Who Stole Christmas musical at Islands of Adventure and expanded its Macy's Holiday Parade at Universal Studios.