magic kinhdom at phase three again today

[kateandkids]

We are here. Did MK today - definitely the most crowded I've ever seen it! If I can figure out how to post a pic, I will!

 

[Nasscar159]

I'm going this upcoming Tuesday to a epcot!? I'm really worried about crowds

 

[2Tiggies]

I'm going this upcoming Tuesday to a epcot!? I'm really worried about crowds

Epcot is a great park for busy times as it's size makes it a good crowd eater. We used Epcot successfully for Easter Sunday and then hopped to MK late that night and we got loads done. Just be there first thing to get your must do's out the way and then save the shows and shops and walking around for later when it is busier

 

[kangaroodle]

You couldn't pay me to be at WDW this week ... Well, I might have a price ;-)

Anyway, I could never understand why people pay all that money for a vacation then won't just take the kids out of school for a week so they can enjoy it.


Sent from my SCH-S950C using DISBoards

Believe it or not, WDW is the cheapest vacation for us. We have DVC so room is "free", Disney Visa had about $500 in rewards money, and we drove down. The week here will be less than $2000. Couldn't go anywhere else that cheap for a family of 4. Also just planned this 3 weeks ago! Better than sitting home all week!

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

With the opening of fantasy land this year and the mine ride next year Disney will be raking in the money over the holiday's

 

[droycro]

We are here now.

Did HS on Sunday. At turnstiles by 7:30am, and they let us in at 7:45am. We rode TSMx2, Rockin' Roller coaster, Tower of Terror, Star Tours x2, Backlot Tour, Great Movie Ride, then TSM w/ FP. Great lunch at Starring Rolls then left.

Went to AK Sunday night and park was fairly empty (a big storm rolled through around 3pm, so I think a lot of people left). Ate dinner at Flame Tree then rode Kilimanjaro Safaris, Dinosaur, EE x2. Great evening.

Did Epcot on Monday. At turnstiles by 8:30, and they let us in about 8:45am. Immediately went to Test Track, and we were in the very first group. Line was really long when we got out. Then went to Sum of All Thrills (one of us went to collect FP for Soarin'), Living with the Land, lunch at Sunshine Seasons, Imagination, Soarin' w/ FP. We then headed over to World Showcase. Countries were crowded, but thankfully we had no big plans there, just sightseeing. Grabbed a bit to eat at Norway, Mexico, and Garden show stands. Left around 6pm.

Today (Tuesday) we went to MK. Missed rope drop at 7am, but we were at castle by 7:30am. Rode Peter Pan, Small World, BTM x2, Haunted Mansion, Pirates, BTM w/ FP then left. Took monorail over to Polynesian for lunch at Kona Cafe. Crowds were just pouring in! On monorail to Poly they announced MK was closed (later learned phase 3 closing). We had not planned to go back in, and I'm glad we didn't.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) planning to head back to MK to do other half of park. Same plan - get there as early as possible!

Weird thing about this week is how cold it is! Forecast for Wednesday morning is 40 degrees. The shops were crowded with folks buying sweatshirts!

 

[arob414]

We were there, today. Got there by 8a. Actually wasted time eating breakfast. However, we were able to do most of MK with the exception of Splash Mountain, Thunder Mountain (too cold so delayed until Friday) and 3 rides/shows at Fantasyland. Also, ate lunch at noon, which is not our normal schedule. We kept talking about how fast things were moving especially considering the crowds. Haunted House stated min wait, was closer to 30 and the lines were always moving. Not a bad day, at all. However, my girls are teens. Which meant we skipped character/princess pics. Didn't have to worry about losing little ones in the crowds. Would have hated being there with little ones. For us, the worst part was the low temps and wind. It was really cold.

 

[Claudia1]

We were at the MK today. Got there about 9am and DGD rode Splash Mount about 5 times (she didnt' get too wet and didn't mind the cold 'cause she LOVES the ride). Got FPs for BTMRR and did an early lunch at 11am to avoid some of the crowds. The lines for fast-food-type places were already over a 30 min wait.

By noon, the crowds were unreal and hard to walk anywhere. We spent lots of time on Tom Sawyers island and then headed over to Tomorrowland for the PeopleMover, Laugh Floor, and snacks.

By 6pm, we were down-right COLD. Too many people, too. We came back to the room about 7pm.

We were able to get 5 sets of FastPasses today. I was very surprised that FPs were available for BTMRR, Buzz, and lots of other rides all day long.

The CMs were AMAZING! The FP lines stretched for yards and yards but moved super-fast. CMs are everywhere and working hard to keep everybody happy and moving.

 

[Cap'nJack'sMum]

The CMs were AMAZING! The FP lines stretched for yards and yards but moved super-fast. CMs are everywhere and working hard to keep everybody happy and moving.

ITA with this! The CMs have been so good at crowd control. We only ran into one crabby CM so far (at Flame Tree). All the rest have been helpful, cheerful, and great!

 

[LBIJim]

Just signed into the MDE app to see how bad it really is...

at 1pm
BTMRR- 85min
Buzz- 65min
HM- 60min
Peter Pan- 105min
SpaceM- 125min
Jungle Cruise- 105min

Soarin'- 155min
TT- 150min
MS- 105min

RnR- 90min
ToT- 90min
TSMM: 165min
Star Tours: 60min

Dinosaur- 70min
EE- 85min
Safari- 110min
Kali- 5min (must be too cold??)

I've never been on such a crowded day. I'm wondering exactly WHERE the people in the queues are lining up. For example, can that long elevated ramp at Soarin' hold 155 minutes worth of guests? Or are people lined up out the door of the Land Pavilion?

For Rock n Roll coaster, even a short standby wait of 20 minutes seemed to fill most of the outside queue and the ramp into the building. Are lines snaking out from RnR to where the entrance to Fantasmic is?

At Everest I've noticed a looping walkway before the main building that was always roped off, but even with that space the queue doesn't look like it could hold 85 minutes worth of riders.

Unless there are hidden queues behind buildings that are only opened on extremely busy days.

Jim

 

[mistysue]

One of the girls working at my daycare is there this week... when she told me they were going (last fall) I printed her a couple cheat sheets with tips, suggestions for park days including a brief explanation and their date for ADR's. She said thank you but we never really talked about it. I hope they are doing ok. She was excited but definitely did the "oh... you're one of those crazy people" thank you's when I gave her that envelope. Maybe they read it and are doing alright. Their initial plan (a large family group) was to just sort of go, stay off site and wing it. "there's a few different parks now, right?"

 

[parkhopping]

I just cannot imagine being there with crowds like that. I hate being smushed by sweaty strangers trying to exit the park after Wishes - this must be like that x10!

The ONLY way I'd do it during crowds like that is to get there at RD and leave before lunchtime. There's not much to be said for atmosphere when you can't even move for all the people.

 

[#1hoosierfan]

One of the girls working at my daycare is there this week... when she told me they were going (last fall) I printed her a couple cheat sheets with tips, suggestions for park days including a brief explanation and their date for ADR's. She said thank you but we never really talked about it. I hope they are doing ok. She was excited but definitely did the "oh... you're one of those crazy people" thank you's when I gave her that envelope. Maybe they read it and are doing alright. Their initial plan (a large family group) was to just sort of go, stay off site and wing it. "there's a few different parks now, right?"

A girl that works at my son's daycare is there with her family this week. They just decided to go a few days ago and are staying offsite. I texted her this afternoon and reminded her to be at RD for MK tomorrow and told her to use FP. She replied with, "oh we didn't pay for that. We did ok at universal without it too."............

 

[Mad Hattered]

Just signed into the MDE app to see how bad it really is...

at 1pm
BTMRR- 85min - 58
Buzz- 65min - 43
HM- 60min - 23
Peter Pan- 105min - 71
SpaceM- 125min - 87
Jungle Cruise- 105min - 38

Soarin'- 155min -84
TT- 150min - 57
MS- 105min - 33

RnR- 90min -76
ToT- 90min - 57
TSMM: 165min - 84
Star Tours: 60min - 27

Dinosaur- 70min - 22
EE- 85min - 40
Safari- 110min - 27
Kali- 5min (must be too cold??) - 16

In the quote above I have added the "estimated wait times" by one of the touring sites. The estimates are based on their prediction during peak times (between 1 and 4) for today.

DHS was the most recommended park along with MK. This just goes to show there isn't a lick of rocket science involved when it comes to predictions.

 

[kapoof]

Believe it or not, WDW is the cheapest vacation for us. We have DVC so room is "free", Disney Visa had about $500 in rewards money, and we drove down. The week here will be less than $2000. Couldn't go anywhere else that cheap for a family of 4. Also just planned this 3 weeks ago! Better than sitting home all week!

As a certified disney lover, I would probably sit home all week then go when it is this crowded...having been there during spring break, that is exactly what we are doing. We are looking into a September trip, which we have been before also, give me the heat over the sea of unwashed masses

 

[Spoisal]

WHEN DO YOU SLEEP?!!!

We are going the week before Easter 2014. (High School daughter will not miss school - her choice ).

Everyone talks about hitting rope drop & doing late nights - but how do you possibly do both? Does anyone sleep? I guess my plan will be to mix it up a little with the schedule ....some rope drops & some late nights??

We have 2 teenagers - one is good with mornings and one is good with nights - ugh - should be interesting!

So, if you do a park from rope drop until lunch time .....and then nap or hit the pool in the afternoon. What time does it start clearing out so that you would want to return? And what about bad weather days? Can't do the pool ....what else is there to do when it is this crowded?

I can see from my rambling that my nervousness is building already!

 

[kapoof]

For us, we only do rope drop...some people sleep in and do late night. For the hard core who do both take naps. I prefer the parks in the early morning myself.

 

[KMarston]

WHEN DO YOU SLEEP?!!!

We are going the week before Easter 2014. (High School daughter will not miss school - her choice ).

Everyone talks about hitting rope drop & doing late nights - but how do you possibly do both? Does anyone sleep? I guess my plan will be to mix it up a little with the schedule ....some rope drops & some late nights??

We have 2 teenagers - one is good with mornings and one is good with nights - ugh - should be interesting!

So, if you do a park from rope drop until lunch time .....and then nap or hit the pool in the afternoon. What time does it start clearing out so that you would want to return? And what about bad weather days? Can't do the pool ....what else is there to do when it is this crowded?

I can see from my rambling that my nervousness is building already!

Bad weather days stay in the park! I checked wait times in MK last night and the wait times had dropped like crazy! DH said check your weather app, and it showed rain. Not sure if thats accurate or not, but many people leave and don't return when it rains!

 

[Aliceacc]

WHEN DO YOU SLEEP?!!!

We are going the week before Easter 2014. (High School daughter will not miss school - her choice ).

Everyone talks about hitting rope drop & doing late nights - but how do you possibly do both? Does anyone sleep? I guess my plan will be to mix it up a little with the schedule ....some rope drops & some late nights??

We have 2 teenagers - one is good with mornings and one is good with nights - ugh - should be interesting!

So, if you do a park from rope drop until lunch time .....and then nap or hit the pool in the afternoon. What time does it start clearing out so that you would want to return? And what about bad weather days? Can't do the pool ....what else is there to do when it is this crowded?

I can see from my rambling that my nervousness is building already!

We go in August, when the parks are open pretty late.

I'm very much a morning person, so I'm in charge of mornings. I set my alarm, get up and into the shower, then take our mugs down and get everyone coffee/tea/juice. (We place an order from gardengrocer so we have breakfast food in the room.) Before I leave the room, my husband is getting up and into the shower.

I arrive back at the room with breakfast and get the kids up. The kids shower, dress, and eat while someone else is showering, so it really moves pretty quickly.

We hit rope drop, and tour until lunchtime. Then we head back to the resort and swim the afternoon away. (OK, in the interests of total honesty, my husband frequently naps. And sometimes I catch a few winks in the sum)

We had back to the parks for dinner, then do much lighter touring in the evening. After fireworks, we go back to the room and right to bed.

Somehow, everyone gets enough sleep.

 

[River Country]

Ya know when i was growing up i always went in the summer months and yes even on the 4th of July, but that was because of my aunt and uncle both NJ School Teachers. Well ive grown up now and have a DVC membership and a DD of my own and i am not a teacher nor is my wife or parents. But it was my uncle's love for all things disney that made me only want to go with him so we went at the most crowded times of the year and there was only 2 parks then. Now even though my Uncle is not with me anymore i do Disney his way.....Only i dont do it during Easter, Christmas, 4th, Presidents week, Spring break or any other Jersey Week of the year

Ill be there at the end of April No Spring Break and Easter is Over

BOO YAAAAA