Here now and it is packed :(

[Magpie]

Perception would be if two people were in the exact same spot and one said "WOW it's crowded" and the other said "WOW it's soo empty."

Ah, but one of those two people might be looking at the crowds in the street and saying, "It's so crowded!", while the other person might be looking at the wait times and saying, "It's so empty!"

Alternately, one might be looking at posted wait times and saying, "It's so crowded!", while the other might be looking at the posted wait time and saying, "Nah, that's got to be a lie, the line's not even backed up to the entrance. I'm hopping in!"

But, you're right, too... Location, location, location! I remember the kids commenting on one trip that we always knew we were going in the right direction, if we were moving against the flow of the crowd. Where ever people are, that's where you don't want to be! And crowd calendars like Josh's are incredibly important in figuring out where you want to be.

 

[Satchmo128]

We are heading home today (have been here since 11/5) and, other than last weekend (Saturday at DHS and Sunday at MK), crowds have been very light. *shrug*

 

[Magpie]

I think the problem lies with the statement, "Here now, and it is packed!"

"Here" can be interpreted to either mean "all of Walt Disney World" OR "my particular location in one particular park". In many cases, people extrapolate their particular localized experience to the entire resort and assume that everywhere is the same.

So when the OP says, "It's packed!" and other people come back and say, "I'm here and it's not packed!" they're all like the blind men feeling up different parts of the elephant.

The whole picture: This is the low season (but not the lowest) and there are fewer guests overall. The partial picture: Hollywood Studios is packed! Animal Kingdom is a ghost town! Etc...

Let's try to get the OP over to a less crowded side of the elephant, eh?

 

[tkbbmom]

I love the elephant I'm going to steal it and use it w/ my kids!

This has been an interesting thread for me and one I actually shared w/ my kiddos. Yesterday was our first day of parks and we moved to our pkg resort -- it took almost 2 hours to check in, not bec they were busy but bec of a glitch in their system w/ our Magic Bands (we now have 3 sets and several still won't open our resort rooms luckily mine do so I guess I can lock the kids or dh out if I get tired of them).

We made it to HS for our 12-1 TS FP+ just barely but we only waited in line for 5 mins. The stand by time was listed as 45 mins. We did the Great Movie Ride which indicated a 30 min stand by but it was only about 20. We did TOT 1 time w/ a FP+ and then two additional times w/ probably a 20 min wait and RR twice w/ a FP+ and a 30 min wait. Our dining was at H & V and even though our ressie was 3:45 we were not seated until 4:05 so since we arrived at 3:35 we spent as much time waiting to be seated as we did for the rides.

We thought if funny that the OP said the weather was great -- we thought yesterday was downright terrible for weather w/ the chilly temps and winds -- when my dh stuck up a conversation w/ someone who was from up north they commented how great the weather was and dh told them we thought it was cold -- the gentleman laughed and said, "you must be from the south." Monday was nice though.

 

[asmit4]

We leave on Saturday. I read all 6 pages and still have no idea what to expect re: crowds. LOL!

 

[mm1971]

We leave on Saturday. I read all 6 pages and still have no idea what to expect re: crowds. LOL!

Expect low crowds when everyone is at a different park and opposite your location. Expect high crowds when you choose the wrong park and walking down the street. Even if the street is busy, check the wait times. Confirm those wait times by viewing the line and seeing if it makes sense. Plan around party days and early closings. Watch out for double Fantasmic! and get your TSMM FP before 9. I think that all about covers it. OF course it could just be your perception.

Just kidding everyone. I did enjoy reading about perceptions and agree it's all about being in the right place at the right time. Hope everyone there is having fun. For those heading down, PH are a good idea to avoid the busier parks/areas. Travel safe everyone!

 

[BayouMickey]

 

[asmit4]

PH? What's PH?
We use touring plans. Should I be checking something else?

 

[HookdonWDW]

PH? What's PH?
We use touring plans. Should I be checking something else?

PH = Park Hopper. Also known as, "Darn those folks at Touring Plans! They said that Park X would be empty today, yet everyone is here. Thank Goodness for our handy dandy Park Hopper passes. We can now quickly move to Park Y and enjoy a crowd-free day!"

 

[Magpie]

Expect low crowds when everyone is at a different park and opposite your location. Expect high crowds when you choose the wrong park and walking down the street. Even if the street is busy, check the wait times. Confirm those wait times by viewing the line and seeing if it makes sense. Plan around party days and early closings. Watch out for double Fantasmic! and get your TSMM FP before 9. I think that all about covers it. OF course it could just be your perception.

Just kidding everyone. I did enjoy reading about perceptions and agree it's all about being in the right place at the right time. Hope everyone there is having fun. For those heading down, PH are a good idea to avoid the busier parks/areas. Travel safe everyone!

Everything you said is completely true! Especially your entire first paragraph.

For TSMM, they often open the park about 15 to 20 minutes before the "official opening time", so get there early and you can send a runner to go get FPs, while the rest of the family goes to sign up for JTA.

I'd love to know what "PH" stands for, though!

 

[stickeymouse]

Touring Plans states that yesterday's crowd level at HS was a 3. Thought that was interesting.

 

[Magpie]

PH? What's PH?
We use touring plans. Should I be checking something else?

What? You haven't discovered EasyWDW yet?

Go here: http://www.easywdw.com/

Check the sidebar.

It's all free! (You can even see the current wait times here: http://www.easywdw.com/waits/

 

[goofydad621]

I have been known to park the car in the Harvard yard.

yeah maybe but after you park the car do you go to the bar and get a beer?

 

[disneyerin]

Just to be clear ...I never said that my "perception" was better, just different. But that's what perception boils down to "differences in how you percieve things".

OMG you're right! I totally misread your post and I apologize!

Ok.....I'm going to go take a chill pill and put myself in a time out.....

 

[Mousemommy1]

OMG you're right! I totally misread your post and I apologize!

Ok.....I'm going to go take a chill pill and put myself in a time out.....

It's all good!!

 

[bdcp]

At Epcot today. NOT crowded at all. These are the lightest crowds and the shortest waits we have seen in years. Only better trip was 1998 when we went the full week before Thanksgiving week. Today we walked on a lot of rides. Rode Soarin at 9:30 with a 30 min wait, got fast passes when we got off for 2-3 pm and when we went back about 2:30, the standby line was 60 min (we've seen 90+ in Nov before). Test Track was consistently 60-70 min all day.

These are the lowest crowds we've seen in years. No problem finding seats at counter service restaurants at noon. You can wait to go see a parade 5 min before and see the whole thing without a problem. Buses, monorail, boats, all uncrowded. All lines for food are short. DH and I both said many times the last 4 days how uncrowded it was.

 

[aribelle]

At Epcot today. NOT crowded at all. These are the lightest crowds and the shortest waits we have seen in years. Only better trip was 1998 when we went the full week before Thanksgiving week. Today we walked on a lot of rides. Rode Soarin at 9:30 with a 30 min wait, got fast passes when we got off for 2-3 pm and when we went back about 2:30, the standby line was 60 min (we've seen 90+ in Nov before). Test Track was consistently 60-70 min all day.

These are the lowest crowds we've seen in years. No problem finding seats at counter service restaurants at noon. You can wait to go see a parade 5 min before and see the whole thing without a problem. Buses, monorail, boats, all uncrowded. All lines for food are short. DH and I both said many times the last 4 days how uncrowded it was.

Fingers crossed that this remains, lol. We arrive next week and I would be very happy to find these.....some of the posts recently have made me very nervous when people are talking about massive crowds. Hopefully everyone got scared away and cancelled and we'll have the park practically to ourselves. (Ok, a girl can dream can't she?)

 

[Magpie]

Fingers crossed that this remains, lol. We arrive next week and I would be very happy to find these.....some of the posts recently have made me very nervous when people are talking about massive crowds. Hopefully everyone got scared away and cancelled and we'll have the park practically to ourselves. (Ok, a girl can dream can't she?)

Just have a rough plan, and pick low-crowd parks, and you'll be fine!

EasyWDW.com is my favourite source for tips. Even my husband's started checking it now, though this evening he pointed out to me, a bit worried, that we're spending our evenings in two non-recommended parks. "Yes," I said, "Those are the ones with Extra Magic Hours. Trust me!"

I like going to the lowest crowd parks in the morning, and then enjoying our FP+ in the EMH parks in the afternoon/evening. That way we get the best of both worlds - low crowds and evening entertainment. And I don't have to worry about it being too crowded to ride in the evening, because I have my FP+!

 

[bdcp]

Just have a rough plan, and pick low-crowd parks, and you'll be fine!

EasyWDW.com is my favourite source for tips. Even my husband's started checking it now, though this evening he pointed out to me, a bit worried, that we're spending our evenings in two non-recommended parks. "Yes," I said, "Those are the ones with Extra Magic Hours. Trust me!"

I like going to the lowest crowd parks in the morning, and then enjoying our FP+ in the EMH parks in the afternoon/evening. That way we get the best of both worlds - low crowds and evening entertainment. And I don't have to worry about it being too crowded to ride in the evening, because I have my FP+!

We were in AK on Monday with EMH and got there around 8. Light crowds, easy walk on. No long lines. We rode what we wanted and left for MK around 11. We were at "non-recommended" parks at least 2 days this week and honestly, I couldn't tell the difference.

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

Just have a rough plan, and pick low-crowd parks, and you'll be fine!

EasyWDW.com is my favourite source for tips. Even my husband's started checking it now, though this evening he pointed out to me, a bit worried, that we're spending our evenings in two non-recommended parks. "Yes," I said, "Those are the ones with Extra Magic Hours. Trust me!"

I like going to the lowest crowd parks in the morning, and then enjoying our FP+ in the EMH parks in the afternoon/evening. That way we get the best of both worlds - low crowds and evening entertainment. And I don't have to worry about it being too crowded to ride in the evening, because I have my FP+!

Good plan for how to use FP+. I had not thought of a way that this would benefit us over the old system, but this is a good idea.