I suddenly feel sick to my stomach about our trip.

[TisBit]

The biggest thing is to relax and be flexible. If you are stressing now, you will stress even more than and everything will get blown out of proportion. As others have mentioned take advantage of EMH's and rope drops....most people want to sleep in on their vacation, so most of those awful pictures are taken right around lunchtime when everyone is hitting the parks. Most people tour by going to the park later and staying until closing and sleeping in the next morning. So getting there at opening will let you get a lot more done than even evening EMH's.

Leave window shopping, non-attraction things (like world showcase and other walk through areas), and less popular rides or shows until later in the day when the crowds are picking up. If something is packed, just bypass it (regardless of the touring plans) and hit it another day early or another time. You won't get everything done, so don't sweat it and make sure you prioritize your lists.

 

[housetomouse]

Another thought is, do you have any dining reservations? In that kind of crowd level, it is nice to go inside and sit down at a restaurant. You escape the crowds, plus you don't have to wait in more lines for food (once you get seated, anyway) or wander around trying to find a place to sit with your food. If you walk up to a sit-down restaurant without a reservation, there is a good chance you won't get a table. We have been there and done that (pre-DIS!) and it is frustrating.

 

[maxiesmom]

Another thought is, do you have any dining reservations? In that kind of crowd level, it is nice to go inside and sit down at a restaurant. You escape the crowds, plus you don't have to wait in more lines for food (once you get seated, anyway) or wander around trying to find a place to sit with your food. If you walk up to a sit-down restaurant without a reservation, there is a good chance you won't get a table. We have been there and done that (pre-DIS!) and it is frustrating.

This is very good advice! If you haven't made any ADRs, do so now. A meal in an air conditioned restaurant will do wonders for you when you are tired.

Also, it cannot be stressed enough, take advantage of Extra Magic Hours. I think the EMH morning the Magic Kingdom opened at 7am last year, but you can get soooo much done then! If you wait to show up until 9am, you will be going into the parks with a huge mob of people.

Go early, take a break during the middle of the day, and then go back later.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

Honestly, it is not the time of year that is ideal to go, but keep in mind that you don't have to see everything! Don't spend your vacation standing in line.

Do the "big" attractions first thing in the AM and the rest of the day appreciate the details and beauty of the slower-paced attractions. During the most crowded part of the day, spend time in World Showcase (my favorite area of WDW), explore Animal Kingdom without rushing from ride to ride, and enjoy the older attractions in Magic Kingdom.

You'll have a great trip, don't worry.

Kind of depends how you define 'ideal,' I suppose.

Otherwise I agree with much of what you advise. Excpet that you neglected to also mentionevening hours- as is so often the case. Everyone forgets about the late night hours!

One of the GREAT thing, I find about Spring Break (and many busy times) is that if you get MORE park hours to work with. WE honestly hated September - which many DISers rave about - because of the very short park hours. Tehre were short park hours and thunderstorms every afternoon further limiting those short park hours.

SPring break is a wonderful time to just apprectaite he fine FLorida weather.

And who know, it might not be that bad after all.

 

[mnrose]

I was feeling the same way about our trip during President's Week...lots of horror stories about that. However, we followed our usual strategy...get there early, tour aggressively until lunch, get fast passes, and plan to leave the parks around mid-afternoon.

Honestly, I did not notice the difference in crowd levels between our previous trips (low crowds) and this one (big crowds). We saw absolutely everything we wanted to see, rode many of our favorite rides multiple times (as in 3 or more) and never stood in a line longer than 10 minutes. Really.

Plan wisely and you will not have an issue. We had a blast.

 

[TravelGrl]

We just came back from being at WDW during Presidents Week. Yes we were worried, but made the best of everything. Touring plans had the crowds at 9 and 10 everyday we were there. But we made sure to arrive at park opening almost every day (or extra magic hours mornings).
Got FP for the most popular rides and stood in line for the others. Throughout the whole time we were there, we didn't stand online for any ride for over 30 minutes. We did give up on doing a few things because the FP were for too late in the day, and we missed Fantasmic because the lines were just too long. We probably could have gotten in, but chose not to stand online for that long. We figured we could catch it again next time.

As long as you prioritize and know that you will probably have to give up on some attractions, unless you can be there from opening to closing every night, and you set your mind to having fun, you will have a great time. What surprised me, is that I didn't see wall to wall people (except for the Fantasmic line) and had no problem getting around.

Have a great time!

 

[minnierocks]

We are going for our first trip at spring break...and I too began to panic! Then I remembered that we have been three times at Thanksgiving when others have said that there was absolutley no way that they would go that week and for us, it was a great time to be there! Plus, I have been checking for availability in the resorts as well as for dining and I have found plenty of availability in both. For our past trips, there was not an ADR to be found and just yesterday, I found dinner availability at all but two of the restaurants at Epcot, all but one in the Magic Kingdom, and all the restaurants in DHS...so I am not worried that I won't be able to handle the crowds anymore. I am not convinced that it is going to be as crowded as it normally is due to Easter being so late. Besides...how much fun you have will be reflected in your attitude, perspective, and flexibility!!!

 

[hkp1042]

Thanks everyone! I feel a bit better. we are driving our own car so no need to wait for busses and we plan to pack our own lunches in a cooler so our lunchtime is flexible so that will cut some time down waiting in food lines.

I think I was already in freak out mode with a lot to do before we leave in 2 weeks (school events, work, DS's birthday party, etc.) that I picked the wrong time to look at the pictures...LOL

I know the kids will have fun regardless I just want them to have the best time because we cannot afford to go as often as others (plus DH is a tad Disney resistant).

 

[JohnNYC]

Kind of depends how you define 'ideal,' I suppose.

Otherwise I agree with much of what you advise. Excpet that you neglected to also mentionevening hours- as is so often the case. Everyone forgets about the late night hours!

One of the GREAT thing, I find about Spring Break (and many busy times) is that if you get MORE park hours to work with. WE honestly hated September - which many DISers rave about - because of the very short park hours. Tehre were short park hours and thunderstorms every afternoon further limiting those short park hours.

SPring break is a wonderful time to just apprectaite he fine FLorida weather.

And who know, it might not be that bad after all.

Good point about evening magic hours! If you have kids that will/can stay out really late (or no kids, obviously) then the later the better!

 

[KCSherri]

We went last year during Spring Break, and it was definitely crowded!

I can't say much more than what everyone else has said, but a trick we used:

Use the Lines ap on your phone, if you can.

If we were at a park (like DHS) that seemed excessively crowded, we'd check the Lines ap on our phone to see what lines looked like at the other parks.

Twice that week, we hopped from DHS to AK where there were no lines - and we had a great time!

So - Lines application and Park Hoppers saved our trip from being a disaster!

 

[JessicaFaye508]

Do not worryyy. I went to Disney over presidents day. And I knew in my mind that it was going to be crowded, so thats what I planned for. I didn't expect to get a lot done and just did the important things. And that's what you gotta do! Figure out a slight plan ahead of time. And just COLLECT FASTPASSES. Just stock up on them all morning and then at night or in the afternoon use them all up. That's the way to go.

Don't stress over it. It's gonna be fine Crowds are tolerable as long as you do it right. Which would be going in the morning, taking an afternoon break, and going back at night. And just by being on disboards.. you're learning. So you'll be fine!

 

[mrsbicewdw]

I have done Spring Break (mid-March) for three years in a row now...this year will make it our forth (we are going next week!).

Yes, there are crowds, but honestly I don't think they are worse than in the summer, and the weather is better right now (I live about 30min from Disney) than in the summer. So even with the crowds, it doesn't seem so bad b/c you are not melting into a puddle.

Don't freak out too much, just be prepared for some waits and some crowded places (like the popular restaurants and the parades/fireworks/fantasmic). You just have to plan for getting "good spots" for the entertainment a bit earlier than you would during other times of the year.

 

[wdwgirl03]

I will be going over spring break too and I'm not really that worried but then again we've been to WDW a lot over spring/winter breaks. Be ready for it to be busy but that doesn't mean you won't be able to do anything. Just make sure to get to the parks early. We also usually take a break mid-afternoon and then go to another park in the evening.

 

[jabaldi]

To echo what others have said, don't worry. I have gone before during spring break, it's very busy, but managable. The lines were long and the parks crowded, but we got to see everything we wanted, which was pretty much 90% of the rides.

 

[kathy884]

Someone said it is not the ideal time to go - I totally disagree! It is the most ideal time to go for us because:

1) The weather in spring is awesome
2) You don't have to take your kids out of school
3) The park hours are longer - allowing you to tour early and late and take a rest in the middle!

What's not to like about Spring Break week - Have a great time - enjoy the Disney magic!

I agree. This is our favorite time to go for the same reasons. The key is to get to the parks early and follow a touring plan. Touring plans are awesome! and make busy park days very manageable (no reason to stress).

 

[canopynut66]

I made the mistake of looking at the thread about biggest crowds and am now totally freaked out. We are going over spring break because that is the only time we could go. It will be the kids first trip, we have our touring plans and picked low crowd days but now I just feel like after looking at the pics of people shoulder to shoulder that this trip might be horrible.

Someone please tell me the pictures make it look worse than it is!

It will be busy and crowd finder is usually on it just go and go to the parks do what you can and then go back to resort and relax and swim-- go over to Beaches and Cream and have a huge banana split take the boat from MK over to WL and just look around ---have a picnic out by the pool area as there are tables and chairs with umbrellas they have a small store in the gift shop for the picnic supplies (we have done this on a very hot June day once) , Or go to Downtown Disney as it sometimes not as crowded and are things for kids and adults there. and is Rain Forest and T- Rex if your hungry (neither on dining plan) Just have a good time as no such thing as a bad day when at WDW

 

[Granfan]

Those shoulder to shoulder pictures are just at the opening when people are all together to get in. It will not be like that after they spread out over the park.

 

[chelle11]

You will have a great time! All the advice given here is great. Don't forget how much you mood and attitude will effect your children's mood and attitude.

Growing up we went to Disney all the time and I loved it in busy times and in slow times. My parents were great at keeping everything calm and fun. Rather then being worried about the long lines at attractions or the 1 hour wait to eat dinner, my dad would keep us laughing showing no sign to stress. I don't even think I realized I waited in line for 90 min for space mountain because we were having fun in line. Its all about attitude!

You'll have a great trip! Enjoy the Disney magic.

I LOVE what you wrote! Explaining how your parents kept everything calm and fun....that is beautiful! Like the original poster....I saw those pictures last night....and thought about canceling our trip the week during Thanksgiving. I read your post and thought.....you are right! So I just booked the airline tickets now and will do my homework to get through the crowds and try my best to create a fun, loving and wonderful atmosphere and trip for my kids! I think your words apply to life! Thanks for sharing!

 

[seadd67]

We have done spring break2009,2008,2007 and 2006. One year we did it right over easter weekend. Dont sweat,you will be fine and have a great time. Fastpass and and emh are great tools, you will have a blast. Dont fight the crowd and dont get scared off by others,you and your Family will have a great time.

 

[Mouse_Geek]

I made the mistake of looking at the thread about biggest crowds and am now totally freaked out. We are going over spring break because that is the only time we could go. It will be the kids first trip, we have our touring plans and picked low crowd days but now I just feel like after looking at the pics of people shoulder to shoulder that this trip might be horrible.

Someone please tell me the pictures make it look worse than it is!

You can't let that get to you. You and your family go and have fun just like everyone else. Don't let the huge crowds make you sick because you will not have fun at all then that may make your kids unhappy. So enjoy and watch your kids expressions!!

I tell you this we went one year around Feb 07 Presidnets day and they had the Daytona 500 also that weekend. The parks was insane , but i said ohh well let's go i paid just like them. We rode alot of rides and saw many shows along with meet and greet with the charcaters. My family had a blast and want to go back and we did.