Aaahh January 2012 dates can't decide!

[ColorfulDreams]

Hi all. We're planning on going to WDW in January 2012 for 7 nights 8 days, and I'm still trying to hammer out my dates. I can leave anytime after the first but have to be back on the 24th at the latest, for college. I really want to go on dates that have low crowds because I don't know when we'll be able to go again. I hear marathon weekend is the first weekend in January and that it will be crowded, and Martin Luther King's birthday is the weekend after that, and someone told me to avoid the first week. My head is spinning! I tried touringplans.com, but the crowd levels seem to be all over the place and not as low as I'd hoped for that time of year. I was thinking maybe from sometime around the 5th to sometime around the 12th, but that would fall over marathon weekend. Or perhaps the 17th through the 24th, which would let us celebrate our 10th anniversary at Disney, but would be cutting it close for my classes which will start the 24th or 25th. Can anyone who's been in January tell me what part of January is a good time to go. Thanks, and I am so sorry for the long winded post, I'm a bit obsessive over this trip and not knowing when we're going is driving me absolutely bonkers.

 

[sharonabe]

What if you did a Sun-Sun? I think either the 8th-16th or 16th-23rd would work well. The marathon crowds will be leaving on the 8th or 9th. You'd have the whole week before MLK crowds start to come in. So, your busiest days will be the two Sundays and that Sat, but even with those, it shouldn't be like summer busy. With the second week, again your Sun-Mon might be a little busy, but the rest of the week should be a breeze. However, it does put you home the day before classes start.

 

[ColorfulDreams]

Thank you very much for taking the time to reply, that does sound like a very good idea, especially since doing it like that my son would not have to miss as much time of his school.

What time frame do you think would be less crowded, the week over marathon weekend and leading up to MLK, or the week immediately following it?

Thanks for your help.

 

[sharonabe]

I wish I had an answer for you, but I don't. Does the easywdw.com site have Jan information? That would be the only place I'd know to go look. You could post on the Theme Park Strategy thread. More people tend to browse that one. I'd ask what you just asked me....which weekend would be better.

I decided to check easywdw.com. He doesn't have 2012 up yet, but based on his 2011 schedule and write up for the individual days, there really isn't much difference. He has the weekend of MLK at a 6 out of 10, and if you go the first "week", you'll hit that on Sat/Sun. But if you go the second week, you'll hit it on Sun/Mon. He does have the days from marathon up to that Sat at 3s and the next week he has at 4s.

I'd still pop over to the strategy board and ask there. You'll get advice from those who've actually been there.

 

[ColorfulDreams]

Thanks again! I talked to my hubby about it and he said that he really wants to celebrate our tenth anniversary at Disney, and is willing to deal with a little larger crowds for that so we're going after MLK day. That really does sound nice, so I'm starting to get kind of excited about those dates. Anyway, no matter what I'm going to be at Disney .

 

[Valundar]

grrrr.....

 

[terbethk]

Hey Op, I'm having the exact same dilemma.
Except that DH has to be back the 18th for college.

We can't figure out if we should go the 3-10 or the 10-17 (also going 7 nights, want to be there tues-tues because flights are usually cheaper).

I'm leaning towards the 10-17, just because the first few days we'll be there should be pretty slow. I know it'll pick up over the weekend, but we should have most of the "headliners" under our belt at least once by then.
The only reason I keep questioning myself, is that we're also doing a day at universal, which shouldn't be as busy as disney over marathon weekend.

I'm so torn.
But Dh is also national guard, so I need to make sure none of the days we're planning for interfere with that.
What to do? what to do?
easywdw.com also put up the crowd level, and it seems pretty even.....

 

[DisneyGirl201017]

I'm in the same dilemma
I have to be back by the 18th for college.
I was thinking of trying to go the 8th to the 14th?
Anyone know if this would be a good idea or a bad idea?
I figured I would be in before MLK and be after marathons, and the New Year crowds would be gone.
Help!