Best days at parks during prime season.....

[mtmbyck]

So March Break is considered prime season. I'd love to hear from other veterans how they choose which days to go to which parks. Please respond your ideas for off site guests.

My theory is to hit parks with no Extra Magic Hours cause we all know that Disney resort guests with no hopper option will choose that park. My other theory is that Saturday's and Sunday's are travel days so parks may be a little softer.

That said, I showed up to MK on March 13th this year, a Tuesday, and by noon there were 90 minute waits for everything from Peter Pan to Splash Mountain and it was hard to maneuver through the crowds.

Love to hear other theories on how to beat some of the crowds during high season!

 

[CdnCarrie]

Use a crowd calendar - Tour Guide Mike, EasyWDW or Unofficial Guide to WDW. I prefer EasyWDW. They tell you which park is best for each day.

 

[minnie mum]

I agree with the PP. Find a crowd calendar and go with their recommendations. Don't count on the weekends being lower crowd levels. That's when a lot of the locals go. And March is spring break time (and Easter some years) so the parks are usually packed pretty much every day.

I use both TouringPlans.com and easywdw.com. The former for their touring plans and the later for park selection. The explanation he gives for each day's recommendations help clarify a lot of questions, especially if you are debating going against the recommendations. At least you can't say you weren't forewarned.

And yes, generally speaking, if you don't have park hoppers and/or if you are an offsite guest, it's best to avoid the EMH parks. Get to the park before opening every morning and try to maximize your use of the fastpass in order to avoid long lines.

 

[mtmbyck]

Both touring plans and tourism Mike require a subscription which I am not interested in unfortunately. But easy WDW was very helpful so thank you for the suggestion!

 

[ReluctantDisaholic]

We used easywdw for this past March Break - 2 other groups of people we know didn't use anything. Both complained they didn't get to do anything and say they'll never do March Break there again, the crowds were horrible, etc...we had a great time and did everything we wanted to do several times, and didn't find the crowds nearly as bad as we expected. We're definitely using Josh's recommendations again on our 2013 trip.

 

[Ted in Halifax]

Try undercover tourist. They have a crowd calculator for free.

 

[mollyseven]

I dont know why but I don't think that march break is bad at all. Maybe it's because we've been at Christmas and Star Wars weekends and so march doesn't seem bad. We really like late park hours, they never seem as bad as the daytime during peak weeks. We go in the morning and leave by noon....go back after dinner and stay for late hours. Lower your expectations of what you WILL do and just take it day by day.....do what you can and what you can't do , just move on. I just think WE ARE STILL AT DISNEY so relax and be happy.