Can someone please tell me about the Darkside in January

[Kristine316]

I am having a really tough time figuring out our 2014 vacation.

We have been to Orlando three times and this will be our fourth trip. It will be our second trip to Universal as we skipped it the first couple Disney trips.

I thought we had decided to head west and go to DLR but, I am getting major push back from members of the family who just aren't open to the idea.

I am thinking the end of January into the first week in February. Our very first trip we went to Disney during those two weeks and it was magical. The weather was amazing, the crowds were very low.. it was perfect in many ways.

However... in just a few years it seems things have changed and from what I am reading the crowds are busier during that period at Disney and you also have more Tour Groups than ever.

So.. what can I expect from Universal during this time period? Is it similar to Disney crowd wise and are there tons of Tour Groups to contend with?

We are staying onsite. We stayed at HRH last trip and even though the parks were pretty quiet anyway (September) it was still really nice to just walk on everything.. and we did literally walk on everything with EP. That sort of experience spoils a person, so its definitely onsite this trip too.

Is Universal crowds in September similar to January...? Does Universal have ride closures that time of year like Disney does?

Thanks for the help!

 

[Metro West]

The fact that you are staying onsite erases any problems like tour groups that you might have...for the most part. Crowds are not a concern so go and have a blast!

 

[RMulieri]

Crowds aren't bad at all..there are TONS OF TOUR GROUPS..Staying onsite takes away most of the headaches they cause.You will have early entry/resort guest express pass.Most of the tourgroups have neither.Its easy to avoid them that way.You stilll will deal with them during the shows though.I will tell you that in my experience with them at Uni, Uni employees are much LESS likely to put up with their shenanigans..I saw a couple of incidents where the Tms put a stop to their bad behavior almost immediately

 

[Gamegrl1]

I haven't been to WDW yet...we'll be taking our first trip there in January 2014 the same dates you mentioned (that's what caught my eye). So I can't address the Universal crowd levels, but I have also been reading about the FTG's and how unpleasant they can be with the increased crowds and bad behavior like line-cutting and general rowdiness, so I did some research to try and avoid that.

A PP on another thread said that, at least in South America, the FTG's travel during Carnival in large numbers. The dates of Carnival are different from year to year and even from city to city (during a year). For example, an internet search revealed these dates for Carnival in 2014 in several major cities:

Rio: February 28th until March 4th
Trinidad & Tobago: March 3-4
Bogota, Columbia: March 1 to March 4, 2014
Caracas, Venezuela: late February / early March

So if you go the last week in January, they won't be on vacation yet. This is what I'm banking on - I've already got the flights and park tix!

Also the 2014 Cheerleading Championship will be held February 8 – 9, 2014 at WDW. A co-worker who goes to WDW frequently seems to feel this doesn't have a negative impact on crowd size at the Disney parks because apparently the cheerleaders are mostly at DTD (?). But to be on the safe side I wanted to avoid these dates too because I read on these boards that the FTG's and cheerleaders tend to stay at the Value Resorts (which is where we're staying because of the cost).

So I hope this helps but bear in mind it's research and word-of-mouth, not personal experience. I guess we just go with our best attitudes and we'll have a great time anyway!

 

[MinnieLovesMickey12]

I have been during the last week of January first week of February and the weather and crowds are great. It's actually my favorite time to go. I prefer milder temps and lower crowds.