conflicting reports

[bonkos6]

I have read conflicting reports on how busy Mondays are at Magic Kingdom. Some say is the busiest day and others say your should visit it on Mon. What are your thoughts?

 

[Luv4Disney]

I usually avoid Mondays however it might not be that bad because generally the EMH for MK are Wednesday's and Friday's. However, I've heard Monday's are generally busy because people usually arrive on Sunday and hit up MK as their first park the next day. I don't know! I guess it depends on what time of year as well. You could always go, and if it's too busy, hop to another park. But for me, I think I scheduled Epcot on my Monday.

 

[bethzfl]

I stressed about "which day of the week is best" for what park last year.. and man, it just made me nuts. Finally I just let my bf choose where we went everyday and had a fantastic time. Crowds are everywhere if you're going during a crowded season. Im not saying this in a rude way.. just a heads up cause I went crazy trying to figure it out last year.

 

[JoannaOhio]

At www.touringplans.com, you can click on a link to the best days to visit which parks throughout 2005. I noticed that they recommend MK or AK on most Mondays - partly because it is an EMH day at Epcot. We'll be in Florida from December 19-31. Since this guide lists the crowd levels at 2 ("very light crowd conditions") for Monday the 19th, we're planning to go to MK that day. Even if a lot of the people arriving on Sunday head for MK on Monday, it should still be less crowded that day than later in the week. As it gets closer to Christmas Day, the expected crowds increase by at least one level per day.

Our last trip to WDW was for the last two weeks of December 2000. We went to MK on Monday, and again a few days later. Monday was a breeze compared to the later day - even though the crowds were still manageable.

 

[Miss Inga Depointe]

All I can tell you is my own perception and we avoid Monday Morning in the MK like the plague. I've read that it's bad because people are just starting their vacation and tend to start off with the MK. And it certainly seems like it to me. When we have been there Monday Morning we have always thought it was just the worst!

 

[kilee]

The new EMH schedule can really have an affect on things too. So, the old standby's may or may not be "true". I know for our April trip--- it's really looking like we're doing the MK on a Monday.

 

[anabelle]

TGM says avoid and UG says it's the best day. Does Mike just go on gut? I know that UG does all kinds of algorithms....

 

[Dznefreek]

Historically Monday is the busiest followed by Saturday, then Thursday.

 

[Synonymous]

TGM says avoid and UG says it's the best day. Does Mike just go on gut? I know that UG does all kinds of algorithms....

TGM bases his advice on his experience as a tour guide.

 

[henrylovespooh]

I was at MK on Monday of last week and it was pretty crowded. I thought it was worse than the EMH morning day later in the week.

 

[2infinityandbeyond]

TGM says avoid and UG says it's the best day. Does Mike just go on gut? I know that UG does all kinds of algorithms....

Have you subscribed to TGM? Are you familiar with the user agreement?

 

[danny1649]

Have a basic plan and use Fast Pass I think you can do Monday at MK and have a great time.

 

[Wishing on a star]

When making any decision, you have to:
Look at where the info. is coming from...

Many of the sources who say that Mondays can be very busy, are those who are speaking from personal experience. I have heard this time and again, from WDW visitors, CMs, etc....

Many of the sources who do not warn about Mondays are those who are going by 'algorithms'. We all know that statistics and assumptions can be used and twisted to back up any argument. There are too many variables here. For example, when the WDW guest are mostly family vacationers (during the peak vacation seasons...) then the assumption that Mondays would be the natural first choice following their weekend arrival might hold true. During times when the WDW guests are made up of more local traffic, and adults without school-aged kids, etc... Then this may NOT hold true... Also, the assumption that the EMH schedule would mean that MK would be less busy on Monday may well be just that, an assumption. Remember, many many people seek to avoid the EMH days... (off-site guests... guest who do not want to wake their family at the crack of dawn... etc....) Also, remember, that Disney has designed and chosen this EMH schedule to try to alleviate the natural crowds... In other words, if MK is indeed already usually busy on Mondays, then yes, they would choose to make the EMH on Wednesday, and attempt to try to draw EMH guests to another Park. They would NOT make the EMH at MK on Monday, which could possibly make crowding worse.

Personally, I go by the personal observations... followed by the logic above.

Also, about TGM, I have read all the promotional material about his site. He is supposed to be a Disney Veteran of many many years... former Disney VIP tour guide.... etc. Which would indicate a preponderance of personal experience. I would assume that this is why folks pay for his service. I would consider any comments mentioned to be both 'hear-say' and/or 'proprietary information'. Yep, both 'hear-say' and/or 'proprietary information'.

If somebody is inclined to believe TGM, and would like to learn more, then they should go sign-up for his site!

Remember, as many posters here often say... The advice here might be worth just what you paid for it!

 

[bdsmommy]

Ok, forgive me, I'm a rookie, what is EMH? TIA!!

 

[Wishing on a star]

It is the ExtraMagicHour(s) where the Parks are open only to WDW Resort Guests. Those staying on-site at a Disney Resort property.

They used to just have where the Park opened earlier to resort guests... But now they have both EMH mornings and EMH evenings (Park stays open later for resort guests.)

 

[DebbieB]

I was there this past Monday and MK was the most crowded I have ever seen it. Huge lines to get in at 10:00am. At noon, most of the popular rides were 55 minute waits. Fantasyland was wall to wall people. Even Snow White had a long line!

 

[ksjayhawkfan]

When we go in June we leave on Monday. I was planning on going to MK on character hunting missions, no rides. Is that a bad idea?

 

[mittelst]

Bumping to get recent reports for Monday MK attendance...

 

[waughzee]

I was at the MK last Monday and it was busy!!

 

[lentesta]

Just to clarify the Unofficial Guide's approach: we do a couple of things to come up with the 'best days' recommendation:

First, we check the wait times in the parks for a full week at a time. If there's a more direct way to determine crowd levels (and thus best days), I don't know what it is. For the Magic Kingdom, as an example, we've perfomed three weeklong surveys of the wait times at all of the attractions so far this year. We collect those wait times every thirty minutes, from park opening until late afternoon. A single measurement (e.g., "I was at the Magic Kingdom on x day, and it was really crowded!") doesn't really say much about anything, as it's not compared with the rest of the week.

Second, we've recently completed a survey of more than 350 families visiting WDW since January 2, 2005, when the new EMH schedule went into effect. Those families spent more than 1,100 "vacation days" in Walt Disney World. By a large margin, this survey shows that Saturday is the second-least visited day in the park (Tuesday is the slowest).

Third, we checked with the Department of Transportation to see what they could tell us about the driving habits of Americans on vacation. For short trips (< 500 miles), Saturday and Sunday are the most frequent days of travel. For trips of 501 to 1,000 miles, Friday and Saturday appear to be the most common travel days. Adding it all up, and we're fairly certain Saturday's the most common travel date. As driving accounts for more than 90% of domestic leisure travel, this is important.

Finally, we checked with several DTD hotels to see which days of the week generally have the highest occupancy rates, going on the assumption that more people in DTD resorts = higher crowds. (Saturday is the highest, FWIW).

I'm aware that other methods may be used to forecast the "best days," including time spent in the parks. From my perspective, it would be exceedingly difficult to remember enough data over a long-enough period of time, to be able to make anything more that a guess as to future park conditions. I mean, I've lived near Greensboro, North Carolina for almost 18 years. When I want to know what the weather's going to be like here next week, I don't rely on my memory of past mid-March rainfall, barometric pressure, and temperatures. I check with a weatherman, who's got access to historical data, trends, and models. The Unofficial Guide does the same thing with theme parks.

Hope this helps.

Len