Considerations for days to visit different parks

[LKing]

We (2 adults) will be at WDW in April, 2025. We're doing four days, one park per day, no hopper. We'll be there Sat, Sun, Mon, Tue, Wed.

Questions:
Are there shows that are only on specific days that time of year?
Are some parks more crowded on certain days of the week? For example, in California, the parks are more crowded on Mondays than on Saturdays.
Is there any other strategy to consider when deciding which order to visit the parks? We haven't been to WDW in 15+ years, but go to Disneyland several times a month. Because of that, we don't need to start with MK to feel that we've arrived. Also, we can skip Disneyland duplicates such as SWGE.

 

[ST1TCH]

That's a hard call. Granted we just got back from a weeklong trip at WDW and I felt like I picked the wrong park each day.

It's been said that MK is busiest on Mondays but I would expect that on weekends as well. The idea being people start their vacation on Monday? I would think they would start on Saturday, but So maybe MK on Tue or Wed?

If Epcot has a festival in April, weekends will likely be very busy as well for the festival booths, etc.

But then you're left with the notion that ALL parks would be busy on the weekend.

I would check historical data for the time in April you're going. If it's been historically slow and school is still in session (no spring break, holidays, etc.) then it may be good all around.

 

[LKing]

I would check historical data for the time in April you're going. If it's been historically slow and school is still in session (no spring break, holidays, etc.) then it may be good all around.

Thank you for your response. How much do I rely on historical data when Easter was March 31, 2024 and will be on April 20, 2025. I'll be there in between those two dates.

When looking at spring breaks, does each school district has a different spring break? Since Easter is so late, am I correct when I assume that public schools will have their break sometime in March?

 

[Laura's Dad]

Thank you for your response. How much do I rely on historical data when Easter was March 31, 2024 and will be on April 20, 2025. I'll be there in between those two dates.

When looking at spring breaks, does each school district has a different spring break? Since Easter is so late, am I correct when I assume that public schools will have their break sometime in March?

It usually varies, but most public schools usually have spring breaks the first or second week of April. Most colleges have their spring breaks the second and third week of March.

 

[ak517]

For crowd estimates I also recommend looking at historical data, for instance I like Touring Plans and Tom Bricker's (Disney Tourist Blog) best and worst times to go to WDW. Once closer to the date, I try to track crowds and plan lightning lanes based on Thrill Data. RunDisney's Springtime Surprise is April 3-6 which will affect crowds due to attendance. The parks calendars are posted 60 days out and will include info on the shows, but I would expect operations as usual except for nights when there are special ticketed events like After Hours events which are posted ahead of time online.

 

[DizneyFamof4]

I live in the Florida and the majority of Florida schools spring break is normally the 3rd week of March.

 

[BlueGreen5]

We (2 adults) will be at WDW in April, 2025. We're doing four days, one park per day, no hopper. We'll be there Sat, Sun, Mon, Tue, Wed.

Questions:
Are there shows that are only on specific days that time of year?
Are some parks more crowded on certain days of the week? For example, in California, the parks are more crowded on Mondays than on Saturdays.
Is there any other strategy to consider when deciding which order to visit the parks? We haven't been to WDW in 15+ years, but go to Disneyland several times a month. Because of that, we don't need to start with MK to feel that we've arrived. Also, we can skip Disneyland duplicates such as SWGE.

You're most likely going to run into a number of school districts' spring break between April 1 and April 20. It's impossible to know because, unlike DLR, WDW has a much larger contingency of folks who travel across the country relative to the local crowd. My children go to public school (we're out east; not in Florida) and their spring break does still coincide with Easter. But, we know others who have spring break in early April. WDW is going to be crowded, but that's okay, just accept it and don't dwell.

During early April, I doubt there will be any shows that only run on certain days. That practice - to the extent it happens, which is rare at WDW - is generally relegated to the lowest capacity times of the year.

MK is the only park that somewhat fluctuates based on the day of the week, and even that trend is weakening (again, due to the fact that a majority of the people there have traveled, taken off work/school, etc.). I would venture a guess that I've been in MK for over 50 days in the past 10 years and I can't recall a single time when I said "oh, it must be a ___day." Day-to-day crowd fluctuations, to the extent they exist anymore, just aren't that extreme to be noticeable. Holidays and extreme weather events, however, can cause them to fluctuate pretty wildly and noticeably. You shouldn't experience either in early April.

Definitely skip the DLR duplicates that aren't on your must-do, every time list - we actually plan to do the same when we are at DLR next year (I think you've responded to some of my questions about DLR haha!). Definitely don't worry about a hopper either - we've done them so many times and each time I ask myself "was that really worth it, or did we just spend all that time to hop because we needed to justify the cost?" The only time a hopper really makes sense, IMO, is 1) if you plan to knock out a ton of table service options while you're there, 2) there's a park that has just like one must-do attraction and you're going to spend maybe an hour there and then not go back, or 3) you are walking distance from a park (like Contemporary or Beach Club) and plan to go into the park every night for dinner or fireworks, regardless of where you spent the rest of the day.

As far as order goes, I don't know that there's a good strategy. It's based on your preference. MK is going to be physically and mentally draining, and will certainly be a 1+ day affair, just like Disneyland. HS is going to be a lot of waiting in line. EPCOT is going to be peaceful and enjoyable, even if it's a busier day. And it doens't seem like there's going to be a ton left at AK by April due to some major planned construction (it's still a really cool park because of the animals, and Pandora is a sight to see, but there's just not a ton of rides or shows). So, plan those out however works best for you and don't fret about whether you did it in the right order.

Have so much fun! Where are you staying?

 

[Tom_E_D]

Thank you for your response. How much do I rely on historical data when Easter was March 31, 2024 and will be on April 20, 2025. I'll be there in between those two dates.

When looking at spring breaks, does each school district has a different spring break? Since Easter is so late, am I correct when I assume that public schools will have their break sometime in March?

Many school districts mean many different spring breaks. There is probably a school district somewhere that has a spring break every week between President's Day week and the end of April. That doesn't mean they are evenly distributed. The weeks before and after Easter always have quite a few school districts. Where I live, it's always the week after Easter, even when Easter is late. But I live in Upstate New York. The big Florida school districts are perhaps more relevant. FWIW, the Tampa and Orlando school districts are the week of March 17-21 in 2025 while Miami is March 24-31 (yes, it includes the second Monday). But that raises the question of whether you have to avoid all those spring breaks. In 2024, the week the Orlando schools had spring break had a big drop in WDW attendance (as measured by wait times) from the prior and subsequent weeks. In deciding when I want to go this spring, I'm wondering if that might continue and if I can take advantage of it. I'm afraid others might think the same thing, or else Disney may make an adjustment to increase attendance that week. I think the first two weeks in April will be less crowded than the two weeks before and the two weeks after them. You should be okay. I am considering those weeks too.

You look at historical data not by blindly looking at dates on the calendar, but by adjusting for the change in the date of Easter.

 

[M23F5]

Many schools in the NE have the week after Easter off including all MA public schools. That being said, I have been there during that break which is always aligned with Presidents’ Day and it was typical busy and not crazy busy. Not sure how Easter will affect that this year.

 

[Chris Ehlers]

Sign up and pay for Touring Plans. They have a Crowd Meter guide to tell you want park days to plan around @lentesta

 

[Tom_E_D]

You're most likely going to run into a number of school districts' spring break between April 1 and April 20. It's impossible to know because, unlike DLR, WDW has a much larger contingency of folks who travel across the country relative to the local crowd. My children go to public school (we're out east; not in Florida) and their spring break does still coincide with Easter. But, we know others who have spring break in early April. WDW is going to be crowded, but that's okay, just accept it and don't dwell.

During early April, I doubt there will be any shows that only run on certain days. That practice - to the extent it happens, which is rare at WDW - is generally relegated to the lowest capacity times of the year.

MK is the only park that somewhat fluctuates based on the day of the week, and even that trend is weakening (again, due to the fact that a majority of the people there have traveled, taken off work/school, etc.). I would venture a guess that I've been in MK for over 50 days in the past 10 years and I can't recall a single time when I said "oh, it must be a ___day." Day-to-day crowd fluctuations, to the extent they exist anymore, just aren't that extreme to be noticeable. Holidays and extreme weather events, however, can cause them to fluctuate pretty wildly and noticeably. You shouldn't experience either in early April.

Definitely skip the DLR duplicates that aren't on your must-do, every time list - we actually plan to do the same when we are at DLR next year (I think you've responded to some of my questions about DLR haha!). Definitely don't worry about a hopper either - we've done them so many times and each time I ask myself "was that really worth it, or did we just spend all that time to hop because we needed to justify the cost?" The only time a hopper really makes sense, IMO, is 1) if you plan to knock out a ton of table service options while you're there, 2) there's a park that has just like one must-do attraction and you're going to spend maybe an hour there and then not go back, or 3) you are walking distance from a park (like Contemporary or Beach Club) and plan to go into the park every night for dinner or fireworks, regardless of where you spent the rest of the day.

As far as order goes, I don't know that there's a good strategy. It's based on your preference. MK is going to be physically and mentally draining, and will certainly be a 1+ day affair, just like Disneyland. HS is going to be a lot of waiting in line. EPCOT is going to be peaceful and enjoyable, even if it's a busier day. And it doens't seem like there's going to be a ton left at AK by April due to some major planned construction (it's still a really cool park because of the animals, and Pandora is a sight to see, but there's just not a ton of rides or shows). So, plan those out however works best for you and don't fret about whether you did it in the right order.

Have so much fun! Where are you staying?

While not relevant to an April trip, I think there is another time when having park hoppers makes sense, namely party season. On party days, you can go to MK for the morning and early afternoon, enjoy low crowds, then hop elsewhere when they let the party goers into the park in late afternoon and it gets crowded. Want to see the MK fireworks on one of the non-party days? Spend the early part of the day elsewhere, then hop to MK in time for the fireworks.

 

[LKing]

While not relevant to an April trip, I think there is another time when having park hoppers makes sense, namely party season. On party days, you can go to MK for the morning and early afternoon, enjoy low crowds, then hop elsewhere when they let the party goers into the park in late afternoon and it gets crowded. Want to see the MK fireworks on one of the non-party days? Spend the early part of the day elsewhere, then hop to MK in time for the fireworks.

I appreciate your help. MK is probably the least important park to us as it is most similar to Disneyland. The last time we went, we only spent a half day there. While it might be fun to compare Pirates, Small World or Tiana's, if we don't ride them it isn't the end of the world.

@BrianL created a great list comparing the two parks. This is what I am basing my priorities on. If you have any additional insight, I would appreciate it.

So, plan those out however works best for you and don't fret about whether you did it in the right order.

Have so much fun! Where are you staying?

Thanks for your detailed response. If there is no general trend then I am not going to worry about it.

We will be in town for a conference and will stay off site at the Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress. We have enough points to make the accomodations free. We figure we'll spend the money saved on LLMP, SP, etc. Shoot, since it is only two of us, we could even spring for LLPP if it were open to off site guests.

I'm looking into other experiences that might be unique to WDW - tours, shows, etc. Let me know if you have any suggestions. And let me know if you have any additional questions about your trip to Disneyland.

 

[Tom_E_D]

I appreciate your help. MK is probably the least important park to us as it is most similar to Disneyland. The last time we went, we only spent a half day there. While it might be fun to compare Pirates, Small World or Tiana's, if we don't ride them it isn't the end of the world.

@BrianL created a great list comparing the two parks. This is what I am basing my priorities on. If you have any additional insight, I would appreciate it.

I've only visited DL/DCA once and not everything was open when I was there (January 2023). So, in general, I will defer to @BrianL with regard to how similar the rides in the parks are (with an exception noted below).

I like most roller coasters, so I'd say to do all the WDW ones if you like roller coasters. If by "comparable," @BrianL means Rock N Roller and Incredicoaster are similar, I disagree. They are certainly both fast and have inversions, but there are notable differences too. One is outdoors with one inversion and runs for 2:36, the other is indoors in the dark with three inversions and runs for 1:22. One has Aerosmith; the other has Jack Jack! I love Incredicoaster. I've stopped riding Rock n Roller; the fast start has become too much for me. Nevertheless, I recommend you try it at least once. My new favorite roller coaster is Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind. Don't miss it.

In addition to the roller coasters, I'd call Avatar Flight of Passage a must do. My most recommended shows are Festival of the Lion King at AK and the Indiana Jones Stunt Show at HS, although I usually do at least some of the other shows at both of those parks. Take a Safari ride. And most importantly, enjoy yourselves.

 

[BrianL]

I've only visited DL/DCA once and not everything was open when I was there (January 2023). So, in general, I will defer to @BrianL with regard to how similar the rides in the parks are (with an exception noted below).

I like most roller coasters, so I'd say to do all the WDW ones if you like roller coasters. If by "comparable," @BrianL means Rock N Roller and Incredicoaster are similar, I disagree. They are certainly both fast and have inversions, but there are notable differences too. One is outdoors with one inversion and runs for 2:36, the other is indoors in the dark with three inversions and runs for 1:22. One has Aerosmith; the other has Jack Jack! I love Incredicoaster. I've stopped riding Rock n Roller; the fast start has become too much for me. Nevertheless, I recommend you try it at least once. My new favorite roller coaster is Guardians of the Galaxy: Cosmic Rewind. Don't miss it.

In addition to the roller coasters, I'd call Avatar Flight of Passage a must do. My most recommended shows are Festival of the Lion King at AK and the Indiana Jones Stunt Show at HS, although I usually do at least some of the other shows at both of those parks. Take a Safari ride. And most importantly, enjoy yourselves.

I only meant that is is comprable in the thrill-level - shoulder harness, inversions, LIM launch. The overal experience is very different.

 

[loves to dive]

F&G will be happening at Epcot so you might try to avoid it on Sat. night. It can get very crowded and a tad bit rowdy on Sat. festival nights and on Sat. and Suns. in general since that is when some locals go.

Keep in mind AK closes early, way before all the other parks, it also opens earlier so plan for that. Some attractions close earlier than others there as well. Check the times when you arrive. I always have hoppers/AP so I can hop over to another park for the evening but you will have that time to either explore DS or just relax at your hotel.

Not park related but the weather can be all over the place in April. It is the start of the rainy season so always have some sort of rain gear on you. It can be hottish some days (I'm from Georgia so hot is relative but let's say over 80 for hottish) and coolish on other days. I've had to wear a light jacket/sweater on some mornings and evenings during April, especially earlier in the month. Again, Georgia girl so anything under 70 is border line cold for me.

 

[LKing]

F&G will be happening at Epcot so you might try to avoid it on Sat. night. It can get very crowded and a tad bit rowdy on Sat. festival nights and on Sat. and Suns. in general since that is when some locals go.

Keep in mind AK closes early, way before all the other parks, it also opens earlier so plan for that. Some attractions close earlier than others there as well. Check the times when you arrive. I always have hoppers/AP so I can hop over to another park for the evening but you will have that time to either explore DS or just relax at your hotel.

Not park related but the weather can be all over the place in April. It is the start of the rainy season so always have some sort of rain gear on you. It can be hottish some days (I'm from Georgia so hot is relative but let's say over 80 for hottish) and coolish on other days. I've had to wear a light jacket/sweater on some mornings and evenings during April, especially earlier in the month. Again, Georgia girl so anything under 70 is border line cold for me.

Thank you, that's what I was looking for. I'll tentatively plan on doing EPCOT and MK on weekdays. If they announce evening events, I'll modify my plans.

 

[Simba's Mom]

But then you're left with the notion that ALL parks would be busy on the weekend.

I would check historical data for the time in April you're going. If it's been historically slow and school is still in session (no spring break, holidays, etc.) then it may be good all around.

That's what I was thinking when we went-that all the parks were busy on the weekends. But we found that Saturday's a good day for Animal Kingdom and Sunday's a good day for Hollywood Studios, especially in the morning. And any day when MK is closing early (for an after hours event usually) is a good day to go there-unless you're night people!
After our son had gone to WDW many times, when he went out to Disneyland to work in the All American College Band, he was amazed at how short Main Street was. When he got to the castle, he thought "I'm here already?" Did you have the opposite feeling at WDW?

 

[Northern Disney Girl]

We (2 adults) will be at WDW in April, 2025. We're doing four days, one park per day, no hopper. We'll be there Sat, Sun, Mon, Tue, Wed.

Questions:
Are there shows that are only on specific days that time of year?
Are some parks more crowded on certain days of the week? For example, in California, the parks are more crowded on Mondays than on Saturdays.
Is there any other strategy to consider when deciding which order to visit the parks? We haven't been to WDW in 15+ years, but go to Disneyland several times a month. Because of that, we don't need to start with MK to feel that we've arrived. Also, we can skip Disneyland duplicates such as SWGE.

This is my recommendation based on years of personal research

Saturday- DHS
Sunday - MK
Monday- rest/resort/disney springs
Tuesday- EPCOT
Wednesday- AK

You can also look at thrill-data.comLook at the pages for each park and scroll down to the very bottom of the page to the graphs that show the best days of the week for that park.