Crowd Caledars...Are Not Close!!!

[auralia]

easy wdw was deff. off for our first week of April trip. The day that was supposed to be the slowest our week at magic kingdom was def not. I think that was the busiest day at magic kingdom I saw all week. def didn't line up with what he said this run, touring plans was closer than he was.

 

[AngiTN]

Crowd calendars still have a very important part for me.
Even if the numbers are off they are still right about most recommended parks vs. least recommended parks.
I only use EasyWDW.
I find the others wrong more than his.
Last week I felt their were spot on to my expectation of moderate crowds. So they aren't totally useless

 

[AngiTN]

easy wdw was deff. off for our first week of April trip. The day that was supposed to be the slowest our week at magic kingdom was def not. I think that was the busiest day at magic kingdom I saw all week. def didn't line up with what he said this run, touring plans was closer than he was.

That's because for some reason no one planned on late, namely Atlanta, spring break impact. Disney was caught off guard and didn't staff accordingly. The following week things were perfectly in line, both with waits and crowds. I assume because they planned for the increases brought by the Marching Bands in town and the race participants in town.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Josh has said, for the fall stuff, that all his calendars are roughly useless until we have some idea of what's happening with Galatic Spectacular and with Rivers of Whatever. Anyone who claims they know what it'll look like right now is deluded.

 

[5DisneyNuts]

Yes, I totally agree. With FD hanging in the balance for the Saturday before Thanksgiving if that does come into play, will probably have to make reservations before anything is settled and wing it.

Josh has said, for the fall stuff, that all his calendars are roughly useless until we have some idea of what's happening with Galatic Spectacular and with Rivers of Whatever. Anyone who claims they know what it'll look like right now is deluded.

 

[Delirium]

A crowd level 5 will seem heavy for someone looking for a level 1 or 2.

That same crowd level 5 will seem like heaven for someone that normally visit when the level is 9 or 10.

Park recommendations by the bloggers are much more valuable than crowd level estimations.

 

[MainMom]

I am helping a friend plan her thanksgiving week trip and am making my very type a color coded calendar for her. I consulted Kenny the Pirate's and UnderCover Tourist's calendars and a few of the days they are in total conflict with one another. For our early March trip I used UT, but crowds were fairly low anyway and I didn't consult other calendars. I'd love some input on which one is usually the most accurate! Thanks!

Tell your friend to expect heavy crowds. Plan for heavy crowds. If they aren't as heavy as you/they expect, Bonus!

 

[_auroraborealis_]

I think a lot of people also don't really know what the mid-tier crowd numbers mean.

A 1 is easy, a 10 is easy. Those 4-6 range can mean a lot of things, and what people expect of a 5 is highly variable.

 

[Anal Annie]

I also swear by Josh's easywdw calendars and find that they're usually pretty accurate - and I would rather wait for them to be accurate than estimated - but if they're not published in time it makes it difficult to plan parks & ADR's at 6 months etc. I think Disney has been complicating things by changing park hours at sort of the last minute and not announcing firm dates for new things. Relying on "coming this summer" or "opening in June" just isn't working for me for planning my next trip (in June). Because of there being too many things in limbo I'm not planning as many ADR's ahead of time. They complicate moving things around so I'd rather just wing it for most of our meals. The OP can only do so much planning for her friend right now. Book the very hardest to get ADR's at 180 days then wait on the rest until the calendars are updated.

 

[LvsTnk]

Josh is my go to but couldn't use him for my last trip in Dec with nothing filled in for the last weeks of the month 60 days out had to go with Kenny and I was very happy with how that turned out. Using him again for July and probably will look and see what Josh has as well.

 

[serenitynow]

Josh has said, for the fall stuff, that all his calendars are roughly useless until we have some idea of what's happening with Galatic Spectacular and with Rivers of Whatever. Anyone who claims they know what it'll look like right now is deluded.

Plus even if you don't need the crowd calendars, go to the site for the humor and snark!

 

[lolcow]

I think a lot of people also don't really know what the mid-tier crowd numbers mean.

A 1 is easy, a 10 is easy. Those 4-6 range can mean a lot of things, and what people expect of a 5 is highly variable.

Exactly. My dates are crowd 5-6 which is average but what does that even mean? (Rhetorical question.) As far as I can see, some rides will always have very long waits; Toy Story and 7 Dwarves.

 

[agavegirl1]

Ignore crowd calendars for now and begin planning with some general guidelines. Get to the parks at rope drop, go to the park that does not have morning EMH (unless you are hopping) etc. For ideas on when to ride, check out Josh's wait times analyses for a high crowd day.

 

[damskipi13]

I always recommend Josh's crowd calendars at easywdw. Very reliable

Another vote for Josh. I compare 3 crowd calendars but when they conflict I go with him. He hasn't let me down yet.

A crowd level 5 will seem heavy for someone looking for a level 1 or 2.

That same crowd level 5 will seem like heaven for someone that normally visit when the level is 9 or 10.

Park recommendations by the bloggers are much more valuable than crowd level estimations.

Also wildly important to remember. I've talked to other people in the same park on the same day and our impressions of the crowds were very different. It's also important to remember that someone who spends the whole day doing TSMM, 7Dwarves, princess M&Gs, etc is going to have a very different experience than someone who likes to do Haunted Mansion and walk around World Showcase. It's all perspective.